Pei Jiuyan's lips curled up into a smug smile. "Without the eldest princess born to his wife, Lu Jun, the only healthy princess left in the harem is my daughter Xijie. Xijie is such a well-behaved child. I wonder how much His Majesty loves her. Her future is bound to be limitless."
As they talked, the master and servant arrived at the small room where the fourth princess was resting. Ling Xijie had just woken up naturally at this time. She rubbed her eyes with her chubby hands, and her face was bleary.
She raised her head and saw Pei Jiuyan. She immediately waved her hands excitedly, shouting, "I want the Queen Mother, I want the Queen Mother to hug me... I miss the Queen Mother, I want to go find the Queen Mother..."
At her age now, Ling Xijie can already accurately say the name of the object she wants, but speaking in complete sentences is still a little difficult for her.
Pei Jiuyan had been in for such a long time, but Ling Xijie didn't call out "father", but just kept asking where Ling Shumo was.
But Pei Jiuyan didn't show any anger or disappointment on her face. Instead, she smiled and pinched her chubby little face, "Your queen mother has just left. If you want to see her, you have to wake up earlier next time."
Ling Xijie nodded, half understanding. But before long, she was asking about Ling Shumo's whereabouts. She hadn't seen Ling Shumo very often in her entire life, and she didn't quite grasp the complex meaning behind Pei Jiuyan's words. But because Pei Jiuyan kept urging her to ask where Ling Shumo was, Ling Xijie's little mind was filled with thoughts of her mother, the empress, with whom she wasn't particularly close.
Whenever Ling Xijie accurately expressed her longing for the Queen Mother, Pei Jiuyan would reward her with the milk candy she normally wouldn't let her touch. With such sweet treats, the little one became even more enthusiastic about calling her "Queen Mother."
The reason why Ling Xijie cried so loudly when he first met Lu Jinshu was actually because Pei Jiuyan had done something about it.
Ling Xijie wore a golden bracelet around his ankle, symbolizing longevity and prosperity. This bracelet was unusual, holding a profound secret. The center of the bracelet was hollow, housing a poisonous insect called the Iron-Blood Silkworm. Upon catching the scent of the Death Flower, this insect would emit a scorching heat from within. The Death Flower was colorless, odorless, and non-toxic; its sole function was to inflict irritability on the Iron-Blood Silkworm.
That day, Pei Jiuyan rubbed the sachet containing the deadly flower against Lu Jinshu. Whenever Lu Jinshu came into close contact with Ling Xijie, the gold bracelet on Ling Xijie's ankle would heat up due to the agitation of the iron-blooded silkworm. Babies and young children have very delicate skin, and Ling Xijie's ankle would be uncomfortable from the burn, causing him to cry out loudly.
Training young children is actually no different from training dogs, and the most commonly used method is conditioned reflex.
Pei Jiuyan rubbed Ling Xijie's fluffy hair with a smile in his eyes. "You are truly a good daughter to your stepfather. You should always be so obedient in the future. Your mother will only like a smart and obedient princess." He said, glancing at Song Shuang who was standing aside. "Didn't His Majesty say that the Lotus Seed, Five Ding Zhi and Red Date Soup should be sent to Chenyou Palace? What are you still standing here for? Hurry up and tell someone to do it."
Song Shuang quickly replied "yes", but just as he turned around and took a few steps, Pei Jiuyan called out to him, "I'll go with you. After all, it's not as sincere as having me personally come to your house to show my sincerity if I ask you, a servant, to deliver the gift."
…
Chenyou Palace.
Lu Jinshu passed a spoonful of rice porridge to Ling Xihe's lips. Ling Xihe opened his mouth and swallowed the spoonful. Lu Jinshu scooped up a second spoonful of porridge, and Ling Xihe drank it again obediently.
Lu Jinshu smiled and asked, "This bowl of porridge you are drinking now was made by your father early this morning by washing rice and cooking it with his own hands. My dear daughter, tell me, is this bowl of porridge delicious?"
After Lu Jinshu finished speaking, he looked at Ling Xihe expectantly, hoping his precious daughter would reply, "It's delicious!" But he was doomed to be disappointed. Ling Xihe simply stared at him with wide eyes, her childish face filled with confusion and ignorance.
Seeing this scene, a crystal tear rolled down from the corner of Lu Jinshu's eye, fell into the porridge bowl with a "plop", and disappeared.
Ling Xihe looked at her father crying, her lips moved slightly a few times. Just when Lu Jinshu was expecting a miracle to happen, Ling Xihe's mouth opened and she giggled.
Lu Jinshu could hardly hold the bowl in his hand, and Jiufu caught the bowl quickly to prevent the whole bowl of rice porridge from spilling on Ling Xihe.
At this moment, an attendant arrived with a message, "My Lord and Madam, Shu Rongze (Pei Jiuyan) requests an audience. He says he's here on the orders of His Majesty to bring you a bowl of lotus seed, five-dingzhi, and red date soup to clear your heart and reduce internal heat."
Lu Jinshu raised his hand to wipe away the tears on his face and said listlessly, "Just find a reason to send him away. I'm not in the mood to see guests."
The attendant responded and left. But not long after, he pushed open the door again, his tone rather annoyed. "My Lord and Majesty, that Shu Rongze truly disregards you. I told him you were tired and unfit to see guests. But he said that if he had come to visit you at Chenyou Palace on his own initiative and you didn't want to see him, he would have left immediately. But this time, he's here to deliver something to you on behalf of Your Majesty, and he insists on meeting you in person to live up to Your Majesty's trust."
Jiufu's brow furrowed immediately. "Shu Rongze's words clearly use the emperor's power to pressure you, my master. I really don't know where he gets the courage to come up and provoke me again and again. My master, if I were to ask you to let him in right now, you are the master of the six palaces. If you accuse him of disrespecting the emperor and the empress, it would be enough to make him suffer."
Jiufu finished speaking, but for a long time, he didn't get a response from Lu Jinshu. He looked carefully and saw that his master was holding the bowl of porridge tightly in his hand, looking at the princess with tears in his eyes, with a heartbroken look on his face. He had no thoughts at all about Pei Jiuyan who was outside the door.
The rage that had been simmering in Jiufu's heart was instantly released. Yes, if his master had only slightly taken care of the affairs of the harem, how could a petty Pei Jiuyan have the right to act so arrogantly? The reason Pei Jiuyan dared to act so arrogantly was because he had never seen his master's methods before. But this was where the problem lay. His master's heart had completely dissipated because of the Crown Princess's stupidity. Even when His Majesty came to Chenyou Palace to comfort him, his master ignored him.
Thinking of his master's attitude towards His Majesty, Jiufu felt as if someone was hitting him on the head with a brick. He carefully chose his words and said, "My master doesn't want to pay attention to Shu Rongze, so just ignore him. If you don't like him, you can even order someone to pick up a broom and drive him away. But you should never be so cold when facing His Majesty. Every time His Majesty comes to Chenyou Palace, he puts on a smile and tries to make you happy in various ways. But not only do you not express your gratitude, but you also look at His Majesty with such an ugly dead face..."
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