Duoduo, blocked outside the door by the guards, pricked up her ears and caught the words “Minister of War.”
Minister of War?
Wasn’t that Prince Xian’s father-in-law?
Was her father about to move against Prince Xian?
A flicker crossed Duoduo’s eyes.
Nanny Li’s poisoning had been a consequence of Consort Shu’s attempt to poison others.
And Consort Shu’s cruelty, at its root, came down to the throne.
Yet Father had already been keeping a low profile—so why couldn’t others leave the Pingyang Prince’s Manor in peace?
Duoduo shook her head.
Well, until the dust settled, no one knew whose hand would prevail.
But Prince Xian had attacked Prince Ling—why hadn’t Prince Ling retaliated?
That didn’t seem like Prince Ling’s style.
And why hadn’t the Imperial Grandfather appointed a Crown Prince yet?
Could it be that he still held hope for Father’s legs?
When this thought struck Duoduo, her eyes suddenly lit up.
Did that mean that if the Imperial Grandfather learned Father’s legs were fine, the position of Crown Prince would be Father’s?
The mere possibility set Duoduo’s mind racing.
How could she let the Imperial Grandfather guess that Father’s legs were healed, without exposing Father herself?
While Duoduo was deep in thought, Yunxiao walked out.
“Your Grace, the Prince is free now.”
Yunxiao bowed to Duoduo and hurried away.
Only then did Duoduo step into the study.
“Father.” Duoduo greeted Xiao Yi.
Xiao Yi put down the official documents in his hand and looked at her.
“Coming from your mother’s place?”
Duoduo put on an obedient smile. “Father is so clever—guess it in one try.”
Xiao Yi glanced sideways at her. “Bold, are you? Daring to joke with your father?”
Duoduo stuck out her tongue.
“Father, when I went to pay respects to Mother earlier, I heard Grandmother complain that she hadn’t been out to wander around, even after being in the capital so long.”
“Since I have a day off tomorrow, why not let me take Mother and Grandmother out for a stroll?”
Xiao Yi tapped his fingertips lightly on the desk.
Ever since he stopped turning his thumb ring, he unconsciously tapped his fingers whenever he was thinking.
“Fine. Have Lingyu send two men to accompany you.”
“If you see something you like, put it on the house tab—tell the shopkeeper to bill the Pingyang Prince’s Manor.”
Duoduo beamed. “Thank you, Father!”
Xiao Yi lowered his head and returned to his documents.
After a long moment, he noticed Duoduo was still there. He looked up.
“What’s wrong? Something else?”
Duoduo blinked.
“Father, Eighth Uncle came to class today.”
Xiao Yi looked at her, waiting for her to go on.
“I noticed something wrong with the medicine on his wound.”
Duoduo paused.
She debated whether to tell Xiao Yi about Xiao Yunshi and Song Shuyu plotting against her.
But she’d already handled it. Better not make Father worry.
“Eighth Uncle did me a favor, so I repaid him by pointing out the bad medicine.”
“I changed his dressing, treated him to a meal, and in return, he told me something.”
Duoduo licked her lips.
Xiao Yi handed her his tea. She took a sip.
“Father, remember I told you I ran into Eighth Uncle near the Imperial Ancestral Temple?”
“Eighth Uncle said he went there because someone deliberately lured him.”
When Duoduo noticed her father remained silent, she grew curious.
“Father, don’t you find it strange?”
A flicker passed through Xiao Yi’s eyes.
“What’s so strange about it? He’s a prince—if no one had led him, how would he dare go near the Imperial Ancestral Temple?”
Duoduo pouted. Father’s reaction was nothing like what she expected.
“But Eighth Uncle said he often gets such notes.”
“The notes warn him about things that might happen, and they’ve helped him escape danger.”
“Father, who is helping Eighth Uncle, and why?”
“And how do they know what’s going to happen in advance?”
Duoduo rattled off all her questions.
When she finished, she saw Xiao Yi looking thoughtful.
She smiled. Now that was the normal reaction!
Was Father just too tired lately, and therefore a little slow?
Whoever was behind Eighth Uncle—what were their intentions?
What if they meant harm to the Pingyang Prince’s Manor?
Xiao Yi pondered for a while, then looked up.
“Why did the Eighth Prince tell you all this?”
Princes raised in the palace were reared in a vat of dye from childhood.
They wouldn’t easily share secrets with people they didn’t trust.
What was Xiao Che’s real motive in telling Duoduo?
Duoduo froze at the question.
“Why?”
“Didn’t I just say? I saved his life and treated him to a meal.”
Xiao Yi shook his head.
“But what he told you is the secret to his survival!”
If Xiao Che had always escaped danger thanks to those notes, he should have hidden that fact tightly, not casually told Duoduo.
Duoduo, after hearing her father’s words, switched her perspective.
“Father, do you mean Eighth Uncle was testing me?”
She was still uncertain, but once she said it out loud, she became sure.
“Father, Eighth Uncle suspects you?”
“He suspects the person helping him is you?”
“No… but why would he suspect you?”
Duoduo’s mind was full of question marks.
Xiao Yi, rare to see Duoduo so bewildered, reached out and patted her little head.
“That’s what you need to figure out.”
Duoduo pointed at her own nose.
“Me?”
Xiao Yi nodded.
Duoduo tilted her head, thinking quickly.
“Before, at the academy, I never had any interaction with Eighth Uncle.”
“We only spoke once, near the Imperial Ancestral Temple.”
“But then, he was trying to kidnap Mung Bean, so I caught him.”
“It wasn’t me who went looking for him, so why would he suspect me?”
Duoduo scratched her cheek.
“Today, I smelled that his wound medicine was bad and I almost didn’t bother.”
“But Xiao Yunshi had put a needle on my stool.”
“If Eighth Uncle hadn’t warned me, I would have sat right on it!”
“I only told him about the bad medicine to thank him for his warning.”
“None of this was initiated by me—so why does he suspect me?”
Duoduo couldn’t figure it out.
Only after she finished speaking did she notice Xiao Yi’s expression turning ugly.
Duoduo blinked her big eyes at him.
What had she just said?
Why did Father’s face look so grim?
