Lan Ming Yue

Returning to the Palace

When Liang Ye picked up the passed out Wang Dian, Chong Heng finally seized the opportunity and said, “Master, how should this person be dealt with?”

“As you like.” Liang Ye was not in the mood to meddle in his affairs.

“How will you deal with me! My adoptive father is Senior Eunuch Yang who is close to the Grand Empress Dowager!” The young man in red who was kneeling on the ground, yelled loudly. He tried to stand up but was pressed down by Chong Heng’s sword. A group of manservants around him wanted to save him but were at the same time afraid of the sword that was pressed against the young man’s neck.

An elderly servant spoke in a kind manner, “This Xia Shi, please show mercy. This is Yang Wujiu, the adoptive son of Senior Eunuch Yang. The little young master is young and not sensible. Please be magnanimous, even if it is for the sake of Senior Eunuch Yang’s face……”

(t/n Xia Shi-refers to a chivalrous man. In ancient times, people who possessed martial arts, acted bravely, and sacrificed themselves to help others.)

“Oh?” Liang Ye who was about to leave, suddenly turned his head, “It’s a bit interesting, Chong Heng, tie it up and take it away.”

“Yes!” Chong Heng smiled grimly at Yang Wujiu and said, “It turned out to be the puppy bastard of the castrated dog. This root here will be cut off and then we’ll send you into the palace to be with your father.” 

Yang Wujiu let out a scream of fear.

****

When Wang Dian woke up, Liang Ye was holding his palm and applying ointment on it. His eyes were lowered and applied it extremely carefully, he even blew on it tenderly. When he saw him open his eyes, he smiled at him and said, “Awake?”

Wang Dian looked at him with complicated eyes.

Before the Gu worm attack, he took it for granted that the relationship between himself and Liang Ye had eased. After all, after experiencing life and death together, there should be somewhat of a camaraderie there. Even if he wasn’t a friend, he could barely be regarded as a partner. Liang Ye’s intimacy without any sense of boundaries gave him the illusion that the two of them could already coexist in harmony.

But it turned out that he should never try to empathize with a moody lunatic.

And this lunatic was also still a feudal waste synthesizer.

“Zhen has asked the physician, it will leave no scars.” Liang Ye touched the scar on the back of his left hand, and looked at him with a gaze as if admiring a perfect collection.

Wang Dian had a heartache when he remembered the treasure he had mentioned. After working together for a long time, it turned out that he was just a thing in the eyes of this crazy person. He took his hand away, and sat up from the bed with some difficulty. The sense of detachment after the attack of the Gu worm made him irritable and he rubbed his swollen and painful brows vigorously, “What about Yang Wujiu?”

“Huh, you heard that?” Liang Ye asked in surprise.

“I fainted in pain, not dead. Of course I can hear him howling so loudly.” Wang Dian said weakly, “What are you going to do with him?”

“Chop into pieces and give Yang Man the soup to drink.” Liang Ye shook his wrist and said with a smile, “You haven’t cut anyone with these hands yet, Zhen will teach you.”

“…Yang Man is a eunuch. The forefathers said that there are three types of unfilial piety, and having no descendants is the gravest of the three. He took Yang Wujiu as his adopted son just to continue the incense.” Wang Dian said in a low voice, “It’s a pity to kill Yang Wujiu. He can be used to restrain Yang Man.”

(t/n Continue the incense-to have children, reproduce)

“He can still take another after losing his adopted son.” Liang Ye snorted a laugh, and then, with a slightly restrained smile, “There are three types of unfilial piety, and having no descendants is the gravest… then did you marry a wife and have children?”

Wang Dian twitched the corner of his mouth, “If so, what do you plan on doing?”

Liang Ye’s pitch black eyes stared at him deeply for a long time, and a bright smile suddenly appeared on his face, “Naturally, Zhen should treat them kindly and generously.”

Wang Dian nodded and said, “Then I will first thank Your Majesty on behalf of my one young wife, three beautiful concubines, and four sons and five daughters.”

His Majesty’s expression twisted for a moment, “Oh? So where are they now?”

“Of course I can’t tell Your Majesty, lest you cut them up alive and give me some soup.” Wang Dian sighed, laid back on the bed and closed his eyes to rest.

Liang Ye pressed against his ear and said with a sinister smile, “Zhen hates being deceived the most in life. You’d better have a young wife, beautiful concubines and cluster of children, otherwise—”

Wang Dian closed his eyes and smiled, “Rest assured, I swear to God that I never lied to you, otherwise I will directly disappear from this world.”

That’s exactly all I could wish for.

Liang Ye gave him a cold look and then left with a flick of his sleeve.

Wang Dian opened his eyes and lazily turned over.

Liang Ye regarded him as his own thing, that weird possessive paranoia again, thus he had to tell him that he still belonged to other people. Having irreplaceable roles and labels in interpersonal relationships, he couldn’t even find these “other people” from heaven and earth. He’s afraid this lunatic would grasp his heart and scratch his liver to the point of madness. (TL: describes the feeling of anxiety and deep worry)

You deserve it.

“Zhen doesn’t believe it.” Liang Ye squatted on the roof, looking at Yang Wujiu who was sunbathing like a dead dog in the courtyard, “I asked you to check Wang Dian before?”

“I’ve checked, but nothing was found.” Chong Heng squatted on the roof with him to bask under the sun, “It’s as if suddenly appearing out of nowhere, Master, didn’t you say it doesn’t matter if nothing can be found out?”

Liang Ye looked gloomy, “Go check again, see if he has a wife and children.”

“Then if there is…..” Chong Heng looked at his impatient face and awkwardly shut up, “This subordinate understands.”

