Xiao Man, accompanied by her maid and carrying a food basket, appeared outside Xiao Zhen's study. The guards at the door, recognizing Xiao Man, quickly saluted.
"Miss, please see the General. The General is in. Miss can go directly in," the guard immediately cleared the path. In the General's mansion, there was no place Xiao Man could not go.
Xiao Man thanked them with a smile and, supported by Qiu Tong, entered the study.
Xiao Zhen was handling military affairs. He looked up and saw Xiao Man enter, saying, "Why have you come? If you need anything, just send someone to tell me. Father will accompany you at Shui Yue Xiaozhu after I finish my work."
"Daughter had someone simmer ginseng soup, hoping Father would drink it quickly, so I came myself." Qiu Tong opened the food basket, took out the ginseng soup, poured a bowl, and handed it to Xiao Man. Xiao Man held it forward. "Father, please taste it."
Xiao Zhen smiled warmly and took it. "It's all the same if I drink the ginseng soup later. Your eyes haven't recovered yet. It's so far, what if you fall?"
"Father, my daughter can't see, but I have people attending to me. How can I fall so easily? Besides, if I fall, I'll get up. I'm not a porcelain doll that will shatter if dropped." Xiao Man said playfully.
Xiao Zhen laughed even more happily. "Yes, yes, my Xiao Zhen's daughter, if she falls, she'll just get up, and won't lie on the ground crying and rolling, begging Father to carry her."
Xiao Man blushed. "Father, it's been so many years, you still remember!"
"To Father, it feels like yesterday. I specifically remember when you were six years old, you fell. Your grandmother told you to get up yourself, but you lay on the ground, rolled back and forth, and refused to get up, insisting that Father come back to carry you before you would.
"Daughter remembers, Grandmother was so angry her face turned ashen, and she kept calling me a little brat."
The father and daughter laughed heartily, reminiscing about Xiao Man's embarrassing childhood moments. When Xiao Man first returned to the General's mansion, the Old Madam favored Xiao Luo and Xiao Ling, and Xiao Man was displeased, constantly opposing the Old Madam. Consequently, the Old Madam disliked her even more. Over the years, she had gradually gotten used to it.
Xiao Zhen looked at his daughter's increasingly ethereal beauty and sighed. Unknowingly, the little girl who used to cry and roll for attention had grown into an adult. Now, her temperament was increasingly steady and resilient; even he could not see what she was thinking.
As if unconsciously, his daughter, who once had no secrets, also began to have them. While Xiao Zhen felt a sense of loss, he was also deeply comforted.
Xiao Man had not forgotten the purpose of her personal visit.
"Father, I heard that Prince Qin has been dismissed from his post and confined to his residence?" Xiao Man finally got to the main topic.
Xiao Zhen looked towards Qiu Tong. Qiu Tong kept her eyes on her nose and her mind on her heart: General, please don't look at this servant. This servant doesn't even know where Miss heard about this matter.
"Indeed, it is so. Why do you ask about this, Man'er?"
"Prince Qin holds military power and has a high position. He has always been a source of apprehension for the other princes. Now that Prince Qin is in trouble, the other princes will surely not sit idly by and will make a move, right?"
Xiao Zhen pulled Xiao Man to sit down beside him. "What are your thoughts on the current situation?"
"Daughter believes there are two possibilities for Prince Qin's current predicament. First, he was framed by other princes and punished by His Majesty. Second, it is a trap set by His Majesty to see how the other princes will act when Prince Qin is in trouble." Xiao Man said seriously.
"Father's thoughts are similar to yours. However, there is a third possibility in this matter, which is that Prince Qin set the trap himself to lure the snakes out of their holes," Xiao Zhen explained slowly. "Prince Qin is cunning and skilled in planning. Among all the princes, only Prince Qin is worthy of Father's regard."
"Daughter also feels Prince Qin is unfathomable."
Xiao Zhen carefully observed Xiao Man. Xiao Luo had sent a message urging him to be wary of Prince Qin, who might have ulterior motives towards Man'er. Given Prince Qin's deep cunning, he truly did not dare to let Xiao Man have too much contact with him.
"He is not only unfathomable but also ruthless."
"Father, how many members of the royal family are not ruthless?" Xiao Man said with a smile. "If they were not ruthless, they would have been devoured without even a shred of bone left."
"That is also true."
"It seems the situation in the capital is about to change, and the General's mansion has always maintained neutrality. I fear it will become a tempting prize for various forces to contend for."
A tempting prize… Xiao Zhen's mouth twitched, but he had to admit that what Xiao Man said was correct. The General's mansion was indeed a prize, with everyone wanting a piece of it.
"If they want to snatch it, they'll have to see if they have the ability!" Xiao Zhen said disdainfully.
"Open attacks are easy to evade, but hidden arrows are hard to defend against. Daughter thinks avoiding their sharp edge is the best strategy."
Xiao Zhen nodded thoughtfully. In the entire General's mansion, only Xiao Man was his weak spot. As long as Xiao Man was safe, he would fear nothing. "What are your plans?"
"Daughter plans to leave." Xiao Man said slowly.
"Leave?" Xiao Zhen frowned in disapproval. "It's dangerous outside. Staying in the mansion, at least…"
"Father, at the Mid-Autumn banquet, the Emperor mentioned my marriage. He likely has plans in mind. If I were to be harmed in the capital and marry someone His Majesty does not favor, it might cause His Majesty to be suspicious of Father." Xiao Man explained slowly. "Daughter intends to use the excuse of feeling unwell to quietly leave the capital and go to our ancestral home in Cangzhou to recuperate. Even if those people have a thousand tricks, they won't be able to use them if I'm not in the capital, and it won't arouse His Majesty's suspicion."
Although Xiao Zhen did not want Xiao Man to go to Cangzhou, upon careful consideration, it was not a bad idea. However, he was not at ease with Xiao Man going to Cangzhou alone.
"Cangzhou is thousands of miles away, the journey is long, and your health is weak…"
"Father, although Cangzhou is far, it is at least not as perilous as the capital. Besides, I am the daughter of General Xiao Zhen, the Protector of the Nation. A tiger father begets no dog. How can I be a burden to Father? Daughter will leave quietly. When daughter arrives in Cangzhou, it will not be too late for Father to announce it."
"I am still not at ease."
"Father." Xiao Man hugged Xiao Zhen's arm. "If Father is truly worried, then send more people to protect daughter."
"For now, Father is in the mansion, and it's safer for you to stay here," Xiao Zhen hesitated. If Xiao Man went to Cangzhou, the journey would be long, and if something happened, he feared there wouldn't be enough time to provide assistance.
"Father, I heard that eagles push their fledglings out of the cliff to teach them to fly. Fledglings, relying on their instinct for survival, flap their wings and fly. In the beginning, fledglings fly clumsily and are often injured, but after repeated attempts, they transform into eagles soaring in the sky. If the eagles are unwilling to let their young suffer and always protect them under their wings, then the fledglings will never learn to fly and will only be devoured by danger when they face it."