The tea Shui Shui gave him was brewed with flowers and herbs that he dried himself. He also liked to add some honey for the little one.
Even though the little one wasn’t thirsty, he still took the tea from Shui Shui and drank several big gulps.
After finishing, he looked at Shui Shui and said, “Shui Shui, tonight I’m going to sleep with Daddy, but I’ll come find you tomorrow.”
He wouldn’t be able to get away tonight.
Shui Shui nodded and, after he finished the tea, took the cup back from him.
The little one handed over the cup and winced for a moment. When he stood up earlier, his tooth had suddenly hurt for a second.
Shui Shui heard him wince and instinctively asked, “What’s wrong?”
”It’s nothing.”
The little one’s toothache went away quickly, so he didn’t pay it much attention.
After saying goodbye to Shui Shui and agreeing to see him tomorrow, he went to find Noble Consort Yi.
Noble Consort Yi wasn’t going to accompany the Emperor tonight, so she told the little one to sleep with him.
”Little Seven, when you get a bit older, you won’t be able to always sleep with Daddy anymore.”
Noble Consort Yi kissed his little face and coaxed him, ”When you grow up, you’ll be a big boy and will need to sleep on your own.”
Both the Fenghua Palace and the Chengming Hall had separate rooms prepared by Noble Consort Yi and the Emperor.
But the little one didn’t really use them.
Noble Consort Yi knew that the other princes had started sleeping on their own early on, even the Fifth Princess no longer clung to Consort Shu at night.
She and the Emperor had hardened their hearts, trying to get the little one to sleep alone.
After all, if he kept relying on their bed, it would make him overly dependent on them, and his character might develop into someone who couldn’t manage things on his own.
Their concerns were valid, and they had steeled their resolve.
But the little one couldn’t get used to sleeping alone.
At first, with Ji Yan and the others watching over him, he could manage to sleep through the night.
But later on, he just couldn’t do it anymore.
In the middle of the night, he’d run out barefoot, still in his pajamas, with tears in his eyes.
He wanted his daddy, wanted his mommy—he just wasn’t willing to sleep by himself anymore.
After this happened several times, the Emperor and Noble Consort Yi were both worn out. They tried to reason with him, but the little one’s arguments were even more compelling.
”I’m still little, so I need to sleep with Daddy and Mommy.”
”Daddy’s all grown up, and he still sleeps with Mommy.”
The little one’s logic was so twisted that it almost made the Emperor’s face turn green.
After making the Emperor’s face turn green with his words, the little one choked up and said in his tiny voice, ”When I get big, like Fourth Brother, I won’t be able to sleep with Daddy and Mommy anymore.”
”But right now, I just want to sleep with Daddy and Mommy.”
The little one was so stubborn, and his eyes were full of reliance on them.
In the end, both the Emperor and Noble Consort Yi sighed in their hearts and gave in.
If the little one wanted to sleep by himself or with his daddy or mommy, it was up to him.
Even Noble Consort Yi was sometimes surprised at how lenient the Emperor was with him.
She knew that the Emperor had personally taken care of the little one and invested a lot of effort into him. With so much time and energy spent, the little one held a special place in the Emperor’s heart, more than any of the other princes or princesses.
But sometimes, she was still surprised by how much time the Emperor continued to invest in him.
”Little Seven, pretending not to hear what Mommy said again?”
Noble Consort Yi looked at the little one who was glancing everywhere but at her, and knew he was deliberately playing dumb.
She wanted to lecture him a little more, but the little one dove into her arms, rubbing his head against her to make her play with him instead of continuing the conversation.
”You…”
Noble Consort Yi pressed her fingers to her temple, feeling a bit worried. ”It’s fine to be a bit clingy now, but when you get older, you can’t keep clinging to Mommy. You’re going to get married one day.”
She was concerned that if his personality became too dependent, it might cause problems in the future when he had to start his own family and career.
”I don’t want to get married.”
The little one shook his head, showing no interest in marriage.
He had his family, his good friends, and Ah Wu—he didn’t need a wife.
Noble Consort Yi found his words amusing.
”You say you don’t want a wife now, but when you grow up, you’ll probably be begging me to help you find one.”
Noble Consort Yi didn’t take his childish words seriously.
She thought they were just the whimsical words of a child, not knowing that they would eventually come true.
