When the little dumpling uttered those sweet, childish words, "There's a bowl of 'almond milk' floating above Father's head," the air in the entire imperial study seemed to be frozen in place.
Xiao Che, the emperor of the Dali Dynasty known for remaining calm even when Mount Tai collapses before him, was now frozen in a position that could be described as "petrified," with his forearm slightly raised, his body leaning forward, and his mouth slightly open.
At this moment, there was no longer any thought of the country or the political turmoil in his deep phoenix eyes.
All that remained was an extreme shock and bewilderment, comparable to a magnitude 12 earthquake.
What...what did he hear?!
Above my head... floating... a bowl of... almond milk?!
What... what kind of outrageous and inappropriate words are these?!
If these words had come from someone else, Xiao Che would probably have immediately ordered that the person who was "spreading heresy" be dragged out and beaten to death with sticks!
But the one who said those words was his own son!
She is a four-year-old, innocent and naive child who hasn't even learned the concept of "lying" yet!
Then, recalling his earlier, chillingly precise "ordering"...
A possibility that was utterly absurd, bizarre, yet the only reasonable one, exploded in Xiao Che's mind like a thunderclap from a clear sky!
"Whoosh—!"
The next second, before the eunuch at the door could react, the majestic "stone statue" on the dragon throne suddenly moved!
Xiao Che suddenly stood up from the dragon throne with a speed completely inconsistent with his imperial status!
He didn't even care that the hem of his dragon robe was caught on the chair; he took a big step, walked around the imperial desk, and came to Tuanzi.
Then, while the little boy was still holding the Luban lock with a blank expression, not knowing what had happened, he scooped his own son up from the ground!
The movement was clean and swift, like an eagle catching a chick.
"Father?" The little dumpling was startled by the sudden "take-off" and instinctively hugged his father's neck.
However, Xiao Che had no time to pay him any attention.
He held the little dumpling in his arms, and without saying a word, he turned around and rushed out!
That speed was as fast as the wind!
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Where are you going?!"
"His Majesty hasn't finished reviewing the memorials yet!"
"Your Majesty's almond milk is almost ready!"
Behind them came the heart-wrenching, panicked cries of the chief eunuch, Li Dequan.
But Xiao Che seemed not to have heard at all.
He carried the little dumpling and "teleported" along the way, his goal crystal clear—
Kunning Palace!
This matter is of great importance!
We must, immediately, at once, convene a “Royal High-Level Emergency Family Meeting”!
...
Kunning Palace, inside the sleeping quarters.
Lin Wanwan was leisurely reading a storybook.
Suddenly, the palace doors were violently slammed open from the outside with a loud "bang".
Immediately afterwards, she saw her emperor husband, carrying their bewildered son, rush in like a whirlwind.
"Wanwan!" Xiao Che's expression was more solemn and serious than ever before.
Lin Wanwan was startled by his appearance and quickly sat up from the couch.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Could it be that there's fighting on the border again?
Xiao Che did not answer her.
He merely glanced at all the palace servants in the hall with an extremely serious expression, and then gave the order in a deep voice:
"All of you, step back!"
"Without my order, no one is allowed to approach the bedchamber!"
The palace servants, terrified by His Majesty's menacing aura, dared not even breathe, and quickly bowed and retreated, closing the palace doors behind them.
In an instant, the vast bedroom was left with only the three of them.
"What exactly happened?" Lin Wanwan looked at Xiao Che's face, which was so solemn it was almost dripping with tears, and her heart also became tense.
Xiao Che, holding Tuanzi, walked up to her, took a deep breath, and then, in an extremely complicated tone, recounted the scene that had just occurred in the Imperial Study.
When Lin Wanwan heard Tuanzi point at Xiao Che's head and say in a childish voice, "There's a bowl of almond milk floating on Father Emperor's head..."
She was completely petrified on the spot.
Her beautiful almond-shaped eyes suddenly widened, filled with the same extreme shock and disbelief as Xiao Che's had just been.
