When the Deposed Crown Prince Was Reborn as Troublemaker - Chapter 49

Facing You Fengyun, who looked as though he was about to split apart with rage, You Yusui showed not the slightest trace of fear. He looked at You Fengyun and said, “Does Father Emperor find it unsatisfactory? Switch to something cheerful!”

The moment his words fell, the musicians who had been playing instantly switched their accompaniment, and the music became so festive and lively that one couldn’t help but sway while walking.

You Fengyun felt, for the first time in his life, that he had encountered something utterly beyond his expectations — and the sole cause of it all was You Yusui.

“Have them withdraw,” You Fengyun said through gritted teeth, his face dark.

You Yusui shot Huo Xiling a glance, and Huo Xiling immediately had the musicians escorted away.

“And this is the talent you found for Zhen?” You Fengyun felt himself on the verge of laughing out of sheer fury.

You Yusui blinked innocently. Ha — so the wretched Emperor was finally telling the truth. He just wanted You Yusui to spend his own money raising talent for him. Pfft, not a chance.

“Father Emperor, are they not talented?” You Yusui asked.

You Fengyun fixed his gaze on his frail, sickly second son and asked, “What do you think?”

You Yusui looked at You Fengyun with complete sincerity and said, “I think they most certainly are!”

“They can play all manner of instruments, and they can play both festive and sorrowful music. From now on, they can take care of all the weddings and funerals in Chang’an. Just prepare two sets of clothes for them to change between red and white occasions — finish playing at one household and move on to the next.”

“They can also earn money this way and allow Juxian Pavilion to break even. Once there are more of them, we can expand to the areas surrounding Chang’an. By then, whenever people think of weddings and funerals, Juxian Pavilion will be the first name that comes to mind.”

You Yusui spoke with great enthusiasm and passion, while You Fengyun listened with his temples throbbing violently.

If not for You Yusui’s frail constitution, You Fengyun truly feared he would not be able to restrain himself from giving You Yusui a good beating.

He hadn’t even gotten particularly angry when the First Prince, You Yuyi, had botched the Spring Banquet — yet what You Yusui had pulled today made him want to thrash the boy with his own hands.

“Father Emperor, do you think this arrangement is good or not?” You Yusui looked at You Fengyun, practically bursting to say: Look how clever I am — I never waste money keeping people around for nothing.

“I think it’s very good indeed,” You Fengyun said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“I think so too.” You Yusui shamelessly pushed further.

Beside them, Huo Xiling had already begun to worry that You Yusui was going to be punished.

“Crown Prince, you are the Crown Prince of a nation!” You Fengyun said furiously. “Is this how you are supposed to recruit talented individuals?”

If You Yusui kept this up, no truly capable person would ever come to Juxian Pavilion. No wonder the First Prince’s faction and the Third Prince’s faction hadn’t bothered to act against Juxian Pavilion — his dear son had been using it for this sort of thing all along.

At this rate, Juxian Pavilion would become synonymous with funeral rites and wedding banquets.

Yet even after being shouted at by You Fengyun, You Yusui remained as unmoved as a salted fish refusing to turn over. You Fengyun could shout all he liked — if You Yusui so much as blinked in response, he would consider that a loss.

You Fengyun stared at You Yusui’s utterly unruffled expression — like a pig unafraid of boiling water — and felt his head throb with rage. He suspected it was that old fox Gu Shen who had led the boy astray.

Before his illness, the Crown Prince had been so obedient — he did whatever he was told. Now, You Fengyun felt he needed someone to help straighten the Crown Prince back out.

It was at that moment that Eunuch An Hai cautiously approached and asked, “It is nearly midday now — does Your Majesty wish to return to the palace for the midday meal, or…?”

“Eat here,” You Fengyun said.

At these words, everyone present was taken aback.

But You Fengyun had caught the aroma the moment he entered Juxian Pavilion. He was not the sort of man to deprive himself of pleasures — if he wanted to eat, he would make sure he ate.