”It’s getting late. Let Ji Yan help you wash up and take you to Chengming Hall.”
”I’ll wash up in Chengming Hall!”
The little one had only come to see Noble Consort Yi briefly. After giving her a few kisses, he returned to Chengming Hall.
There was a large bath there, and the little one loved soaking in it.
He kicked his little legs, swimming in the big bath like a small frog, while the Emperor slowly sipped his calming bedtime tea and watched him play.
When the little frog got tired of kicking, he swam over to the Emperor.
His soft, white skin glowed slightly pink in the water, and his lips felt a little dry. Seeing that Daddy’s calming tea wasn’t finished yet, he leaned in, wanting to take a sip.
”This is for grown-ups. Little ones can’t drink it.”
The Emperor tried to stop him, but the little one still managed to gulp down several mouthfuls of the calming tea.
Seeing him still wanting more, the Emperor pushed his little face aside with one hand while holding the cup with the other, and drank the rest of the tea himself.
After finishing the tea, the Emperor handed him the empty cup.
The little one: ”…”
The little one mischievously filled the cup with water and started a water fight with his daddy.”
He splashed his dad and quickly swam away, daring his dad to chase him.
The emperor looked at the little one swimming around the pool and twitched the corner of his mouth.
A moment later, the little one’s excited voice echoed, mixed with giggles: “Daddy didn’t catch me!”
“You still haven’t caught me!”
“I’m swimming super fast!”
The little one was quite proud of himself, but not for long—soon, the emperor grabbed his chubby foot.
“You can never stay quiet for long before causing trouble!”
The emperor pulled him over, held him in his arms, and playfully smacked his chubby bottom a few times.
The little one was used to these playful smacks and wasn’t scared at all.
The two of them played in the pool for a while before finally settling down to sleep.
The little one, exhausted from playing, fell asleep quickly.
Afraid that his dad might have nightmares, he sleepily bumped his little body against the wall as he was drifting off.
By bumping into the wall, he was trying to stay awake.
The emperor, though his eyes were closed, wasn’t asleep yet. Hearing the sound, he immediately opened his eyes.
“Little Seven, what are you doing?”
The little one was already so sleepy that his eyes were droopy like spirals.
Half-dazed, he looked at his dad and said, “I’m not going to sleep.”
“It’s the middle of the night—what do you plan to do if you don’t sleep?”
“I need to help daddy fall asleep.”
The little one mumbled as he continued bumping into the wall. His sleepy voice slurred as he added, “Daddy has nightmares, but I can make them go away.”
The bad monks said daddy’s nightmares were because of bad energy.
The little one didn’t explain further; he simply did what he thought would chase away his father’s nightmares.
The emperor looked at his sleepy child and thought about how he actually did sleep better when the little one was by his side.
His throat tightened, as though he wanted to say something but couldn’t.
Instead, he pulled the little one back into his arms. “Daddy doesn’t need you to help. Come now, go to sleep.”
The emperor gently coaxed the little one, and soon, the child was sound asleep.
He had run around all day and played in the pool before bed, so he was completely worn out.
The emperor looked at his flushed, sleeping face and remembered how he used to think that the child was more attached to Noble Consort Yi than to him.
But now, it seemed that the little one cared about him just as much.
Not only did the child comfort Noble Consort Yi, but he also tried to take care of him.
When the emperor playfully smacked his bottom earlier, he felt the child was being naughty, but now, he thought his little one was truly sweet.
No wonder so many parents spoil their children. Raising a child close by and teaching them yourself makes it hard not to dote on them.
The emperor gently patted the little one’s back, helping him stay asleep, and soon fell asleep himself.
Not long after, the emperor had a nightmare again.
He barely woke up in time, pulling the little one, who had rolled away in his sleep, back into his arms.
He looked down at the child’s little face for a while.
After gazing at the child’s face, the emperor hugged him close and went back to sleep.
This time, he slept a little better than before.
The next morning.
When the little one woke up and realized he had fallen asleep, his expression was full of frustration.
He tugged at his dad’s face, carefully checking for dark circles to see if his dad had slept well.
The emperor, feeling the little hands on his face, said lazily, “If you’re awake, go have breakfast. Stop bothering daddy.”
Seeing that his dad looked fine, the little one relaxed a bit.
After breakfast at Chengming Hall, the little one ran back to play with Noble Consort Yi for a while.
“Mommy.”
