The attendants were all new. When they discovered that Li Yuanying had a fever, they didn’t dare delay and immediately went to find the doctor on duty. A high fever was a serious matter; many people had died from it. The doctor didn’t dare delay and rushed to Li Yuanying’s side immediately.
The next morning, Li Yuanying’s fever still hadn’t subsided, so someone went to inform Emperor Li.
Emperor Li immediately dismissed the morning court and rushed over. The attendants, terrified, knelt down in a row.
Emperor Li ignored them and went straight to the bed and sat down. Li Yuanying was lying on the bed, unconscious. His face was flushed, his eyes tightly closed, his brow furrowed, and his eyes were even wet, showing how uncomfortable he was. He hadn’t noticed it yesterday, but today he saw that the boy had lost weight and his face looked haggard.
Emperor Li clenched his fist.
He knew the boy was silver-tongued, and if he saw him first, he would be tricked into letting him off the hook, so he had someone beat him first.
Li Yuanying couldn’t escape this beating. After all, there were people in the court who wanted him to be executed. If he wasn’t severely punished, it wouldn’t only be difficult to silence the public, but it would also encourage other princes to do the same.
He hadn’t expected that the boy, after a long journey and a weakened body, would become so ill after the beating.
Emperor Li took care of Li Yuanying for half a day. Although he hadn’t taken care of anyone before, he believed that as the Son of Heaven, he had extraordinary good fortune and would be able to make Li Yuanying’s fever subside. But by noon, Li Yuanying was still unconscious, showing no signs of waking up. He only mumbled incoherently, calling out for his Shu sister.
Emperor Li had no choice but to send someone to bring Wei Jiu to the palace.
Wei Jiu was very worried when she heard that Li Yuanying had been caned. She had been pacing around the house, anxious. She knew that in her understanding of caning, it meant either death or permanent injury. Neither outcome was acceptable. Even though Wei Zheng had said that Emperor Li had instructed the caners to show mercy, she couldn’t rest easy.
Wei Jiu worried until noon the next day when someone came to the palace to pick her up. On the way to the palace, she carefully asked about Li Yuanying’s condition. The answer she received made her heart sink: Li Yuanying was unconscious!
Wei Jiu hurried into the palace and went to Li Yuanying’s room, where she saw a figure in bright yellow sitting by the bed.
Wei Jiu quickly went forward to greet Emperor Li.
Emperor Li exempted her from the greeting and told the doctor to teach her some tips on taking care of Li Yuanying. Then he turned and left.
Wei Jiu went to the bed and sat down. Seeing Li Yuanying’s closed eyes, she couldn’t help but reach out and grab his burning hand.
Perhaps because he had been burning for too long, soon after Wei Jiu arrived at the palace, Li Yuanying’s fever subsided. Although he was still unconscious, the redness on his face had faded.
Even though Li Yuanying might not be able to hear her, Wei Jiu still spoke to him softly, telling him everything Wei Zheng had analyzed for her and how Emperor Li had stayed by his side for half a day.
It was inevitable to encounter such things when loving an immature boy. Wei Jiu was prepared for it. When it happened, she was more worried than angry. He had lived like this for fifteen years; he couldn’t become mature and reliable overnight.
They were willing to face and endure the difficulties that might come.
As evening approached, Li Yuanying finally opened his eyes. He saw his head resting next to Wei Jiu’s, and he smelled a fragrant scent. He thought he was dreaming and closed his eyes again, wanting to continue sleeping.
Wei Jiu softly called out, “Don’t sleep. You should eat something. Aren’t you thirsty or hungry?”
Li Yuanying realized it wasn’t a dream. He opened his eyes and looked at Wei Jiu, who was right in front of him.
Li Yuanying immediately grabbed Wei Jiu’s soft hand and looked at her eagerly, “Shu sister, I hurt.”
Wei Jiu was heartbroken by his watery eyes. She squeezed his hand and comforted him, “It’ll be fine after the medicine is applied.”
As soon as Li Yuanying heard about the medicine, he looked at Wei Jiu cautiously, “Did you apply the medicine? Did you see my butt?”
