CH 45

Emperor Yunyu ordered someone to bring another piece of clothing. After putting it on and checking Shen Liuxiang, he took a jade slip and headed to the study.

Inside the study, Zhang Huaiwu held the just-received information and frowned, saying, “Although Miaomiao is providing support in the demon realm, if the two young lords’ identities are exposed, the manpower at the Imperial Palace there won’t be sufficient. It’s difficult to ensure their safety. Should we send more people?”

Emperor Yunyu: “No need.”

Zhang Huaiwu sighed and glanced at the tea cups on the coffee table, then picked one up and took a sip.

Emperor Yunyu said, “I can’t keep protecting them forever.”

He stood by the window, the cool breeze outside rustling the withered paulownia leaves that drifted past his view.

Emperor Yunyu absentmindedly reached out and caught a falling leaf.

In the next instant, he realized something was wrong. There were clearly no paulownia trees in the vicinity of the study.

The thin string on his wrist snapped in an instant.

With a “boom,” the fallen leaf transformed into the appearance of Shen Liuxiang, and his fingertip successfully touched the jade slip.

In a flash, Emperor Yunyu uttered a word, “Freeze—”

Shen Liuxiang’s body froze for a moment, a gentle breeze brushing through his fingers, and the jade slip fell back into Emperor Yunyu’s hand.

Zhang Huaiwu, who was sipping tea, choked suddenly, staring in disbelief.

Then he saw the Emperor step back, his usually calm face showing surprise, which then turned into a pleased expression. “Good. If my magic wasn’t superior to yours, you would have taken it.”

Emperor Yunyu became intrigued, his gaze fixed on Shen Liuxiang. “Do you have any other tricks? Feel free to use them.”

Any other tricks?

None.

A cold wind blew through Shen Liuxiang’s heart. With such profound magic, even if he managed to take it, Emperor Yunyu could still retrieve the jade slip from him.

Making fun of people.

Shen Liuxiang left the study and bumped into Xu Xingchen.

“Looking all defeated, and yet unsuccessful,” Xu Xingchen chuckled. “I told you before, Emperor Father’s skills are deep, unmatched in the world. Your little tricks wouldn’t snatch the jade slip from his hands. You might as well kneel outside his chamber for days and nights, maybe he’d take pity and return it to you.”

Shen Liuxiang squinted at him, rubbing his chin. “I have a better idea. What if I tie you up and ask Emperor Father to exchange the jade slip for you? What do you think?”

Xu Xingchen didn’t expect him to have such audacious thoughts. He stepped back in shock, pointing at Shen Liuxiang angrily.

“Would you dare? I’m going to tell Emperor Father right now that your ambitions and bad ideas are targeting me!”

Shen Liuxiang waved him off. “Go ahead, go.”

Xu Xingchen entered the study but was promptly kicked out, his face a mix of frustration and resentment.

Shen Liuxiang asked, “Did Emperor Father punish me?”

Xu Xingchen’s proud expression stiffened for a moment. Through gritted teeth, he said, “Don’t get too proud. Emperor Father just wants me to learn from you.”

Shen Liuxiang found this amusing.

After laughing for a while, a thought crossed his mind. He patted Xu Xingchen’s shoulder, “Actually, I should be learning from you. There’s something I’m not very good at. I wonder if you know.”

Xu Xingchen was briefly taken aback, not expecting Shen Liuxiang to seek his advice. The disappointment on his face instantly faded, replaced by a familiar contemptuous smile.

“What is it? There’s nothing in the world that I can’t do.”

Shen Liuxiang lightly uttered two words, “Erhu.”

Xu Xingchen was surprised, “I learned that when I was young. I know how to play all instruments. Why are you learning this?”

Shen Liuxiang said, “Don’t worry about it. Since you know, just teach me.”

Xu Xingchen raised an eyebrow, looking at Shen Liuxiang. Finally, he found a sense of superiority that had been absent for a long time. “Teaching you is not impossible, but you have to address me as Master. If you can’t do that, I won’t—”

“Hey, Master Xu,” Shen Liuxiang interrupted him without hesitation, “Greetings to Master Xu.”

Xu Xingchen widened his eyes slightly, “Don’t you have even a little—”

“Don’t waste time. Let’s go,” Shen Liuxiang directly pulled him away. “I’ve never touched an instrument before, so it might take some time. Hurry up.”

Not long after, Xu Xingchen emerged from the music room, his expression incredulous. He looked at Shen Liuxiang playing the erhu as if he had been doing it for ages. He struggled to find words for a while.

He asked, “You really never learned before?”

Shen Liuxiang replied, “No.”

Xu Xingchen was speechless. In just an hour, Shen Liuxiang not only learned to play the instrument but also remembered dozens of scores. Compared to his own beginning, Shen Liuxiang’s progress was even more remarkable.

He pouted, “I was young when I started learning. I wasn’t as capable as you. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

Shen Liuxiang, not understanding, picked up the erhu and left.

Seeing this, Xu Xingchen quickly asked, “Why are you learning this? Are you planning to perform in the demon realm or something?”

