Marrying the Crown Prince

Soon, An pulled the two children out of the room. One of them looked unhappy, while the other's expression was unreadable, letting the "unhappy" child cling to her.

"The flowers over there are in full bloom. You can go catch butterflies, pick flowers, or go fishing, but you're not allowed to stay in the house any longer." Madam An pointed to the waterside pavilion. Parents are probably all like this; they can't stand seeing their children stay at home all the time, nor can they stand seeing them running out to play all the time.

"I'm so tired of seeing these places. What's so fun about them?" Gao Yunxi muttered under her breath.

An didn't speak, but simply glanced at him.

The child instantly became obedient, her smile bright and sweet. "I know, I know, I'll have a lot of fun with Zhouzhou, Mother, don't worry."

"Oh no, it would have been better if she hadn't said anything. Hearing her say that, a sense of unease rose in Madam An's heart. Then, when her eyes fell on Zhou Zhou, she quickly nodded: 'It's alright. When my daughter is about to go crazy, someone will pull her back.'"

Obediently picking and arranging flowers? Not a chance.

Seeing that Madam An had walked away, Gao Yunxi quickly pulled Zhou Zhou to the edge of a pond, lifted up the weeds, and found a clay duck hidden inside.

“Look, this is the egret I made the day before yesterday,” Gao Yunxi said excitedly. “How about we build it a nest?”

"So this is a egret." Zhou Zhou poked it with his finger, and the plump duck waddled.

Gao Yunxi also poked it, and then burst out laughing.

The two children pulled up their pants, rolled up their sleeves, and started playing in the mud. They not only made a bird's nest, but also sculpted a companion for the lone, chubby duck.

By this time, both of their clothes were somewhat wet and covered in mud.

"I know a place where the water is shallow, let's go catch fish together?" After playing around for a while, Gao Yunxi was still in high spirits.

Zhou Zhou, however, was much more restrained. "No, our clothes are all wet. We need to go back and change."

Gao Yunxi was clearly unhappy that this was such a downer. "Since we're already all wet, why don't we play a little longer?"

To everyone's surprise, upon hearing this, Zhou Zhou, who was usually reserved and demure, instantly turned into a pitiful little thing, blinking her eyes with a wronged look, "But my clothes are all wet, and I feel so uncomfortable."

Gao Yunxi, who was more responsive to gentle persuasion than force, immediately changed her tune, "Let's go back quickly. Your health is already weaker than mine, you can't let yourself get cold."

"Okay, whatever you say." Zhou Zhou smiled sweetly.

Gao Yunxi was delighted to hear Zhou Zhou say "I'll do whatever you say" so rarely, and she happily pulled Zhou Zhou back into the house.

Behind the artificial hill on the other side, there were only three people: Madam An, Shen, and Ning. Madam An looked embarrassed and said, "My youngest son is always naughty. Please forgive him."

"The little girl is innocent, lively, and adorable. We both find her very pleasing to the eye," Ning said with a smile, without commenting on Zhou Zhou standing beside her.

Ms. Shen lowered her head and counted the small grasses beside her, refusing to respond to the topic.

Seeing that both of them were pretending to be stupid, Madam An felt quite helpless.

After lunch break, Gao Yunxi went to bother Madam An, so Zhou Zhou went to pay her respects to Old Madam Gao.

When Grandma Gao heard that she had arrived, she happily pulled her to the table, saying, "What bad timing! We were just saying we were one short for mahjong, and you, you little monkey, showed up."

It turned out that Old Mrs. Gao was preparing to play mahjong with Shen and Ning.

"The little one is already playing this at such a young age?" Madam Ning was somewhat surprised, then teased, "If you lose, you can't renege on your bet, Grandma."

Grandma Gao chuckled, "I should be the one saying that to you."

"I only started learning this year, and I'm not very good at it yet," Zhou Zhou said shyly.

As we all know, those who say they don't really know are not credible.

Shen Ning and Zhou Zhou were both quite intelligent, but they didn't expect a little kid to be able to count cards. Underestimating their opponent, Zhou Zhou won the hand smoothly.

The two exchanged a glance, both seeing a mixture of shock and interest in each other's eyes.

Taking advantage of a break in the card game, Madam Shen, who had been holding back for a long time, finally couldn't help but ask, "Has Zhou'er ever been to school? What books has she read?"

"I never went to school, I only read a few books with my grandfather at home."

Although Zhou Zhou answered honestly and dutifully, Madam Shen still grasped the key information—he was actually a grandchild personally taught by the old Marquis Yongjing!

Madam Shen continued, "Have you studied the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting?"

"We'll play a few rounds with the experts, but we haven't touched on the others yet."

This piqued Ning's curiosity. A gentleman should be proficient in all six arts, so why did the old Marquis only teach him chess? Could it be...?

"What about needlework?" Ning couldn't help but fantasize, imagining the old Marquis embroidering with delicate fingers, and almost lost her composure.

"I learned a little from the maids in the manor, but I can only sew a few stitches," Zhou Zhou sighed. This was the only subject she couldn't get an excellent grade on.

But this was also because she was young, and Grandma Zhou wouldn't let her learn, fearing it would hurt her eyes.

Having heard the previous statement that Zhou Zhou "doesn't quite know how to play yet," Shen Ning and the other person didn't believe that Zhou Zhou's claim of only being able to sew a few times was truly true.

Therefore, Ning sincerely remarked to Old Madam Gao, "Zhou'er is so clever and skillful; you are truly blessed, Old Madam."

Zhou Zhou was confused by what she heard, but that didn't stop her from pushing the tiles aside. "A pure suit, I win!"

I was careless and lost again.

Madam Shen shook her head and sighed, "I'm too old, I can't compete anymore."

Old Mrs. Gao laughed heartily after winning and told her maid to put away the cards.

Seeing the servants tidying up efficiently, Ning suddenly had a thought and asked, "What if one of the maids in your courtyard stole the most inconspicuous hair ornament from your box and tried to exchange it for silver?"

Zhou Zhou blinked and looked at Old Madam Gao. Seeing the old lady smile and nod encouragingly, she then spoke, "A feather sinks a boat, a few light things break an axle; theft, no matter how small, is wrong."

"However, people have different degrees of closeness. The maid who can serve in my room is definitely not an ordinary servant. Even if she makes a mistake, I should ask her why. If there is a reason, she can be punished leniently."

"To give them a lenient sentence and let them go?" Madam Ning raised an eyebrow.

"Sir, you jest. I'm being lenient to avoid gossip, but I would never dare keep this person around again." Zhou Zhou changed her tune, and seeing that Shen Ning and the other woman were no longer hiding their identities, she directly revealed them.

Seeing that Zhou Zhou had guessed their identities, Shen Ning and the other man were not surprised and continued the previous topic, "What's the explanation?"

"This person is close to me, yet when he is in trouble, he doesn't come to me, his master, for help first. Instead, he steals my things. Could it be that he thinks I'm young and easy to fool and manipulate?" Zhou Zhou sneered, his young age revealing a hint of authority in his eyes.

Zhou Zhou's words made sense, but Ning Shi was not pleased. How could someone so young be so ruthless?

"According to you, such a person deserves to be beaten to death with sticks?"