Chapter 53

In the southeast, there is a sacred mountain named Enyang. On the mountain, there are auspicious beasts: the White Tiger, the Red Phoenix, the Colourful Snake, and the Spiritual Deer. It is said that seeing them brings good fortune.

Enyang Mountain is regarded as a sacred mountain by the locals. There are many creatures and foodstuffs in it, and people head up to the mountain to pick fruits in spring and hunt in the forests during autumn. Dozens of the surrounding villages have stemmed from this huge mountain.

Sixty years ago, Emperor Xuan, the emperor of Dayu, was on a tour south. He passed by Enyang and encountered a white tiger across the water. It had slippery-smooth skin, eyes like black pearls, and was basking lazily under the warm spring sun, resembling a mythical beast from the heavenly realms that had descended into the mortal world to bring auspiciousness.

Emperor Xuan was overjoyed, and spurred his horse to chase after it all the way into the mountain forest. The forest was dense with trees, and beasts and birds were vying with each other. Emperor Xuan failed to catch up to the white tiger and lost his bearings in the dense forest. While he was panicking, a tiger roared behind him. The giant beast pounced forward. The frightened horse bolted, causing Emperor Xuan to fall off its back. The white tiger attacked, opening its mouth wide. The emperor’s life hung on a thread.

At the critical moment, before the attendants could arrive to his rescue, an orphan girl who was hunting in the mountains saw a tiger attacking someone. Without thinking twice, she took out her dagger and ran forward, blocking the tiger’s huge mouth with her small, thin body, then stabbed her dagger into the white tiger’s eye, saving the emperor’s life.

After that, the orphan girl was accepted by the emperor as his adopted daughter, enjoying the honour of a princess. After the death of Emperor Xuan, Emperor Mingzong ascended to the throne. She, as a woman, manoeuvred within the court on his behalf, displaying courage and wisdom befitting a great female minister of her era. Therefore, she was bestowed the title of Princess Duanyi by Emperor Mingzong, becoming the most esteemed elder in the entire Dayu royal family.

Then another forty years passed, and the turmoil in Dayu’s court surged and ebbed. Duanyi lived alone in the magnificent Eldest Princess’s Palace, chanting sutras and worshipping Buddha every day, letting the austere scent of sandalwood smoke away all her sharp decisiveness and ruthlessness.

Once Su Huaijing finished speaking, the Buddhist hall fell silent.

After a long time, Duanyi opened her mouth and asked him in a deep voice, “Have I helped you ma?”

Su Huaijing replied: “The benefits are substantial.”

Duanyi seemed to emit a light laugh, but the laughter quickly dispersed beneath the towering Buddha statue. She stood up demurely, turned around, and stared.

Seventeen-year-old Su Huaijing is exquisite and good-looking. His skin is like spring water on earth, and his temperament is like the autumn moon in the sky, noble and dazzling. He stood properly in the lower position. After bowing, he straightened up, his entire being exuding an unyielding integrity like that of a pine or cypress.

He stood there, full of untold stories. Behind his seventeen-year-old frame were towering mountains that blocked the sky.

Duanyi quietly stared at him for a long time. Outside the window, in the courtyard, a very clear oriole cry could be heard. This summer bird has finally entered the capital.

Duanyi asked nonchalantly, “Does my grandson treat you well?”

Su Huaijing lips raised slightly with a smile, but there was a hint of teasing and ridicule in his eyes, and he said coldly, “Tangtang is very good, so good that I am willing to wait for him to die before dealing with your son.”

Duanyi remained taciturn as she looked at him.

After a moment, the Eldest Princess’s eyes curled into a smile. She lightly dusted the joss stick ash from her clothes and said slowly, “The house has prepared five-colour threads. Put them on when you leave, and then throw them away after the first rainfall.”

Su Huaijing bowed with thanks again: “Thank you, Your Highness, Eldest Princess.”

Duanyi frowned when she heard his address, but she didn’t correct him. She walked towards the door, with Su Huaijing following behind her.

The weather outside the courtyard is the radiant sunniness of the fifth month. The fragrance of vanilla and calamus in the courtyard is getting stronger.

–

In the hall, Rong Tang was halfway through chatting with Wang Xiuyu. He subconsciously glanced back at the corner just now. It didn’t matter that he didn’t see Su Huaijing at first. He casually looked around the entire hall before a frown slowly revealed itself.

Princess Duanyi prays to Buddha and doesn’t eat after lunch. Rong Mingyu and Rong Mingli were honoured in court again. Every year during the Dragon Boat Festival, Emperor Renshou would invite ministers to race dragon boats as a show of benevolence. Only after attending a banquet in the palace in the evening would they return home.

Therefore, the family banquet in the Eldest Princess’s Palace was a luncheon. Rong Mingyu and Rong Mingli entered the palace but did not go to the main hall. Instead, they asked the servant to announce their arrival, and then they both went to the Buddhist hall to pay their respects to the Eldest Princess before helping usher their mother over together.

Rong Tang stood up and waited along with everyone, standing behind the Wang Fei and in front of the juniors.

The tips of his eyebrows were slightly knitted due to Su Huaijing’s sudden disappearance.

