Chapter 5 Lingling's Origin

After the morning court session, Lu Ze was about to change his clothes and go to Prince Qi's mansion to apologize. However, as soon as he stepped into Qi Garden, he heard the sound of a baby crying.

Lu Ze entered the courtyard and saw Qi Yuning, who was dressed gorgeously, standing at the door of his room, looking noble and elegant.

Lu Ze was slightly surprised to see Qi Yuning, "Princess, you came to my room so early in the morning, is there something important?"

“Daddy!”

Xiao Lingling, who was holding Qi Yuning's thigh, saw Lu Ze in a red official uniform and her eyes lit up. She wiped away her tears with her little hand, "Daddy! Mommy, daddy is back!"

When Lu Ze saw the three-year-old child hugging Qi Yuning's thigh, even though he was usually calm, there was a moment of daze and confusion on his face. Why was this child who called Qi Yuning "mother" so similar to him?

Lu Zewen asked, "Princess Qi, you have a daughter? Is this child Lu Yun's?"

Princess Pingrou snorted and said, "Lu Ze, your brother is not even seventeen yet, how could he have given birth to such a big daughter? Lingling looks exactly like you, she must be your daughter!"

They look similar, so they could be siblings. Lu Ze looked at the green willow hairpin in Princess Pingrou's hair and thought carefully. His father has always been henpecked and would definitely not have the courage to do such a thing.

Seeing that Lu Ze was suspicious of others and unwilling to admit that Lingling was his child, Qi Yuning sneered.

"Lingling called Master Lu daddy as soon as she saw him. Did Master Lu dare not acknowledge his son? I didn't expect that the men in the Lu family are more irresponsible than the others!"

Lu Ze said: "Princess Qi, this child is indeed not my daughter."

Qi Yuning said angrily, "Lu Yiling looks exactly like Master Lu. Master Lu should admit his love debt now that he has committed it."

Princess Pingrou nodded and said, "That's right, Ze'er, Lingling looks exactly like you when you were young, how could she not be your daughter?"

Little Lingling blinked her eyes and started to cry, "Daddy, don't you want Lingling either?"

Lu Ze looked down at the crying little girl. He was not a heartless person and he couldn't bear to see such a soft and tender little girl crying, but he was definitely not Lingling's father.

Princess Pingrou saw her granddaughter crying so hard that she picked up Lingling and said, "Don't cry, dear. Your father doesn't recognize you, but your grandmother does."

Lingling sobbed in Princess Pingrou's arms.

Seeing Lingling crying sadly and aggrieved, Qi Yuning said to Lu Ze unhappily, "The debt caused by Master Lu's affair outside is innocent. As the Junior Minister of the Dali Temple, you can't even disown your own flesh and blood, right?"

Lu Ze frowned as he looked at the little girl in Princess Pingrou's arms and said in a cold voice, "I can't have a child."

Qi Yuning glanced at Lu Ze's belly provocatively and chuckled, "It's impossible to have a child? Master Lu is well-dressed, could he be a eunuch..."

Lu Ze's face turned pale, "Princess, please respect yourself."

Qi Yuning said: "Since you are not a eunuch, how can you not have children?"

Lu Ze's face darkened. "Because I have never had any women around me. I have never touched any girls. It is impossible for me to have such a big child."

Qi Yuning heard Lu Ze's words and did not doubt it. "That's strange. Where did this child come from?"

Lu Ze said: "This child was brought by Princess Qi. Princess Qi really doesn't know the origin of this child?"

Qi Yuning said: "I don't know."

Princess Pingrou looked at the two people in front of her suspiciously. She did not believe her own son, nor did she believe Qi Yuning: "Children will not lie. Since she calls you father and mother, you are her father and mother."

Lingling nodded in Princess Pingrou's arms and said fiercely, "Yes, you are Lingling's father and mother, you can't abandon Lingling!"

Lu Ze rubbed his temples. It seemed that his mother had not given up on letting him marry Qi Yuning. "Mom, give me the child first. I will ask about her background."

Princess Pingrou handed Lingling to Lu Ze and threatened him, "Don't make my granddaughter cry again."

