The Prince of Pingyang stood by the bed, his brows furrowed in a knot.
He had not expected Duoduo's sleeping posture to be so unsightly.
The Prince of Pingyang was always a light sleeper; the slightest movement would easily wake him.
Seeing Duoduo's sleeping posture now, the Prince of Pingyang rubbed the space between his eyebrows.
He felt as if he had dropped a rock on his own foot.
Then, the Prince of Pingyang saw Duoduo lift one leg, give a forceful kick, and twist.
In one smooth motion, Duoduo rolled right to the edge of the bed.
The Prince of Pingyang even suspected that if he didn't stop her, Duoduo might roll right off the bed.
The Prince of Pingyang looked at Duoduo, who already had one foot dangling off the edge, and fell into deep thought.
Seeing Duoduo start to move again, the Prince of Pingyang hurriedly bent down.
He reached out his hands, guarding the area below the bed so he could catch her at the first moment.
But miraculously, Duoduo stopped halfway through her movement.
As if she knew she was going to fall, she suddenly paused.
Then, twisting her body in the opposite direction, Duoduo rolled back.
Just like that, the Prince of Pingyang watched as Duoduo, who had been on the verge of falling, returned to safety.
The Prince of Pingyang straightened up, somewhat suspecting that Duoduo was pretending to be asleep.
Unceremoniously, he picked Duoduo up by her clothes, tossed her toward the inner side of the bed, and lay down himself.
Duoduo lay on her stomach on the inside of the bed, motionless.
Just when the Prince of Pingyang began to worry she might suffocate, Duoduo started moving again.
She seemed to sense someone behind her. With a twist of her body, she wriggled her little frame closer and closer until she burrowed into the Prince of Pingyang's arms.
Finding a comfortable position in the Prince of Pingyang's embrace, she curled up into a ball and finally stopped moving.
The Prince of Pingyang wanted to push Duoduo away, but looking at her sleeping face, he stayed his hand.
Duoduo's sleeping posture was just like a baby's.
Her arms wrapped around herself, and her legs were curled up.
This was a sign of extreme insecurity.
When the Prince of Pingyang was a child, he slept the exact same way.
Because only this posture made him feel warm.
The Prince of Pingyang turned on his side and curled up in the same posture.
The two of them, one large and one small, looked like two semicircles, one large and one small.
Perhaps because she was pressed against the Prince of Pingyang, Duoduo didn't toss and turn anymore.
The Prince of Pingyang held the child, who smelled of milk; with every breath, he inhaled the warm, milky scent.
Before long, the Prince of Pingyang also fell asleep.
He slept straight through until the hour of Mao.
The Prince of Pingyang opened his eyes and saw Duoduo still sleeping soundly in his arms.
The Prince of Pingyang was a little stunned.
Had he really not even tossed or turned once last night?
Moreover, he now felt completely full of energy.
The Prince of Pingyang fell into deep thought.
It seemed that every time he slept next to Duoduo, his sleep was exceptionally good.
The greatest benefit of good sleep was that his body felt incredibly comfortable the next day.
This state could sustain him through several days of overwork without feeling tired.
The Prince of Pingyang began to wonder if he should find an excuse to let Duoduo always sleep next to him.
"Daddy~"
Duoduo woke up. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw the Prince of Pingyang staring at her in a daze.
She rubbed her eyes. Because she had just woken up, her milky, childish voice was especially pronounced.
It even carried a hint of a coquettish whine.
The Prince of Pingyang's eyelashes fluttered. He let go of Duoduo and sat up.
"Since you're awake, get up and dress yourself. Hurry up and go exercise!"
Duoduo sat up, still drowsy, and nodded obediently.
"Okay!"
Her obedient appearance made the Prince of Pingyang's heart soften a bit.
"Someone come!"
"Your Highness!" A guard outside pushed open the door and stood at the entrance.
"I need to wash up."
The guard hurriedly walked in. Seeing the Prince of Pingyang's wheelchair near the door, he was confused for a moment.
He quickly pushed the wheelchair to the bedside and lifted the Prince of Pingyang into it.
"Go call the maids who serve the Princess to come in and attend to her."
The Prince of Pingyang gave the order and wheeled himself away to wash up.
"Yes."
The guard walked out. Moments later, Lüyi and Lüzhu hurried in.
"Lüyi!"
Duoduo softly reached out her hands toward Lüyi, and Lüyi picked her up.
"This servant will help the Princess dress."
Lüzhu opened the bundle in her hands and took out the prepared clothes.
The two of them deftly helped Duoduo put on her clothes, shoes, and socks.
Duoduo hopped off the bed. Just as Lüyi was about to reach out and tidy the quilt, she was stopped by the guard.
"His Highness does not like others touching his things. I will handle this."
Lüyi gave the guard a slight bow, then packed all of Duoduo's changed clothes into the bundle.
After Duoduo washed up, Lüzhu combed her hair.
When she returned to the room, she saw that breakfast was already laid out on the table.
Duoduo consciously took a seat.
The two maids looked at each other, not knowing what to do.
They both knew that the Prince of Pingyang did not allow maids to enter his room.
The only reason they were able to enter today was because of the Princess.
Now that the Princess was eating, as maids, they should step forward to serve her.
However, they were also worried about violating the Prince of Pingyang's taboos.
"Get out!"
The Prince of Pingyang's cold words made the two maids shudder.
"Yes."
After bowing to their masters, the two hurriedly retreated outside.
The guard also retreated and closed the door.
Duoduo blinked her eyes.
She stood up from her chair, leaning half her body over the table.
Duoduo stretched out her arm to reach the steamed egg custard in front of her.
Just as her sleeve was about to dip into the dish in front of her.
Unable to tolerate it any longer, the Prince of Pingyang grabbed Duoduo by the collar and lifted her up.
Duoduo felt herself suddenly suspended in the air. Surprised, she turned her head to look.
"Father?"
The Prince of Pingyang dropped Duoduo back onto her chair, keeping a straight face.
"What dish do you want to eat?"
Duoduo blinked her big eyes in confusion.
"This one?" The Prince of Pingyang scooped up a spoonful of egg custard and placed it into Duoduo's bowl.
Duoduo's eyes lit up.
Her father was scooping egg custard for her!
With an aowu sound, Duoduo stuffed the egg custard into her mouth.
Because her mouth was too small, both her cheeks bulged.
She kept her mouth closed and chewed slowly, looking just like a little squirrel.
The Prince of Pingyang glanced at Duoduo, and then glanced at her again.
Then, another spoonful of egg custard appeared in Duoduo's bowl.
Duoduo's eyes lit up once more, and with another aowu, she stuffed it all into her mouth again.
Looking at Duoduo's bulging cheeks, the look in the Prince of Pingyang's eyes unconsciously carried a hint of a smile.
The Prince of Pingyang stopped eating himself; he just kept watching Duoduo, glance after glance.
Whenever Duoduo's two cheeks deflated, he would scoop another spoonful for her.
After eating four or five spoonfuls, Duoduo found it a bit strange.
With so much food on the table, why was her father only scooping egg custard for her?
When Duoduo saw the Prince of Pingyang's spoon heading for the egg custard yet again.
Duoduo couldn't even care that she still had food in her mouth and hurriedly cried out.
"No more egg custard!"
The Prince of Pingyang's movements paused, but then his hand continued to scoop up a large spoonful of egg custard.
Duoduo's eyes darted around. What should she do if she didn't want to eat anymore?
