Category: Didn’t Love You Enough

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Chapter 99 – Passing the Provincial Level Imperial Examination

The news that Lin Jia Bao was conferred the title of the crown prince’s cejun gradually spread throughout Xu Province…

Lin Da Zhuang’s family has now become the most fragrant bun in Lin Jia Village. People from far and near all wanted to make connections with them. They could tell that this Lin family was on the verge of transforming into a phoenix and flying into the skies, so they all wanted to become friendly with them and get some benefits…

Lin Da Zhuang’s family was absolutely fed up with all the disturbances. Everyday they had to receive guests from prestigious families in Xu Province and shoo away numerous matchmakers.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

People were already thinking of Lin Jia Cai and Lin Xiu Er’s future marriages… There were even people who said they were willing to send their daughters to the Lin family to be concubines…

Lin Jia Wen has now become the most sought after man in the village. Without exception, every single woman wanted to marry him. Before, people saw Lin Jia Wen as this burly young man with the waist of a bear and the back of a tiger*. Although he was a scholar, he had a big family with a lot of younger siblings to take care of and his family background was really ordinary, so the village girls weren’t very fond of him.

[*T/N: “the waist of a bear and the back of a tiger” – Chinese description to illustrate someone of tough and stocky build]

But they never expected that Lin Jia Wen himself would pass the county level imperial exam, thus exempting his family from land tax, military service, and corvée service. His family also got more land. Furthermore, his younger brother became a nobleman in the palace. Afterwards, all the village girls would have expressions of endless admiration whenever they mentioned Lin Jia Wen…

Just a few days ago, Wu Qiao Lan’s mother was still praising her husband, saying that he taught his student well and that he chose a good son-in-law… But when she heard news of the Lin family taking concubines, she was full of worry and immediately hurried over.

Lin Jia Wen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when he heard his mother-in-law’s worries.

“Please rest assured, Mother-in-Law, I have never thought of taking a concubine…”

“That’s right, dear in-law, our Lin family will never take in concubines…” Lin Da Zhuang also assured Wu-shi. Just a few days ago, someone actually wanted to send two pretty ladies to be his concubines. Zhang Hui Niang got so angry that she hasn’t shown him a good expression in two days. Lin Da zhuang felt very aggrieved. He was already old enough to have grandchildren…

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Lin Da Zhuang’s family once again closed their doors to guests, but some people refused to give up and still shamelessly showed up at their doors… The Lin family had no choice but to secretly go to town and buy a small house with three entrances and three exits. They temporarily entrusted their land to Zhou Hai’s family to take care of and the entire family moved into town.

They only told a few people about their move. After that, they bought a few servants. With a gatekeeper guarding the door and turning away unnecessary people, their days finally got a lot more peaceful. Lin Jia Wen was finally able to relax and focus on his studies…

At the Qin family’s house…

Lin Jin Er just came back from visiting the Lin family’s new house in town. The Lin family’s new place was not far from the Qin family’s place, so it was more convenient to travel back and forth now.

“Jin Er, you’re back. How are our in-laws settling in? Is there anything missing that needs to be bought? Are there enough servants?” Mrs. Qin asked with concern when her daughter-in-law came back.

Recently, the Qin family started to work together with the royal merchant Qi family, and their business has more than doubled. They earned a lot of money every month. Qin Kai Xing was full of enthusiasm every day and he wholeheartedly wanted to expand the Qin family’s business…

Mrs. Qin believed that Lin Jin Er was the Qin family’s lucky star, and she valued this daughter-in-law more and more. She was very happy to hear that her in-laws were coming to live in the town for a while.

“They’ve settled in well. There’s nothing missing.” Lin Jin Er replied.

“That’s good. Then let’s wait a while and see when our in-laws have free time. Our Qin family will officially pay our in-laws a visit.” Mrs. Qin figured that since the two families now lived close together, it would be convenient to visit more often.

In the blink of an eye it was already October. Lin Jia Wen went to Xu Province to participate in the triennial provincial imperial exam. When the results came out, Lin Jia Wen’s name was at the very top of the list. He got first place in the triennial provincial imperial exam. He was the jieyuan*.

[*T/N: 解元 jieyuan – first-placed candidate in the provincial imperial examinations]

The Lin family immediately set off firecrackers to celebrate. Then they held a banquet in the best restaurant in town and invited Lin Jia Wen’s mentor, relatives, friends, the prefectural magistrate of the Xu Province, the county head magistrate of Pei County, and all the big-name people in Xu Province. Those who could not personally attend all sent congratulatory presents.

Lin Da Zhuang drank until his face was flushed bright red. In the past year, his family has undergone earth-shaking changes. His sons had such good future prospects. What fortune…

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

In the days that followed, the Lin family’s social engagements increased once again. In one leap, the Lin family has become the rising family in Xu Province.

Lin Jia Wen did not become complacent just because he got the jieyuan position this time. He has already decided not to attend the imperial civil service examination next year.

He planned to give himself two years to enrich himself before taking part in the imperial civil service examination. Otherwise, with his current abilities he was likely to get a jinshi* status, but it was impossible for him to stand out and rank among the top out of all the outstanding students from all over the country.

[*T/N: jinshi means you passed the exam, but you could still be a low scorer]

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Chapter 98 – Passing the Provincial Level Imperial Examination (32.1)

In February, the emperor ordered the second prince, Xuan Yuan Han Qi, to personally go to Li City to supervise the beheading of Prince Li’s wife and children. Xuan Yuan Han Qi’s trip went very smoothly. Not only did he successfully complete the task of supervising the beheadings, but he also wiped out all the remaining remnants in support of Prince Li.

An investigation into the remnants’ operations showed that they were all voluntarily carried out by Prince Li’s die-hard subordinates, and it had nothing to do with Prince Li himself.

Prince Li’s descendants have all been executed, and there’s been no traces of Prince Li found at all… It would really seem that Prince Li had died in that fire…

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

In March, Second Prince Xuan Yuan Han Qi returned to the capital, and he was in the limelight for a while. People say that the second prince made great achievements despite his young age. At just fifteen years old, he was able to carry out errands on his own and he did so well.

Some of the more ambitious courtiers were secretly starting to make plans. Right now the crown princess position and two crown prince cefei* positions were vacant. In addition to that, the second prince also did not have a main wife and any cefei yet…

[*T/N: 侧妃 cefei – roughly translates to “side imperial concubine.” It is a lower status than cejun, which is LJB’s title. A prince’s harem uses different titles from the emperor’s harem. Once the prince ascends to the throne, all the women in his harem get new titles.]

