Duoduo kept thinking about getting a fish for the kitten, so she tugged at the sleeve of the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
"I wanna go to the kitchen, can I?"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang looked down at Duoduo. "What is it? Are you hungry?"
Duoduo shook her head.
"I want to get a fish for the cat."
"Cat?" The Princess Consort of Pingyang looked confused.
The Prince of Pingyang understood. "Have the servants bring a fish over."
The Princess Consort of Pingyang nodded. She walked out to instruct Lianxin, and Lianxin hurried away.
The Prince of Pingyang looked at Duoduo, recalling her strange behavior from this morning.
Could it be that someone had secretly passed a message to Duoduo? Telling her that the medicine was poisoned?
But because Duoduo was so young, she couldn't read the contents of the note?
If that was really the case, then he needed to accelerate Duoduo's progress in learning to read.
Also, who was that person?
Who on earth was it? Who was helping him in secret?
The Prince of Pingyang rubbed the space between his eyebrows. These matters were like a tangled mess.
The more he thought about it, the more suspicious points he found, giving him a headache.
A pair of gentle hands softly touched his temples.
They massaged his acupoints with a gentle yet firm touch, making the Prince of Pingyang feel much better.
"Your Highness, do not worry too much. Everything will get better."
"Your Highness, the fish is here," Lianxin reported from outside the door.
Duoduo skipped over to open the door.
"Give it to her," the Prince of Pingyang ordered with his eyes closed.
Lianxin handed the fish to Duoduo.
Holding the fish with both hands, Duoduo went to the edge of the flowerbed and placed the fish in front of the kitten's grave from earlier.
"This is for you! Thank you so much for saving His Highness's life today!"
Duoduo even bowed sincerely.
Through the window, the Princess Consort of Pingyang saw Duoduo's every move clearly.
"This child is truly kind-hearted."
"The kind-hearted are easily bullied," the Prince of Pingyang, who had kept his eyes closed, suddenly spoke.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang was taken aback. What did His Highness mean by this?
Having finished everything, Duoduo ran back in satisfaction.
Without a word, the Prince of Pingyang tossed the book in his hand to her.
"I will recite, and you read along."
Before the Princess Consort of Pingyang could react, Duoduo obediently opened the book.
The Prince of Pingyang began to recite the contents of the book, and Duoduo concentrated entirely on memorizing it.
Not daring to disturb the two of them, the Princess Consort of Pingyang just stood there, gently massaging the Prince of Pingyang.
After reciting a long paragraph, the Prince of Pingyang would stop and recite it from the beginning once more.
After reciting it three times, he asked Duoduo to repeat it.
To the surprise of the Princess Consort of Pingyang, Duoduo was actually able to repeat the paragraph word for word.
No wonder His Highness wanted to teach Duoduo how to read!
Any teacher would be thrilled to have such a gifted student.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang thought for a moment, walked to the door, and quietly gave Lianxin a few instructions.
Lianxin bowed and left, and only then did the Princess Consort of Pingyang turn back.
She quietly sat down on a nearby chair, listening to the two of them reading poems and texts back and forth.
What the Prince of Pingyang taught Duoduo were all basic introductions.
Enlightenment books such as the Three Character Classic, Hundred Family Surnames, and Thousand Character Classic.
The catchy phrasing, combined with the rhythmic cadence, soon made the Princess Consort of Pingyang feel sleepy.
Resting her chin on her hand, she couldn't help but doze off.
Neither the Prince of Pingyang nor Duoduo noticed; the two were still very earnestly engaged in teaching and learning.
Soon, Duoduo had memorized everything in the book she was holding.
"Go, fetch the Three Character Classic to read."
The Prince of Pingyang instructed Duoduo. Reviewing the old to learn the new was the best way to build a solid foundation.
Duoduo agreed, and as she stood up, she saw the Princess Consort of Pingyang's head nodding off.
Duoduo stood on her tiptoes and carefully walked toward the bookcase.
Seeing Duoduo's behavior, a strange look flashed through the Prince of Pingyang's eyes.
Duoduo was now able to recognize the three characters for Three Character Classic.
She spotted the book she was looking for at a glance, making her very excited.
So the benefits of knowing how to read were actually this convenient.
Duoduo made up her mind to learn more characters. She had to do her best!
Duoduo took down the Three Character Classic and tiptoed back to the desk.
"Can you still recite it?" the Prince of Pingyang asked, looking at Duoduo.
"Yes!"
Saying that, Duoduo began to recite.
The little girl's uniquely crisp voice chirped like a bird in early spring, bringing joy to anyone who heard it.
"Mm, not bad!" the Prince of Pingyang offered a rare word of praise.
"Now, look at the book and recite it word by word. Read it back and forth a few times, and you will be able to recognize all the words in this book."
Duoduo's eyes lit up. "Really? All of them?"
The Prince of Pingyang nodded. "Yes, this is a clumsy method I figured out myself."
Duoduo tilted her head. "It's not clumsy! I think this method is amazing!"
"Today, I am going to remember all the words in this book!"
Duoduo puffed out her cheeks, cheering herself on.
The Prince of Pingyang said nothing. He picked up a book he usually read from a nearby table and began to read.
For a while, the only sound in the room was Duoduo's soft murmuring.
And the sound of the Prince of Pingyang turning the pages of his book.
When the Princess Consort of Pingyang woke up, she saw the adult and the child both reading very seriously.
This scene warmed her heart.
She could imagine if Duoduo were her and His Highness's child.
How warm and happy their current way of getting along would be!
Perhaps the Princess Consort of Pingyang's gaze was too focused, because Duoduo sensed it.
She looked up, smiled at the Princess Consort of Pingyang, and then lowered her head again.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang picked up the embroidery basket that Lianxin had brought over, took out her needlework, and began to work.
The needlework in the Princess Consort of Pingyang's hands was a bellyband.
From the size of the bellyband, it was obvious that it was made for a child.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang's needle flew across the bellyband, stitching a pattern of a chubby baby holding a koi fish.
As the Prince of Pingyang's wife, the Princess Consort of Pingyang could actually guess a bit of His Highness's thoughts.
The Prince of Pingyang liked Duoduo. Perhaps, from the moment he brought Duoduo back to the prince's estate, he had subconsciously treated her as a daughter.
It was just that the Prince of Pingyang had a cold temperament and didn't know how to interact with children.
Although he wanted to keep his guard up against Duoduo, the Prince of Pingyang subconsciously cared for and protected her.
These were all things that had never happened before.
However, this child, Duoduo, was indeed very lovable.
Not only His Highness, but even she liked her very much.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang smiled.
If it weren't for the fact that she had never given birth, she would have suspected that Duoduo was their long-lost child.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang looked up and glanced at the two people buried in their books, her expression softening.
"Your Highness, someone from the palace is here!"
Lingfeng's voice rang out from outside the door.
The Prince of Pingyang looked up, and his gaze met that of the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
Why would someone from the palace be here?
