The Scum Shou's Survival GuideChapter 44.2

Madam Qi would go to the Hanshui Temple every month to burn incense. Ye Ming occasionally accompanied her.

He didn’t have anything going on during this time, so he volunteered to go together with Madam Qi. Madam Qi was very happy to have her son accompany her. Conveniently, she could also discuss the matter of engagement with the Madams of other families. Their group set off early in the morning. 8sWcCN

When everyone arrived at Hanshui Temple, Madam Qi and the womenfolk of the other families went to the other side to light incense, while Ye Ming remained in the courtyard on the opposite end.

Although there were usually not many people at this time, it was particularly empty today.

Chrysanthemum Garden.

Ye Ming wandered through the plum orchard and didn’t see a single person. He knew his mother wouldn’t be leaving anytime soon, so he might as well come out for a walk and enjoy the scenery. The Hanshui Temple was situated on the summit of the mountain, and clouds and mist curled around it. The scenery was exquisite; many scholars and poets had written poems dedicated to this place.

In the past, when Li Zechen was not yet emperor, he had come here together with him. QNV6zY

The more he walked, the deeper he went. In the distance, he saw a black-clothed figure. Ye Ming assumed it was another worshiper, but who would’ve thought that when the figure turned around and gazed deeply at him, it was actually Li Zechen!

Ye Ming’s footsteps halted at once, and the expression on his face became complicated.

Every day, Li Zechen listened to his subordinates report Ye Ming’s news, big or small, and with great difficulty, resisted the urge to see him. Until today, when he heard that he was going to Hanshui Temple, and he couldn’t resist the urge any longer. He headed over.

He just wanted to see him.

Ye Ming stood in place and watched as Li Zechen walked closer, step by step. Although they had only been separated for a short time, he had the inexplicable feeling that it had been a lifetime ago.

“Your Majesty…” Seeing that Li Zechen had already arrived before him, Ye Ming finally brought back his attention. He was about to kneel and make his greetings, but Li Zechen grasped his arm.

Li Zechen bent and supported Ye Ming. He could feel his arm through his clothing. It felt as if there was some kind of compulsion spreading from where they were touching. The immense yearning made him itch to directly gather this person into his embrace, but in the end, he still managed to restrain himself.

If he continued to indulge in his desires, he would only shatter the peace that they had finally established with such difficulty. He didn’t want to see that happen. M82fa0

“There is no one else here. Wen Qing does not need to worry. Just pretend I’m not the emperor.” Li Zechen slowly released his grip, smiling slightly. “We once drank together and chatted merrily, walking through the snow to view the flowering plums, so…just pretend it’s still as it was before, alright?”

Ye Ming remained silent for some time. There were some things that couldn’t return to the way they had been in the past despite saying so, but since this was the emperor’s command, he said respectfully, “Chen obeys.”

Li Zechen’s smile grew a little bitter. How could he not understand this principle? But these days, the one thing he could hold out his hopes for was to be able to interact with this person as they had in the past. At the very least, they had been able to be friends…they had gone through so much, even this form of interaction had already become a luxury.

He softly said to Ye Ming, “Why don’t you drink a cup of wine with me?” q9BLDK

Li Zechen turned around and arrived at a stone table before sitting down. On the table was a jar of wine. He smiled slightly and said, “We haven’t sat down and drunk wine together like this for a long time.”

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.

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The two people regarded each other silently, just drinking cup after cup of wine. jTKuze

The wine wasn’t very strong, but after drinking a few cups of it, Ye Ming’s cheeks and the tips of his ears  became slightly flushed.

Li Zechen looked at the person before him somewhat infatuatedly, reluctant to leave. But in this world, there was no banquet that wouldn’t come to an end. He ultimately could not stay here. Li Zechen’s jaw was clenched and his voice hoarse. “I will be leaving now. Is there anything else you want to say to me?”

