The East Palace

On a dry, yellowing grass field, five young eunuchs were playing cuju (a type of ancient Chinese football) with the young prince, Yuanbao.

Despite the cold weather, everyone was sweating.

“Yuanbao.” The Crown Prince walked onto the field and grabbed the cuju ball.

“Father,” Yuanbao turned around, wiped the sweat from his face with his hand, and ran over to his father.

The Crown Prince picked up Yuanbao, took a cloth from Fuzhuan, and wiped Yuanbao’s dirty face clean.

He also pulled out the sweat-soaked silk handkerchief from Yuanbao’s clothes and replaced it with a dry one that Fuzhuan handed him.

“How was the game today?”

“It was great! I scored seven goals, and they couldn’t keep up with me.” Yuanbao said proudly.

Even though it’s said that premature babies are weak, Yuanbao was strong and tall for his age, and he wasn’t tired after playing for half an hour.

The Crown Prince nodded in satisfaction and glanced at the young eunuchs playing with Yuanbao.

They were a bit older but still quite young.

“Now that you have playmates, doesn’t it feel more lively?”

Yuanbao shook his head, not looking at his father.

His long eyelashes cast shadows on his pale face as he blinked.

“Isn’t the East Palace lively enough? Tell Father what you’re thinking.”

“Father, can you bring Aunt Rongrong into the East Palace?”

The Crown Prince was slightly surprised, “Aunt Rongrong?”

“Yes,” Yuanbao looked up with a gentle smile, “She is Uncle Yuanchu’s maid.”

“You’ve only spoken to her once, and you want her to come to the East Palace?” The Crown Prince knelt down, placed his hands on Yuanbao’s shoulders, and looked at him seriously.

Yuanbao’s face was still chubby and cute.

“Aunt Rongrong saved me. Don’t you remember? At Uncle Yuanchu’s estate,” he said confidently, “Besides, it doesn’t matter how many times we’ve talked. Aunt Yuanrui has spoken to you many times, but you haven’t brought her into the East Palace.”

So clever!

The Crown Prince smiled helplessly.

“Father, can it be done?”

The Crown Prince always took Yuanbao’s requests seriously, answering him as if he were an adult.

“She is Uncle Yuanchu’s maid, so Father cannot bring her into the East Palace casually.”

Yuanbao didn’t mind.

He looked up happily and said, “Then I’ll talk to Uncle Yuanchu. If he agrees, can she come?”

“I will ask him next time,” the Crown Prince changed the subject, “After playing for so long, are you hungry? Go have some pastries with your attendants. I need to handle some state affairs in the study and will join you later.”

“Father, you still haven’t answered me,” Yuanbao reminded impatiently.

The Crown Prince ruffled Yuanbao’s head but still didn’t answer his question.

He got up and left.

Yuanbao glanced at Fuquan standing aside.

When Fuquan nodded back at him, he smiled and bounced away to enjoy some pastries.

Fuquan watched the little prince’s retreating figure with a pleased smile.

Suddenly, he heard the Crown Prince’s low, stern voice.

“Get to the study.”

Fuquan’s heart skipped a beat.

He quickly hid his smile and followed the Crown Prince to the study.

Once the door was shut, facing the Crown Prince’s icy and grim expression, Fùquán felt a shiver.

“Your Highness,” Fuquan called in a cautious tone, bracing for the teapot on the desk to be thrown at him.

“Did you incite Yuanbao to say these things today?”

Fuquan’s face immediately wrinkled in distress. “Your Highness, it’s unjust to accuse me. Although Prince Yuanbao is young, he is your son and has his own opinions. How could he be influenced by this old servant? This accusation is truly unfair.”

“Hmph,” the Crown Prince sneered. “There have been many affairs in court these days, but don’t think your little actions can deceive me. Honestly explain, and I might spare you.”

Fùquán was nervous. “This matter… That day, Prince Yuanbao wanted me to take him to see Miss Rongrong. I knew it was against the rules, so I refused. However, Prince Yuanbao persistently begged, and I said it needed Your Highness’s permission. Since he asked for help, I had to comply!” Fuquan spoke carefully, glancing at the Crown Prince.

