335. A limerick

However, Qu Zijin paid no attention to Xie Wenling at all. He looked at the little dumpling seriously and expectantly, as if he trusted him very much.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the little dumpling had no choice but to put down the cake and look out of the hall with her head held high.

The snow was still falling, and large snowflakes landed on the glass lamp, the light spreading out in a warm yellow hue, turning the snowflakes into a golden-red color.

Red plum blossoms stand atop white snow, their petals adorned with tiny ice beads.

Everyone in the hall looked at her with smiles, and the snacks on the table were steaming hot, creating a lively atmosphere.

She watched for a while, tilted her little head, and said in a childish voice, "Red plum blossoms covered in snow, cool and refreshing; warm lamps illuminate the road, sparkling and bright..."

As soon as the first line was uttered, Qu Zijin clapped enthusiastically: "Great! It describes both plum blossoms and lanterns, full of childlike charm!"

This is the level of poetry a three-year-old genius should have!

The little dumpling felt more confident after receiving the praise. After thinking for a moment, it continued, "Everyone celebrates New Year's Day together, and I eat cakes and laugh heartily!"

After saying that, she nodded to herself with satisfaction: "Yue'er is done."

She's so smart!

In fact, this poem has no profound meaning, does not rhyme, and is more like an ordinary doggerel.

But alas...

"Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!" Wei Xiuming was the first to burst into laughter. "'Plum,' 'Lantern,' and 'Year'—all three characters are cleverly incorporated, and said in such a charming way! Our princess is truly a little prodigy!"

Qu Zijin was equally pleased: "Writing what a child sees and feels from a child's perspective is straightforward and sincere, and it has more flavor than those poems that pile up words! This is true inspiration!"

With these two taking the lead, everyone praised them, afraid of being a step behind.

"Haha, this is the kind of poem a child should write, how adorable!"

"Yes, yes, Princess Fukang is indeed a child prodigy!"

"It seems that the Marquis of Beiding's family has its reasons for not taking this adopted daughter out."

“An adopted daughter is just an adopted daughter. She can’t be compared to a proper young lady.”

The little dumpling blushed with pride at everyone's praise. She hid in Jiang Xiyue's arms, clutching her mother's clothes with her little hands: "Yue'er isn't a prodigy, she's just... she just says whatever she sees. Cake is really delicious."

Everyone laughed even harder, and Xie Wenling finally felt relieved.

Thankfully, Qu Zijin didn't do anything stupid.

So frightened was he that besides trying to figure out how to get out of the predicament, he also started thinking about how to deal with him.

Tao Wanbi stood there, her face as white as the snow outside the palace.

The little dumpling's casual remarks are always perfectly worded, reflecting his mood.

She was clearly more than ten years older than her and had studied for several more years, yet she couldn't even come up with a single poem that met the requirements, and now the truth about her plagiarism has been exposed.

“Miss Tao,” Xie Wenling’s gaze fell on her again, his tone as cold as ever, with an undeniable sharpness, “you forged someone else’s poem, deceiving His Majesty and the ministers. Do you know your crime?”

Tao Wanbi's legs went weak, and she knelt on the ground: "I know I was wrong! I will never dare to do it again! It was...it was someone who forced me!"

"Your Majesty! I know I was wrong! I will never dare to do it again! Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

As before, she unhesitatingly blamed the entire incident on the system, continuing to portray herself as a perfect victim.

As she sobbed, she suddenly remembered the male lead the system had mentioned, and looked up in the direction of the little prince.

But the young prince's gaze never fell on her from beginning to end.

He was praising the little dumpling when the little dumpling looked up at him and smiled, revealing two protruding little tiger teeth. He smiled back, not even sparing Tao Wanbi a glance.

Tao Wanbi's heart sank.

She went to great lengths to stand out, even risking deceiving the emperor by cheating, but in the end, the male lead didn't even glance at her.

Wei Xiuming looked at her from his high position, his expression still calm and gentle, revealing no emotion.

Although he did give him a chance, it was New Year's Day, and no one wanted to hold a grudge against a three-year-old child for his mistake.

Seeing her crying pitifully, Wei Xiuming finally let her off the hook: "Alright, you are still young, perhaps you were just confused for a moment. Today is New Year's Day, I will not punish you, but you should learn the rules properly in the future and not do such opportunistic things again."

"Thank you for your mercy, Your Majesty!" Tao Wanbi kowtowed hurriedly, her forehead turning red from the repeated kowtows, but she felt no relief, only deep shame.

