The Emperor was very satisfied with Jing-wang. During the banquet he thought about many things, frequently looking over in Jing-wang’s direction.
After the birthday banquet finished, the Emperor summoned Jing-wang for a private conversation.
Li Yu just returned to the crystal bottle from Taiye pond and didn’t have a chance to follow. He could only wait outside of Ganqing Palace together with Wang Xi.
While they waited, Wang Xi pulled out a lot of red colored fish food and peach blossom cookies. Jing-wang’s birthday presents were successful; Wang-gonggong felt like Master Xiao Yu was the main contributor here and really deserved to be rewarded.
Just now, Li Yu didn’t eat any of the fish food that the 6th Prince tossed into the water. The prideful fish didn’t even give them a single glance and focused wholeheartedly on swimming around vigorously in front of the Emperor, not even feeling tired at all. Now that Wang-gonggong was feeding him, Li Yu finally felt the hunger and swiftly gobbled everything up with large gulps, stuffing both of his cheeks full.
“Master fish, you can slow down.” Wang Xi said with a smile.
Li Yu was just devouring food ravenously when he suddenly heard footsteps.
Excited, Li Yu looked over with food in his mouth. However, he immediately realized that the footsteps came from outside of the palace, so it shouldn’t be Jing-wang.
Li Yu very quickly caught sight of Mu TianXiao(6)’s cultured, friendly face.
…… it was actually the 6th Prince?
Li Yu was somewhat disappointed. Why hasn’t this guy left yet?
He probably came over to wait for an audience with the Emperor, yet unexpectedly encountered Wang Xi and fish.
Mu TianXiao(6) also saw fish. The 6th Prince had been wanting to take a closer look at this fish for a long time. Immediately, he walked closer.
“6th Prince, please stop!” Brows furrowed, Wang Xi warned him.
“As his younger brother, can’t I take a look at the fish that 5th elder brother raised?” The 6th Prince said with a smile that’s not quite a smile.
What was he planning to do?
Li Yu was so nervous he forgot to swallow the food in his mouth. He secretly gathered plenty of force in the tip of his tail. If the 6th Prince dared to do anything to him, then Li Yu dared slap him back!
“6th Prince.” Wang Xi protected the crystal bottle securely in his arms and warned again: “This is my prince’s fish. Without his highness’s permission, you may not come any closer.”
Mu TianXiao(6)’s expression turned somewhat cold: “What, are you treating me with disdain as well?”
Wang Xi said neutrally: “This servant is not treating you with disdain. However, even though I am only a servant, I also know that to take something without asking first is called stealing. 6th Prince, you insist on coming over to look at fish when my prince is not here, why’s that?”
After Wang Xi finished talking, Li Yu almost applauded him– if his two fins could actually reach, that is.
QQQ. Wang-gonggong actually rebuked the 6th Prince for fish. Fish feels really touched!
Wang Xi refused to back down. Mu TianXiao(6) was very embarrassed. Probably figuring that starting an argument in front of Ganqing Palace with Jing-wang’s personal servant would be hard to explain, Mu TianXiao(6) very quickly smoothed out his expression and said voluntarily: “No need to be nervous. I only wanted to take a brief look. If it’s not allowed, then forget it.”
Mu TianXiao(6) entered the palace without consulting anyone. However, he was very quickly invited back out politely by the inner servants guarding the palace.
Mu TianXiao(6) gave Wang Xi a sideways glance, turned around and left.
Looks like the 6th Prince’s request to see the Emperor was not successful. The Emperor didn’t want to see the 6th Prince at all.
Finally, he left. Li Yu could relax somewhat.
Luo RuiSheng brought Jing-wang out of the palace. Wang Xi hastily carried Li Yu over to greet him.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Your highness, you are finally out!” All smiles, Wang Xi handed over the crystal bottle. Jing-wang’s habit was to always immediately look at fish first thing.
Alcu-kjcu jmmfqafv atf mgsraji ybaaif tlwrfio jcv ragbxfv olrt’r rwbbat yjmx.
Ol Te lwwfvljafis cehhifv yjmx jujlcra tlw tjqqlis.
