Chapter 34 My Best Friend's Possessiveness: Free Fruit! The Fox Loves...

A fox's good day begins with a meal. He got up very early today and was busy all morning.

After he had eaten and drunk his fill, he put on his clothes and prepared to run off to play with his good friend. He had just stepped out when a young eunuch came running up to him, panting, and bowed to him.

"Your Highness, we've finally found you. His Majesty requests your presence."

The fox racked its brains for a moment before it finally remembered which emperor it was.

What does he want from me?

She hesitated for a moment, because she still had pastries tucked into her sleeve to bring back for her good friend. They were fresh out of the oven, and they would definitely get cold if she went back and forth like this.

But the little eunuch looked very anxious. "Your Highness, you'll see when you get there. This is His Majesty's great favor, something others would kill for."

I had no choice but to go with him.

Upon entering the imperial study, the fox followed the example of the others and bowed respectfully.

Unlike a typical father, the old emperor didn't exchange many words with him. Instead, he went straight to the point: "Come, good boy, lift your face up so I can see you."

The fox, who had been playing with the pattern on the floor tiles by touching them with its fingers, looked up in confusion upon hearing this.

Upon seeing that face, the emperor couldn't help but let out a satisfied exclamation, "I remember you are a beautiful child, so it's best to let you handle this matter."

He straightened up, turned around and sat down on the dragon throne. "The Ministry of Rites will be receiving envoys from various countries. You just need to go and make an appearance."

The fox blinked. "I can knead dough, but what's the point of showing my face?"

The kneaded dough must be covered up and not left out. If it's left out for too long, it will dry out and won't be soft enough to make steamed buns or mantou.

The fox understood perfectly; this meant he was being asked to help in the kitchen, but he didn't know whether it was to make steamed buns or noodles.

Once he was seated in the carriage, the wheels rolled away from the palace, and he was still deep in thought.

The kitchen is quite far away, making it a bit inconvenient to eat there.

Once they were all standing with the officials from the Ministry of Rites, the fox couldn't help but look around, still wondering why there was no flour here and how he was going to show his face later.

The fox never saw any flour, and he walked out surrounded by a group of officials.

With the Lunar New Year approaching, the streets outside are bustling with activity.

There were many vendors selling novel things that the fox had never seen before.

But the fox, who always loved excitement, was now sullen, looking down and gently pinching his sleeve. The snacks inside still carried some of his body heat; they weren't completely cold, but they certainly didn't taste as good as they did at the beginning.

He made this himself. Although it looks a bit ugly, it tastes pretty good. He wanted to give it to his good friend to try.

There were many people talking to him, but their tones were strange, and the fox couldn't understand them completely. He looked up and smiled foolishly at them.

"Your thirteenth prince is so handsome that I have never seen anything like him in all my travels throughout the world," the envoy praised to the official beside him.

The officials from the Ministry of Rites had never actually met Pei Jiqing, and they were still in a state of astonishment at how a bad bamboo could produce such good shoots.

The fox walked down the street, accompanied by envoys and officials of all ranks. Many of them were already secretly planning to make friends with the prince.

However, although this person had a smile on his face, the smile was clearly not reflected in his eyes, and he did not seem like a simple character. If one wanted to curry favor with him, it would probably take some effort.

The official glanced up furtively.

The young prince wore a crimson feather-covered crane cloak and a jade belt with auspicious patterns around his waist. His figure was as graceful as a bamboo shoot. Few men could wear such a vibrant color with such an ethereal quality, making him look like a celestial being.

Before he could even open his mouth to speak, an orange was suddenly thrown at him.

The Thirteenth Prince was agile and easily caught the orange. He looked down at the orange with great confusion.

Wow, what a wonderful thing! Oranges are falling from the sky!

The official, noticing the change in his expression, was taken aback and quickly smiled ingratiatingly, "It seems Your Highness's bearing is enough to fill your carriage with fruit."

It's unclear what switch this orange flipped, but suddenly a cacophony of voices arose from all directions, followed by a flurry of fruit falling from the ground.

Some people even threw sachets and handkerchiefs at him in the chaos.

People love to join in the fun. Apart from the first few people who threw the fox's clothes, most of them hadn't even seen a piece of the fox's clothes before they saw others throwing them, so they threw them too.

With such a grand celebration, why not join in? It's almost Chinese New Year, and you can never have too much excitement.

The accompanying guards and officials were all shocked, but the fox's eyes lit up immediately. He didn't care about being sad about his little snack anymore. He quickly and efficiently stuffed it into his clothes and hugged it to his chest.

You can eat fruit without spending any money!

*

The Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs was completely silent, with the Boshan incense burner quietly emitting fragrant smoke.

Tinglan sat upright in a sandalwood chair. The copper basin in the room was burning with top-grade silver charcoal, making it warm as spring, but he still covered his knees with a thin blanket.

Today, the 9,000-year-old seemed absent-minded, frequently looking up at the doorway, his jade thumb ring tapping against the scroll, producing a muffled sound.

Why hasn't the little prince arrived yet? Did something happen on the way and he was delayed?

There was finally some movement at the door, but it wasn't the young prince who came in; it was Chen Yu.

Tinglan looked up for a moment, then lowered her head in slight disappointment and continued writing.

