Chapter 11 - His Majesty has to go to Xue Mansion to take shelter from the rain (1/2)
After the exams, imperial preceptor Li Bao went to meet His Majesty again, and this time His Majesty finally stopped rejecting him, and finally summoned the world-famous imperial teacher.
After coming out of the palace, Li Bao had tears in his eyes, and returned home needing to be supported. After Li Huan heard him coming back, he was taken to his father.
“Father,” although he was half-dead from the interrogation, Li Huan was very spirited. He stared at Li Bao, his eyes full of anticipation. “What did His Majesty say?”
Li Bao was angry when he saw him, but he still felt distressed about his injuries, so he said coldly: “What do you care about what this old man and the emperor spoke about!”
“Alright, this son won’t ask anymore,” Li Huan asked, changing the subject. “Father, how did His Majesty look today?”
His Majesty had been furious with him that day, his lips and ears were red with anger. It made Li Huan worry about His Majesty’s body. His Highness was not as resilient as he himself was, so he couldn’t avoid it.
Li Bao said, “How could I look directly at His Majesty’s face?”
Li Huan sighed, only to feel a vague pain throughout his body. He made himself look away, and his fingers touched the incense bag that hung from his waist, which contained His Majesty’s hair. Taking a step back, he asked: “Father, then you should at least have noticed whether His Majesty coughed when he spoke to you today, right?”
“Not really,” said Li Bao, “Alright, stop asking, go back and lie down.”
Li Huan was driven back to his room. He lay on the bed and sighed quietly.
“Father is so careless.”
His Majesty allowed his father into the palace, yet his father did not even spare a thought about His Majesty’s health. He had such a stupid father, but he still was Li Huan’s biological father.
Li Huan shook his head helplessly.
After sending away the tearful imperial preceptor Li Bao, the palace received once again the visit from an ill-faced He Qinwang.
Gu Yuanbai received him, and He Qinwang stood stiffly in front of His Majesty. His tone was as hard as a stone. “That task that His Majesty asked me to do, I have completed it.”
On the second day of the examinations, there was a cold spring rain. He Qinwang happened to enter the palace to ask about Grand Imperial Concubine Wan. Gu Yuanbai had felt upset when he saw his sarcastic face, so he ordered He Qinwang to send someone to cook ginger soup and send it to the candidates in the Examination Hall for two days, to drive away the cold.
There was a smile on His Majesty’s face, and the appealing visage looked like a beautiful jade. He reached out to lift a porcelain cup and drink tea. “We can always rest assured when He Qinwang does things.”1
He Qinwang couldn’t hold back a sneer.
He Qinwang was good at fighting and leading soldiers. His title of prince had been awarded by the previous emperor for his military merits. Now a royal man who was used to fighting on the battlefield was trapped in the capital to do such menial things. Gu Yuanbai knew that He Qinwang probably hated him to death.
But how can military power be in the hands of a prince? Let alone this guy who didn’t like his older brother. Not just the son of the main wife, but also the eldest.
Gu Yuanbai held the porcelain-white tea set with his slender fingers. For a while, he wasn’t sure which one was whiter.
He Qinwang watched him drinking tea slowly. He felt uncomfortable. He would drink water when thirsty and eat meat when hungry. However, everyone in the capital behaved very carefully, and, among them, He Qinwang was like a cow drinking peonies.
Gu Yuanbai saw that he did not speak. He raised his eyes to look at him, and chuckled. “He Qinwang, what is that face that you are making? If you are thirsty, just say so, how could We not have a cup of tea for you? Tian Fusheng!”
Tian Fusheng hurriedly had people put on chairs and brought new tea. He Qinwang sat down abruptly with his tea and, taking just a sip, gave it back to the servant lady by his side, speaking barbed words. “The two bowls of ginger tea rewarded by Your Highness have moved those scholars to death. Now the whole capital is boasting about the Emperor’s benevolence. I am afraid that, even if Your Highness said to let them die, they will still call it generous and righteous.”
The emperor frowned slightly.
Tian Fusheng and his little apprentice stood to the side. The little apprentice felt uncomfortable when he saw the Emperor frowning. He whispered to his master: “How can He Qinwang always say such things and make the Emperor uncomfortable?”
Tian Fusheng was also quite dissatisfied. He snorted coldly, but he still lectured the little apprentice first. “Keep your head down and watch your nose. Is He Qinwang someone you and I can be dissatisfied with?”
In fact, the person who is most dissatisfied with He Qinwang was Tian Fusheng himself.