Ktf Swqfgbg tjv mbcnfgrfv klat Alcu-kjcu obg atlr ibcu. Po tlr vgjubc tfjga kjr reqfg vfilutafv jcv vlgfmais ujnf Alcu-kjcu atf alaif bo mgbkc qglcmf, tbk ugfja kbeiv atja yf? Qtja 3gv Uglcmf, ktja 6at Uglcmf? Cii bo atbrf rmew kbeiv tjnf ab rajcv jrlvf.
Li Yu almost made himself laugh from his own imagination. But how could fighting for the throne be this easy. He knew he was just indulging in fantasies and was just amusing himself, that’s all.
However, even if Jing-wang wasn’t directly given the crown prince title, he still received a reward right?
Li Yu secretly glanced at Jing-wang’s face color. Jing-wang was not sad nor happy. Li Yu felt like the reward was a bit different this time.
Jing-wang expressed to Wang Xi with his eye expression: To ChangChun Palace.
Wang Xi made a noise of acknowledgement and started to lead the way in the front. This was the first time Li Yu was heading to Changchun Palace. It made him think about a certain unresolved secret that was related to ChangChun Palace. He once attempted to ask Jing-wang about it, but discovered that Jing-wang had no impression of this matter. If Li Yu wanted to completely understand this secret, he can only think it over himself.
Actually Li Yu thought about whether he should ask Jing-wang to bring him to ChangChun Palace or not before. However, he couldn’t think of a good excuse. ChangChun Palace was the residence of the deceased Empress after all. For him to suddenly mention that he wanted to go take a look was very impolite. Also if he entered the palace in human form, he’d have to pay attention to the time. If he begged Jing-wang to take him and Jing-wang agreed, but then he ends up “disappearing”, it’d be too inexcusable. However, there was no way for him to ask this request to Jing-wang as a fish.
Li Yu originally planned to wait until Empress Xiao Hui’s birthday. In the original novel, it mentioned that Jing-wang would definitely go to ChangChun Palace to make an offering. Li Yu wanted to wait until that time. Jing-wang normally brought fish along everywhere. If he didn’t plan to bring fish, then fish would have bothered Jing-wang until he did. In any case, Li Yu would have successfully entered ChangChun Palace. By that time, perhaps he would have automatically figured out the secret?
Unexpectedly, on the Emperor’s birthday, before Empress Xiao Hui’s birthday arrived, Jing-wang decided to head over there for some unknown reason.
Because Jing-wang mentioned going to ChangChun Palace after conversing with the Emperor, perhaps the Emperor had ordered it?
Li Yu carefully looked at Jing-wang’s face color. Jing-wang should have been rewarded. Why would he look so serious……
The entourage of people soon reached ChangChun Palace.
After seeing the scenery around ChangChun Palace for the first time, Li Yu was even more certain that the location shown inside the secret was ChangChun Palace. The roof tiles were decorated extremely similar to what he saw in the System. Also from what he heard from Wang Xi’s rambling, after the deceased Empress passed away, no other concubines moved into ChangChun Palace; it hasn’t been renovated for a long time.
The main hall of Changchun Palace was all dark. Jing-wang ordered Wang Xi to light up a lamp. Cloths used for memorial services hung everywhere inside the main hall. A square table enshrined Empress Xiao Hui’s memorial tablet.
Jing-wang placed the crystal bottle on the table. Wang Xi took out three incense sticks. Jing-wang lit them up himself, walked in front of the memorial tablet and respectfully kowtowed three times.
When Li Yu entered the palace with Jing-wang, he immediately started to look all over for the cloth tiger doll. However, he actually couldn’t manage to find it right now. Because fish form was too inconvenient, he could only give up temporarily.
While Jing-wang was making the offering to Empress Xiao Hui, Li Yu looked at his figure in a daze. He couldn’t help but recall that Jing-wang had already brought him to see the elders at ChengEn Palace Estate. Now, he brought Li Yu to ChangChun Palace; Empress Xiao Hui was Jing-wang’s birth mother.
Li Yu suddenly realized this and hastily followed Jing-wang to bow his fish body towards the direction of the memorial tablet. Because everything happened so suddenly, fish didn’t have anything prepared. He can only say sincerely in his heart: “Your majesty, if your spirit is still present, please protect his highness Jing-wang……”
From the corner of his eyes, Jing-wang saw fish nodding its head and waving its tail. Thinking briefly, he was able to guess Xiao Yu’s intent and smiled contently.
