Chapter 70 – Yu-shi* (22.1)
[T/N: The title is 俞氏. Yu 俞 is a surname. Shi 氏 indicates a married woman.]
Lin Jia Bao was painting outdoors in Ping Le Courtyard. The weather was good today, so he asked Yuan Qing to help him bring the desk out into the courtyard.
Due to the incident with Xu Xue Ying, Xuan Yuan Han Cheng recently forbade Lin Jia Bao from going to the Royal Snack Kitchen. Even if he wanted to take a stroll through the Imperial Garden, he would need to have Xuan Yuan Han Cheng accompany him.
Last time, when Xuan Yuan Han Cheng learned that Lin Jia Bao had went missing he was extremely panicked. Even though it was only for a short while, he really could not bear the thought of losing his treasure once again. If possible, he really wanted to carry his darling around in his arms at all times.
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Being stuck inside Ping Le Courtyard, Lin Jia Bao was so bored that he was getting agitated, but due to his docile disposition, he would not quarrel with Xuan Yuan Han Cheng about wanting to go out.
Lin Jia Bao knew that Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was doing this for his own good. It was because Xuan Yuan Han Cheng was worried for him that he would not let him go out, so it was best that he obediently practice his calligraphy and painting skills in Ping Le Courtyard.
There were several koi carps depicted vividly on the rice paper. Lin Jia Bao was very talented in painting. The pictures that he painted all carried a lively aura, which Master Qiu, his teacher, would praise effusively.
Xuan Yuan Han Cheng had specially ordered some people to dig a small artificial pond in Ping Le Courtyard to raise a few koi fish for Jia Bao to paint and enjoy.
When Xuan Yuan Han Cheng entered the courtyard, he saw his baby painting earnestly under the shade of a tree, so he did not make any noises that might disrupt him, and only stood off to one side to watch him. In his eyes, his treasure was as beautiful as a painting.
When Lin Jia Bao painted, he was completely immersed in the activity, so he did not notice that Xuan Yuan Han Cheng had come to his side.
After Lin Jia Bao finished the painting, he put down the brush. When he turned around, he saw Xuan Yuan Han Cheng standing beside him, watching him tenderly. Lin Jia Bao bowed slightly to Xuan Yuan Han Cheng, “Your Royal Highness, you’re back.”
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When Lin Jia Bao woke up from his afternoon nap and didn’t see Xuan Yuan Han Cheng, he knew that he must have gone off to deal with government affairs, so he did some painting to relieve his boredom.
“Is my baby feeling bored?” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng hugged Jia Bao and murmured in his ear. He knew that his baby must be bored to death these days.
“It’s okay, I like to paint…” Lin Jia Bao knew that His Royal Highness the crown prince was very busy and could not be by his side all the time.
“My baby draws really well…” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng said softly in Lin Jia Bao’s ear. “Today, Husband is going to take you out of the palace to stroll around. At night, we will have dinner outside…”
“Really?!” Lin Jia Bao was so happy that he bounced up and down.
“Of course. Have Shu Ya help you change your clothes and then we will leave.” Xuan Yuan Han Cheng kissed Lin Jia Bao’s smiling face.
Lin Jia Bao ran inside quickly and asked Shu Ya and Shu Qin to help him prepare. In a short while, he was changed into a set of plain-colored robes for going out of the palace. On his waist, he simply wore a single jade pendant for accessory.
Xuan Yuan Han Cheng also changed into a set of low-key black-colored robes.
“Yuan Qing and Yuan Fu have been waiting by the carriage outside the courtyard. In the evening, we will eat at Hongyan Building, the best restaurant in the western side of the city. You will definitely like the food of that restaurant…”
Lin Jia Bao nodded happily. He had never eaten in a restaurant before, and moreover, he would get to dine with his husband…
[T/N: Pretty sure LJB ate at a restaurant when his dad and brother came to visit, but whatever…]
“Your Royal Highness… Your Royal Highness…”
When Lin Jia Bao arrived in front of the carriage, he heard a woman’s voice calling from behind. Looking back, he saw that it was a woman that he had never seen before. The woman was not tall. She was dressed in peachy pink robes and toting around a little girl that was dolled up really adorably. There were also two maids accompanying her.
Yu Qin had brought her daughter with her to wait outside of Ping Le Courtyard, and they’ve been waiting for quite some time already. Finally, her efforts paid off and she got to see His Royal Highness, but the crown prince was in a hurry. Before she could call out to him, His Royal Highness had already disappeared inside Ping Le Courtyard.
Translations by Vanilla Muse.
Yu Qin was not willing to give up. She had not seen His Royal Highness in a long time. So she continued to dither outside Ping Le Courtyard for a while. But when she saw her daughter getting tired, she could only make preparations to return in frustration.
Just as Yu Qin and her maids started walking back, she heard the sounf og horse hooves coming from behind. Looking back, she saw Yuan Fu and another eunuch from the crown prince’s palace preparing something. Yu Qin thought that His Royal Highness would definitely come out in a while, so she quietly waited some more.
After a while, she saw His Royal Highness leading a small youth out. Yu Qin knew that the small youth was Lin-xiaoshi, whom His Royal Highness now favored. She hurriedly dragged their daughter forward.
“Your Royal Highness… Your Royal Highness…”
Yu Qin had a petite but well-endowed figure. The peachy pink robes wrapped around her curvaceous body. Adding on to that was a gorgeous application of makeup that created an overall very lovely appearance.
“Yu-shi, why did you people come over here? Do you know what this place is? Who allowed you to come to Ping Le Courtyard?” Xuan Yan Han Cheng asked sternly, ignoring Yu-shi’s subtle message.
“Your Royal Highness…”
Yu Qin pushed their daughter, An’er, forward.
“This concubine knows that Ping Le Courtyard and the inner study are forbidden areas. But An’er has always missed you, so I brought her to walk around outside of Ping Le Courtyard, hoping that we might glimpse Your Royal Highness.”
When An’er felt Xuan Yuan Han Cheng’s gaze on her, she shrunk back into Yu-shi’s arms, but Yu Qin insistently and relentlessly pushed her in front of the crown prince.
“This child, haven’t you always wanted to see your father, why don’t you pay your respects to your father…”