Chapter 5
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
“Your Highness, riding a horse is not an urgent matter.” Xue Yao knew that it was best to change the subject. If this energetic cub were to become too eager, he couldn’t simply go horseback riding with the little prince by himself.
If things continued like this, it would further offend the Seventh Prince, so he quickly changed the subject, “Riding a real horse is not much different from a wooden one. Do you like those little things that fly in the sky? It happens to be kite-flying season recently, and I had the privilege to…”
The Seventh Prince impatiently interrupted him, raising his hands to mimic holding reins. His small body began to sway on the chair, while his mouth provided an accompaniment to his own actions, “Hiya! Hiya! Hiya… horsey, horsey hiya!”
Xue Yao’s face paled. The little prince was extremely eager to ride a horse. Knowing he shouldn’t stay too long, he stepped back and pretended to misunderstand the cub’s intent. “I understand. I’ll fix your wooden horse and return it in three days!”
“Um… um…” The Seventh Prince stopped his horse-riding actions, reaching out to beckon Xue Yao back and clarify his meaning.
His Highness wants to ride a real horse!
However, the Seventh Prince was still very young. Despite his exceptional memory, he mostly excelled at echoing others’ words. Expressing his own thoughts proved to be somewhat challenging.
Furthermore, he was eager to mount a horse right now. Seeing the little servant “misinterpret” his intentions only made him so flustered that he couldn’t speak.
Xue Yao didn’t dare to wait for this young and haughty princeling to issue commands. Anxiously, he turned to the palace maid and gave a courteous bow. “Asking Aunt for guidance. I will promptly relocate the wooden horse for repairs. Within a maximum of three days, I pledge to return it in its original state!”
The devoted palace maid, known as Aunt Yiqiu to all, served the Seventh Prince personally.
At this moment, Yiqiu wore a subtle, knowing smile, recognizing that this child, although not yet ten, possessed a shrewd mind.
She watched from the side, fully aware of Xue Yao’s intentions.
Now, the Seventh Prince’s desire to ride a horse presented an opportunity for Yiqiu to cause a little trouble for Xue Yao. After all, these followers of the Third Prince were as daring as they come. They dared to mock and insult her little lord!
So, Yiqiu smiled calmly. “The wooden horse has already taken a fall. When you repair it, you’ll have to glue it. But when glued, there will definitely be cracks. How can it possibly be returned in its original state? It seems like you’re taking advantage of our young lord. No need for such perfunctory actions!”
Xue Yao’s heart skipped a beat. “Aunt, rest assured, I’ve already discussed with a friend from the Imperial Crafts Bureau. Not only will we mend the wooden horse with glue, but we’ll also give it a fresh coat of paint. There won’t be the slightest trace of a crack.”
“Not seeing it doesn’t mean it isn’t there.”
At this moment, the Seventh Prince, who had been holding back for a while, finally expressed his own wish, “No wooden horse. This grandpa [lord/master] wants to ride a big horse!”
Xue Yao, who was initially nervous, couldn’t help but smile at the chubby little prince calling himself “grandpa.” A three-year-old referring to himself as “grandpa” had a somewhat endearing and quirky charm.
Yiqiu, upon hearing the prince’s request, knew that he was intentionally making things difficult for Xue Yao. She observed from the sidelines, wearing a cold smirk as she kept her gaze fixed on Xue Yao.
Xue Yao noticed that this palace maid had intentions to make things difficult for him. He lowered his head, his eyes shifting subtly, and then raised it with calm composure as he bowed to the prince. “If Your Highness wishes to ride a real horse, I will be there to supervise. We can borrow horses from the Third Prince since they are readily available. Just let Aunt make arrangements for Your Highness to free up some time, and I will be at your service.”
Yiqiu was taken aback by this. “Audacious! His Highness is still young. How can he ride a horse? If something goes wrong, can you bear the responsibility?”
Xue Yao remained unruffled. He looked at the palace maid with a faint smile. “I am deeply sorry for breaking His Highness’ wooden horse. I should be put to death for my mistake. Now, His Highness is giving me a chance to make amends, and I will do everything in my power, even if it means risking my life, to protect His Highness. As long as I can win His Highness’ favor, the rules and decisions are all in your hands, aren’t they?”
The Seventh Prince turned his head, his hopeful gaze shifting to Yiqiu.
