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Chapter 197: A Little Scheme
Chapter 197: A Little Scheme
After dinner, the Qi King spent some quality time with his sons, casually testing their knowledge before playing with them.
While the Qi King enjoyed a happy moment with his sons, Aunt Che was filled with fear and anxiety.
Upon hearing Qiu Zhi's words, Aunt Che froze in disbelief, "Did the King really say that himself? In front of so many people? That's impossible!"
Aunt Che refused to believe that the King's affection for her was fake.
She panicked.
Aunt Che may not have been the sharpest, but she knew that with the King having said those words in front of so many people, her days in the Wang Palace would become difficult.
"Unless you give birth to a daughter of the Wang Palace!" Speaking honestly, Aunt Che felt that girls were not as valuable.
"Even though the King favors you now, when it comes time to divide the fief among the sons, the benefits will still go to them.
So, Aunt Che actually wanted to request a firstborn son.
She was still young and her body was in good condition.
Even with her six nieces from her maiden family enticing the King, if the firstborn was a son, the King probably wouldn't think much of it, and she could try to have more children with him later.
The problem was...
She had to get pregnant first!
Thinking of this, Aunt Che became extremely anxious.
Qiu Zhi, standing by her side, lowered her eyes and let her gaze wander as she said, "The child that the Princess brought back still poses too great a threat to the Master. I'm thinking, why don't you blow some sweet nothings into the King's ear again and bring Miss Che Lingzhi to the Wang Palace? Miss Lingzhi is clever and lively, surely more pleasing than the sickly child the Princess brought back?"
"Once the King is in high spirits, won't he agree to whatever you suggest?"
"Once the Master has a male heir, then we can firmly establish our place in the mansion."
...
Qiu Zhi was skilled at coaxing people, and soon enough, she managed to convince Aunt Che to rush back to the Che mansion that very night to ask her brother for help. They would consider acting first and reporting later, using the pretext of accompanying their cousin to bring the child to the Wang Palace first.
Once the child was brought over and the King saw how lively and adorable she was, how could he possibly bear to send her away?
Aunt Che was actually quite hesitant, but thinking about her own future, she feared that it might not be a smooth one.
Perhaps with Che Lingzhi's liveliness and charm, she could even save herself?
With these thoughts in mind, Aunt Che took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Qiu Zhi, then I'll have to trouble you to make a trip there!"
No one paid attention to the movements of this mistress and servant pair.
Sui Sui spent half the day playing with the Qi King, along with the young masters of the mansion.
Then, as the young masters returned to rest, Sui Sui was also taken by Aunt Xiang to wash up.
It wasn't convenient to bathe at Lanruo Temple, and with the tiring events of the past two days, the Qi Princess felt that Sui Sui needed to return for a good, thorough wash.
Moreover, Sui Sui also had her medicinal bath to soak in.
Upon hearing this, the Qi King, concerned for the young child, asked cautiously, "Is this medicinal bath personally prepared by Doctor Liu? Has he mentioned how long she should soak in it?"
...
He had quite a few questions.
Seeing that he was asking out of concern for Sui Sui, the Qi Princess didn't find his inquiries annoying, and she carefully explained the details to him.
Hearing the Princess's words, the Qi King finally felt quite a bit more at ease.
Hearing about Sui Sui's pitiful past, the Qi King sighed, "Poor child. In a few days... No, I'll go to the palace tomorrow and speak to the Emperor about this child. Her name, identity, and title must be decided early so as not to miss the opportunity."
Hearing the King speak thus, the Qi Princess felt somewhat relieved.
After a tiring day, Sui Sui was exhausted.
So, with a gentle coaxing from the Qi Princess, the young child soon dozed off to sleep.
However, with the memory of her birth mother being bullied still in her heart, Sui Sui, in her daze, couldn't help but hug the Princess's neck tightly, rubbing against it as she muttered, "I like the Princess the most, the very most."
"
The innocent prattle of children can sometimes be the most heartfelt and sincere.
Hearing this, the Queen of Qi had tears welling up in her eyes.
Qi Wang, listening by her side, couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.
He wanted to ask: What about Father King? Who does she like the most or the least?
Unfortunately, the child had already drifted off to sleep, and he didn't want to disturb her with more questions.
Moreover, he had just met Sui Sui, and it didn't feel right to ask such questions so soon.
Qi Wang thought to himself that he would wait a little longer.
He was sure that one day, he would hear Sui Sui say that she liked her Father King the most!
As they gazed at Sui Sui sleeping peacefully, the royal couple stayed by her side for a while longer before quietly exiting the room.
Even the system didn't want to disturb the child's slumber, captivated by her sweet sleeping face. It secretly took some photos and added them to its personal collection.
What an adorable little host; it super liked her!
After returning to the mansion, Qi Wang didn't go to see Che Yiniang but instead retired to the main courtyard to rest.
He had been through a lot in the past few days, and on top of that, the doctor had said that he was currently strong on the outside but weak on the inside.
Therefore, the Queen of Qi didn't expect any nocturnal activities and simply chatted with him under the covers.
Before Che Yiniang's return, the Queen of Qi didn't have much on her mind.
Now that she was back, there were naturally more things to consider.
First and foremost, she thought about Sui Sui's living arrangements: "By the way, I plan to prepare the largest house in the south of the Western Courtyard for Sui Sui."
The Western Courtyard was designated for the ladies of the Wang Mansion.
It had been vacant due to a lack of occupants.
Given the King of Qi's current situation, although Che Yiniang might not become pregnant, one could never be too sure.
If they were to have a daughter in the future, no one could predict how the King of Qi would treat Sui Sui then.
The Queen of Qi didn't want to meddle with others; she only wanted to take care of Sui Sui.
Therefore, the largest and best courtyard should undoubtedly be reserved for Sui Sui.
The King of Qi didn't object to this suggestion. He nodded and said, "Sui Sui is our Wang Mansion's eldest daughter and deserves the best courtyard."
Whether or not the others were his biological children didn't matter at this point since they didn't exist yet.
Hearing the King of Qi's agreement, the Queen of Qi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
She didn't say anything else that might be displeasing or advise him to face reality.
Those offensive words...
...were better left for the Empress Dowager to say tomorrow.
After all, a mother scolding her son could never be wrong.
The Queen of Qi thought to herself that she wasn't the King of Qi's mother, so she wouldn't bother with such unpleasantness.
They enjoyed a peaceful night's sleep.
The next day dawned bright and clear.
After her morning routine, the Queen of Qi prepared to visit Sui Sui first and inform her about her plan to go to the palace later in the day.
At that moment, Qiu Zhu entered with a hesitant expression, and the Queen of Qi immediately sensed that something was amiss.
Qi Wang was in high spirits that morning, contemplating how he could coax Sui Sui into letting him feed her during mealtime.
Noticing Qiu Zhu's conflicted expression, Qi Wang smiled and asked, "What's the matter, Aunt Qiu? Just say it directly. Don't worry, I'm in the mansion."
Hearing the King of Qi's reassurance, Qiu Zhu glanced at the Queen of Qi before lowering her voice and saying, "Miss Che brought her niece, Che Lingzhi, to the mansion last night because she missed her. She was worried about her sister's health and couldn't sleep, so she rushed back to the Che Mansion to fetch her. Lingzhi is currently waiting in the gatehouse."
Second Watch
(End of Chapter)
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