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Ye Ming pursed his lips. His eyes revealed a look of struggle and hesitation, but he remained silent.

He was always anxious these days. There was indeed something he wanted to beseech Li Zechen about, but the request was truly a bit excessive. How could he use Li Zechen’s feelings for him? oeuGqK

But Li Zechen smiled a little. He paid constant attention to Ye Ming; how could he not know what he was anxious about? He said straightforwardly, “If Wen Qing is worried about Zuo Yifang’s situation, zhen has already pardoned her.”

Ye Ming suddenly looked up, gazing at him as if he were afraid to believe it.

Although Li Zechen was smiling as he said this, no one knew how painful it was for him to make this decision. As long as you are happy, then leave all the pain and reluctance to me to bear alone.i

Li Zechen said slowly, “Although she’s the daughter of a sinner, and her status is not suitable for you, zhen can have her change her appearance and once again grandly bestow a marriage to you. Would you like that?” arCASF

Ye Ming was finally shocked; his lip trembled. “Your Majesty…”

Li Zechen gazed into his eyes, “Zhen owes you too much…as long as you want for something, you can tell it all to zhen, and zhen will grant it to you.”

Ye Ming looked moved. Li Zechen had always been very good to him, granting his every wish, but at the time, he’d been required to stay by his side. Whereas now…he could even tell him he would bestow him a marriage…

At that moment, he was convinced that Li Zechen had truly let him go. The last thread of apprehension in his heart completely dissipated. H3NV1G

It was instead replaced by guilt toward Li Zechen…He was bearing the emperor’s grace. Li Zechen was the emperor. Whomever he wanted alive would live; whomever he wanted dead would die. Why would he need to go to this extent?

He didn’t have to be so good to him at all.

Ye Ming was silent for a long time. He said, “That isn’t necessary…knowing she is alright is enough.”

After going through so much, how could he marry the woman he loved with an unburdened heart? After all, he was no longer the same Ye Ming from the past. How could the pain brought to him by those experiences be erased just because he said so? CmXz4k

He and Li Zechen could not return to the past. Neither could he and Zuo Yifang.

Everything was still the same, but people had changed.

Li Zechen was silent for some time. He said, “If you change your mind, you can have Zi Zhu tell zhen.”

When he finished speaking, he turned around and left. YsFrtz

Sorry, although I cannot make up for the mistakes of the past, I still want to do my best to do some things for you…

Actually, I should have realized this earlier and understood that love should not be plundering and possessing, but that it would be enough just to see that you are well. But at that time, I went astray because of my misjudgment and committed wrongs.

Chrysanthemum Garden.

This is the one thing that I regret most in my entire life.

[Ding, Li Zechen’s blackening value -5, current blackening value 5] cBMqY

Ye Ming watched Li Zechen’s back as he left. After a while longer, he finally left as well.

Soon, Madam Qi also came out, and the two of them returned home together.

Although the marriage with the Zuo family was dropped, Ye Ming was now conscious and should still marry a wife and have children. Thus, Madam Qi once again busied herself with taking part in all kinds of social gatherings, intending to arrange another suitable marriage.

Toward this, Ye Ming did not express opposition nor enthusiasm. He complied with all of his parents’ arrangements. YkeRAT

………………

[Ye Ming: The poor heart of a parent. Even if I return to ancient times, I still can’t escape being urged to marry, ai…]

[888: Then what are you planning to do?]

[Ye Ming: Mix it cold. Anyway, I won’t be able to marry, hehe.] 952BsM

[Ye Ming: Our emperor is really a self-restrained, unwavering person. Once he makes a decision, he’ll stick with it. If he says he’ll let me go, it’ll really be like he’s letting go. To be honest, if it weren’t for the affection value, I would’ve thought he had let go.]

[888: Isn’t this what you want? Putting in effort for such a long time was so he would let go.]