The palace servants helped her up. She lowered her head, not daring to look anyone in the eye, and scurried back to her original seat like a mouse.

Back home, Tao Wanbi was restless, surrounded by the faint whispers of the guests. Every word seemed to be directed at her, and every glance seemed to mock her.

She couldn't stay any longer, and taking advantage of everyone's attention being on the little dumpling, she quietly slipped off her seat and ran out of the main hall.

Her actions happened to fall into Xie Wenling's notice.

He took a sip of wine, then stood up: "Your Majesty, I am feeling a little tired. I'd like to go outside for some fresh air."

Because of his position as prime minister, Xie Wenling was toasted several times. Wei Xiuming assumed that he was just a sober person and wanted to go out for some fresh air to sober up, so he agreed.

Xie Wenling then chose a route to walk out.

As they passed Qu Zijin, he casually remarked, "If Grand Tutor Qu has nothing else to do, why don't we take a walk together?"

Qu Zijin looked at him questioningly: "No, I didn't drink..."

Clever as he was, he had already secretly replaced the wine in the flask with tea.

Xie Wenling remained silent, stopping in front of his seat and staring at him intently.

One second, two seconds...

Qu Zijin realized what was happening.

Oh, so you needed to talk to him about something.

He stood up: "Oh, just say so next time. Let's go."

Xie Wenling snorted coldly and walked out without waiting for him.

Qu Zijin followed, completely bewildered, not understanding why he was unhappy again.

As soon as the two stepped out of the main hall, they heard light footsteps behind them, accompanied by a soft call: "Brother Xie! Grand Tutor! Wait for Yue'er!"

Looking back, I saw the little dumpling catching up with me on its short legs.

Her seat was right next to the Grand Tutor's. She had been watching them for a while when she saw them walking out together. She immediately told her mother, put on her cloak, and followed them.

She exclaimed excitedly, "Are you going to play? Yue'er wants to go too! Yue'er wants to build a snowman!"

Xie Wenling was stunned for a moment.

He originally wanted to investigate Tao Wanbi's unusual behavior, but the little dumpling's pleading look made it impossible for him to refuse.

He paused for a moment, then reached out his hand, his voice softening unconsciously: "Slow down, don't fall. I'll take you out for some fresh air."

The little dumpling immediately smiled, her eyes crinkling into crescents. She tightly gripped Xie Wenling's index finger with her little hand, then turned back to Qu Zijin and waved her other hand: "Grand Tutor, come quick!"

Qu Zijin chuckled and quickly followed. Seeing Xie Wenling carefully protecting the little dumpling, he couldn't help but tease, "Prime Minister Xie is usually cold-hearted and indifferent, but he treats the princess exceptionally differently."

Xie Wenling didn't say anything, but simply picked up the little dumpling, helped her hold her cloak tighter, and walked outside.

-

Tao Wanbi ran all the way to the lakeside in the Imperial Garden.

The lake was covered with a thin layer of ice, and the plum branches on the shore were covered with snow. The cold wind made her cheeks turn red.

She found a rock to sit on, buried her face in her knees, and felt more and more wronged and ashamed the more she thought about it.

"The mission is definitely a failure..." she muttered to herself. "The male lead didn't even look at me, everyone knows I cheated, I'm just a joke..."

She transmigrated to this world with the intention of using the system to complete tasks, obtain 100 million yuan, return home, and reach the pinnacle of life.

But now, not only has the mission made no progress, it has also become a laughing stock at the palace banquet.

"Am I never going to be able to go back to the modern world?"

The moment the thought crossed her mind, she burst into tears.

[Host, I'm back...]

The system's voice finally rang in my mind again, sounding somewhat weak.

Tao Wanbi suddenly raised her head, tears still on her face, but immediately began to complain: "You're finally back! Do you know how miserable I was when you disappeared? Xie Wenling and Qu Zijin both suspected me, everyone was laughing at me! It's all your fault! You forced me to recite the poem, and then you ran away!"

I didn't do it on purpose!

The system's sound also contained electrical noise.

I was just attacked by an unknown force, which is why I lost contact. Can you tell me what happened after that?

Tao Wanbi sniffed and recounted the rest of the story in detail: "...I was exposed for plagiarism, and the male lead didn't even glance at me once from beginning to end. He only had eyes for that vicious female supporting character, Jin Lanyue! I'm so utterly humiliated now, and I can't even complete the mission..."

【What? ! 】