The second prince officially started participating in the imperial court, and thus the courtiers began to pay more attention to him…

The emperor was very gratified to see his second son also becoming independent. His two di* sons were his pride and joy… It would seem that the Xuan Yuan Empire’s golden age was not far off…

[*T/N: 嫡子 di son – a son of the main wife, in this case, the empress]

Not too long after, the prefectural magistrate of Xu Province, Shi Qi Shan, found out from an official announcement that Lin Jia Bao was promoted to the position of the crown prince’s cejun.

“This Lin Jia Bao is really going to become someone incredible in the future…” Shi Qi Shan thought to himself.

When Shi Qi Shan returned home, he told his wife the news. Madam Shi was also very surprised to hear the news. This Lin Jia Bao actually got promoted to cejun in such a short amount of time. It hasn’t even been a year yet…

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“It’s a pity that the Lin family’s second daughter is already engaged, and the remaining children are too young to be engaged,” Madam Shi said regretfully. Otherwise, they could become relatives with the Lin family through marriage, which would be very helpful for her husband’s career in the future.

“Let’s get someone to send a big present over first…” Shi Qi Shan said to his wife.

In Pei County, Du Xiang Heng, the county head magistrate, also found out about this bit of good news. He hurriedly said to his shiye*: “Quick, prepare the sedan chair. This official is going to personally head over to the Lin family to report this good news.”

[*T/N: 师爷 shiye – a literati bachelor who helps military and political officials with their affairs]

The arrival of the county head magistrate caused a stir to go through Lin Jia village. After the county head magistrate told Lin Da Zhuang and his family the news that Lin Jia Bao became the crown prince’s cejun, the entire village became lively. The people ran around and spread the news to each other through word of mouth. Someone from their little village actually became a nobleman…

Lin Da Zhuang and his family were absolutely floored by this news. Lin Da Zhuang asked in disbelief, “Jia Bao became the crown prince’s cejun? Is that really true?”

“Lord Lin, ah, it’s even written on this official announcement. It is absolutely the truth. This official came here to report the good news to you…”

“Thank you Lord County Head Magistrate for personally coming here to tell us. Please come in for some tea…” Lin Jia Wen invited County Head Magistrate Du inside the house. At this time, there were many villagers bustling around outside the Lin family’s courtyard to watch what’s going on.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

On the same day, County Head Magistrate Du’s shiye just so happened to bump into Official Registrar Wang, so he greeted him politely and said, “Official Registrar Wang, ah… your family’s in-laws really are too incredible…” Then he told Official Registrar Wang the news of Lin Jia Bao’s promotion to cejun.

When Official Registrar Wang returned home, he also happily announced this bit of good news to his family. Lin Chun Er was both happy and jealous in her heart. At first, she thought that Lin Jia Bao becoming the crown prince’s xiaoshi was only something that sounded good on paper, but in actuality it was the equivalent of being a tongfang* in the family of a commoner.

[*T/N: 通房 tongfang – a servant that also has sexual relations with the master. The servant might get some small benefits because the master has “favored” them, but they’re not even considered an official member of the master’s harem.]

She never expected her cousin to be so capable… Fortunately, the relationship between her maternal family and her uncle’s family have been restored, so now she could really puff out her chest and straighten her spine…

Lin Chun Er was not wrong. After they learned that Lin Jia Bao has become the crown prince’s cejun, everyone in the Wang family changed their attitude towards her. Her mother-in-law even purchased two new young girls to serve her, which greatly improved her quality of life, and she even voluntarily handed over the housekeeping rights to her.

Even when Lin Chun Er sold off her husband’s two tongfang maids, her husband did not blame her. Instead, he was even more gentle and considerate towards her, and spoke only sweet words. Because of this, Lin Chun Er was extremely pleased with herself for a long time…

All the reputable families in Pei County and even in Xu Province knew that the Wang family’s young madam was Lin-cejun’s cousin. The noble ladies of these families would often invite her to participate in this flower-viewing party or that poetry gathering. She was always there as an accompaniment to Zhang Hui Niang and Lin Jin Er, but she still enjoyed these parties and gatherings immensely. She never tired of them no matter how many invites she got.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Lin Chun Er would bring her younger sister, Lin Xia Er, along to these gatherings. And she made sure to never miss an opportunity to show her face at an upper class party within Xu Province. Lin Chun Er felt that this was the kind of life that she wanted to have as the young madam of a government official family…

Lin Xia Er saw all the splendid clothes and exquisite food at these parties, and vowed that she would live such a life in the future…

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Chapter 97 – Colored Lantern

On the second day of the second lunar month, an imperial degree shocked the entire crown prince’s East Palace. Everyone in Ping Le Courtyard knelt down to receive the decree. The one who read the imperial decree out loud was Zhao Yong, the emperor’s personal eunuch.

“As decreed by the emperor, the crown prince’s xiaoshi Lin An Zhu is prudent in nature, diligent and submissive, graceful and pure, and gentle in temperament. Due to his meritorious deed in saving the empress, he will be specially appointed as the crown prince’s cejun. Accept this decree!”

Lin Jia Bao stepped forward to thank him and accepted the imperial decree. All the palace servants in Ping Le Courtyard came over to congratulate Lin-xiaozhu… oh, no… it was Lin-cejun now.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng had Qiu-momo open up the inner warehouse and reward all the palace servants in Ping Le Courtyard with silver. There was a lot of excitement in Ping Le Courtyard and everyone felt extremely lucky and joyful to be able to work in Ping Le Courtyard with Lin-cejun as their master…

The new of Lin Jia Bao’s promotion to cejun reached Yu-shi’s ears. When she heard this, she was so angry that she threw her favorite peach blossom porcelain vase to the floor.

“Why is he so lucky?!”

She was the woman who had once given birth to a son for His Royal Highness, whereas that ger was small and childless… what gave him the right to be so lucky…

The palace maid beside Yu-shi did not dare to speak. She just silently cleaned up the debris on the ground and thought to herself how great it would be if she could go work in Ping Le Courtyard instead…

When Song-shi heard the news, she did not get as agitated as Yu-shi. Instead, she had Qiu-momo take the place of Kang Er’s nanny on the grounds that the nanny was unwell. She also became stricter about Kang Er’s supervision and education…

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On the morning of the second day after receiving the imperial decree, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng brought Jia Bao with him to pay respect to the empress.

