As soon as Duoduo entered the room, she was startled by the scene unfolding inside.
"Mother, what is..."
The moment Yunmeng saw Duoduo, she immediately started whimpering.
"Hurry up and take her away!" the Princess Consort of Pingyang scolded the older maidservants. The servants quickly grabbed Yunmeng and hurried away.
Watching Yunmeng being taken away, the Princess Consort of Pingyang finally managed to force a smile and reached out to Duoduo.
"Duoduo, have you packed everything in your room properly?"
Duoduo could tell that her mother was not in a good mood.
She put on a sweet smile and threw herself into the arms of the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
"Mother, I've already packed everything!"
"I just missed you, so I came to see you."
Holding Duoduo's warm little body, the Princess Consort of Pingyang suddenly felt her sorrow melt away.
A married daughter is like spilled water.
Even if she no longer had her birth family, she at least still had her husband and her child.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang sat down on a chair with Duoduo in her arms and gently tapped the little girl's nose.
"You've only been away for a little while, and you already miss me? Are you just saying that to make me happy?"
Duoduo giggled cheerfully. "I'm not lying to you, Mother! I just get so excited thinking about our upcoming trip!"
Hearing this, the Princess Consort of Pingyang was instantly distracted from her gloomy thoughts.
As women, most of them spent their days confined to the inner courtyards, day after day.
Although their journey to the capital was filled with uncertainty, the chance to go out, travel, and see a different world was something to look forward to.
What was more, her best friend's family would be joining them.
Wasn't this just like roaming the world with a sword, as described in the storybooks?
The Princess Consort of Pingyang smiled, and Duoduo quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Mother is looking forward to it too. This will surely become the brightest memory of my life."
Duoduo nodded in agreement. "Me too!"
The mother and daughter leaned against each other, beginning to envision the journey ahead.
Baihe returned shortly after. She entered the room, saw that Duoduo was still there, and stood by the door without speaking.
Seeing her, the Princess Consort of Pingyang asked directly.
"Has she been sent away?"
Baihe quickly stepped forward. "To answer Your Highness, this servant handed her over to Lingfeng personally."
"I also passed on your instructions to Lingfeng."
Duoduo's eyes lit up. "Baihe, did you just say Lingfeng?"
Baihe didn't understand why Duoduo was so happy, but she nodded.
"Yes, Princess, it was Lingfeng."
"Mother, did you ask Lingfeng to help you send my cousin back?"
As soon as Duoduo finished speaking, she stuck out her tongue.
Oops!
She seemed to have said something she shouldn't have!
Seeing Duoduo's mischievous look, the Princess Consort of Pingyang gently scraped the bridge of Duoduo's nose.
"You little rascal, you guessed it a long time ago, didn't you?"
Duoduo wrinkled her little nose. "Mother, I don't like Cousin Yunmeng either!"
"You did the right thing by sending her away!"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang was comforted by Duoduo's simple words.
"Why did Mother do the right thing? Sending her back is a slap in the face to my birth family!"
Duoduo tilted her head and thought for a moment.
"Cousin Yunmeng looks down on you, Mother, so I don't like her!"
"If Mother took Cousin Yunmeng out with us, Father would be unhappy."
The Princess Consort of Pingyang paused. "Your father would be unhappy?"
Duoduo nodded vigorously.
"If Cousin looks down on you, Mother, she looks down on Father. Father would definitely be unhappy!"
No wonder Xiao Yi had agreed without hesitation the moment she mentioned sending Yunmeng back.
The face of the Princess Consort of Pingyang turned slightly pale.
The Prince had definitely seen through her birth family's behavior.
"I thought Cousin Yunxi was coming! Now, it's just empty joy!"
Duoduo playfully threw her hands up in exasperation, a gesture she had learned from Li Jin.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang looked thoughtful.
"Do you like Cousin Yunxi, Duoduo?"
"Of course! I like both Cousin Yunxi and Cousin Yunjing."
"I just don't like Cousin Yunmeng," Duoduo added.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang stroked Duoduo's hair.
Duoduo was just a child, yet her mind was much clearer than her own.
She had always thought that Yunmeng was just young and it was normal for her to speak without a sense of propriety.
But Duoduo had only met her once and could already see so many problems.
"Alright, now Mother has cut ties with them. From now on, you won't have to see her anymore."
Although the Princess Consort of Pingyang had already thought it through, actually saying it out loud still brought pain to her heart.
Seeing the Princess Consort of Pingyang's tightly furrowed brows, Duoduo raised her small hand and gently smoothed out the wrinkles.
"Mother, don't frown, it doesn't look pretty!"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang relaxed her brows and smiled.
"Is this better?"
Duoduo nodded. "Mother is the prettiest!"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang gathered her emotions and directed Lianxin and Baihe to continue packing.
Duoduo tugged at the sleeve of the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
"Mother, Father said that true family can never be cut apart."
"Okay, Mother understands. Come help me take a look—which of these pieces of jewelry should I bring along?"
Not wanting Duoduo to keep worrying about her, the Princess Consort of Pingyang pulled her along to help pack.
Because they would be traveling on the road for a month or two, there were quite a lot of things that needed to be organized.
Food, clothing, and daily necessities all had to be prepared.
"Your Highness, the carriages we ordered have arrived," Lingyu reported to Xiao Yi with an excited look on his face.
Xiao Yi's interest was immediately piqued, and he set down his chess piece.
"Let's go take a look."
Lingyu pushed the wheelchair to the open space in the front courtyard.
There, five carriages were parked, two of which had enclosed passenger cabins.
The ones with cabins were for people to ride in, while those without were for transporting luggage.
Guards stood watch by the carriages.
Seeing Xiao Yi approach, the guards hurriedly knelt to pay their respects.
Xiao Yi waved his hand, and the guards stepped aside.
"Your Highness, look! This is where the swords and blades we made are hidden."
Lingyu stepped forward and pulled a blade from underneath the carriage cabin.
Xiao Yi took it and casually twirled the blade, which produced a faint whistling sound as it cut through the air.
"Not bad!" Xiao Yi stopped his movement.
Lingyu slid the blade back under the cabin, completely invisible from the outside.
"Your Highness, an extra layer was added to the middle of this cabin. No sword or blade can pierce it!"
Lingyu reached out and knocked on the carriage, which let out a dull, muffled thud.
Xiao Yi pushed his wheelchair around the carriage to inspect it. "What about the entrance?"
Lingyu hopped onto the carriage, touched something unseen, and a curtain dropped down.
"Bang, bang, bang!"
"Your Highness, this is also made of iron," Lingyu said, knocking on the curtain from inside the cabin.
After Lingyu spoke, the curtain retracted upwards, and he stepped out.
"Have the horses been selected?" Xiao Yi looked at the horses hitched to the carriages.
"Rest assured, Your Highness. These horses are well-trained. They would even have no problem on a battlefield."
Xiao Yi nodded.
"Is the other team's carriage ready?"
"It's ready, right outside the manor."
"Lingyu, when the time comes, you will lead that team and set off first."
Lingyu looked up in surprise. "Your Highness, you are sending both me and Lingfeng away?"
