“Now that Second Uncle and Third Uncle have no chance, Fourth Uncle, Fifth Uncle, and Sixth Uncle are no match for you at all.”
“When the time comes, once you’ve achieved some accomplishments and rescued Imperial Grandfather, the throne will be yours for the taking!”
The more Duoduo spoke, the more she felt that it would be a shame to let such a good opportunity slip away.
Xiao Yi slowly turned the teacup in his hand, deep in thought.
“Your father has a question for you,” he said.
Duoduo nodded and looked at Xiao Yi with a serious expression.
“If you had something you really, really liked…”
“And someone wanted to take it from you, would you simply give it to them, or would you refuse to surrender it no matter what?”
“I definitely wouldn’t give it to anyone!” Duoduo answered without hesitation.
Xiao Yi stared at her, the corners of his lips curving upward.
“See? You already know the answer in your heart.”
Duoduo blinked her big eyes, suddenly understanding.
The throne was the thing Second Uncle liked most.
He was already the Crown Prince, with only one step left between him and the throne.
Now, his other uncles wanted to take away the thing he cherished most.
There was no way he would give it up.
“Father, Second Uncle is using retreat as a step forward. He must be plotting something!”
Duoduo had finally figured it out.
“That’s right!” Xiao Yi nodded and set down the teacup.
He lowered his eyes and looked at his legs.
Then he lifted one foot and stretched it out, his expression relaxed.
After spending every day confined to a wheelchair, there were times when he almost wondered whether his legs had truly recovered.
Watching him move, Duoduo broke into a bright smile.
“Father, Second Uncle didn’t manage to test you today. If he ever finds out that your legs are fine, do you think he’ll be so furious that he’ll spit blood?”
Xiao Yi turned his head toward Duoduo.
Infected by the smile on her face, he reached out and patted her head.
“He definitely will!”
“Your father isn’t refusing to take charge of the government because he’s afraid of Second Uncle.”
“It’s because of the person hiding in the shadows!”
“He’s like a thorn lodged in your father’s heart. Until I find him, I won’t be able to rest easy day or night!”
Whenever Xiao Yi mentioned that person, his brows drew together.
Every time he thought he had found a clue, it broke off again.
He had sent people to infiltrate the steward’s residence in secret.
Sure enough, they had found a secret passage.
The other end of the passage opened into a small alley outside the imperial palace.
It had been of no use.
However, at the same time they found the passage, they also discovered the steward’s corpse.
It had already begun to stink, and no one knew how long he had been dead.
With the steward dead, the trail had been cut off completely.
In other words, every clue Xiao Yi had found regarding the mastermind had gone cold.
That was what made him even more anxious.
He always felt that a pair of eyes was watching him from the shadows.
He was in the open, while his enemy was hidden. Most importantly, he had no idea when the other party would strike.
“Duoduo, today Xiao Lizi asked for one of the sugar pills you had, but I refused him.”
“Outwardly, I’ve announced that the Imperial Guards sealed off the city, causing you to go missing.”
“So you must stay in the estate recently. Don’t go anywhere!”
Xiao Yi warned Duoduo. Still worried, he added, “Prince Ling is now fighting several others for the throne, so there will certainly be one move after another.”
“No one knows what he might do once he goes mad!”
Duoduo nodded. “Father, I understand!”
She shook her little head. “Father, let’s think of a way to get Grandmother and the others to go home.”
“Someone from Vice Minister Wang’s residence came to say that the banquet had been canceled.”
“Grandmother got angry and scolded Mother, saying that it was all because Mother wouldn’t let her leave the house, which had offended Vice Minister Wang’s wife.”
“I’m worried that Mother will be upset after being scolded.”
Xiao Yi raised his brows slightly.
“Very well. I’ll send a message to the Su family!”
Duoduo nodded. If her maternal grandfather’s family intervened, Grandmother would surely return home of her own accord.
“Father, I’d also like to ask you for a small favor!” Duoduo pressed her thumb against her index finger to demonstrate.
“A very, very small favor.”
Xiao Yi’s eyes curved slightly. “Go on.”
Duoduo immediately gave him a wide smile.
“Father, can you find a way to bring Xiao Che to the estate?”
Afraid that Xiao Yi might misunderstand, she hurriedly explained, “I originally wanted to find a way to see him myself.”
“But you just said that it would be best if I didn’t leave the house.”
“There’s something I need to discuss with Xiao Che. Can you think of a way to have him come to the estate?”
Xiao Yi’s gaze swept over Duoduo.
Duoduo wanted to see Xiao Che?
What could she possibly need to discuss with Xiao Che that she couldn’t tell her own father?
Xiao Yi suddenly remembered something his wife had once joked about.
“I wonder what kind of man Duoduo will fall for in the future?”
“If his conditions are good, he definitely won’t agree to become a live-in son-in-law.”
“If his conditions are too poor, Your Highness won’t approve of him either!”
“When Duoduo falls for someone someday, Your Highness won’t be able to stop her even if you want to!”
Xiao Yi pulled his legs back and sat up straight.
Could it be…
Duoduo looked at her father curiously.
Why had his expression changed several times?
“Father, was my request too difficult?” she asked tentatively.
Looking into Duoduo’s clear, innocent eyes, Xiao Yi decided that he must be overthinking things.
How old was Duoduo?
How could she possibly have fallen in love already?
Besides, what was so special about that boy Xiao Che?
Duoduo couldn’t possibly be so blind as to fall for him!
Xiao Yi tried desperately to convince himself of this, completely unaware that his hands had clenched tightly into fists.
“All right. I’ll find a way to have someone bring him here,” Xiao Yi finally agreed.
Duoduo immediately brightened.
“Thank you, Father!”
Seeing the smile on her face, Xiao Yi felt a pang in his heart.
To keep himself from feeling worse, he changed the subject.
“When we went to the palace today, I felt that your grandfather was acting strangely.”
Duoduo’s attention was instantly drawn to this.
“Strangely? What was strange?”
“Father, didn’t you say that Grandfather was unconscious?”
Xiao Yi recalled the scene he had witnessed in the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
“The ancestors of the Xiao family were all tall.”
“Your grandfather isn’t short either.”
“But the person lying on the bed today was clearly shorter than your grandfather.”
Duoduo’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“Father, do you mean that the person who’s unconscious isn’t Grandfather?”
Xiao Yi nodded firmly.
At the time, he had felt that something was wrong.
Now, he had finally figured it out.
The person lying on the bed was not his imperial father!
Duoduo blinked. “That doesn’t make sense!”
“Father, if you could notice it, why didn’t anyone else?”
“Even if the others failed to notice, Eunuch Li couldn’t possibly have missed it, right?”
“He was the one who personally attended to Grandfather!”
