Seeing Duoduo, Yunxiao pushed the door open and let her into the room.
Duoduo walked in with great apprehension and saw Xiao Yi sitting by the window, looking at a map.
"Father, were you looking for me?" Duoduo walked over.
Xiao Yi glanced at Duoduo. "Sit down first."
Duoduo obediently sat down opposite Xiao Yi.
"We will arrive in the capital in a few days. Are you prepared?"
Duoduo was stunned. Of all the things she had imagined, she never thought her father would ask this.
She had asked Shitou and Lüdou to help her gather information, so she had learned a lot about Song Shuyu.
Song Shuyu was highly favored in Prince Ling's estate.
Ever since she arrived at Prince Ling's estate, Prince Ling's people had not only found money but also discovered a mine.
Prince Ling presented the mine to the Emperor, earning himself a great deal of praise.
Prince Ling doted on Song Shuyu so much that even the Princess Consort and her children had to step aside.
Prince Ling would satisfy any request Song Shuyu made.
In Fengcheng, Song Shuyu's reputation as a lucky star was known to every household.
After Duoduo found this out, she felt deeply depressed for several days.
Duoduo hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"I am prepared."
Xiao Yi raised his eyes, looking at Duoduo with a sharp gaze.
"What kind of preparations have you made? Let me hear it."
Duoduo unconsciously scratched the palm of her hand.
"Whatever Song Shuyu can do, I can do too!"
"Moreover, I am ready to fight; I am not afraid of her!"
As Duoduo reached the end of her sentence, her tone became extremely firm.
Xiao Yi stared at Duoduo. "This is what you call being prepared?"
Duoduo nodded. "Please guide me, Father!"
"Was saving those people during the Dragon Boat Festival also one of your schemes?" Xiao Yi's eyes flickered.
Now that he finally asked this question, Duoduo's hanging heart settled down.
"Yes! But not entirely!" Duoduo replied.
"Prince Ling just wants to promote Song Shuyu's name as a lucky star so that the Emperor will look upon him with special favor."
"However, Song Shuyu's so-called good fortune is only for Prince Ling, not for the common people of the world."
"Father, you once said that His Majesty cares most about his people and his empire."
"Therefore, my breakthrough lies with the common people."
"Actually, I just wanted to give it a try at the time..." Duoduo added at the end.
Xiao Yi looked at Duoduo, frowning without saying a word.
After Duoduo finished speaking, the courage she had just shown vanished without a trace.
"Father, did I do something wrong?" Duoduo looked at Xiao Yi nervously.
Xiao Yi snapped out of his thoughts and tapped his finger on the table.
"I remember telling you this when I first taught you how to play chess."
"Never let anyone know your trump card! And do not easily expose your abilities to others."
"I was only thinking about saving people at the time; I didn't consider all that..." Duoduo argued.
Xiao Yi knew very well that Duoduo had a kind heart.
Therefore, he also wanted to protect this kindness in Duoduo.
Just as he had told Duoduo, kind people do not necessarily meet a good end.
So-called kindness must vary depending on the person.
Xiao Yi took a stack of papers from the drawer on the side and pushed them in front of Duoduo.
"These are the profiles of the important figures in the capital. Memorize them."
Duoduo stared at the thick stack with wide eyes.
"Father, can't I take them back to read?"
Xiao Yi gave her a sidelong glance, the meaning in his eyes self-evident.
Duoduo obediently took the documents and began to flip through them.
The very first person on the first page was actually the current Emperor.
It detailed the Emperor's preferences, personality, his past, and the things he had done during his years on the throne.
Following that were all the princes and princesses, as well as the family backgrounds of the married princes' wives.
Once again, it included everyone's personality, preferences, and what they liked to do in their daily lives.
Duoduo cast a somewhat surprised glance at her father, who was reading a book opposite her.
She carefully turned the page; the second page was about the Empress and the concubines of the inner palace.
Flipping further back, there was a list of the ministers favored by the Emperor.
The thick stack was just like a dictionary.
With so many people recorded, how much manpower and resources must have been spent to investigate them all?
Such information definitely could not be easily shown to others.
Duoduo stuck out her tongue and obediently started memorizing.
It wasn't until dinner time that Duoduo barely finished memorizing everything.
"Have you memorized it all?" Xiao Yi asked lightly.
Duoduo nodded. "I remember it all."
Xiao Yi nodded. He ignited the documents with a fire starter and threw them into a basin nearby.
"Father, how could you burn such a precious thing?" Duoduo tried to stop him.
Xiao Yi rubbed his fingers together; they had caught some ash when he lit the fire.
"Keeping these things around will only serve as leverage against us."
Although Duoduo felt it was a great pity, what Xiao Yi said was right.
"Father, I heard that the birthday gift you prepared for Imperial Grandfather was lost?"
A hint of a smile tugged at the corners of Xiao Yi's lips.
"Remember, you must learn to distinguish the true from the false when it comes to news."
Duoduo was curious. "But didn't we actually lose something?"
"Yes, therefore, mixing truth with falsehood, reality with illusion, is what makes people believe the rumors are true."
Duoduo blinked her eyes.
"Father, could it be that you never prepared a birthday gift in the first place?"
"Of course I prepared one, but it was lost!" Xiao Yi smiled faintly.
"Oh, I understand." Duoduo suddenly saw the light; she understood Xiao Yi's meaning.
"We will arrive in a few days. Over the next two days, go find Nanny Li with your mother and have her tell you about the affairs of the inner palace."
Duoduo was a female relative, so she would definitely have to follow her mother into the inner palace when the time came.
"Okay!"
The cabin door was knocked on, and Yunxiao's voice sounded from outside.
"Your Highness, the Princess Consort has come over."
The door was pushed open from the outside. Su Xian walked in with Lianxin and Baihe, carrying food.
"Your Highness, Duoduo, time to eat." Su Xian carefully glanced at the two of them.
When she saw that Duoduo and Xiao Yi's expressions were normal, Su Xian felt relieved.
She saw that Duoduo hadn't returned ever since she came over here.
Su Xian had been very worried in her room, so finally finding an excuse, she brought the food straight over.
Duoduo hopped off her chair and pushed Xiao Yi's wheelchair over to the table.
After the family finished their meal, Duoduo and Su Xian bid farewell to Xiao Yi and returned to their room.
"Your father didn't scold you, did he?" Su Xian asked impatiently as soon as they left the room.
"No, Mother, you don't need to worry!" Duoduo comforted her mother.
"Father told us to find Nanny Li and have her tell us about the inner palace."
Su Xian nodded. "Mother was thinking the exact same thing."
Busy days always passed by quickly.
Li Jiangyu's ship was finally about to dock at the capital's pier.
Duoduo stood by the ship's rail, looking at the bustling pier in the distance, and secretly clenched her fists.
Yingniang, standing to the side, was very excited.
"Duoduo, we're finally here!"
The others all looked at the approaching capital, each lost in their own thoughts.
"Dock the ship!"
