Troublemaker Prince C48
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 48
The little eunuch's expression was somewhat flustered. He knew full well what the situation at Juxian Pavilion was like — there were hardly any scholars inside at all. The Crown Prince had recruited nothing but a ragtag assortment of people, and if His Majesty were to see it, he would likely punish the Crown Prince on the spot.
You Yusui calmly handed the painted thrush from its birdcage to Jiang Yan at his side, then turned to the little eunuch and said, "What are you panicking for?"
The little eunuch was stunned to see You Yusui so perfectly calm and composed, then immediately grew even more anxious on his behalf — this was truly a case of the emperor being unworried while the eunuch fretted.
You Yusui sat up from the chaise lounge and said to the little eunuch, "Go and fetch Lord Huo. Tell him to prepare to leave the palace."
"Yes." The little eunuch answered and ran outside.
Huo Xiling had by now become the Senior Official of the Crown Prince's Household, in charge of the Eastern Palace's guards, and was currently putting those guards through rigorous training. When the little eunuch came looking for Huo Xiling, the poor souls who had been drilled to the point of collapse finally let out a collective sigh of relief.
Huo Xiling listened to what the little eunuch had to say, nodded, said he understood, and went to make preparations.
At that moment, You Yusui also had his attendants help tidy his clothing in preparation for going out to receive You Fengyun.
Standing before the bronze mirror, You Yusui looked at his rather pallid complexion and showed a satisfied expression. Then he said to Jiang Yan, who stood behind him. "Once that painted thrush has been trained, send it to the Princess of Wu."
Su Yingying was a woman, and going out frequently would inevitably attract notice. It was far safer to train a painted thrush to carry messages on her behalf.
"Yes." Jiang Yan replied, holding up the birdcage containing the thrush.
You Yusui lightly touched the teardrop mole beneath his eye and asked, "Ordinary songbirds can be trained — but what about birds of prey?"
You Yusui asked this with Huo Xiling in mind. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Huo Xiling would eventually go to the battlefield, and the battlefield was a place of constant, unpredictable change. Using delicate little songbirds to carry messages there was simply impossible — not only could they easily be shot down, they also couldn't fly nearly far enough.
Jiang Yan paused for a moment, then said, "It is worth a try."
"Good." You Yusui curved his lips upward. "People below just sent two young falcons. I'll have them placed in your care."
Finally, You Yusui straightened the crown on his head and turned to walk out of the room.
By the time You Yusui was helped outside to the gates of the Eastern Palace, You Fengyun had arrived at roughly the same moment.
"This son greets Father Emperor." You Yusui bowed to You Fengyun, supported by the little eunuch.
"Rise." You Fengyun said, and then his gaze fell upon the colorful birdcages hanging from the Eastern Palace's eaves, with little birds hopping about inside and letting out crisp, bright calls.
If the censors were to find out, they would surely submit a memorial accusing You Yusui of indulging in idle amusements to the neglect of his duties.
You Fengyun felt a slight headache coming on. He could already foresee a flurry of memorials descending upon his desk like snowflakes. He pointed at the birdcages and asked You Yusui, "Where did these come from?"
You Yusui replied with an innocent expression. "Grand Preceptor Gu sent them to me. He said the Eastern Palace was far too dull and wanted to give me something to cheer me up."
You Yusui told the lie without the slightest trace of guilt, because Gu Shen was absolutely the sort of person who would do such a thing.
You Fengyun was silent for a moment upon hearing this. He began to wonder whether choosing Gu Shen as You Yusui's Grand Preceptor had been a mistake.
It was one thing for Gu Shen to let loose and act frivolously — but how had he managed to lead the Crown Prince astray as well?
"Is fishing and cockfighting not enough to keep you entertained?" You Fengyun asked in return.
"The imperial physician said I must not let my emotions run too high, so cockfighting has been forbidden." You Yusui said in a particularly frail and pitiable manner. "Fishing is truly so dreadfully dull."
