Chapter 114
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“We.” Xue Yao briskly walked up to Lu Qian and solemnly said, “Your Highness, slipping out of the palace warrants a note to put everyone at ease. I can write that note for Your Highness.”
Lu Qian smirked, revealing a knowing smile, and pulled out a prepared note from his sleeve, handing it to the little reader-in-waiting.
Xue Yao took a look at it. It read, “Martial arts. Your son.”
“Is Your Highness sure about leaving only this note?” Xue Yao looked up with a serious expression. “If you only leave these four words, Your Highness had better not return to the palace.”
Puzzled, Lu Qian asked, “Why?”
“Because if you only leave these four words, the next time you return to the palace, Your Highness’ ears will be torn off by Consort Xi. With just one ear, you’ll no longer be the most handsome,” Xue Yao gently said, compassionately gazing at the naive prince.
Lu Qian’s slightly narrowed eyes widened in an instant.
“That’s right, your ears won’t stand a chance. That would be the better outcome. I’m more concerned about…” Xue Yao’s eyes took on an even more compassionate look.
“Concerned about what?” Lu Qian furrowed his brow slightly, unable to think of anything more terrifying than an ugly prince.
Xue Yao covered his mouth, choked up as he spoke, “I fear Your Highness’ head might also be knocked off by your Eldest Brother!”
Lu Qian took a sharp breath, nervously retorting, “Mother Consort and Big Brother are quite gentle in their actions.”
“That’s because Your Highness is still somewhat obedient!” Xue Yao’s eyes sharpened. “If the disobedient little wolf leaves the palace without permission, it will upset Mother Consort and Eldest Brother!”
Lu Qian lowered his eyes, the long, dense eyelashes partially shielding his tea-colored eyes that flickered with uncertainty.
Xue Yao persisted in his intimidation, “Does Your Highness prefer to keep the left ear or the right ear?”
Unwilling to sacrifice either ear, His Highness reached a compromise with the cunning little reader-in-waiting.
Xue Yao personally penned a heartfelt letter, then slipped away with the chubby cub.
To understand the inner workings of a rebellious teenager, one must first step into the life of a rebellious teenager.
Xue Yao joined the chubby cub in his mischief this time, curious to see what the cub would do after leaving the palace.
After leaving the city, Lu Qian took Xue Yao to an restaurant on the outskirts.
Lu Qian slapped a string of copper coins on the table, asking the proprietress for a serving of “Four Days Yaoyao.”
Xue Yao was completely bewildered, finding it hard to imagine that in the outskirts of the capital, there was a restaurant with a dish named “Four Days Yaoyao.”
Was the chubby cub ordering this dish because he loved the cuisine, or was it because he liked the name?
Xue Yao couldn’t wait to see the true nature of this dish.
Before long, the proprietress brought four freshly squeezed pitchers of milk to the table.
Xue Yao looked at the milk on the table: “……”
Was this dish “Four Days Yaoyao” actually “four days’ worth of milk”?
Suppressing the urge to flip the table, Xue Yao gritted his teeth and looked at the chubby cub, “Did Your Highness come up with this name yourself?”
The proprietress, pouring milk into Lu Qian’s bowl, laughed at the question and turned to Xue Yao. “This is the first time I’ve seen this young man bring a friend to our shop!”
Xue Yao nodded with a smile and asked, “I live quite far away and haven’t been here before. May I ask why the shop owner named these four pitchers of milk ‘Four Days Yaoyao’?”
The proprietress laughed again, covering her mouth. She explained, “The first time this young man came to our shop, I was adding milk for a customer. He stood next to me and pointed to the milk jug, saying ‘Give me a day yaoyao,’ and it took me a while to understand that ‘a day yaoyao’ meant a pitcher of milk. After that, each time this young man comes to our shop, he’d asked for several days yaoyao.”
Xue Yao’s mood was quite complex.
“Are you a friend of this young man?”
I am indeed Yaoyao, Xue Yao thought, but he just smiled and nodded.
“Birds of a feather flock together. In this place, it’s rare to find two people as handsome as you both. Young Master, does this young man also live in the capital?” The proprietress, finding Xue Yao easy to talk to, was suddenly delighted. “He doesn’t respond to anyone who tries to talk to him. Many customers and ladies inquire about him. Whenever he visits our shop, business thrives for two or three months. I wonder when he’ll come again.”
Xue Yao didn’t quite grasp the meaning behind her words.
What are the ladies asking about the chubby cub for?
Do they want to pinch his chubby cheeks?
Glancing blankly at the incredibly handsome Lu Qian beside him, the deeply ingrained image in Xue Yao’s mind finally became clearer.
