After the Crybaby Married the Disabled Villain - Chapter 22

Xiao Zhi, as An Yu’s only personal servant, was naturally intimately familiar with An Yu’s living habits. Although An Yu was an outsider from another world, the bodies of both “masters” had been pampered young masters, so their levels of refinement in daily life were quite similar.

Thus, Xiao Zhi was very quick at packing An Yu’s things. From the moment the butler delivered the message to when Xiao Zhi moved An Yu’s personal belongings into Lu Shiyan’s main courtyard, only half an hour had passed, and the rain was still pattering down.

“Young Master, I have put the things down.”

“Good, you may go.”

An Yu looked at the items Xiao Zhi had brought over: clothes, storybooks, small trinkets like the masks bought at the market, and a wooden box. Seeing this wooden box, An Yu immediately remembered—he hadn’t yet shown Lu Shiyan the finished product made from the Imperial Green jade he had cut last time.

An Yu turned around and saw Lu Shiyan reading. He said: “Your Highness, I have something to show you.”

Lu Shiyan looked up and saw An Yu holding a wooden box in his arms with a face full of smiles.

He couldn’t help but feel a bit curious: “What is it?”

As he spoke, Lu Shiyan turned his wheelchair toward the table.

An Yu didn’t keep him in suspense; he placed the box before Lu Shiyan and opened it. The wooden box was not large, and inside, a jade-green ocarina, slightly larger than a fist, lay quietly.

Lu Shiyan reached out and picked it up. One half was rounded, and the other half was like a whistle; when joined together, they looked somewhat like a gourd, with regular holes distributed across one side. Lu Shiyan played with it in his hands for a moment before saying:

“Is this a musical instrument?”

An Yu was delighted. As expected, the Crown Prince was brilliant and wise.

“It’s called an ocarina. Originally, it should be made of ceramic. Its sound is graceful and melodious, lingering even longer than a flute.”

This was a discovery from An Yu’s youth when he was bored to the extreme. After learning various instruments, he always wanted to show off to his family, but the piano, violin, and flute were all too obvious; something small like an ocarina, held in the hand like a toy, wouldn’t make people feel like he was doing it on purpose.

Consequently, An Yu had specifically gone to learn the ocarina later on. He would sit on the sofa and play it whenever he had free time, waiting for his family to praise him as if he were doing it unintentionally.

“Would Xiao Yu play it for me?”

Hearing this, An Yu readily agreed. He took back the smooth, cool ocarina and realized it was somewhat heavier than those made of ordinary ceramic, though it was still within a tolerable range.

A graceful and melodious sound soon drifted from An Yu, echoing through the hall. The tune was cheerful and light, yet it possessed a touch of desolation due to the inherent richness of the instrument, making it more suited to the atmosphere of the era.

The smile in Lu Shiyan’s eyes grew deeper. The youth, with eyes curved like crescent moons, looked at the curtain of rain outside the window while playing. As the piece ended, An Yu felt exceptionally peaceful.

“Xiao Yu is truly talented. It is my honor.”

“Does Your Highness like it? I can teach you.”

Lu Shiyan shook his head helplessly. “Xiao Yu, please spare me. I have had no talent for musical instruments since I was a child; it truly worried my Mother Empress back then.”

An Yu understood. Then I’ll just play it for my own amusement in the future.

“Then Your Highness shall listen to me play from now on.”

The man smiled more frequently now than he had a month ago. Most of the time An Yu saw Lu Shiyan now, he was full of smiles, and even his physical health had improved significantly. It seemed everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion.

There were two knocks at the door, followed by a servant’s voice: “Crown Prince, two young ladies say they have come to offer tea to the Crown Princess.”

An Yu curled his lip. “Offering tea” was a sign of respect and etiquette from a concubine to the legal wife. Lu Shiyan hadn’t even opened his mouth to accept them yet, and they were already in such a hurry to offer him tea.

Lu Shiyan naturally realized this as well, and the temperature around him turned cold.

The Empress was truly impatient.

An Yu looked at Lu Shiyan and saw that the man’s mood was not particularly beautiful either, which gave him a sudden, inexplicable sense of joy.

“Does Your Highness want me to drink those two cups of tea?”

