Nangong Shiyuan sat upright in his palanquin and went straight to a side hall of Qinzheng Hall.
A palace servant had already come to report that the Little Princess was currently in the side hall.
When he arrived, he did not have anyone announce him. Before he had even entered the door, he could hear the lively commotion inside. Dressed in a black-and-gold dragon robe, Nangong Shiyuan carried the imposing dignity of one in a position of supreme authority, making people afraid to look directly at him.
He stepped through the side hall’s entrance and then stopped.
The courtyard was indeed very lively. Before entering, Nangong Shiyuan had even imagined that the little thing might be playing with the palace attendants, but he had never expected to see such a scene.
The little girl was holding a small hoe and, together with several palace maids and eunuchs, was grunting and puffing as they dug the soil.
These palace maids and eunuchs had all been sent to the palace when they were very young. Even if they had known how to farm before, after spending so long in the palace, what they had mainly learned was every kind of rule and protocol. How could they still know how to carry a hoe, dig the earth, and plant crops?
Thus, in Nangong Shiyuan’s eyes, these useless people were not even as good at swinging a hoe as his daughter.
He had no idea how long they had been digging. Most of the soil in the front courtyard had already been turned over and loosened. Su Xiaobao was squatting on the ground, unafraid of either tiring herself out or getting dirty, and was steadily grunting as she dug with her little hoe.
The pretty dress she had worn that morning had been replaced by a palace maid’s clothing. Since it was still much too large for her, the sleeves and trouser legs had each been rolled up and tied tightly with string so they would not fall down.
It was not that she wanted to wear a palace maid’s clothes. It was simply that no princess had ever been born in this enormous Imperial Palace. She herself was the only princess in the entire palace. The pretty dresses she had worn before had all been hastily made by the Imperial Wardrobe Bureau, and there had not been enough time to make her simpler little outfits in such a short period.
So Xiaobao had simply put on the clothes Chunxi had worn when she first entered the palace. Although they were still somewhat too large, she was unwilling to wear such beautiful clothes while digging in the mud.
The three-year-old little dumpling was working with complete seriousness and had not noticed the commotion at the entrance at all.
But Chunxi, who had lived in the palace for so long, had long since trained herself to hear in every direction. She noticed His Majesty appearing at the entrance at once.
She hurriedly began to bow, but Nangong Shiyuan raised a hand and stopped her.
Nangong Shiyuan glanced at the filthy soil on the ground and, while Eunuch Fuhai looked on in terror, calmly walked over.
The other servants also noticed Nangong Shiyuan. They hurriedly lowered their heads respectfully, not even daring to breathe too loudly.
When Nangong Shiyuan reached Su Xiaobao’s side, he saw the little girl use her hoe to dig a small hole in the soil. She then took a somewhat old purse from inside her clothing and removed a seed of unknown origin, placing it in the hole.
As she buried the seed beneath the soft, loosened earth, she continued muttering something under her breath.
Nangong Shiyuan had practiced martial arts, so his hearing was naturally sharp. He heard nearly everything the little girl said.
“You have to grow up quickly and become more delicious, so Xiaobao can give you to Daddy to eat.”
Nangong Shiyuan’s eyes shifted slightly as he looked at the little girl. His lips pressed together, and he said nothing.
“Chunxi, Chunxi, this one needs to be watered.”
The little girl called for someone to help water her seeds as she busied herself.
After covering the seed with a thin layer of soil, she still had not noticed that anyone had come over to water it. The little girl raised her head in confusion, only to see a luxurious black-and-gold garment.
She recognized that!
Su Xiaobao almost eagerly lifted her head—and sure enough, she saw her daddy.
“Daddy!”
Her soft, childish voice rang out brightly as she called him Daddy. She suddenly stood up, but lost her balance. Her little body swayed, and she nearly fell.
Nangong Shiyuan had been watching the little thing closely, so he reached out and tugged at the collar of her clothes, allowing her to steady herself.
“Daddy, did you come to see Xiaobao after finishing your work?”
Xiaobao had originally wanted to hug Nangong Shiyuan, but after looking at her dirty little hands, she decided not to. She merely tilted up her small head and looked at him with watery eyes full of expectation.
Nangong Shiyuan paused but did not answer her question. Instead, he asked her in a calm voice, “What are you doing?”
Xiaobao immediately held out all the seeds she had bought for Nangong Shiyuan to see.
“Seeds. Xiaobao is going to grow vegetables. When they grow big and tall, Xiaobao will give them to Daddy to eat.”
She really thought about her daddy at every moment. Even Eunuch Fuhai was warmed by the Little Princess.
He secretly glanced at his master’s expression. It was still as emotionless and cold as ever, giving him the appearance of someone without feelings.
Sigh… He hoped the Little Princess would not be disappointed.
“You’re so small. Can you even grow them successfully?” Nangong Shiyuan looked at the little girl, who had not even grown as tall as his leg, and felt an impulse to tease her.
Xiaobao pursed her lips. “Xiaobao is very capable.”
Nangong Shiyuan neither agreed nor disagreed. He rubbed her hair and said, “I still have matters to attend to. When I am finished, I will bring the Little Princess to my quarters for lunch.”
He did not have much time to spare in the first place. Coming to look for this little thing on a whim after the end of court was already unlike him.
“Yes.”
At that moment, Su Xiaobao followed behind Nangong Shiyuan like a little tail. “Daddy, you have to rest. Don’t tire yourself out too much.”
She still remembered that when she had seen Daddy yesterday, the area beneath his eyes had been dark, and he had looked so tired.
He looked much better today.
Nangong Shiyuan gave a faint hum. “Go play.”
Su Xiaobao puffed up her little cheeks. “Xiaobao isn’t playing! Xiaobao is growing vegetables.”
Hearing the Little Princess’s boldly insolent retort, Eunuch Fuhai broke out in a cold sweat, terrified that His Majesty might be in a bad mood and punish her.
Nangong Shiyuan merely lowered his eyes and glanced at the little dumpling. Then he reached out and pinched the plump baby fat on Su Xiaobao’s cheek.
After pinching it twice, he withdrew his hand as though nothing had happened and left.
Xiaobao: “…………”
She watched until Daddy and his group had gone far away before returning to continue burying the seeds in the soil.
Chunxi and the others could not tell the seeds apart, but Xiaobao could easily distinguish them and sort them into groups.
Seeds of the same kind had to be planted together. That way, once they grew, the garden would not become a chaotic, unattractive mess.
Her small supply of seeds was quickly planted with the help of the palace maids and eunuchs.
However, some of the seeds could not be planted yet.
Su Xiaobao took out some fruit seeds and some rice seeds.
“These have to be soaked in water first. Once they sprout, we can plant them.”
There happened to be a moderately sized lotus pond here, which could be used to grow rice.
Rice was a staple food. Xiaobao remembered that when she had still been a little elf, she had seen the humans growing rice, and it had grown very well.
But after coming to this world, she discovered that the yield of rice here could not compare with that of the world she had been in before.
The seeds she had selected were all plump and full. Although she no longer had spiritual power to hasten the growth of plants, she could still infuse the seeds with vitality and even improve their quality, making them more likely to survive.
“But Princess, won’t these seeds die if they’re soaked in water?”
Xiaobao shook her head back and forth. “They won’t. They’ll grow even better.”
No one had ever heard of such a method, but they only needed to follow orders. Besides, what could a three-year-old Little Princess possibly understand?
Everyone assumed that the Little Princess was merely playing around and did not take the matter to heart at all.