CHAPTER 575: CHAPTER 486: EMPEROR LIANG FAVORS TREASURE PIGGY

Everyone was completely stunned after hearing what the Emperor Liang just said.

What did Your Majesty say?

Princess?

What princess?

Wasn’t the one biting just now Miss Zhaozhao?

And wasn’t the one bitten Little Master Hu?

Why does His Majesty’s expression make it seem like Miss Zhaozhao suffered some enormous grievance?!

Treasure Piggy tilted her head as she leaned against Emperor Liang’s chest, asking in her soft, milky voice, "What is a princess? Can it be eaten?"

Hearing the little one’s accent growing more and more like Nie’er’s, the emperor couldn’t help but laugh, "How did you end up speaking like Nie’er? Becoming a princess means you’ll have endless riches and countless delicacies to eat."

At the last sentence, Treasure Piggy understood, and her little eyes welled up with tears of joy, streaming down to her lips.

This little one came up with something new and adorable every day. Emperor Liang had never seen a child more amusing than her and couldn’t help but feel that all his other sons and daughters were born in vain; even combined, they weren’t as lovable as Zhaozhao.

Emperor Liang was utterly delighted and continued, "Most importantly, once Great-Grandfather passes away, no one will dare bully Zhaozhao."

"Your Majesty!"

The crowd was thrown into panic by the phrase "passes away," and they hurriedly fell to their knees in fear.

Treasure Piggy asked, "What does ’passes away’ mean?"

Emperor Liang smiled calmly, "It means Great-Grandfather is no longer here."

Treasure Piggy looked at him in confusion, "Why wouldn’t Great-Grandfather be here?"

"This..."

For a moment, Emperor Liang didn’t know how to explain life and death to a two-year-old child. He decided not to explain and instead said, "Does Zhaozhao want to be a princess?"

Treasure Piggy asked, "If I become a princess, does that mean Great-Grandfather will no longer be here?"

Emperor Liang found himself stumped again.

Strictly speaking, when the day came for the little one to truly become a princess, he himself would already be long gone.

But that answer seemed far too cruel for the little one.

Treasure Piggy shook her head and tightly wrapped her little arms around Emperor Liang’s neck, "I don’t want to be a princess, I want Great-Grandfather! Great-Grandfather, don’t go!"

To give up endless wealth and honor, just to wish for his long life—this was the purest sentiment spoken from the purest stage of a child’s heart.

The little one’s hands were warm, her cheeks plump and soft, and as she spoke, her little drool smeared all over his face.

Emperor Liang was a hardened man, one who could bleed but never shed tears, and yet at this moment, his eyes suddenly turned red.

At the gates of the Imperial Garden.

Lu Zhaoyan, watching the profoundly moving scene, blankly asked his rebellious son, "Did you teach her that?"

Lu Yuan gave him a sideways glance, "How could I possibly teach something like that?"

Was he immortal, to predict that His Majesty would ask the little rascal such a shocking question?

He had heard about the disagreements in court, most of which overwhelmingly supported Prince Jin. He and his conniving father had rushed into the palace intending to stabilize the emperor.

But from the looks of it now, His Majesty seemed to have already been stabilized.

A thousand merits owed, half of which belonged to that little rascal.

Lu Zhaoyan asked, "Should we still go?"

Lu Yuan replied, "You go."

Lu Zhaoyan responded, "I’m not going."

Lu Yuan scoffed, "You’re the Crown Prince being impeached, not me, the Imperial Grandson."

Lu Zhaoyan replied coldly, "If I’m deposed, do you think you’ll still be the Imperial Grandson?"

Lu Yuan pulled his trump card, "I have a daughter."

Lu Zhaoyan chuckled bitterly, "Your grandfather asked if Zhaozhao wanted to be a princess, he didn’t ask if you wanted to be a prince."

At first glance, the two seemed similar, but in reality, they were very different.

To make Zhaozhao a princess, there were multiple ways; it wasn’t necessary for Lu Yuan to take the throne.

If Lu Qi adopted Zhaozhao, and once Lu Qi ascended the throne, Zhaozhao would naturally become an Eldest Princess by right.

Lu Yuan muttered sullenly, "...Being a prince doesn’t matter; the point is, I don’t want my daughter recognizing some random man as her father."

With that, he tidied his robes, took a deep breath, stretched out his hands, and melodramatically cried, "Grand-faaaather——"

Lu Zhaoyan covered one eye with his hand.

He couldn’t bear to look anymore.

-

Little Master Hu was carried back to Changchun Palace by the wet nurse and palace maids.

When Consort Hu saw her little nephew’s face swollen like a steamed bun, with several crystal-clear teeth marks still visible, she immediately became furious, "Who did this?!"

The wet nurse, emboldened by her position as a servant from Consort Hu’s maiden family and enjoying preferential treatment here, grew even more arrogant and exaggerated the incident in the Imperial Garden as she reported it.

Clearly, it was Little Master Hu who started it, yet she insisted Nie’er was the first to bully him, then called His Majesty’s beloved Zhaozhao to back him up.

The two of them together beat up Little Master Hu.

Little Master Hu, not wanting to cause trouble for his aunt, endured it all without fighting back.

Consort Hu’s heart ached terribly.

The palace maids exchanged looks of disbelief, silently thinking that the Hu family’s wet nurse was a master fabricator.

The wet nurse wiped her tears and continued her grievance-filled complaint, "His Majesty is biased! Little Master Hu endured such great suffering, and yet His Majesty only sides with Miss Zhaozhao!"