The empress was very happy to see that the crown prince had brought Jia Bao with him to greet her. “Jia Bao, quick, come over here and let bengong take a good look at you…”

The empress observed Jia Bao’s small and thin face carefully. Then she spoke, “You lost so much weight, ah. But your complexion looks good. Have you used all the supplements that bengong told Zhou-momo to send over?”

“Jia Bao gives thanks to the empress for the supplements. Jia Bao has been using them everyday…”

Over the past few days, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng has been coaxing Jia Bao to drink lots of nourishing soups every single day, and now his complexion looked much better.

When Xuan Yuan Han Cheng saw how amiable and familiar his mother was being towards Lin Jia Bao he was very happy. His sweet darling really was such a lovable treasure. People quickly took a liking to him once they got to know him. In the future, there shouldn’t be much resistance from his mother’s side.

“Jia Bao, you’re still young. You must be careful not to harm the core of your health when you are young. You have to make sure you recover well from your illness this time. Jia Bao, take care of yourself to lay a good foundation. Then in the future you can give birth to the crown prince’s children…” the empress said to Lin Jia Bao.

Lin Jia Bao was a ger, so it was a little difficult when it came to giving birth, but the empress still hoped that Lin Jia Bao could give birth to a child for the crown prince someday.

“Understood.” Lin Jia Bao replied shyly.

Afterwards, the empress had the crown prince and Jia Bao stay for lunch together with her.

In the days that followed, Lin Jia Bao went to greet the empress every day as usual. The concubines in the harem could clearly tell that the empress’s attitude towards Lin-cejun was very different from before. They all understood that Lin-cejun was the empress’s favorite person now, so they tried to get close to him and curry favor with him.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

The imperial court also began to pay attention to Lin Jia Bao, the crown prince’s cejun. This was the first cejun in the crown prince’s East Palace. On top of that, he had saved the empress’s life. Fortunately, this cejun’s net worth and background was not much to look at, and he was a ger too, otherwise, this person’s future would be limitless…

In February of the sixth year of Yuntai, Emperor Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen issued two imperial decrees in a row, passing judgment on Prince Li and the entire Xue family.

The decree stated: Prince Li conspired against the throne, and thus he will be executed. His whole family will also follow him to the underworld. The disgraceful Xue clan aided and abetted Prince Li’s rebellious attempt to seize the throne. All nine generations of the family will be exterminated. Hear and obey this decree.

For a period of time, all the families that have been implicated by the Xue family all came up in succession to beg for forgiveness and to denounce all ties with the Xue family.

When a wall is about to collapse, everybody gives it a shove*.

[*T/N: idiom for everyone hits a man who is down]

Many families that had connections with the Xue family got their houses searched and possessions confiscated.

The power of the Xue family was uprooted, and the once powerful Xue family was completely destroyed…

Later on, news came out from the East Palace saying that the crown princess, Xue Cai Yu, died of illness despite receiving medical treatment. But this news did not cause any big waves of disturbance. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng declared that the crown princess, Xue-shi, was the daughter of a criminal, and thus did not deserve to be buried in the imperial tomb. He asked to have her buried elsewhere and the emperor granted this request. The ministers all understood in their hearts that His Royal Highness did not want Xue-shi to occupy the position of his main wife.

As for Lin Jia Bao, he has now become the person with the highest rank in the crown prince’s harem. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng took advantage of the situation to hand over the management of the palace affairs in the East Palace to Lin Jia Bao. Qiu-momo was assigned to assist him.

Lin Jia Bao took the task assigned to him by His Royal Highness very seriously and worked hard to learn from Qiu-momo. At first, his actions were soft and immature, but over time, he gradually settled into the role more and more…

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T/N: Hello, I’m back! Thank you for your patience everyone. I’ve sort of figured out a new way to translate by using a free online word processor, but the translating process is not as smooth as before. Maybe I just need some more time to get used to it and then I can translate faster. I still need to access Pages, though. It has all my translation documents, and the software continues to glitch, which frustrates me to no end. I think it might be due to the most recent system software update. I do recall performing a update prior to the glitching. Maybe Apple tried to add something to Pages in the new update and ended up glitching it. Hopefully the next software update will fix it. Fingers crossed.

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Chapter 96 – Colored Lantern

The eunuch delivered the lantern to Yu-shi. After receiving the lantern, she hurriedly bestowed him a reward. “Thank you for the trouble…”

Yu-shi brought the lotus lantern to An’er.

“An’er, look… your father still thinks of you. The next time you see your father you must be more quick-witted and ingratiating. Understand?”

“Understood.” An’er nodded obediently as she touched the exquisite lantern.

Over on Song-shi’s side, she also received a colored lantern. She gave the lantern to Kang-er to carry in her hands.

“Look… how beautiful this peony lantern is. Kang’er, be careful when you’re carrying this around, don’t light it [with fire]…”

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

While saying this, Song-shi indicated to Kang’er’s wet nurse to watch out for the little girl.

Kang’er ran around the room with the beautiful peony lantern in her hands. She liked it very much. Her wet nurse followed her around and said nervously, “Little Master… slow down a little… be careful of falling…”

Kang’er didn’t listen to her wet nurse. She kept running around the room and occasionally burst out into peals of laughter.

The wet nurse followed Kang’er around and tried to coax her by saying, “Little Master, look at how beautiful this colored lantern is, if you drop and break it, then it won’t be beautiful anymore. Little Master, slow down, stop running… Little Master, stop, look at this lantern, it’s so pretty, ya… I bet this peony lantern is the most beautiful one in Ping Le Courtyard.”

“Ping Le Courtyard? The freak’s courtyard!” Kang’er stopped. She suddenly became angry and panicked. She flung the lantern to the ground. The candle inside the lantern instantly ignited the lantern and it burned up.

The wet nurse quickly stepped forward to put out the fire, and Song-shi immediately rushed over when she heard the commotion.

“What happened? Everything was fine. Why did it burn up all of a sudden? Kang’er… didn’t Mother tell you to be more careful? It was His Royal Highness who had someone deliver this lantern over here…”

Somewhat angry, Song-shi turned to the wet nurse, “Didn’t I tell you to look after Kang’er?”

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“Master, this servant has been following the little master around all this time. I don’t know why the little master suddenly threw the lantern onto the ground,” the wet nurse replied, feeling aggrieved.

“It came from the freak’s courtyard, I don’t want it!” Kang’er said loudly.

“What freak? Kang’er, don’t talk nonsense,” Song-shi scolded Kang’er.

