For hours, the pitiful flower receive endless dead stare from Jiang Chen. If the peony could move it's leaves, it would shyly hide it's bloom. By now, it probably develop some insecurities.

A blank look over cast the child. His eyes might be staring outside his window and inti the yard but his attention were somewhere else.

All of his senses are focus at the sounds outside of the room and within the halls. Every movement outside, even the smallest whisper would earn a twitch from him.

The moment he perceives a familiar footstep, his head came snapping at the source.

Xiao w.a.n.g Xi was shocked silly and rooted by the entrance, his hand stopped midway from opening the door. The young prince seems ready to pounce on him.

"....."

"...."

Jiang Chen relax his muscles and without a word, stare at the poenies outside like nothing happened.

Once Xiao w.a.n.g Xi step inside, a footstep immediately follows after. Eunuch Yuan is tailing behind him.

"Aunt!..." Jiang Chen jump up from his spot and swiftly run up to Xiao Yuan Xi only to see that it's just the two eunuch together.

The little prince hold his tongue and express nothing. But a child is a child. Their emotions are clearly written within their face. Seeing the undisguised disappointment on the child's eyes, Xiao Yuan Xi said, "Apologies young prince but the empress is not with this servant."

Since he took the young eunuch under his tutelage, the two of them have been together.

Tang Mei would like to attest that all of this is only self-proclaime by Xiao Yuan Xi. They're not 'together', it's more like Eunuch Yuan is 'sticking' with Eunuch w.a.n.g and shamelessly follow around the young eunuch.

"...-aren't we having lunch yet?" Jiang Chen ask with hesitation on his tone.

"Your highness, it's still quite some time before noon. The kitchen might have just started their preparation." Xiao w.a.n.g Xi answered him.

"The empress is at her small study. Shall this servant escort your highness?" Offer by Xiao Yuan Xi. For unknown reasons, the young prince kept on sending his servant outside to do errands. There's one thing the sharp head eunuch notice though, Xiao w.a.n.g Xi would end up pa.s.sing by the empress' chamber everytime.

Understanding the situation, Xiao Yuan Xi followed his 'discipline' back.

Jiang Chen purse his lips. It's in a child's nature to paint things in black and white; good and evil. The concept of compromise, in between and gray have yet to exist. Although their opinions are easily change by scamming them with some candy, pettiness is their second nature.

The small prince glare at the head eunuch thus the head eunuch could only cry bitter tears and learn more on his prolonged lesson.

------

"The ladies born to a n.o.ble house is verse in the four arts."

Her a.s.s!

Wei Yi Yi let her brush fly around the canva.s.s. Putting here and there, every silly things that came straight to her head, were drawn without a second thought. She have no qualms on laying the details in a messy format.

"Sadly, this bro here only cultivates the dao of complaining."

And she's probably standing at the very peak! Even in serious situations, she could complain first before taking an action. Or even while solving it! If that isn't talent, then she no longer know what is talent.

"If there's an art that suit this bro's taste, that would only be the art of escaping!"

A person who could hold a whole conversation by herself have no fear on being a shut in!

If only she have a phone. Wei Yi Yi scratch her head. She wanted to search a good reference to copy. By this, her doodling skills could be upgrade by at least ten percent.

A pitiful ten percent is still better than ending up with some stick figure.

Wei Yi Yi stopped on her tracks after reaching out for the next one.

A person who is familiar yet isn't, stare at her directly from the portrait. It was 'her' father, the mighty prime minister.

'Close enough? Nah. Nope. He look way different from 'us'', Wei Yi Yi thought. ''Wei Yi Yi' probably took after her mother.'

A p.r.i.c.kling pain poke at Wei Yi Yi's heart.

Dismissing the notion of a mother, she shook her head silly. And then she stare. Stare at the image without s.h.i.+fting her gaze. Burn the face in memory. Try to find some connection. And then maybe, just maybe, she'll find her 'home'.

But nothing surface. Whether from the current her or the lingering 'Wei Yi Yi'.

Why? Isn't 'Wei Yi Yi' his most precious daughter? There should at least some reaction right?

The crisp sound of the door sliding open brought Wei Yi Yi out if her trance. Jiang Chen poke out his head while the two eunuch openly stood at the entrance.

"Aunt, are you eating lunch with us?.... Or maybe you're busy?" Jiang Chen carefully constructed his words.

The small table is buried under an unknown amount of scrolls and paintings. The brushes and inks doesn't even have a place anymore. Wei Yi Yi sat all morning and the things to be done are still a pile of mountain.

Taking other's work--- she might have shoot her own foot.

But then again, she's just a small employee. Working hard; there's other people suitable for that.

Such as her boss.

"No, I'm not busy. This kind of things.... there are no harm in putting them down." Wei Yi Yi walk over and carried Jiang Chen as they head towards the parlour. "Ah Chen, are you hungry?"