Chapter 1546 - 1393: The Fake Commandery Princess 3
Ye Shuangshuang didn’t know if, on the journey of exile, her presence would change the fate of the Ye Family, but at least it would give her a chance to try, rather than merely regret as she does now.
She even felt guilty for not choosing to go into exile with her biological parents before, not daring to visit them, only able to ask others to take care of her biological father and brother on her behalf.
So, given a chance to do it again, Ye Shuangshuang decided to make changes from the beginning. She would no longer stay in Prince Nan Mansion just for an uncertain familial bond, but would follow the Ye Family into exile.
Zhao Wan and Qin Peijun tried to persuade her several times, but Ye Shuangshuang was determined and refused to relent. In the end, both felt somewhat angry, believing that Ye Shuangshuang was ungrateful.
Ye Shuangshuang didn’t care about their final anger, taking only two changes of clothes made from fine cloth, without taking even a copper coin or a silver piece from Prince Nan Mansion, and left alone.
All her feelings for Qin Peijun and Zhao Wan were exhausted in her past life. She had a good life in Prince Nan Mansion, while Qin Muchen did not suffer in General Mansion.
Ye Fangchen and Bai Menghan were well-known for doting on their daughter. Qin Muchen grew up pampered and with a life of luxury in General Mansion, never suffering any hardship.
So strictly speaking, although the daughters of the two families were mistakenly swapped, there was nothing truly lacking in that regard.
Even when the Ye Family faced the hardship of exile, Qin Muchen returned to Prince Nan Mansion in time, restoring her status as a Commandery Princess. Thus, Ye Shuangshuang never understood why Qin Muchen targeted her everywhere.
In her past life, Ye Shuangshuang was nearly ruined by Qin Muchen’s scheming and Zhao Wan and Qin Peijun’s indulgence. If it weren’t for Ye Shuangshuang’s resilience, who knows what might have happened to her.
Later, out of respect for Qin Peijun and Zhao Wan, Ye Shuangshuang never thought of revenge, considering it a repayment for raising her.
It is worth noting that in her past life, Ye Shuangshuang became a favored guest of the Emperor and Empress Dowager, holding a position above worldly concerns, whereas Prince Nan Mansion was not close to the new Emperor and was even quite neglected.
If Ye Shuangshuang had truly wished for revenge, she could easily have caused the Emperor to be more suspicious of Prince Nan Mansion. Under the Emperor’s suspicion, even the royal family wouldn’t meet a good end.
As for the gratitude of life-giving and raising, Zhao Wan didn’t give birth to her, so there’s no life-giving gratitude. As for raising gratitude, Qin Muchen lived no worse than Ye Shuangshuang in the Ye Family, so they cancel each other out, barely qualifying as a favor.
The only genuine obligation left was the life-giving gratitude she owed to her parents of the Ye Family.
Today was the first day the Ye Family’s entire clan began their journey of exile. The Emperor allowed them to travel without shackles, and there was no time limit on the journey, as long as they eventually reached Nanzhao.
Of course, these privileges only applied to Old General Ye Feiying, Lady Shen, and the second branch of the Ye Family, which included Ye Fangchen’s family. The main branch of the Ye Family, however, was executed top to bottom.
The reason was that the main branch of the Ye Family became involved in the prince’s conflicts and supported a prince who ultimately lost, leading the entire main branch to be implicated, captured, convicted, and executed.
Old General Ye and Lady Shen, along with the second branch, were spared the death penalty only because of their past contributions and loyalty to the Emperor, receiving instead a punishment of exile and demotion to commoners, forbidden to return to the capital without permission.
When Ye Shuangshuang arrived at their destination, the Ye Family members looked very downcast. Even though they weren’t shackled, just thinking about their current situation made it impossible for them to be happy.
The emotions of the Ye Family upon Ye Shuangshuang’s arrival were complex, filled with both joy and guilt. As elders, they felt useless, having just reunited with their daughter under such unfortunate circumstances.
Since this was their first meeting, Nie Shuangshuang couldn’t use more intimate terms, so she simply performed a salute and addressed them as grandfather, grandmother, father, and mother.
Old General Ye and Lady Shen were already in poor health. After enduring the ordeal of imprisonment, they stood there now, weak and listless, while Ye Fangchen and Bai Menghan looked on with worried eyes.
Seeing Ye Shuangshuang’s arrival, Old General Ye and Lady Shen managed only a pale smile, exchanged a few words, and quickly lost energy.
Ye Fangchen and Bai Menghan each held one of Ye Shuangshuang’s hands, sighed, and Ye Fangchen’s face was full of guilt: "It’s all your father’s fault, dragging you down to suffer with us."
Tears welled up in Bai Menghan’s eyes: "What’s with you, silly girl? We’ve heard that Prince Nan Mansion wanted to keep you with them, why did you insist on coming here to suffer?"
Ye Shuangshuang smiled, holding their hands tightly: "Father, Mother, I’m not afraid of hardship. I’ve practiced martial arts from a young age, and I can endure the rigors of martial training. The journey of exile is not much harder.
Moreover, I have studied medicine and am quite skilled. On this long journey of thousands of miles, with grandfather and grandmother not in good health, they are bound to suffer from illnesses, and since there won’t be doctors readily available on the road, with me here, you won’t have to worry about this.
Listening to Ye Shuangshuang’s words, Bai Menghan and Ye Fangchen were deeply moved, unable to say anything in refusal. The two elders’ poor health was indeed a great concern for them.
The two didn’t know how proficient Ye Shuangshuang was in medicine. Although she studied medicine, not many in a grand mansion like theirs had the privilege of being treated by someone like Ye Shuangshuang.
But having someone with medical knowledge around was certainly better than not, although it did make them feel more guilty.
Previously, they always thought it best if both their biological daughter and the taken-in daughter could stay in Prince Nan Mansion and not suffer alongside them, allowing some peace of mind.
What none of the Ye Family expected was that Ye Shuangshuang would abandon wealth and privilege to join them in exile. Her action undeniably warmed the hearts of the Ye Family.
Sharing prosperity is easy, enduring hardship together is difficult, not to mention Ye Shuangshuang had never spent a day with the Ye Family, yet she came to face adversity solely due to their blood relation, which was even more moving.
Ye Fangchen introduced a boy of about eight or nine and a teenager about the same age as Ye Shuangshuang: "This is your twin brother, Ye Jingyi, and this is your younger brother, Ye Jingfei."
Ye Jingyi looked at his twin sister Ye Shuangshuang and felt a strange close bond. It was said that twins had an especially close connection.
Ye Jingyi used to think that was nonsense. He never felt that way about his sister, instead they often got on each other’s nerves, as the former Qin Muchen constantly quarreled with Ye Jingyi.
The most vexing was Qin Muchen’s bad habit of liking to take Ye Jingyi’s things, anything at all, which made him dislike her immensely, and the two quarreled from childhood through to adulthood.
So Ye Jingyi always believed the idea of twins being closer was nonexistent, but after meeting Ye Shuangshuang, Ye Jingyi finally admitted that there was an inexplicable closeness between twins.
Upon seeing his sister Ye Shuangshuang for the first time, he felt a very intimate sensation in his heart. Although they had never met before, she didn’t feel like a stranger.