Kang’er struggled to get away, “It came from the freak’s courtyard. Father is not coming to see Kang’er because the freak is coiled around him. It’s the freak’s fault*…”

[*T/N: The specific word used here is 害死 (hai si), which means to be the cause of someone’s death.]

Song-shi covered her daughter’s mouth and asked sternly, “Kang’er, what kind of drivel are you talking about? Kang’er, who told you these words?”

“How do you normally look after Kang’er? Who told her such things?” Song-shi looked at Kang’er’s wet nurse with cold eyes.

The wet nurse knelt down and begged for mercy. “Master, ah, this servant never said such words, ah, don’t accuse this servant wrongly, ah…”

Song-shi felt annoyed at the sight of the wet nurse’s snot and tears. This wet nurse could not be allowed to stay by Kang’er’s side any longer. She didn’t know where Kang’er heard such words, but if His Royal Highness or Lin-xiaoshi found out, then it would be most terrible…

On the outside, Song-shi may seem honest, well behaved, and slow of speech, but she wasn’t a fool. She knew very well how to keep a low profile. She knew how to protect herself. She was His Royal Highness’s first woman, and she was the first to conceive a child for His Royal Highness. If it wasn’t for this, how could she live peacefully in the harem of His Royal Highness, and never became a threat in the eyes of the crown prince’s other women?

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Kang’er struggled to get away again and ran back into the room. Song-shi followed closely behind and said into Kang’er’s ear, “Kang’er, good child, ah, in the future you can’t talk nonsense about freaks and such, do you understand? Especially not in front of your father, the crown prince. You must not say such things again, do you understand?”

Lin-xiaoshi was now in the limelight. He might seem naïve and pure, but his schemes were deeply hidden. In a short period of time, he was able to gain the crown prince’s special favoring, get rid of Xu Xue Ying, and now he even got the empress to be his backer. Song-shi did not dare to provoke him… She repeatedly emphasized the importance of not speaking nonsense in her daughter’s ear, and didn’t stop nagging until Kang’er agreed.

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Chapter 95 – Colored Lantern* (31.1)

[*T/N: Specifically the kind used at the Lantern Festival, which is the 15^th day of the Lunar New Year.]

As the saying goes, sickness comes like a landslide, but goes slowly like spinning silk. Lin Jia Bao’s illness improved slowly, and he lost a lot of weight. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was deeply distressed when he saw that the little bit of weight that his baby had put on was now all gone, and he was skinny like before.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng ordered Shu Ya to prepare medicinal cuisine for Jia Bao everyday to nurse his health. Finally, Jia Bao’s complexion looked a little better in the past two days.

On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, on the Lantern Festival, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng negated the idea of Lin Jia Bao personally making sticky rice dumplings. To him, his darling’s health was the most important thing. As long as they could spend the holiday together, then nothing else mattered.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

In the evening, they ate delicious sticky rice dumplings together. The sweet red bean paste was Lin Jia Bao’s favorite. Lin Jia Bao ate six sticky rice dumplings in one sitting. When he was about to go for a seventh one, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng stopped him.

“This sticky rice dumpling is good, but if you eat too much, it will be hard to digest. Stuffing yourself too much is not good… Darling, if you like it then just have the small kitchen make it again some other time…”

After hearing this, Lin Jia Bao had no choice but to obediently put down the tableware…

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng led Lin Jia Bao by the hand. “Darling, you’re such a good boy… come with me… my baby…”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng took Lin Jia Bao outside to the courtyard.

Ever since Lin Jia bao got sick, he has not been allowed to leave the room. The weather was cold, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was deeply afraid that Lin Jia Bao would catch a cold again, but he also knew that his darling was a little bored. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng knew that Lin Jia Bao has been looking forward to the Lantern Festival, so he specially prepared a surprise for Jia Bao.

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The scenery in the yard stunned Lin Jia Bao. All the trees in the courtyard were covered with colored lanterns. Each lantern was colorful and different in shape. There were peony-shaped lanterns, lotus-shaped lanterns, and many more. They were all beautiful and delicate.

There were also some small, animal-shaped lanterns such as tiger lanterns, rabbit lanterns, kitten lanterns, deer lanterns, etc. All of them were vivid and lifelike.

With Xuan Yuan Han Cheng’s support, Lin Jia Bao strolled around the courtyard. He stopped in front of each lantern to admire them.

“Which one does my darling like? Hm… the little rabbit?” With one arm wrapped around Lin Jia Bao, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng reached out his other arm to fetch down a little rabbit lantern from a tree branch and gave it to Lin Jia Bao.

Lin Jia Bao took the rabbit lantern and carefully held it in his hand.

When he was a child, he heard about people admiring the beauty of colored lanterns on the Lantern Festival. And in poems it would talk about a gifted scholar and a beautiful lady falling in love at first sight when they met at a lantern festival… He has never been to a lantern festival before, and now he understood why that beautiful lady in the poem gave her heart away because of a colored lantern…

Lin Jia Bao smiled and looked at Xuan Yuan Han Cheng. This was his royal highness, his prince, his husband, and the destination of his heart…

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng looked at his darling smiling face with fondness, and gently caressed the small dimples on his darling’s face. He bent down and lowered his head to kiss Lin Jia Bao’s small mouth. He repeatedly licked Jia Bao’s soft lips.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Lin Jia Bao closed his eyes, and opened his mouth slightly. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng’s tongue slipped inside and entangled with Jia Bao’s little tongue…

“Darling, let’s go back inside to the room…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng said in a hoarse voice. With his darling treasure sick these past two days, he didn’t even have the privilege of being intimate with his baby. Alas…

Lin Jia Bao looked at the lanterns hanging on the trees, “What about these lanterns?”

“Baby, if you like them then just leave them hanging up…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng said inattentively.

Lin Jia Bao thought about it and said, “It’s such a pity to just hang these beautiful lanterns here. Let’s share them with everyone. Kang’er and An’er would definitely like them.”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng gestured for Yuan Fu to come over. He pointed at two colored lanterns, one peony shaped and one lotus shaped. He said, “Send these over to them, ba…”

“Understood.” Yuan Fu immediately ordered one of the eunuchs working under him to send the lanterns over.

Lin Jia Bao went on to say, “Also give one to Shu Ya, Shu Qin, Yuan Fu, oh, and Yuan Qing. I wonder if he is better now?”

“This little one thanks Lin-xiaozhu for the reward, and also thank you on behalf of Yuan Qing, still thinking of him… Yuan Qing is recovering very well. In a few more days, he will be able to return to the little master’s side and resume his post.”

