The tyrant: his daughter praised him! His daughter praised him!!

He wasn't angry. He wasn't angry at all.

Ye Yubei said coldly, "These men offended the Ninth Princess. Drag them away and beat them to death."

Eunuch Wang said quietly, "Your Majesty, wouldn't that be inappropriate? These eunuchs all serve Consort Li, and Consort Li is Governor Jiang's..."

Ye Yubei's icy, stern voice rang out again. "What of it? They offended the princess. Drag them away and beat them to death. I do not want to repeat myself."

This was the tyrant of the Northern Li Empire. Everyone's life and death lay within a single thought of his.

"Mercy, Your Majesty! Mercy, Your Highness!"

"Your Majesty, please spare this worthless dog's life!"

The eunuchs were forcibly dragged away, their screams mingling together.

Consort Li arrived supported by two palace maids. She saw Ye Tangtang standing safe and sound beside His Majesty-and the girl even made a face at her!

Consort Li's face turned livid, then purple with rage, and she trembled all over.

"Your Majesty, what crime did Xiao Zhuozi and the others commit for you to punish them like this?"

Ye Yubei said coldly, "Consort Li, I nearly forgot about you. What did you just do? Do you still remember?"

Consort Li knelt on the ground and said quietly, "Your Majesty, I did nothing. I only wanted to... discipline this little princess. She behaved outrageously, even lighting an open fire in the palace!"

Ye Tangtang said, "Emperor Father, that was charcoal I borrowed from the Imperial Kitchen to make barbecue."

It was this awful woman! My lamb skewers were already ready to eat, but she actually had people tear down my stall! She even wanted to beat me. Good thing I ran fast.

Pah! You wicked old hag. You're so ugly, yet you still come out to cause trouble. Scumbag Daddy's taste isn't much good either.

He made such an ugly woman a consort? There must be something wrong with Scumbag Daddy's brain. Forget it. Since he's going to croak in three years anyway, I won't stoop to his level.

When the time comes, I'll dutifully collect his corpse. I'm such a good, filial child.

My tyrant scumbag daddy will definitely be grateful to have such a good child as me. Ah, I'm such a kind little angel.

Ye Yubei: "..."

Should I thank you?

"Barbecue? What is that?"

Ye Tangtang said aggrievedly, "Emperor Father, it's something delicious. Really, really delicious! I worked so hard to grill it, but Consort Li ruined it all."

"And she had people beat me up, too. They even got my clothes dirty."

Ye Tangtang clutched her arm and blinked her big eyes, tears on the verge of spilling out.

"Emperor Father, Tang Tang hurts so much."

Consort Li: "...!"

That little bitch had run so fast. Who could have hit her? Besides, the little bitch had rammed her headfirst to the ground, leaving her backside, her waist, and her whole body aching.

Yet here she was, the villain crying foul first!

"Your Majesty, I didn't..."

"They hit you? Were you hurt anywhere? Let Emperor Father take a look!"

Ye Yubei held Ye Tangtang's little hand and examined her carefully. Apart from slightly dirty clothes and a slightly dirty face, she wasn't injured.

Hehehe, I fooled Scumbag Daddy again.

Scumbag Daddy is way too easy to fool. He believes everything I say. How could I possibly get hurt?

"Emperor Father, it hurts so much. They hit my tummy, and my shoulder, and my... arm. They broke my arm. It hurts so much!"

Ye Tangtang clutched her arm, acting as though it were real. If Ye Yubei hadn't known what his daughter was thinking, he might have been fooled.

He swore he would never believe his daughter's words again.

Still, no one was allowed to bully his daughter.

"Take Daddy to see your little stall."

"Emperor Father, the stall is up ahead."

Ye Tangtang led Ye Yubei a few steps forward. The Sixth Prince, Ye Linmo, had disheveled hair and injuries on his face, apparently from the beating he had just received.

"Little sister..."

When Ye Linmo saw Ye Tangtang, a smile appeared on his face, his eyes clear and bright.

"Sixth Brother, how did you get hurt? Did those eunuchs hit you just now? Emperor Father already had them dragged away and beaten to death."

Ye Tangtang took the little handkerchief from inside her clothes and wiped Ye Linmo's face.

Sixth Brother is so pitiful. He's a prince, after all, yet those eunuchs bully him every day. Scumbag Daddy has children but doesn't raise them. What a scumbag.

