Xu Jinxin waved her hand impatiently.
"What are you shouting for? Those who know us know you are my daughter, but those who don't might think you are my mother."
Duoduo covered her mouth, giggling secretly.
The girl stomped her foot hard, "Mother!"
Xu Jinxin looked at the Princess Consort of Pingyang, "How about we swap daughters?"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang hugged Duoduo, "That won't do. But, if you don't like her, you can give Yingniang to me."
Xu Jinxin rolled her eyes at the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
"Your calculating schemes are practically hitting me in the face."
"Are you Duoduo? Come here, let Auntie give you a hug to satisfy my craving."
Duoduo tilted her head up and looked at the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang gently nudged Duoduo, "Go on."
Duoduo walked up to Xu Jinxin. Just as she was about to bow, Xu Jinxin pulled her up.
She held onto Duoduo, looking her up and down, and then squeezed Duoduo's bones.
"Oh, this child has a good bone structure! Su Xian, how about letting this child learn martial arts with me?"
After she finished speaking, she pulled the girl from behind her to the front.
"Duoduo, her name is Yingniang. Would you like to play with her?"
Yingniang rolled her eyes helplessly, a gesture almost identical to what Xu Jinxin had just done.
Duoduo looked at this girl named Yingniang with great curiosity.
Unlike other girls who wore their hair in buns, she had hers tied up in a high ponytail.
She wasn't wearing the skirts and tops typical of ordinary girls, but rather neat and practical shirts and trousers.
Even her sleeves were narrow, which was quite unique.
Seeing Duoduo's curiosity about Yingniang, the Princess Consort of Pingyang smiled.
"Jinxin, you want to kidnap my child, but that simply won't do!"
"The Prince has already asked Lingfeng to train Duoduo. You are too late."
Xu Jinxin looked surprised.
"The Prince of Pingyang actually let Lingfeng teach Duoduo martial arts?"
"Yes, you didn't expect that, did you?" The Princess Consort of Pingyang smiled.
Xu Jinxin nodded, "I truly didn't expect that."
"If I had known, I would have come back earlier. That way, I would be Duoduo's master!"
Hearing this, the Princess Consort of Pingyang suddenly became interested.
"I heard you came back from Fengcheng. Did anything interesting happen there?"
Xu Jinxin looked at Duoduo, "Yingniang, take your little sister to play on the side. Mother and Aunt Su need to talk for a while."
Yingniang took Duoduo's hand and walked away.
Duoduo really wanted to stay, because she heard her mother mention Fengcheng.
"Sister Yingniang, did you come back from Fengcheng?" Duoduo wanted to know how Song Shuyu was doing.
"You can either call me Sister, or call me Yingniang. Don't call me Sister Yingniang, it sounds terrible."
Yingniang furrowed her brows.
"I am sorry, Yingniang, Sister." Duoduo hurriedly apologized.
Yingniang waved her hand and pulled Duoduo to sit down on the side.
"What do you want to know? About Fengcheng?" Yingniang asked Duoduo.
Duoduo blinked her eyes.
"I heard the lucky star of the Song residence went to Fengcheng. Did you see her?"
Duoduo carefully thought about her phrasing.
"A lucky star? You believe that? It is just ignorant people talking nonsense. Do not believe it!"
Yingniang was very disdainful.
Duoduo looked curious.
"Sister, do you not believe that there are lucky stars in this world?"
"Of course I do not believe it, and my mother does not either!" Yingniang said proudly.
"My mother says that man can conquer nature. As long as a person is strong enough, they get to decide how things go."
Whenever Yingniang spoke of her mother, she was full of admiration.
Hearing this, Duoduo looked into the distance at Xu Jinxin, who was talking with the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
Duoduo saw that her mother, when with Aunt Li, was clearly much more relaxed and smiled a lot more.
In her heart, she also felt some admiration for Xu Jinxin.
"I just heard Aunt Su say that you have also started learning martial arts. How far have you gotten?"
Seeing that Duoduo wasn't speaking, Yingniang made conversation.
"I jus' started learning." Duoduo scratched the palm of her hand.
"Lingfeng said I am still little, so I have to build a foundation first. I can only learn moves when I am a bit older."
Yingniang nodded.
"Right! When I first started, I practiced the horse stance for three whole years."
"Ah?" Duoduo was dumbfounded. "You have to do it for that long?"
"Even now, I still practice it for the time it takes an incense stick to burn every day, without fail."
"Mother says a person's lower body must be stable so they will not panic when faced with trouble."
When it came to martial arts, Yingniang spoke with great assurance.
She even started demonstrating a few moves for Duoduo as she spoke.
Duoduo memorized every word Yingniang said.
She also memorized the moves Yingniang demonstrated.
In the meantime, female family members of officials occasionally came over to offer their congratulations.
Whenever the Princess Consort of Pingyang encountered someone she was close to, she would call Duoduo over to introduce her.
"The wife of County Magistrate Song has arrived!" a servant announced.
Duoduo, who had been talking with Yingniang, instinctively looked towards the newcomer.
She saw her mother, Lady Song, walking over in brand-new clothes, accompanied by servants and carrying a gift.
Duoduo quickly hid behind Yingniang.
Yingniang found it a bit strange, but she shifted her body to shield Duoduo even more completely.
"This humble woman, Lady Song, congratulates the Princess Consort!"
Lady Song, holding the gift, knelt down and bowed to the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang, who was talking with Xu Jinxin, paused.
She examined the woman kneeling on the ground; this was Duoduo's mother.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang had never understood what kind of woman Duoduo's mother was, to actually bear giving her own daughter away.
Now that she finally saw her, a complex mix of emotions welled up in her heart.
If this woman had not been so heartless, she would not have gained such a sweet daughter herself.
Xu Jinxin saw that the Princess Consort of Pingyang seemed a bit distracted, and gently tugged at her.
"Rise. Someone, please guide Lady Song to her seat," the Princess Consort of Pingyang said, recovering her focus.
Lady Song stood up, holding the gift box in her hands.
"Princess Consort, this is a gift from this humble woman for the young lady."
As Lady Song spoke, she started looking around for Duoduo.
In the past, Lady Song had not felt much affection for Duoduo.
Because giving birth to twins for the first time had made her suffer immensely.
And because her mother-in-law constantly called Duoduo a jinx and utterly despised her.
As a result, she also strongly disliked the child.
However, Song Shuyu had been taken away by her mother-in-law.
And Duoduo had been taken away by the Prince of Pingyang.
Unable to see Song Shuyu, Lady Song occasionally began to miss Duoduo.
Before coming today, she had been inexplicably excited, swapping out the gift she had prepared again and again.
"Someone, record Lady Song's gift in the registry."
The Princess Consort of Pingyang instructed indifferently.
Lianxin came over, bowed, and took the box from Lady Song's hands.
"Um, why do I not see the young lady?" Lady Song asked with a smile.
"Lady Song, please follow this servant this way," Baihe came over, blocking Lady Song's line of sight.
Having no other choice, Lady Song could only follow Baihe away.
Xu Jinxin watched Lady Song's departing back, then turned her head to look at the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
"She knows Duoduo?"