Wei Jiu blushed. She couldn’t help but pinch Li Yuanying’s palm, “We haven’t gotten married yet.”
Li Yuanying lay back down and snorted, “You’re not allowed to look. You can only look after it’s completely healed.” He didn’t want to leave a bad impression on his wife, which would affect his image as a wise and valiant warrior.
Wei Jiu wanted to scold him.
Who wants to look at his butt!
Wei Jiu said, “Before I came to the palace today, the Emperor was the one taking care of you. You were unconscious, so he even dismissed court.” This was what the old doctor had told Wei Jiu. Li Yuanying was a stubborn fellow; he wouldn’t listen to anyone else, so the old doctor wanted Wei Jiu to persuade him.
Li Yuanying listened to Wei Jiu’s account, which was different from the old doctor’s. He hummed and hawed as he lay there, saying nothing. Thinking about how Emperor Li had ordered him to be caned, he felt wronged and sad.
Throughout the day, although Li Yuanying was delirious, he still had some awareness. He vaguely felt someone watching over him, but he didn’t know when people changed shifts.
Li Yuanying was a little reluctant to let Wei Jiu go, “Are you going back?”
Wei Jiu used a handkerchief to wipe his face clean and said, “I’ll feed you some porridge and then I have to leave the palace.” They hadn’t gotten married yet, so it wasn’t appropriate for her to spend the night in the palace.
Li Yuanying was especially dependent on people when he was sick. Hearing this, he snuggled up to Wei Jiu and didn’t move. When someone brought him a bowl of plain porridge, he obediently ate as Wei Jiu fed him.
Emperor Li arrived and saw Li Yuanying obediently opening his mouth to eat the porridge. Wei Jiu, although a little younger than Li Yuanying, was very considerate in taking care of him. They were harmonious and relaxed with each other.
He had people report to him in detail about Li Yuanying’s waking up, naturally knowing that Li Yuanying was both acting cute and complaining of pain to Wei Jiu. But when he confronted his elder brother, he stubbornly said, “Just have someone beat me to death!”
Thinking of how Li Yuanying called out for his “Shu sister” while he was sick, Emperor Li felt a little uncomfortable. The boy he raised so carefully was now someone else’s. His heart and mind were all on another family’s daughter.
The boy was ungrateful!
Emperor Li exempted Wei Jiu from the greeting and patiently waited until Wei Jiu finished feeding the porridge before having her sent back to her family. Seeing Li Yuanying eating his fill and then lying there pretending to be dead, Emperor Li tucked his robe and sat down. He didn’t speak but simply had the unfinished paperwork sent to him, and under the lamplight, he began reviewing it.
Li Yuanying couldn’t hold it in any longer. He raised his head and asked, “Why are you reviewing paperwork here?”
Emperor Li set down the paperwork and reached out to touch his head.
Li Yuanying was stunned, letting him press his forehead. He vaguely remembered when he was a child and got sick, his father had also come to see him and touched his forehead to see if he was burning up. His eyes immediately turned red, and he pulled on Emperor Li’s robe and started crying, “Brother, I thought you didn’t like me anymore.”
How ruthless the imperial family was. He heard people say that his father had also loved his brother deeply, just like how his brother loved his fourth nephew. But later they all changed. No longer father and son, brother and brother. No one could live happily.
When he was in Chang’an, he often felt uncomfortable, so he went to his fief. But once he was at his fief, he wanted to see a wider world.
How boring it would be if he was confined to a corner for the rest of his life.
Li Yuanying cried, “It hurts so much.”
Emperor Li thought the biggest mistake he’d ever made was bringing Li Yuanying up to live with him. This troublesome boy. He couldn’t be beaten, couldn’t be scolded, and no one could control him. Hearing Li Yuanying cry out in pain, he felt pain too, but still he sternly reprimanded him, “Look at the things you’ve done. Which one is worth liking?”
Li Yuanying continued to grab Emperor Li’s robe, “It hurts.”
Emperor Li scolded, “If it didn’t hurt, would you learn your lesson?”