Lu Shiyan was helpless. “Xiao Yu.”

An Yu leaned in toward Lu Shiyan with a grin and whispered into the man’s ear.

Lu Shiyan only felt a series of warm breaths brushing against his ear; it was hot and a bit itchy. Listening to the youth’s words, he couldn’t help but laugh: “This method is excellent.”

“Enter.”

The servant pushed open the door. Behind him stood two delicate beauties holding umbrellas in the rain, wearing only thin veils. The sleeves of the woman in the pale yellow gauze dress were soaked by the rain and clung to her skin.

The woman in the pale yellow dress entered first, her flirtatious eyes sweeping over Lu Shiyan. “This servant, Xu Niang, greets the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess.”

Though this Crown Prince is a cripple, his appearance is truly top-tier.

“This servant, Zi Ling, greets the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess.”

Zi Ling followed closely behind, her figure lithe and graceful. Even as she knelt, she did not forget to sway her waist.

Lu Shiyan’s eyes remained calm. He frowned slightly, the corners of his mouth without a trace of a curve. He said: “Rise.”

At this moment, An Yu was sitting on Lu Shiyan’s bed, his hair slightly disheveled. Upon seeing the two women, his eyes turned red instantly, and watery tears began to pool.

“Your Highness said you only wanted me. Now that these two ladies have arrived, Your Highness has forgotten.”

Zi Ling and Xu Niang stood up, only to hear a youth’s clean voice choked with sobs. They looked up and saw the youth sitting within the Crown Prince’s bed curtains. His hair was messy, and his exquisite, fair face possessed the vibrancy and spirit of youth; even without makeup, he looked pitiful and lovely.

The Crown Princess is a man, so this must be him. This appearance is truly enough to topple cities and nations. If he were a woman, the threshold of his house would have been worn down by suitors.

Though he is a man, he doesn’t look easy to deal with.

The two exchanged a glance, suppressed their thoughts, and said:

“Crown Princess.”

An Yu continued to ignore them. His moist eyes stared blankly at Lu Shiyan, his tears hanging but not falling, full of affection.

Seeing the youth like this, Lu Shiyan turned his wheelchair to the bedside, reached out to pull the youth into his arms, and used his other hand to wipe away the youth’s tears. With an air of being quite troubled, he said:

“Xiao Yu, I naturally love you the most. But this is the Empress’s kind intention. I—”

An Yu immediately pushed away the man’s embrace and even reached out to swat away the hand that was wiping his eyes. His voice sounded even more aggrieved: “Clearly Your Highness doesn’t like them either; why must you accept them? The Empress is so sensible; knowing that Your Highness loves me most, why would she send people?”

As if he had realized something, the youth’s tears fell all at once: “I see it clearly now—it was Your Highness who found these people yourself and blamed it on Her Majesty.”

“Xiao Yu, listen to my explanation. How could I find people myself? Since that is the case, I naturally will not accept these two ladies. I shall have Mo Ying settle them in a remote courtyard; we cannot fail Her Majesty’s kind intentions.”

The man’s eyes were so full of apology that An Yu was momentarily dazed. He hadn’t expected the Prince’s acting to be so sincere.

“Then Your Highness must promise me that you won’t go to see them in private. If I find out, I’ll take them all to feed Xiao Bai.”

The final warning sounded more like a pampered sulk. Seeing the youth relent, Lu Shiyan quickly pulled him back into his arms and said helplessly: “Fine, fine, I’ll listen to you.”

When he turned his head back, however, there was not a trace of a smile on his face. He felt nothing but annoyance toward the two dancers, as if he weren’t even willing to spare them a glance.

Seeing Lu Shiyan turn back, Xu Niang spoke hurriedly:

“Your Highness! This servant has admired Your Highness for a long time. It was only by begging the Empress that I obtained this opportunity. I beg Your Highness to accept this servant. I will certainly not affect the relationship between Your Highness and the Crown Princess; I only ask to be able to see Your Highness occasionally.”

As Xu Niang spoke, she knelt directly on the floor. A look of ruthlessness flashed in her eyes as she lowered her head. The Empress gave me an important mission; if I can only stay in a remote courtyard, it will be a problem.