Reason told him that with the villain’s IQ, no matter where it was, even if it was the first time he went there, he wouldn’t place himself in danger. Yet Rong Tang would unconsciously worry.

It wasn’t until there was a small commotion behind him and the hand hanging by his side was naturally held by someone, that Rong Tang’s intensified heartbeat gradually settled down.

He didn’t even need to look back; he just instinctively held the hand in return and asked softly, “Where did you go?”

Su Huaijing replied in a low voice: “Zumu called me over to have a conversation.”

Then young Prince Rong’s heart, which had just relaxed, began to surge again. He immediately turned his head and scanned Su Huaijing up and down. He didn’t see anything strange, but his expression still wasn’t too happy. After thinking for two seconds, he said, “Next time something like this happens, call me.”

Su Huaijing’s heart warmed, and his eyes were filled with smiles. He couldn’t resist squeezing Rong Tang’s hand again and knowingly asked, “Why?”

Rong Tang glared at him with displeasure and said, “Aren’t you afraid of being bullied by others?”

Rong Tang hadn’t had much interaction with the Eldest Princess in his life, but from his perspective, Eldest Princess Duanyi was definitely an unfathomable character.

He wasn’t sure about Duanyi’s attitude towards Su Huaijing, and he didn’t know whether there would be any clues she could detect to make her suspect Su Huaijing’s identity.

Every step of the road Su Huaijing took had untold difficulties and dangers. Since Rong Tang wanted to protect him, it was natural that he didn’t want to let anyone related to him become one of his obstacles.

Everyone in Ningxuan’s Palace had assisted in Emperor Renshou’s rebellion. Even if he couldn’t presumptuously guess Duanyi’s stance, it shouldn’t be enough to provide help to Su Huaijing.

Rong Tang speculated on this based on the established facts.

Su Huaijing’s mood greatly improved upon seeing his worried expression. He actually hates acting and pretending, but every time he pretends to be well-behaved around Rong Tang and happens to be indulged by him, Su Huaijing would occasionally mistakenly believe that he was naturally such a well-behaved child.

He stuck close to Tangtang and appeared to intimately whisper, “But Mother was talking to you. You haven’t seen each other for a long time.”

When Rong Tang heard what he said, he became even unhappier and glared at him fiercely: “When have Mother and I not been able to talk? Mother loves you so dearly; why would she be anxious for this mere instance?”

He instinctively rejected Su Huaijing’s explanation, but the latter’s eyes trembled when he heard these words, and, for the first time, he turned his eyes to others when speaking with Rong Tang.

Wang Xiuyu stood upright, her back straight, her eyes set on the door, waiting for her husband and mother-in-law.

She didn’t look back, but Su Huaijing remembered the red silk-covered betrothal gifts when he and Rong Tang got married. They had paraded through an entire street with the blaring of trumpets and clangs of cymbals, bypassing much of the capital city, before stopping at the doorstep of the Tangjing Residence, completely exceeding the usual standards for a male wife.

But Wang Xiuyu didn’t even blink and ordered everyone to carry them into his home.

Su Huaijing looked away and lowered his gaze. He couldn’t tell what was in his heart and said, “Naturally, Mother’s love for someone extends to everyone and everything around them.”

Rong Tang pinched him in exasperation: “Will “love for someone extends to everyone and everything around them” support you having locked me up? Mother just loves you, and she just told me that when I’m residing outside the palace, I’m not allowed to bully you.”

In fact, Wang Xiuyu’s original words were that she heard Rong Tang had become friendly with Tutor Ke at the flower-picking festival, had kept company with Lu Jiaxi, and had even gone outside the theatre troupe’s courtyard gate in the middle of the night. She was very worried that Rong Tang, after getting married, had forgotten his duty. Although he had already married a wife at home, he still wanted to fool around outside.

Rong Tang was incredibly innocent, and he said to himself that he wasn’t such a person either.

After much thought, he decided to pass the blame onto Duke Ningxuan.

It’s all because Rong Mingyu had sweet talked Wang Xiuyu endlessly when they got married. However, after the marriage, he’d taken in one concubine after another, fathered numerous children with them, thus leaving Wang Xiuyu feeling insecure and worried that Su Huaijing would also be let down by him.

Rong Tang felt particularly aggrieved.

After chatting with her for a long time, Su Huaijing came back and said that Wang Xiuyu’s love for someone extended to everyone and everything around them. He really wanted to drag these two people together to have a discussion in order to prove his innocence.

Rong Tang sighed quietly, decided not to dwell on this issue, and asked, “What did zumu look for you to talk about?”

Su Huaijing suppressed his earlier mood and casually blathered: “She asked about my family situation, also about how my life was in the palace these days, and whether I married you voluntarily.”

Rong Tang’s heart tightened, and he was taken aback by him, so he anxiously asked, “How did you respond?”

“Of course it’s voluntary.” Su Huaijing didn’t blink. “I got lucky and was chosen by Tangtang. How could it not be voluntary?”

He said it so naturally that Rong Tang was stunned for a moment. Caught off guard, he met his gaze, then looked away before glancing around for a while and saying in a low voice, “Oh.”

Su Huaijing laughed and squeezed his hand happily.