Chen Yu stepped forward with his hands tucked in his sleeves and said in a low voice, "Master, this morning, the young prince was summoned by the emperor."

"What is it for?"

"Don't worry, I've already inquired about it carefully. It's not a bad thing. The young prince is very handsome. The Ministry of Rites was entertaining those envoys, so the prince just showed his face. He should be back soon."

Tinglan waved her hand, "I understand, you can go now."

This shouldn't be considered bad news; it could even be a good thing.

But the faster and faster he wrote, the more illegible and messy his writing became.

If more people see the young prince, he may no longer be his, since he only got there first.

If His Highness meets more people and encounters more power, will he still care about him...?

But could he keep Pei Jiqing hidden in the deep palace forever...? I imagine there will be many more such incidents in the future.

"Your Highness cares about me," Tinglan thought to himself as he rubbed his temples.

After a while, Chen Yu returned, but this time Chen Gonggong's face clearly showed a hint of caution, and he spoke with some unease.

"Master, the matter is like this, the young prince wasn't accompanying the envoy on his trip..."

Tinglan looked up, a little puzzled. When did Chen Yu start speaking so slowly?

"For some reason, the passersby over there seem to have a strong affinity for ancient customs and follow ancient traditions. The scene surrounding His Highness was a bit too grand... fruit was thrown all over the carriage." Chen Yu was sweating profusely as he made up the story, and he secretly looked up to see the reaction of the handprint.

Having followed Tinglan for so many years, he knew his superior's temperament best. If the Ninth Prince acquired any treasure, it would be an insult to the precious gems if anyone else even glanced at them.

The most cherished treasure of the current Prime Minister is the young prince.

Although the young prince simply returned with a bag full of fruit in high spirits, it was nothing unusual.

But what if the palm seal is suspicious... Oh dear, there's no need to say "what if," the palm seal will definitely be suspicious.

Tinglan seemed somewhat puzzled, and he repeated Chen Yu's words again, "A cart full of fruit?"

Chen Yu lowered his head, his heart pounding in his chest. "That's a bit of an exaggeration. The car wasn't completely full..."

His Highness walked back, carrying only a bag in his pocket. Of course, he dared not say this aloud, but only dared to secretly glance at the reaction of the palm print.

"Don't worry, His Highness is fine and will be back soon." Chen Yu spoke quickly, picking up the official gazette on the table as he went out, pretending to deliver a letter.

Tinglan wasn't really upset, but he didn't bother to pay attention to Chen Yu's series of feints about running away.

It's nothing serious; these matters have nothing to do with His Highness anyway.

But he couldn't write any more characters; a large ink blot appeared on the rice paper.

The brush was casually propped up at an angle on the inkstone.

The fox returned happily, carrying a bag full of fruit—all for free!

Apples, persimmons, oranges, and pears are all his favorite foods.

I want to share it with my good friends!

The young prince had given every guard and eunuch in the Directorate of Ceremonial a fruit, ensuring that anyone the fox could see would not leave empty-handed.

He skipped and hopped into the study, "Tinglan, look what I brought back! Lots of fruit!"

The Ninth Prince sat in his seat, having waited for a long time.

But when she saw the young prince carrying her clothes and a bag full of fruit, she forgot what she was supposed to say.

After a moment's hesitation, he only said one sentence, "Your Highness, what is this?"

"It was a gift from someone, it's free." The fox said cheerfully, even emphasizing the last three words, "it's free."

"I was walking down the street when someone gave me fruit to eat. They are so kind. I will go again next time."

The fox found a porcelain jar nearby, poured the fruit into it, and picked out the prettiest orange from it.

"Is Your Highness planning to go again?" Tinglan raised his head, his tone unusually deep.

The fox was peeling an orange, first putting half into its own mouth to taste, and then sending the other half to its good friend.

"I've tried it, it's very sweet, do you want some?"

This half-segment of orange easily shut up the words Tinglan was about to finish saying.

He had no choice but to take it, and asked again, "If something like this happens again, will Your Highness still go?"

He stared at the young prince, his eyes filled with possessiveness.

The fox nodded blankly, as if he had remembered something, and pulled a paper bag that was still warm from his body out of his sleeve.

The paper bag was tied with colorful ribbons, and a smiley face was drawn crookedly on it.

As the fox untied the paper bag, it muttered, "I made you some snacks this morning. I was planning to bring them over while they were still hot so you could have them for breakfast, but His Majesty called me away, and they've all gone cold."

I don't know why I called him over. He just walked around for a bit, which was completely unnecessary. I would have been better off hanging out with my friends.

The paper bag was opened, revealing several crooked, fox-head-shaped pastries, crumbly from being squeezed, some even broken.

It doesn't look like a fox at all; in short, it's hard to tell what species it is, and to be honest, it's rather ugly.

The fox was even more disheartened upon seeing this, its face turning red with embarrassment. It quickly gathered up the paper bag, saying, "It seems to be spoiled. I'll make you another one next time."

My good friend always gives me such beautiful gifts, this one is so ugly, I'd rather not take it.

The fox tried to withdraw its hand holding the pastry, but the Ninth Prince pressed it down.

"It's fine, no need to put it away."