Lüdou looked at Duoduo with great concern, but Duoduo gave her a reassuring look.
Ling Feng followed Lüdou out, leaving only Duoduo and the Prince of Pingyang in the room once again.
Duoduo felt a bit uncomfortable; she wanted to find something to do.
She let her eyes wander, taking in her surroundings.
Suddenly, she saw a bookcase completely filled with books, and her eyes widened.
"Wow, so many books!"
The Prince of Pingyang did not say a word; he merely raised an eyebrow.
Duoduo tilted her head and looked at the Prince of Pingyang.
"Your Highness, have you read all of those books?"
The Prince of Pingyang looked at Duoduo's expression with what seemed like mockery.
Duoduo stuck out her tongue, then skipped over to the bookcase.
She tipped her head back to look up. Wow! There really were so, so many!
Duoduo's eyes began to sparkle.
When would she be able to recognize a lot of characters? And be able to read this many books?
The Prince of Pingyang watched Duoduo's movements without moving a muscle.
He saw her looking at the bookshelf with great envy, then tenderly stroking the volumes.
"You like reading?"
"Yeah! Lüdou said that once we know lots of characters, we can go take the imperial exam and become the top scholar!"
Duoduo blurted out exactly what she was thinking without any guard.
"Pfft!"
The Prince of Pingyang let out a scoff.
Setting aside the fact that it was impossible for servants to participate in the imperial examinations, there was also no precedent since ancient times for a woman to take them.
The Prince of Pingyang's scoff made Duoduo unhappy.
She turned around and glared at the Prince of Pingyang, her cheeks puffed out in anger.
"You're making fun of me!"
The Prince of Pingyang turned the jade thumb ring on his finger.
"Ignorant little girl, you don't know the immensity of heaven and earth!"
"Hmph! I'm just small right now. When I grow up, I'll know exactly how high heaven is and how thick the earth is!"
The Prince of Pingyang scoffed again.
"You'll know when you grow up? Even Nanny Li might not know."
Duoduo froze for a moment. "Impossible, Nanny Li definitely knows!"
"Nanny knows so many things, and she even teaches me how to read. She's way more amazing than you!"
An unidentifiable emotion flashed through the Prince of Pingyang's eyes.
"This is the Prince of Pingyang's manor. No one here is more capable than I am!"
Duoduo pouted, thoroughly unconvinced.
"There is always someone better, and a sky beyond the sky."
The Prince of Pingyang laughed out of sheer exasperation.
A wet-behind-the-ears little girl was actually trying to preach profound truths to him.
Truly, a newborn calf fears no tiger.
Seeing the smile on the Prince of Pingyang's face, Duoduo also broke into a sheepish smile.
Duoduo's smiling face was like a peach blossom in March, bright and rosy.
The Prince of Pingyang was momentarily distracted, but then his face suddenly hardened.
Duoduo's smile instantly froze on her face.
The Prince of Pingyang pointed to a book at the very bottom. "Bring that here!"
Duoduo turned her head and looked at the jam-packed books. "This one?"
"No, the one next to it."
Duoduo stood on her tiptoes and carefully pulled the volume from the shelf.
Holding the book, she ran over to the Prince of Pingyang and offered it to him with both hands.
The Prince of Pingyang took the book and saw Duoduo staring at the book in his hands with a look of extreme thirst for knowledge.
He lowered his gaze and opened the volume.
Duoduo could not help but lean in to peek.
The Prince of Pingyang cast a sidelong glance at her and tossed the book into Duoduo's arms.
Duoduo hurriedly caught the book, carefully smoothing it out.
"Your Highness, did you want to change to a different book?"
The Prince of Pingyang spun the jade thumb ring on his hand.
"Open the book!"
Duoduo was a bit confused, but she still opened it to the first page.
"At birth, humanity is fundamentally good. Natures are similar, but habits pull them apart..."
The Prince of Pingyang read slowly, word by word, as if he were singing a nursery rhyme.
At first, Duoduo did not understand what the Prince of Pingyang meant, but by the time she heard the second word, she suddenly understood.
The Prince of Pingyang was reciting the contents of the book.
Duoduo listened with rapt attention as the Prince of Pingyang read, silently memorizing it in her heart.
The entire Three Character Classic was quickly finished.
The Prince of Pingyang stopped. "Recite!"
"Huh?" Duoduo widened her eyes.
"With aptitude like yours, you still want to be the top scholar?" The Prince of Pingyang's tone was full of mockery.
Duoduo pouted and began to recite.
Even though she did not recognize the characters, she had remembered almost everything the Prince of Pingyang had just read.
Duoduo's clear and bright voice rang out in the study.
The Prince of Pingyang closed his eyes and leaned back in his wheelchair, listening.
When Duoduo reached the later sections, she got stuck.
After all, she had only heard it once, and in a state of relative ignorance.
Being able to memorize all the preceding parts was already quite impressive.
The Prince of Pingyang opened his eyes and recited the part where Duoduo had gotten stuck once more.
Duoduo earnestly and painstakingly memorized the parts she had missed.
"Recite it again!"
After the Prince of Pingyang said this, he closed his eyes again.
Duoduo opened the pages of the book and began to recite from the very beginning.
As she recited, she linked the words she spoke with the characters in the book.
Therefore, even when the Prince of Pingyang waited for her to finish one round and made her recite it yet again, she did not grow impatient.
Knock, knock, knock! The door sounded.
"Your Highness, it is getting late. You should rest."
Ling Feng's respectful voice came from outside the door.
The Prince of Pingyang, who had kept his eyes closed, finally opened them.
"Come in!"
Ling Feng pushed the door open and walked in.
The Prince of Pingyang looked at Duoduo. "Starting tomorrow, you will come here every day at noon and at dusk to taste the meals."
"After eating, you will read to me for the time it takes an incense stick to burn."
"But, I still have to learn from Nanny," Duoduo muttered softly.
"Do not forget your status! Put the book back on the shelf."
After the Prince of Pingyang finished speaking, he signaled for Ling Feng to push him away.
Duoduo puffed out her cheeks and reluctantly put the book back on the shelf.
On second thought, she realized that the Prince of Pingyang seemed to have forgotten about punishing her.
Duoduo cheered up again. She bowed to the Prince of Pingyang, who was now by the bed, and ran off quickly.
Ling Feng heard the footsteps and glanced back.
"Your Highness, your subordinate can also read books to you."
The Prince of Pingyang stared at Ling Feng. "Are you that free?"
Hearing the displeasure in the Prince of Pingyang's voice, Ling Feng hastily lowered his head.
"Your subordinate was wrong!"
"Is there any movement in Fengcheng?"
It had been several days since the Prince of Pingyang had Ling Feng release the information.
The Second Prince and his faction had made no moves, which the Prince of Pingyang found unusual.
Ling Feng took a small bamboo tube from his chest pocket. "This is a carrier pigeon message sent by Ling Yu."
The Prince of Pingyang unstoppered the bamboo tube, and a small slip of paper fell out.
He unrolled it, took a look, and then handed it back to Ling Feng.
Ling Feng took it to a nearby candle flame and burned it.
The Prince of Pingyang stroked his jade thumb ring. After a while, he spoke again.
"What about the others? Have they made any moves?"
"To answer Your Highness, nothing has been discovered for the time being. It is likely that our news has not yet reached the ears of the other princes."
The Prince of Pingyang nodded. "Have our people keep a close eye on them."
"If they make any moves, report back immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
"By the way, Your Highness, after Magistrate Song returned, he secretly sent people to the moat."
"What is he doing there?"