The little one had been back in the palace for a while, but he hadn’t yet shown off: “Do you want to see the new skill I’ve learned?”
Noble Consort Yi was curious: “What new skill?”
The little one leaned close to Noble Consort Yi’s ear, his eyes sparkling as he whispered his secret.
Noble Consort Yi smiled upon hearing it: “Our Little Seven is so amazing!”
“Yeah, I’m amazing!”
The little one clearly wanted to show off, and Noble Consort Yi, suppressing her laughter, took him to a spacious area set aside in Fenghua Palace.
Noble Consort Yi dismissed the palace attendants, holding the little one’s hand as they walked in.
As soon as they entered, the little one plop transformed into a small, fluffy ball.
“Roar!”
The little ball let out what he thought was a fierce roar, though his tiny voice still sounded soft and cute.
After his little roar, the ball started showing off to Noble Consort Yi.
There were some leisurely rabbits in the courtyard. The little ball leaped with his tiny paws and pounced on one of the rabbits.
He wrestled and bit at it, demonstrating the skills that Ah Wu had taught him.
Noble Consort Yi watched him closely, finding the fierce little ball both ferocious and adorable as he pounced and bit at the rabbit.
The little one showed off for the entire morning, and Noble Consort Yi, seeing him so lively and energetic, felt happy.
By noon, the little one was finally tired from all the playing.
Noble Consort Yi hugged the small ball that had jumped into her arms, filled with affection: “Our Little Seven has really grown a bit.”
The little one, once a tiny ball, was still small, but compared to the last time, he had grown a little bigger.
“Squeak squeak!”
I’ve grown!
The little one had worked up a sweat from all the playing, so Noble Consort Yi had him take a bath before lunch.
After lunch, the little one headed over to where the monks were staying.
He spent the entire afternoon with the monks, listening to them chant Buddhist scriptures.
The emperor, of course, was aware that the little one was with the monks.
When the emperor found out, he wasn’t too pleased: “What’s so great about chanting? Why is Little Seven interested in this?”
Lu Guang chuckled and replied, “The young prince is still little—everything is new and fascinating to him.”
These monks from Guanghua Temple were highly respected. Though the emperor was a bit dissatisfied, he didn’t say anything more.
The little one went to the monks during the day to listen to them chant sutras, and at night, under the guise of visiting someone, he snuck into the Zhaoxi Palace to scope it out.
He went in his little dumpling form, and as soon as Shui Shui saw him, without a second thought, he grabbed him in his hands.
The little one struggled a bit. “Chirp chirp.”
He still had things to do.
Shui Shui started rubbing the little dumpling, first rubbing its belly, then its paws, completely ignoring its protests.
The little dumpling: “…”
He could tell now—Shui Shui really loved seeing him in his dumpling form.
He stayed obediently in Shui Shui’s hands while being rubbed all over.
Although Shui Shui wasn’t entirely satisfied, he restrained himself a bit. He finally set the little dumpling down and allowed him to continue his reconnaissance.
He handed the little dumpling a small item to wear around his neck. “If you run into danger, just use your paw to break the bottle on the ground. It’ll release a smoke screen, and you can escape.”
“Chirp!”
With the new gear Shui Shui gave him, the little one’s scouting mission went smoothly.
While scouting, he didn’t run into any ghosts, but he did find a black outfit that looked like it could be used for some spooky business.
Zhaoxi Palace wasn’t particularly large, and the little one took his scouting seriously.
Time passed quickly between his daytime sutra-listening and nighttime scouting, and soon it was time for the family banquet.
These family banquets were a regular occurrence.
The little one didn’t enjoy them much. Yong Wang, who had been under house arrest, was now allowed to attend, so the little one would have to see him there.
The little one absolutely despised him.
Yong Wang’s newly appointed shizi hadn’t had any direct conflict with the little one, but since the little one hated his father, he also hated the shizi by association.
At the banquet, Ling Rui was seated next to Emperor Ling.
This seating arrangement made the empress, sitting on Emperor Ling’s left, subtly tighten her grip on her prayer beads.
The little one was seated close to Emperor Ling.
At that moment, the emperor quietly asked him, “Little Seven, why have you been listening to people chant sutras lately?”
“The sutras are interesting,” the little one blinked and replied. “Master Shikong tells little Buddhist stories, and they’re really good.”
