"Your Majesty, this is a child adopted into my household from a distant relative. His name is Zhou Luye, and he is now my fourth child."
"No wonder! He looks like a clever little fellow!"
The emperor played along too.
"I find him quite endearing. Why don't I grant him the title of young duke? Once he grows up, he can keep Little Six company. Little Lu Ye, would you like to be Little Six's study companion?"
Huahua's mouth puckered, and he looked ready to cry.
Huahua: [Can I just be his study companion without eating his cooking?]
Jiang Shuyue: [People should sample all the flavors life has to offer, and the Sixth Prince's cooking certainly stands in a class of its own. Don't you want to try it and become a complete human being?]
Huahua: ...
No. Things are perfectly fine as they are.
"All right, let's talk more about the marriage. The Empress has missed you terribly. Shuyue, go see her."
"Yes!"
Jiang Shuyue's arms were aching from carrying Huahua, so she set him on Big Flower's back and went off to find the Empress, humming a little tune.
She already knew the paths through the Imperial Palace like the back of her hand. Unless she walked with her eyes closed, she couldn't go wrong.
But there were far too many palace maids for her to remember all their faces.
Following the young palace maid, Jiang Shuyue counted the petals on her hair ornament. "Six? That's not right. I remember the palace maids in the Empress's quarters all having seven."
Huahua: [How do you know that so clearly?]
Jiang Shuyue: [Because they look alike and wear similar hairstyles. I deliberately counted so I could tell them apart. Every one I've seen had seven!]
Huahua: *[Host, you're amazing! You