Ming Dynasty: Empress Ma and I swapped clothes!

Chapter 90 The Clay Figurines of Little Anqing and Little Ningguo

After their excitement subsided, Zhu Shuang immediately hooked his arm around his younger brother Zhu Gang's neck and began to coax him: "Little San, now that you've got so much money, how are you planning to spend it?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gang couldn't think of anything for a moment.

After all, he had never imagined that he would one day be able to obtain so much money; before, he probably only thought about it occasionally in his dreams.

"Second brother, how do you plan to spend the money?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Shuang burst into laughter: "Little San, you've come to the right person! Who exactly did we benefit from this time to earn so much money?"

Zhu Shuang began to patiently persuade him, and upon hearing this, Zhu Gang naturally replied, "Of course, it's because of Mother that we've earned so much money. So this time, we must repay Mother properly."

Yes, that's right.

Hearing his silly younger brother's words, Zhu Shuang was overjoyed. "So let's go buy a gift for Mother. What do you think of this idea?"

In that case, if Mother has another way next time, she will definitely take us with her.

"Mistress, what do you think?"

"OK."

Without saying a word, Zhu Gang immediately agreed.

"As expected of my good brother, Zhu Shuang's own brother. I knew that when we brothers are of one mind, our strength can break metal. We're definitely on the same page."

"Should we tell Xiao Si too? After all, he's our own brother."

Zhu Gang said.

Zhu Shuang immediately shook his head vigorously, saying, "There's no need for that. The more people there are, the less credit we'll get. If Mother takes both of us with her next time, Father and Mother will probably reward us with even more money."

"Three hundred taels, five hundred taels, one thousand taels."

At this moment, Zhu Shuang, without any formal instruction, painted a huge, round pie in front of his younger brother, Zhu Gang, who was so confused that he almost lost his bearings.

His small eyes lit up, as if he couldn't wait to work hard with his second brother in front of him, and no one could stop him.

However, this time, the two of them will not be able to leave the palace.

They could only ask their trusted maids and eunuchs to help them pick out good items when they went out shopping.

This way, it would be plausible and truly conform to the rules of the palace.

……

"Anqing, Ningguo, what are you doing?"

In the Imperial Garden, Ma Xiuying bent down to look at the two little mushroom-headed girls and asked them a question.

"The Empress Dowager found out. You should learn from your second and third brothers and not call her Empress Dowager, but Mother."

"My second and third brothers said that we should only call her 'Mother' when there are outsiders around, and 'Mother' when there are no outsiders around. Calling her 'Mother' sounds more intimate."

"No, no, Third Brother said before that he should call her Mother. Mother sounds more affectionate."

"If we call Mother 'Mother,' then should Father call him 'Emperor'?"

"No, Father is very fierce. You can't call him Father, you can only call him Emperor."

When Xiao Anqing and Xiao Ningguo saw Ma Xiuying, their little heads panicked, and in a burst of childish, uninhibited chatter, they blurted out everything that was on their minds.

Upon hearing this, Ma Xiuying felt both amused and exasperated, but in her heart she couldn't help but mutter to herself: Empress, Mother, Mother, Mother, these are just ordinary and unremarkable titles.

But it also seems to reflect the individual thoughts of her children.

Children's thoughts are easy to discern; you can glean something from their words, unlike adults, who, unless you can read their minds, you won't get anything out of them.

"Then... Mother."

Anqing tried calling out.

This was very different from the rules of the palace she had followed since childhood, so she was somewhat timid and a little scared.

Until Ma Xiuying nodded gently.

Only then did she show an excited expression, as if calling her "mother" did indeed sound more intimate and made them feel like a family.

After Anqing finished trying, she lowered her head again and said to Xiao Ningguo beside her, "Sister, what Third Brother said is right. The palace maids and eunuchs in the palace call their mothers that at home."

"It sounds pretty good."

"That's right. Third brother would never lie to us normally, unlike second brother who is so bad and bullies us from time to time."

Xiao Ningguo puffed out his cheeks, seemingly not having a very good impression of his older brother Zhu Shuang.

But Xiao Anqing continued, "What about Fourth Brother?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ningguo immediately shook his head and said, "Fourth brother is too fierce, and he follows the Crown Prince around all day long. It's not fun at all. Second brother is much better."

The two little mushroom-headed boys recounted the entire situation within the Zhu family in their conversation, which also caused Ma Xiuying to fall into deep thought.

Previously.

She hadn't really thought that much about it, but now it seems that she was indeed negligent.

"Look, Mother, this is the little clay figure I made. Mother taught me how to make it before. What do you think? I made Mother. Isn't it beautiful and lovely?"

Xiao Anqing said it like a child.

Ma Xiuying came to her senses and looked at the little clay figurines on the stone table. They were quite nice, each holding a small spear and full of spirit.

Next up is Xiaoningguo.

Ningguo also sculpted his mother, but it was the mother his third brother had mentioned outside the palace.

They said that her mother was dressed in ordinary, coarse cloth clothes, not white, and that what she held in her hand was not a gun, but a rolling pin, which she used specifically to hit her third brother.

"Ha ha ha ha."

Although Xiao Ningguo is clearly the older sister at this moment, when she says this, she seems more like the younger sister.

Xiao Anqing was unconvinced by this, so he said, "This is also the mother outside the palace, but it was said by my second brother. He said that my mother was holding a long spear and chased away the wild dogs in the village that had frightened my second and third brothers. My second brother even said that he had frightened Mother."

"Little Anqing doesn't believe it. Little Anqing is very smart, not a child."

"Mother, don't you think so?"

Next, the two little mushroom-headed boys eagerly awaited Ma Xiuying's approval.

Ma Xiuying was in a daze for a moment, then looked at the two lifelike little clay figures in front of her, and then bent down and hugged the two little mushroom heads and her two little daughters into her arms.

It is not that becoming an empress means ceasing to be a mother; nor is it that the duties of an empress are lofty, thus rendering the duties of a mother useless.

Some things, once lost, are lost forever.