Empress Of The Lost Kingdom

"Grandfather?"

It took a moment for Li Juan to comprehend what she just heard.

Does she have a grandfather?

Li Juan looked at him with confused eyes. The old man definitely had similarities with her father.

"Is he my grandfather?" Li Juan asked Lin Li-Hui with bewilderment.

"Yes, My dear. This is your ancestral home and we all are your family." Lin Li-Hui said with an excited voice. 

Is this her father's family? The renowned Bai family.

"Father, why don't we invite her inside?" A middle-aged woman asked Bai Qi.

"Yes." 

The woman walked towards Li Juan and invited her with a smile.

"Princess, please come," 

Instead of moving forward, Li Juan took a step back.

"Xiao Lili," LinLi-Hui called her name in confusion.

It is her father's family! They are the people who refused to take her mother as part of their family. They haven't searched for her in these twenty-six years. They are the people who abandoned her. Are they going to help her now? Li Juan's mind muddled with various thoughts.

"Xiao Lili," Lin Li-Hui came closer and held her arm.

"Mrs Zhang, why did you bring me here?" Li Juan didn't hesitate to ask. 

" Lili, this is your home, this is where you should be living,"

"Home?" I think you are mistaken, Mrs Zhang." Li Juan smiled bitterly." I don't have any family. Both of my parents are dead and I was living alone for the last two years. I haven't seen any of my so-called relatives in these 26 years of my life." Li Juan's words were filled with despair. 

"Xiao Lili," Lin Li-Hui stared at the girl who appeared in distress.

"Yes, it is Lili." My name is Li Juan. I share my surname with my mother who was born in an orphanage, not with the renowned Bai family who abandoned me." 

"Li Juan," Bai Qi who silently listened to Li Juan, finally called her name. "I know an apology won't be enough for the pain and despair you've suffered all these years, but on the behalf, of the entire Bai family, I apologize for keeping you away. We- 

"Please don't apologize, Elder Bai." Li Juan interrupted Bai Qi's words. "You did what is right for your family. You disowned your son who brought dishonour-"

"You are wrong, it was your father who abandoned his family." A deep and authoritative voice cut her off. 

Li Juan turned back and found a person who she has only seen in photographs.

"Paa," Li Juan couldn't believe her eyes and scanned the man who stood in front of her, alive. He resembled her late father.

There was a momentary surprise on the man's face.

"I am sorry to disappoint you, princess. I am not your father. My name is Bai Chen, your father's twin brother. " He explained with an impassive face. 

"Her father had a twin brother-" It was new information for Li Juan.

"I heard what you have said just now. Did your mother say that we abandoned you?" Bai Chen sounded rather offended. 

"It was your mother who asked us to stay away from you. It was she who refused to come with us." Bai Chen's words were sharp like knives and it hurt Li Juan. Why everyone is blaming her mother? After her husband's death Li Qin only had Li Juan to call her own. How can she hand over her child to her husband's family? She tried her best to raise Li Juan.

"Bai Chen, that's enough." Bai Qi tried to stop his son and looked at his granddaughter who is on the verge of tears.

"Father, she should know the truth," Bai Chen refused to listen to his father and continued. "She should know that it was her mother who brought all the sufferings on her." He stopped for a moment.

"Yes, we were indeed wrong, even if your mother refused to come with us, we should've convinced her. We should've looked after you."

Li Juan remained silent, it was too much to comprehend.

"And for your kind information, you are named after my grandmother, Zhang Li Juan who loved your father more than anyone of us." 

" I am sorry. I didn't know any of these." Li Juan looked at Bai Qi and continued. " My mother didn't tell me and I was afraid to ask her and hurt her. Please don't hate my mother."

Li Juan requested Bai Qi. " I never wanted to come here and claim my place. I never wanted anything from you. if you ask me to leave, I will leave now," 

Bai Qi walked towards Li Juan in steady steps.

"We want you to forgive us and allow us to correct our mistakes," 

Bai Qi held the hand of the woman who stood next to Lin Li-Hui."

"Will you accept us as your family?" The woman asked Li Juan and held out her hand to Li Juan. 

Li Juan waited for a moment and slowly reached out to hold the woman's soft palm.

She held Li Juan's palm carefully and smiled.

"Welcome home, princess," 

The moment Li Juan sat down, everyone's attention got focused on her. She felt awkward and scanned the large living room, hesitating meet eyes with anyone. It felt like she has been standing in front of an audience to give a speech. All of their eyes had similar surprised expressions.

"What do you do princess? Finally, someone broke the silence. 

