"Our men only saw him take a quick look around there before he headed to several dams in Fengyang."
"On the surface, it appeared to be a routine inspection. However, the guards keeping an eye on him reported that Magistrate Song was knocking and tapping on everything he passed. It was highly suspicious."
The Prince of Pingyang paused, his hand stilling over the jade thumb ring he had been spinning.
"Keep a close eye on him! Find out exactly what he is trying to do."
"If he harbors any treasonous intentions, there is no need to keep him alive!"
The Prince of Pingyang's words were laced with a chilling ruthlessness.
"Yes, Your Highness," Ling Feng replied, bowing his head.
The Prince of Pingyang closed his eyes. Seeing this, Ling Feng snuffed out most of the candles, leaving only a few faintly glowing in the room.
Only then did he quietly back out of the room.
Once he was gone, the Prince of Pingyang's eyes fluttered open once more.
Having been unconscious for so long that afternoon, he felt no trace of sleepiness now.
He lay in bed, staring blankly at the canopy above him, lost in thought.
The Prince's mind drifted back to his days of riding into battle. Back then, his life had been so unfettered and free.
But now, he was trapped in this tiny, suffocating space.
Even getting out of bed required the assistance of his guards.
If he had not kept his mother's words close to his heart—her plea for him to live on well, no matter what happened—he might have given up long ago.
Sometimes, the urge to simply surrender was overwhelming.
The Prince reached down to touch his thigh. Due to a lack of movement, his legs had already begun to atrophy.
They were no longer as firm and muscular as before; even the flesh felt terribly soft.
He pinched the flesh of his thigh, a wave of deep depression washing over him.
Ever since he had shattered his spine in that fall, he had lost all sensation in his lower body.
He distinctly remembered the imperial physician taking a long silver needle and plunging it deep into his thigh.
His Princess Consort had been so terrified that she covered her mouth and burst into tears, yet he had felt absolutely nothing.
In a fit of bitter resentment, the Prince pinched his thigh hard. Why was heaven punishing him like this?
Suddenly, a faint prick of pain registered in his mind.
His hand froze. His entire body stiffened, as if he had been struck by a paralysis spell.
A second later, he threw off the covers. Propping himself up with both hands, he sat up in bed.
He stared at his legs with wild excitement, too afraid to touch or prod them again.
Had it just been a hallucination?
It took a long while for his pounding heart to settle. Slowly, he raised his hand and gave his thigh another tentative, careful pinch.
Nothing.
Crushing disappointment washed over him, and he collapsed back onto the mattress.
It really had been a hallucination after all!
Frustrated, the Prince yanked the covers up and buried his face beneath them.
It was already quite late by the time Duoduo returned to her room. After washing up, she crawled straight into bed.
Today, she had learned a lot of new characters while serving the Prince of Pingyang.
Even though she did not know how to write them yet, she could at least pronounce them.
Duoduo gazed into the empty air, but the mysterious golden characters did not appear.
She silently cheered herself on. The next time those golden words showed up, she would definitely be able to read them!
Exhausted from the day's events, she drifted off to sleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.
By the time she woke up again, it was broad daylight.
Duoduo rubbed her eyes sleepily and sat up.
"Lüdou?"
Only then did she remember that Lüdou had already been reassigned.
She glanced at the water clock. It was already nearing the end of the Chen hour.
Oh no, was it already that late?
She scrambled out of bed, hastily threw on her clothes in a panic, and dashed out the door.
"Nanny, I am so sorry! I overslept!"
Duoduo burst into Nanny Li's room, panting. Nanny Li was quietly reading a book.
Standing behind the nanny, Pangya lifted her chin and shot Duoduo a smug look.
"Go stand facing the wall for the time it takes an incense stick to burn," Nanny Li ordered, her face completely expressionless.
"Yes, Nanny."
Duoduo obediently walked over to the wall and stood quietly facing it.
Nanny Li then began teaching Pangya how to read. To her credit, Pangya listened with utmost concentration.