Yiqiu’s face turned ashen in an instant, never expecting that an eight-year-old child would outsmart her, a woman in her twenties!
If Xue Yao couldn’t appease the Seventh Prince, he would lose his position as a reader-in-waiting. Since he couldn’t fulfill the promise of letting the prince ride a horse, he shifted the responsibility to Yiqiu. How could she not see the trouble coming?
Though Yiqiu was infuriated, she held her composure.
She had raised the Seventh Prince since he was a child and understood him better than anyone. This little one was different from the rest of the children. He possessed not only an incredible memory but also…
In any case, in front of her little lord, she always had to maintain a gentle and virtuous demeanor. She couldn’t afford to show any flaws.
Although she wanted to play a prank on the Third Prince’s attendant, at this moment, she was the one who might end up shouldering the blame. If Xue Yao went a step further and promised the Seventh Prince that he could ride a horse and framed it as her decision, then she would ultimately become the villain.
She couldn’t afford to take this loss, so her expression shifted. With a smiling face, she bent down to lift the Seventh Prince. “What time is it, Your Highness? Is your tummy hungry? Shall I take you to find your nursemaid?”
Although the Seventh Prince was hungry, his desire to ride a horse was clear in his chubby little hand pointing at Xue Yao, silently asking for a promise, but His Highness couldn’t articulate it.
Riding a real horse was absolutely out of the question. Without waiting for Xue Yao to respond, Yiqiu took the initiative to mediate. She instructed a young eunuch to accompany Xue Yao to retrieve the wooden horse, then turned to console the Seventh Prince, “That servant promised that within three days, he will definitely have the wooden horse repaired. Tomorrow, Your Highness will be able to hiya hiya hiya!”
Xue Yao had to yield without waiting for the Seventh Prince’s response. He turned and followed the young eunuch as they slipped away. Just as he crossed the threshold of the reception pavilion, he heard the furious command in a childish tone, “Chase him!”
Xue Yao ran as fast as he could!
This visit to apologize didn’t yield the desired results.
It turned out that the Seventh Prince held a grudge not against the damaged wooden horse but against Xue Yao’s broken promise.
It seemed the Long Aotian cub was initially upset about his wooden horse’s damaged ear and tail. However, he realized that riding a real horse must be much more fun. Hence, he eagerly awaited Xue Yao’s visits to fulfill his promise of taking him horse-riding.
With an excellent memory and a genuine desire to ride a horse, this seemingly trivial matter had been etched in the Long Aotian cub’s memory for several years, eventually turning into a deep-seated grudge.
But what could Xue Yao do?
Not to mention that he couldn’t take an underage prince to ride a horse, even if he managed to sneak the little prince out, Xue Yao himself was only eight years old. With no horse-riding experience, how could he ensure that the three-year-old child wouldn’t fall off the horse and get hurt?
If the Seventh Prince were to accidentally sustain a serious injury, not only would he risk losing his position as a reader-in-waiting, but the strict laws of Great Qi held the potential for exterminating his entire family!
With no other option, he had to restore the wooden horse to its original state and revoke the promise of horseback riding.
As soon as he exited Qingqiong Hall, he spotted Qinghe waiting for him outside, resembling the Mong Fu Shek [a stone that looks like a woman waiting for his husband’s return].
All the other attendants of the Third Prince were young eunuchs, already replaced by the Emperor. Only his fate, along with Qinghe’s, remained in the hands of the Seventh Prince. Although he didn’t accompany Xue Yao into the hall, Qinghe had anxiously waited outside for news.
Now, seeing Xue Yao walking out while carrying the wooden horse without anyone’s assistance, it was clear that he hadn’t been punished. Qinghe approached with joy and asked, “Did it go smoothly?”
Xue Yao frowned, pretending to be worried as he shook his head. “It’s hard to say. The Seventh Prince was very angry, and he even cried on the spot as soon as he saw me. Fortunately, Consort Xi wasn’t present in the hall, so no one could punish me. After a lot of coaxing, I managed to convince the Seventh Prince to let me repair the wooden horse, but there’s a condition. The wooden horse must be restored to its original state, with no visible cracks.”
Breathing deeply, Qinghe warmly took the wooden horse from Xue Yao’s hands. “You’ve worked hard. I knew you could handle it. If I had gone in to plead with the Seventh Prince, I wouldn’t have been able to secure the wooden horse. Repairing it should not be too difficult. Let’s make a trip to the Imperial Crafts Bureau to find the best craftsmen!”
