Inlaid With Jade - Chapter 105

Chapter 105
Extra 1: Lin Wan X Zhu Xi (1)

When the Seventh Prince, Zhu Yu, ascended the throne, he was only three years old. He had just started learning a few poems and could not hold a pen steadily. When he went to court, he would feel at ease only when the Empress Dowager accompanied him behind the dragon throne with a curtain.

The several layers of semi-transparent curtains obscured the Empress Dowager’s appearance. The civil and military officials in the court could only see a dignified and vague figure behind the curtains, half hidden and half visible, like an immortal in the clouds.

The Emperor was young, so King Chu and Zhu Xi a$sisted in court affairs. On the imperial platform, the regent sat calmly in a wheelchair, listening to the ministers’ reports below. The young Emperor beside him also imitated him and tried to straighten his body. He put his pet*te hands into the wide cuffs and placed them on his knees—one big and one small, as if they were carved from the same mold.

If the ministers reported trivial matters, Zhu Yu said, ‘I understand.’ His voice was immature, but his tone was much more stable than that of other children of the same age.

However, state affairs were complicated, and if Zhu Yu were unsure about important matters, he would look at Zhu Xi, who was silent beside him, and wait for Zhu Xi to answer for him or say, “I will make a decision after discussing it with King Chu.”

Although only three years old, he was a very capable emperor.

On the fifteenth day, the snow outside the palace fell like goose feathers, and the fire in the palace burned vigorously. The court meeting lasted long, and Zhu Yu was inevitably drowsy. His hands, hidden in his sleeves, slipped out and rested on the cold and hard dragon chair.

The ministers reporting below had not noticed anything unusual yet, but Zhu Xi, sitting only two steps away, saw it.

Zhu Xi had kept Zhu Yu in Wuying Palace for calligraphy lessons almost every night for the past half month. He stayed a little longer last night. Perhaps Zhu Yu did not sleep well at night, and now he was forced to listen to the gentle whispers of the ministers below to make him sleepy in the morning court, so he could not hold on and became drowsy.

Zhu Yu slept upright with his eyelids almost glued together, but he was still sitting steadily, and even his head did not tilt. Zhu Xi let him sleep, but Lin Wan behind the curtain saw it, raised her hand to her lips, and coughed softly.

The sound was weak, obviously not for Zhu Yu, who was about to fall asleep while sitting.

Zhu Xi glanced behind the curtain without making a sound. After the ministers finished their report, he said, “The Emperor is exhausted. Let’s stop here today.”

As soon as Zhu Xi’s voice sounded, the eunuch immediately opened his voice and shouted, “Retreat from the court——” and Zhu Yu woke up suddenly and saw the ministers kneeling in the hall below the steps.

A jade-like hand stretched out from behind the curtain, and Lin Wan’s gentle voice came out: “Yu’er, let’s go. The court meeting is over.”

Zhu Yu seemed to have not yet reacted and looked at Zhu Xi in a daze. When Zhu Xi nodded to him, he stepped on the wooden steps specially set up for him and got off the dragon throne. He trotted two steps and held Lin Wan’s hand.

Although tired, Zhu Yu had no time to rest for a day. After the court meeting, he had to attend cla$ses at Wuying Palace with Zhu Xi.

Red plum blossoms were blooming, and snow was flying on the palace road. Lin Wan led Zhu Yu in front, and Xu Wen pushed Zhu Xi a few steps behind in a wheelchair.

The maids held umbrellas to block the snow but couldn’t stop the bone-chilling winter cold. Even though Zhu Yu was wearing a woolen cloak and carrying a sleeve stove in his arms, the biting cold wind made him sober as soon as he left the palace.

Seeing that he was silent, Lin Wan pinched the tender little hand in her palm and asked softly, “What are you thinking about, Your Majesty?”

Zhu Yu looked at the heavy snow in front of him, blinked, and said, “I’m thinking about the severe cold this winter. How can the people get through it safely?”

Lin Wan pursed her lips, smiled, and said with relief, “It’s a blessing for the people that Your Majesty can think about the people. Since you care about the world’s people, Your Majesty should work harder and be a good Emperor with virtue.”

Zhu Yu nodded thoughtfully and said in a b*by voice, “My royal brother taught me the same thing yesterday. I will live up to my mother and brother’s expectations.”

When King Chu was mentioned, Lin Wan didn’t respond. However, after Zhu Yu finished speaking, she turned around and looked at Zhu Xi, who was following behind not too far away.

Zhu Xi was wearing a bright red dragon robe. His skin color was too white compared to ordinary people, and now the red color made him look even paler. At this time, he was sitting quietly in a wheelchair while being pushed forward. In Zhu Yu’s eyes, he always had an indescribable sense of weakness, as if he would fall ill if the wind and snow blew.

Zhu Yu frowned and turned his head to discuss with Lin Wan: “Mother, I want the Clothing Bureau to make two thick clothes for my royal brother.”

Zhu Yu rarely asked for anything, and now he suddenly wanted to make two robes for Zhu Xi, which stunned Lin Wan momentarily. Before she opened her mouth, Zhu Yu said, “It was windy last night. Maybe because he was wearing thin clothes and caught a cold, my royal brother coughed for a long time when he explained the national policy to me in Wuying Palace. If he is sick, it won’t be good. But I can’t choose clothes. Can I trouble you to help me?”

Zhu Yu looked at Lin Wan with his clear little foxy eyes, but Lin Wan did not respond directly. She said softly: “Your Majesty, do you know ‘not worry about scarcity but uneven distribution’? Your Majesty has more than one brother. If you give King Chu, your fifth brother should have one too.”

Zhu Yu thought: “But Second Brother treats me more intimately, and Fifth Brother rarely sees me a few times a year. Should I reward them together?”

Lin Wan said, “Of course, otherwise those who are rewarded will be arrogant, and those who are not rewarded will be annoyed. Isn’t this contrary to the original intention of rewards and punishments?”

These words sounded reasonable, and Zhu Yu nodded: “I’ll listen to Mother.”

The mother and son talked in a low voice in front, and the wind scattered unclear voices in the wind and snow. Zhu Xi withdrew his eyes from the two of them, covered his lips to suppress the sound, and coughed twice.

Xu Wen sighed, took the long-prepared sleeve stove from the palace maid, and handed it to Zhu Xi: “Your Highness, don’t be stubborn. Just take it. If you keep freezing like this, catching a cold is a minor issue, but a flare-up of your leg disease could be fatal.”

Zhu Xi stretched his hand to brush it away: “No need.”

He looked at the heavy snow before him and stretched out his cold hand to take it. Xu Wen sighed, but he could do nothing about it.