Shen Liuxiang turned back, his smile cryptic. “Direct approaches won’t work. I’m going to try something softer. I want to use music to move Emperor Father.”

Xu Xingchen: “?”

He recalled some cultivators who used music to harm people with sinister intentions. He immediately caught up with Shen Liuxiang. “Even though no matter what tricks you play, you won’t be able to harm Emperor Father, you better not cross any lines. The erhu I taught you, if Emperor Father blames me, I’ll be responsible!”

Xu Xingchen followed Shen Liuxiang for quite a while, worried. He noticed that Shen Liuxiang returned to his room without any unusual behavior.

After hesitating for a moment, Xu Xingchen returned to his own room.

After he left, Shen Liuxiang calculated the time, cleared his throat inside the room, and practiced the erhu on his own.

Tonight, he would confront the wicked Emperor Father head-on.

If he couldn’t rest well, Emperor Yunyu wouldn’t be able to either!

Emperor Yunyu finished his tasks and returned to his chambers. He rubbed his forehead and lay down on the bed. After a while, he raised his hand and looked at the jade slip.

He lightly flicked it.

It had been a quiet afternoon, and perhaps it was time to give up.

Emperor Yunyu closed his eyes slightly, then opened them after a moment. He sat up and glanced around the room.

Could it be that he had turned into something small again?

He muttered, “Break—”

The room remained silent, not a single sound.

Emperor Yunyu finally relaxed and was about to lie back down when the sound of an erhu drifted in through the window. The melody was mournful, carrying an indescribable desolation in the night.

It made people feel a pang of sorrow, tears welling up.

Emperor Yunyu frowned. Who dared to disturb his tranquility at this late hour?

He was just about to use his divine sense to investigate when a heart-wrenching voice began singing.

“Little Liuxiang, the earth turns yellow, three or four years old, without a mother.”

“Following father, life isn’t easy.”

“Little Liuxiang, tears well up.”

…

The deep night in the Imperial Palace suddenly lit up with lights, and people walked out of their rooms in surprise.

In the distance, on the eaves of the Emperor’s sleeping palace, a slender figure sat alone, holding an erhu in his arms and playing it incessantly.

With beautiful eyebrows and eyes lowered, the faint moonlight bathed him, revealing boundless loneliness.

“It’s Young Master Shen. What’s wrong with him?”

“Young Master seems like he’s about to cry while singing. No, I feel uneasy.”

“I heard that Young Master Shen never had a mother since childhood. He’s a pitiable child, growing up without a family.”

“For Young Master Shen, returning to the Imperial Palace is like coming home… but what have we done in these seven years? We’ve all been excluding him.”

Alone in his chambers, Emperor Yunyu, who was closest to where Shen Liuxiang was playing, went through a range of expressions, from astonishment to disbelief, and finally, he covered his forehead with his long hand and chuckled softly.

He didn’t intervene.

Since he didn’t, no one else dared to, so Shen Liuxiang played the mournful erhu throughout the night.

The next day, Emperor Yunyu had someone send throat-soothing elixirs to Shen Liuxiang and conveyed a message.

“It sounded good. You can play it again tonight.”

Shen Liuxiang: “…”

He understood now, Emperor Yunyu had a heart of steel.

He swallowed the elixir and noticed that the maid was still there. He asked in a hoarse voice, “Is there something else?”

The maid hesitated and took out two spirit stones from her sleeve.

“Emperor rewards Young Master.”

“—?!”

In an instant, Shen Liuxiang felt that some things never change.

He decided not to compete anymore. Firstly, he couldn’t win, and secondly, if he persisted for another two or three days, he could head to the demon realm. The jade slip wouldn’t be so important then.

But even though he said he was giving up, he felt dissatisfied in his heart. He held onto the two spirit stones, feeling a bit itchy.

…

As the time to leave for the demon realm drew closer, Shen Liuxiang returned to his room at night and found Xu Xinglian sitting alone in a pavilion, her expression somewhat dim.

Shen Liuxiang furrowed his brows slightly. Emperor Yunyu was particularly resolute about Xu Xinglian not leaving the palace. No one could persuade him.

“The demon realm is full of dangers. There might not be anything fun there.”

Shen Liuxiang handed Xu Xinglian an orange. “When I come back, I’ll take you to the cultivation world. There are many sects there. Qingling Sect has beautiful scenery; it’s where I grew up. You’ll definitely like it.”

Xu Xinglian bit her lip. “But Emperor Father said it would be dangerous if I go out.”

Shen Liuxiang patted her head. “I’m here. What danger could there be? Emperor Father is overly protective.”

Xu Xinglian’s expression changed slightly, and she glanced around. “Big Brother, please don’t say that.”

“Just a casual remark. Emperor Father won’t be angry.”

Seeing her gloomy, Shen Liuxiang pondered for a moment, then curved his lips.

“I’ll teach you a game.”

Xu Xinglian looked puzzled, and Shen Liuxiang winked at her. “If Emperor Father makes you unhappy in the future, you can use this game to distract yourself. But you need three people to play.”

In his sleep, Xu Xingchen was awakened by someone. At first, he was ready to explode in anger, but when he saw Xu Xinglian, his anger extinguished instantly.

