Chapter 120: After all, children will always make mistakes

"Yuanzhi, Father Emperor knows you care about your junior martial brother; I will compensate you both." The Son of Heaven showed a loving expression: "You are my daughter; isn't your junior martial brother equivalent to half a son to me?"

"I dare not accept, Father Emperor, your words are too heavy." Mu Yuanzhi said indifferently.

The Son of Heaven's attitude suddenly changed; presumably he found out that Pei Yunxi is not as pure and kind as he seemed.

Unless one is an idiot, it's impossible not to know.

But what does knowing matter? The Son of Heaven still wouldn't punish his own daughter.

The saying that the Son of Heaven who breaks the law is guilty like commoners sounds nice, but unless there is decisive evidence made public before everyone, it's all in vain; the Son of Heaven protects Pei Yunxi so much that overthrowing him is no easy task.

However, a gentleman's revenge after ten years is not late; she can wait.

Seeing Mu Yuanzhi still indifferent, the Son of Heaven sighed and said: "Your residence, Changle Palace, is rather old; Father Emperor, I'll have the Ministry of Works renovate it shortly."

Faced with the Son of Heaven's continued overtures, Mu Yuanzhi only said: "No need to trouble yourself; I rarely stay at Changle Palace now. Once Pingnan Wangfu is rebuilt, I and the Prince Consort will move back there, or to my fief."

Only after saying that did Mu Yuanzhi lift her eyes to look at the Son of Heaven.

When mentioning going to the fief, hope appeared in her eyes.

The Son of Heaven's heart instantly felt uneasy; is she really so eager to leave him, this father emperor, for her fief?

Before, she clearly said she would stay with Father Emperor for life, and even after marriage she wanted to live in the princess's residence; otherwise she would miss Father Emperor and her imperial brother every day.

Past events seemed like a different lifetime; in a daze, the Son of Heaven seemed to see the obedient daughter, smiling as she ground ink for him, but when he focused, there was no one beside her—she stood below, proper and restrained, no longer willfully coquettish as before.

"Let's talk about going to the fief later; your birthday is coming soon, and the Crown Prince also needs to select a consort. You and Young Master Jin should stay by my side to keep me company." The Son of Heaven laughed.

Mu Yuanzhi didn't expect the Son of Heaven to still remember her birthday; she thought he had long forgotten.

After all, in her previous life, she spent this birthday in Eternal Lane; that was the second time she had been locked up there. At that time she naively thought the Son of Heaven would release her from Eternal Lane on her birthday, but she waited alone from dusk till dawn without receiving a pardon edict.

She gazed at the fireworks bursting in the sky, recalling past years when she enjoyed birthday feasts accompanied by her father and elder brother, thinking she would be happy and content for life.

In reality, she could only eat a bowl of noodles alone, treating it as longevity noodles.

But the fake longevity noodles were indeed fake; not long after, she died.

Mu Yuanzhi gathered her thoughts and said: "Your subject will just have a simple birthday this year; no need to trouble Father Emperor."

What use is a heap of false blessings?

"No, your birthday this year makes you eighteen sui; you should hold a grand feast!" the Son of Heaven said, "I also want to banquet the foreign envoys who come to celebrate! Let's hold it together with the Crown Prince's consort selection, lively and bustling!"

So that's the plan? She found it strange; even if the Son of Heaven wanted to show her a little favor, why go to such trouble? Actually her birthday is just an add-on to the Crown Prince's consort selection; foreign envoys attend the Crown Prince's consort banquet and then incidentally celebrate her birthday, making outsiders think she is especially favored.

Pei Yunxi doesn't even have such treatment; how could she possibly have it?

"If Father Emperor thinks it's fine, then it's fine; your subject doesn't care."

Seeing Mu Yuanzhi still indifferent and unmoved, even if the Son of Heaven intended to repair the father‑daughter relationship, he could not help but become angry at this moment.

He is, after all, the Son of Heaven, the supreme Nine‑Five ruler over myriad people; does he really need to apologize to her?

With such great honor, she actually feels not the slightest gratitude!

Even if she has suffered injustice, he is now compensating her; what more does she want? If she harbors resentment, she can just speak up!

"I will draft an edict for your junior martial brother; come over and grind ink for me."

The Son of Heaven's tone was somewhat displeased, but he still did not lash out.

Mu Yuanzhi naturally sensed it; angering the Son of Heaven would bring her only harm with no benefit—just grinding ink—but she also wanted to know what edict the Son of Heaven was about to issue.

Grinding ink is something she has done countless times over the past decade; it's second nature to her, even more familiar than the palace eunuchs who attend closely.

She ground the ink silently, without a word.

The Son of Heaven focused on the edict, contemplating how to write it; everything seemed to return to the past, and unconsciously his face showed a genuine smile, which he himself hadn't even noticed.

He tapped his finger on the table—a habit of eight or ten years; Mu Yuanzhi instantly knew it meant he wanted tea.

So she merely offered the tea cup beside her.

Upon receiving the tea cup, the Son of Heaven was again lost in reverie—"Father Emperor drinks tea; this is the pre‑rain Dragon Well tea that Yuanzhi specially brewed for you; no one else can brew this flavor!"

However, once his vision refocused, the only person was her, continuing to silently lower her head to grind ink.

The Son of Heaven couldn't help but say: "I haven't had your tea in a long time."

He took a sip and continued: "This tea doesn't compare to the fragrance and mellow richness of yours."

"I haven't brewed tea in a while; my tea‑making skills have gone rusty. Speaking of tea skill, Yunxi still excels." Mu Yuanzhi said at the end, with a sarcastic tone.

In terms of tea, she indeed cannot compare to Pei Yunxi.

The Son of Heaven probably couldn't tell; hearing Mu Yuanzhi praise Pei Yunxi, he also laughed and said: "Still, you are the sensible one; Xier is a bit lacking compared to you."

Really? Hehe.

He even praised her as being more sensible than Pei Yunxi—truly a case of the sun rising in the west!

Saying this, the Son of Heaven spread out his hands and continued: "I know you've felt wronged, but Yunxi is your younger sister, smaller than you; after all, children will make mistakes—knowing the error and correcting it is enough."

A child? A child only a few months younger than her? That really is tiny! Even if the Son of Heaven only knows one or two of her many misdeeds, to dismiss it all with a flippant "children make mistakes" is absurd to the extreme!

Every word the Son of Heaven says makes her more irritable; she truly doesn't want to hear more—can't he just shut up and finish drafting the edict?

"Father Emperor, if you don't write soon, the ink will dry up." Mu Yuanzhi said.

Only then did the Son of Heaven refocus his attention on the edict; he put brush to paper, and while writing he said: "I will appoint your junior martial brother as a third‑rank official; what do you think he should do?"

Appoint him a third‑rank official?!

"Father Emperor, the Qilin grew up in the mountains and wilderness, unaware of etiquette, accustomed to being unrestrained; he is not suited to serve as an official in the capital."

The Qilin had great difficulty agreeing to return to Juechen Valley; how could he stay in the capital to serve as an official?

"As long as he roughly observes those rules and regulations, I quite like his genuine nature; if you worry he won't adapt, let him go to the Imperial Observatory—after all, the National Teacher isn't a hidebound pedant either, so they might get along well." said the Son of Heaven.