After fish finished ‘bowing,’ Jing-wang sat down and stroked him. Even through the crystal bottle, Li Yu could feel Jing-wang’s heavy hearted mood.
What’s the matter? Did you not get rewarded just now, but instead got reprimanded?
“Your highness, what’s the matter?” Wang Xi also asked somewhat worriedly.
Jing-wang lightly shook his head, gaze shifting outside of the palace briefly. Wang Xi understood what he was saying: they were still inside the imperial palace; it’s not a good place to talk.
Jing-wang sat about a teacup of time and then brought Wang Xi and Li Yu out of the imperial palace.
It wasn’t until after they returned to the Jing Estate that Wang Xi and Li Yu learned that the Emperor didn’t actually reward Jing-wang for his birthday presents. Instead, he sent Jing-wang away to the West Frontier for a period of time.
To say it another way, the Emperor’s ‘reward’ to Jing-wang was ordering Jing-wang to leave the Imperial City.
What’s going on? Why did it get like this?
Li Yu couldn’t figure it out. The Emperor looked pretty happy when he was looking at the ‘longevity’ word that the fishes formed. He even mentioned wanting to hang Tang Yin’s painting inside GanQing Palace. Why would he suddenly fall out with Jing-wang?
Li Yu thought his performance was perfect, but perhaps there was still an issue with the fish formation, or perhaps he shouldn’t have overdone it and presented the lotus flower to the Emperor?
But if he didn’t do that, after the fish formation scattered, the Emperor would have been disappointed as well……
- The heart of an emperor was too hard to fathom for a fish!
Li Yu self-reflected. Wang Xi also felt unfair for Jing-wang and rambled a bit. Jing-wang gestured for Wang Xi to withdraw.
Wang-gonggong left. The more that Li Yu thought about it, the more he felt like it was his fault. He couldn’t even eat the fish food and peach blossom cookies that Wang Xi gave him anymore. Instead, he repeatedly thought about all of the events that happened during the birthday banquet.
He still couldn’t figure it out and was full of remorse. Li Yu saw that Jing-wang left a small light and sat by the windows. The darkness of the night made the young man’s handsome face hard to discern.
The sky was already dark. After toiling for an entire day, Jing-wang still didn’t go rest. Perhaps he was just like Li Yu, thinking too much and unable to sleep.
It wouldn’t be good to continue like this.
Li Yu shook his head. At a place where Jing-wang couldn’t see, he changed to his human form, walked to the window and regretfully called out: “Your highness.”
Raising his head and seeing Li Yu, Jing-wang had a smile in his eyes as he beckoned for Li Yu to come over.
Li Yu suddenly realized. Perhaps Jing-wang wasn’t resting not because he couldn’t stop thinking about what happened, but rather because he was waiting for Li Yu.
“Your highness, I’m sorry. I, I did my best. I didn’t know this would happen……”
Li Yu explained with a stammer, feeling very sulky inside. Didn’t the web novels all say that in order to fight for the throne, one had to curry favor from the Emperor? How come even though fish made the Emperor happy, it ended up causing harm? Did the Emperor think Jing-wang harbored ill intentions now that he was trying to curry favor?
How come fish couldn’t share his random luck with Jing-wang?
Seeing Li Yu misunderstand, Jing-wang shook his head repeatedly. He held Li Yu’s hand and patted him. Then, he pointed at the painting on the wall.
Li Yu guessed for a while and got the general gist of the other’s meaning. Jing-wang was saying: It’s not his fault, Jing-wang also gifted the Emperor a painting himself.
Li Yu sniffled and asked with uncertainty: “You really don’t blame me, your highness?”
Jing-wang shook his head again and squeezed Li Yu’s hand tight.
It was hard to explain with only a few gestures. Jing-wang kissed Li Yu’s lips and then carried Li Yu onto his lap.
Li Yu: ???
Li Yu was shocked. What kind of time was this? Jing-wang was still thinking about tofu?
Was Jing-wang afraid he wouldn’t be able to come back; he wanted to enjoy a meal to the fullest extent?
Just like how he suddenly went to Changchun Palace, was it also because it might not be convenient for him to make offerings in the future anymore?
Li Yu felt extremely distressed. In any case, fish didn’t have anything else, but he had plenty of tofu. There’s no harm in making Jing-wang a bit happier.
