Chapter 468 His Majesty the Emperor's "Marriage Urging"!

Lin Wanwan didn't expose his clumsy stubbornness. She just smiled, stood up from the recliner, and casually straightened his slightly disheveled collar.

"Okay, whatever you say." Her eyes crinkled into a smile, her voice filled with tenderness. "Then tonight, we'll have cucumbers with dipping sauce."

Xiao Che looked at the mischievous smile in her eyes and knew that she had seen right through him. He felt even more embarrassed.

He gave a soft hum in response, then turned around, attempting to conceal his embarrassment by continuing to diligently "inspect" the vegetable garden.

Watching his retreating figure, which seemed to be fleeing in disarray, Lin Wanwan's smile deepened.

These days are wonderful.

They were free from the burdens of governing the country and the troubles of power struggles.

There were only sweet bickering between ordinary couples, and... a knowing smile exchanged between those who had already seen through everything.

...

As evening approached, an inconspicuous carriage stopped in front of the villa.

The carriage curtain was lifted, and a handsome young man dressed in casual clothes, yet still exuding a gentle and noble air, stepped out quickly.

It is none other than His Majesty the present, Xiao Tuan.

"Your subject greets Father Emperor and Mother Empress." As soon as Xiao Tuan entered the dining room, he gave a casual greeting to Xiao Che and Lin Wanwan, who were already sitting at the table.

"Get up quickly, you must be tired after a long day." Lin Wanwan hurriedly invited him to sit down, her eyes full of a mother's heartache for her son.

Since Xiao Che abdicated, Xiao Tuan has set a rule that every three days, no matter how busy he is with court affairs, he will personally leave the palace to pay his respects at the villa, and incidentally... mooch a delicious meal cooked by his mother.

"Not tired," Xiao Tuan smiled, took a food box from the accompanying eunuch, opened it himself, and placed it in front of Lin Wanwan. "This is osmanthus cake that I specially ordered to be brought back from 'Jiangnan Chun' in the capital. It's Mother's favorite."

"You're so thoughtful." Lin Wanwan looked at the plate of delicate pastries, her heart warmed.

Xiao Che, standing to the side, glanced at the plate of osmanthus cake, then looked at his eager son, and let out a soft, ambiguous hum from his nose.

That brat, he's already learned to compete with him and try to please the Empress.

The food was served quickly.

These are all simple home-style dishes, but because they were made by Lin Wanwan herself, they feel especially warm and cozy.

However, the atmosphere at the dinner table today seemed somewhat unusual.

In the past, Xiao Tuan would be very hungry and could eat three bowls of rice whenever he saw the dishes his mother made. But today, he looked gloomy and couldn't eat.

He just held his chopsticks, poking at the rice in his bowl listlessly, a deep, unyielding sorrow etched on his brow.

Lin Wanwan quickly noticed that something was wrong with her son.

"Tuanzi, what's wrong?" She put down her chopsticks and asked with concern, "Did something bother you at court?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Tuan raised his head, his handsome face filled with distress.

He glanced at his mother, then stole a look at his father, who was intently picking fish bones out of him. Finally, he couldn't hold back and began to complain bitterly.

"Mother..." he sighed, his voice filled with helplessness, "The court officials... they, they're forcing me again!"

"Force you?" Lin Wanwan was taken aback.

Xiao Che paused for a moment as he picked out the fish bones.

Xiao Tuan, in a tone as if bearing an unbearable weight of life, bitterly and indignantly denounced:

"They're forcing me to participate in another 'talent show'!"

"puff--"

Xiao Che almost spat out the mouthful of soup he had just taken a sip of.

A talent show?

Lin Wanwan was also taken aback, but then she realized what was going on.

If you calculate her age, Tuanzi is almost seventeen this year.

Indeed, it's time to consider marriage.

only……

In stark contrast to his son's "life is meaningless" expression, the Emperor Emeritus's eyes lit up instantly upon hearing the words "selection of concubines"!

He calmly and slowly placed the deboned fish meat into Lin Wanwan's bowl, and then slowly raised his head.

