In Kunde Hall, Lai Fu stood on the table, enjoying Zhao Yao's feeding as if he were a lord.
Lai Cai and Lai Fu, on the other hand, trembled on the couch, not daring to approach Zhao Yao one bit. More precisely, not daring to approach Lai Fu one bit.
Usually, Lai Cai and Lai Fu were very attached to Zhao Yao. As soon as Zhao Yao returned, they would follow him around. However, as soon as Lai Fu arrived, the two would obediently stay away from Zhao Yao.
Zhao Yao fed Lai Fu some snacks while stroking its beautiful feathers.
The Fifth Princess, sitting beside them, saw how handsome Lai Fu was and how it submissively allowed Zhao Yao to pet it, and couldn't help wanting to touch it. She reached out carefully towards Lai Fu, but as soon as her hand was halfway, she nearly got pecked by Lai Fu.
Lai Fu glared coldly at the Fifth Princess with its small eyes.
The Fifth Princess shivered at Lai Fu's cold and fierce gaze, awkwardly retracting her hand and muttering softly, "The snacks you're eating are made by me, so why can't I touch you?"
Lai Fu looked fiercely at the Fifth Princess. At that moment, its proud little head was gently patted by Zhao Yao.
"Lai Fu, she's my elder sister, so you can't be fierce to her or peck her."
Lai Fu retracted its disdainful gaze and lowered its head to continue eating snacks.
Zhao Yao turned to the Fifth Princess, kindly reminding her, "Sister, Lai Fu is very fierce. If I hadn't stopped you just now, your hand would have been pecked by Lai Fu." Saying this, he pointed to Lai Fu's sharp beak, saying to the Fifth Princess, "Lai Fu's beak is as sharp and powerful as a sword. If it pecks your hand, it will hurt, bleed, and be very painful."
The Fifth Princess listened with a disbelieving expression. To her, Lai Fu seemed the same as Lai Qian.
"Really?"
"Sister, Lai Fu used to often accompany Father Emperor to the battlefield, and its beak has even blinded enemies. Lai Fu is not only the Emperor's pet but also his partner. In the past, when the Emperor went to battles, Lai Fu would always stay by his side. It not only helped gather enemy intelligence but also kill enemies. It even saved the Emperor's life once."
"How is that possible..." Before the Fifth Princess could finish speaking, she suddenly felt a sharp pain on her face, causing her to cry out, "Ah..." Then she found her face bleeding, immediately turning pale with fright.
"Lai Fu!" Zhao Yao, seeing Lai Fu had injured the Fifth Princess's face, scolded it angrily, "How can you hurt my elder sister?"
Lai Fu didn't speak, but from its expression, it could be seen as if it were saying, "She deserved it."
Zhao Yao grabbed Lai Fu's sharp beak, warning it angrily, "Lai Fu, if you hurt my elder sister again, I'll pluck all your feathers!"
Lai Fu was frightened by Zhao Yao's words and, wanting to please, rubbed its little head against Zhao Yao's palm.
"Sister, go and deal with the wound on your face." Fortunately, Lai Fu showed some restraint and merely pecked the Fifth Princess's face, leaving only a small scratch.
The Fifth Princess ran out, holding her face. Her wound was small, and Liang Zhaoyi applied medicine to her.
"Little Five, Lai Fu is a Sea Eagle, a bird of prey that can hurt people," Liang Zhaoyi emphasized, "It is not Lai Yun."
The myna, Lai Yun, said from the side, "Lai Fu is super fierce, I'm scared too!"
"I thought it was as tame as Lai Yun." Lai Fu often visited Kunde Hall to play with Zhao Yao, behaving so obediently in front of Zhao Yao that the Fifth Princess mistook it for being as gentle and cute as Lai Yun.
Lai Yun exclaimed, "It's not the same, not the same as me!"
"Lai Fu is Yao Yao's friend, so it behaves very obediently in front of him, but it is very fierce in front of others." Liang Zhaoyi patted the Fifth Princess's head, speaking in a gentle tone, "Stay away from it in the future."
The Fifth Princess, somewhat aggrieved, said, "I saw it looking nice and just wanted to touch its feathers."
"Aside from the Emperor and Yao Yao, Lai Fu won't let anyone else touch it," Liang Zhaoyi continued, "Birds of prey and beasts have their own temperaments; only their masters can tame them."
"I understand now." Having witnessed Lai Fu's ferocity, the Fifth Princess dared not underestimate it anymore and would keep a distance in the future. "Why are Lai Qian and others so obedient to Tenth Brother, and even Father Emperor's Sea Eagle listens to him?"
