Chapter 120 - Reward (1/2)
Yu Hai was afraid that his daughter, who wasn’t afraid of speaking her mind, would make an outrageous request, so he hastily interjected, “My daughter’s skills are unremarkable, so she is fortunate to have pleased your gracious self. We cannot accept your reward!”
The emperor emeritus was in an extremely good mood as he stroked his long white beard. The expression in his eyes as he looked at Yu Xiaocao seemed akin to the one that an old fox who had spotted its prey would sport. He said, “This old man’s words are always worth nine sacred tripods, if I say I want to reward you, then I have to reward you! Little girl, tell me whatever you want. There’s nothing that this old man can’t do!!”
When Yu Xiaocao saw the old man acting like a rascal again, she immediately forgot her previous interaction with him and became brave again. She pouted slightly and said, “Fifth Lord, you’re boasting a little too much!
With one glance the emperor emeritus stopped the lead imperial bodyguard from flipping out. The genial smile remained on the old man’s face as he said, “Girl, tell me exactly how I’m boasting, okay?”
Yu Xiaocao saw that Fifth Lord didn’t have any signs of being angry, so she gave her father a reassuring look before she smiled innocently, “Fifth Lord, earlier you said that you would give me whatever I wanted. If I wanted the imperial sword that would give me the power to bring down an incapable ruler or nobles and that would let me kill without question, would you have that? What about the golden medal that would allow me to avoid the death penalty three times, would you have that? What about a jade pendant that would represent the emperor himself in person, would you have that?”
“Xiaocao!! Stop joking around!!” Yu Hai almost fainted on the spot after he heard his daughter’s daring words.
The emperor emeritus, however, didn’t seem to mind at all and casually flipped his hand, “The words of children carry no harm! Little girl, did you read too many novels? Do we have an imperial sword that lets you kill without license or a gold medal that allows you to avoid the death penalty in the Great Ming Dynasty? If we did, I would definitely give it to you!!”
Yu Xiaocao noticed that her father’s lower lip had turned white out of fright, so she stopped challenging his heart’s ability to keep up with her antics. She revealed a bashful smile, “That’s right! All of the protagonists from the novels say the same thing, right? I guess all of the books are full of lies!”
“They’re not necessarily trying to trick people. In the unofficial histories, it is written that Old Matriarch She [1] had a dragon staff that had the power to bring down an incapable ruler or corrupt officials! Mhm, mhm! It really could switch the ruler hm…” The emperor emeritus sank into his thoughts and contemplated, ‘Should I create a controlling device for that stinky brat at home, hm?’
County Magistrate Wu apparently noticed something and cautiously said, “Fifth Lord! The unofficial histories are only unofficial, so there might not be actual truth to the stories. Then again, wasn’t the reason why an official had the power to ‘bring down an incapable ruler or corrupt officials’ because the emperor at the time of the Song Dynasty knew his offsprings’ personalities too well? So he needed some officials to supervise and spur them on? The current emperor is wise, brilliant, and well versed in all the arts. Is there a need to do more than is required?”
The magistrate’s flattery hit the spot! The emperor emeritus was quite pleased by his words. Although the stinky brat was a bit unwilling to take the throne at the time, as a ruler, he was much better than he ever was. All of the people said that he was the horseback emperor and was only fit for conquering the country. Although that stinky brat at home had his own mountain of problems, he was much better at keeping the country within his grasp than he was!
“Alright, there’s no point in talking about these trivial matters! Little girl, do you actually want this reward or not?” The emperor emeritus’s eyes shifted as he reflected on that flavor and taste of the braised pig head meat again.
Under the pointed stares of County Magistrate Wu and the lead imperial bodyguard, Yu Xiaocao didn’t dare to be flippant and obediently said, “Fifth Lord, whatever you want to reward me with is fine! I’m not picky!!”
“Haha! Glad to hear you’re not picky!!” The emperor emeritus guffawed heartily and said, “Your personality suits this old man, how about...I take you as my adopted granddaughter…”
“Absolutely cannot be done!”
“Fifth Lord, think it over a bit first…”
County Magistrate Wu, the head steward, and lead imperial bodyguard all spoke out to stop him at the same time.
What a farce! If the emperor emeritus adopted a granddaughter, then the lowest rank she would receive would be a royal princess. It was unfathomable that a little girl who was born in the rural countryside could go across the wide social gulf in one step to become a royal princess just by cooking two dishes that the emperor emeritus liked to eat. If this story came out, wouldn’t the people denounce the imperial family?
Yu Xiaocao had already pretty much guessed Fifth Lord’s true identity, so how could she have the courage to become his adopted granddaughter? She hastily replied, “Fifth Lord, this commoner does not dare to climb the ladder! How about you reward me with some money instead, a tangible benefit. Heh heh!”
At this moment, Third Young Master Zhou had come in from the outside just in time to see Yu Xiaocao’s shameless expression as she asked for a reward. It was quite funny but he also thought she was quite cute like this.
The emperor emeritus didn’t know why everyone made such a big fuss about him adopting a granddaughter. Why did they all think it was a bad idea? Argh! The same problem! When he was the emperor, he could no longer come and go as he pleased, or live a leisurely life. Now that he wasn’t the emperor, why didn’t he have freedom either?!
He held onto his temper and looked at his attire. He casually took off a mutton-fat jade pendant from his waistband and held it in front of Yu Xiaocao. He made a face and said, “This is for you, take it and amuse yourself with it!”
“Thank you very much, Fifth Lord! This commoner will definitely treat this jade pendant as a family heirloom. It will only be passed through the male descendants of my family who will remember your grace for all eternity!!” Wow! Wow! She hit the jackpot! It was an authentic mutton-fat jade pendant, ah! In modern times, such a piece of jade would be invaluable!!
The emperor emeritus was tickled by her reaction, and the dark expression on his face brightened as he grinned, “Little girl, you know what’s good! This is a genuine mutton-fat jade piece, so it is definitely worth becoming a family heirloom!! Okay, little girl! So this recipe of yours for the braised pig head meat, is it a secret recipe that can’t be given to outsiders?”
“Fifth Lord, if you don’t think this commoner girl’s braised food is too crude, then I will gladly offer the recipe to you!” There was not a recipe out there in the world that was more valuable than this type of mutton-fat jade pendant! That being said, if a high ranking official took a liking to your recipe, one had to weigh the consequences if one wanted to conceal it.