Emperor Chongzhao, slightly displeased by the Crown Prince's expression, stepped aside to block the curious little child.

"What brings the Crown Prince here today?"

His father's stern voice interrupted his thoughts. The Crown Prince suppressed his curiosity about the child and gave the reason he had prepared beforehand: "The official business that Father Emperor previously approved for me has been completed. I dare not delay and ask Father Emperor to review it."

"Bring it here."

The Crown Prince respectfully placed the memorial he had brought on the tray brought by Li Yuanzhen.

Between the two pairs of biological fathers and sons, the relationship was more like that of strangers, ruler and subject, with plenty of respect but little care.

Fortunately, neither of them cared about this. Emperor Chongzhao lowered his eyes and looked at the memorial in his hand.

The Crown Prince's approach was theoretically acceptable, but unfortunately, he was indoctrinated with a lot of Confucian ideas. He was too mild-mannered and seemed capable of handling affairs, but in reality, he fostered the greed of those people. In the end, each layer of exploitation led to another layer of exploitation, leaving nothing at the bottom.

Emperor Chongzhao did not speak, but Qingyin, who was close by, could sense his displeasure.

The Crown Prince below was probably handling official duties assigned by his father for the first time, and was still anxiously awaiting his father's evaluation.

Qingyin blinked slightly, peeked out and glanced at the words on the memorial, then couldn't help but twist her body and bumped into Emperor Chongzhao.

If anyone else had dared to peek at the memorials, Emperor Chongzhao would probably have broken their hands and feet, gouged out their eyes, and thrown them out long ago. But now, seeing only a toddler who couldn't read many words, and one of his beloved children at that, Emperor Chongzhao couldn't help but sneer, "You little illiterate, what are you looking at?"

The little dumpling, who was being questioned, hadn't even realized he was being scolded yet. He was so caught up in the question that he only knew what the question was asking. He obediently pointed to the words, then to his own words, and used his two chubby little hands to make the sign language he was being taught, drawing a huge, beautiful sign.

Since the child couldn't speak, it was His Majesty, with his lofty and possessive nature, who personally learned and taught him sign language.

Seeing the child's exaggerated behavior, Emperor Chongzhao understood his meaning intuitively.

"Your handwriting is so bad, who doesn't have better handwriting than you?"

The prince saw little warmth in the two's affectionate interactions.

The Crown Prince was dejected as he watched the scene unfold, almost forgetting to look away. He never expected his father to be so gentle.

Emperor Chongzhao looked at the obedient but somewhat unconvinced child on one side, and then at the dejected Crown Prince below, and said indifferently: "Crown Prince knows that Confucianism is good, but you must also understand Legalism. If you only use Confucianism to teach, it will only be empty talk. Go back and take another look at this matter. However... your handwriting is still not bad."

The crown prince, who thought he wouldn't receive any praise, couldn't help but look up in surprise. It was just a compliment that the words were well-written, but it eased his tension considerably.

Before leaving the palace, the Crown Prince couldn't help but look back one last time at the child whom his father, the Emperor, had carefully raised. He knew that the final praise would be for the child's help, whether directly or indirectly.

After the Crown Prince left, the Hall of Supreme Harmony returned to a peaceful atmosphere.

Emperor Chongzhao looked at the child who was drowsy from writing on the desk, his eyes dark and unsettling.

It's impossible to keep this child in the Hall of Supreme Harmony forever. This time it's the Crown Prince, next time it could be the Empress or the Empress Dowager.

What should be done about this child?

Emperor Chongzhao was lost in thought when the sound of a child snoring interrupted him.

Li Yuanzhen, who had seen the Crown Prince off, returned. Emperor Chongzhao gestured for him to be quiet, then bent down and picked up the child, whose breathing had become steady.

He placed it on the dragon bed in his own palace.

As dusk fell, night quickly enveloped the sky, bringing with it a tranquil, boundless darkness and a sense of deep contemplation.

Late at night, Qingyin slept soundly until evening. One side of the candle had been lit, while the other side of the dragon bed was only slightly lit to ensure the child could sleep peacefully, so that the child wouldn't have to grope his way up in complete darkness.

Children need a lot of physical sleep, which often made Qingyin sleepy as well. Qingyin resisted the urge to stay in bed and got up.

A familiar, authoritative yet teasing voice suddenly came to mind: "Awake?"

Qingyin then realized that Emperor Chongzhao had been sitting to one side the whole time.

Qingyin: "..."

Although the emperor might not be able to see his movements in the dark, Qingyin, being a dedicated actress, still obediently nodded according to her character.

Before long, Qingyin's body was lifted into the air. It turned out that the emperor had carried him off the bed and changed his clothes.

It must be said that an excellent emperor is extremely good at learning in every aspect. Just a few days ago, His Majesty the Emperor could not even dress him properly, but he can not only change his clothes skillfully, but also successfully style his hair into a small bun.

Because the young master inside the hall had woken up, all the candles in the Hall of Supreme Harmony were lit.

Qingyin was carried to the dining table by the emperor without her shoes touching the ground.

They served him until he was stuffed, and then he was put aside.

Emperor Chongzhao was an extremely rigid person. Although he unconsciously changed a lot while following Qingyin, he still retained some of his habits when he was away from Qingyin.

For example, when eating, he still insists on eating until he is only 70% full.

Today, perhaps because he had something on his mind, Emperor Chongzhao ate very quickly and then put down his chopsticks.

He carried Qingyin to the desk, dismissed the servants, and left only the two of them in the room.

With this serious atmosphere in mind, Qingyin couldn't help but become a bit more formal.

The stern emperor suppressed a trace of nervousness in his heart and earnestly said to the little one in front of him who had just finished eating and was still rubbing his tummy, "Yu'er, I can grant you one wish?"

In recent days, Emperor Chongzhao has thought a lot about the child's future. He is still willing to ask the child's wishes. Regardless of whether the child says he wants to stay by his side, he can withstand the pressure and grant him the title of Prince, so that he can take care of him...

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