Everyone waited for a while before several elders from that big family finally appeared at the door of the hall. Rong Tang was already a little impatient after waiting for so long.

However, on such occasions, to show the deep affection and familial harmony in the Eldest Princess’s household, the younger generation are always required to present gifts and say a few auspicious words—wishing the Eldest Princess happiness as vast as the Eastern Sea and longevity as enduring as the Southern Mountains.

Rong Tang was originally dim-witted for many years, so there was no need for him to participate. Now that he has improved, whether for the sake of maintaining order between the young and the old or to uphold the hierarchy between official and concubine offspring, it was inevitable that he would lead and go first.

Rong Tang has been living in Yong’an Lane this month and didn’t have the time to go back to the palace’s warehouse to pick out gifts. Therefore, he prepared this gift for the Eldest Princess after discussing it with Su Huaijing. It is a jasper Guanyin statue. He specially inconvenienced Tutor Ke to have it delivered here posthaste from his antique store in Jiangnan.

It is in line with the Eldest Princess’s beliefs about worshipping Buddha and wasn’t too shabby or extravagant.

The Eldest Princess’s expression was as simple and calm as ever. She said, “How thoughtful,” and asked her nurse to take away the Guanyin statue. Only then was Rong Tang able to tug at Su Huaijing to sit down.

He had eaten something before going out in the morning, and Su Huaijing had fed him a lot of lotus seeds while they were in the carriage. In fact, he wasn’t hungry, but he’d probably waited too long and talked for an extended time. As soon as he sat down, he smelled the aroma from the bowl of vegetarian lotus root soup on the table, and his appetite surged.

He couldn’t help but glance in that direction a few more times. Su Huaijing understood and stood up to fetch it for him, but Rong Tang hastily held onto his arm.

Su Huaijing was slightly puzzled and gave him a confused look.

Rong Tang shook his head and took advantage of the time Rong Zheng was presenting his gift to whisper, “We have to wait until all of them are done.”

Su Huaijing immediately frowned unhappily and instantly cast his gaze on Rong Zheng.

Rong Zheng was originally reciting the manuscript he had prepared to please his zumu, but when he caught a glimpse of his eldest sao’s gaze, he was stunned for a second, stammered, and cut off the rest of his speech entirely, simply saying, “I wish zumu good health and all the best” before withdrawing.

Even Rong Mingyu couldn’t help but look at him in surprise when he heard how little he said this time. Su Huaijing’s expression became much gentler. He sat silently in his seat and reached under the table to squeeze Rong Tang’s hand, not only to kill time but also to relieve some of his inner irritation.

Rong Tang waited for a while, calculating how many cups of tea it would take before he could reach that bowl of lotus root soup. But before he could wait for the soup, he heard Rong Yuan say: “This grandson knows that zumu sincerely worships Buddha, but I was afraid that sending something made by a craftsman would not be sincere enough, so early on, I copied Ksithigarbha Buddha’s Original Vow Sutra and sent it to Tuolan Temple to bless for two months. I collected it when I went out of the city the day before yesterday, and I’m specially gifting it to zumu. I hope that zumu will not disdain this grandson’s simplicity. May zumu be blessed with virtue and merit, and may every misfortune turn into good fortune.”

Rong Tang: “……”

He subconsciously glanced at the servants waiting in the hall. He couldn’t detect any clues, so he glanced back at Rong Yuan.

Su Huaijing’s face turned cold when he heard him say, “not be sincere enough.” At this time, seeing Rong Tang’s expression, he felt that there were other unknown matters involved, so he paused for a moment, turned Rong Tang’s hand over, and asked him, “What’s going on?”

Rong Tang couldn’t tell what happened—only that it was terribly coincidental.

He frowned a little, tilted his head, and said, “I’ve also given zumu a handwritten scripture before.”

But his copy was really simple. It was originally intended to atone for his sins, and it had never been sent to a temple to be blessed. Compared with the book Rong Yuan had specially prepared, it seemed a little less thoughtful.

Rong Tang felt that Rong Yuan was dragging him in and demeaning him, but it was all concluded from his words. Without a shred of evidence, he couldn’t say for sure whether Rong Yuan truly thought so.

But he wasn’t as stupid as that. Even Sheng Chengxing knew that Rong Tang shouldn’t be messed with and had even sent gifts to Duke Ningxuan’s Palace after the flower-picking festival. As Sheng Chengxing’s little follower, it made no sense for Rong Yuan to instigate a provocation against Rong Tang.

Rong Tang didn’t quite understand.

Su Huaijing was more concerned about another matter. He thought carefully for a moment and asked, “Why did Tangtang have to send Buddhist scriptures to the Eldest Princess?”

Rong Tang was thinking about something and was somewhat lost in it. Hearing this, he subconsciously replied, “For the sake of getting zumu’s consent to let you marry into the household.”

Su Huaijing: “?”

He was stunned for two seconds, not quite comprehending, and asked, “What?”

Rong Tang realised that he had let something slip, but he didn’t have that kind of great-philanthropist mentality, doing good deeds without leaving his name behind, so he casually straightened out Su Huaijing’s confusion: “I am Prince Ningxuan after all; if it wasn’t for my poor health, I’d definitely inherit the palace in the future. From my generation onward, as long as there are no traitors or criminals in the Rong family, the title will be inherited by my descendants and will certainly be passed on to my children. Me marrying a male wife would end that possibility. I was afraid that zumu would not approve, so I catered to her preferences and gave her a Buddhist scripture to win her favour.”

