Xiao Changyi glanced sidelong at the Emperor of Xiyun, "Then why have you come here?"
The Emperor of Xiyun immediately laughed and said, "I was missing you and Jingjing, of course. And naturally, I was also missing the children—I haven’t yet met my four precious grandsons, so I wanted to come and see them for myself."
An Jing listened and felt a sharp pang of distress. If something had happened to the Emperor of Xiyun on his way here, it would have been a thorn in her and her husband’s hearts.
Xiao Changyi stopped glancing sideways at the Emperor of Xiyun and sat opposite him, his face expressionless as he watched the little An Yiqing stand up with the help of a stool, yet he casually asked the Emperor of Xiyun, "When will you return?"
"I’ll stay here for five or six days before going back," the Emperor of Xiyun said with great cheer.
An Jing furrowed her brows and said, "Foster father, is it really okay for you to stay with us that long?"
The Emperor of Xiyun lowered his voice to a very soft whisper, "I’ve put Chengyu in charge of the country for two months. I could actually stay here for ten days, but I’m a bit worried about the journey not being smooth, so let’s make it five or six days."
Xiao Changyi hummed, "What excuse did you give for Chengyu to manage things for two months?"
The Emperor of Xiyun didn’t seem the least bit embarrassed, laughing heartily, "I had the Imperial Physician say that I wasn’t feeling well and needed a good rest, so I had Chengyu, heh, take over."
An Jing: "..." Your visit wasn’t easy at all! And you even had to deceive all the civil and military officials!
Xiao Changyi hummed again, "Didn’t he ask you to bring me something?"
"He did, a particularly thick letter. It’s with the blessings of the public... I forgot just now, I’ll give it to you tonight."
An Jing: "..." Crown Prince, you really don’t forget to be a chatterbox with my husband at any time!
Xiao Changyi seemed to have expected this, his face completely devoid of expression, utterly calm.
Later, the Emperor of Xiyun went on to hold Su Yixing, An Yiqing, and An Yiyun in succession.
After taking turns holding all four children, the Emperor of Xiyun wasn’t satisfied yet. He went to take the little Su Yi Jing, who was walking with An Jing’s assistance, into his arms, and he kept cooing with delight, "My precious grandson, my precious grandson, your grandfather adores you..."
An Jing: "..." Foster father, aren’t you being a bit too obvious with your favoritism? I feel sorry for my second, third, and fourth sons!
At dinner time, the Emperor of Xiyun still refused to put down Su Yi Jing, continuing to hold him as if his love for the little one reached deep into his bones.
An Jing: "..." Foster father, ever since you’ve arrived, you’ve been holding him until now. My eldest son is almost smothered by you, do you realize that?
Finally, Xiao Changyi could no longer bear it, and said coldly, "Were my Star, Qinger, and Yun Er picked up by me?"
Seated opposite Xiao Changyi, the Emperor of Xiyun held Su Yi Jing in one hand and ate with the other, his old face all smiles, adoringly and joyfully gazing at Su Yi Jing in his lap.
Upon hearing Xiao Changyi’s words, he first looked puzzledly at Xiao Changyi across the table, but as soon as he understood what Xiao Changyi meant, he immediately looked aggrieved, "I just happen to like Jing’er more—what can I do about that..."
After a moment of silence, Xiao Changyi put down his chopsticks, got up, walked around the table, and snatched his eldest son from the Emperor of Xiyun’s embrace.
Wary of hurting Su Yi Jing, the Emperor of Xiyun naturally didn’t compete with Xiao Changyi for the child but looked at Xiao Changyi with an extremely melancholic and aggrieved expression.
Xiao Changyi didn’t pay any attention to the Emperor of Xiyun. Once he had taken his eldest son, he placed the boy in the nursing chair and then joined An Jing in feeding their four children chicken egg custard and rice porridge.