Chapter 102
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
“If you… if you’re hungry, I’ll go inform the kitchen,” Fu Nian hurriedly got up after realizing what was happening, distancing himself from Chu Zhaoyi, and quickly walked toward the hall.
“What’s the matter, Lord Fu?”
“Li Gonggong, His Majesty says he’s hungry…”
“This servant will go inform the palace kitchen…”
“Thank you, Gonggong.”
After a brief exchange with Li Gonggong, Fu Nian didn’t enter the room. He wrapped himself tightly in his fur coat and walked to the carved railing, leaning over to look outside.
The wet nurse and the imperial physician were long gone.
Since he carried this little life and gave birth, Fu Nian hadn’t had a single day of leisure. Finally, when she was born, he didn’t get to see her for long before she was taken away.
Now that his mobility had returned, Fu Nian planned to sneak into the imperial physician’s quarters later in the evening to see her.
After dinner, Chu Zhaoyi returned to his study to handle state affairs. Fu Nian didn’t follow him and instead walked to the training ground, taking out his dusty short blade.
The imperial physician had repeated it a thousand times, saying that there had been too much bleeding during childbirth, and for the next month, he needed to rest well. As a result, during this period, even though he was no longer confined by the pregnancy, his name was missing from the duty roster.
Fu Nian turned the short blade in his hand, and it was obvious that his swordsmanship was not as smooth as before. He wasn’t in a hurry and continued to review step by step.
“Senior Brother!”
Hearing someone call him from behind, Fu Nian sheathed his blade.
“Senior Brother, where have you been during this time? I went to Chengyuan Hall to find you, but they wouldn’t allow me to see you. They said it was something profound and unfathomable,” Fu Bie said, looking at Fu Nian up and down. “Senior Brother, it’s been several days… ” Whether it was an illusion or something else, Fu Bie always felt that his Senior Brother had lost some weight compared to before.
“As members of the Shadow Guard, it’s our duty to conceal our whereabouts, it’s not just a responsibility but also for the Emperor’s safety,” he lied without any hint of embarrassment.
“Oh,” Fu Bie nodded as if he understood. He couldn’t recall Instructor Chu, who had taught them, ever hiding his whereabouts, but he didn’t press the matter further.
Fu Nian asked Fu Bie to demonstrate the sword manual for him and corrected a few improper movements.
Although Fu Nian didn’t want to mention his master, Fu Zhen, from the Distant Moon Sect, the swordsmanship, blade skills, and the methods of making poison and concealed weapons in the Distant Moon Sect were indeed worth passing on.
Fu Bie had a good foundation, probably because he had endured a lot of beatings since childhood.
“Little Bie, watch me. When you sheath the sword here, press your wrist downward,” Fu Nian instructed for a while. Seeing that Fu Bie still hadn’t changed it, he broke a dry branch to serve as a sword and demonstrated it to him. “When you pull it back, step back with your left foot, and then…” After finishing his explanation, Fu Nian leaped up and pointed the wooden sword towards the plum tree. “Finally, draw the sword.”
After the demonstration, Fu Nian put down the branch. “Now try it.”
“Alright! I’ve seen Senior Brother Nineteen perform this move many times before, but Senior Brother Nineteen’s movements are too fast for me to see clearly…” Fu Bie’s voice got quieter as he spoke, seemingly realizing that he had said something wrong.
“Yeah, his long swordsmanship has always been exceptional,” Fu Nian replied expressionlessly. As he mentioned it, the images of those soul-rending scenes from the Death Soul Incense surfaced once again.
Fu Bie quickly changed the subject. “By the way, Senior Brother, have you heard? They say His Majesty recently had a princess, born to the Empress, but…”
Fu Nian’s movements with the blade suddenly paused.
Hearing this, his expression changed, and he interrupted, “Do not speculate about the Emperor’s family matters. Haven’t you learned the usual etiquette and rules?”
He couldn’t tell Fu Bie that he had been absent during this time because he had just given birth to a daughter.
