Pain erupted over Li Changyu’s sore abdomen and radiated up to his injured shoulder before he heard the loud cry of a small child.
“Father, Father, wake up!” Jin Haoran bounced on top of him. Though his frame was small because he was an omega, it didn’t lessen the fact his bony knees could jab.
“Tsss!” Li Changyu hissed and winced. On the child’s third bounce, Li Changyu snatched the back of the boy’s collar with the hand of his good arm and dangled him in the air easily.
Hmph, not even a full day yet and I’m interrupted. They arrived back just yesterday evening, and after dealing with so many dramatics from Su Ao and Jin Qiuye, he managed to get some sleep despite the pain. However, it seemed that he wouldn’t be able to sleep in.
“Little Prince!” Su Ao skidded through the doorway, his cheeks flushed and hat askew. He caught his breath when he saw Jin Haoran and hurried over. “Little Prince, you know better than to disturb His Majesty’s rest!”
Jin Haoran stuck his lip, his cheeks puffed like a chipmunk’s. With his bright purple eyes and earthen colored hair, he looked like a much cuter, rounder version of Jin Xiyan. The way he pouted was much too like the little Prince’s Emperor Father. Even like this, Li Changyu could tell that Jin Haoran would grow up to be a stunning beauty. Li Changyu let out a sigh.
Pity that you are cursed with that Emperor’s good looks.
(Somewhere, Jin Xiyan was already awake and enjoying a good book, when he suddenly sneezed.)
Li Changyu lowered the boy into his lap and grunted when he moved to sit up. Jin Haoran sat obediently curled up against Li Changyu. The boy’s little arms could barely reach around Li Changyu’s now much broader waist as he clung to him. The affection made Li Changyu’s heart melt.
How did this dog Emperor get to be blessed with such an adorable son?
(“Achoo!” The second sneeze wracked through Jin Xiyan’s entire body.)
“Haoran,” Li Changyu did not know how Jin Xiyan addressed his Children, so he went with just his name. “Why are you here? Where is your Nanny?”
Jin Haoran leaned back to look up at Li Changyu. Again his lower lip jutted out, but his eyes roamed elsewhere in a very guilty way.
“Umm…this one let Nanny Xu sleep in. She works much too hard! Emperor Father always says to act with consideration to Elders.”
Li Changyu couldn’t help but laugh. Some would argue that it was Li Changyu’s bad influence that made Jin Xiyan evade the palace Nannies and Eunuchs as a child. Truth be told, when he was a young Prince, Jin Xiyan had long been escaping the eyes of keepers well before they even met! Hearing Jin Haoran speak like this, Li Changyu shook his head.
Cannot lie but creates mischief anyway. This boy is truly your son.
(“Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!”
At this point, Meimei had grown concerned over her Master. He’d just returned back from the hunting camp with an injured arm and if what Bowen said were true, His Highness suffered greatly! Then there was the matter of a possible pregnancy… If His Majesty finds out Li Changyu is sick…Oh no! Fretting, she piled even more blankets on top of “Li Changyu” and cried out.
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.
“Call for Physician Li!”)
Jin Haoran waved a chubby, dismissive hand. “But this Royal Son has important things to discuss with Emperor Father!”
“Oh?” Li Changyu arched a brow.
A cute smile lit up the boy’s round face, “Since Emperor Father arrived early, Xiao Ran wants to discuss his birthday!”
Birthday? “Birthday?”
“Uh-huh!”
“Um…well, when is this birthday?”
In an instant, that smile fell, and the boy’s large eyes blinked up at him. When the boy’s lower lip trembled, so did the muscles of Li Changyu’s heart.
“Did…did Emperor Father forget my birthday? But Emperor Father remembers my birthday every year!!”
Shit! Li Changyu mentally hit his forehead. You might be a dog Emperor, but you are probably a good Father. That is some blessing at least!
(“Achoo!” “Quickly, get thicker robes for His Highness!”)
Quickly covering up his slip of the tongue with a chuckle, Li Changyu rubbed the top of Jin Haoran’s head and lied. “Zhen had much trouble during the hunt, and was injured. Surely such a good Son can understand that Zhen can be a little muddleheaded?”
Jin Haoran studied his Emperor Father intently. There was a familiarity in Emperor Father’s speech, but there was something just…off. Yes, Jin Haoran knew that Emperor Father suffered bouts of headaches and memory loss, but that never affected him or his half-siblings before. After a moment longer, Li Changyu worried that something was up. Jin Haoran bobbed his head in a stiff nod and stood up in his lap. His small, oddly slightly sticky hands cupped Li Changyu’s face and he puckered up his lips to blow directly in Li Changyu’s face.
