The young Emperor waved his hand upon hearing this, signaling to his Dark Guard to issue a decree, allowing Ji Youzhi to accompany Old Lady Ji home first.
He wanted the little girl to stay.
"Has this young man heard wrongly? Is His Majesty deciding to keep our Suisui here?"
Ji Youzhi, too weak to stand properly, spoke to Old Lady Ji.
"He wouldn’t make a mistake. I’m afraid the little girl, carefree and happily eating, might not even want to go back herself."
Although he had only returned a few days ago, the little girl was a food lover. The fruits served by the young Emperor were not something an ordinary family could afford; they were all tributes from the Capital City.
He estimated that to obtain these fruits, the Dark Guards by his side must have gone to considerable lengths.
"But Suisui is still young! Leaving her alone, I fear she will offend the Emperor!"
Upon hearing this, the Dark Guard couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.
"Madam, your girl has already offended His Majesty."
"Ah! What...what should we do?" Old Lady Ji became extremely anxious upon hearing this.
"Rest assured, Madam, the Emperor is magnanimous and will not hold it against a mere child."
This reassurance from the Dark Guard did little to comfort Old Lady Ji.
Ji Youzhi was a sensible person. The young Emperor had found the Ji Family’s greatest weakness; their Sixth Brother likely wouldn’t escape this situation.
"Mother, let me accompany you back first. Xiaosuisui won’t get into trouble for a while."
"This!" Old Lady Ji was reluctant to leave.
"There’s nothing you can do about this here, Mother. If Elder Brother wakes up, maybe we can protect her."
Ji Youzhi was a smart man, speaking straight to the point.
The presence of a Grand Master was the foundation of a country; the young Emperor couldn’t possibly refuse to give his Elder Brother, Ji Youyuan, face. However, since their family’s Grand Master had his legs broken and couldn’t fight anymore, combined with an Elixir Xiaosuisui fed him, they were unsure when he would recover.
"What if your Elder Brother can’t recover in time?"
"Then let Sixth Brother handle it."
Without hesitation, Ji Youzhi intended to sacrifice his Sixth Brother.
The young Emperor was indeed after their Sixth Brother, and Xiaosuisui was being held by the young Emperor because of her connection to Sixth Brother. Actually, Ji Youzhi didn’t know that Xiaosuisui, targeted by the young Emperor, was far from innocent! Not only had she discerned the Dragon Qi protecting the young Emperor’s body, but she had also flung him down from the upper floor. To this day, the young Emperor still occasionally rubbed his waist! It was difficult for the young Emperor not to notice such a four-and-a-half-year-old child.
...
「Inside the Inn」
Wang Dongxue went to borrow the kitchen from the innkeeper to prepare the fish for cooking.
Just then, Huo Xing’Er came to inform her that Ji Youyuan was awake.
Wang Dongxue was extremely thrilled. She put down the fish and hurried upstairs.
At the doorway, she met Old Lady Ji, who had just returned from the young Emperor’s place.
"Mother! Where’s Suisui?"
Seeing that Xiaosuisui had not returned with them, Wang Dongxue felt her heart sink.
Old Lady Ji’s expression was extremely grim. "She was detained by His Majesty."
"What?"
The room door swung open on its own, revealing Ji Youyuan. He had just woken up and, looking unwell, asked, "Why would the young Emperor detain her?"
Old Lady Ji retorted, "Why else? Don’t you all know perfectly well? These sons of mine, each one too outstanding, always causing trouble for the family because of their excellence! That’s why, after Xiaosuisui was born, we didn’t insist on bringing her back. We were afraid a day like this would come sooner or later! So even though we knew she was mistreated at the Li Family and called a star of calamity, we could only ache for her in our hearts and do nothing. This time, if it weren’t for that Old Lady Li’s utterly deranged actions, we would have left her with the Li Family for her own safety!"
Hearing Old Lady Ji’s bitter complaints, Ji Youyuan quickly spoke up. "Mother, please calm down. Leave this matter to me, your son. I wonder, after Suisui arrived at His Majesty’s side, did anything unusual happen?"