He made a gesture of slicing his neck at Liang Ye.

“Bring it to Zhen, Zhen will do it personally.” Liang Ye lowered his eyes and looked at Wang Dian who walked out of the room, and said softly, “He can only be Zhen’s thing.”

“Then what if there is none?” Chong Heng said with uncertainty, “I think he vowed quite casually.”

“Zhen will make his life worse than death.”

Wang Dian’s attention was on Yang Wujiu, before, amidst the mayhem, he didn’t see it clearly, but now upon closer inspection, he found out that this young man’s sword eyebrows and bright eyes were outstanding, inherently with a stubborn and rebellious spirit that refuses to accept defeat. Seeing him, he stared fiercely and said, “If you have the ability, kill me! My adoptive father will definitely avenge me!”

“Kids at every turn just fight and kill.” Wang Dian squatted down and brought a teacup to his mouth, “Drink some water.”

Yang Wujiu was tied up all over firm and tight and was exposed in the sun for a long time, his mouth was precisely parched and his tongue scorched. He looked at Wang Dian vigilantly, “I won’t drink, what if you put poison in it!”

Wang Dian took a sip himself, and then brought it to his mouth again. Yang Wujiu couldn’t wait to drink a big mouthful, and in a short while, the teacup became empty.

“Still want to drink?” Wang Dian asked.

Yang Wujiu, after drinking the water, refused to acknowledge what was owed, and instead straightened his neck and scolded, “If you have the ability, leave me under the sun to die!”

“This prodding someone into action method is very rotten.” Wang Dian found a shady place beside him and sat cross-legged, “Boy, how old are you this year?”

“Sixteen!” Yang Wujiu said angrily.

Sixteen, simply a brat who just entered high school. Wang Dian already knew what to do. “It’s your fault for causing trouble while on horseback, but a startled horse, you also won’t be able to handle it. That child was too young and doesn’t yet know how to hide, therefore your horse can only be killed.”

Yang Wujiu’s face collapsed, “My Ji Feng is usually very obedient, it’s those lowly people who were yelling and screaming which caused it to be startled!” (TL: Ji Feng=strong wind)

“Hey, that’s not right. All living beings are equal, there is no distinction between high and low status. Those who despise others will also be despised themselves.” Wang Dian disagreed.

“Ptew! You speak well, but secretly, don’t you call my adoptive father a castrated man, a castrated dog! Sanctimonious!” Yang Wujiu said indignantly.

“Unless being forced and having no choice, I don’t think anyone would be willing to enter the palace and become a eunuch.” Wang Dian said, “Your adoptive father must have put in even more arduous efforts than ordinary people to become the eunuch beside the Grand Empress Dowager, and probably because he is too outstanding in other aspects, that people can only use his physical disabilities to attack him.”

Yang Wujiu listened in a daze, and his raised eyes turned red, “My adoptive father is a good person, but no one has ever said that about him, my adoptive father will be very happy once he hears it.”

Chong Heng on the roof was dumbfounded when he heard it. “It turns out that flattery can be done in a roundabout way.”

Liang Ye looked at Wang Dian thoughtfully.

“In the final analysis, today’s matter was your fault first, thus being under the head afternoon sun should conveniently teach you a lesson.” Wang Dian said, “For your adoptive father to make a lot of enemies in the palace, that would be difficult. If you continue to cause trouble for him outside, it will only make his situation more arduous. Wait for a while, I’ll let you go.”

(t/n Head afternoon [ tóu wǔ ] – refers to a period of time around nine o’clock in the morning.)

Yang Wujiu nodded glumly, he then raised his eyes and looked at him again after a while, “You, what’s your name?”

“My surname is Wang, and a single name character Dian.” Wang Dian patted him on the shoulder, “You are a filial child. I said this to you because I was aware that I had a fate with you. If it were someone else, I might not necessarily be able to talk persuasively and the other party may not necessarily listen.”

“Release him.” Liang Ye said suddenly.

Chong Heng was stunned for a moment, “Master, he is Yang Man’s son.”

Liang Ye didn’t speak, thus Chong Heng reluctantly went down to untie Yang Wujiu.

Yang Wujiu pretended to glare at him fiercely, then turned his head before going out with reluctance, “Wang Dian, I live in the Yang Mansion, Le’an Lane, you must remember to come and find me!”

Wang Dian smiled and waved to him.

“Go out, you!” Chong Heng kicked him out with one kick.

“Yang Man has followed the old woman for decades, it’s unlikely that releasing his adopted son can be used as leverage.” Liang Ye whispered into his ear coldly.

When Wang Dian turned around, Liang Ye hooked his fingers on his waistband, slid half a circle against the smooth fabric, frivolously and casually until it was tangled around the tassels under his jade pendant.

“It’s always somewhat useful, and it’s more cost-effective than killing him.” Wang Dian said, as he slowly approached him.

Liang Ye stood still in place, simply staring at his smiling eyes with unknown meaning. The wisp-like threads of faint and pleasant fragrance from Wang Dian’s body almost enveloped his whole body, making him involuntarily relax, even wanting the person to get closer to him, and to thoroughly rub into his flesh and blood.

Want to get closer, come closer.

His fingers twitched unnaturally, then suddenly, his palm felt empty.

Wang Dian slowly took the jade tassels out of his hand, stood up straight and said with a smile, “My delicate wife always likes to play with jade tassels like this, very naughty.”

Liang Ye’s face darkened.

Wang Dian tossed the jade pendant in his hand, and chuckled comfortably, “Your Majesty, it’s time for us to return to the palace.”