Yuan Qing, this little kid, was quite lucky. It was so dangerous back then. He got injured, but it wasn’t a serious injury. After a few more days, he should be healthy and active again.

Lin Jia Bao felt relieved when he heard that Yuan Qing was recovering well.

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Chapter 94 – Second Husband

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng knelt down and said with a serious expression, “Erchen thanks Imperial Father and Imperial Mother for their deep love for Jia Bao. Erchen is willing to have Jia Bao as my cejun. Asking Imperial Father to please allow it.”

“Crown Prince, are you certain about this? Asides from the crown princess, according to the law you are allowed to have three cefei. If you decide on one right now, there will only be two positions left in the future. Cejun and cefei are both high-ranking status within your harem. It is the best way to entice court councilors to your side. A good aristocratic family will bring a lot of help to your future path. As for Lin Jia Bao, he is good, but his maternal family can’t give you any help…” The emperor analyzed the situation for the crown prince.

“Erchen is certain about this. Erchen understands what Imperial Father is saying. Erchen does not want to rely on the harem to control the court. Please believe in me, Imperial Father. Erchen will not let you down.” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng knelt on the floor and said to his imperial father.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

After experiencing all kinds of things in his past life, he has sworn that Lin Jia Bao would be the only one in this life. He would no longer have any more cefei or concubines in the future, nor would he accept them into his harem for the power of their maternal family.

“Okay, We* believe in you…” Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen looked at the crown prince who was exuding unswerving determination from head to toe. He felt very gratified.

[*T/N: 朕 zhen – he is using the royal We]

The emperor didn’t know when, but the imperial aura emanating from the crown prince was getting stronger day by day. Maybe this heir of his would be able to do what he wanted but couldn’t…

“Then I will issue an imperial decree later. After Lin-xiaoshi has completely recovered, we will select an auspicious date for the conferment ceremony.” Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen said.

“Er chen gives thanks to Imperial Father.” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng gave his imperial father a deep bow.

When Xuan Yuan Han Cheng returned to Ping Le Courtyard, he found Lin Jia Bao sitting up in bed. He was propped up by a pillow and eating congee from a bowl in small bites.

“Your Royal Highness…” Lin Jia Bao’s eyes lit up when he saw Xuan Yuan Han Cheng return. Shu Qin took the emptied bowl of congee from Lin-xiaozhu and wisely withdrew.

“Do you feel a bit better, baby?” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng came to the bedside and asked with concern.

“I’m much better now, and my head is no longer dizzy,” Lin Jia Bao replied.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng saw that Lin Jia Bao did indeed look more energetic. “My darling has suffered this time… were you afraid back then?”

Lin Jia Bao shook his head gently, “Jia Bao was not afraid. Jia Bao knew that Husband would come back to save us…”

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“My treasure… there won’t be a next time. I won’t let you experience something frightening again…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng sat on the edge of the bed and wrapped Lin Jia Bao in his arms. He swore in his heart that he would never put his treasure in the middle of danger again.

“En…” Lin Jia Bao felt very at ease in his husband’s arms.

Shu Ya came in with a bowl of tonic. “Lin-xiaozhu, it’s time to take your medicine.”

“I’m fine already…” Lin Jia Bao said weakly, looking at the pitch-black medicine in the bowl. The bitter taste of the medicine last night was still fresh in his memory.

“Little Master, this servant knows that the medicine is very bitter, so I specially prepared candied fruit for you today. Have a candied fruit after you drink the medicine and it won’t be bitter anymore.” Shu Qin followed behind Shu Ya. She showed Lin Jia Bao a small plate full of candied fruit.

“My dear, be good, you’re still not well yet… you have to take the medicine.” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng took the bowl of tonic and brought it to his darling’s lips. “Or how about I feed you, like last night…”

“The medicine is very bitter, I’ll take it myself…” Lin Jia Bao shook his head. He recalled the way Xuan Yuan Han Cheng fed the medicine to him last night and his face flushed all over again.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng loved seeing his little darling looking so shy…

Lin Jia Bao frowned and drank the bitter tonic obediently. His face twisted at the bitter taste. As soon as he finished drinking the concoction, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng stuffed a candied fruit into his mouth.

The sweet and sour taste of the candied fruit slowly dissipated the bitterness in his mouth. Lin Jia Bao ate one and then two.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

“Darling… I have good news today. This time, you saved Imperial Mother. It is a meritorious deed, so Imperial Father will issue an imperial decree and confer you as my cejun…”

Before Lin Jia Bao could even react, Shu Ya and Shu Qin were already both smiling with happiness upon hearing the news, and they congratulated Lin Jia Bao: “Congratulations, Little Master. Many congratulations. This is really an exultation…”

“Then in the future I can go to Yong Shou Palace to pay my respects to the empress…” Lin Jia Bao smiled happily. This way he could go greet the empress everyday without putting His Royal Highness in a tight spot.

[T/N: Aww, LJB’s thoughts are so pure. (｡>ㅅ<｡)]

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Chapter 93 – Second Husband

Emperor Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen agreed with the crown prince’s statement.

“To prepare for any eventualities, this time more people will be dispatched to hide in the surrounding area, and if Prince Li makes any move, we will be able to catch them all at once. “

Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen saw that the crown prince wanted to ask something.

“Who should preside over this execution matter?”

“Imperial Father, erchen would like to suggest that Second Imperial [Younger] Brother take charge over this matter. Too many cooks spoil the broth. Han Qi has made a great contribution this time. This matter can be handed over to him. Moreover, it’s just our guess that Prince Li is not dead yet. As long as the arrangements are properly made and more people are added, there will be no danger. Speaking of, Han Qi is older now, it just so happens to be a good chance for him to go to Li City and learn through experience.” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng suggested to his imperial father.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

The second prince, Xuan Yuan Han Qi, heard Xuan Yuan Han Cheng recommend himself to their imperial father, and straightened his back, “Imperial Father, please let erchen go. Erchen promises to do a good job.”

After thinking about it, the emperor agreed, “Okay, don’t be reckless when you go there, and be careful of Prince Li’s remnants.”

“Understood. Imperial Father, please rest assured. Erchen will be careful. Erchen will definitely wipe out the rest of Prince Li’s remnants and help Imperial Father share his burdens.”

Xuan Yuan Han Qi vowed to live to the crown prince’s recommendation and to his imperial father’s expectations. He would definitely complete this errand well.