“What’s wrong, Xinglian?”

Not long after Xu Xinglian was born, his mother passed away. He loved his little sister deeply.

Xu Xinglian: “Brother, play with me for a while.”

Xu Xingchen shook his heavy head lightly while putting on his outer robe. He asked, “Play what?”

Xu Xingchen: “Come to Brother’s place, and I’ll tell you.”

Xu Xingchen berated Shen Liuxiang in his heart from start to finish, not knowing what method he used to make Xinglian become so close to him.

Despite his strong reluctance, he walked to Shen Liuxiang’s door.

The two entered the room and saw Shen Liuxiang holding a stack of paper in his hands.

“These are playing cards.”

The three of them sat around, Shen Liuxiang shuffled the cards, and suddenly said, “Tonight, we’re all peasants.”

He looked up and saw two puzzled faces.

He explained, “Emperor Father is the ruler of the palace, that is, the Emperor. We’re gathered here to rebel against him, so we’re peasants.”

Shen Liuxiang placed the cards in the center and said with determination, “Tonight, we – Fight the Emperor!”

Xu Xingchen and Xu Xinglian’s expressions changed dramatically.

“Brother, don’t do this, it’s disrespectful.”

“Shen Liuxiang, have you gone mad? You dare to challenge Emperor Father? Are you trying to ascend to the Emperor’s position early?”

Shen Liuxiang sighed helplessly, “Alright, let me rephrase. This is a game. Among the three of us, someone has to be the Emperor.”

He explained the rules of the game. Xu Xingchen seemed intrigued, but Xu Xingchen refused to play. He spoke resolutely, “While Emperor Father is still around, how can we take on the role of the emperor?”

Xu Xinglian tugged on his sleeve and pulled him, “Brother.”

Xu Xingchen deeply frowned, struggling on his face for a while, then compromised, “We must keep this secret. Only the three of us should know, otherwise, if it spreads, others might think we have ambitions for the throne.”

“Alright, stop dilly-dallying.”

Listening to his tone, Xu Xingchen felt like slapping his sleeve and leaving. However, when he looked at Xu Xinglian, he resisted the impulse.

Shen Liuxiang dealt the cards, and Xu Xingchen kept a cold face until he saw a card turned over, landing in front of him. His expression subtly changed.

He held the card in his hand like a treasure. “Am I… am I the Emperor now?”

Shen Liuxiang nodded, “Yes, Xinglian and I are challenging you.”

He said as he took out two spirit stones. “Just playing isn’t interesting. Bet two spirit stones for each round.”

Xu Xingchen’s heart raced rapidly. Hearing Shen Liuxiang call him “Emperor” over and over again, his cheeks reddened in no time.

“Stop calling me that.”

If he called him that again, he’d float away.

After Shen Liuxiang played his last card, he said, “Alright, you lost. Hand over the spirit stones.”

Xu Xingchen indulged in his Emperor role and didn’t mind giving away a few spirit stones. He handed them over readily.

In the next round, Shen Liuxiang became the Emperor. Xu Xingchen’s face darkened to the extreme, and he almost folded the cards in his hand in half in frustration.

“I have to beat you.”

Shen Liuxiang chuckled. He gathered the spirit stones, and in no time, winning round after round, he had quite a collection.

Playing into the late night, Shen Liuxiang’s voice was getting hoarse from talking. After a brief pause, he took out a throat-soothing elixir and swallowed it.

Xu Xinglian asked with concern, “It’s been two days. Is your throat still hurting, Brother?”

But Xu Xingchen was coldly sneering, “Seeking trouble for oneself, going against Emperor Father for the sake of a jade slip.”

Shen Liuxiang sneered, “He took my jade slip and acted recklessly, using his higher cultivation level to do whatever he wants. I find this behavior very…”

He turned away from the door, his sentence unfinished. Suddenly, he sensed a chill, and his eyelids twitched slightly. He saw both Xu Xinglian and Xu Xingchen’s faces stiffen.

Shen Liuxiang swiftly changed his tone, “I completely understand Emperor Father’s behavior!”

“Emperor Father is heaven, Emperor Father is earth, everything Emperor Father does is right. We just need to follow his orders, right, Second Brother, Third Sister?”

Xu Xingchen and Xu Xingchen nodded vigorously, “Brother is right.”

The scene seemed harmonious, with sibling camaraderie and filial devotion.

Emperor Yunyu stood at the door with his hands behind his back, the corners of his eyebrows slightly raised, his expression seeming to carry a hint of a smile.

T/N: nooo this was chapter was so cute omg. Emperor Yunyu does not give father vibes at all  though LMAO

Okay, minor announcement! As you know my chapter updates have been uh… not quite the best scheduled haha… sorry readers. anyways, with the academic year starting, I have solemnly decided to stop chapter dumping at 3 am and now keep regular weekly updates (I pinky promise!)

That being said if you are dying to read on ahead of schedule, the latest chapters can be bought on my ko-fi shop for the cheap price of 50p! 

(1) – The actual name of this popular card game is ‘Fight the Landlord’ but due to the context of the story and the dialogue, I thought it was best to change it to ‘Fight the Emperor’