Alright, must face the facts. This Long Aotian had successfully shed his weight before reaching a certain age, becoming attractive to young ladies.
Lu Qian was quite popular with women. Even during the most destitute exile period in the novel, he still captivated a legion of fangirls.
Women had a strange curiosity for guys who were both handsome and mysterious (communication-challenged) high-cold natural airheads.
While reading the novel, it seemed illogical because Lu Qian was someone who struggled with basic life skills. Xue Yao couldn’t understand why so many girls were eager to selflessly take care of him. It wasn’t until he came to this world and interacted with the chubby cub that he truly understood those girls’ actions.
Xue Yao just couldn’t stop taking care of him!
This Long Aotian exuded a unique genius aura but carried a bit of clumsy and helpless childishness in daily life. It made people unable to resist wanting to fill in his shortcomings, preserve his perfection, and gradually, it became a habitual selfless giving.
Not sure if raising this cub became addictive, but Xue Yao was already too deeply immersed!
Unable to reveal Lu Qian’s identity, Xue Yao playfully diverted the proprietress’ attention, then reached for the milk pitcher, only to have Lu Qian’s hand stop him.
Xue Yao looked at the chubby cub indignantly. “Your Highness, not giving me a sip? We brought so much money, it’s not like we can’t afford it. Why be so stingy!”
Lu Qian lifted the pitcher of milk at his bowl’s edge. “Save that ‘Three Days Yaoyao’ for the journey.”
“Who asked you to call the milk ‘yaoyao’!” Xue Yao, full of frustration, was as swollen with anger as the other three pots of “yaoyao” on the table.
Puzzled by why the little reader-in-waiting was glaring at him, Lu Qian, thought for a moment, took out “One Day Yaoyao” from “Three Days Yaoyao,” and generously gave it to the little reader-in-waiting.
“I don’t want milk!” Xue Yao was unwilling, feeling that for the chubby cub, he had been nothing but the most cherished food for over a decade.
He turned away, waiting for the chubby cubto coax him.
Xue Yao remained silent for a while.
Turning his head, he found the chubby cub already attentively adding honey to the milk.
Xue Yao snatched the bowl in front of Lu Qian. “No drinking! Promise me, no more calling milk ‘yaoyao’!”
“Why?” Lu Qian showed an unwilling look.
In over a year of travels, His Highness had visited the capital six times, avoiding his big brothers and Mother Consort. Even when searching for Xue Yao, he discovered Tong family’s informants in his residence.
For a child with no self-sufficiency and no family, enduring this was tough. The prince invented a method – treating milk as ‘Yaoyao’ and Master Xu as his fifth brother. This made the otherwise unfamiliar life somewhat more bearable.
Not just bearable, His Highness had gotten used to the silent ‘Yaoyao’ because the one who accompanied him in mischief, the one who played with him, the one who couldn’t understand the ways of the world – would one day leave, just like Father Emperor.
His Highness had to pre-adapt to the never-ending supply of ‘Milk Yaoyao.’ It might lack some functionality, but the milk wouldn’t abandon him.
“Because I am Your Highness’ Yaoyao!” Xue Yao expressed his jealousy over the milk. “Milk is just milk!”
Lu Qian’s eyes flickered with a hint of disappointment, like a critter hurt when its tail was stepped on. He lowered his head, no longer paying attention to the mischievous reader-in-waiting.
The two stayed overnight at an inn on the outskirts and the next day, Xue Yao followed the chubby cub as they left by boat.
Before boarding the ship, Xue Yao uncertainly said, “This direction doesn’t seem to be northwest.”
“Seem?” Lu Qian had given up on the reader-in-waiting’s sense of direction.
Fortunately, Eldest Brother encountered the little reader-in-waiting on his way back to the camp years ago, or else His Highness’ Yaoyao would have bid farewell to him prematurely.
Xue Yao immediately withdrew his foot from stepping onto the boat, alertly questioning the rebellious brat, “Where exactly do you want to go?”
“Where do you want to go?”
Xue Yao pointed in the opposite direction, “Northwest! Aren’t you supposed to find the Sword Saint for martial training?”
“If you go in the direction you’re pointing, we’ll be back at the palace.” Lu Qian reminded him.
Exposing Xue Yao’s weakness as a directionally challenged person, his mood instantly tensed. Unable to find a high-tech map for navigation, his fingertip drifted aimlessly, like a malfunctioning compass, rotating between the remaining two directions. “Anyway, we shouldn’t go that way!”
“Your Highness is heading to Jiangnan.” Lu Qian reached out, gripping Xue Yao’s wrist, helping him redirect the malfunctioning fingertip towards the correct southwest direction. “The Sword Saint doesn’t want Your Highness.”