He only mentioned the stories Shikong told him, not the fact that he had been pestering Shikong to tell them.
Emperor Ling furrowed his brow slightly, wanting to say more, but with the empress, a devout Buddhist, sitting right next to him, he pursed his lips and swallowed his words.
The banquet was lively, and the little one focused on eating.
He busied himself peeling shrimp, using his chubby hands to carefully place each peeled shrimp neatly into a small bowl.
After what felt like a long time, he had finally peeled an entire bowl of shrimp.
Just as he was about to eat, Emperor Ling leaned in and whispered, “Little Seven, give one to your father.”
The little one: “…”
Obediently, he handed over two shrimp.
Emperor Ling ate them in two bites and asked, “Give me another.”
The little one handed over one more.
“One more.”
“Dip it in the sauce and give me one.”
“Just one more.”
After all his hard work peeling shrimp, the mischievous emperor managed to get him to hand over the entire bowl.
By the time he had given the last shrimp, the little one’s lips quivered, and his eyes were brimming with tears.
Emperor Ling: “Ahem.”
Only then did the emperor realize he had gone too far with the teasing. He cleared his throat and instructed someone to peel a fresh bowl of shrimp for the little one.
The interaction between Emperor Ling and the little prince wasn’t particularly noticeable, but those with keen eyes at the banquet saw the emperor teasing his child.
Noble Consort Yi found it amusing that such a grown man as Emperor Ling would deliberately tease the little one.
Others were either jealous or envious, each with their own feelings.
Before the banquet had ended, the children were dismissed.
After they left, the banquet entered a second, more intense phase.
Monks from Guanghua Temple presented Emperor Ling with a rare gift.
The gift was an extremely precious relic, the temple’s most prized possession.
The relic, they explained, would ensure the emperor’s health, warding off illness and misfortune.
It was a gift the emperor was quite pleased with.
Upon receiving such a significant gift, some of Emperor Ling’s discontent toward the monks was alleviated.
However, the little one, overhearing that the monks had presented a relic, grew suspicious.
He asked what had been gifted, and when he learned it was a relic, his face scrunched up.
“That’s a stone left after someone’s cremation,” he muttered.
Something like that couldn’t possibly ward off illness or misfortune.
These monks were trying to trick people again!
After grumbling, the little one was led away by Ling Fu to go play.
Meanwhile, after accepting the gift, Emperor Ling met with Master Shikong.
During their conversation, Shikong brought up the little prince.
“Your Majesty, although the seventh prince is deeply cherished by you, I have something I’m not sure I should say.”
Hearing the mention of his son, Emperor Ling instinctively responded, “If you shouldn’t say it, then don’t.”
Shikong: “…”
Shikong was silent for a moment.
The emperor, noticing the relic on the table, sighed and said, “Fine, speak.”
Given the significance of the relic, he was willing to listen.
Shikong’s expression didn’t change after being interrupted. He continued, “The seventh prince’s appearance is unusual. He does not belong to this world. Your Majesty’s deep affection for him may harm you.”
His tone was calm, but his words were not what Emperor Ling wanted to hear.
The emperor thought of how the little one comforted him at night and peeled shrimp for him, then looked at Shikong.
His child had praised Shikong endlessly and spent his days playing with him, yet here was Shikong speaking ill of his son behind his back.
The Emperor remained composed, as was expected from someone accustomed to ruling, and did not reveal any emotion. He calmly said, “So what you’re saying is that Little Seven and I are incompatible?”
“A while ago, didn’t you all say that the Zhaoxi Palace was clashing with me? How come now it’s Little Seven who’s clashing with me?”
The Emperor’s question left Master Shikong without a direct response.
Anyone with common sense, knowing that the Zhaoxi Palace was said to be in conflict with the Emperor, would naturally consider this: the Seventh Prince is the child of Consort Xi from the Zhaoxi Palace. If Consort Xi was considered inauspicious, following that line of thought, it would make sense to question whether the Seventh Prince might also be inauspicious.
But it seemed like the Emperor didn’t think along those lines.
The atmosphere between them grew heavy.
Meanwhile, Little Seven, who was still playing outside but keeping an eye on his father’s whereabouts, knew his father was talking to Shikong. Yet, he didn’t feel the least bit anxious.
He hummed softly, “Better not say anything bad about me.”
Otherwise, it wouldn’t be him who would end up disliked.