“Liu Ze Qi just so happens to be in Luo City. Erchen will send him a letter and have him cooperate with Second Imperial Brother.”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng also valued Liu Ze Qi. With him by Second Imperial Brother’s side, they should be able to smoothly accomplish the task.

“Understood. I will definitely work together well with High Official Liu. Then, Imperial Father, erchen will go and prepare to head out to Li City.” Xuan Yuan Han Qi was already gearing up for action.

“Then you may leave. Go and make ample preparations.” Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen said.

“Understood. Erchen will go now.” Xuan Yuan Han Qi walked out in high spirits.

After Xuan Yuan Han Qi left, Emperor Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen said to the crown prince: “I heard from your imperial mother last night that this time it was all thanks to your ger xiaoshi…”

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Xuan Yuan Han Cheng had also heard from his imperial mother the experience that she went through with Jia Bao. She admired Jia Bao’s actions but was also worried for him.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng smiled and replied to his imperial father, “It is Jia Bao’s duty…”

“He’s a good child. Your imperial mother praised him again and again. When she heard that he was ill she was very concerned. How is his condition now?” The emperor was also very grateful to Lin Jia Bao for saving the empress.

“Jia Bao is still young after all, and he has never experienced such things. After being frightened, he suffered a cold and burned with fever all night. Now the fever has finally subsided, but he still need to rest for a time.”

When Xuan Yuan Han Cheng spoke about Lin Jia Bao’s illness, the tenderness in his eyes could not be concealed.

The emperor took note of this and remained silent. The crown prince was still young after all. Back then, he was like this too… Unfortunately, as an emperor he still had a lot of things that he was helpless to do… The relationship between the harem and the court has always been inextricably linked. Hopefully his son would be able to handle this better than him in the future…

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

“Your imperial mother said that this time Lin-xiaoshi saved her and she wants to reward him handsomely. She told me that she wants to confer upon him the title of cejun. What so you think?” The emperor asked the crown prince what he thought.

The empress had told the emperor everything that had happened that thrilling day and night. She spoke of Lin Jia Bao’s bravery and strength, and how he sincerely loved and respected her.

The empress was deeply moved, and was very worried when she learned that Lin Jia Bao was ill. She wanted to compensate him well and reward him handsomely.

After thinking over it a few times, the empress thought of making Lin Jia Bao a cejun. In this way, Lin Jia Bao could justifiably come to the Yong Shou Palace to greet her.

Moreover, Lin Jia Bao’s temperament was soft, kind, and innocent, and he might have some difficulties in the future when it came to giving birth.

If he were to be conferred the title of cejun… The crown prince’s cejun was equivalent to the crown prince’s cefei*. This way he wouldn’t have to be afraid of being bullied by the prince’s other concubines. Thinking of it like this, it was a wonderful thing on many levels…

[*T/N: 侧妃 cefei – “side consort” or “second consort.” 妃 fei is used for females and 君 jun is used for males.]

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Chapter 92 – Cejun* (30.1)

[*T/N: 侧君 cejun – a made-up harem title for this BL world with gers. Most likely derived from 侧福晋 cefujin, which means “second wife.” A second wife is just below the main wife and above all the other concubines. The Chinese characters for cejun mean “side” and “lord.” If I were to translate it into English, it would be “second husband.”]

Lin Jia Bao had a very long and sweet dream. In his dream, he returned to Lin Jia Village. He was playing under a big tree with his older brother, older sister, and a pair of younger siblings.

“Jia Bao… Stop playing for now you guys, it’s time to eat…” Their mother called to them from the front of their yard.

“Coming… Mom, we’re coming back right now…” Lin Jia Bao responded happily.

In the dream, Lin Jia Bao was having dinner with his family.

His dad said to him: “Jia Bao, ah… you’re married now… you have to get along well with your husband…”

“En…” Lin Jia Bao nodded vigorously.

The scene in the dream changed. There were now gorgeous fireworks blooming in the night sky.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

“My treasure…” His husband, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng, appeared in front of him. He called to Lin Jia Bao warmly.

Lin Jia Bao stepped forward and threw himself into his husband’s arms.

“Husband…” Lin Jia Bao and his husband embraced each other.

Beneath the night sky brilliantly illuminated by fireworks, his husband held him and spun around… around… around…

So dizzy… Lin Jia Bao woke up fro his sweet dream and saw Xuan Yuan Han Cheng lying beside him.

“Husband…”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was very alert. He woke up right away when he heard his baby’s voice.

“Baby… do you feel better?”

“Dizzy…” Lin Jia Bao’s entire body felt limp. He couldn’t exert any strength at all.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng reached out a hand and touched his darling’s forehead.

“This is great, baby, you’re not burning up anymore…”

“I just had a dream, Husband. In my dream, I returned to Lin Jia Village. I was playing with my older brother and older sister, and my younger brother and younger sister… and I had dinner with my parents and my family… such a happy dream…”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng raised an eyebrow and asked: “Is that so…? What else did you dream about?”

“I also dreamed of Husband.” Lin Jia Bao lowered his gaze shyly. “I dreamed that we were watching fireworks together. Husband held me and turned in circles… until I got dizzy…”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was happy when he heard Jia Bao say that he had dreamed of him too. He was now as important as his family in his baby’s heart, but he was far from satisfied. One day he would occupy the most important place in his darling’s heart…

When the empress heard that Lin Jia Bao woke up and that his fever broke, she sent a lot of first-rate tonics over. The news that Lin Jia Bao went through a harrowing experience with the empress and that he saved her spread throughout the harem.

Many people in the harem were jealous of this ger xiaoshi’s good fortune. He was able to survive the assassination attempt of so many thieves and even had the opportunity to save the empress. It looked like he would have great fortune in the future…

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After Lin Jia Bao’s fever subsided, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng felt relieved. He then learned that his imperial father and his younger brother, Xuan Yuan Han Qi, have both returned to the palace, so he went to Qian Qing Palace to discuss with them on how to deal with this infiltration planned by the Xue family and Prince Li.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng heard that Prince Li died in a sea of fire and said to Xuan Yuan Han Qi: “Imperial Younger Brother did a great job this time! It is a great merit…”

“It’s thanks to Crown Prince Elder Brother rushing back to the palace to confirm news of Imperial Mother’s safety that it set my mind at ease and allowed me to better go on the offensive.” Xuan Yuan Han Qi did not rush to acknowledge this merit.

