Xiao Yi shot Duoduo a sidelong glance.
“Weren’t you just trying so hard to persuade me to agree?”
“And now you’re asking whether I’ll accept it?”
Duoduo gave him a sly smile.
“So that means you agree, Daddy!”
Xiao Yi’s expression darkened. He casually tossed the jade pendant aside.
“Since he went to such lengths to pass it to you, do you really think he’d let you return it?”
“Are you trying to defy an imperial decree?”
Duoduo tilted her little head. “Grandfather never issued an imperial decree!”
Xiao Yi gave Duoduo another sidelong look. Duoduo stuck out her tongue sheepishly.
All right, Grandfather had called it an “imperial decree” at the time.
As the saying went, no one knew a father better than his son.
It was hardly strange that Daddy had guessed it!
“Daddy, I have a question!”
“Why didn’t Grandfather give the jade pendant to Fifth Uncle? Why did he go through such a huge detour and have me give it to you?”
Duoduo’s face was filled with curiosity.
Xiao Yi’s expression grew very serious.
“Shouldn’t you be asking him that question?”
Duoduo shook her little head. “I did ask him!”
“When Grandfather first gave it to me, I pretended not to understand and said that if he wanted to reward me, he should just give me gold and silver.”
“Later, he told me that it was a jade pendant capable of commanding troops.”
“So I asked him why he didn’t give it to Fifth Uncle.”
At this point, Duoduo pouted.
Seeing her expression, a trace of mockery appeared on Xiao Yi’s face.
“He wouldn’t answer you.”
Duoduo nodded dejectedly.
“Grandfather told me not to play mind games with him!”
“When did I ever play mind games with him?”
“He’s obviously the one who’s moody and unpredictable! I don’t want him scheming against you, Daddy!”
The moment Xiao Yi heard that, his gaze changed.
“He bullied you?”
Duoduo lowered her head and shook it.
“You misunderstood, Daddy! He didn’t!”
“Daddy, I’ve already given you the item. I still have to go pay my respects to Mother!”
“I’m leaving now!”
Duoduo said this and tried to make a quick escape.
But then she felt someone grab her by the back of her collar.
“Daddy!”
Duoduo twisted around with difficulty and looked at Xiao Yi.
Xiao Yi lifted Duoduo up and pulled her back.
First, he examined her face.
There were no marks.
Then he rolled up Duoduo’s sleeve, making her cry out in protest.
“Daddy, men and women shouldn’t touch each other!”
Xiao Yi pressed his lips tightly together, now even more certain that the Emperor had bullied Duoduo.
There were no marks on her arm!
Xiao Yi hesitated. He was about to roll up Duoduo’s trouser leg when she hurriedly let out a frightened cry.
Qingliu, who had been standing guard outside, was startled.
She hurried to the study door.
“Princess! What happened?”
“Get out!”
Xiao Yi’s furious, restrained shout came from inside.
Qingliu froze.
The Prince was angry!
What had the Princess done?
Yunxiao heard Xiao Yi’s angry roar and immediately grabbed Qingliu, pulling her away.
Qingliu struggled and refused to leave. “I’m the Princess’s maid! I have to go save her!”
Yunxiao quickly covered her mouth.
“The Princess is The Prince’s daughter. The Prince won’t hurt her.”
“But The Prince is furious right now. If you rush in like this, I’m afraid you won’t even be able to keep your own life, let alone protect the Princess!”
“And when that happens, you’ll only implicate the Princess!”
Qingliu had barely heard anything Yunxiao said at first. All she could think about was breaking free and protecting the Princess.
But then she heard Yunxiao’s final sentence.
She couldn’t implicate the Princess!
Yunxiao dragged Qingliu far enough away before finally letting go.
“That was an emergency. I apologize for offending you.”
Qingliu shook her head.
“You were only trying to help me.”
“Yunxiao, I heard The Prince lose his temper just now.”
“Tell me, what can I do to save the Princess?”
Yunxiao had not originally intended to help.
However, when he saw the pleading look in Qingliu’s eyes, he turned away somewhat awkwardly.
“You can try asking Princess.”
“But let me make this clear first: I can’t guarantee that it will work!”
After all, The Prince was the one who had the final say in the entire residence.
Besides, he had no idea how the Princess had angered him.
Qingliu bent her knees in a formal bow to Yunxiao, then hurried away.
Yunxiao looked up at the sky and let out a long sigh.
“If The Prince finds out that I was the one who gave Qingliu this idea, I’m afraid I’ll be beaten again!”
“Forget it. The Princess has always treated us servants well.”
“Getting beaten is getting beaten!”
“Besides, don’t I have the ointment the Princess gave me?”
After mocking himself, Yunxiao simply gave up worrying about it.
Inside the study, Duoduo and Xiao Yi were locked in a standoff.
Duoduo clutched the hem of her trousers, refusing to let Xiao Yi roll it up.
Her entire face was flushed. “Daddy, there’s nothing on my legs!”
“Daddy, what you’re doing is improper!”
Xiao Yi narrowed his eyes.
“You’re lecturing me about propriety?”
“Have you forgotten the Three Obediences and Four Virtues expected of women?”
Duoduo blinked. “I’ve never read that!”
Xiao Yi was so exasperated that he laughed.
“So you mean that because you’ve never read it, you don’t know it?”
Seeing her father address her as “I” and “The Prince” with every other sentence, Duoduo knew that he was truly angry.
So she decided to use her ultimate weapon.
She stretched out both arms and wrapped them around Xiao Yi’s neck.
Then she tilted her head and kissed him on the cheek.
“Daddy, I really wasn’t hurt!”
The instant Duoduo’s soft, sweet kiss landed on his cheek, Xiao Yi’s anger deflated like a punctured balloon.
Xiao Yi turned his head and looked at Duoduo.
Duoduo gave him a sweet smile.
Then she leaned over and kissed him again.
“Duoduo loves Daddy the most!”
The tips of Xiao Yi’s ears suddenly turned red.
But his face remained stern.
“What nonsense are you saying?”
“Looks like you’re asking for a punishment!”
Seeing her father use a soft, gentle tone to say such fierce words, Duoduo smiled until her eyes curved into crescents.
Daddy was always like this—he clearly liked it, but insisted on saying the opposite.
Duoduo smiled sweetly at Xiao Yi.
“Your daughter loves Daddy the most!”
The corners of Xiao Yi’s lips curled up, though he tried desperately to force them back down.
“Stop acting spoiled!”
“Acting spoiled won’t help you!”
“Tell me yourself. Were you bullied?”
“If you don’t tell me the truth, I’ll smash this jade pendant!”
Xiao Yi redirected his anger toward the jade pendant.
Duoduo pursed her little lips.
“Daddy, if you keep talking like that, my love for you is going to disappear!”
Xiao Yi raised a hand and pinched Duoduo’s cheek.
“You’ve gotten bold! How dare you threaten your daddy!”
Duoduo rubbed her pinched cheek and smiled slyly.
“I learned it from you, Daddy!”
“Didn’t you threaten me just now too?”
“Hmph!”
“You’re such a case of a magistrate setting fires while forbidding the common people from lighting lamps!”
Seeing Duoduo deliberately change the subject, Xiao Yi became even more certain of his suspicion.
The Emperor had definitely bullied Duoduo!
But what kind of bullying had it been?
Duoduo hadn’t wanted to mention a single word of it!
Xiao Yi’s expression darkened.
Seeing her father’s face turn grim, Duoduo nervously picked at her palm.
She didn’t want to tell him, afraid that it would damage the father-son relationship between Daddy and Grandfather.
But if she didn’t say anything today, would it hurt the bond between her and Daddy?
