âOkay.â Huo Yunshen nodded.
Little Grape jumped off his chair and walked away while rubbing his tummy. He already felt better after having a fulfilling meal for the first time in a long time.
âDaddy, can I leave too?â Ying Bao asked politely.
âWait, come here,â Huo Yunshen said while waving his hand.
Ying Bao walked towards her father and stood in front of him. Huo Yunshen then took Ying Baoâs hands and looked at her.
The adult was shocked by how fast time had flown. His daughter was already eight years old and had grown a lot.
It also seemed like there were a lot of things that were held up inside the little girlâs head. She wasnât as innocent and happy as she used to. It was then that Huo Yunshen realized a barrier had formed between him and his daughter.
He felt as if he couldnât communicate with her as he used to.
âDaddy?â Ying Bao asked as Huo Yunshen just kept staring at her.
âI have some free time tomorrow, why donât we go for a picnic? Weâll bring Little Grape with us too,â Huo Yunshen said, wanting to spend more time with his children.
Ying Bao thought for a little while and nodded.
âOkay!â
âAll right. Weâll leave tomorrow morning.â Huo Yunshen smiled.
The father and daughter then left the dining room holding hands.
When they met Lan Yi outside the dining room, Huo Yunshen informed her about the picnic and asked her to make some preparations.
...
Jing Xi was still making dumplings in the kitchen.
âXiao Jin, thatâs enough. The king and his family have already left,â Lan Yi said when she came in and saw Jing Xi still trying her best. âYou can go and rest now.â
âItâs okay. Iâll finish this batch and store them in the fridge.â Jing Xi smiled.
Since the fillings were more than enough, Jing Xi thought of freezing the remaining dumplings so that the prince could have some whenever he wanted.
âAll right. The king praised you for the food, you know?â
âReally? I was worried that they might not like it.â
Jing Xi was happy to hear that the king liked her food, and her movements became faster.
âTake your time,â Lan Yi said. âOh, come and find me when youâre done. I still have something to tell you about the job.â
âOkay,â Jing Xi replied with a smile.
Lan Yi then turned to leave but was stopped by Jing Xi.
âLan Yi, I have a question,â Jing Xi said and pointed at a basket of fruit. âAre these going to the trash?â
Jing Xi had heard from the servants working in the kitchen that they would have to throw the fruit away.
âYes, any fruit that isnât consumed the day itâs bought will be disposed of. Whatâs wrong?â
âOh... I thought that it would be a waste since they are still good,â Jing Xi said embarrassedly. âCan I take them back for my son? Heâs never had the chance to try these fruits.â
Lan Yi finally realized that Jing Xi wanted to bring the fruits back to her son and couldnât help but compliment Jing Xiâs motherly love in her head.
âOf course. You can take as much as you want,â Lan Yi replied.
âThank you,â Jing Xi said happily.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âYouâre welcome.â Lan Yi smiled and left.
Jing Xi then continued with folding the dumplings and stored them in the fridge.
She then took a look at the fruit before leaving to look for Lan Yi.