What Rong Tang said was completely true, without any embellishments or concealment. Su Huaijing was dazed for a long time after hearing it and finally realised what Rong Tang had given up in order to marry him into the house.

That night at the medical clinic, Rong Tang had spoken blithely, and Su Huaijing had listened without hesitation, neither taking it seriously nor actually believing it. Even though he was drugged, when he heard Rong Tang’s identity and proposal, he still thought about how this proposal would benefit him.

Indeed, he had completely overlooked Rong Tang at that time.

But this chess piece became the apple of his eye; he holds it for fear of it falling and keeps it for fear of it breaking. When Su Huaijing listened to these words again, he abruptly recognised that Rong Tang was tens of millions of times better than he could have ever imagined.

He is heaven’s little Buddha, the gilded statue in the imperial temple, who has come specially for him.

Su Huaijing felt a rare twinge of bitterness in his heart and began to regret the words he’d just said to allay Duanyi’s suspicion, which he thought had been the best choice at that time.

He didn’t want Rong Tang to die at all, but what if some deity or Buddha passed by, heard what he said, and inflicted it upon Rong Tang?

Su Huaijing vastly regretted it. He pursed his lips firmly and held Rong Tang’s hand a little tighter, as if he was afraid that he would flee.

It wasn’t known that the Eldest Princess had seen something, or that she felt that these rules were too cumbersome and annoying. After receiving Rong Yuan’s gift, she permitted them to sit down together instead of waiting one by one for the auspicious words that could be heard every year.

Su Huaijing didn’t even think twice before immediately standing up and scooping a bowl of soup for Rong Tang.

Rong Tang had begun to lift his hand in rejection before naturally lowering it again. His eyes flitted at Wang Xiuyu before looking at Duke Ningxuan.

Rong Mingyu’s brows knitted as he eyed Su Huaijing unhappily, his gaze filled with reproach, as if he were blaming him for having no sense of propriety.

Rong Tang coughed slightly and was about to bear the scolding for Su Huaijing when he heard the Eldest Princess say, “It must be difficult for you to eat vegetarian food with me during the holidays. Are you used to it? If you don’t like it, just inform the kitchen to cook another table of non-vegetarian dishes.”

As soon as these words came out—don’t mention Rong Tang—the entire family was stunned.

Princess Duanyi is a vegetarian all year round. Even if an ant is spotted in the garden, no one will trample it to death in her palace, let alone have meat dishes on the dining table.

Because of this, as well as worrying about spoiling the fun for the juniors, Duanyi usually doesn’t participate in the banquets. Therefore, everyone from the Duke Ningxuan’s Palace would only gather at the Princess’s Palace for the Dragon Boat Festival and the Double Ninth Festival.

As for reunion days such as the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Spring Festival, the Eldest Princess would have been invited in advance into the imperial palace by Emperor Renshou.

Following the rebellion, she was an elder with the highest status in the entire imperial family. Her habits had always been for others to follow. How could she change it for a junior who wasn’t used to it?

No one at the dinner table dared to answer in that instance, and even Rong Mingyu didn’t know what his mother meant.

Only Su Huaijing, after serving the soup and seeing that Rong Tang still wasn’t eating it, frowned unhappily. Noticing that everyone was silent, he said, “Thank you, zumu, for your kindness. With your benevolence and devotions to Buddha, zumu will surely be blessed. Huaijing is unable to abstain from indulgence and cannot worship Buddha with the same sincerity as zumu, which fills me with guilt. How could I dare trouble zumu to break your vows and diminish your merits for the sake of a junior? Zumu, do not say such things again.”

His reply was neither humble nor haughty, and Duanyi was incredibly satisfied. The smile on her face had become much more sincere. She took down the dignified ancient Buddha statue that had remained the same all year round and said with a smile, “I like hearing you speak. After the banquet is over, go to the warehouse to take a look. Choose a few things you like and take them with you.”

Su Huaijing stood up and thanked her: “Huaijing thanks zumu!”

Rong Tang was dumbfounded as he watched from the side. He couldn’t help but look around, and not surprisingly, he saw wonderful expressions on everyone’s faces.

Rong Mingyu’s brow was furrowed in thought, and Wang Xiuyu had a look of surprise on her face and joy in her eyes. Rong Yuan didn’t show it on his face, but his fingers were grasping the chopsticks tightly, as if he were about to break them. Jealousy surged from the top of his head. Rong Tang’s eyes would sting if he continued to look.

Then he turned to Rong Zheng.

Then he saw that the eyes of this second fool were filled with admiration.

“……” I want you to admire my Boyboy, but your manner seems a bit off aaa, hey!

He was speechless for a moment. The system was also speechless for a moment, and it deftly went into hibernation.

After Rong Tang waited for Su Huaijing to sit down again, the banquet began. In fact, he couldn’t restrain his curiosity and leaned over to ask, “You must have said more than those few words with zumu. What else was there? Why is she so good to you?!”

