The Empress stood up.
Eyes gathered on her figure. She took gentle steps as her bottom swayed elegantly. She stopped ahead of Su Zihao and faced the audience.
"The Four Grass Sect selected us in order to keep the peace in the Silent Heaven Province. I shall make it clear that the Jin Empire will always support the Four Grass Sect!"
Her sharp words etched themselves into the audience's hearts. They stared at the Empress holding Jin Jiayi with Su Zihao flanking her. It was a clear declaration of cooperation between the two forces.
"Empress, I will write to the sect about your determination and loyalty."
Su Zihao flashed her a smile.
The Empress solemnly nodded and walked back to her seat.
Su Zihao bowed to the crowd and left the stage. He subtly glanced at the Empress as he did and he faintly smiled.
"The gifting ceremony shall commence!"
The voice reminded the stunned audience about Jin Jiayi's official declaration. They turned to each other and a senior, old man stepped forward.
He bowed in the direction of the Empress and lifted an object in his hand.
All eyes gathered on the red phoenix feather as small embers floated around it.
"I offer this phoenix feather to the Crown Prince!"
When he explained the feather, the audience gasped and grimaced. They glanced at their own gifts and sighed.
Anatolia walked out and took the phoenix feather along with its box. She placed it beside the Empress.
After the first gift, many more were given. Almost everyone had heard and seen Jin Jiayi due to their family date a month ago. This allowed all of them ample time to prepare appropriate gifts.
. . .
This is the privilege I have in my new life.
Wang Chang stared at the pile of gifts in the corner of the room. Some of the gifts sparkled and emitted sensations he wasn't familiar with. It was very obvious that most of them were related to cultivation.
It was deep into the night after the official ceremony.
The Empress was sitting beside him on the bed. A maid servant stood behind her and brushed her hair.
She had an absentminded look on her face as she stared at the window.
Wang Chang couldn't guess her thoughts and emotions. She was halfway between empress mode and mama mode, which was odd and piqued his curiosity.
When the maid-servant finished brushing her hair, the Empress turned to Jin Jiayi. She inched closer and rubbed his head.
"Jiayi, you are the most well-behaved baby I have seen. I asked around and they say it means you are intelligent."
The Empress smiled. Her words and her gaze invoked a warm feeling in Wang Chang's chest. He couldn't help but grin at her.
"You can understand Mama, too. You are so smart, Jiayiiii~"
The Empress playfully pinched his cheeks. She made Wang Chang dizzy with her erratic movements as his soft brain was still too sensitive.
"Jiayi is frowning! Mama is sorry~"
She snuggled against him like a cat.
. . .
Time swiftly passed. Wang Chang still missed Luo Nuying, but it became rare. His mother's affection filled him with happiness and joy every day. It healed his heart and gave him the ability to move on.
In but a blink of an eye, a year passed.
In a separate room in the imperial chambers, Su Zihao stared at Jin Jiayi who was sitting in the lotus position. The one-year-old baby had his legs crossed together while staring back at Su Zihao.
The height and age difference between the two didn't seem to intimidate him.
"You understand me?"
Su Zihao squinted his eyes and scrutinized the tiniest of movements from Jin Jiayi.
Wang Chang feigned ignorance and continued staring back.
"The Four Grass Sect accepts a lot of disciples each year. If you show me you can understand my words, I will grant you this opportunity."
Su Zihao kept his gaze firmly on the baby.
However, Wang Chang was unfazed by the offer. He was never interested in becoming a cultivator. If his mother hadn't said she wanted him to cultivate, he would have pretended to sleep all the time in front of Su Zihao.
"Heh. Since you are stubborn, I will train you just like how my master trained me during my earlier years."
A sadistic grin showed on Su Zihao's face. It seemed like for him, this was a chance to pay forward the suffering he had endured in the past.
How bad could it be?
Wang Chang had lived longer than this guy. He had his fair share of suffering, and he didn't think they would be easily overcome. He might have died, but he still had pride as an old man.
Su Zihao didn't hold back. He created a special bath for Jin Jiayi. It was made with crushed poisonous insects and medicinal herbs.
The concoction attacked Jin Jiayi's pores and opened them. The medicinal properties invaded the pores and viciously entered his skin.