They wanted to hold the Emperor in their palms, in fear that the Emperor would get blown by a small breeze or a couple drops would fall on him, and the Emperor wanted to eat tea made with plum’s snow and morning dew.
The ministers of the court, Imperial preceptor Li Bao who had just visited the palace to see the Emperor, which one wasn’t a respectable person? He Qinwang was the only one who had such an unpleasant temperament.
“What did you say?” The emperor’s tone was neither bitter nor light. “He Qinwang, those are your words.”
He Qinwang smiled without smiling: “If Your Highness doesn’t believe it, then go out with me and have a look. I’m afraid that when the candidates go back home, the Emperor’s compassionate and kind deeds towards the scholars will be known all over the world.”
Gu Yuanbai looked outside the door, looking a little tempted. Tian Fusheng hurriedly stepped forward to remind him in a low voice, “Your Highness, the people of the Qin Tianjian2have calculated that it will rain today, and it is not a good day to go out of the palace.”
He Qinwang sneered. The sun was shining bright outside. The people of Qin Tianjian were such cowards that they spoke nonsense without opening their eyes.
Gu Yuanbai glanced at He Qinwang and simply stood up from behind the table. “It’s not a big deal, I’ll just go out and check out what He Qinwang mentioned.”
Zhuangyuan building.3
Gu Yuanbai and He Qinwang were led to the second floor to sit down by a window. The restaurant was full of scholars in blue shirts. The scent of literature drifted around, making Gu Yuanbai feel a little drowsy.
Occasionally one or two lines of poetry would be heard. Although the guards surrounding them had tense faces, guarding around the table like a mountain range, they could not block these literary voices.
The waiter stood tensely by the table, “What would the two masters like to order?”
Gu Yuanbai asked with a smile, “What do you have here?”
The waiter put himself together and recited the menu he had memorized. Gu Yuanbai pondered for a while, ordered three dishes, and asked He Qinwang, “Older brother, want to order anything else?”4
He Qinwang got startled when he was called, and he choked out: “Get two pots of good wine.”
The Zhuangyuan Building had a lot of scholars, and, just as He Qinwang had said, the praises of these scholars to the Emperor were practically endless, especially from those who had left the Examination Hall safely thanks to that ginger soup. Gu Yuanbai himself got goosebumps all over from hearing them.
He Qinwang’s face was all green and there were sparks in his eyes. He, He Qinwang, had made the soup, or at least been ordered to do so as a punishment. Hearing these words now, with Gu Yuanbai sitting across him, he felt like the butt of the joke. His complexion became more and more ugly, as he looked as if he was planning to give these scholars a good beating.
“Older brother, you invited me out, didn’t you just want me to hear these things?” Gu Yuanbai’s mouth twitched, and he spoke evilly. “These students were able to safely leave the Examination Hall. Your credit cannot be ignored.”
He Qinwang laughed and refused to reply.
Gu Yuanbai chuckled. Unable to help himself anymore, he leaned on the window frame, stifling his laughter and trying to allow He Qinwang to save face and not let out a loud laugh. The blue silk on his back shook, and his exposed fingertips flushed with a pleasant pink color.
He Qinwang’s face went blue and purple. He lowered his head and squeezed the porcelain cup, snorting coldly.
Originally, the two of them had attracted a lot of attention when they entered the Zhuangyuan Building with a group of guards. Many people, both openly and secretly, had their eyes on the table. Gu Yuanbai and He Qinwang both had a noble and extraordinary demeanor. Since they were in the capital, they might be a princely minister or a powerful heir. Now that Gu Yuanbai smiled, some young white-faced scholars blushed, both ashamed to peek in their direction and unable to look away.
This childe was dressed in blue and looked dignified and calm. However, the blue clothes couldn’t suppress his light, so he shone.
As they looked more, those mountains of robust guards glared over angrily, obstructing their line of sight. The captain of the guard, Zhang Xu, was vigilantly looking in every direction with an heroic and outstanding face, vowing to protect the safety of the Emperor.
Gu Yuanbai finally stopped laughing and slowly pulled himself up. He propped his elbow on the window, resting his face on his hand. Just from a big laugh, he was already feeling weak. His chest rose and fell slightly. Gu Yuanbai tried his best to slow down his breaths and calm down.
He Qinwang said in a cold voice, “It is better for your Lordship not to laugh.”
Gu Yuanbai smiled crookedly, not caring. Although he was this weak at the moment, he didn’t want others to see it. Every man wanted to save face, and it would be unsightly if Gu Yuanbai had to live so carefully because of his health.
“Brother, don’t worry about it,” Gu Yuanbai said. “This younger brother’s body can still endure a laugh.”5