Duoduo couldn’t help but widen her eyes.
Yet Xiao Yi still showed no sign of stopping.
“Mm. Imperial Physician Li said that conditioning the body requires at least a month.”
“You’re his teacher. You wouldn’t be unaware of such a simple principle, would you?”
“In that case, I’ll have to trouble you to boil the medicine for a month!”
Seeing the seriousness in Xiao Yi’s eyes, Duoduo puffed out her cheeks.
“Daddy, the medicinal ingredients yesterday took me a lot of effort to gather.”
“After boiling them yesterday, there aren’t any left!”
The corner of Xiao Yi’s lips lifted.
“Oh?”
“Write down what ingredients you need, and I’ll have Ling Yu prepare them.”
“They’re not rare ingredients. They should be easy enough to buy.”
Duoduo immediately realized that she absolutely could not allow that!
If she wrote out the prescription, wouldn’t everyone know what it was for?
Duoduo was still racking her brains, trying to figure out how to explain herself.
With a sharp crack, something struck the table and startled her.
“What? You still won’t tell me the truth?” Xiao Yi said, raising the ruler in his hand.
Duoduo wilted at once.
She understood that if she didn’t confess today, this matter would never be put to rest.
“Daddy, don’t be angry. I’ll tell you.”
Duoduo lowered her head, looking utterly dejected.
Xiao Yi’s heart softened somewhat.
It had been a long time since he had seen Duoduo this downcast.
“Yesterday’s medicine did indeed have the effects of clearing heat and aiding sleep.”
“However, it wasn’t an ordinary medicine. It was… um, that kind of medicine.”
Duoduo was terribly embarrassed to say it aloud.
Doing it was one thing.
Talking about it was another!
“Daddy, you and Mommy should have a little brother for me!”
Duoduo suddenly lifted her head and looked at Xiao Yi with bright, shining eyes.
Once she had brought up the subject, she simply poured everything out in a torrent.
“All the imperial uncles have sons, but Daddy doesn’t!”
“Daddy, you must be refusing to fight for the throne because you don’t have a son, right?”
“Although you say you don’t care, I know you’ve been waiting for an opportunity all this time!”
“All those people Lingfeng leads, and all those weapons… You actually made preparations a long time ago!”
“But you hesitated!”
“Why?”
“Daddy, don’t think that just because I’m little, I don’t understand!”
After saying all this, Duoduo stared stubbornly at Xiao Yi.
Xiao Yi was stunned by her words.
Was this why Duoduo had drugged him?
Or had someone been whispering such things into her ear?
“Tell me. Who’s been spouting nonsense in front of you?” Xiao Yi’s expression turned completely dark.
Duoduo pouted.
“Grandmother said that since you and Mommy don’t have a son to rely on, everything in the prince’s residence will belong to outsiders in the future!”
“She even suggested that Mommy adopt the illegitimate son of one of my uncles’ mistresses!”
“Daddy and Mommy aren’t incapable of having children!”
“Even if you want a son, shouldn’t he be your own flesh and blood? Wouldn’t that make him closer?”
“Daddy, I know that you and Mommy are both very good to me.”
“But I’m not your biological child, and I’m not a boy either. I can’t carry on the family line or inherit the household.”
Duoduo lowered her head again, her spirits sinking.
Xiao Yi couldn’t help pressing a hand against the left side of his chest.
He was so furious that his chest hurt.
He pulled Duoduo’s hand toward him and brought the ruler down.
Smack!
Duoduo’s palm immediately turned red.
It was clear just how much strength Xiao Yi had used.
Duoduo raised her head in surprise and looked at him with deep grievance.
Her eyes began to redden. Then a large tear trembled in her eye.
The tear grew larger and larger. In the end, her eyelashes could no longer hold it back, and it rolled down her cheek, dropping onto Xiao Yi’s hand.
Xiao Yi felt as though something had burned him. His hand stung with a fiery pain.
He hardened his heart. “Have you forgotten everything I’ve taught you?”
“Who taught you all that nonsense just now?”
“I teach you what’s right, and you refuse to listen, but you remember every ridiculous thing other people say!”
As he spoke, Xiao Yi struck her again with the ruler.
Duoduo shuddered from the pain.
Xiao Yi held on to her hand, refusing to let her pull it back.
“Why don’t I fight for the throne? I’ve already explained the reason to you. Don’t you believe me?”
“You believe the words of every stray cat and dog instead!”
Xiao Yi was furious.
For Su Xian’s sake, he had been unwilling to fall out with his mother-in-law.
The letter he had sent to the Su residence probably had not arrived yet.
Originally, Xiao Yi had planned to endure it for a while and wait until she was sent away.
But now, it seemed that this mother-in-law of his was nothing but trouble!
He absolutely could not allow her to stay any longer!
“Yunxiao!” he shouted angrily.
“Your Highness!”
Yunxiao entered through the door uneasily.
He had not seen the prince lose his temper in a very long time.
“Have someone send Old Madam Su back to Xianyang immediately!”
“And make sure you personally congratulate Second Madam Su on the birth of her precious son!” Xiao Yi’s words were filled with murderous fury.
Yunxiao froze for a moment.
He quickly glanced at Duoduo.
The commandery princess was crying?
Had Old Madam Su bullied her?
The commandery princess was the apple of His Highness’s eye!
Old Madam Su had clearly touched the prince’s deepest taboo!
But why did His Highness want him to congratulate Second Madam Su on the birth of her son?
Yunxiao was completely at a loss.
“Why are you still standing there?” Xiao Yi asked, knitting his brows when Yunxiao did not move.
Yunxiao hurriedly bowed.
“Your Highness, I’ll take care of it immediately.”
“However, there are also the two young ladies from the maternal family…”
“Together! Send them all back!” Xiao Yi did not want to keep a single one of them.
“Yes!”
Yunxiao acknowledged the order and withdrew.
Not only did he have to hurry and arrange everything, he also had to inform the princess consort.
After all, they were the princess consort’s mother and nieces.
Duoduo felt terribly wronged.
She had truly only wanted the best for Daddy and Mommy.
But why had Daddy punished her?
The more Duoduo thought about it, the more aggrieved she became, and the tears would not stop rolling down her cheeks.
Seeing her like this, Xiao Yi felt a dull ache in the left side of his chest.
This girl had clearly done something wrong, yet she was the one acting wronged!
He wanted to see just how long Duoduo intended to cry before realizing her mistake!
He could not let her off lightly merely because she cried.
This time, he had to steel his heart.
And so, Xiao Yi simply watched Duoduo in silence.
When Duoduo saw that her father neither spoke nor comforted her, she felt even more miserable.
Her tears fell in strings.
A quarter of an hour passed, but Duoduo was still crying.
She made no sound. Tears merely continued to roll down her face and drip onto the floor.
A small puddle had already formed beneath her.
Xiao Yi couldn’t help rubbing his brows.
He had never imagined that someone could cry for so long.
Xiao Yi surrendered.
He reached out and pulled Duoduo into his arms.
The moment Duoduo entered his embrace, all the grievance in her heart surged to its peak.
With a loud sob, she burst into tears.
“Daddy, I didn’t do anything wrong!”
Lüdou, who had been standing guard outside the door, heard Duoduo’s cries and began pacing anxiously back and forth.
Suddenly, she turned and ran toward the rear courtyard.
She had to bring the princess consort over to help the commandery princess!
Just as Lüdou reached the entrance to Su Xian’s courtyard, she saw two elderly maids dragging Old Madam Su outside while the old woman continued to curse and berate them.