Wang Chang bit his lower lip as the pain diluted his consciousness. The medicine was like tiny needles that repeatedly punctured each of his pores all over his body.
Meanwhile, Su Zihao watched from the side with his eyes closed.
Wang Chang could tell that he was looking at him. Su Zihao's eyes were barely open, but there was enough of a gap to let him see Jin Jiayi.
This is not even the strongest…
Wang Chang's eyes landed on the pile of scorpions, centipedes, worms, frogs, and spiders. They were all dead but each looked ferocious, and he had never seen them in his past life.
I made a mistake.
Wang Chang regretted it, but he was already deeply invested in pretending he couldn't understand Su Zihao. All of his previous hard work would be for naught if he revealed it.
His gambler's mindset sunk him into further debt(suffering).
The days passed quickly and Su Zihao increased the potency of the concoction every day. He gave no time for Jin Jiayi's body to acclimate to the pain.
After three months of bathing in bug juice, Wang Chang developed a mantra.
I am a tree. I am a tree. I am a tree.
A tree was sturdy and held firmly onto the ground using its roots. Whether the wind or the flood, it would be indomitable. Wang Chang imagined himself to be a tree whenever he soaked in the bath.
"..."
He didn't know that Su Zihao's emotions were on a roller coaster. He had stopped calculating the concentration of the concoction as Jin Jiayi's body would quickly acclimate to it.
He had already increased the concoction's concentration several times, but Jin Jiayi still pretended he didn't understand him.
After spending a lot of time with him, Su Zihao sensed Jin Jiayi's intelligence. It was fairly obvious from his calmness and the way his eyes looked at Su Zihao.
He couldn't prove it, but he knew in his heart that the little baby could understand him.
"Enough. Drink this!"
Su Zihao held a small bowl in front of Jin Jiayi. In it was a dark liquid mixed with green leaves. There were still leftover carapaces and bug parts on it.
!??? Is he all right in the head?! Why is he trying to feed me this!????
Wang Chang's mind was in turmoil. He stared at the bowl's contents and then at the expectant Su Zihao. His gaze told him that he wouldn't take a no for an answer.
But of course, Wang Chang was still a baby. He once again pretended to be dumb.
"Just drink it!"
Su Zihao pushed it against his lips.
Jin Jiayi's eyes widened and he puckered his lips together, sealing his mouth tight.
"What are you trying to feed the Crown Prince?"
Anatolia stepped inside the bathhouse. She glanced at the black liquid in the bath's pool, at the baby Crown Prince, and the Imperial Preceptor who was forcing the baby to drink poison.
Anatolia!
Wang Chang's eyes lit up as he smiled. Seeing her right now was heaven-sent.
"E-Ehem. I was training the Crown Prince. He has already gotten used to the concoction my master put me through so I was going to feed him the concentrated concoction…"
Su Zihao swallowed a mouthful of saliva. No matter how he explained himself, it could easily be misunderstood that he was trying to kill the Crown Prince.
"You are torturing him! Admit it."
Anatolia's body swished, and she took Jin Jiayi out of the bath. She grabbed a pail of clean water and poured it over him.
"Suffering is a part of cultivation, Miss Anatolia. The Crown Prince of the Jin Empire ought to start earlier than everyone else."
Su Zihao coughed. She wasn't far off. He clearly remembered his suffering when his master put him through the same training regimen. It irked him that Jin Jiayi didn't seem to be fazed by it.
"You cultivators think too narrowly!"
Anatolia snarked at him like a ferocious cat. She left the bathhouse with Jin Jiayi in her arms, leaving Su Zihao alone with the dead insect pile.
"Baby Jiayi, do you want to eat?"
Anatolia asked, smiling gently.
Wang Chang didn't hesitate and nodded his head. Anatolia had made it a routine to feed him at least once a week.
Apparently, she was taking a medicinal pill that induced her body to produce milk. He had been wondering about it the first time as he thought she was pregnant back then.
Anatolia took him to her room and fed him.
Wang Chang enjoyed her spoiling him. Suffering in that bathhouse every day made him feel mentally tired. She was like a droplet of water that watered his roots.
Or in this case, a droplet of milk.