Lu Shiyan seemed to show signs of wavering again. “This—”

Zi Ling, standing to the side, saw Lu Shiyan hesitate and felt there was hope. She also hurriedly knelt down, her exquisitely made-up face looking pitiful: “We beg Your Highness to give us sisters a chance.”

An Yu’s tears, which had just stopped, welled up again. His voice sounded like a pampered child’s: “Your Highness”

Lu Shiyan no longer showed any hesitation. He said coldly: “Mo Ying.”

Mo Ying’s mouth twitched as he listened from outside the door. “Present.”

“Settle these two ladies in a remote courtyard. They are not to appear before the Crown Princess without reason.”

“Yes.”

The two women, who had felt there was hope just a moment ago, were now directly relegated to a remote courtyard. Their faces were filled with nothing but confusion. As Mo Ying led them away, they kept shouting: “Your Highness! Crown Prince!”

Seeing the two disappear with Mo Ying, An Yu peered out and suddenly burst into laughter. The look he gave Lu Shiyan was full of joy.

“I didn’t realize Your Highness was such a good actor. You’ve been promoted directly to Best Actor (Film Emperor).”

“What is a ‘Film Emperor’?”

Lu Shiyan’s mind was filled only with An Yu’s earlier call of “Your Highness.”

An Yu tidied his hair and thought for a moment. “A Film Emperor is the very best among all people who act.”

Lu Shiyan said: “Then I thank Xiao Yu for the compliment.”

Evening, Yufeng Palace.

The Empress’s brow was knit tightly as she listened to the spy’s report, her beautiful eyes full of resentment.

“Clatter!”

A teacup was hurled to the ground, shattering instantly with a loud crash. The Empress’s long fingers dug into her palms so hard it was as if she couldn’t feel the pain.

“An Yu! It’s him again!”

Just then, the door was pushed open. The Empress hurriedly smoothed the ferocity from her face. When she looked over, she was full of gentleness.

“Why is Mother so angry?”

Lu Youqi walked in. Seeing it was no one else, the Empress didn’t hide her feelings and returned to her previous state of exasperation.

“It’s all because of that An Yu! I sent two dancing girls to Lu Shiyan today. An Yu cried and threw a tantrum to prevent Lu Shiyan from accepting them. In the end, they were settled in a side palace and are not allowed to enter the main courtyard.”

What is the use of settling them in a remote courtyard!

Lu Youqi didn’t rush to speak. This An Yu was indeed baffling. He had clearly jumped into the lake to commit suicide after learning of the marriage, yet now—

“Does Mother know about An Yu’s ability to communicate with spirits?”

Lu Youqi sat in a sandalwood chair, and a palace maid hurried to pour tea.

The Empress calmed down slightly and said: “I know. I have no idea where he got the news, but the Emperor actually believed it. That plague victim was originally something your Second Uncle left behind to be placed in Lu Shiyan’s military camp; now I fear it’s wasted.”

Lu Youqi took a sip of tea. “Your son heard that when Father Emperor was discussing affairs with the officials in the Imperial Study a few days ago, he intended to title An Yu as the National Preceptor to protect Great Shang’s prosperity for ten thousand years.”

“What!”

The Empress’s eyes widened. “How can that be allowed?”

Lu Youqi gave a reassuring smile. “Mother needn’t worry. Uncle is naturally doing his best to prevent it, and Father Emperor is still hesitating. In a few days, once we find evidence of his forgery, everything can proceed according to the original plan.”

“Qi’er is right. Mother still hasn’t thought things through as clearly as you.”

The Empress gave a kind smile, took Lu Youqi’s hand, and pushed the plate of pastries on the table toward him. “Qi’er, try these; they are the latest style made by the Imperial Kitchen.”

“Thank you, Mother.”

Lu Youqi ate a piece of pastry and added: “What other plans does Second Uncle have while staying at the Prime Minister’s manor? Now that King Xiao is in prison, I fear he will be punished even after returning to Beiming.”

“Second Brother naturally has his own plans. As for King Xiao, Xiliang won’t truly do anything to him.

After all, King Xiao is the biological younger brother of the Beiming Emperor. The current princes of Beiming are all very young, while the Emperor is already advanced in years. King Xiao is currently the most likely candidate for the throne.”