The Little Crybaby Continues to Court Death as a Cannon Fodder - Chapter 51

Chapter 51

Kneeling on the ground, Yu Qing’s first instinct was to protect his small belly. He hurriedly rubbed it, and finding no discomfort, let out a sigh of relief.

He soon realized, however, that the primary discomfort was concentrated elsewhere. The numbness he had ignored earlier surged back tenfold. The delicate little Prince trembled and sobbed, “Hua Jingshi, this is all your fault!”

The complaining whimpers pulled Hua Jingshi back from his daze. He knelt behind Yu Qing, intending to lift him up, but his movements froze for some reason. He looked down; Yu Qing remained in that collapsed, kneeling posture. It wasn’t that he was taking advantage of the situation, but this perspective and this image were simply too evocative.

The impulses he had just wantonly satisfied began to resurface, thread by thread. Hua Jingshi’s expression remained calm as his arms steadily hooked around the Prince’s waist. As Yu Qing was lifted, he swayed unsteadily, somehow ending up sitting directly in Hua Jingshi’s lap.

Yu Qing’s cheeks were still wet with lingering tears, his face flushing through shades of red and white. He reached back with a small hand, trying to push the man away. Hua Jingshi embraced him from behind, his thin lips lightly pecking at the soft nape of the neck, leaving damp trails. As he kissed, he slowly lifted the Prince, only to let them both sink back to the floor as if his arms couldn’t support the weight.

“…Ooh.”

The little Prince had tender skin; he couldn’t handle such a tumble. Hurt by the fall, he lowered his head, and tears began to fall uncontrollably.

“I am sorry, Your Highness, but Jingshi truly has no strength left,” Hua Jingshi said, even as he wrapped his arms tightly around him, lifting him at an agonizingly slow pace and walking with deliberate steps.

Hua Jingshi still remembered that the Prince needed to use the latrine. With his hands gripped under the Prince’s knees, he intended to carry him out and call for servants. Yu Qing was terrified. As Hua Jingshi’s gait shifted, every step caused the Prince’s voice to break into fragments. Stopping before the door, he said with a sob, “You… you aren’t allowed to go out like this!”

There were many servants waiting outside. If anyone saw this scene, how could he face anyone again?

“But Your Highness, you dismissed the servants earlier. Jingshi must go outside to call someone.”

“But…”

But he couldn’t go out like that. His face twisted in a mix of indecision and sulky anger. As the Crown Prince, he could have simply issued a command, yet at this moment, he was struck dumb, allowing himself to be bullied.

He was far too adorable.

Hua Jingshi changed direction. Calling for the latrine-bearers was clearly impractical now; not only was the Prince prideful, but out of selfishness, Hua Jingshi didn’t want anyone else to see him like this. Following his memory to a corner, he found a black box. Inside was a basin-bucket made of sandalwood, kept for emergencies.

Hua Jingshi opened the lid and pulled the Prince back into his embrace. Yu Qing stared blankly downward. The heat of the large palms gripping the back of his knees brought a strange sense of shame. He opened his mouth silently, then closed it again, his face a mask of dazed, unintended silliness.

“Your Highness, didn’t you say so yourself?” Hua Jingshi said gently. “It is very late. Your Highness should resolve this and rest early.”

But being stared at like this…

Yu Qing tried to press his knees together, but since they were being held apart, he couldn’t manage it. The Prince, who stood above ten thousand people, was like a little lamb with no room to resist. His legs trembled, and his toes curled from the strain. After a long moment, his face collapsed into a look of distress, his eyes shimmering with moisture.

Hua Jingshi whispered that the Prince was “so good,” but Yu Qing couldn’t take it in. He didn’t understand what there was to praise… His thin eyelids squeezed shut, creating tiny wrinkles, as if by closing his eyes, no one would know of his embarrassing act.

He didn’t forget to issue a fierce warning: “Don’t you dare tell anyone, or Us will… will punish your crimes!”

The Prince was always like this, putting on a menacing front to bully others, speaking “ruthless” words he thought were intimidating. He didn’t realize that every time he threatened punishment, nothing ever came of it—he couldn’t even manage to pin a specific charge on anyone.

Yu Qing was carried away once more, but this time Hua Jingshi hooked one arm under both knees, making the Prince sit almost entirely within his arm. Yu Qing was stunned. Wasn’t Hua Jingshi weak? How does he have so much strength?

Before he could process the surprise, Hua Jingshi took a soft silk cloth from the side, folded it deftly with his free right hand, and gently wiped him clean. The movements were light, the pressure perfect. Everything was exactly as it should be.

He was tucked back into the covers. This time, he was turned around so they embraced face-to-face. Hua Jingshi slowly kissed the corner of his lips, restrained yet lingering, his voice full of infatuation: “The bed is filled with Your Highness’s scent.”

Hua Jingshi was exceptionally talkative today, but Yu Qing was sleepy and didn’t want to investigate the strangeness. He hummed a vague response, buried his head in the man’s chest, and drifted into a heavy slumber.

The man’s thin lips moved as if he wanted to say more, but they were covered by a soft palm. “Don’t be noisy…” Yu Qing whispered. “Us is so sleepy.”

…

The Crying “Abandoned Husband”

Ever since discovering Hua Jingshi’s “bad sleeping habits,” Yu Qing had become averse to sharing a bed with him. One day, he secretly summoned the imperial physician. The physician took his pulse, his expression shifting through a thousand changes before turning solemn.

“Is something wrong?” Yu Qing suddenly felt tense.

“Your Highness need not worry. Everything in the womb… is fine. But I have found something strange. The pulse feels as if it is there, yet not there. But some time ago, I was certain Your Highness had it.”