Li Yuanying was scolded by Emperor Li, and his spirits lifted. He pulled on Emperor Li’s hand, his voice still choked with tears, “I was wrong, Brother. You can just scold me, don’t ignore me. If you ignore me, I’ll feel like you don’t want me as your brother.”
Emperor Li sneered, “Should I have given you a chance to talk your way out of it?”
Li Yuanying remained silent.
He understood. His brother was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to give the order if he saw him, so he had someone beat him first. It wasn’t that he hated him so much that he didn’t want to see him again. Shu sister said that not only had the emperor not slept well, but neither had they. Liu Baolin had been vegetarian and copying scriptures to pray for him ever since he learned about his departure.
He had gone out to play happily, but he had made everyone terrified. It was his fault. He hadn’t been thoughtful enough.
Li Yuanying obediently admitted his fault, “Brother, I was wrong.” He looked at Emperor Li eagerly, “Don’t be angry with me. Sleep well tonight. If you’re still angry with me, wait until I recover and then have someone beat me thirty times.”
Emperor Li said, “Just this once.” He looked at Li Yuanying, “Next time, I won’t punish you again. I’ll just exile everyone around you to Lingnan, leaving you alone in Tengzhou.”
Li Yuanying was startled and said aggrievedly, “Brother, you can’t do that…”
Emperor Li said, “I can do that.”
That’s how he treated Li Tai, his most beloved son. He clipped Li Tai’s wings, appointed the most strict official to watch over him, so that Li Tai could no longer have any inappropriate thoughts.
Li Yuanying met Emperor Li’s sharp gaze and his heart skipped a beat. He knew this was the line Emperor Li had drawn for him. He could do whatever he wanted within this line, but he absolutely couldn’t do anything like this again.
This was the greatest tolerance Emperor Li, as an emperor, could give him.
Li Yuanying nodded obediently, “I will never go to sea again without permission.”
Li Yuanying was both sick and crying. He had broken up Emperor Li’s planned further punishment. He only called for people in front of Li Yuanying to cane Li Dejian and Du He, the two accomplices.
No matter if they knew Li Yuanying was on the ship in the beginning, knowing later and not sending him back immediately was a major mistake!
Li Yuanying wanted to intercede for Li Dejian and the others, but he shut his mouth when he saw Emperor Li’s extremely bad face. He finally realized that Emperor Li was reluctant to punish him, but that didn’t mean he was reluctant to punish the people around him. He had been a spoiled brat, and no one could control him. The people who followed him were rarely punished. But he had seen the punishments of other princes’ companions and attendants. They were all punished because their masters had done something wrong.
Emperor Li always did what he said. Even if they were talented and capable, the court didn’t lack such people.
Di Renjie and the others had all gone to Tengzhou because they trusted him. If they were exiled to Lingnan because of him, they would definitely regret knowing him.
Li Yuanying apologized again, “It’s my fault, Brother. Don’t blame them.”
Emperor Li saw that he was sincerely apologetic and had obviously realized his mistake, and his expression softened slightly. He asked Li Yuanying what he had gained from his trip to Japan, and made sure he didn’t just go there to play and end up getting beaten for nothing!
Li Yuanying was full of energy when he mentioned his trip to Japan. He lay there with bright eyes, telling Emperor Li about the current situation in Japan.
**Author’s Note:**
_Little Prince: Given some sunshine, I’m radiant again!_
_Fourth Nephew: What have I done to you? You always use me as a comparison!_
_Update! Regarding the little prince’s recklessness, he’s been spoiled and has gotten away with everything. He’s never had any problems before, because all his mischief always had a happy ending. As for whether he would drag others down, he hadn’t even considered it. His understanding was that he could get away with anything by acting cute and throwing a tantrum, and it had nothing to do with others. As for the relationship between Emperor Li and the little prince, I feel like it’s not just about love. After all, the things that always make me cry in dramas, novels, etc., aren’t love. Sometimes when I see the protagonist breaking his heart for love, I even feel like laughing (not)._
**[Note for readers: Times are changing. Free websites can’t last long. Mobile apps with multiple book sources are the trend. This is the app I recommend. It has many voice tones, source switching, and search functions, all easy to use.]**
Previous Chapter | TOC |