Duoduo followed Lüdou back to the large shared room where Lüdou lived.
Lüdou closed the door, leaving Duoduo very curious.
Just what was this thing that required such secrecy?
Lüdou climbed onto her bed and felt around under her pillow.
Duoduo stood on her tiptoes, trying to catch a glimpse of what it was.
Lüdou climbed down from the bed, holding a square-like object wrapped in cloth.
Duoduo hurried over, ready to receive the "gift."
Unexpectedly, Lüdou pulled her hand back.
"Careful!"
Duoduo put her hands behind her back, her eyes full of curiosity.
"Lüdou, is there a little animal inside?"
Lüdou shook her head.
She carefully opened the cloth wrapping, revealing the item inside.
The curiosity on Duoduo's face instantly turned into surprise.
Because wrapped in the cloth was a bloodstained knife.
Moreover, this knife was different from other knives.
The blade was curved, and the tip was extremely sharp.
It was larger than a dagger, but smaller than a kitchen cleaver.
Duoduo cautiously stepped forward and stared at the knife.
"Lüdou, do you mean you want me to take this thing back?"
Duoduo was a bit doubtful; had Lüdou grabbed the wrong thing?
Lüdou nodded.
She pulled Duoduo to sit down on her bed.
"Princess, don't be afraid! This is a pig-slaughtering knife!"
"It took my master a long time to find this for me."
"I heard the cooks in the kitchen say that some people can use dreams to steal the dreamer's good fortune."
"One way to break the spell is to get a piece of the person's undergarment, perform a ritual, and burn it."
"Another way is to find a pig-slaughtering knife with a heavy aura of death."
"I specifically asked my master to go to a butcher and buy a pig-slaughtering knife with a very heavy aura."
"When you go back, put this under your pillow, and she will never enter your dreams again!"
Duoduo curiously examined the pig-slaughtering knife in Lüdou's hand.
The bloodstains on it seemed to have merged with the blade itself.
"Does it really work?"
Duoduo was a bit skeptical.
Besides, with such a knife under her pillow, she worried she wouldn't be able to sleep.
Lüdou coaxed Duoduo in a soft voice.
"Princess, why don't you give it a try?"
"If it doesn't work, you can just throw it away."
"But if it does work, you'll never dream of the Eldest Miss again."
Duoduo understood that Lüdou was only doing this for her own good.
Otherwise, why would she go through so much trouble to have Li Da's wife look for and buy this?
Duoduo nodded.
"Alright, I'll try it."
"If it doesn't work, I'll bring it back to you."
"Okay."
Lüdou carefully wrapped the knife securely in the cloth to prevent it from cutting Duoduo.
"Be careful when you place it down, this knife is very sharp!"
Lüdou reminded her worriedly.
"Mhm, I'll remember!"
Duoduo took the wrapped knife and placed it beside her.
Lüdou looked Duoduo up and down. "Princess, you seem to have lost weight?"
Duoduo touched her face.
"Have I? Mother also said I lost weight, and forced me to eat a lot this morning."
Lüdou nodded.
"You have lost weight. You must have had a hard time lately, right?"
"It wasn't too hard! Oh, right, Lüdou, let me tell you."
"Father tied my hair for me, and he did a really good job!"
Duoduo shared her happy news with Lüdou.
"You actually gave the Prince acupuncture?" Lüdou covered her mouth, unable to believe it.
Duoduo smiled brightly, "Yeah, Lüdou, aren't I amazing?"
Lüdou nodded vigorously.
"You are so amazing, Princess! You're a genius!"
Duoduo waved her hand.
"You can't say genius. Father says a person shouldn't be arrogant, or else they'll end up like Shang Zhongyong."
"Shang Zhongyong? Who is that?"
Lüdou was completely confused.
"Shang Zhongyong isn't a who, it's an idiom."
"It's about a child named Zhongyong who was very smart from a young age."
"His father would boast to everyone he met and make him write poems for others to see."
"Later on, he didn't continue his studies, and when he grew up, he became an ordinary person."
Lüdou understood.
"Princess, you won't be like that person named Zhongyong. You will definitely achieve great things!"
Duoduo nodded.
"Mhm, that's what I think too!"
"I'm going to work hard to become stronger. I want to protect Father and Mother, and you too. We are going to live happily ever after!"
"You will definitely make your wish come true!" Lüdou was very moved.
"I made hawthorn cake today. It's sweet and sour, you'll definitely love it."
"Thank you, Lüdou!"
Duoduo thanked her with a beaming smile.
"Oh, right, Lüdou. I'm free today, so let me continue teaching you how to read!"
Lüdou hesitated for a moment.
"It's rare for you to get a day off. How about I accompany you to the pond to feed the fish?"
"I saw that the rouge flowers have bloomed. Should I pick some to dye your nails?"
Duoduo's eyes lit up.
"In that case, I'll have Lüluo go pick them."
"I'll teach you how to read first, and when we're done, we can dye our nails."
Duoduo thought her idea was absolutely brilliant.
She hopped off the bed and opened the door.
Lüluo, who was guarding outside the door, immediately walked over.
"Princess, are you heading back now?"
Duoduo looked excited.
"Lüluo, go to the garden and pick some rouge flowers. I want to dye my nails."
Lüluo nodded, "Yes, I will go right away."
Duoduo turned her head and looked at Lüdou.
"Let's study outside."
Duoduo walked out of the room and found two tree branches.
She and Lüdou squatted on the ground. Duoduo took a branch and wrote down a character.
Lüdou watched attentively as Duoduo wrote.
After Duoduo finished writing, she explained the character to Lüdou.
Once Lüdou memorized it, she would write it herself.
Then, Duoduo continued to teach the second character.
Lüluo picked a lot of rouge flowers, gathered them in her handkerchief, and ran back.
From a distance, she saw the Princess and the maid named Lüdou squatting side by side.
The two were very close to each other, both holding a branch and drawing on the ground.
A flash of envy crossed Lüluo's eyes.
Among the three maids, she had been with the Princess the longest.
However, the Princess was never as affectionate with her as she was with Lüdou.
But Lüluo had also heard some things about Lüdou and the Princess.
She understood that Lüdou's importance to Duoduo was something none of them could compare to.
"Princess, I have brought back the rouge flowers."
Lüluo stood a little further away and spoke softly.
Lüdou looked up and gave Lüluo a friendly smile.
Then, she pulled Duoduo up to stand.
"Princess, I have memorized everything you taught me."
"Now, let's dye your nails."
"Okay!"
Duoduo was very happy; she had never dyed her nails before.
"Lüluo, do you know how to dye nails?"
Lüluo nodded.
"Yes, I do."
Lüluo carefully placed the crushed rouge flowers onto Duoduo's nails, and Lüdou wrapped them with strips of cloth.
Soon, all ten of Duoduo's fingers were wrapped up.
A cup of tea's time later, Duoduo looked at her hands and smiled, her eyes turning into little crescents.
"Lüluo, let's go pick some more. I want to go back and dye Mother's nails too."
"The Princess Consort will definitely be very happy!"
Duoduo stood up and was about to leave when she suddenly remembered she hadn't taken her thing.
"Lüdou, give the thing to Lüluo."
"Lüluo, you absolutely must not lose it!"
"Oh, and you're not allowed to peek!"