After all, only his maternal grandfather and Grand Preceptor Gu were the sort of people who would grab their fishing rods and dash off to the riverbank dozens of li away in the dead of night just to go fishing — and then end up catching a tortoise and act thrilled about it like a pair of fools. The amusements of old men were something he simply could not understand.
You Fengyun fell silent again. He began to consider whether the Eastern Palace truly was dull, then looked at the Crown Prince before him and said, "How about you come to Xuande Hall and help Zhen handle state affairs?"
The moment those words fell, Eunuch An Hai was inwardly startled. Being summoned to Xuande Hall to handle state affairs — that was the standard treatment reserved for grooming a crown prince as heir apparent.
What had come before, namely sending memorials to the Eastern Palace for the Crown Prince to review when he hadn't been ill, was incomparable to having the Crown Prince come to Xuande Hall in person. The former involved only trivial, minor matters; the latter concerned affairs of the nation and the state.
If any of the other imperial princes had been summoned by the Emperor to Xuande Hall to handle state affairs, they would surely have jumped for joy. So why did the Crown Prince look as though he were about to die?
You Yusui's face had gone pale. His fingers clutched tightly at the front of his robes. His Father Emperor truly had an inexhaustible supply of ways to work people to the bone — first he had wanted a gravely ill man to attend morning court, and now he wanted a sick man to accompany him in Xuande Hall processing state affairs until the dead of night.
He could not bear such abundant affection. His Father Emperor should bestow it upon Minister Su instead.
"This son is filled with shame at being unable to share Father Emperor's burdens." You Yusui said, his eyes brimming as though tears might fall at any moment. "But this illness of mine prevents me from taxing my mind. Please, Father Emperor, forgive this son."
At that moment, You Yusui had already steeled himself for the possibility of fainting for three days and three nights.
In truth, You Fengyun had never intended to work You Yusui to the bone. It was You Yusui himself who had said the Eastern Palace was dull, and when something was dull, one naturally needed to find something to do. In You Fengyun's view, nothing was more enjoyable than handling state affairs — he was simply trying to find entertainment for a bored You Yusui.
You Yusui: I cannot comprehend this kind of pleasure whatsoever.
In the end, You Fengyun considered You Yusui's condition and abandoned the idea of having him come to Xuande Hall to handle state affairs. After all, if the Crown Prince's health collapsed, who would he rely on to keep the First Prince and Third Prince in check? Finding and grooming a replacement would be far too troublesome.
"How is your Juxian Pavilion coming along?" You Fengyun now recalled the real reason he had come to find the Crown Prince.
Although Juxian Pavilion was currently in the Crown Prince's hands, You Fengyun regarded it as no different from his own property. The Crown Prince was recruiting and cultivating talent there on his behalf, and reclaiming Juxian Pavilion whenever he wished would be a matter of just a word or two.
Upon hearing this, You Yusui thought to himself — Juxian Pavilion, that was certainly going splendidly!
The troupe for handling both weddings and funerals had already taken shape. They could switch between funeral dirges and wedding music at will. The cooks had the banquet dishes for both celebratory feasts and mourning meals memorized backwards and forwards. The troupe of acrobat performers who added flair to banquets were all seasoned veterans who would absolutely not be intimidated in the presence of high-ranking officials.
As for the carpenters, they could make both coffins and furniture. The tailors and embroiderers were also highly skilled, not much inferior to those in the palace, and could handle everything from bridal garments to burial clothes.
As long as You Fengyun dared to go and look, You Yusui dared to send him off to the next world.
"This son thinks it is going very well," You Yusui replied.
Beside him, the little eunuch who had visited Juxian Pavilion looked utterly despairing. Crown Prince, how could you possibly have the nerve to say the words "very well"!
"Oh?" You Fengyun's interest was piqued. "Take Zhen to have a look."
