Chapter 52 The Emperor Comes to Fetch Her

Baby Ruo Xi turned to look at the man.

"Alas, those with wicked hearts truly become uglier over time. I don't want to see it, absolutely not!" Baby Ruo Xi refused to look at the man any longer and simply closed her eyes.

Our Baby Ruo Xi likes to look at handsome men and beautiful women.

For example, like her mother and her great-grandmother, as well as her uncle, cousin, and Lin'er's big brother. Even Baiyu, Baby Ruo Xi thinks, is very handsome!

She doesn't want to look at ugly things!

Xiaoyue smiled at her daughter's behavior but envied her in her heart: Children are fortunate; they can sleep when they want, eat what they want, and not talk to anyone they don't want to, without worrying about much.

As for her...

She still had to face this repulsive man.

"General, why have you come?" Xiaoyao covered her daughter with a small blanket, straightened up, and asked.

"Yue'er, your mother has been diagnosed with heart and lung problems; she may not live much longer," Shangguan Jinghong said in a hoarse voice.

"Oh!" Xiaoyao replied indifferently, "That's unfortunate!"

"What do you mean by that?" Shangguan Jinghong frowned deeply upon seeing Xiaoyao's indifferent expression. After a moment, he took a deep breath and said, "Yue'er, I know you blame me for neglecting you these days and for not being there when you gave birth. But... I am a general. Great Wei faces internal strife and external threats, and the border regions are unstable. The emperor is worried every day, and I also wish to alleviate his burdens!"

Hearing these words, Xiaoyao gave a self-mocking smile.

"Ah, Mother, you must have been deceived by these words back then, thinking this man was reliable, right? If you were to hear them now, you'd probably be nauseated!"

Baby Ruo Xi couldn't fall asleep with the ugly man's incessant talking; she found it annoying.

"Mmm..."

Baby Ruo Xi wriggled and made a sound, expressing her displeasure.

"General, if you have no real business here, please go take care of the old lady. Xi'er is sleepy, and I need to put her to bed!" Xiaoyao said, picking up her daughter and gently rocking her to sleep.

"Nanny Qin, have them take Xi'er out to soothe her to sleep first. I have important matters to discuss with you!" Shangguan Jinghong pinched the bridge of his nose and said.

"Tsk, indeed a scoundrel. If possible, I wish I didn't have his blood in my veins!" Baby Ruo Xi sighed.

"General!" Nanny Qin approached, holding a ceramic milk bottle and gently placing it near the little princess's mouth. Her expression was cold, and though her voice was not loud, it was sharp: "Your words are inappropriate. You haven't even asked about the little princess since you came in. She is your daughter after all, beloved by the empress dowager and treated as a treasure by the emperor. Don't you even want her in the room?"

"Nanny Qin, I need to speak with the princess," Shangguan Jinghong said coldly, turning to stare at her.

"Nanny Qin is Mother's person; you should show some respect!" Xiaoyao said coldly.

"Yue'er!" Shangguan Jinghong turned back, his voice softer.

"In the future, please call me Princess!" Xiaoyao said, glancing at him. "Why have you come?"

"This time, to gather funds, Mother borrowed money from the servants in the household. Now, there isn't even enough money to buy food. With her illness worsening, Yue'er... Princess, could you give me some silver? I need to..."

"How shameless! Ah, Mother, perhaps it's better to return to the palace sooner." Our demon lord never liked verbosity and was already tired of this man.

If it were in her previous life, she might have already waved her hand and plastered him against the wall, making it impossible to remove him.

"General!" Xiaoyao's voice turned colder. "Did you say something wrong? My dowry was brought into the house intact and is my private property. Who allowed you to touch it? If we were to investigate, would I need to chop off one finger from each of you for misusing my annual stipend?"

Even though she hadn't interacted with her mother and royal brother for six years, she remained a princess with an identity in the imperial family. Not a single coin of her annual stipend had been withheld and was transferred to the general's household account. Xiaoyao had never mentioned this to the Shangguans.

Shangguan Jinghong's face flushed red; he had forgotten about this matter.

Embarrassedly leaving Mozhu Garden, Shangguan Jinghong not only failed to get a single copper coin but also received an IOU. Xiaoyao gave him a month to gather thirty thousand taels.

The thirty thousand taels were not part of the princess's annual stipend but the price for the residence.

If he couldn't gather the amount, the princess warned that she would reclaim the residence and evict everyone from the household in a month!

Baby Ruo Xi slept contentedly.

"This is what a powerful woman should do. The Shangguan household is full of ungrateful people! They mistreated Brother and tried to harm me. Hmph, these measures are too lenient!"

In her previous life, none of these people would have survived!

In the afternoon, the sun was warm.

Eunuch Gao personally drove a carriage to the general's household.

Outside, many people gathered to watch.

"I heard something major happened at the general's household; the second wife had her fingers chopped off!"

"Well, I say it's about time. For years, she kept going to the gold shop to make jewelry; it was obvious she was stealing from the princess. The princess is too kind-hearted, letting these people bully her for so long!"

"General Shangguan hasn't won any significant battles, yet he's still a general. How dare he be so dissatisfied? His entire family lives off the princess's wealth but still causes trouble. Tsk tsk!"

"Did you see? A young lady came to the general's household..."

The crowd chattered, but Eunuch Gao's smile carried a chill.

He looked up at the plaque bearing the name "General's Household" and sighed.

"Has Yue'er come out yet?" a voice came from inside the carriage.

"Not yet, Your Majesty. The little princess was sleeping and woke up hungry!" Eunuch Gao immediately turned around and spoke softly, ensuring only those in the carriage could hear.

"No problem, then we'll wait. Go tell Yue'er not to rush; take your time and make sure Xiao Xi'er is well-fed!" Xiao Yin said from inside the carriage.

"Alright!" Eunuch Gao smiled and quickly got off the carriage, jogging back inside.

The Hu family matriarch was ill, so Xu Ruzhen was left at the General's Mansion. Minister Xu didn't know how serious the matter with Shangguan Jingzhe was, so he didn't dare to bring his daughter back hastily. He only took the two children away.