The three-year-old host decides to raise an emperor father for himself.

The villa quickly returned to quiet.

Inside the room, Xuan Yuanjing held a soft little one in his arms, but his thoughts had already drifted far away.

He had just exchanged a few words with the little guy when he saw Xiao Lanxing yawn, and immediately realized that this was not a good time to talk.

Originally, they wanted to send the child back to sleep, but Xiao Lanxing, who was usually very well-behaved and obedient, refused to listen and go to sleep this time, clinging to Xuan Yuanjing's clothes and unwilling to leave.

And that's how it turned out to be what it is now.

Xuanyuan Jing held Xiao Lanxing in his arms, and the little guy nestled in his arms, already fast asleep.

The good news is that although the little guy looks delicate and chubby, he is actually very easy to take care of. He doesn't care where he sleeps and still sleeps soundly in his arms.

The bad news is that Xuanyuan Jing won't be able to sleep that night.

Even though everyone around them tried their best not to make any noise that might disturb the prince's rest, they didn't realize that some sounds were beyond their control.

For the sake of the prince's safety, it would be better if no one came tonight, but if they do, it would be good for us brothers to put our legs to work...

[...As expected, I wasn't vigilant enough; I didn't even know when Miss left...]

"...The prince only mentioned interrogation, but didn't specify what he wanted to ask. It seems I'll have to figure out what's going on in his head myself..."

[...snoring...roast chicken...snoring...]

Xuanyuan Jing: "..."

Even though I'm used to it, my head still feels buzzing every time this happens.

But Xuanyuan Jing was reluctant to put the baby down from his arms.

but……

Xuan Yuanjing felt a sense of doubt: [Has this ability... become stronger?]

Otherwise, how could he hear the thoughts of the steward of the other courtyard interrogating prisoners while he was in his own room?

Although the distance sounded far, and the other person's thoughts were muffled by the sounds of other people, some of the content could still be heard.

Xuanyuan Jing felt that the distance before shouldn't have been this far.

He lowered his eyes, looked at the little girl in his arms, and seemed to be deep in thought.

——————————————————————————————

The news of the assassin entering the villa spread to the capital early the next morning, and many people knew about it.

The news even reached the ears of ordinary people, causing a heated discussion.

However, it is unclear how the news spread, but as it was passed on, it became "Prince Jing was assassinated and injured, and is now weak and unable to walk."

Some even claimed with certainty that they heard screams coming from the villa that day. Although no one believed that the legendary God of War would be so humiliated, they linked the screams to assassins and came up with all sorts of reasons for the sound.

One scenario is that the assassin almost succeeded in injuring the prince, and then the prince's protectors, in a fit of rage, sliced ​​off the assassin's leg.

Oh, and some people even said the assassin was turned into a eunuch.

There are all sorts of rumors, but the central idea is that Xuanyuan Jing is injured again.

But that's a story for later. Right now, the day after the incident, Xuanyuan Jing learned about the assassin's origins and purpose.

The steward said, "These people weren't trained as assassins from childhood. One of them initially refused to speak, while the other went mad as soon as he woke up and realized he wasn't a man. So I separated them."

"After interrogation by my subordinates, it was found that these two men were both outlaws who took money to do their jobs."

"They didn't have any tokens on them, but the one who was in a good mental state remembered the voice and build of the person he was dealing with, as well as the scent of incense on that person. Based on this information, I deduce that it was most likely a female member of someone's household or a maidservant of a female member."

"More details need to be investigated."

It has now been confirmed that the people who had close contact with the two assassins were women.

Xuanyuan Jing, his expression unreadable, sat at the head of the table and said, "No need, I know who it is."

The steward paused for a moment, then, without a trace of doubt, said, "Your Highness is wise. To be able to deduce who is behind this from just these clues is truly..."

Xuanyuan Jing raised his hand to indicate that he didn't need to continue praising him, then rubbed his temples and said, "Alright, let's leave it at that. I have my own arrangements for the rest."

"Yes."

After the steward left, Xuanyuan Jing picked up his teacup. The faint smell of medicine lingered in his nose, but his thoughts drifted elsewhere.

Last night, unable to sleep, out of curiosity, Xuan Yuanjing consciously began to test the distance at which he could hear his own thoughts while holding a child.

It seems that doing this really did have some effect; the originally not-so-clear sound became clearer under his conscious control.

And it was as if something had been locked in place, making the sounds that were originally closer, louder, and clearer become blurred, with only the voices of the supervisor and the prisoner who had entered the area at some unknown time remaining exceptionally clear.

It was as if his spirit had left his body and entered the dark room where they were, observing the interrogation up close.

However, he could only hear their inner thoughts, but he couldn't actually hear their conversation.

Just now, the steward's words confirmed Xuan Yuanjing's thoughts—his inner thoughts and what he actually said were not the same.

For example, the supervisor might think that the prisoner has told everything he knows, and that the other party genuinely doesn't know who or what their identity is in the deal. But in reality, the prisoner is much more cunning than the supervisor thinks.

Even before the other party contacted him to make a deal, this江湖草莽 (jianghu caomang, a rough-and-tumble figure in the martial arts world) who had to take risks for personal gain had secretly tracked down the person who contacted him.

He also secretly followed the maid who had made the deal with him, and even followed her all the way back to her master's side without her noticing, and then followed them all the way back to the mansion.

It is Zhou Fu.

Of course, Zhou Fu was deduced by Xuan Yuanjing based on the information he obtained. The other party did not know the lady's identity, but knew whose government office she returned to.

When he reached the conclusion, Xuanyuan Jing was very calm.

He thought he had given some people too much face.

At the same time, Xuanyuan Jing wondered if he was being looked down upon.

Even if it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, even if it was a hasty plan, the other party underestimated him and the Jingwang Mansion's resources.

Or……

What made Zhou Fu feel that he had no choice but to take this gamble?

"Daddy!"

A beautifully sculpted little girl skipped into the room and threw herself into his arms, instantly scattering the thoughts in Xuan Yuanjing's mind.

He lowered his eyes, his gaze curving slightly: "Xingxing is back?"