Perhaps because she was only teaching one person today, Nanny Li spoke exceptionally slowly and explained everything in meticulous detail.
Standing by the wall, Duoduo pricked up her ears, committing every single word the nanny said firmly to memory.
Soon enough, the incense stick burned out.
Duoduo turned her head and looked tentatively at Nanny Li.
"That is enough. Come over here," Nanny Li instructed coldly.
Duoduo hurried over to the table. Nanny Li began testing them on the characters she had just taught.
Pangya looked incredibly smug, having managed to memorize every single one.
With the quiz over, their reading lesson for the day came to an end.
Nanny Li went into her inner room to rest, leaving the book she had been teaching from right there on the table.
Pangya turned on her heel and left as well, feeling mentally drained from the lesson.
Duoduo peeked toward Nanny Li's inner room before carefully reaching out to pick up the book from the table.
She had practically memorized all the characters while the nanny was testing Pangya earlier.
However, she wanted to see the actual shapes of the characters to deepen her impression of them.
When the nanny eventually emerged from her room, she found Duoduo holding the book, completely engrossed in it.
"Do you recognize them?"
Duoduo shook her head. "I recognize some of them..."
Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly snapped out of her daze and realized it was Nanny Li speaking to her.
She hastily snapped the book shut and offered it respectfully to Nanny Li.
"Nanny, I turned the pages very carefully. I did not damage it."
Nanny Li glanced at the book in the girl's hands and took it back.
"Go on, then. Head outside and line up."
Nanny Li did not sound angry at all. Relieved, Duoduo smiled, curtsied, and headed outside.
Nanny Li flipped through the pages for a moment before turning back into her room to put the book away properly. Only then did she step outside again.
The Si hour was the designated training time for all the maidservants in the princely manor. Any maid not currently on duty was required to gather at the Bamboo Pavilion for instruction.
Stepping outside, Duoduo quickly spotted Lüdou and hurried over to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with her.
Pangya let out a disdainful snort and stood off to the side by herself.
She had no desire to associate with those lowly, status-less maids.
As Nanny Li walked out, the soft murmurs of the crowd instantly ceased. Everyone clamped their mouths shut, lowered their heads, and curtsied respectfully to her.
Nanny Li took in everyone's expressions with crystal clarity.
The agenda for the day was to review and consolidate what they had learned during yesterday's training.
For an outstanding maidservant, impeccable etiquette—whether sitting, standing, or walking—had to be carved into her very bones.
Naturally, the same applied even more strictly to a young lady of a noble household.
Watching Duoduo train so earnestly, Nanny Li began to ponder how she could secretly offer the girl extra tutoring.
She remembered the Prince's instructions perfectly: the primary reason she had been hired was to train Duoduo.
Training the other maids was merely a secondary task.
Because today's training covered familiar material, everyone felt quite relaxed.
It did not take long for the maids to meet Nanny Li's exacting standards.
"That will do. You all performed very well today. You may return and rest."
Nanny Li's words filled everyone with delight.
They had braced themselves for another round of harsh reprimands, yet they had managed to pass with flying colors.
The maids dispersed, chattering and laughing amongst themselves. Linking arms with Lüdou, Duoduo prepared to leave as well.
"Duoduo, stay behind!"
Startled by Nanny Li's sudden command, Duoduo turned around.
"Nanny, did I do something wrong?"
"You think you did everything perfectly? The most fundamental duty of a servant is absolute obedience. With an attitude like yours, you fail!"
Nanny Li sounded genuinely furious.
Feeling wronged, Duoduo reluctantly let go of Lüdou's arm. Lüdou shot her a deeply worried look.
"Lüdou, I will come find you when I have time," Duoduo said, waving her off.
Pangya, meanwhile, flashed Duoduo a gloating smile. "Nanny, may I be excused?"
Nanny Li waved her off dismissively. Pangya performed an exaggerated curtsy and sauntered away.
Head bowed, Duoduo walked over to stand in front of Nanny Li.
