Did The Young Prince’s Kingdom Get Destroyed Today? Chapter 134

As soon as the Duchess brought this up, Noble Consort Yi gave her an eye-roll.

“I think you’ve lost your mind.”

Noble Consort Yi bluntly replied, “You want to have a baby, you go ahead. I’m not interested.”

“I’m not pushing you to have a baby. I just thought Shui Shui could check your health,” the Duchess said, holding her hand patiently. “Didn’t you want children before?”

“I have Little Seven now, and that’s enough for me.”

Noble Consort Yi had once dreamed of having a child with her love, but after falling ill from cold, she had been forced to take countless bitter medicinal brews, one bowl after another, with no improvement in her health.

By now, the thought of having more children had completely faded.

With Little Seven by her side, she felt entirely content.

“I know you have Little Seven, but still, it wouldn’t hurt to let Shui Shui check your health. See if there’s any underlying issue.”

These were the kind of words only the Duchess could say. If anyone else dared speak like this to Noble Consort Yi, they wouldn’t have the courage.

Noble Consort Yi understood that the Duchess meant well. She figured that perhaps the topic of children still bothered her in some way, which was why the Duchess brought it up.

If she genuinely disliked children or had no interest in having more, the Duchess would never have suggested it.

“Fine, next time I’ll let Shui Shui check my pulse.”

Apart from childbirth, Noble Consort Yi was in excellent health. She had a habit of staying active, and her physical condition was quite good.

The conversation between them didn’t last long before Noble Consort Yi decided to wrap it up.

“We’ll chat more next time.”

Noble Consort Yi stood up and stopped the Duchess from rising. “You sit here and rest. I’ll just go for a stroll.”

Aside from inspecting the potential consort for the princess, she also needed to assess his family background and elders carefully.

If the family’s elders weren’t decent, the younger generation’s life would be difficult too.

If they found someone inconsiderate, even though Ling Xuan was a princess, she might still face mistreatment.

As Noble Consort Yi got up to leave, the Duchess also stood up with a smile. “I’ll walk with you. Don’t worry, taking a few more steps won’t do me any harm.”

Since she was pregnant, walking a bit was good for her.

Noble Consort Yi couldn’t argue with her, so she had someone assist the Duchess, and the two strolled together.

Had they not been in a public place, Noble Consort Yi would’ve personally helped her walk.

While the adults were busy with their own matters, the children were playing with each other.

“Brother Zhuzi, you’ve grown taller!”

“Little Seven, you’ve grown taller too.”

The children called each other by the same names as before.

When Zhuzi and the others were first brought to the capital, they had been nervous and uneasy. They knew that Little Seven was a little prince, and not just any prince, but the one the emperor favored the most. This was not their countryside village, and the rules here were strict.

They had discussed for a long time how they should speak when they met the little prince.

But when they finally saw him, Little Seven was just the same as before.

He was still as handsome and adorable as ever, smiling with his eyes curved into crescents, chasing after them without putting on any royal airs.

The little prince had said to them, “You can still call me Little Seven.”

He considered them friends, and Zhuzi was the first to realize this.

Once he understood, he called out, “Little Seven, long time no see.”

With the same familiar titles, they began playing together, and soon the awkwardness faded away.

It had been a year since they last saw each other, and Zhuzi even brought some local specialties for the little one.

Zhuzi had now been taken in as the final disciple of a martial arts master, while the other village children were either attending school or helping their families with small businesses. One by one, their lives were improving.

These children from the small village all knew that Little Seven had changed their fates.

They were grateful to Little Seven, but they didn’t let that gratitude turn into fear or make them overly deferential.

“Brother Zhuzi, we’re going to play a new game today!”

The little one didn’t explicitly say that he and his Sixth Brother were helping their Second Sister evaluate potential suitors.

He lifted his chin and said, “Let’s see if there are any bad people at the banquet!”

He even set an age limit on who could be considered “bad,” conveniently lining it up with the age of the potential suitors for his Second Sister.

The group of children all followed the little one’s lead.

When he made the announcement, they immediately nodded seriously and agreed, “Okay, we’ll play this game.”

This bunch of kids was full of clever ideas.

They came up with various plans to assess the young gentlemen at the banquet and see if they had good character.

Since the little one had already made an appearance, he couldn’t show himself again, so he directed things from behind the scenes. He watched Zhuzi and the others to see how these young lords would react if they accidentally bumped into them.

The little one was kept quite busy.

After a good part of the day, he had crossed out every name on the list he had made.

“None of them are good.”

Some bullied the kids, some spoke with cutting and venomous words, and others were arrogant and domineering. None of these could be suitable consorts for his Second Sister!

The little one stared at the list, feeling troubled.

Who knew it would be this hard to find a good match for marriage?

The little one had been brooding for a long time when, suddenly, he noticed a name that he hadn’t yet crossed out: Duan Wen.

Duan Wen didn’t come from a particularly prestigious family. In fact, his family had fallen on hard times. However, he was very capable and had earned his rank through his own efforts. He was now working as a compiler.

“Jiang Jiang, have you tried testing Duan Wen yet?”

“We have. He’s pretty easygoing.”

“Yeah, we’ve tried him three times, and he didn’t get mad once.”

“I think he’s a good person too. He smiled even when I got his clothes dirty and didn’t hold it against me.”

Duan Wen had made a good impression on the children, and seeing this, the little one decided to test him himself.

He quickly found Duan Wen, who was currently inside a small room changing his clothes after they had been dirtied.