Fu Bie pursed his lips. “Senior Brother, it’s not like you’re an outsider. Talking to Senior Brother about it, does it count as speculation? Also, Senior Brother, I’ve heard some rumors lately. They say you are a high-ranking member of the Emperor’s Shadow Guard, and it seems someone overheard Instructor Chu mentioning it when he was drunk…”
“Senior Brother?”
Fu Bie hadn’t finished speaking when he realized that his Senior Brother had disappeared without a trace.
The title of the Crown Princess, Ningfu, coincided with the Full Moon and fell in the early part of the first month, overlapping with the Lantern Festival. As a result, all officials were granted three days of rest, and a general amnesty was declared throughout the empire.
The Full Moon Banquet was also unprecedented in scale, with everyone in the Xiqian Palace receiving a share of lucky money, and the same went for the celebratory wine. Everyone in the palace was allowed to come and have a cup. The old people in the palace said that the last time such a grand event took place was during the Emperor’s wedding.
During the Full Moon Banquet, the Empress was once again absent, citing “poor health.”
Fu Nian stood behind the curtain and, through the gaps, watched from a distance as the wet nurse held Chu Zhoushu. The little one was soft and small, and she smiled happily whenever she saw anyone.
Fu Nian watched as Chu Zhaoyi and the distant uncles from who knows where, alternated their gaze between the wet nurse carrying little Chu Zhoushu. The female members at his side even used their jeweled hands to tease the child. Fu Nian clenched the short blade in his hand as he watched.
Fortunately, Chu Zhaoyi was somewhat protective and promptly stopped the female relatives from trying to touch little Chu Zhoushu. However, after a while, he had the wet nurse take her away.
Only then did Fu Nian relax his grip on the short blade.
After three rounds of drinking, Fu Nian changed into the attire of a eunuch, concealing his prosthetic limb. When Chu Zhaoyi called someone over to pour wine, Fu Nian quietly took the place of a young eunuch who had been serving, appearing behind Chu Zhaoyi. “Your Majesty, you’ve had enough to drink.”
“Pour the wine. Where is the person?” The banquet was noisy, and Chu Zhaoyi didn’t hear the faint voice behind him.
Naturally, Fu Nian remained motionless and silent.
Impatiently, Chu Zhaoyi tapped the wine vessel and scolded, “I told you to pour—”
Before he could finish his sentence, Chu Zhaoyi saw those familiar eyes behind him. Although his face bore an ugly scar, the deep gaze couldn’t be concealed by disguises.
“Ah Nian…”
Fu Nian didn’t move or respond, simply standing there.
“Yi Er, if the Gonggong doesn’t understand etiquette, just replace him. Servants, no matter how much you teach them, some can’t change their unruly nature. Why get angry over such a trivial matter?” A distant royal uncle kindly suggested.
Chu Zhaoyi turned back, chuckled awkwardly, and picked up a cold tea cup on the side, sipping it sip by sip.
After the banquet, Fu Nian, still dressed as a Gonggong, supported Chu Zhaoyi away from the dining table with one hand.
As they walked through the Imperial Garden, Fu Nian felt Chu Zhaoyi’s entire weight pressing against his back.
“Qingqing, say something, are you angry?”
Fu Nian: …
If it weren’t for the fact that the person behind him was Chu Zhaoyi, he would have covered his mouth.
“Qingqing, I won’t drink that much anymore. Qingqing, I shouldn’t have yelled at you…”
“Qingqing, say something, sob sob sob, I’m a barbarian, I haven’t been tamed, I haven’t…”
“Can you please stop making noise?” Fu Nian couldn’t bear it any longer and whispered.
He wasn’t angry because of a few words from those distant royal relatives. His displeasure stemmed from the fact that they had been drinking and then tried to play with little Chu Zhoushu.
“Qingqing, sob sob sob sob sob sob…”
Fu Nian glanced around and noticed that Li Gonggong, who had always been taking care of Chu Zhaoyi, was not around. There was only one high-ranking Gonggong whom he was somewhat familiar with. “Gao Gonggong, His Majesty has had quite a lot to drink.”
