Duoduo looked at Xiao Yi with sparkling eyes, then she obediently bowed to him.
"Father's lesson is correct, it is my own lack of temperament."
"Father, how many days until we reach the next commandery?"
Xiao Yi glanced at Duoduo. "Bored of staying here?"
Duoduo nodded obediently. "Father, aren't you bored staying in your room every day?"
Xiao Yi looked up, seeing Duoduo's face full of confusion, and nodded at her.
"Come here."
Duoduo stepped forward and came to Xiao Yi's side.
"Look, what am I doing?" Xiao Yi asked Duoduo.
Duoduo was very curious. "You are playing chess."
Xiao Yi shook his head. "Incorrect."
Duoduo looked carefully again. In front of Xiao Yi, apart from the chessboard and pieces, there was nothing else.
"Then your daughter cannot tell."
Xiao Yi placed the chess piece in his hand onto the board.
"You see it as playing chess, but I see it as two armies battling."
Duoduo was completely baffled. What was the difference?
"Playing chess is merely a form of leisure and entertainment."
"But a battle of wits is different."
"When two armies confront each other, how to minimize one's own casualties, how to lay out the formation, and how to devise strategies within a command tent—these are all things the chess player must contemplate."
Duoduo's eyes widened. "Father, but you are playing against yourself."
Xiao Yi nodded.
"Yes, what is the problem with that?"
"When you play against yourself, no matter which side you take, you definitely know what strategy the opponent is using!"
A glimmer of light flashed in Xiao Yi's eyes as he looked at Duoduo.
"Correct! Playing against oneself naturally means knowing what strategy is being used."
"Then, what if you are not playing against yourself? How do you know the opponent's strategy?"
Duoduo tilted her head, pondering Xiao Yi's words.
Duoduo was very smart and quickly thought of a method.
"Father, I know!"
"I can imagine myself as the opponent and guess the schemes they might use."
"And playing against oneself can also be imagined as the opponent playing against you!"
A flash of satisfaction appeared in Xiao Yi's eyes.
"Then think about it. If you were Song Shuyu and knew you would soon meet in the capital, what would you do?"
Duoduo froze.
This was a question she had never thought about.
Or perhaps, subconsciously, she just did not want to think about it.
Seeing Duoduo's expression, Xiao Yi immediately understood that she had never considered it.
"Can't think of anything? It doesn't matter. There is still plenty of time before we reach the capital; you can take your time to think."
Xiao Yi waved his hand. Duoduo bowed absentmindedly and walked out.
If she were Song Shuyu, what would she do?
Before Duoduo's eyes flashed the image of Song Shuyu raising her chin, looking aloof and arrogant.
"Jinx!"
"Get lost!"
"Consider yourself lucky!"
...
Song Shuyu's past appearances flashed continuously before Duoduo's eyes.
Duoduo walked to the bow of the ship and looked out at the endless river water.
The past she had deliberately forgotten flashed before her eyes scene by scene.
She saw her pitiful little past self, struggling to survive in the Song Manor.
While Song Shuyu was a dazzling existence.
Clearly, she and Song Shuyu were born of the same mother.
What had she done wrong?
A surge of indignation rose in Duoduo's heart!
Duoduo sat down on the deck, hugging her knees.
Over these past few months, she had made leaps and bounds, completely transforming herself.
The current her was no longer the pitiful little girl who never talked back when scolded or fought back when beaten!
If she were Song Shuyu, what would she do?
Song Shuyu always knew best who held the most power.
In the Song Manor, Song Shuyu had tightly clung to Old Madam Song, who had the most say.
Therefore, Song Shuyu would absolutely try her best to curry favor with Prince Ling.
And Prince Ling's goal was the supreme throne.
Song Shuyu would certainly want to help Prince Ling realize his ambition, so she could enjoy wealth and glory alongside him.
And Old Madam Song taking Duoduo to Fengcheng was definitely done with the same calculation.
Wanting Song Shuyu to rise to power so the entire Song Manor could ride her coattails to success.
The current Duoduo already understood that Song Shuyu was able to enter Prince Ling's estate because of her reputation as a lucky star.
Duoduo believed that Song Shuyu definitely knew this logic as well.
Therefore, Song Shuyu would absolutely make her reputation as a lucky star known to everyone on the streets.
Public opinion is powerful; by then, Prince Ling would value her even more.
And the best way to expand her reputation as a lucky star was to contrast it with her, the jinx.
If she brought disaster to people while Song Shuyu brought blessings, then it wouldn't be long before Song Shuyu's reputation as a lucky star spread far and wide.
As someone who had grown up with her, Duoduo naturally knew the tricks Song Shuyu could use better than anyone else.
Having figured out Song Shuyu's likely actions, Duoduo pursed her lips.
In the art of war, there was a stratagem: give them a taste of their own medicine.
As long as Song Shuyu really did this, then she couldn't be blamed for returning the favor in kind.
Duoduo looked at the river surface, where a bird swooped down from the sky, caught a fish in its beak, and flew back up.
The bird flying in the sky could see the fish in the water with crystal clarity.
But the fish was unaware.
Why?
Duoduo remembered a saying in the art of war: know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles.
Thinking of this, Duoduo jumped up.
She smoothed out her skirt and walked towards Xiao Yi's cabin.
"Have you figured it out?" A gleam flashed in Xiao Yi's eyes upon seeing Duoduo.
Duoduo nodded.
"Father, I want all of Song Shuyu's whereabouts over the past few months."
Xiao Yi rubbed the chess piece in his hand, a smile flashing in his eyes.
"Why do you want that?"
Duoduo kept a straight face. "Father, since you asked me that earlier, you definitely wanted me to be mentally prepared in advance."
"You said that when two armies face off, one must first know oneself and the enemy to be confident in deploying troops and formations."
"I want to know what she has been doing since she went to Fengcheng, so I can know how to deal with her!"
A flash of satisfaction appeared in Xiao Yi's eyes.
"How do you know I definitely have it here?"
Duoduo raised her eyes, looking at Xiao Yi without flinching.
"Father, I have seen the pigeons in the manor every day."
"Prince Ling's attitude towards you has almost reached the point of wanting to pull you up by the roots; it is impossible for you not to have news of him."
Duoduo's words made the smile in Xiao Yi's eyes disappear.
With a cold face, he put down the chess piece and took out a stack of letter paper from a box on the side.
"Just as you said, I indeed do."
"However, why should I give it to you?" Xiao Yi's gaze was like frost.
Duoduo was extremely shocked.
"Father, I am your daughter! We are grasshoppers tied to the same string!"
"Cough, cough!" Xiao Yi choked on Duoduo's words.
Duoduo hurriedly rushed over, stood on her tiptoes, and patted Xiao Yi's back with her small hands.
Xiao Yi finally caught his breath and waved his hand.
"If you want this information, you can have it. Bring me silver, and I will give it to you!"