Squinting his eyes, Li Changyu asked, “What are you doing?”
“Blowing headache away. Emperor Father must take better care!” chastised the boy.
Unable to keep his royal composure, Li Changyu laughed out loud. Li Changyu rested a hand on top of the sweet boy’s head and ruffled his hair. This action confused Jin Haoran, because his Emperor Father was very meticulous about appearances. Like this, his two buns became lopsided! Frowning at his ridiculous Emperor Father, Jin Haoran plopped back down into his lap. Li Changyu released the boy and tilted his head.
“Have you–”
Another eunuch, with a guard, interrupted the moment. “Your Majesty, Physician Li, and Li, and – uh- Li are here!”
Li Changyu perked up. The triplets! Smiling apologetically, he looked down at Jin Haoran.
“This Emperor Father is sorry, little one.” Thinking fast, he added, “As for what you would like for your birthday, please discuss it in detail with Su Ao.”
Li Changyu turned his head with a forced smile to the beta eunuch. Sweat dripped down Su Ao’s temples, his nervous energy practically making him vibrate. He passed off Jin Haoran to Su Ao and dismissed them. The trio came in together in one straight line, passing by Su Ao and Jin Haoran. Jin Haoran blinked at the three, never having seen a triplet set before. Even his own twin siblings did not look this identical! One was messy, like he’d been rolling in dust piles, the other in prim and proper attire without a wrinkle in place, while the third had eyes that fluttered in the way that Nanny Xu described as “asking for trouble.” He rubbed his eyes and blinked.
Emperor Father sure knows many strange people! He concluded.
As soon as the door shut, the three brothers dispersed around the room. The one Li Changyu came to understand was Li Jiyu stood before him, while Li Huayu plopped himself down on the bed. Li Zhenyu went to Jin Xiyan’s desk and lifted the ink stone, sniffing it.
Glaring at Li Huayu, he said, “Get up off my bed. I already have one toy boy.” Li Changyu kicked at the beta from underneath the covers until he stood. Li Huayu let out a huff and unfurled his fan.
“We came for the rest of our payment,” said Li Huayu. He glanced over at his Brothers from the edge of his fan.
“Then that means you found something.” Li Changyu looked at Li Jiyu with an arched brow. “Well?”
Li Jiyu snapped his fingers and Li Zhenyu startled. The ink stone fell and cracked in half, and he clammored to cover it up by hiding it under a stack of paper – as if none of the others in the room hadn’t witnessed the event. Sighing, Li Changyu rubbed his temple. Li Zhenyu shuffled over to his Brother and took out the pouch from his sleeve and handed it over. Without warning, Li Jiyu threw it at Li Changyu. His senses and reflexes still intact, Li Changyu caught the bag effortlessly with his bandaged left hand.
“It is a powerful aphrodisiac, either diffused in liquid or incense. For an omega or a beta, it would appear mild, but when mixed with the pheromones of an alpha, be it their own or someone else’s…”
Li Huayu picked up where Li Jiyu started with a coy smile, “A person would be able to embrace someone well till morning.”
Li Changyu scrunched his nose and looked down at the inconspicuous looking bag, “How can a normal man knot that much?”
“You can’t. The aphrodisiac can also cause hallucinations!” piped up Li Zhenyu. He wiped a sleeve across his nose with a sniff.
“What my Brother means is that because of the severity of this aphrodisiac, some of the side effects include hallucinations, excessive thirst, headaches, and a decreased likelihood of…completion.”
No knotting? Or cumming? Li Changyu frowned and went over the details in his mind. Qian Jing received this pouch after meeting with Qin Yuze. She offered up a juicy detail about the beta toy boy Chen Ziwei. If his assumption was correct, Jin Xiyan’s cousin had been having a long affair with the man. Qin Yuze hasn’t been able to have a child yet, and Qian Jing made it seem that she would definitely be loyal to Qin Yuze if she did somehow produce an heir.
…But why give her something that is less likely to get her pregnant?
Then it clicked for Li Changyu. Qian Jing was a convenient scapegoat. He didn’t necessarily trust Qian Jing – she was, after all, much poorer and if her status was elevated after having a Crown Prince, what reason would she have to stay loyal? She’d be the last one he could manipulate without secrets. Secondly, Qian Jing is also an alpha. She would be deeply affected by this as well.
