Chapter 37
At this moment, the nine-year-old fourth prince was stunned. Ignoring everyone's envious glances, he decisively hid the jade ruyi behind his back.
Lingwu picked up the brush again, and just when everyone thought she was about to present it to someone like a precious treasure, she staggered over to the piece of paper.
Yu Xue's cute little face was full of seriousness, clearly she was about to do something earth-shattering!
The little white hand was raised, and finally it was used to write and draw on the paper!
And then, under the curious and surprised gazes of Sheng Yu and the others, he drew a—
piggy!
Then the little baby, holding the piglet, ran solemnly to the Second Prince and blinked his big eyes at him.
The second prince was utterly astonished. He pointed at the fourth prince, then at himself: "You give your fourth brother a jade ruyi, but you give your second brother... a pig!?"
Ling Wu frowned and pouted, looking as if she was about to cry.
The Crown Prince pinched the Second Prince's flesh hard, and the Second Prince hissed, his eyes filling with tears.
"Your Majesty is so touched! My sister is so kind. The little pig that you drew by hand is, in your eyes, a... little fairy pig!"
Lingwu stopped crying and started laughing, and the Second Prince laughed along with her.
Four years later, during the autumn hunt, the second prince was killed in an assassination attempt while trying to protect the crown prince. The crown prince also completely lost his former gentleness after that day.
Lingwu remained noncommittal, but she knew that things were not as they seemed on the surface. She wanted to try to stop the undercurrents.
Then, the Third Prince, who had been indifferent, received the small wooden sword.
In his previous life, the Third Prince wanted to conquer the battlefield, but he lost his leg in an assassination attempt. However, he will not do so in this life.
The Third Prince remained outwardly indifferent, but inwardly he was overjoyed, wishing he could pick up Ling Wu and spin her around thirty times!
His sister knows he likes martial arts!
The crown prince received the set of bamboo slips.
"Little Six is such a good girl." Taking this opportunity, the Crown Prince finally touched the top of Ling Wu's head.
His eyes were gentle, his fingertips soft, and Lingwu did not refuse.
The Fifth Princess, who was on the verge of tears but was putting on a show of "aloofness," was left with only a handful of pistachios.
She decided that if her sister didn't give her anything, she would...
She can't have just one day!
Half a day? No way!
Then... then she'll never praise her sister again at her first birthday celebration, sob sob~
But the next moment, her sweet and soft little sister hugged her. The milky scent mixed with the fragrance that she always thought was super sweet, but which belonged only to her sister, wafted over, and the fifth princess could only smile foolishly.
"Hehe, my little sister smells so good..." The Fifth Princess chuckled dreamily.
Lingwu took out a bracelet made of small beads and put it on the Fifth Princess's wrist.
"Grandma Zhizhi taught Jiaojiao how to make it."
"Wow~ Did you knit this yourself, little sister!?" The Fifth Princess's face flushed red with excitement and shyness!
The little baby nodded. Actually, it was mostly woven from wooden branches, but she had matched the material and color of the beads. Although she had strung only one bead on it herself, that one took a long time to complete.
The Fifth Princess was clearly taken with this, and she stiffly hugged Ling Wu back.
The sight of the two children, one big and one small, who had clearly grown up in the deep palace, being so affectionate at this moment was even more touching for those around them.
The fifth princess's voice was tinged with shyness, "Sister will definitely protect her little sister from now on!" She clenched her fist and made the vow in a childish voice.
"Okay!" The clear, childlike voice brought boundless joy.
As for the lone pistachio, the little baby gently placed it into the small purse that Mu Zhi had embroidered for her with her tiny hands.
Then she gave one to Muzhi first, saying, "Grandma Zhizhi, be happy."
Mu Zhi's nose tingled with emotion. The young prince hadn't forgotten his servant. "This servant thanks Your Highness." She accepted the gift with both hands, and Ling Wu comforted her, saying, "Be happy, don't cry."
Mu Zhi nodded, her eyes unable to conceal her tenderness towards Ling Wu.
Zhang Delu, who was eagerly waiting with a whisk in his hand, also stared intently at Ling Wu.
When Zhang Delu saw Lingwu walking towards him step by step with her short legs, his hidden tail swished back and forth.