Beside him, You Yusui pressed his hand against the small cushion in his arms. Outrageous — he can’t take advantage of me any other way, so now he wants to eat and drink here for free.

Eunuch An Hai, upon hearing this, looked toward You Yusui and said, “Your Highness the Crown Prince — what do you think…?”

You Yusui set down the small cushion in his arms, sat up straight, and said, “Notify the kitchen. Serve the dishes.”

“Yes.” A young eunuch immediately went to inform the kitchen to bring out the food.

Very soon, the dishes were all brought out — hearty, substantial fare: braised pork knuckle, crispy roasted duck, deep-fried dried fish. All of it was rich in oil and salt. Though lacking the refinement of palace cuisine, it carried a bold, rustic quality that made one feel it was only right to eat great mouthfuls of meat and drink great gulps of wine.

You Fengyun was very pleased with the dishes. He gnawed on a large pork knuckle while continuing to lecture You Yusui.

You Yusui: …Even eating can’t stop your mouth, and don’t you think the sight of you gnawing on a pork knuckle doesn’t quite match your identity as the Emperor?

“Where did you get this cook?” You Fengyun asked after finishing the pork knuckle.

“Oh, I hired him to prepare banquet food for weddings and funerals. Since I’m offering a full package service, I’ve also taken on the catering,” You Yusui said, picking up a piece of red-braised pork with his chopsticks.

The next moment, the piece of red-braised pork on his chopsticks was knocked off by You Fengyun.

“Your health is poor and you’re eating something this greasy and heavy?” You Fengyun frowned and looked at You Yusui. “An Hai, bring that dish of cabbage and tofu over for him.”

“Yes.” Eunuch An Hai hurriedly moved the dish of cabbage and tofu that had been sitting in the corner of the table and placed it in front of You Yusui.

You Yusui, staring at the cabbage and tofu before him: …The unwanted fatherly love continues to multiply.

Meanwhile, You Fengyun had already tipped all the red-braised pork into his own rice bowl, and while doing so, said to You Yusui, “Don’t bring up weddings and funerals again.”

“Alright,” You Yusui replied.

Not bringing it up doesn’t mean not doing it.

Then You Fengyun added, “Oh, and that cook of yours — I want him.”

Upon hearing this, You Yusui set down his chopsticks. You’ve gone too far!

“Father Emperor,” You Yusui said, taking a deep breath. “Imperial Physician Cui said that eating too much fatty food weakens one’s constitution and causes one to develop a large belly.”

As the words fell, You Yusui glanced briefly at You Fengyun’s still fairly firm and sturdy waistline. He didn’t dare imagine what his Father Emperor would look like with a large belly.

In that moment, You Fengyun suddenly found the red-braised pork in his bowl no longer appetising.

“Then forget it. I’ll come here when I feel like eating,” You Fengyun said, swallowing the piece of red-braised pork already in his mouth.

You Yusui was stunned. My goodness — he’s just directly treating this place as his personal restaurant.

After eating and drinking his fill, You Fengyun finally turned his attention to the matter of You Yusui’s education.

He could no longer find someone who indulged the boy to discipline him. Everyone on good terms with the Xie family was eliminated from You Fengyun’s consideration entirely. In the end, he settled on an old pedantic tutor who had once instructed You Yusui during his early childhood — a rigid, serious man who strictly upheld the conduct of a gentleman in all things.

You Yusui: …It seems the days of living in luxury and indulgence are about to slip away from me.

Father truly hates me!

“All right, let’s leave it here for today — we should be heading back as well,” You Fengyun said, rising to his feet.

Although he had not gotten to see the talented individuals he had hoped for, he had eaten a meal that left him entirely satisfied. You Fengyun’s mood at this moment was rather good.

“Then I’ll see you back to the palace,” You Yusui said, standing up with Huo Xiling’s support.