Emperor Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen asked the second prince seriously, “Have you investigated thoroughly? That Prince Li is devious by nature. If he is lucky enough to escape, the consequences will be disastrous…”

“Imperial Father, please rest assured. Erchen has repeatedly confirmed that it is Prince Li himself. Although Prince Li’s corpse is burnt out of shape, it can be vaguely identified from the clothes and accessories left on him. There is also the arrow wound that I gave him on his back.” Xuan Yuan Han Qi said confidently.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Xuan Yuan Zhao Shen nodded after listening to his answer. In his mind, he considered the possibility of Prince Li escaping from the fire.

“Anyway, we should be cautious. Very soon, the capital will be under martial law. Arrange to send search parties out to the suburbs of Beijing again. In addition, we have to speed up the disposal of the Xue family and Prince Li’s family members.”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was also worried that if Prince Li got away, he would definitely make a comeback.

“Towards Prince Li, we have to kill to the last one to exterminated any future problems. His descendants and family members must be dealt with as soon as possible. If Prince Li is still alive, he will definitely take action…”

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Chapter 91 – Falling Sick 

At this time, footsteps sounded from outside the yard. The empress and Lin Jia Bao increased their vigilance.

Lin Jia Bao said, “I don’t know if they’re intruders or people sent to look for us.” He picked up the huge blade. “Your Majesty, stay here. I’ll go out and take a look. If they’re intruders, I’ll lead them elsewhere…” He rushed out as soon as he finished talking.

“Jia Bao, don’t go…” The empress couldn’t stop him in time. She could only look on helplessly as Jia Bao ran out.

Lin Jia Bao quietly ran out with the blade in his hands. He found a small corner and squatted down, waiting to see who had come.

The noon sun was a bit harsh and dazzling to the eyes. It made Lin Jia Bao feel dizzy. With great difficulty he saw that it was His Royal Highness who had come!

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

“Your Royal Highness… Your Royal Highness…” Lin Jia Bao ran out. He tossed the blade away and threw himself into Xuan Yuan Han Cheng’s arms.

As soon as Xuan Yuan Han Cheng stepped into the courtyard of Xi Li Palace Hall, he heard his darling Jia Bao’s voice, and then he saw his darling running towards with him with a large blade that was very disproportionate to his size.

“Jia Bao… My darling, don’t be afraid… It’s all right, baby…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng hugged Jia Bao tightly and kissed him.

Lin Jia Bao couldn’t hold back his tears any longer, so he burst out crying.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng hugged Jia Bao and said softly in his ear, “There, there, baby… don’t cry. Your husband is back…”

“Wu wu…” Lin Jia Bao raised his head and said, “Your Royal Highness, the empress is inside the room.”

[T/N: wu wu – Chinese onomatopoeia for crying or whimpering]

When the empress saw the crown prince, her high-strung nerves finally settled. “Cheng Er, you are finally here…”

“Erchen arrived late. Imperial Mother must have been startled…”

“Fortunately, Jia Bao was here with me…” When the empress looked at Lin Jia Bao, her eyes were brimming with affection*.

[*T/N: 慈爱 ci ai – specifically the love and affection for a child]

Lin Jia Bao leaned against Xuan Yuan Han Cheng’s chest. He felt so at ease that his entire person slowly relaxed.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng felt that there was something strange with the person in his arms. “What’s wrong, darling…?”

The empress looked at Jia Bao’s appearance and was also very worried. “Yesterday, Jia Bao guarded me all night and did not sleep. He must be extremely tired…”

“Sleepy…” Once Lin Jia Bao allowed himself to relax, he felt like he couldn’t open his eyes again. Upon seeing this, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng immediately picked Lin Jia Bao up in a bridal carry so that his baby may sleep more comfortably.

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Xuan Yuan Han Cheng carried Lin Jia Bao back to Ping Le Courtyard and placed Lin Jia Bao on the bed. He personally helped Jia Bao change his clothes. Then he tucked Lin Jia Bao into bed and planted a kiss on Lin Jia Bao’s forehead.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng then went to the inner study and instructed a shadow guard to send a signal to his younger brother Xuan Yuan Han Qi. He has received news that his younger brother has already besieged Prince Li in Ciyun Temple, and that his imperial father was rushing there right now.

Later, he confirmed with Ling Zheng Feng, the commander of the imperial guard, that the remaining intruders had been captured. After dealing with the follow-up matters, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng returned to the bedroom of Ping Le Courtyard. He climbed into bed with light movements and fell asleep with his arms around his treasure. With his darling by his side, he could finally get a good sleep…

Xuan Yuan Han Qi got the signal from his big brother and knew that his imperial mother was safe, so he immediately ordered an all-out attack.

Xuan Yuan Han Qi had a well-trained and powerful army. They soon broke into the temple. Upon entering the courtyard, they quickly dealt with the sishi who were putting up a tenacious resistance.

When Xuan Yuan Han Qi entered the abbot’s meditation room in the monastery, he saw a raging fire and thick black smoke. The fire has swallowed up the entire meditation room, “Quickly put out the fire…”

An imperial guard came to report to Xuan Yuan Han Qi.

“Your Highness, we have searched all over Ciyun Temple but did not find Prince Li. He must have set fire to the abbot’s meditation room and committed suicide…”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng had a long dream and woke up full of energy. He turned his head and looked at his darling who was sleeping beside him. He thought to himself that his baby must be exhausted after receiving such a shock and a fright for the past two days…

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng gently brushed the sweaty hair from Jia Bao’s forehead, and suddenly found that Jia Bao’s forehead was boiling hot. He was very flustered.

“Someone, come quick… Send for Imperial Physician Qian…”

Lin Jia Bao was sick. His whole body was burning up so badly. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was very anxious. He stood beside the bed and looked at his darling lying on the bed. Jia Bao’s face was red through and through. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng felt deeply distressed.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Imperial Physician Qian arrived. He took Lin Jia Bao’s pulse and then reported to the crown prince: “Lin-xiaozhu has a fierce cold, caused by cold winds entering the body. Moreover, he received quite the fright. This small official has already written up a prescription. The little master’s health should improve after taking a few doses of medicine.”

“Your Royal Highness, the medicine is ready…” Shu Ya came in with the medicine.

“Bring it here…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng helped Lin Jia Bao up and had the boy sit in front of his body, leaning back against his chest. “Darling, come and drink the medicine, you’ll get better after taking the medicine…”

“Ugh…” Lin Jia Bao’s head was already burned into a stupor. He felt like he was inside of a volcano. His head was so heavy that he couldn’t lift it up. His mouth was parted slightly and panting out hot air.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng looked at his baby. It didn’t seem like Jia Bao could drink the medicine by himself.