What...what did she hear?!
Above my head...is...almond cream floating?!
This...this familiar recipe...this familiar taste...
One, utterly absurd and bizarre, yet the only reasonable conjecture, erupted like a volcano, instantly engulfing her entire being!
Could it be...?
Could it be... that a cheat ability can be... hereditary?!
Moreover, after being inherited, it... mutated?!
Her secret weapon is her ability to read "emojis" and "emotions"!
And Tuanzi's cheat code is... looking at... looking at "recipes"?! And what she's really looking at is... "appetite"?!
Lin Wanwan looked at Xiao Che in shock.
She saw that Xiao Che, sitting opposite her, was also looking at her with the same shocked expression.
Both of them saw the same three words in each other's eyes—
I'm cracked.
A long silence fell over the bedchamber.
Only the little dumpling, still held in Xiao Che's arms, looked at this and then at that, with a blank and innocent expression.
Father and Mother, what's wrong?
Finally, it was Xiao Che who was the first to recover from this huge shock.
He truly deserves to be called an emperor who has weathered many storms.
He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the feeling of his worldview shattering, and then exchanged a glance with Lin Wanwan.
The two reached a consensus in an instant.
—This matter must undergo a scientific and rigorous internal test!
Thus, a "culinary talent test," which could be described as the "top secret of the Great Li Dynasty," was quietly carried out in the sleeping quarters of Kunning Palace.
In the first round, His Majesty the Emperor, Xiao Che, personally served as the "question setter".
He put the dumpling on the ground and let him play with the building blocks by himself.
Then, he sat down next to Lin Wanwan, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.
His perpetually unchanging "poker face" was now filled with unprecedented focus.
He began, with all his might, desperately, to imagine something in his mind—
A plate of bright red, fragrant spicy chicken!
Add lots of chili peppers! Add lots of Sichuan peppercorns! Make it spicy, numbing, and fragrant!
He was so focused on his thoughts that he unconsciously swallowed.
Meanwhile, the little dumpling, who was concentrating on building with blocks, suddenly stopped what it was doing.
He wrinkled his cute little nose.
Then, he raised his head and looked at his father, who was closing his eyes and looking "serious".
Her face instantly fell.
"Father!" he said in a childish voice, with a hint of disdain, "It's so spicy!"
"Tuanzi, don't eat spicy food!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Che and Lin Wanwan both gasped in shock!
real!
It's actually true?!
The two of them looked at each other in shock.
Then, Lin Wanwan took over and conducted the second round of testing.
Lin Wanwan, imitating Xiao Che, also closed her eyes.
She began, desperately, in her mind, to imagine something completely opposite to "spicy chicken".
[A piece of cool, sweet, green mung bean cake, sprinkled with osmanthus honey!]
It has to be the kind that melts in your mouth!
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that a sweet smile unconsciously crept onto her lips.
Meanwhile, the little dumpling, who had just looked disgusted, instantly changed her expression.
His big, dark eyes suddenly lit up!
The next second, he didn't even care about the almost completed block castle in front of him, and directly threw the blocks down with a "smack"!
Then, using both hands and feet, like a small cannonball, it quickly crawled to Lin Wanwan's side and buried its head in her arms!
As he nuzzled his mother's soft embrace with his fluffy little head, he whined in a sweet, pleading tone:
"Mother! It's too late!"
"I want to eat cake!"
"I want to eat mung bean cake!"
Test... Success!
The evidence is irrefutable!
Xiao Che and Lin Wanwan looked at their son in their arms, who was whining for "gaogao" (a cute name for a baby), and once again fell into a long, petrified silence.
The two looked at each other in bewilderment.
From the other person's eyes, one could see their shattered values.
Finally, it was Xiao Che who first spoke, albeit with difficulty.
His voice carried an unprecedented, dreamlike, and ethereal quality.
"Wanwan..."
"I think..."
He paused, as if searching for the right words.
"...Our Xiao family's dragon vein might..."
"...You've led me astray."
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