“Perhaps Us has just eaten too much lately.” Yu Qing didn’t take it to heart. The physician shook his head inwardly; a large appetite wouldn’t affect the pulse like this.

While the physician was reminding him of dietary restrictions, a commotion broke out outside. Someone burst in like a whirlwind. Before Yu Qing could get angry, the person sat down on a wooden chair with a shoo sound.

Then, Xie Xuanying burst into tears.

Yu Qing was instantly dumbfounded. Not just him—all the servants froze. The warnings of “audacious” and “impudent” were swallowed back down. Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, having no idea what was happening.

While others were in shock, Xie Xuanying’s mood didn’t let up. He was frustrated—beyond frustrated. He had tried everything to get close to the Prince, but the Prince kept his doors shut, not even willing to use him for amusement. The servants gave him the cold shoulder, calling him an “abandoned husband” who would be kicked out sooner or later.

Xie Xuanying was furious but helpless. The servants weren’t wrong; he was an abandoned husband. How passionate the Prince had been before was how cold he was now. There was no medicine for regret. Seeing Hua Jingshi, who arrived later than him, got an official title while he couldn’t even see the Prince’s face—how could he not feel aggrieved?

The more he thought, the more despair he felt. These complex emotions surged together, causing him to disregard his dignity, burst into the bedchamber, and weep silently.

A tall, handsome, powerful man suddenly crying before one’s eyes—and a silent, weeping sob at that, as if he knew the Prince hated noise and was deliberately stifling himself—was an exceptionally bizarre, even terrifying image. Xie Xuanying’s shoulders hitched, and Yu Qing’s eyelids twitched in unison.

If Xie Xuanying had caused a scene, Yu Qing could have charged him. But the man did nothing but sit there and leak tears. What could the Prince do? Has he been dragged out and beaten for crying too hard? That would be too heartless.

The little Prince’s brow relaxed and furrowed repeatedly. He kept glancing at the others, wordlessly asking for help. Unfortunately, they were seeing this for the first time too and looked helpless.

Left with no choice, he asked with a sigh, “What are you crying for? Did Us bully you?”

“You didn’t,” Xie Xuanying said, then continued to cry. When he finally caught his breath, he said in a heart-wrenching tone, “Of course you didn’t. You are the Crown Prince. How could you bully me? Who would dare say the Prince bullies people?”

“You definitely didn’t!”

“…” So did I or didn’t I?

The little Prince was getting impatient, but Xie Xuanying was crying so hard it was losing any sense of aesthetic; his expression was somewhat contorted and unpleasant to look at. Yu Qing couldn’t bear to watch any longer. He took a silk cloth and wiped the man’s face with a look of disgust. “Stop crying. If there’s some new toy you want, the US will reward you with it.”

“Really?” Xie Xuanying looked up suddenly, a spark of joy in his heart. But then he thought of how many people the Prince must have said this to, and his excitement chilled. He spoke as if to be deliberately difficult: “I want the position of Secondary Consort (Ce-fei).”

“?” Yu Qing frowned.

Xie Xuanying roared righteously through his sobs, “Why does Hua Jingshi get to be a Liangdi as soon as he arrives? I came before him, yet I’ve stayed by your side without a name or status, having nothing. You kidnapped me and then ignored me, letting everyone else step all over me!”

Yu Qing’s head felt like it was going to explode. It was bad enough that Xie Xuanying was an ugly crier, but his roar was heart-shattering. He couldn’t take it. Covering his ears, he yelled, “Fine, a Secondary Consort it is! Us will give it to you, alright?!”

…

The Prime Minister’s Cold Fury

The Eastern Palace was in an uproar again. Previously, when Hua Jingshi received his title, everyone had flocked to flatter him as the only titled person near the Prince. But in the blink of an eye, the “discarded” Xie Xuanying was back in favor, and with a title second only to the Crown Princess!

Clearly, the new flame couldn’t hold a candle to the old love. The Prince was truly “loyal.”

In the Prime Minister’s estate, Qiu Zhiruo crushed the paper in his hand into dust. He couldn’t control his expression. A subordinate nearby tried to comfort him: “This only shows that His Highness is deep-feeling and devoted…”

“Devoted?” Qiu Zhiruo turned his head and sneered. “When it comes to toying with men, the Prince is indeed devoted.”

It was almost laughable. The Prince lacked patience for everything—he hated archery, hated sweating; making him do a horse stance for a moment would cause a tantrum. Yet in toying with men, the Prince was exceptionally devoted and never tired of it. One wasn’t enough; he wanted to take turns playing with a whole group.

Qiu Zhiruo had been willing to overlook it, thinking the Prince was just young and hadn’t played enough. But for some reason, the Prince was constantly giving him the cold shoulder. The distance was obvious. Today, the Emperor had summoned him to discuss an arranged marriage.

The Emperor said the Prince wanted an “Aunt” (a wife for his uncle) now. The Emperor also said the Western Prince was truly interesting, willing to stay in the Qing Dynasty for the Prince and enter the harem as the Crown Princess.

One bad piece of news after another made Qiu Zhiruo laugh out of sheer rage. What did the Prince mean? After sleeping with him, did he find him boring? Was he going to kick him aside to play house with old flames and new lovers?

There was no such thing as a free lunch.

“This Prime Minister is going to the Palace.”

“But…”

Qiu Zhiruo rose slowly. He was naturally gentle and refined, but when he showed no expression, he was like the ice at the peak of a snowy mountain—bone-chillingly cold.

“Send a calling card to the Hall of Sunken Hearts (Chenxin Ge). This Prime Minister has matters to discuss with the Grand Priest.”