With those words, You Yusui and You Fengyun walked out of Juxian Pavilion together.

At the very moment You Yusui and You Fengyun were about to board their carriages, a group of people in ordinary clothing with cloth coverings on their faces suddenly rushed out.

“Protect His Majesty! Protect His Majesty!” Eunuch An Hai immediately cried out.

You Yusui was immediately shielded behind Huo Xiling, who then kicked away the assassin lunging toward You Yusui, before drawing the long blade at his side and severing the assassin’s skull.

As for his father emperor, he needed no protection from anyone — he simply seized one assailant by the throat with one hand. You Yusui could clearly hear a crisp crack as the man’s neck was snapped by You Fengyun himself.

You Yusui stepped back half a pace, thinking inwardly: You Fengyun truly deserved his reputation as the man who had wrestled a bear in his youth.

Huo Xiling moved with swift precision, and the Eastern Palace guards he had brought along, having been drilled by Huo Xiling, showed no sign of panic. Under Huo Xiling’s command, they began to mount a coordinated counterattack against the assassins.

You Yusui finally breathed a sigh of relief, while the assassins on the other side, seeing they could not kill anyone, hastily began to retreat.

At that moment, Huo Xiling snatched the bow and arrow from a guard nearby, nocked three arrows at once, and the instant the bowstring thrummed, all three arrows were lodged in the fleeing assassins’ chests.

“Keep one alive,” You Yusui said.

The words had barely left his mouth before the few assassins who had been seized by the guards bit down on the poison hidden in their back molars and died.

You Yusui could not help but look at You Fengyun’s expression — only to find it utterly impassive, as though he had lived through many such assassination attempts.

“Your Majesty, they are all death warriors,” Eunuch An Hai reported to You Fengyun after inspecting the bodies.

You Fengyun gave a light laugh and said, “It has been a long time since anyone tried to assassinate me. Guess — was it Tujue’s people, the vassal princes’ people, or remnants of the previous dynasty?”

You Fengyun glanced down at the corpses on the ground and said, “Have someone clean this up — return to the palace.”

With that, You Fengyun was the first to board his carriage. You Yusui let out a breath, and only when he saw that Huo Xiling was unharmed did he fully set his heart at ease.

After that, You Yusui boarded his own carriage.

There, You Fengyun had already been waiting inside. The cold and ungenerous emperor raised an eyelid to look at him and said, “Were you frightened?”

You Yusui lowered his head and said, “I’m all right.”

In truth, in his previous lives he had killed people with his own hands, and had survived countless assassination attempts from the First Prince and the Third Prince. But right now he had to appear frightened in front of You Fengyun, because in You Fengyun’s eyes, he was still the him of the first lifetime.

You Fengyun glanced at You Yusui to confirm he was not unwell, then said, “Good that you didn’t vomit.”

“Mm.” Then You Yusui raised his head and looked at You Fengyun. “Father Emperor, I’m so scared.”

You Fengyun: …..

At this moment, You Fengyun was already considering whether or not to add bear-wrestling to his son’s curriculum.

After they returned to the palace, news that the emperor had been attacked spread very quickly, sending the court into an uproar.

Just as You Yusui was thinking that You Fengyun was currently too busy pursuing the culprits to bother with him, You Fengyun sent over You Yusui’s tutor from his early childhood — an extremely rigid and stern old pedant who upheld the conduct of a gentleman in every way.

You Yusui: …My days of luxury and indulgence seem to be rapidly slipping away.

My father actually hates me!

You Fengyun, who was in the midst of having people investigate the assassins, let out a sneeze. He glanced at Xie Tan standing before him and asked, “The Crown Prince’s constitution is far too weak. Xie Qing, do you think I should have him practise wrestling with bears?”

Xie Tan: ??? I’m afraid the bear will beat my cousin to death!

TL/N:

In historical / imperial Chinese contexts, 卿 (qīng) was a respectful way an emperor or high-ranking royal addressed a minister or official.