Chapter 104 I wonder which is sharper, this wooden sword or a real sword?

Jiang Peihuan was startled and then came to her senses.

Since Marquis Le'an would be staying here tonight, she dressed up specially after taking a bath so that she could spend the night with him.

Meanwhile, Marquis Le'an was playing with his two sons in the backyard.

She instructed the kitchen to prepare food, and the four of them would dine together later. She would wait in the main hall first.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Qidi suddenly appeared without warning.

"No...what guests..." Jiang Peihuan forced a smile. "Qidi, what brings you here all of a sudden?"

Xiao Qidi looked around but did not answer.

Jiang Peihuan then said, "Sit down and rest for a while... You must be hungry, right? I'll go and ask someone to make you something to eat."

As she spoke, she turned and walked toward the back door of the main hall.

His mind was filled with thoughts of having to tell Marquis Le'an to hide so that Xiao Qidi wouldn't see him.

"Halt!" Xiao Qidi coldly rebuked, "Why is the Empress Dowager in such a panic?"

Jiang Peihuan stiffened, trying her best to remain calm. "I'm just... so happy... so excited to see you finally back..."

“Is that so?” A cold smile appeared in Xiao Qidi’s eyes. “But I remember that in the five years since you lived in Shun Palace, every time I came to see you, you were never happy or excited, and you didn’t even want me to stay long.”

Jiang Peihuan turned around stiffly, trying to make herself look less abnormal, and racked her brains to explain, "Since you inherited the throne, you have had too many things to do... I was afraid of taking up your time."

Xiao Qidi stepped forward and said, “I have not yet assumed power. The affairs of the court are handled by the Prime Minister. The Empress Dowager is well aware of this. What do I have to do?”

"This..." Jiang Peihuan retreated slowly, feeling guilty. "Although you have no political affairs, you still have your studies. You should spend more time and energy learning from the Grand Tutor and the ministers to prepare for ruling in your own right in the future, so that you can become a wise ruler."

"Ha, does the Empress Dowager really think so?"

"Of course, you are my son... I have high hopes for you."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Qidi stared intently into Jiang Peihuan's eyes, remained silent for a moment, and then gave a bitter, cold smile that was hard to describe. "This is the first time I've heard this sentence."

"Qidi, I..." Jiang Peihuan suddenly felt as if her heart had been pricked by a needle. She wanted to say something more, but she only opened her mouth and couldn't say anything.

The mother and son looked at each other from a distance of a few steps.

Xiao Qidi clenched his fists, then slowly relaxed them.

"What happened to your hand?" Jiang Peihuan hurriedly approached, took Xiao Qidi's hand, and gently wiped it with her handkerchief. "How did you get it like this? Does it hurt?"

At this moment, the worry she unconsciously revealed was genuine.

Xiao Qidi's lips trembled slightly, and a wave of bitterness welled up in his heart.

He remembered that when he was a hostage in the desolate country as a child, he was bullied and injured. The only person who worried about him and was anxious for him was his mother.

On another occasion, he was beaten to the point of being on the verge of death.

His mother braved the torrential rain in the middle of the night, carrying him on her back despite his serious injuries, searching for clinics and pharmacies one by one, kneeling and begging doctors to save him...

"I'll send someone to fetch the doctor." Jiang Peihuan held Xiao Qidi's bleeding hands, tears welling in her eyes. "You're eighteen years old, how come you still can't protect yourself..."

The tone, filled with reproach and heartache, struck the softest spot in Xiao Qidi's heart.

Xiao Qidi felt a sudden pang of sadness, gritted his teeth, withdrew his hands, turned around and said, "It's nothing, this little injury is nothing. I'll take my leave, you... take care of yourself."

At that moment, he wavered.

Even though he knew that Marquis Le'an must be there, he was willing to continue to pretend that he didn't know.

For Mother's sake, let that guy... live a little longer.

Xiao Qidi strode toward the gate without looking back. Jiang Pei looked at his tall but lonely back and couldn't help but feel tears welling up in her eyes. She felt an urge to ask him to stay and spend more time with him.

But as the words were about to come out, reason stopped her from acting impulsively.

Just as Xiao Qidi had one foot across the threshold...

Suddenly, the laughter of two children came from the back door of the main hall, which was particularly jarring in the quiet environment.

Xiao Qidi stopped in his tracks instantly.

Jiang Peihuan was shocked and turned to the back door to try to stop them, but it was too late.

Two children ran quickly into the main hall, one after the other, chasing each other, splashing and playing.

"Don't run! Stop!"

"I'm not stopping! Go ahead and catch me if you dare!"

"Hmph! That's not fair. You're a year older than me and you run faster. You catch me in no time every time you chase me, but it takes me forever to catch you!"

"Hehehe, who told you to be so bad!"