When the little one entered, he saw Duan Wen and pretended to trip. As expected, Duan Wen reached out to catch him.

“Be careful, Your Highness.”

Duan Wen steadied him, then released his arm and took two steps back before bowing. “Your humble servant, Duan Wen, greets His Highness.”

The little one waved his hand, signaling that Duan Wen didn’t need to bow.

“My shoes are dirty. I came here to change them.”

Although his spare shoes weren’t actually in the room, he had arranged for someone to place them there earlier.

There were no palace servants with him at the moment, so Duan Wen hesitated before asking, “Your Highness, since you didn’t bring a servant, would you allow me to help you change your shoes?”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

The little one nodded.

Duan Wen picked him up, placed him on a chair, took out the new shoes, and knelt down to change them.

As the little one looked down at Duan Wen changing his shoes, he thought Duan Wen wasn’t bad. However, he still reached out and placed his small hand on Duan Wen’s shoulder.

The moment he made contact, the little one saw a glimpse of Duan Wen’s future.

In this vision, most of what he saw involved Duan Wen and his mother.

The more the little one watched, the more uncomfortable he became. Duan Wen seemed a bit too close to his mother.

Duan Wen had grown up without a father and had been raised by his mother, who treated him very well.

The little one wasn’t against being close to family—after all, he was six years old and still got kisses on his cheeks from time to time. But Duan Wen was much older, more than three times the little one’s age.

Yet, Duan Wen sometimes still slept in the same room as his mother at night.

“This isn’t right,” the little one murmured. He remembered his father once saying that when he grew up and was old enough to marry, he couldn’t sleep in his parents’ bed like a child anymore.

His quiet murmur reached Ah Wu’s ears.

“Zai Zai.”

Ah Wu called out to him.

Ah Wu knew it was the little one’s birthday today and had been waiting all day for him to contact him.

Only now did the little one start talking to him.

“Ah Wu.”

The little one heard Ah Wu’s voice and, feeling confused, explained the situation to him.

When Ah Wu heard that they were searching for a consort for the second princess, he paused before saying, “Duan Wen won’t do, but there are other options. You’d better choose quickly.”

“Why the rush?” the little one disagreed. “This is a big deal. Even Second Sister said she’s not in a hurry—she wants to choose carefully.”

Ah Wu was silent for a moment before revealing something he wasn’t entirely certain about yet.

“If your second sister doesn’t marry soon, she might not have a say in the matter.”

The little one: “…”

He didn’t fully understand what Ah Wu meant.

Ah Wu thought for a moment and then said, “Never mind, I’m not sure yet. I’ll tell you when I am.”

“In any case, since the second princess is of marriage age, it’s better for her to marry sooner rather than later.”

The little one let out a grumpy hum. “Who says you have to get married just because you’re the right age? My uncle hasn’t gotten married yet!”

His uncle didn’t seem to be in any rush to settle down at all.

“Let’s not talk about this anymore.”

Ah Wu didn’t continue the conversation and instead shifted the topic to the little one’s birthday. Within a few seconds, he had completely diverted the little one’s attention.

The two chatted for a while, and Ah Wu even wished him a happy birthday.

After finishing their conversation, the little one was visibly in a better mood.

By then, Duan Wen had finished putting on his shoes.

The little one wiggled his feet and politely thanked Duan Wen.

“There’s no need for thanks, Your Highness. It was nothing,” Duan Wen replied.

It had to be said that Duan Wen’s performance today in front of the little one was excellent.

If the little one hadn’t had the ability to foresee the future and hadn’t seen certain things in his visions, he might have actually recommended Duan Wen as a suitable consort for his second sister.

But now, that was no longer an option.

After thanking Duan Wen, the little one turned and left the room.

As soon as the little one left, Duan Wen finally relaxed his grip, his palms damp with sweat.

He was smart and had sensed that something was off with the group of children today, from the initial group to the little prince just now.

He didn’t know what the little prince was up to, but all he could do was continue to present himself in the best possible way.

While Duan Wen was still pondering over the situation, the little one had already forgotten about him.

By the end of the banquet, the little one felt as if all his efforts had been in vain.

He hadn’t found a single suitable candidate among the young men.

Ling Fu was also exhausted.

“Choosing a partner is really difficult. I wonder if it’ll be just as hard for me to find a prince consort when the time comes.”

Though the chubby kid was far from marriage age, he was already daydreaming about his future prince consort.

If he had to choose a prince consort, he wanted to pick a cute one.

The prince consort’s face should preferably be round, and even if she’s timid, it wouldn’t matter—he would protect her!

“Sixth Brother, stop thinking about your future prince consort for now and focus on Second Sister’s future husband.”

“Sigh, I am thinking about it.”

After the banquet ended, the little one, who had come up empty-handed, rested for most of the day before regaining his energy.

Once he was refreshed, he called Shui Shui over to Fenghua Palace.

It was Noble Consort Yi who had asked him to bring Shui Shui over once they finished playing so that he could check her pulse.

When the little one heard this, he thought she was feeling unwell.

However, Noble Consort Yi reassured him several times that she was fine, and it was just a routine check to ensure she was in good health.

Even after all her reassurances, the little one was still worried.

He left the palace, found Shui Shui, and without playing around, immediately led him to Fenghua Palace.

Hand in hand, they walked toward the palace.

As they walked, Shui Shui’s usually expressionless face showed a slight frown.

He was already very busy treating Emperor Ling, and if Noble Consort Yi were sick too, he would feel like he couldn’t handle it.