“Was she?” Su Huaijing asked softly, inhaling the scent of sandalwood on Rong Tang’s neck.

Rong Tang nodded immediately, demonstrating through his actions that Duanyi’s kindness towards him was extraordinarily excessive. Not only did she shield him from Rong Mingyu’s criticism, but she was even willing to break her vows for him.

It should be noted that in Rong Tang’s previous two lives, whenever he occasionally visited the Princess’s Palace, if he missed the meal time, he had to wait with an empty stomach. Even if he arrived on time, he could only have a simple vegetarian meal. He never imagined that meat dishes would ever appear on the princess’s dining table.

He was astonished, even a little envious.

Although he is not the original owner, the Eldest Princess is the original owner’s zumu after all. Su Huaijing is connected to the Eldest Princess because of him. How can she treat Su Huaijing better than she treats him?

If he hadn’t read the original work, he would have almost suspected that Su Huaijing had the male protagonist’s halo.

There were small sparks in Rong Tang’s eyes. Su Huaijing noticed it and couldn’t hide his smile. He nudged the soup bowl towards him again and then automatically said, “Zumu might have thought that, since I lost my parents at a young age and lived under someone else’s roof, my life was too miserable, so she unconsciously showed kindness to me.”

Rong Tang was stupefied when he heard this, feeling that his earlier enviousness was most unreasonable.

He averted his eyes and observed Su Huaijing’s empty bowl. He also stood up and scooped a bowl of lotus root soup for him before placing it in front of him.

Rong Mingyu’s face was a little pale. It seemed that he was utterly unable to comprehend why his eldest son and eldest daughter-in-law were being so unruly at the Eldest Princess’s banquet. He glanced anxiously to the side and saw that the Eldest Princess was watching Rong Tang serve soup for Su Huaijing, who smiled and lowered his head to slowly drink, his eyes full of warmth and tenderness.

Rong Mingyu was dazed for a long time and couldn’t cease observing the two of them.

When Rong Tang noticed it, he pretended not to have noticed it. Anyway, his attitude towards Rong Mingyu was exactly the same as Rong Mingyu’s towards him.

Having him around was like having an extra father or son; without him, it made no difference.

Furthermore, he was about to scold Su Huaijing earlier, and Rong Tang was getting more and more vexed with him.

He and Su Huaijing finished the meal amidst the scrutiny of everyone at the table. Afterwards, Su Huaijing went to the Eldest Princess’s warehouse to select some items. Rong Tang slowly walked, following the path all the way to the entrance. Then he stood there, staring in a daze at the dilapidated house opposite the Eldest Princess’s Palace.

Up until Wang Xiuyu called him aside and handed him two braids of threads.

Rong Tang was somewhat befuddled, but before he could react, Wang Xiuyu took his hand and fastened on the five-colour threads for him, saying, “This is for praying for safety. When it rains later, you have to take it off and throw it away. There’s another one you have to tie on for Huaijing. I have to return home; I have to go to the palace with your father in the evening, so I won’t have time to wait for him.”

At the side, Hua Qin, the maid, spoke up just in time: “Young Master, Wang Fei weaved these herself. Only you and Sir have them.”

“You talk too much.” Wang Xiuyu berated her, then turned to Rong Tang and warned, “Once you’re done recuperating outside, come home. Mother knows you dislike the din at home and is not rushing you, but you mustn’t make yourself suffer outside, and don’t bully Huaijing either. If you lack anything, let Shuang Fu and Shuang Shou come home to get it, yes?”

Rong Tang blinked, his nose feeling a little sore for no reason. He nodded, his fingers subconsciously touching the five-colour threads on his wrist, and said in a low voice, “I can’t bully him; only he bullies me.”

Wang Xiuyu laughed: “Are you still being unreasonable? Mother isn’t blind. These days, ever since he entered the house, Huaijing has taken good care of you. If it hadn’t been for this accident—think for yourself, how long have you not been sick?”

Rong Tang was rendered silent, but subsequently, Wang Xiuyu patted his hand as she said seriously in a quiet tone, “But if he actually bullies you, you must definitely not put up with it or hold it in. Even if your father doesn’t care, Mother has ways to make him and his whole family experience incessant grievances.”

There was so much ruthlessness in her voice that Rong Tang was befuddled for a long time, almost assuming that this wasn’t the Wang Fei who’s always been extremely gentle to her own son.

He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and feared that Wang Xiuyu had truly misunderstood Su Huaijing, which would instead bring trouble for himself. He hurriedly explained, “I’m joking. He treats me very well.”

Wang Xiuyu immediately smiled and threw him a look, her fierceness dissipating in a blink: “I knew you were talking nonsense, and I was also deceiving you. Indeed, I can’t bear to let him suffer.”

Rong Tang: “……?”

The coachman had already harnessed the horses, and Rong Mingyu had already gotten on the carriage. Wang Xiuyu didn’t have time to say anything further and released his hand: “Return home a little sooner.”

Rong Tang nodded. As he watched her back, he couldn’t resist chasing after her and saying, “Mother must take good care of your health. If there are too many matters in the palace, just pass some on to the er shen*.”