He looked at his worried son, and a very "loving" smile, typical of an old father, appeared on his face.

"Oh? A talent show?" He asked knowingly, but his tone carried an barely suppressed excitement.

"It's time to make an election!"

He slammed his hand on the table and immediately perked up!

"Look at you, you're almost seventeen! You're not getting any younger! It's time to... cough, to produce offspring for me, for the royal family!"

He adopted the air of an experienced person saying, "I'm doing this for your own good," and began his "marriage-urging" speech to Xiao Tuan.

"Back in my day, when I was your age..."

He straightened his chest, raised his chin slightly, and showed a hint of pride that belonged to someone who had been through it all. He was about to brag to his son about his "great achievements" back then.

However, he had barely begun to speak when he was abruptly interrupted by a cold gaze.

Lin Wanwan was looking at him with her head turned to the side, her face expressionless.

That gaze was calm and undisturbed, yet it carried an extremely powerful, familiar quality to Xiao Che himself—the "death stare."

The words that Xiao Che was about to say suddenly caught in his throat.

He looked at Lin Wanwan, and Lin Wanwan looked at him too.

There seemed to be invisible lightning crackling in the air.

Lin Wanwan's eyes seemed to say: "What? Do you want to tell your son what good deed you were forced to do when you were seventeen?"

Xiao Che: "..."

He clearly received the "signal" from the Empress Dowager.

He immediately cleared his throat and abruptly changed the subject, making a complete 180-degree turn.

"...Back in my day, when I was your age..." He paused, and his tone instantly changed from pride to... humility.

"...I was still being forced by the Empress Dowager to drink those terribly bitter medicinal soups every day."

After saying that, he immediately picked up his teacup, took a sip of water, and tried to hide his guilty conscience.

Their will to survive has been pushed to the limit.

Seeing his father's cowardly appearance, Xiao Tuan sighed helplessly in his heart.

Alas, Father, you are still so "afraid" of Mother.

but……

The topic of pressuring someone to get married can't be left unresolved!

Xiao Tuan put down his chopsticks and looked at Xiao Che with a sincere expression.

“Father,” he said slowly in an extremely sincere tone, “please don’t rush me.”

"Hmm?" Xiao Che had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this, and then raised his eyebrows again.

What? I can't even say anything? Am I just trying to help you?

Just as Xiao Che was about to once again display the authority of the "Emperor Emeritus" and properly teach this "ungrateful" son a lesson.

Xiao Tuan continued unhurriedly:

"I understand your intentions."

"But..." He paused, raised his head, and a sly glint, just like his father's, flashed in his clear phoenix eyes.

He looked at Xiao Che and, with extreme "consideration," reminded him:

"Right now, above your head, there's something floating there, glittering with gold..."

He deliberately dragged out the last syllable.

"【Hurry up and give me a grandson to play with.jpg】"

"Your subject has seen it all."

"..."

"..."

In that instant, the entire restaurant fell into a deathly silence.

The air seemed to have been sucked out.

Lin Wanwan held the bowl, her chopsticks hovering in mid-air, completely frozen in place.

Then, she suddenly looked at Xiao Che.

Her husband, who had been so imposing and ready to educate his son just a moment ago, was now completely petrified, remaining seated.

His face still held that stern expression that said, "I am your father."

However, his eyes were empty.

His lips twitched slightly.

He... he was exposed on the spot!

His prized, evolved "artificial voice pack" was actually... deciphered in reverse by his son's "food emoji pack"?!

This...this is simply a dimensional reduction attack!

Lin Wanwan looked at Xiao Che's face, which went from dignified to astonished, then to stiff, and finally to blank as if struck by lightning. Finally, she could no longer hold back.

"puff--"

She couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Then, it was as if a switch had been turned on.

Hahahaha!

Lin Wanwan laughed so hard she almost fell over, tears welling up in her eyes.

And our poor Emperor Emeritus, who was "publicly executed" by his son on the spot, just sat there stiffly.

He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something to salvage his dignity as a father.

But after a long time, he couldn't utter a single word.

He choked.

He was choked to death by his own son, who had surpassed him in ability.