Qin Yuze is well practiced with this concoction. A slip up and she’d be caught poisoning the Emperor – the perfect scapegoat. His grip tightened around the sack for a moment before setting it aside.
“Given that it can cause hallucinations, could one suffer…memory loss?”
The three physicians paused, looking like they took the question seriously. Li Huayu closed his fan and tapped the end on his chin as he answered, “Unlikely, but if someone had a weakened constitution paired with…well, it would be ridiculous but…”
“But?”
“If one was familiar with the Western art of hypnosis, this physician thinks that plus the aphrodisiac would indeed be a deadly combination.”
Li Changyu mulled over this. Could it be true that Qin Yuze has been poisoning Jin Xiyan with this aphrodisiac and altering his memories?
“What are the long term effects of being exposed to this substance?”
“Aside from the side effects I listed before?” Li Jiyu shook his head. “Nothing that we know of.”
“And if someone were to stop using this substance abruptly?”
That question gave them pause. Li Jiyu raised his hand.
“Your Majesty, if I may?”
Li Changyu nodded and flicked his sleeve to expose his wrist, which he rested on the bed. He sat back as Li Jiyu knelt beside the bed and felt his pulse. He closed his eyes and moved his fingers around, feeling at several different points until he lifted his hand away from Li Changyu.
“You have clearly been affected by it recently. There is no damage to Your Majesty’s heart, but there is an immense amount of heat that may be affecting Your Majesty’s spleen and stomach. If this physician may ask…how is His Majesty’s, um, performance?”
“Fine! Just Fine!” Li Changyu snapped, a blush creeping up from his brows. He remembered Jin Xiyan’s insatiable appetite, and he half wondered if it was because of this aphrodisiac! Except, Jin Xiyan did knot him each time. Qin Yuze seemed to be able to pace the dose well enough that Jin Xiyan could “perform” just fine on occasion. I mean, I got pregnant, didn’t I?
The triplets exchanged long looks. Was the Emperor impotent? They all seemed to ask one another psychically.
(“Achoo!”)
Li Changyu quickly dismissed the three. The Brothers exchanged one more look and the messy one, Li Zhenyu, shrugged. They left without much of a fuss. Licking his lower lip, Li Changyu went over his next options, but it all came down to one: he needed to speak to Qian Jing.
Thanks for the chapter ♥️♥️
You are welcome! I hope you liked it?
Ah I can’t wait for QY to die.. The root of the issues in the Harem
Death would be too easy!
True.. Let her suffer before dying
Must… protect… Jin Haoran at all costs!!
whistles innocently
Lovely writer you’re killing me here!! 😭🤧
Lol what did I do this time?!
EVERYTHING!! THIS IS ABUSE!! 😭😭😭
But look at cute children!!
you are going to hate me in the next chapter.
Jin Haoran reminded me of Li Beidou describing his wife and himself trying to figure out what to do with a little omega. In fact, he’s exactly how I would have imagined Li Changyu’s child with Jin Xiyan would be. I want to keep him.
innocent face
What. 😧 No no not the precious!? He’s no threat to them!
😇
Sigh. . this makes me sad for the unborn child of LCY.
Thanks for the chapter
I promise that the unborn baby is reborn into a good good life 🙏
I laughed so hard when every time the emperor was mentioned he’d sneeze, that was awesome, he deserved!
Thank you for the chapter, i love it!
😍
You are very welcome and I am so happy you liked it!
I knew you would like making fun of our Emperor!
Haha you remember me as the biggest emperor anti 😂 that is correct though, i want to see him suffer even more
Jin Haoran is going to be that bastard’s target, isn’t he? 😢
🙏
Thanks for the chapter. Jin Hoaran is a sweet 👶, this chapter was gold. Girding myself for the next.
I am so glad you enjoyed! And yes, prepare.
Nice n cute chapter Dom..read it late though..!
It is sad if cute JH is badly affected by QY. But also I see that despite of QYs illintention , the fact that JXY failed to get an alpha heir till now is also the catalyst to get LCY back in his life…!! Atleast one good thing from the mess…!!
I hope JXY realizes that ,apart from LCY.. none of his existing partners are worthy of being his consorts. I simply cant digest him romping with anyone else other than LCY… 😑
ahhh so you believe the Villain is QYZ?
No ..he is not the main one…though he did that drug n hypnosis thing … the ZLH is appearing to be the bigger culprit here..alobg wd his accomplices ofc. Not sure abt the reason for his hatred n enmity though, but seems something to do wd LH’s mother the late queen empress , n LH’s husband’s deaths..! Guess he really wants his son to sit on the throne..!