The prince longs for me every night after mastering thought-reading
Chapter 736 - 554 Is this Paternal Love? - Entering the Palace to Find a Daughter-in-Law

Chapter 736: Chapter 554 Is this Paternal Love? - Entering the Palace to Find a Daughter-in-Law

"This..."

The palace maids exchanged glances, all seeming rather troubled.

Seeing the palace maids’ hesitation, Shen Chuwei thought they were only minor servants who couldn’t make decisions on their own, so she didn’t press them any further.

"I want to see the Emperor. Take me to him," she said.

It was then that the palace maids nodded and responded, "The maid obeys the order."

At this moment, Xuetuan also ran out, and Shen Chuwei bent down to pick it up, following behind the palace maids.

They hadn’t left Wuyou Palace when Ye Haoting arrived.

The palace maids all bowed together and greeted, "Your Majesty."

Ye Haoting saw Feng Wuyou and smiled, saying, "Xiao Jiu, are you hungry? Come dine with me."

Shen Chuwei stepped forward and curtseyed. Seeing this, Ye Haoting quickly supported her, "In the future, when you see me, there’s no need for you to bow."

Shen Chuwei looked at the Emperor with confusion. How nice, she didn’t have to bow?

The customs of Nanzhao Country indeed differed from those of Daxia.

"Your Majesty, I want to leave the palace," she said. Although curious whether the Emperor was Feng Wuyou’s father, since he hadn’t mentioned it, she simply addressed him as the Emperor.

Ye Haoting asked, "Leave the palace? What for? Do you need to buy something? Tell me, and I will send someone to purchase it."

Shen Chuwei was stunned for a moment. Xiao Jinyan was the Crown Prince of Daxia. After having spent eight years in Nanzhao Country, he had left at the age of sixteen and could easily be recognized.

If she said she was going out to look for someone, what if Xiao Jinyan’s identity was exposed?

But if she didn’t leave the palace, Xiao Jinyan wouldn’t know her current situation and would definitely be anxious.

Seeing that she didn’t speak, Ye Haoting thought she was too shy to speak, "Xiao Jiu, feel free to speak your mind."

Shen Chuwei replied, "I want to eat stinky tofu."

Ye Haoting had never heard of stinky tofu, suspecting he might have heard wrong, "Stinky tofu? What is that?"

Shen Chuwei replied, "It’s food."

Ye Haoting couldn’t imagine stinky tofu being edible...

"It’s rotten and still edible? I’ll prepare some other delicacies for you, alright?"

Shen Chuwei had already eaten stinky tofu today, so she wasn’t that eager—it was just an excuse anyway.

Her eyes curved in a smile, "I will follow Your Majesty’s wishes."

Hearing this, Ye Haoting laughed out loud, "Very well, I will have someone prepare it immediately."

Listening to the Emperor’s hearty laughter, suddenly Shen Chuwei remembered how her father often behaved this way toward Susu. Although Susu was a girl, her father cherished her deeply.

So she began to suspect that Ye Haoting might be Feng Wuyou’s father.

Even though she was an imposter, should she call him father as well?

Or rather, call him ’Father Emperor’?

After much internal debate, Shen Chuwei ended up calling him nothing, for she simply couldn’t bring herself to do it.

Ye Haoting seemed in a lively mood for conversation and spoke, "Xiao Jiu, you’re also 19 this year. A woman changes at eighteen; as a child you were so adorable and lovable, and now you have grown even more beautiful, with the same sweet tongue."

Now at her age, Shen Chuwei had probably heard that phrase more than any other, ’lovable, with a sweet tongue’.

"Thank you for the compliment," she said.

Ye Haoting smiled and asked, "You must have had your share of hardships these past years abroad, right?"

Before Shen Chuwei could answer, Ye Haoting continued, "It’s good that you are back now. No one will dare to bully you here, so you can be at ease."

Shen Chuwei, having grown up in the Orphanage, had never experienced fatherly love, yet even during the brief interaction with Ye Haoting, she could feel such affection... Was she so starved of love, particularly for paternal love?

"You couldn’t possibly be my father, could you?" she ventured.

At this, Ye Haoting broke into hearty laughter.

Shen Chuwei’s face flushed with embarrassment. Was he not then? If so, why was he so kind to Feng Wuyou?

Ye Haoting said with a smile, "You truly don’t remember."

Shen Chuwei didn’t respond; as an imposter, she knew nothing, alright?

Ye Haoting’s voice was soothing as he said, "It’s alright if you don’t remember; you’ll recall it eventually."

Feeling a bit guilty, Shen Chuwei nodded. Once Xiao Jinyan remembered, she would leave.

As for the real Feng Wuyou’s whereabouts, she had no clue.

At that moment, the eunuch brought in the evening meal and then withdrew.

Shen Chuwei had been hungry for a while, and the aroma of the food made her even hungrier, but concerned that Xiao Jinyan might worry about her, she decided to eat her fill first.

She’d need her strength to figure a way out.

Ye Haoting said, "Try these dishes, see if they suit your taste."

"Then I’ll have a taste," Shen Chuwei took a seat at the table, where a palace maid had already served her rice. Picking up her chopsticks, she grabbed some meat and began eating, finding it to her liking.

Watching her from across, Ye Haoting was reminded of her eating habits as a child.

"You’re just like when you were little, picking meat first when choosing dishes. You love meat so much, yet you’ve never grown chubby," he remarked.