“Give me the medicine…”

Shu Ya came forward with the decoction as ordered. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng took the bowl of medicine, took a big mouthful, and then fed it to his baby. He repeated this two more time and finally fed Jia Bao the bowl of decoction.

“Nn… ugh… bitter…” Lin Jia Bao frowned and swallowed the bitter concoction.

“Bring some water.”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng took the water that Shu Ya handed to him, drank a mouthful, and then passed it on to Jia Bao through mouth to mouth. After that, he had Jia Bao lie down again. He covered his baby with a blanket. Lin Jia Bao fell asleep again.

The empress was also very worried when she learned that Lin Jia Bao was ill. Every two or three hours, she would send someone to inquire about Lin Jia Bao’s condition.

Still dressed in his day clothes, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng lied down beside his darling, guarding him in his sleep…

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Chapter 90 – Falling Sick (29.1)

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was very anxious when he heard that his imperial mother and Jia Bao were both missing.

“Send someone to look in the palace near Qian Qing Palace. Also, divide the imperial guards into groups and have them search the harem for intruders. Do not spare a single one of them.”

“Understood. Your Royal Highness, we caught Xue Song. Do you want him brought before you…?”

No matter what, Xue Song-daren was still the crown princess’s father, and the crown prince’s father-in-law. Ling Zheng Feng was unsure how to handle him, so he asked the crown prince for instructions.

“Bring him here…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng said, with killing intent in his eyes.

Xue Song was escorted before the crown prince in disgrace. When he looked up his saw the murderous look in the crown prince’s eyes.

“Your Royal Highness… Your Royal Highness… Prince Li coerced me. I was really forced…”

Xue Song felt that he was truly unlucky. Clearly everything was going well at the beginning. He had the former great imperial concubine’s momo set fire to Li An Palace Hall, thus drawing away most of Yong Shou Palace’s imperial bodyguards. He also calculated the time, knowing that the morning was the time when the concubines in the harem would greet the empress.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Xue Song thought that even if they couldn’t catch the empress, they would still be able to catch one or two palace concubines to use as hostages. That way, he would always have an escape route. But he didn’t expect that there wouldn’t even be a single concubine when he rushed to Yong Shou Palace. Furthermore, the empress had escaped. After that, the imperial guards arrived very quickly, and he was soon captured.

What Xue Song didn’t expect was that the empress had dismissed the concubines early in order to talk to Lin Jia Bao.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng unsheathed the sword of the imperial guard beside him. He pointed the blade at Xue Song and asked, “Say… how did you people sneak into the palace? How many people in total did you bring in?”

“I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you, Your Royal Highness. It’s the great imperial concubine’s momo. She has an adopted son working at Xizhimen*. He drugged the imperial guards on duty and then let us in. I brought a total of two hundred people. Of the two hundred, one hundred of them are Prince Li’s sishi, and the other one hundred are jianghu fugitives that I bribed.” Xue Song knew that His Royal Highness was ruthless, and so spilled everything all at once.

[*T/N: Xizhimen neighborhood of Beijing / the main northwest gate of Beijing]

“You deserve death!” After Xue Song finished answering, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng brandished the sword at Xue Song.

Thinking about how there’s no news on his imperial mother and precious Jia Bao, he really wanted to swing the sword and kill this damn old man with one strike.

Xue Song was so frightened that he shouted: “No… Your Royal Highness, spare me, don’t kill me… don’t kill me… I’m your father-in-law… Ahhhhh…” Xue Song shrieked in misery as Xuan Yuan Han Cheng lopped off one of his arms.

“How many more intruders are on the loose?” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng asked Ling Zheng Feng.

“Replying to Your Royal Highness, more than eighty people have been killed, and more than a hundred people have been caught. There are still a dozen people fleeing in the palace… The imperial bodyguards are stepping up the pursuit, and all the palace gates have been sealed. We won’t let a single one escape…” Ling Zheng Feng responded.

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Xuan Yuan Han Cheng returned to Ping Le Courtyard. He studied the map of the palace in the inner study, and thought about where his imperial mother and treasure would hide. Jia Bao has never witnessed such bloody things before. He must be frightened…

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng did not sleep all day and all night. His eyes were red and bloodshot. Xuan Yuan Han Cheng took a sip of the ginseng tea brought over by a palace servant and forcefully remained alert.

One of the palace servants announced that the commander of the imperial guards was here to see him.

“Let him in at once.”

Ling Zheng Feng entered the inner study, greeted the crown prince, and then reported: “Your Royal Highness, I have searched all the palaces near Qian Qing Palace, but I still did not find Her Majesty and Lin-xiaoshi. We caught a few more intruders instead, but according to their accounts, they have not seen Her Majesty and Lin-xiaoshi either…”

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng frowned. Where could his imperial mother and treasured baby be? They spent a night in hiding. Where they hungry? Where they cold? Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was full of worries, and for the first time since his rebirth, he felt so powerless. There were still some intruders who have not been caught. He must find his imperial mother and precious Jia Bao as soon as possible.

Xuan Yuan Han Cheng looked at the topographic map of the harem once more. When he saw Xi Li Palace Hall, he had a flash of inspiration and thought that it was worth a shot. “Bring some people with you and come with me to Xi Li Palace Hall to search…”

“Understood.”

When the empress woke up, she found that it was already quite late in the day. It was close to noon. After the fourth watch yesterday, she couldn’t hold on any longer and fell asleep. She looked over at Lin Jia Bao who was sitting up against a wall.

“Jia Bao, you didn’t sleep at all?”

“Jia Bao doesn’t dare to sleep. Jia Bao has to protect Your Majesty.” Lin Jia Bao slowly stood up. He felt a wave of dizziness. “Your Majesty, please wait a moment, I’ll get you some breakfast…”

“Don’t do it. Good child… bengong is not hungry. You lie down for a while…” The empress looked at the dark circles around Lin Jia Bao’s eyes and felt very distressed.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

The empress has always regretted that she did not have a daughter in her life. Although she had two sons who were very filial to her, they were not as well behaved and considerate as a daughter would be.

As the empress looked at Lin Jia Bao, she found herself liking him more and more. He was such a good child. He was a ger, but he was even more well behaved and lovable than a daughter…

Lin Jia Bao wouldn’t deliberately try to please her. What he did was from his heart, and it was the most authentic behavior. After this day and night of coexistence and adversity, the empress’s love for Lin Jia Bao reached its peak, and she secretly thought that if she escaped danger this time, she must reward Jia Bao well…

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