You Fengyun had anticipated that the First Prince and Third Prince would likely interfere with the Crown Prince's efforts to recruit talent for Juxian Pavilion, meaning things there might not have gone particularly smoothly. What he had not anticipated was that You Yusui would say it was going very well.
And so, You Fengyun was all the more eager to go and see Juxian Pavilion for himself.
"Please allow Father Emperor to change into plain clothes first," You Yusui said.
"Naturally."
You Fengyun changed into a set of richly fine dark robes. His black hair was swept high and bound with a purple-gold crown. Paired with those cold, phoenix-shaped eyes and his rather thin lips, his handsomeness gave one the simultaneous impression of utter ruthlessness and indifference.
You Yusui looked at You Fengyun, who appeared only twelve or thirteen years older than himself, and thought of Minister Su, who was in his sixties but looked as though he were hurtling toward ninety — and fell into a profound, heavy silence.
His Father Emperor was truly blessed by nature. Even time treated him with extraordinary favor. Both of them stayed up through the night handling state affairs, yet Minister Su had nearly one foot in the grave while his Father Emperor remained as youthful as ever. It was truly terrifying.
You Fengyun, seeing You Yusui staring at him without a word, assumed he must be feeling self-conscious, and so offered a word of comfort. "Once you recover, build up your constitution with proper exercise and you'll naturally look like Zhen."
You Yusui forced out a smile. Thank you, but that won't be necessary.
At that moment, Huo Xiling arrived with a prepared carriage and Eastern Palace guards dressed as ordinary escorts.
"Please, Your Majesty and Your Highness the Crown Prince, board the carriage." Huo Xiling dismounted and knelt on one knee to pay his respects.
You Fengyun looked at Huo Xiling's valiant and spirited bearing and immediately felt that Liu Ye's brother-in-law was quite impressive. That sharp, keen edge about him was something he greatly admired, and moreover Liu Ye had said he was a talent worth cultivating — a blade of the empire to follow in Liu Ye's footsteps.
"It won't be long before he can follow Liu Ye to the battlefield," You Fengyun remarked. Indeed, before much longer, preparations could begin for going to war against the Tujue.
"Please board the carriage, Father Emperor," You Yusui said.
Later, You Yusui deeply regretted this. Why did this wretched emperor have to stretch his legs out so wide? There was hardly any room left for him to sit.
They finally arrived at Juxian Pavilion, and You Fengyun, seeing how desolate and deserted the entrance was, could not help but frown and ask, "Why is it so quiet and empty?"
You Yusui replied earnestly: "This only proves there are no talents left uncovered in the land."
You Fengyun nodded and took You Yusui's words at face value — after all, You Yusui, as Crown Prince, was rarely unreliable.
When You Fengyun stepped inside Juxian Pavilion, he caught the aroma of food and cooking. Different from the cuisine of the imperial palace, this heavy, rich, oily and salty smell made it rather difficult for him to continue walking.
You Yusui, however, said, "Father Emperor, did you not wish to see the talent I have recruited? I will have them come over at once."
Beside him, Huo Xiling sighed inwardly and resigned himself to his fate, going to summon the musical ensemble the Crown Prince had assembled. He also had someone serve You Fengyun a cup of heat-clearing green tea, lest the fire of anger that was to come cause him any harm.
A moment later, a group of middle-aged men carrying suona horns, erhu fiddles, and bronze gongs came walking over.
You Fengyun, who had been in the middle of drinking his tea, gave a jolt. His hand trembled, and he looked at You Yusui — this is the talent you recruited?
You Yusui gestured for his Father Emperor to remain calm, then said to Huo Xiling, "Have them begin."
The words had barely fallen when the suona burst into sound and the bronze gongs joined in. That brisk, lively funeral dirge, accompanied by the mournful strains of the erhu, nearly sent You Fengyun off to the next world then and there.
With a loud crack, You Fengyun's face went dark as he crushed the teacup in his hand.
"Crown Prince! This is the talent you have recruited?!"