"..."

Xiao Qidi slowly turned around, his eyes fixed on the two children who were chasing and running wildly throughout the hall.

The two children were dressed in very nice clothes and shoes.

She is fair-skinned, chubby, and has delicate skin.

His eyebrows and eyes resembled those of the Empress Dowager, but his nose and mouth resembled those of the Marquis of Le'an more.

A chill ran through Xiao Qidi's heart.

This must be the illegitimate child born to the Empress Dowager and Lao An...

They live such a carefree and easy life.

She lived a life of luxury, carefree and well-fed, and received meticulous care from her birth parents...

Jiang Peihuan had no idea that Xiao Qidi already knew everything. At this moment, she dared not even breathe. She wanted to call the two children away, but she was afraid that if she acted too strangely, it would arouse Xiao Qidi's suspicion.

I had no choice but to calm myself down and think about how to explain things to get through this.

"Hey? Who are you?" The child running ahead noticed Xiao Qidi and walked up to him to look him up and down.

Another person, panting, glanced at Xiao Qidi and then gestured with his lip, asking, "Why aren't you answering? Are you a beggar?"

Xiao Qidi pursed his thin lips and stared intently at the two of them.

Jiang Peihuan's heart was in her throat. Without thinking too much, she hurriedly approached and said, "Go, go, go somewhere else to play. Don't make a scene here!"

"I won't!"

"No way! We want to play here!"

The two children made faces at her.

Jiang Peihuan was filled with mixed feelings of nervousness and relief. She was relieved because she had always taught her two sons not to call her "mother" in front of outsiders since they were old enough to remember.

Fortunately, although they were mischievous, they didn't give themselves away at this moment.

"Empress Dowager, why is there a child in this Shun Palace?" Xiao Qidi's dark gaze fell on Jiang Peihuan.

Before Jiang Peihuan could speak, the two children chattered excitedly:

"Beggar! Beggar! Kneel down and pay your respects to us!"

"Hurry up! After you've finished the ceremony, you're going to be my horse!"

"You look quite tall. If you serve as a horse well, we can keep you as a servant, but you have to be obedient, or I'll whip you!"

The unbridled, arrogant, and domineering words spoken by these two four- or five-year-old children were not only particularly repulsive but also quite chilling.

They were cursing and spitting while punching and kicking each other.

Jiang Peihuan tried to stop it but it was too late.

A chilling glint flashed in Xiao Qidi's eyes.

The two children had never seen such a terrifying look before. Startled, they turned and ran to Jiang Peihuan, grabbing her legs on either side and crying out:

"Mother! This beggar is terrifying!"

"Have someone kill him right now! Waaaaah!"

Everything happened too fast.

Jiang Peihuan almost fainted. She hurriedly covered the mouths of the two children and said in a hurry, "These two children are orphans that I took in in Shuncheng. I... I saw that they were too pitiful, so I often brought them to live in the palace. When they grow up, I will find a suitable family to adopt them."

Xiao Qidi remained silent, but his expression grew colder and his eyes darker.

Even the surrounding air seemed to cool down rapidly at that moment, making Jiang Peihuan feel no heat of the summer night.

“He, the two of them…” Jiang Peihuan stammered as she continued to explain, “They’ve been with me for a long time, and sometimes… they just… they call me that.”

Xiao Qidi's face remained expressionless as he spoke softly, "The Empress Dowager has been far too indulgent with them. With such character, which family would dare to adopt them in the future?"

Jiang Peihuan lowered her eyes, "I had no idea how to raise children before, and I didn't have the means to give you a peaceful childhood. You suffered so much... When I see them, I always think of you from before, and I can't help but want to spoil them..."

Xiao Qidi's cheeks trembled, and his back teeth clenched tightly.

An indescribable mix of emotions raged wildly within him, as if it were about to burst forth from his chest.

“Three days,” Xiao Qidi said, his eyes red as he suppressed his murderous intent. “I’ll give you three days to send them away. Never let me see them again or know their whereabouts. After that, they are absolutely forbidden from setting foot on Xuan Kingdom’s territory.”

Jiang Peihuan had a feeling that Xiao Qidi knew something.

But then I thought, if he knew the identities of these two children, how could he let them live?

However, if she really sent the children away, she would be separated from her two sons forever.

And Lao An's painstakingly planned scheme will also come to naught...

No, it should be said that it has already become a pipe dream.

Fine, let it be.

She suddenly felt very tired and didn't want to ask for anything more.

Go back and give Marquis Le'an a good talking-to. Since things have come to this, he should accept reality.

As long as... their child is alive and well, and as long as the two of them can continue to be together, that's enough for her.

"Does the Empress Dowager refuse to agree?" Xiao Qidi said coldly, "or does she want me to send them away?"