Grinding his teeth, Li Yu wrapped his arms around Jing-wang’s neck.
Jing-wang was faintly stunned by Li Yu ‘s sudden boldness. Thinking about something, he smiled and then straightened up the body that Li Yu leaned over. He held Li Yu’s hand and spread open a piece of paper together with him.
Li Yu instantly flushed red. So they were sitting like this, not because Jing-wang wanted to eat tofu, but because…… he wanted to write.
Holding Li Yu, Jing-wang wrote: “Thank you for your hard work. You’re very good. No need to worry. Father wasn’t actually mad at me.”
“Really?” Li Yu didn’t really believe it: “Then why would the Emperor want you to leave, your highness?”
In the original novel, it mentioned that the West Frontier was a barren, inhospitable environment and not very well off. It’s not like the Emperor wanted Jing-wang to take a vacation there, right?
“Father didn’t take away my nobility status.” Jing-wang wrote heavily, with emphasis.
Li Yu chewed on this sentence repeatedly. His eyes lit up. Didn’t take away his nobility, what did this mean?
When the Emperor spurned the 2nd Prince, he didn’t even give him the status of wang and only gave the 2nd Prince the title of a marquis. The other princes didn’t even have any titles so far.
Meanwhile Jing-wang’s title of Wang was actually something that the Emperor gave him out of guilt and compensation. If the Emperor really got angry and expelled Jing-wang out of the Imperial City out of fury, he definitely wouldn’t have allowed Jing-wang to keep his nobility status.
“Can it be– the Emperor ordered you to the West Frontier, not as a punishment, but……”
Li Yu was about to blurt out the answer, but Jing-wang quickly pressed a finger against his lips and made a shush gesture.
The Emperor didn’t actually say anything clearly. He only told Jing-wang to go to the West Frontier; when he arrived, there would be a more detailed imperial order waiting for him.
Jing-wang also couldn’t figure it out at first. Later, he faintly guessed the Emperor’s intent by the fact that the Emperor had Luo RuiSheng bring him out. Jing-wang really felt like he figured it out, but it definitely can’t be said out loud. The Emperor wanted him to go to the West Frontier, so he could only follow the order and head over.
In accordance, Li Yu covered his own mouth with his hands. However, his insides instantly started churning.
In ancient times when fathers kicked their sons out of the house, if it’s not a punishment, then it was a test.
Another question should be asked then. Why would the Emperor test Jing-wang?
Because there’s hope now, so naturally, he’d want to put Jing-wang to the test. Before, the Emperor rarely got involved in Jing-wang’s life; this was ultimately because the Emperor didn’t have any expectations for Jing-wang. So naturally, he didn’t care how Jing-wang was.
Now that there’s hope, it meant that going to the West Frontier wasn’t actually a bad thing.
After Li Yu thought it through, his grief turned into happiness: “Your highness, when…when are you leaving?”
Jing-wang wrote: “Immediately, in the next few days. You just stay and take good care of yourself inside the estate. Wang Xi will take care of you.”
Although Jing-wang felt like he probably understood the Emperor’s intent, the West Frontier was barren. Jing-wang didn’t want Xiao Yu to follow him over there. Plus, the journey itself was exhausting. Jing-wang was also afraid Xiao Yu wouldn’t be able to handle it. Therefore, he instinctively wanted Xiao Yu to remain in the Imperial City.
He hasn’t really treated Xiao Yu well yet, how can he let Xiao Yu follow him and suffer?
Li Yu, who learned that he was about to be left behind: ???
Oh fck, Jing-wang was about to go to the West Frontier. Wasn’t this “share happiness and suffering, for better or for worse”?
“No, your highness. I’m staying where you’re staying. If you have to go, then we’re going together!” Li Yu loudly declared the proper answer.
Translator’s notes:
thanks for the chapter!
right it’s not safe to leave him behind
Hmmmmm, I wonder how long that trip is? Li Yu would have to convince Jing-Wang to take the fish, and also, Li Yu would need to conveniently “disappear” and reappear along the way…
OMG IT’S COMING YAYYYYY 💕👏
Thank You for the chapter (♡ >ω< ♡)
Don’t abandon your fish! Thanks for the update 🤣❤️
It’s time to reveal you identity, Yu Yu
oop- king are you seeing if he’ll be suitable? he very much is sir! we promise!!