Aran collapsed the moment she returned to the carriage, unable to hold back any longer as she clung to Chu Hengyuan and wept bitterly. Leng Yi, who was driving, felt a wave of bewilderment. What could have happened? The banquet had ended so abruptly—it had barely begun. And with her crying so earth-shatteringly hard, had Xiao Jiu been wronged in the palace? Had Emperor Chujing given her a cold shoulder, or had her marriage to the Prince been called off?
Seeing Aran in such a state, Chu Hengyuan, who had intended to ask her many questions, found he could not utter a single word. He could only hold her close, patting her back to offer comfort. It was true, then, what Huangfu Lin and Mo Xueying had said: they were indeed her biological parents.
Aran wept for the entire journey. Upon arriving at the manor, she went straight to her room in Guanju Courtyard, with Chu Hengyuan following closely behind, carrying the cloth tiger. Aran opened her wardrobe, pulled out a bundle from the very back, and untied it.
Chapter 203