Seeing the Crown Prince’s expression was stern but his gaze was not on him, Fuquan felt relieved.

The Crown Prince had given a strict order to everyone in the Eastern Palace not to dismiss Yuanbao’s requests because of his age.

Everyone in the Eastern Palace treated Yuanbao with the utmost respect, as Yuanbao was also capable of giving orders.

The Crown Prince’s mind was preoccupied. “Does Yuanbao really want to bring that woman into the Eastern Palace?”

“Yes, this old servant cannot incite such things. As you know, Yuanbao’s temperament is not something I could influence. It’s the first time he has asked for someone.” Yuanbao had never requested anything before, whether it was food or playthings.

The Crown Prince’s heart skipped a beat.

It wasn’t the first time Yuanbao had made such a request.

When Yuanbao first learned to speak, he had once asked the Crown Prince for his mother.

Bang—

The Crown Prince slammed his fist on the desk, his knuckles turning white.

“Your Highness?”

“Accompany me to the Jingning Marquis’s residence.”

---

When the Crown Prince’s carriage arrived at the Jingning Marquis’s residence, Xie Yuanchu had not yet returned home.

The Marquis was also away on military business.

Wang Yilan had no choice but to go to the Buddhist hall and ask her mother-in-law, Mrs. Zhai, to intervene.

Zhai Shi and the Empress used to be close friends.

When the Crown Prince and Xie Yuanchu were studying at the Grand Xiangguo Temple, the Empress couldn’t visit them, so Zhai Shi went every month and had a senior relationship with the Crown Prince.

Because Xie Yuanchu had advised her in advance, Zhai Shi wasn’t surprised by the Crown Prince’s visit.

She calmly changed clothes and went to greet him.

However, when Zhai Shi arrived in the main hall, she saw that not only was the Crown Prince present, but also Xie Yuanrui.

“Your Highness, this is my father’s favorite tea. Please try it,” Xie Yuanrui said, serving tea to the Crown Prince.

Seeing this, Zhai Shi’s expression darkened, but she didn’t show her displeasure in front of the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince took the tea cup offered by Xie Yuanrui, took a sip, and set it aside. “This is Mengding Shihua, a fine tea.”

Zhai Shi shot a sharp glance at Xie Yuanrui, who lowered her eyes and stepped aside.

Then Zhai Shi addressed the Crown Prince, “Your Highness, Yuan Chu went out today with some young masters from the Zhenyuan Marquis’s residence and won’t return until evening. Shall I send someone to bring him back?”

The Crown Prince, seeing Zhai Shi, gave a slight nod and said, “There’s no need. I’m not here to find Yuan Chu.”

“Then why are you here?” Zhai Shi wondered in surprise.

Could it be that he’s looking for Xue Rongrong?

Fuzhuan stepped forward and smiled, “Madam, His Highness, the Little Prince recently stayed at the Marquis’s hot spring estate, and the young prince became especially fond of a girl named Rongrong there.

Now that he’s in the Eastern Palace, he has been thinking of bringing Rongrong here to play. That’s why we’ve come.”

Zhai Shi snorted inwardly.

Bringing someone here under the pretext of her son’s wishes was quite impudent, but she couldn’t show it on her face.

She only smiled and said, “Your Highness, please wait a moment. I’ll send someone to call Rongrong.”

The servant ran out immediately to fetch Rongrong.

“Does the young prince like Rongrong very much?” Xie Yuanrui asked with a smile.

The Crown Prince didn’t answer, but Fuzhuan said with a smile, “Yes, they get along well. The young prince usually likes to play alone. In the future, we might have to trouble the Marquis’s residence more.”

The servant who went to deliver the message quickly returned, saying, “Rongrong caught a cold today and is not fit to come to the Eastern Palace to accompany the young prince.”

Today, Rongrong had been punished by Wang Yilan, and Zhai Shi had noticed she looked pale.