"Grandpa Zhang, be happy." The pistachio in the little baby's hand was green, but his little hands were white and tender.
In his haste, Zhang Delu didn't realize that this was a rather offensive way of addressing Sheng Yu.
He decisively threw his ever-present whisk on the ground and took the pistachio from Lingwu with both hands. "Good, good, good, Grandpa is happy."
Zhang Delu, whose old face was wrinkled from smiling, didn't notice Sheng Yu's face suddenly turn as dark as the bottom of a pot.
Lingwu, carrying a small purse, squatted down, picked up the whisk, and handed it to Zhang Delu, saying, "A whisk."
"Oh dear, Your Highness, you mustn't!" Zhang Delu quickly knelt down and took the whisk from Ling Wu's hand.
Seeing this, Sheng Yu's expression improved slightly.
Yu Bai, who was squeezed into a corner, also received this "honor"!
"Uncle Yu, Guoguo is happy."
Yu Bai's handsome face was full of pride. He reached out and took the fruit from the little baby's hand. "Thank you for the gift, Your Highness."
Lingwu blinked, her eyes sparkling. "You're welcome," she said, shaking her head.
Then, she gave one to Consort Shu, and amidst Consort Shu's incessant praise, Lingwu skipped back into Sheng Yu's arms.
Looking at his well-behaved daughter in his arms, who was as clever as a little devil, Sheng Yu seemed a little aggrieved. "Jiao Jiao only gives them pistachios, but not Father Emperor... Could it be that Jiao Jiao doesn't want Father Emperor to be happy?"
He feigned sadness, but ultimately got his wish and received a kiss from the baby in his arms.
Meanwhile, a group of court officials, noblewomen, and high-ranking officials were forced to watch a grand drama of "competing for favor" in the imperial palace.
After the first birthday celebration, Sheng Yu began to think about what to name Jiao Jiao.
In the midst of Sheng Yu's denial of the Empress, and the Empress's denial of Sheng Yu...
The little baby finally finished counting the few pistachios left in her purse, and with a sweet, childlike voice, declared, "Ling Wu!"
Upon hearing this name, the two who had been arguing heatedly fell silent.
"Lingwu..." After the emperor read the name aloud, his initial thought of coaxing Lingwu to change to another name vanished, leaving only agreement.
As he uttered the name, an immense pressure seemed to descend upon his brow.
In Lingwu's eyes, however, she could see the dragon aura emanating from Sheng Yu, which kept the oppressive power of the underworld's rules at bay.
This is just a small world, not yet able to withstand the pressure of the underworld, so Ling Wu got up and stepped forward to take over all the rules of the underworld.
Sheng Yu then came to her senses and forgot the scene she had just witnessed.
"Very well." The emperor agreed loudly, "From now on, Jiaojiao will be called Lingwu, Sheng Lingwu."
Satisfaction appeared in Sheng Yu's eyes.
The Empress nodded in agreement after what had just happened, saying, "Wu means beauty. Jiaojiao will surely grow into the most beautiful pearl of the Great Sheng Dynasty."
Sunlight streamed into the room through the window, illuminating Lingwu's delicate, beautiful face.
The emperor smiled indulgently, and the empress couldn't help but smile as well.
Lingwu took one person's hand in each hand, and finally intertwined their hands.
Sheng Yu glanced at the Empress, but she lowered her head and avoided his gaze. Finally, she looked at Ling Wu and scolded her, "You little rascal."
A broken mirror is hard to mend, but Lingwu was curious whether the Empress would change her plans this time.
The Empress is now the mother of the nation, but the boy who made a vow with her since childhood has become the emperor above all others.
He couldn't refuse everything, and she couldn't forgive those around her.
But what she wanted required implicating innocent people.
Sunset
Sheng Yu went to the Imperial Study to see Prince Ning, who had rushed there because of Consort Ning's confinement, while the Empress was investigating the matter of the phoenix hairpin.
Only Lingwu remained in the entire Qianqing Palace. Clutching her purse, she gently tugged at Muzhi's sleeve. "Grandma Zhizhi, Jiaojiao wants to see the White Beauty, is that alright?"
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