Xue Yao didn’t say much, just nodded in agreement.
He thought to himself that it wouldn’t be easy to summon the best craftsmen. It would surely require spending some silver.
He had brought the five taels of silver he had won in the lottery before, which he had already exchanged for one ingot of broken silver. He planned to split the repair cost with Qinghe by contributing half of it.
If it were an ordinary carpenter’s shop in the market, repairing such a small toy would cost no more than a few dozen copper coins.
Adding a few layers of good paint would make it a bit pricier, but even one or two silver coins should cover it.
However, this was the Imperial Crafts Bureau, so Xue Yao had no certainty about the costs. He needed to gauge how much influence Qinghe had.
The two of them walked through half of the twelve Inner Palaces and arrived at the Imperial Crafts Bureau. The eunuch guarding the entrance warmly greeted Qinghe. Xue Yao followed closely behind, hoping to blend in.
Xue Yao wanted to oversee the work himself. After all, if the craftsmen did a hasty job and the ear or tail ended up crooked, attempting a second repair might ruin it irreparably.
However, he lacked Qinghe’s popularity and his eight-year-old host didn’t know much about Qinghe’s relationship with the eunuchs.
Xue Yao speculated from his host’s memories that Qinghe gained the favor of these eunuchs by assisting them in taking the rewards they received inside the palace and selling them outside to make money.
Eunuchs, despite having more freedom of movement compared to palace maids, seldom had the opportunity to leave the palace. Those dedicated to procuring goods outside often engaged in dubious dealings. If they were to receive five taels of silver, they’d pocket two for themselves. Unlike Qinghe, who was straightforward and accepted whatever he was given.
Additionally, Qinghe was a favorite of the Third Prince. Most likely, nobody would inspect his belongings. He was even safer than official eunuchs.
Xue Yao contemplated that he might use this method to win over eunuchs, especially the future seal-holding eunuch in the Directorate of Ceremonial, who should still be sweeping the floors in the Directorate of Palace Maintenance at this moment. This would be a golden opportunity for building a relationship.
Snapping back to reality, Qinghe had already been permitted to enter by the eunuch guarding the entrance. Xue Yao hastily raised his foot and stepped across the threshold.
Because this trip primarily relied on Qinghe’s influence, Xue Yao had been playing the role of a little follower, with no intention of participating in negotiations. However, to his surprise, Qinghe, who appeared rather shrewd, as soon as he found a familiar craftsman, exaggeratedly called out, “Uncle Liu! You must save me this time! My life is in your hands!”
Xue Yao’s face turned pale.
This idiot…
Although Xue Yao understood that Qinghe was trying to emphasize the urgency, so that Uncle Liu would do his best to restore the wooden horse, these words were a terrible choice!
If it were Xue Yao, he would have likely said, “This is a major incident. The wooden horse of the Seventh Prince, which was a gift from His Majesty, has been damaged. It’s been brought here for you to repair quickly, and it must be done properly.”
By phrasing it this way, the responsibility would fall squarely on Uncle Liu’s shoulders. If he messed up the Emperor’s gift, he’d be the one to suffer the consequences.
In contrast, Qinghe’s tearful approach was aimed to get Uncle Liu to sell him a favor. But people care most about their own interests, so how could Uncle Liu care too much about Qinghe’s life?
This way, he might end up being manipulated by the other party.
It seemed that Xue Yao had an uncanny understanding of the situation. The craftsman pretended to take careful measurements and fiddled around with the wooden horse for a while before patting it. “Repairing this is straightforward, but if you want to hide the cracks, you’ll need to match the original paint. I hear that the paint used by the palace is exclusive, and it’s not cheap. So, who’s going to cover the cost, you or your master?”
Xue Yao hastily tried to interrupt, wanting to say that the master would cover the expenses to avoid the craftsman’s exorbitant demands.
However, the impatient Qinghe beat him to it. “How can we expect my master to pay! I’ll have to make the sacrifice myself!”
Xue Yao: “……”
The craftsman grumbled a bit, seemingly complaining, but a satisfied expression crept onto his face, knowing he could now ask for whatever price he pleased.
If you enjoy this novel, support the Translator ginevre on her ko-fi account :))
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