Lu Ze carried the child to the study. Qi Yuning didn't dare to trust Lu Ze completely. Lu Ze didn't want to use the interrogation methods he used in the Dali Temple on the child, so Qi Yuning followed Lu Ze into the study.

Lu Ze carried Lingling to a wooden chair and sat her down. Lingling raised her head and looked at Lu Ze and said, "Daddy, can I play with the ring?"

Lu Ze frowned and asked, "What ring?"

Lingling opened the wooden drawer and took out the Red Jade Nine-Linked Rings. "This one!"

Lu Ze narrowed his peach blossom eyes and stared at Lingling and asked, "How did you know there is a nine-linked ring here?"

Lingling said: "Daddy told Lingling."

Qi Yuning said to Lu Ze, "Master Lu, are you still unwilling to admit that Lingling is your child?"

Lingling even knew what was hidden in the private area of ​​Lu Ze’s study.

Lu Ze said to Qi Yuning, "Princess, can you please ask the servants behind you to leave?"

Qi Yuning said to Guyu Lichun and the others, "You all go out."

After Lu Ze and the others left, he spoke slowly, "Princess, I have never touched any woman, and there is no way I could have a child. It was my Lu family's fault that Lu Yun became a monk yesterday. You are angry and want to take revenge on the Lu family. The Lu family has nothing to say, but you can't teach a three-year-old child to lie in order to ruin the Lu family's reputation."

Qi Yuning said: "My Qi family is full of heroes and have always been upright. We disdain the behavior of villains slandering others! If I want to take revenge on your Lu family, I will do it in an upright manner. I disdain to use such despicable means to ruin the reputation of others.

Besides, this child calls me mother as soon as he sees me, so I won’t slander your Lu family and put my own reputation at risk.”

Lu Ze pursed his lips and said, "I misunderstood the princess."

Qi Yuning snorted softly.

Lu Ze looked down at Lingling, who was concentrating on playing the nine-ring game, and asked with unprecedented tenderness, "Lingling, what's your zodiac sign? How old are you?"

Little Lingling raised her head, stretched out five fingers and said, "Lingling is a little rabbit, and she just turned five! The little uncle said Lingling was only three years old, but just after the New Year, Lingling grew another year older, so Lingling is five years old."

Qi Yuning sensed something was wrong and said, "This year is the Year of the Ox. How could you be born in the Year of the Rabbit?"

This year is the Year of the Ox. If it is the Year of the Rabbit, even if we count by age, the youngest child would be ten years old. Lingling herself said she is five years old, but that should be her age in lunar years. Judging from her appearance, she looks about three years old.

Little Lingling said, "Mom, this year is not the Year of the Ox, it's the Year of the Sheep. During the Lantern Festival, Lingling won a lot of sheep lanterns, and the words 'Xinwei' were written on them."

Qi Yuning and Lu Ze looked at each other. Xinwei Year was six years later...

Lu Ze asked Lingling softly, "Does Lingling know what year she was born?"

Lingling took off the small jade locket hanging around her neck and handed it to Lu Ze: "It says here when Lingling was born. You can't show it to anyone else. Only mom and dad can see it."

Lu Ze took a closer look and saw a vivid little rabbit carved on the front of the jade lock, and two lines of small words carved on the back.

"Lu Ze and Qi Yuning's daughter Lu Yiling was born on the ninth day of the ninth month of the Ding Mao year. She will live a hundred years and enjoy a long and blessed life."

Lu Ze handed the jade lock to Qi Yuning.

Qi Yuning found it hard to believe. The Dingmao year was clearly two years later. Was this child born two years later?

Lu Ze said: "This jade pendant is a rare Lanling warm jade, which is priceless. There shouldn't be any random carving of the year or name on such a rare treasure."

Qi Yuning touched the jade pendant in his hand. It was warm and moist, and indeed a priceless piece of top-quality jade.

Qi Yuning already had a bold guess in his mind, but he felt it was too unbelievable.

Lu Ze looked into Qi Yuning's eyes and said, "Princess, Lingling must be our daughter, but she came from the first month of the Xinwei year six years later to the eighth month of the Yichou year now."

Qi Yuning frowned slightly and looked at Lu Ze in front of her. How could she and Lu Ze have a daughter when the Lu family humiliated her like this?

(End of this chapter)