Chapter 34 The Four-Year-Old Princess's Amazing Paintings

The study in Princess Anguo's mansion was a mess.

This was not a case of being robbed, but rather that four-and-a-half-year-old Princess Mu Yu of Anguo was carrying out a great "top secret operation".

She spent the entire night drawing "Lucky Soldiers" for her father, Mu Fang, who was far away on the frontier, wanting to build an invincible "Lucky Legion" to protect her father.

So the ground was covered with her masterpiece.

The stick figure soldiers, each with a different shape, were smeared black with ink, looking like a group of little black pigs that had just rolled out of a coal pile.

Some soldiers used a limp noodle as a sword.

Some soldiers rode on a chubby caterpillar as a horse.

Some soldiers received special attention from Mu Yu, who had a glittering "victory halo" painted on their heads with precious gold powder. As a result, the gold powder was scattered everywhere, even getting some on the tip of her own nose, making her look like a naughty little kitten.

Qin Zheng and Princess Jianing, her most loyal supporters, were squatting to the side, each holding a small brush, carefully brushing "victory halos" onto the "lucky soldiers".

"Little Yu'er, the dad you drew has such long legs! He must run incredibly fast!"

"This daddy's armor is so black and shiny! The bad guys will definitely run away as soon as they see it!"

Yan Ziche, with his hands behind his back, paced around like a little adult, earnestly conducting a "tactical analysis": "In my opinion, this formation is truly inspired. Look, the soldiers' distribution seems chaotic, but it actually conforms to the Big Dipper formation. With just a few strokes, it outlines General Mu's heroic posture of using troops like a god and winning battles from afar. It is truly a stroke of genius!"

This utterly pathetic flattery made the maids serving nearby want to laugh but dare not, their shoulders trembling as they tried to suppress it.

The steward of the princess's residence, seeing how much his young master was going to great lengths for the Duke of Protectorate, reported the matter to Chief Steward Li, who had entered the palace, and simply took it as the young princess's filial piety.

When Steward Li heard this, his eyes lit up.

He understood the emperor's thoughts best. This was no child's nonsense; it was clearly an auspicious sign, a blessing upon the Great Chu!

He rushed into the imperial study, embellishing the story, and reported it to Chu Yuan, who was worried about the war.

"Your Majesty! Great news! Princess Anguo is deeply concerned about the affairs of the state. Sensing that the war with the Duke of Huguo was at a stalemate, she stayed up all night and personally drew talismans to pray for blessings!"

These words immediately pleased Emperor Chu Yuan.

He had always thought of Mu Yu as his "lucky star," and now he saw that this lucky star was not only blessed, but also so filial and sensible!

So the emperor even skipped the morning court session and went straight to the residence of Princess Anguo.

When Consort De heard the news of the visit in her own palace, she curled her lip in disdain.

"Drawing talismans? Who does she think she is? Does she really think she's a fairy?"

The Third Prince, Chu Huaijin, chimed in, "Mother is right. It's just a bunch of tricks to win Father's sympathy."

"Let her be," Consort De said, picking up her teacup. "I want to see what kind of trouble a four-and-a-half-year-old girl can cause. Whether Mu Fang can come back alive this time is still uncertain."

The mother and son smiled at each other, everything understood without words.

Meanwhile, the Anguo Princess's mansion was welcoming its most distinguished guest.

As soon as Chu Yuan entered the courtyard, he saw the lively and childlike scene, and his heart was filled with joy. He walked over and picked up a painting with great interest.

The stick figure in the picture has a huge, disproportionate mouth, and he's laughing like a fool.

Chu Yuan's lips twitched; he almost couldn't hold back his laughter.

Is this painting really of the menacing Duke Mu Fang, and not Wang Ermazi, the beggar at the village entrance?

No, you can't laugh.

He laughed, but his little lucky star would be sad.

Thus began the most powerful man in the Great Chu Kingdom to put on the most energetic performance of his life.

"Ahem!" Chu Yuan held up the painting, facing the crowd with a serious expression.

“Look!” he said, pointing to the ink blob that represented the body.

