Chapter 467: Heartless Cannon

"Hey, look at this little fellow, not scared at all, just staring at me with big eyes."

Empress Changsun sticks out a finger and pokes Xiao Sui An's chubby cheek, "How nice, such a cute little fellow; when grown up, surely a great beauty."

Gao Yang curves his mouth in pride, "Of course, Mother Empress, my daughter could never be lacking."

Empress Changsun asks with a sideways glance, "Is that so? But I heard that when Xiao Sui An was just born, you almost didn't recognize this daughter, saying Zi An and the others had taken the wrong baby."

Gao Yang: "......"

Li Lizhi smiles faintly and agrees, "Indeed, my husband even complained about it, saying Sister Gao Yang has no motherly bearing at all. If the whole family only has her giving birth, how could she possibly mix them up?"

Sizi nods repeatedly, "Exactly, I can testify; that's what Sister Gao Yang said."

Gao Yang says sheepishly, "I wasn't very clear at the time; after all, Xiao Sui An was indeed not very pretty when first born..."

Empress Changsun says helplessly, "You, after Mother Empress taught you these before, always say you understand, you understand, yet you understand nothing."

"Eeya~"

At this moment, Xiao Sui An's big eyes seem to spot something, snorting and turning her head toward a direction, as if thinking of that place.

Empress Changsun follows Xiao Sui An's gaze and immediately laughs, "What's this? Is Xiao Sui An going to her father?"

Gao Yang says softly, "Mother Empress, look at her; clearly I'm the one who laboriously feeds her every day, yet she clings to Chen Yan, not at all to me."

"Isn't that perfectly normal?" Empress Changsun says with a smile, "What? Are you feeling uneasy because your daughter gets along with her father?"

Gao Yang falls silent instantly.

Empress Changsun shakes her head, seeing Xiao Sui An fidget, stands and comes before Chen Yan, "Zi An, your daughter wants you to hold her; you can do it, right?"

"Really?" Chen Yan says cheerfully as he takes the child, while Xiao Sui An stares with unblinking big eyes, a strand of drool hanging from her mouth corner.

He extends a finger; the little fellow seems to understand something, grasping his father's finger with a tiny hand.

Chen Yan feels instantly satisfied inside.

Li Shimin, standing nearby, says with some surprise to Empress Changsun, "Zi An, this kid used to always look frivolous, but now seems to have changed a lot."

"After all, he's become a father," Empress Changsun replies softly, "With a daughter, how can one remain frivolous? One must show some fatherly bearing."

Li Shimin neither confirms nor denies, "Indeed, he looks a bit like that, but his heart is still as black as before... no, that's not right; his heart is getting darker."

Chen Yan: "......"

"...... His Majesty, you can say those words behind my back, I'm still here."

He truly feels wronged, after all, if given a choice, who would want a black heart?

Isn't this dragging you into the feud with the Shi family?

You really speak without feeling the burden.

Li Shimin laughs heartily, "If I speak behind the scenes, it's neither painful nor ticklish; what's the point?"

"Where would it be like now, still able to see your boy's humbled expression?"

"Fine, as long as you're happy." Chen Yan pouts, not taking it to heart.

At this moment, Empress Changsun recalls something, restraining her smile, "Zi An, I heard you went with Gao Yang yesterday to see Zheng Guanyin?"

"I, the Empress, am not clear what you sought from her, but in future, keep less contact with her."

She gently reminded him with that sentence.

Chen Yan nods after hearing, "I understand, Your Majesty the Empress, however, I think Zheng Guanyin might give us some unexpected surprises in certain aspects."

"Because Zheng Guanyin, to some extent, naturally stands opposite us, so I asked her to help investigate who poisoned the Crown Prince..."

Chen Yan stops at that point, not finishing, but he believes Empress Changsun and Li Shimin understand his meaning.

Sure enough, upon hearing his words, the couple both froze, exchanged a glance, and their expressions grew stranger.

Li Shimin clicks his tongue in amazement, "I must say, you kid's perspective on everything is truly novel; you actually thought of having Zheng Guanyin investigate, I truly didn't expect that!"

"As the saying goes, the enemy's enemy is a friend." Chen Yan says patiently, "Precisely because Zheng Guanyin's relationship with us is special, it's almost impossible for her to stand with us, so we need her to investigate."

"Anyway, it's just a trial; we won't lose anything."

Li Shimin nods slightly, shifting the topic, "By the way, why didn't Qingque come back with you?"

Mentioning Prince Wei, Empress Changsun also casts a glance at him.

Chen Yan recalls Li Tai's near-mad state, about to speak but stops.

Regarding Li Tai, it's truly hard to speak.

He can't tell Li Shimin and Empress Changsun that this kid is now wholly devoted to the cannon, refusing to return no matter how they persuade him, saying returning has no point.

If the couple learns this, Li Tai will probably get beaten again.

Li Shimin and his wife, seeing Chen Yan's expression, almost understand Li Tai's situation.

Up to now, they have some understanding of their son, who shows intense interest in certain matters, even to the point of neglecting sleep and food.

Yet the things Qingque has been researching seem quite useful, some capable of bringing earth-shattering change to the Tang Dynasty; they can't possibly stop that, can they?

"Alas, never mind, if Qingque doesn't return, let it be." Empress Changsun looks a bit helpless, "Zi An, usually keep an eye on him, make sure he watches his health."

"Fine." Chen Yan naturally agrees immediately.

Li Shimin, curious, asks another question, "Qingque must have gotten some new idea from you, and now put it into action, right?"

"Not hiding from His Majesty, that's indeed the case." Chen Yan replies, "Since I told him last time about the emergence of gunpowder, signifying the end of the cold-weapon era, Prince Wei showed great interest."

"I then shared several of my previous ideas with him; now he's making a weapon called... the Divine Might Cannon."

Chen Yan paused, giving the cannon Li Tai is researching a resounding name.

"Divine Might Cannon?"

Li Shimin, upon hearing the name, immediately became interested.

He hurriedly asked Chen Yan what exactly the Divine Might Cannon is.

To all the questions he raised, Chen Yan patiently answered each.

In fact, Li Tai is indeed correct; technically, a cannon is far easier to make than a gun.

A few days ago, Li Tai suddenly got an odd idea, dug a pit directly in the ground, used gunpowder as the propellant, and actually launched the explosive pack out.

At that moment, Chen Yan was stunned and instantly recalled the most primitive "Heartless Cannon".