Prince Dai's Residence
The skies had cleared. The breeze was fresh, the air crisp, and the moon shed its light. Beside the residence's artfully arranged hills, waterside pavilions, and terraces, everyone wore a look of joy. Some women and maids even bowed to the moon in thanks.
Hui Dao also stood in the courtyard and looked up at the bright moon, unable to keep himself from smiling.
"Perfected One, you're smiling to yourself again," the young Daoist attendant could not help saying. "Is it really such wonderful news that it makes you this happy?"
Then he muttered, "Isn't it just that Prince Dai has an heir now?"
His words made Hui Dao shake his head.
"You really have been making less and less progress lately." Hui Dao poked the boy's forehead and spoke helplessly. Prince Dai was at a critical juncture now; having an heir or not made an enormous difference.
Hui Dao understood what his attendant was thinking. The princess consort had not become pregnant only a day or two ago. Could they not have determined that she was carrying a male heir?
It was easy enough to examine someone else's unborn child, but this was the Prince's Residence. How could they probe here?
Still, the attendant was young, only a boy, and his cultivation was limited. There were many things he did not understand, which was understandable. Hui Dao stroked his head, and hearing him mutter, "I've done plenty of my lessons," only improved his mood. "Huai Jie, you're still young. You don't understand."
Huai Jie said nothing, merely narrowing his eyes slightly. In the past, the Perfected One had always been weighed down by worries. Even when teaching him, he had never used such a relaxed, teasing tone. Instead, his words had been earnest and grave, sometimes