(*TN: second aunt, father’s brother’s wife)

Wang Xiuyu glanced at the places of Rong Mingli and his wife and gave a perfunctory reply: “Mother knows.”

Rong Tang frowned and wanted to say a few more words, but the carriage was tapped several times from the inside, and an attendant immediately ran over to hasten.

Rong Tang frowned and dejectedly escorted Wang Xiuyu into the carriage. Once again, he felt that Duke Ningxuan was truly irritating.

He stood in front of the Eldest Princess’s Palace and waited for a while before seeing Rong Zheng off. Su Huaijing finally appeared behind the door. When he first caught sight of him, he quickly trotted over and reached out to block the sun above his head. “Why didn’t you wait in the carriage?”

Rong Tang glanced up and noticed those were precious calligraphies and paintings collected by the Eldest Princess’s Palace: “……” Okay, ba.

He said, “I was afraid that you’d be unhappy if you didn’t see anyone waiting for you.”

Su Huaijing subconsciously wanted to refute, but then realised that what Rong Tang said didn’t seem wrong.

He pondered for a while. As he led Rong Tang to the carriage, he still corrected his words: “What Tangtang said is wrong.”

Rong Tang: “?”

“It should be; I’ll be happier if I see you waiting for me.” Su Huaijing said.

It wasn’t a causal relationship, but rather a progression. As he stepped out of the Princess’s residence, leaving behind the whirlpool of schemes and plots, he saw his little Buddha standing idly in the sunlight, waiting for him. The bit of joy in his heart would uncontrollably emerge, and he couldn’t help but want to run towards him.

Rong Tang paused and stopped quibbling with him.

Whether he was unhappy or happier, his mood would never be too bad anyway.

The two of them got on the carriage. Initially, they were worried that they would be asked to return to the palace today, but Wang Xiuyu’s words meant that she wasn’t forcing them to go back. Rong Tang naturally wanted to head back to Yong’an Lane and be lazy for two days.

As soon as he got into the carriage, Su Huaijing said, “Tangtang, reach out your hand.”

Rong Tang had finished lunch, and it was about time for his nap, so he was rather sluggish. Upon hearing that, he yielded his left hand without thinking.

Su Huaijing smoothed his sleeve up, then fished out a string of woven, five-colour threads before lowering his head to tie it around his wrist.

Rong Tang was stunned and subconsciously retracted his hand. Su Huaijing was caught off guard, allowing him to withdraw. He glanced up at him with a slightly dazed look.

Rong Tang asked in surprise, “Where did you get that from?”

Su Huaijing said, “The nurse who led me to the warehouse just now gave it to me. She said she’d made an extra one for her own child and gave it to me.”

Rong Tang’s mouth gapped open: “Aaa——”

Then he extracted the one given by the Wang Fei from his sleeve and lifted his right sleeve up at the same time. He said, “Mother has weaved one for you too, and she told me to fasten it on for you.”

Su Huaijing was dazed for a moment.

Rong Tang didn’t wait for him to react. He straightaway stretched out to tug him over, tied the threads for him without any further explanation, and said earnestly, “The elders give this to the younger generation as a protection for safety and to ward off evil spirits. Since it was given to you, you can wear it yourself. Why give it to me?”

The warm touch of his fingertips and the smooth, soft sensation of the braided threads combined. Awestruck, Su Huaijing lowered his head and looked at his wrist. He didn’t react for a long time. “This is what Mother gave me?”

“Yes!” Rong Tang nodded ardently and repeated, “Hua Qin jiejie said it was woven by Mother, especially for the two of us, expressly for protecting our safety. No one else has it.”

He himself didn’t even realise that he was unconsciously showing off and coaxing when he said this. Su Huaijing didn’t know what to say for a long time. It never crossed his mind that when Wang Xiuyu weaved five-colour threads for Rong Tang, she would also weave one for him.

It was the first time in many years that he received five-colour threads from his elders during the Dragon Boat Festival, and he instinctively wanted to give them to Rong Tang. Yet he received such a surprise instead.

Su Huaijing lowered his hand and automatically touched his waist tablet. He himself discerned what kind of emotion he was alleviating.

Then he lifted his head, grabbed Rong Tang’s hand again, and stubbornly tied on the threads that the Eldest Princess gave him onto Rong Tang’s wrist: “Then I already have one from Mother, so this one is for Tangtang. I wish for your safety and health.”

Rong Tang had no time to refuse. Two strings of five-colour threads have been tied on both his wrists, one left and one right.

“……” That’s fine too, he said in his heart.

Rong Tang casually took out a bag of candied fruits from the secret compartment and stuffed a fruit into his mouth. He leaned on the carriage as he looked out the window at the long street, which was becoming increasingly noisy. They also passed by a group of patrolling imperial guards. He frowned, and it appeared as if something had come to mind before asking nonchalantly, “Huaijing, do you know where there are white tigers in Dayu?”

Su Huaijing’s eyes narrowed; he twirled his fingers a little and said, “I’m not sure; what’s going on?”

“It’s nothing.” Rong Tang shook his head, as if he’d just asked on a whim without thinking: “I just recalled that zumu also killed a white tiger while hunting when she was a child. Then recently, there were rumours in the capital about a hero presenting a white tiger from Mount Meng. I’m just curious about where so many white tigers come from.”

