Duoduo gave a mischievous smile.
“Papa is so clever. Take another guess!”
Xiao Yi deliberately pulled a stern face. “I asked you a question. Why are you telling me to guess?”
Duoduo took his hand and gave it an affectionate shake.
“Papa, please guess!”
Xiao Yi thoroughly enjoyed the moments when Duoduo acted spoiled with him.
He was more than happy to indulge her.
“Hmm, what’s there to guess?”
“Anyone who gives you all these things must want something from you!”
The moment Xiao Yi finished speaking, his expression changed.
After all, as Emperor, what could he possibly need from Duoduo?
There was only one possibility.
Something was wrong with his health.
At that thought, Xiao Yi’s hand tightened and his eyes narrowed.
“Your grandfather’s health…”
Duoduo didn’t understand at first.
Weren’t they talking about the gifts?
Why had he suddenly changed the subject?
However, when the topic turned to the Emperor’s health, Duoduo’s expression grew extremely serious as well.
When Xiao Yi saw her face, his heart sank.
Could it be…
Duoduo let out a sigh.
Xiao Yi’s heart seemed to stop for a beat.
“Papa, you’ll never guess!” Duoduo stopped there.
“Papa, why do you look so pale?” Duoduo asked curiously, tilting her head toward Xiao Yi.
Xiao Yi tried to steady his emotions.
He forced himself to remain calm.
“Go on!”
Duoduo gave an “oh” and continued where she had left off.
“I found out—no, it was Little Gold that sensed it. There’s a gu worm inside Grandfather!”
“There really is one?” Xiao Yi murmured to himself.
“There really is one?” Duoduo repeated curiously, her eyes wide.
“Papa, did you suspect all along that there was a gu worm inside Grandfather?”
Duoduo remembered that Nina had come because of her father.
Her father had also never objected to Nina teaching her about gu worms.
Her mother had opposed it many times, but her father had never said a word against it.
Duoduo suddenly understood the key point.
So Papa had already guessed it long ago!
“Papa, you’re amazing!” Duoduo said, completely impressed.
Xiao Yi awkwardly rubbed his nose.
Flattery worked every time!
And Duoduo had said it so sincerely.
Xiao Yi accepted the praise with great satisfaction.
“Hmm. It was only a suspicion. I just happened to guess correctly.”
He didn’t tell her that he had reached this conclusion after countless sleepless nights spent pondering over the matter and making bold deductions.
Only then had he dared to make such a judgment.
Duoduo tilted her little head and studied Xiao Yi.
“Papa, Grandfather asked me a question today!”
Xiao Yi looked at Duoduo, waiting for her to continue.
Duoduo didn’t keep him in suspense. “Grandfather asked me whether there was a gu worm inside you.”
A strange emotion flashed through Xiao Yi’s eyes.
“Let’s not talk about that yet.”
“Let’s finish what we were discussing first.”
“Did you see the gu worm inside your grandfather?”
Duoduo gave her father a suspicious look. Why did she feel as if he was afraid?
Still, she honestly answered his question.
“I didn’t see exactly what it looked like, but I did see some signs of it.”
Duoduo described to Xiao Yi how she had discovered the gu worm.
Xiao Yi’s expression grew more and more solemn.
This gu worm was terrifying beyond belief!
“You said this gu worm doesn’t seem to intend to harm your grandfather?” Xiao Yi asked uncertainly.
Duoduo nodded.
“Papa, I guess the person who put the gu worm in Grandfather must be a woman!”
A look of surprise flashed through Xiao Yi’s eyes.
“A woman?”
“How can you tell?”
“What evidence do you have?”
Xiao Yi fired off three questions in succession.
Duoduo blinked her big eyes and scratched her palm.
“Papa, I already said it’s just a guess!”
“This gu worm makes Grandfather’s body look extremely young.”
“And whenever Grandfather suffers, the other person suffers the same pain.”
“Oh, right. Nina said this gu worm is called a Heart-Linked Gu.”
“Where she comes from, women use it on the men they love!”
“It’s meant to keep the man from betraying them!”
Duoduo explained each of the reasons behind her guess.
“Papa, what kind of gu worm is inside you?”
“And did the other person put a Heart-Linked Gu in you too?”
Duoduo’s eyes were filled with curiosity.
Xiao Yi couldn’t help himself and lightly tapped Duoduo on the head.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
Duoduo covered her head and looked at him accusingly.
“Papa, hitting someone on the head will make them stupid!”
Xiao Yi gently rubbed her head, but his words were teasing.
“Being a little stupid is fine.”
“Being too clever isn’t a good thing!”
What kind of child went around talking about Heart-Linked Gu all day?
Duoduo puffed out her cheeks.
She felt that Papa was insulting her.
But she had no proof.
When Xiao Yi saw her expression, he withdrew his hand.
“Did your grandfather give you all these things because he wants you to remove the gu worm for him?”
Duoduo tilted her head and thought about it.
“Maybe!”
As she spoke, she reached into her sleeve and rummaged around.
After searching for a while, she finally pulled something out.
“I think the biggest reason is this!”
Duoduo took Xiao Yi’s hand and placed the jade pendant in his palm.
Xiao Yi lowered his head and looked at it, his eyes narrowing.
He knew better than anyone what this jade pendant was for.
“He told you to give this to me!”
Xiao Yi’s statement was one of certainty, not a question.
Duoduo revealed a row of little white teeth.
“I told you, Papa is the smartest!”
Xiao Yi’s expression immediately darkened.
He casually tossed the jade pendant onto the table.
“You shouldn’t have accepted it!” His tone was sharp.
Duoduo tilted her head and studied her father.
“I told Grandfather the same thing!”
“But Grandfather told me about the fate of the kingdom and the common people living along the frontier…”
“And then you accepted it?” Xiao Yi’s tone was laced with sarcasm.
Duoduo shook her head.
“I told Grandfather that I’d bring it back and ask for your opinion first!”
“If you didn’t agree, I would return it!”
“And tell him to find someone else!”
Xiao Yi’s expression softened slightly.
“Papa, you already secretly sent Lingfeng and the others to help.”
“Now that you have Grandfather’s jade pendant, wouldn’t it make your involvement even more legitimate?”
Duoduo was a little confused.
Her father was already helping deal with the battles along the frontier. Why did he still want to refuse Grandfather’s proposal?
“I am me, and he is him!”
Xiao Yi’s tone was full of disdain.
Duoduo blinked her big eyes.
“Papa, you’re fighting with Grandfather!”
Her statement was absolute.
In fact, she even nodded solemnly after saying it.
“You look just like a little child who hasn’t received enough affection from his father, so he deliberately goes against him!”
“Xiao Duoduo!”
“You’re getting awfully bold!”
Xiao Yi grabbed Duoduo and lifted her off the ground.
Duoduo laughed triumphantly.