"Huh, I, I am a research scholar at Jing University." Li Juan replied and unconsciously removed her thick black-rimmed glass.

"Wow, She is so pretty," someone whispered.

Their comment left Li Juan dumbfounded. 

She looked messy and tired to death and they still found her pretty?

"What made you come and visit us?" An aloof looking man asked her. 

"He is your eldest uncle, the firstborn of Bai family" Zhang Zi Zhong introduced him to Li Juan.

Li Juan bowed to show her respect.

"I am Bai Zhu, Your second uncle, Bai Mo is one the way and you've met Bai Chen earlier."

"I didn't know that I am coming here. I just accompanied Manager Zhang-

"Huh?"

"Uncle Zhang." Li Juan corrected himself.

" I met her accidentally and was surprised by her resemblance to Li Jun." Zhang Zi Zhong explained. "I had my doubts, but I used to believe that Bai Ze's child is also a boy."

"Hmm, with that name it is no wonder that second brother mistook you as a boy." Bai Chen said with a smile.

Huh? 

"The second brother have seen you fighting with boys when you were in primary school. He said that Ah Ze's son looks like a pretty flower boy, but he is a fierce fighter."

He even said that you had a lot of girlfriends. 

"I used to have short hair," Li Juan explained.

"Anyway second brother will be shocked to find out that the pretty boy whom he met twenty years ago, was actually the princess of Yu palace. 

"Did he say Yu palace?" 

"Is this Yu palace- the Jade palace of spring city mentioned in history?" Li Juan looked bemused.

"Yes, don't you know that your father was a prince?" 

"He was a prince?" 

Yes. Don't you know that?

No, Li Juan said in a low voice.

"Your father was the rebellious prince who left the palace for your mother."

Li Juan was silent. She didn't know about her father was part of a royal family. Her mother said that he belonged to a corporate family.

She sat with an emotionless face. 

Does this count as a mistake coming here? It is her ancestral home, but that doesn't mean that she is welcomed wholeheartedly.

Bai Qi looked at Li Juan's confused face.

"Is there anything worrying you?"

"I hope you do not hold any remorse feelings towards my parents."

When Bai Ze left the family for a woman outside the clan, we were disappointed. But it took a while to realize that he left for good. Bai Qi smiled and looked at the woman who sat next to him. "What do you think, Bai Su Ya?

"Yes, father. Heaven has finally blessed us through Bai Ze by giving us a princess." She smiled at Li Juan with compassionate eyes.

Princess, they have been addressing Li Juan as a princess.

Since her father was a prince then she must be a princess.

"Princess, must be tired, let her rest." Bai Su Ya said to everyone. "Ji Ya, escort her to the chambers."

Li Juan looked at Lin Li-Hui. 

"Come with me princess," a woman in her thirties came towards Li Juan.

"Please go with her, let me have a word with Uncle." Lin Li-Hui told her.

Li Juan stood up and bowed and left with Ji Ya.

Other than Bai Qi and his sons and Bai Su Ya, everyone else left the room.

"Did you mention anything to her?" 

"No."Zhang Zi Zhong replied. 

"She needs your help."

"Two years ago, her mother passed away."

" She was living all alone?" Bai Su Ya asked with a startled face.

"She has a boyfriend. But that relationship is somewhat complicated." Lin Li-Hui said. "It is almost over for her."

"She lived as a commoner, we cannot blame her." Bai Chen reminded them.

"The man she loved is my boss, we met him yesterday and he refuses to break up with her." Zhang Zi Zhong said with a gloomy face. 

"It is not a big deal, we can help her." Bai Chen was confident.

"But the real problem with the princess is something even worse. He said that the princess is gravely ill." Lin Li-Hui informed them without any hesitations.

"What?"

"She had an accident and it caused some damage to her brain. Princess is having relapses and she is surviving only because of the help of medicines." Lin Li-Hui stopped for a moment and looked at the shocked faces of the people sitting around her.

All of them remained silent.

"Her boyfriend was afraid to send her back to Jing city. He was afraid that something will happen to her while he was away. So he asked me to take care of her." Zhang Zi Zhong concluded and looked at his uncle for a response.

But nobody spoke.

We waited so long for a princess and when she finally arrived- Bai Zhu sighed.

"What do you think, queen?" He turned and asked his wife, Bai Su Ya.

"She is the first girl child born in the royal bloodline after Queen Yue.

She is the blood and flesh of the Yu Clan. She was born as a queen. Even if she dies tomorrow; she will die as the queen of Yu palace. Bai Su Ya declared.

Let's make the arrangements for her coronation as soon as possible.