"This stroke, vigorous and powerful, as steady as a mountain! It symbolizes the indomitable will of the soldiers of our Great Chu!"

He then pointed to that foolish smile.

"Look at that smile! What confidence! What composure! It's as if Minister Mu is telling me that victory is already in the bag!"

Finally, he pointed to the noodle sword.

"This sword, seemingly soft, actually conceals a sharp edge, moving nimbly and gracefully! As the saying goes, a heavy sword has no edge, and great skill is without artifice! This shows that Minister Mu's tactics have reached the realm of returning to simplicity!"

His words were passionate and resounding.

The eunuchs and palace maids around them all showed expressions of "I see" and "Your Majesty is wise," nodding frantically.

Qin Zheng and Princess Jia Ning gaped, feeling their imaginations being challenged like never before.

Yan Ziche lowered his head silently, feeling that his nonsense was nothing compared to His Majesty the Emperor.

Only Mu Yu, puffing out her little chest, had "Of course" written all over her face.

See!

Even my grandfather, the emperor, said I drew well!

"Issue my decree!" Chu Yuanlong was overjoyed and waved his hand, "Have all of Princess Anguo's... these masterpieces of painting properly framed and hung in the Imperial Study! I want to admire them day and night to reassure the army!"

Steward Li's lips twitched, but he still bowed and replied, "As you command."

He could already imagine the wonderful expressions on the ministers' faces when they came to the Imperial Study to discuss matters and looked up to see the walls covered with stick figures of the "Lucky Army".

Just then, a young eunuch rushed in from outside, looking flustered, and knelt down on the ground with a thud.

"Your Majesty! An urgent military report from 800 li southwest!"

The moment the words were spoken, the atmosphere in the courtyard froze.

Everyone's heart was in their throat.

Chu Yuan's smile faded as he took the military report and quickly unfolded it.

He glanced at it once, and a huge smile of surprise lit up his face.

"Good! Good! Good!"

He said "good" three times in a row, excitedly picked Mu Yu up and gave her a big kiss on her little nose, which was covered in gold powder.

"Little lucky star! You are truly my unicorn, a guardian and auspicious omen for the Great Chu!"

He held the military newspaper high and loudly announced to the crowd:

"Great news! A resounding victory!"

"Three days ago, Mu Fang personally led a surprise attack on a long-distance raid, and in the dead of night, he destroyed the main altar of the barbarian priests! The strange plague has begun to subside! The barbarian army is in chaos, and our army has won a great victory! Minister Mu, you will soon return to the capital in triumph!"

boom!

The entire princess's mansion was instantly overwhelmed with immense joy.

Xiao Beichen and Yan Ziche exchanged a glance, both seeing disbelief in each other's eyes.

Did they really... win?

And the time was exactly three days ago!

Wasn't it the night Xiaoyuer drew the "Lucky Army"?

Could it be...?

They looked at the little girl who was being held high by the emperor and was giggling, and their hearts were filled with shock.

Chu Yuan held Mu Yu in his arms, grinning from ear to ear.

"Hahaha! What barbarian priests, what evil magic and plague! Before the auspicious omens of my Great Chu, they are nothing but clay chickens and earthen dogs, utterly vulnerable!"

He no longer sees Mu Yu as the daughter of a subject.

The look in his eyes was as if he were looking at a national treasure.

He immediately ordered that the rewards be sent to the Anguo Princess's residence in a continuous stream.

Gold, silver, jewels, silks, satins, and rare and exotic items were piled up like small mountains.

Mu Yu stared at the shiny things, her eyes practically turning into gold ingots, and she almost drooled.

In a corner filled with jubilation, a palace servant responsible for sweeping, head bowed, quietly slipped out and hurried toward the direction of Consort De's palace.

At the same time, Chu Chongjin's fingertips were twirling a tiny roll of paper, smaller than a grain of rice, that he had taken from the leg of a carrier pigeon.

Only he could understand the words on the scroll.

"The altar has been destroyed, the plague is receding, and the general is unharmed. However, the cost has been heavy, the traitor has not been eliminated, and his ambitions are not small; I fear he may have other plans."