After he finished speaking, he let out a yawn, lazily lowered the carriage curtain, and leaned back, saying naturally, “Huaijing, I’m sleepy. I’ll sleep for a while first. When we arrive, call me.”

Su Huaijing naturally agreed but stared at him for a long time after he closed his eyes.

He wasn’t sure.

He didn’t know whether Rong Tang was flippantly asking or probing.

There have been many times that Rong Tang gave him the impression that he has some sort of awareness of the world’s affairs, but no matter what probability he speculated on, Rong Tang shouldn’t be cognisant of these matters.

Even the Eldest Princess only knew that he needed an auspicious sign, so she gifted him with a white tiger; that was all.

As for what he wanted to do and how he was going to carry it out, no one except Su Huaijing himself knew the exact plan.

But Rong Tang made him think that he’d been figured out.

Su Huaijing couldn’t hazard an accurate guess. His hand unconsciously touched the waist tablet, but he paused briefly and stared for a long time at the brand-new, five-colour threads.

……

Who cares.

If Rong Tang is really sceptical of him and really wants to ask him, it’s better to tell him everything, as long as it doesn’t scare him away.

Su Huaijing silently shifted his hand and held Rong Tang’s palm. The two five-colour threads were stacked together, as if they were both children of this world who were loved by their elders.

–

On the first rainy day following the Dragon Boat Festival, Rong Tang was reading in the study, lying on the beauty couch, getting sleepy as he listened to the sound of rain outside the house. He spaced out for a second, put on his shoes, ran out without thinking, and stood beneath the eaves to watch the rain.

Su Huaijing walked over from the corner of the corridor, carrying a tray. He looked at him with a smile, observing his excitement, and handed the medicine over to him.

Rong Tang took a whiff and found that the aroma was neither bitter nor strange. Although it still didn’t taste good, it was still far better than the ones he’d drank in Song Garden.

Rong Tang drank the medicine, put the bowl back, then sat on the small folding stool in front of the porch and pulled Su Huaijing to sit beside him. “Listen to the rain.”

It was a sweltering summer in the capital, and even he had donned a single shirt. This bout of rain made it much cooler, and Rong Tang inexplicably wanted to let Su Huaijing rest for a while.

As many days as they rested here, Su Huaijing had been busy behind the scenes for most of them.

The situation in the capital changed day by day. Rong Tang would occasionally hear Shuang Fu chattering about gossip, saying that the Third Prince had also entered the court to take charge of politics prior to the Dragon Boat Festival and was the real culprit in the struggle between the two political parties.

In the original work, this is the period where the male protagonist bides his time. The more fiercely Sheng Chengming and Sheng Chengxing fight in the previous dynasties, the more advantages he will gain in the aftermath. Sheng Chengli makes his grand entrance to seize the throne only after Earl Wukang of the Second Prince’s party is accused of rebellion and Sheng Chengming is exiled.

But now Heavenly Law’s male protagonist has a disabled leg. Sheng Chengming has consciously distanced himself from Earl Wukang’s Manor. Additionally, Rong Tang is unable to read the original work, so his memory has grown scattered and rusty. As a result, he truly has nothing to do.

He took Su Huaijing and sat under the eaves, listening to the sound of rain falling on them. The ants in the courtyard, who had moved late, were fleeing helter-skelter, and the gardenias toppled onto the soil.

The two of them didn’t speak for a long time. Rong Tang weathered the wind, even to the point of curling up his legs.

Su Huaijing took his hands, untied the two five-colour threads, and then very obediently presented his own wrist before him.

Rong Tang understood and lowered his head as he helped him unfasten it.

Su Huaijing put away the three strings of threads. Rong Tang watched him for a long time but didn’t see him finding a place to toss them. After dinner and before going to bed, he was still curious and asked, “Where are you going to throw them?”

Su Huaijing shook his head and said with a smile, “It’s a secret.”

Rong Tang: “?”

Rong Tang has grown increasingly childish of late. When he heard this, he felt vexed by him. He blinked in disbelief, left out a “hng” sound, turned around, and went back to the house, not caring where he was going to throw it.

Su Huaijing watched his back and muffled his laughter for a long time. Then he went back to the house and took out a purse, which contained the safety talisman that Rong Tang had brought back for him from Tuolan Temple.

Su Huaijing placed the three faded strings of five-colour threads together inside.

The adage says to throw it away, but he is reluctant to part with it.

Dayu Palace’s most noble prince, His Highness the Seventh Prince, was reluctant to part with three flimsy strings of weaved threads. It would draw people’s ridicule if that got out, but he just simply can’t bear to part with them.

So he’ll carry it on his person along with the safety talisman, which he’s reluctant to part with.

These are gifts he received, gifts that had been prepared simply for him, things wishing for his health and safety.

Su Huaijing couldn’t help but be afraid these days. If Rong Tang had not appeared at Fengyue House that day and had not taken him away, where would he be now, and what kind of life would he be living?

But every time he thought about this, the little prince would miraculously appear before his eyes. One moment he would be coquettish and say that he wanted to eat spicy food, and the next moment he would say he was too bored at home and wanted to go out shopping.