Ye Yubei: "..."

I have so many children. How am I supposed to know which is which?

Still, this child truly was pitiful. He would pay more attention to him in the future.

Ye Linmo hugged Ye Tangtang again and laughed happily. "Momo likes little sister."

Ye Tangtang told the palace maids beside her, "Take my sixth brother back to his palace first, then put some medicine on him."

"Yes, Ninth Princess."

"Little sister..."

Even after walking a long way away, Ye Linmo was still looking back at Ye Tangtang, holding the Lollipop she had given him a few days earlier.

Ye Tangtang's stall had already been destroyed. A heap of things lay scattered on the ground, including freshly grilled lamb skewers and vegetable rolls.

"Consort Li, was this all your doing?"

Ye Yubei's chilling voice rang out, making everyone's hair stand on end.

Consort Li bowed gracefully. "Your Majesty, the Ninth Princess lit an open fire in the palace without permission. I destroyed these things out of concern for the harem."

Ye Tangtang puffed up angrily. "I already told you it wasn't an open fire. If you don't believe me, go ask Xiao Lizi from the Imperial Kitchen."

Watching the little girl puff up like a tiny pufferfish, Ye Yubei inexplicably found her very amusing.

"Consort Li bullied a child and showed none of the dignity expected of an imperial consort. Effective immediately, she is demoted to concubine and must copy five sets of Buddhist Sutras at the Empress's residence every day."

The moment Ye Yubei finished speaking, Ye Tangtang hid behind him and made another face at Consort Li.

"Bleh, bleh, bleh o'ᆺ'o"

Consort Li trembled with fury at Ye Tangtang, her fingernails digging into her palms.

"Your Majesty, I..."

Consort Li opened her mouth to beg for mercy, but Ye Yubei had already left with Ye Tangtang.

She collapsed to the ground. After finally struggling her way up to the rank of consort, she had been sent right back down. For the sake of that little bitch, His Majesty had even refused to show her father any respect.

Ye Tangtang hung her head listlessly. "Emperor Father, my barbecue stall is ruined. I can't eat lamb skewers anymore."

"I've already ordered someone to put it back in order for you. You can use it tomorrow."

"Yay! Emperor Father is the best! Tang Tang loves Emperor Father most!"

Ye Tangtang happily hugged Ye Yubei's arm, revealing two adorable dimples. Her rosy little face was utterly endearing.

Looking at his sweet, well-behaved daughter, Ye Yubei stroked her little head and felt that it had all been worth it.

She truly was his daughter. How could she be so beautiful and adorable?

Then, in the very next second, reality slapped him across the face again...

Hehe, Scumbag Daddy is so easy to fool. I only put on a little act, and he actually had someone fix my barbecue stall. Tomorrow, I'll keep earning money.

One ingot, two ingots, so many ingots...

Ye Yubei: "..."

"Emperor Father, tomorrow, can I give you the first lamb skewer I grill?"

"Of course. Then Emperor Father will have a proper taste of Tang Tang's cooking."

Ye Yubei didn't have particularly high hopes for his daughter. As long as it was edible, that would do.

"Yay! Don't worry, Emperor Father. I guarantee that after eating one, you'll want a second!"

Ye Yubei shook his head and returned to the imperial study. Grand Secretary Lu and the others were still discussing the selection process for this round of imperial examinations.

"Tang Tang, this is Grand Secretary Lu."

"Hello, Grandpa Lu," Ye Tangtang greeted him obediently.

"Greetings, Ninth Princess."

Grand Secretary Lu liked this little princess very much. More importantly, His Majesty doted on her. If they could marry the little princess into the Lu Family...

Grand Secretary Lu looks quite kindly, but later on, he betrays the empire and joins the aristocratic families in helping the Prince of Yan seize the throne, strengthening those families. Otherwise, how could the villainous male lead defeat Northern Li's army so easily?

My scumbag daddy is the War God of Northern Li, after all. He's brave and skilled in battle, with unmatched strategies, but these people plot against him, and he ultimately loses to the male lead.

Ye Yubei narrowed his eyes. The Prince of Yan... Ye Yulin!

It had been a long time since he had heard anyone mention that name. This was his seventh brother, who was now in Yanbei.

Lu Qin will betray me. He's one of his men!

But just now, did I actually hear Tang Tang praising me?