“Let me handle it,” Gao Gonggong hastily took over.
“Qingqing, Qingqing, Ah Nian…”
Gao Gonggong asked, “What’s wrong with His Majesty?”
Fu Nian replied, “His Majesty is speaking in the dialect of his hometown. He said he wants to splash cold water on his face to sober up.”
Gao Gonggong nodded and said, “I understand!”
When going to the infirmary to see little Zhoushu, he happened to bump into the wet nurse soothing her to sleep, appearing to be quite excited due to the festivities of the day.
Although Fu Nian had not been drinking, the scent of alcohol still clung to him. He didn’t approach too closely, just observed from behind the semi-transparent gauze screen, tilting his head for a while.
Only after the baby fell asleep did Fu Nian reluctantly leave.
Back in the palace, Chu Zhaoyi was rubbing his temples and looking at the books on his desk.
“Is His Majesty awake now?” Fu Nian approached, showing concern.
Chu Zhaoyi didn’t raise his head. “Thanks to Ah Nian.”
Fu Nian replied, “Your Majesty, there’s no need to thank me.”
“Today… mainly because I finally got a daughter and wanted to show off to those imperial relatives,” Chu Zhaoyi said after a moment of silence. “They tried to touch Shu Er, but I stopped them immediately. And, I might have had a few extra drinks. About a dozen or so. I won’t do it again, Ah Nian, don’t be mad.”
“I wasn’t angry,” Fu Nian replied.
“Then how about going out together tomorrow? The lantern festival in the capital is quite lively…”
“Leaving the palace tomorrow?” Fu Nian, who wasn’t really angry about the little incident in the first place, and lost his sleepiness when he heard the Lantern Festival being mentioned. “Really?”
“Yes, really. With the baby’s full moon celebration, I finally have some free time. When we were in the North, no matter how tense the situation was, we always went to the temple fair during the Lantern Festival, bought some sweet soup, and then went to the temple to draw a fortune slip. It felt like all our troubles could be resolved,” replied Chu Zhaoyi.
Hearing this, Fu Nian suddenly laughed, completely dispelling the gloom that had hung over him during the banquet.
Chu Zhaoyi also smiled.
The capital was lively in the first month, especially during the Lantern Festival. As the sun set, the streets came alive with hawkers and street vendors calling out their wares.
After leaving the palace, Chu Zhaoyi and Fu Nian rode in a carriage for a while before reaching the bustling city center, where they switched to walking.
The two had changed into simple commoner attire for the day, with a few patches here and there.
Even so, the two of them, dressed this way, appeared as though they were the offspring of fallen nobility—short on money but not on pride.
As night fell, Fu Nian’s movements became somewhat awkward.
To maintain the illusion, they both wore coarse underclothes. Unfortunately, these were too tight against their bodies, and the friction with their skin made it uncomfortable when they moved.
The pain in his chest intensified.
What was supposed to be a joyful outing had now become difficult for Fu Nian to enjoy due to the strange sensations in his chest.
“Ah Yi, let’s take a short break,” Fu Nian said, glancing around nervously. Eventually, he spotted a stall selling almond tea and gestured towards it.
After buying a portion, the two of them sat down together. Their heights and the short-legged chairs and tables didn’t quite match. Fu Nian was fine, tall but slender, and his prosthetic limb could be arranged comfortably. Chu Zhaoyi, on the other hand, was very constrained.
— His deep gray linen clothing already looked out of place on him, and now he was forced to hunch over the low stool, looking like a giant who had wandered into a land of dwarves.
Fu Nian glanced at Chu Zhaoyi, whose discomfort was evident in his posture and expression, but he held back his laughter.
Just as he was about to laugh, the sensation of friction in his chest resurfaced, and he couldn’t help but grit his teeth and take a deep breath.
Clearly, before leaving the house, he had dealt with this alone, squeezing out excessive amounts and pouring two bowls into the sink.
“What’s wrong?” Chu Zhaoyi noticed that Fu Nian’s expression was off. “Are you feeling unwell, or tired?”
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