“You’re not returning to Baixing Mountain?” Xue Yao asked in shock. “Then, what do you want to do in Jiangnan?”
Had this rebellious brat learned the ways of a place where poets and scholars indulge in romantic fantasies?
“The food there is delicious,” Lu Qian stated matter-of-factly. “Bashu is also good, but the journey is difficult. Will you go?”
Xue Yao: “……”
Just as he was about to educate the gluttonous cub about having aspirations, a man beside them shouted, “Thief! Thief! He just bumped into me, and my silver is gone! It’s him!”
“Nonsense, who stole your money? Any evidence?” A fair-faced young man retorted aggressively.
People waiting to board the ship glanced at the alleged victim, then at the accused thief. Without coordination, they instinctively checked their own pockets.
“I’ve lost my money too!”
“Catch the thief! Catch the thief!”
Amid the clamor, the fair-faced young man unexpectedly leaped over the crowd’s shoulders like a flying squirrel and made a swift escape!
Xue Yao frowned, watching the agile thief flee. When he turned back, he realized the person beside him was gone. Turning around to look, he saw Lu Qian comfortably seated on the ship.
“Why did you board the ship! We can’t go to Jiangnan. Let’s focus on the main task, go to Baixing Mountain to learn martial arts first before thinking about leisure!” Xue Yao waved from the shore.
The rebellious brat remained unmoved, resolutely refusing to disembark.
“Come down!” Xue Yao saw the boatman urging him to board and had a sudden idea. He felt his pockets and informed the chubby cub, “Oh no, my money pouch is missing. It must have been that thief just now. Quickly come down and help me chase the thief!”
The boatman impatiently shouted to Xue Yao, “Forget it, Young Master. That thief is an expert. No one can catch up with him. Even if you catch him, you can’t beat him. You might end up losing your clothes. Go to the pawnshop and exchange for money.”
“Who said I can’t beat him?” Xue Yao asked. “Since you know he’s a habitual offender, why not report to the authorities? Those commoners are also your passengers.”
The boatman laughed. “What if he finds out and causes trouble for me? I suggest you don’t bother. I just saw you being assisted by that young master in getting on the boat. With your skills, where can you compete with that thief? Even if you catch him, you’ll only be clinging to his legs, crying and begging him to return the money.”
Xue Yao was about to retort when he heard Lu Qian laugh along with the boatman!
Xue Yao immediately glared at the chubby cub! This little rascal with elbows pointing outward!
Startled by the eye daggers from the little reader-in-waiting, Lu Qian stopped laughing, turned serious, and threatened the boatman, “Let’s have a man-to-man duel.”
The boatman, having witnessed Lu Qian’s silent landing on the boat, didn’t want to offend him. He turned around with a forced smile, “Honorable guest, don’t be angry. I’ll take care of it myself.”
Xue Yao urged, “Quick, get off the boat. The thief is getting away. Your Highness’ travel funds are on me. Do you still want to drink ‘Three Days Yaoyao’ in the future?”
Lu Qian furrowed his brows, immediately leaped off the boat, and without a word, chased after the departing thief.
Xue Yao hadn’t had the chance to stop him yet.
The boatman was getting anxious, “Hey! Are you leaving or not? I need to pick up the next round!”
Xue Yao waved his hand. “Well then, go ahead. We’re not leaving.”
Waiting alone on the shore for a moment, Xue Yao saw Lu Qian returning with the thief, followed by a group of cheering locals.
The thief’s hands were restrained behind him by Lu Qian, struggling occasionally but futile. Step by step, he was pushed and brought in front of Xue Yao.
Lu Qian: “He doesn’t have your money pouch.”
Xue Yao: “……”
Of course, he wouldn’t find it because the money pouch was never lost.
“I told you I didn’t steal yours! Let go! When my master comes, you won’t get away with this!” The thief shouted defiantly.
Xue Yao coldly said, “I found my money pouch. It’s in my luggage. But this thief stole money from fellow villagers. Let the villagers take him to the authorities.”
As the words fell, Lu Qian suddenly raised his hand, as if catching something.
Xue Yao tried to see more clearly but felt his vision blur. Then, one by one, the crowd behind Lu Qian collapsed to the ground. Xue Yao tried to speak but gradually lost consciousness.
In a fleeting moment, Lu Qian felt something pierce through the air towards him. Instinctively, he raised his hand and caught a silver needle between his index and middle fingers. Just as he was about to examine it closely, he saw the little reader-in-waiting standing across from him collapse to the ground, unconscious.
“Has my master arrived? Master!” The thief looked around joyfully. Behind him, the youth had released his grip and rushed toward the fallen young man in a panic.
“Yaoyao?!”
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