However, she needed to cover for Wang Yilan, so she said, “Even if she’s not feeling well, she should still come to report to the court while His Highness is here.”

The servant replied, “They’re on their way but slower than me. I was worried you might be anxious, so I came to inform you first.”

As the servant spoke, Rongrong was seen kneeling in the courtyard instead of entering the main hall.

Although today’s punishment from Wang Yilan wasn’t severe, Rongrong had suffered a severe injury to her knees during a previous punishment, and even though she had come back to life, her knees were still damaged.

This kneeling immediately aggravated her old injury.

“Oh dear, Miss Rongrong looks really ill today. Her face is so pale, and her lips have no color!” Fuquan, having spent many years in the palace, could easily read the expressions of both the Zhai family and the servants.

He sighed and glanced at the Crown Prince.

At this moment, Rongrong’s pale face was due partly to the cold and partly because of the Crown Prince’s sudden arrival.

Why had the Crown Prince come to the Marquis’s residence suddenly?

Why did he suddenly want her to go to the Eastern Palace to accompany Prince Yuanbao?

She didn’t dare to look up at him and could only kneel in the courtyard with her head lowered, gripping her clothing.

“Since you’re ill, don’t kneel anymore, Fuquan.”

“Old servant is here.”

“Go and have someone bring Yuanbao’s reward to her.” The Crown Prince stood up and walked past Rongrong.

She only caught a glimpse of his embroidered boots as he passed by.

As the Crown Prince was a high-ranking official, Mrs. Zhai had to see him out of the residence.

However, just as Mrs. Zhai left, Xie Yuanrui followed closely behind.

“Go back,” Mrs. Zhai said quietly.

Xie Yuanrui, seemingly ignoring her, continued walking ahead.

But Xie Yuanrui wasn’t trying to speak to the Crown Prince.

“Fuquan, does Prince Yuanbao like Rongrong a lot?”

Fuquan smiled, “Yes, he seems to have taken a liking to her by chance.”

“That’s unfortunate,” Xie Yuanrui sighed, her gaze lingering on the Crown Prince’s back. “Rongrong will be leaving the Marquis’s residence soon to return home.”

Fuquan knew about Rongrong’s plan to leave, but not everyone was aware.

He glanced subtly and saw that the Crown Prince didn’t seem to falter.

Fuquan felt embarrassed and replied, “That’s really unfortunate. If Yuanbao knew, he’d be quite disappointed.”

“What does Prince Yuanbao like to play with?” Xie Yuanrui pressed on.

“Recently, he enjoys cuju, and apart from his studies, he likes to play backgammon with the Crown Prince.”

“Backgammon?” She didn’t know how to play backgammon, but she could learn.

The things children like are usually not too difficult.

Xie Yuanrui noted this down and continued, “What does Prince Yuanbao like to eat? I’ve been learning to make pastries with my sister-in-law. I could send some to the Eastern Palace for Prince Yuanbao and Fùquán to try.”

“Old servant would indeed be fortunate. Prince Yuanbao doesn’t have specific likes or dislikes, but he particularly enjoyed Miss Rongrong’s cooking last time we visited your family’s hot springs. If Miss San is curious, she might want to ask Miss Rongrong.” Seeing the Crown Prince had already left the Marquis’s residence, Fuquan bowed to Xie Yuanrui and said, “Miss San, I’ll take my leave now.”

“Thank you, Fuquan.” Xie Yuanrui was pleased with the information and thought that since Rongrong had gained Yuanbao’s favor through her cooking, she could do even better by learning from the royal chefs.

She decided to ask her mother to help her learn from the imperial chefs to make better pastries.

Fuquan quickly ran ahead to help the Crown Prince into the carriage.

The Crown Prince glanced at him and asked coldly, “What were you talking about?”

“Miss San was asking what Prince Yuanbao likes to play with,” Fuquan answered quietly. “She seems quite thoughtful.”

“You’re quite talkative,” the Crown Prince said icily as he entered the carriage.

Fuquan maintained his smile and announced, “Let’s set off and return to the Eastern Palace.”