Liang Zhaoyi really didn't have a good answer for the Fifth Princess's question. She could only say, "Who knows."
"I find that Tenth Brother is very liked by animals." Whether flying in the sky or running on the ground, animals liked Tenth Brother a lot and were very obedient to him.
Liang Zhaoyi, smiling, shifted the topic, "It's getting late; you should go to rest."
"Lady Liang, then I'll return now."
Liang Zhaoyi reminded, "When washing your face, be careful not to touch the wound."
"I understand." The Fifth Princess bid farewell to Liang Zhaoyi and returned to the West Hall where she resided with Yu Meiren.
In the side hall, after eating and drinking to its fill, Lai Fu nestled in Zhao Yao's arms, muttering to Zhao Yao.
Zhao Yao responded to Lai Fu while grooming its feathers.
Meanwhile, in Chengguang Hall, a young eunuch, seeing that Lingyun was missing, anxiously searched everywhere. After a long, fruitless search, he was so worried that he nearly cried. Finally, with no choice, he went to Sun Kui with trepidation, reporting Lingyun's disappearance.
Sun Kui was serving in Yongxin Palace. Seeing the young eunuch come to him, he thought something major had happened, only to find it was just Lingyun missing.
"That little ancestor will fly back on its own."
"Really?" The young eunuch had only recently been assigned to Chengguang Hall to specially serve and care for Lingyun and didn't know about its habit of flying off now and then.
"That little ancestor often flies out to play, so there is no need to worry," Sun Kui said casually, "It's very clever and knows the way back."
The young eunuch felt relieved upon hearing this.
"Thank you, Mr. Sun." He was wondering why Lingyun's feet weren't shackled; wasn't there concern it would fly away? It turns out, even if it flies away, it knows how to fly back.
Sun Kui said no more, waving the young eunuch away, signaling that he could leave.
The young eunuch didn't linger in Yongxin Palace, quickly returning to Chengguang Hall, waiting for the return of the ancestor Lingyun.
In Kunde Hall, Zhao Yao, having washed up, lay on the bed, reading a book while telling stories to Lai Fu and the others. Lai Fu, also known as Lingyun, lay on his shoulder, attentively listening to Zhao Yao's storytelling.
Lai Cai and Lai Fu were not sleeping on Zhao Yao's bed tonight but were pitifully lying under the bed, listening to their young master storytelling.
They certainly wanted to sleep on their young master's bed as before, but with Lai Fu on the bed, they dared not climb up.
Zhao Yao was reading 'Qingzhou Travels', which detailed the geographical environment and customs of Qingzhou.
"I wonder how Uncle is doing in Qingzhou?"
Zhao Yao planned to propose to the Emperor to go to Qingzhou once he grew up and was granted a title.
He studied the Nine Provinces carefully and found Qingzhou most suitable for him. Firstly, Qingzhou wasn't very large in size. Secondly, it was near the coastline; compared to the other provinces, it's rather secluded. Most importantly, Qingzhou wasn't a strategic location. He believed his elder brothers wouldn't fight for Qingzhou.
Zhao Yao thought that if he proposed to the Emperor to go to Qingzhou in the future, the Emperor would surely agree. Therefore, he wanted to make all preparations before going to Qingzhou when he came of age.
"Lai Fu, let me tell you, there's a lot of seafood in Qingzhou. When I grow up and go to Qingzhou, I can eat all the seafood I want." Zhao Yao said while drooling, telling Lai Fu and the others about the delicious seafood. "I'll take you to Qingzhou with me then, and I'll treat you to sea fish. Let me tell you, sea fish are really delicious, such as tuna..."
Hearing Zhao Yao describe the food so deliciously, Lai Fu and the others couldn't help but crave it.
Just then, Liang Zhaoyi walked in, overhearing her son talking about the delicious food in Qingzhou, and couldn't help but laugh.
"It's getting late; you all should sleep."
"Mother Consort, why hasn't Uncle sent a letter back yet, and I wonder if he's doing well in Qingzhou?"
"Your uncle has only just gone to Qingzhou, and he's likely busy with duties recently. Once he's settled, he will surely send us a letter," Liang Zhaoyi, touching her son's little face, comforted him gently, "Your uncle will be fine."
"Mother Consort, when I have a break, I want to leave the palace to find Second Uncle." He didn't like studying for another reason, which was that he couldn't sneak out of the palace like before. In the past, before he started his studies, he could sneak out of the palace whenever he wanted. But now that he was studying, he couldn't leave as freely, nor could he frequently ask for leave, otherwise, it would arouse suspicion.