Jiang Peihuan was shocked and hurriedly said with tears in her eyes, "I promise you, I... I will send them all away, to a very, very far place, so that they will never appear again."

Upon hearing these words, the two children struggled to ask their mother why, but Jiang Peihuan covered their mouths tightly, and they could only make muffled noises.

"Your Majesty..." Jiang Peihuan choked out, "Take care, and please forgive me... for not seeing you off."

After saying that, she knelt on the ground and made the two children kowtow three times to Xiao Qidi.

"I will never come here again. If the Empress Dowager wishes to return to the capital in the future, she need not inform me." As Xiao Qidi spoke, he slowly turned around, and a tear silently slid down his cheek.

“Yes, Your Majesty…” Jiang Peihuan pressed her forehead against the hard, cold ground, tears falling like beads from a broken string.

"Hahaha! Children!" Marquis Le'an's laughter suddenly rang out. "I've made the toys you wanted! Oh dear, it's been so long since I've done this kind of work. If you hadn't asked for them, I wouldn't have made them myself! Come and see, do you like them!"

As the sound rang out, Marquis Le'an had already run into the main hall through the back door.

He beamed as he examined a wooden longsword in his hand, until he looked up and saw the situation inside the hall, at which point his smile froze.

Jiang Peihuan froze, kneeling on the ground, her mind blank.

Xiao Qidi turned around abruptly, his eyes flashing red, his gaze falling on Marquis Le'an like a sharp arrow.

Marquis Le'an stood frozen in place, staring wide-eyed at Xiao Qidi in shock.

incredible!

He's still alive?!

Even more unbelievable is that he actually... appeared here so suddenly without any warning!

The air seemed to freeze completely in that instant.

Marquis Le'an was so shocked that he even forgot to bow to the king.

Taking advantage of the Empress Dowager's distraction, the two children quickly slipped out from under her arm and rushed to Marquis Le'an's side.

"Father! Give it to me! Give it to me!"

"No, I'm the older brother, I have to play first, Daddy, give it to me now!"

When the two children shouted like that, Jiang Peihuan's heart sank.

Marquis Le'an was so frightened that his legs went weak, and he blurted out a sophistry: "Your Majesty... these... these two children are... born to a relative of mine. I... I brought them to pay respects to the Empress Dowager. The two children are too young to understand, and they call everyone 'Father'..."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Peihuan's heart, which had already cooled considerably, sank completely.

He felt as if all his strength had been drained, and he collapsed limply to the ground.

“Oh? I see,” Xiao Qidi narrowed his eyes slightly and slowly approached. “Otherwise, I would have thought that you, Marquis of Le’an, a eunuch, could have a child.”

The deliberately sarcastic words pierced Jiang Peihuan's heart like needles.

However, the Marquis of Le'an, unaware of the situation, did not realize that this was a mockery. When he saw Xiao Qidi approaching, he remembered to pay his respects and quickly knelt down, saying, "Your humble servant greets Your Majesty and begs Your Majesty's forgiveness!"

Xiao Qidi said calmly, "Marquis of Le'an, what crime have you committed?"

"Your Majesty..." Lao An said with his head bowed, "Your Majesty was unaware of your sudden arrival and has been impolite."

Xiao Qidi picked up the wooden sword and examined it. "This wooden sword looks more and more familiar to me."

Marquis Le'an's heart skipped a beat, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Xiao Qidi twirled the wooden sword, the tip hovering above Marquis Le'an's head. "Oh, I remember now, this is exactly the same as the royal sword I wore in the palace. I heard Marquis Le'an used to be a carpenter, not bad, not bad, your craftsmanship is truly excellent!"

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, please forgive me!" Marquis Le'an kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, I only thought that the Great Xuan King's Sword was the most beautiful, so I made this wooden sword for the children to play with, based on its design. I had no other intentions!"

Xiao Qidi's eyes were full of sneer, "I wonder which is sharper, this wooden sword or a real sword?"

"This..." Marquis Le'an did not understand what he meant and did not know how to answer for a moment.

Xiao Qidi suddenly bent down and reached out, drawing the sword from the waist of Marquis Le'an.

With a clang, Marquis Le'an was startled and shivered.

The two children nearby immediately became anxious upon seeing this.

They had lived in Shun Palace since birth, never venturing out or being exposed to any outside information. They were pampered and spoiled, so they knew nothing about the relationship between ruler and subject or etiquette.

Even when he saw Marquis Le'an bowing to Xiao Qidi, he didn't take it seriously and arrogantly shouted at Xiao Qidi:

"You stole our wooden sword, and then you stole our father's sword! You're a bad person!"

"Give us back our swords!"

"Hurry up! Or we'll beat you to death! We'll chop you up and feed you to the dogs!"