Su Huaijing had exhausted his brain just to make him happy and had no time for him to think about things that never occurred.

If one were really to make a comparison, it would probably be hell on one side and the mortal world on the other.

He is beginning to get greedy.

–

Rong Tang woke up the next day and asked offhandedly, “Huaijing, do you want to get out to escape the summer heat?”

Su Huaijing was slightly dazed, not understanding what he meant.

Rong Tang curled his lips and complained, “It’s getting hotter and hotter in the capital. It’s been too dry for me to fall asleep these past few nights. I’m afraid that staying here any longer will be bad for my condition.”

He was blithely chattering, but Su Huaijing immediately became anxious. He grabbed Rong Tang’s wrist and said nothing.

Rong Tang was still rambling, listing various examples of why the overly hot capital wasn’t suitable for recuperation. He didn’t notice Su Huaijing quickly relax after pressing his wrist, and his expression turned a little strange.

Lying.

Tangtang is lying.

The pulse is stable, although it’s still weak, but it has improved a great deal compared to before.

He sleeps at least ten hours a day.

Fraudster.

Little lazy worm.

Su Huaijing withdrew his hand and did not expose him. Instead, he asked, “Where do you want to go?”

Rong Tang’s eyes suddenly lit up. He looked at the sky in the distance and said, without thinking, “Jiangnan!”

He continued, “Didn’t Excellency Mu accompany Ke Hongxue back to Jiangnan to worship his ancestors some time ago? They brought a lot of gifts when they came back. Ke Hongxue said it was fun there. I’ve never been there before in my life. Huaijing, you can accompany me to go, yes?”

Rong Tang asked Su Huaijing very frankly and acted coquettishly, but the latter narrowed his eyes due to the destination he’d just blurted out.

The secret letter he sent to Sheng Chengming the day before yesterday just happened to mention that he should find some time to go to Jiangnan and bring a few officials who were proficient in water conservancy. Today, Rong Tang told him that he wanted to go to Jiangnan.

Strictly speaking, this is convenient for him.

But Su Huaijing hesitated for a second and shook his head: “It’s too far. We’ll go once your health is better.”

“It’s better!” Rong Tang immediately retorted, “I can eat two bowls of rice in one sitting now!”

He seemed to want to show his robustness. But Su Huaijing eyed him solemnly when he heard this and ruthlessly exposed him: “Before we got married, you could already eat two bowls of rice in one sitting, and occasionally, when you’re really hungry, you can even eat three bowls.”

As a doctor, Su Huaijing sometimes couldn’t comprehend how Rong Tang managed to eat so much food despite his obvious illness and skinny build.

Rong Tang blushed suspiciously and stiffened his neck. “I’m really healthy now. Let’s make our way slowly and leisurely. If I stay in the capital any longer, I will perish from chest tightness, shortness of breath, and emotional distress—”

His mouth was muffled. Su Huaijing glared fiercely at him without saying a word; his expression was furious.

Rong Tang blinked, yanked his hand away, and said cutely, “Let’s go, let’s go. I want to go out and have fun.”

Su Huaijing was silent for a moment and asked, “Just to have fun?”

Rong Tang nodded immediately. “Just to have fun!”

The young prince’s eyes were twinkling and full of expectation as he stared eagerly at Su Huaijing.

After a long stalemate, Su Huaijing was defeated in the end and stood up.

Rong Tang clasped his hand and asked anxiously, “Where are you going?”

Su Huaijing: “I’m letting Shuang Fu pack the luggage and going to pick a day to travel.”

Rong Tang blinked and immediately cheered: “Yay!”

Su Huaijing couldn’t resist stroking a lock of his hair before leaving.

He stepped out of the study, and the face of the person who was still laughing on the beauty couch abruptly became downcast.

There was a mechanical voice in his mind. He couldn’t tell whether it was biting sarcasm or bitterly admonishing: [Didn’t you want to be a lazy rice worm?]

Rong Tang moved backwards and covered his face with his book: “I can also be a lazy rice worm when I go to Jiangnan.”

System: [……] Stubborn.

[In the summer of the ninth year of Qingzheng, there were continuous heavy rains in Dayu. The river embankments collapsed. The governor of Jiangnan neglected his duties. Many villages were flooded, and the people were displaced. Yet they actually concealed it and did not report it. As a result, millions of people were affected by the disaster, with losses amounting to tens of millions of taels of silver. The once prosperous land became a scene of suffering and devastation, with corpses scattered everywhere.]

Many things have deviated from their expected course.

Sheng Chengli exited the cold palace early, Yuerong died at the wrong time, and Zhang Baoshan embezzled military funds but wasn’t investigated……

With Sheng Chengli as the protagonist, Rong Tang doesn’t know in this life where this novel is headed. But natural disasters will not change, and man-made calamities will always be there.

The people of the world are innocent.

The author has something to say:

Wait…… To prevent everyone’s confusion, the Eldest Princess is the adopted daughter of Emperor Xuan, and the succession of the throne is as follows: Emperor Xuan (grandfather of the late emperor)—Emperor Mingzong (father of the late emperor)—The “Slayer” Emperor (the late emperor)—Emperor Renshou (the late emperor’s didi)