NOVEL NEXT I paused for a while, then decided to tell her the truth, “Not exactly. Just want to be sure there is always a Plan B in case of rainy days. The world is shifting faster than we could make plans, and there is no guarantee that we will always bet the right horse. If he comes to power in the future and you are with him, I would be able to bask in your reflective glow.”
Upon hearing that Zhao Wang might come into power in the future, Lv Li was so surprised that she could not help but twitch the corner of her lips.
Hey, you silly girl, just wipe that disdainful look off your face. Don’t look down on Zhao wang. After all, life is more complicated than the novels. If Qi Sheng and Chu Wang both died in their struggle, Zhao wang might just be the final winner. There are quite a few events like this in history!
Lv Li looked at me and hesitated a while. Then she asked with her eyes downcast, “If you think that Zhao wang is useful, then give me to him. As long as it is good for you, I’m willing to do anything.”
She was wearing an aggrieved look on her face when she said those words.
I couldn’t bear to see her like this and so I waved, “Well, well, let’s talk about it some other time.”
Over at the warm room, the nanny had already finished feeding the little princess and asked if she should come over to show me the princess.
I hesitated for a while.
In the previous life, I have never been a father ever. It was such a big transition from being a man to being a mother. It would still take some time before I could get used to this reality.
This was like a person who was accustomed to using the XP system being forced to use the lion system. Just when he was fumbling with the unfamiliar system, a customer installed a new program when he was not paying attention. To make matters worse, this program was running automatically upon the opening of the computer and would update itself from time to time!
I was still not getting used to the idea of being a parent. Every time I looked at her, I felt confused, wondering whether I was her daddy or mummy…
Noticing my silence, Lv Li thought that I was depressed over giving birth to a girl, so she hurriedly persuaded, “As an old saying goes, you get the flower first, then you get the fruit. Now that we have the little princess, we will have a little prince. And…”
I feared that she would keep nagging and made the whole thing about Qi Sheng, so I hurriedly stopped her and said, “Ok, bring the baby here.”
Hearing my words, Lv Li happily went to tell Xie Yi to send words to the warm room.
After a short while, Xie Yi came in with the nanny who held the baby in her arms.
I took a probe into her arms and noticed that the little girl was not as red as before. The facial features seemed to have changed slightly. Now she looked white and cute.
Seeing my notice, the nanny asked, “Do you want to hold her?”
I stopped for a while. Before I could answer, Lv Li hurriedly replied, “Yes, Your Majesty, try hold the princess.”
Hearing that, the nanny put the baby into my arms.
Now, I had no choice. I raised up two arms to hold the baby. She handed the baby into my arms skillfully and instructed me in a soft voice, “Your Majesty, you don’t need to keep your arms so tight. Just relax.”
I had never held such a little baby like this! I just felt like I was holding a soft swaddled dough. I don’t know where to put my hands. In just a few seconds I started to sweat like crazy. My arms were getting stiffer and stiffer and I couldn’t move a finger at all.
I was not like holding a baby, but a bomb!
On the other side, Lv Li and Xie Yi were shouting beside me. One exclaimed, ” Your Majesty, look! the little princess is opening her eyes.”
The other whispered, “Your Majesty, the little princess takes after you. Her eyes and mouth look like yours a lot.”
I couldn’t help but look closely at the baby’s face. She looked more like Qi Sheng. Why did they say she look like me? They must have been joking! However, this baby was really cute, and the chubby face in particular just made you want to pinch it.
A few maids were surrounding me and talking about the baby when Qi Sheng, who hadn’t been to my palace for several days, came in.
Before I realized it, Lv Li and the other maids around me hurriedly got away and kneeled down to pay him respect. Then they stepped back with heads lowered down. Even the nanny who stood behind before stepped back further and lowered down her head.
Well, good etiquette. But why no one remembered to take the baby away from my arms? Did they want me to greet Qi Sheng with this baby?
Perhaps it was the way I held her that was making her uncomfortable. The girl pouted and started crying loud.
I was scared out of my wits and nearly threw her away.
Qi Sheng walked up and swept a glance at me and then to the baby. He carefully observed her for a while and asked, “Why is she crying?”
I moved my lips, not knowing how to reply. So, I lowered down my head and asked the baby in my hands, “Hey, why are you crying?’
The baby pouted again and cried even louder.
In frustration, I held up my head and replied, “Well, she won’t tell me. How about you give it a try?”
Qi Sheng didn’t reply and only stared at me with a weird expression on his face.
The nanny, on the other hand, felt the need to step in. She walked up to me and whispered, “Your Majesty, let me cuddle her.”
I felt a huge relief after hearing those words and was happy that I had someone to share my burden. I stretched out my arms and was about to give her to the nanny when I heard Qi Sheng say, “I will give it a try.”
I looked at Qi Sheng and then turned over to the nanny. After thinking for a while, I turned around and handed the baby to Qi Sheng. I have had my share of the suffering and now it’s your turn.
What I didn’t know was that the minute the child was in Qi Sheng’s hands, she stopped crying and stared at him.
I was both surprised and jealous by this finding and the crowd started commenting. Some said that the girl liked Qi Sheng. Some claimed that she looked a lot like the Emperor as if they were made out of the same mold.
Lv Li, I thought you just said that this child looks awfully like me. Why does she all of a sudden start to look like Qi Sheng?
While people were busy paying compliments to Qi Sheng, outside the palace there came a maid reporting that Concubine Huang, Chen and Li came to visit the Empress and the little princess. There was no mention of Qi Sheng whatsoever.
But the fact that they came immediately after Qi Sheng had come here was quite telling as to who they really wanted to visit.
Lv Li was a bit irritated, but I only sighed. Qi Sheng had not been in the harem for half a month. They wouldn’t have come here if they were not feeling desperate.
Well, those beautiful young women shouldn’t have been confined in their bedrooms waiting for the return of their man. It was only natural that they would behave like that after spending so much time alone.
I sighed and instructed the maid to bring them in.