[Ye Ming: It’s right to let go, but how is it okay for us to not even meet? No matter how good I am, I still can’t affect his blacking value with the imperial palace between us. Wronged.jpg]

[888: Hehe.] YbrweM

[Ye Ming: There’s no other way. It’s time to let him know how frightening a woman can be once blackened!]

[888: ???]

[Ye Ming: Big brother, you don’t know just what kind of terrifying and extremely powerful existence human women are! Truthfully, the worst the emperor did wasn’t to forcefully marry me, but to marry a harem of women without taking them to bed! Although being an imperial concubine in ancient times is also considered a type of job, even if they don’t want the emperor’s doting, they’d usually still be able to sleep with the emperor on occasion, have a child, and continue to scuffle in the palace, right? Li Zechen wouldn’t even give them that bit of hope. A bored, reproachful boudoir woman is very scary!]

[888: Are you referring to Imperial Concubine Liang? She does hate you a lot.] a8PTYO

[Ye Ming: Back when I was in the palace, she hated me to death and couldn’t do anything to me. Now I’ve left the palace, but Li Zechen still won’t spare them a glance. Before, if there wasn’t any hope, then fine. But now, there was my situation, and as a result, they were spurned by Li Zechen again. How could they possibly bear it anymore? As long as she’s made aware of my identity, she definitely won’t hesitate to retaliate against me for all of it. If something happens to me, then won’t the emperor have another chance to see me? ^_^]

[888:…] This spicy chicken was going to court disaster again.

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[888: How do you plan on letting her know?]

[Ye Ming: I don’t need to do anything at all. That year, when I was the crown prince’s study companion, I was constantly going in and out of the imperial palace. Although I didn’t enter the harem back then, there were still palace maids and eunuchs that recognized me. Imperial Concubine Liang’s eyes and ears are everywhere. Sooner or later, she’ll find out my identity. Although Li Zechen is in control of the imperial palace and won’t give them the chance to spread the secret, if a woman becomes so frenzied she no longer cares if she lives or dies, it’ll be pretty hard to say…if it really becomes necessary, big brother, why don’t you just lend her a hand?] wglaHb

[888: Are you sure you want to do this? An arrow can’t be retrieved after it’s been shot.]

[Ye Ming: There’s no secret in this world that lasts forever~]

[888: …]

Ye Ming continued passing the days according to routine. He wasn’t in a hurry. After a long time, he heard that Imperial Concubine Liang returned home to visit her parents. ZJlpe9

Rumors quietly spread among the aristocratic ladies.

Finally, one day when Madam Qi returned home, she hatefully slammed the table, saying angrily, “Madam He is truly an intolerable bully! A mere fifth-rank official’s wife dares speak to me so strangely!”

Madam Qi had always been good-natured, and she never flattered her superiors while treading on her subordinates. She was well-mannered even toward a beggar. For her say such a thing, it was clear she had been fiercely angered. Ye Ming also happened to be at home and gingerly poured her a cup of tea, soothing her, “Mother, don’t be so agitated. Why don’t you drink a cup of tea?”

Madam Qi took the tea and drank it in one go, but she still became angrier the more she thought about it. She said furiously, “I saw that her family has a third daughter of an appropriate age, who’s virtuous and gentle, so I chatted with her some more. I was thinking that if she’s suitable, she’d be a pretty good option. In the end, it doesn’t matter if her family status is a bit low. The important thing is character…but guess what she said? She said that you were the one the emperor took a liking to, someone who could climb into the dragon bed, and she and her daughter couldn’t afford to social climb through you. What kind of words are those?!” 7shjc

As she spoke, she was so angry she slammed the teacup onto the table, and the tea splashed out. Her chest continued heave. “Truly ridiculous! They would actually humiliate you like this!”

Madam Qi turned her head and only saw Ye Ming standing there, complexion deathly pale, body tottering, and she couldn’t help change her agitated expression. Now she couldn’t even bother being angry, anxiously asking, “What happened to you? Could it be that you’re feeling ill?”