"Knight?" Xiao Yu pointed at the hole in his court robe, his voice trembling with anger. "This is what I'm going to wear to the Taimiao tomorrow to worship my ancestors! If my ancestors saw me dressed like a beggar, they would probably jump out of their tablets and hit me on the head with their canes!"
"What's wrong with ancestor worship?" Chen Weiwan smoothed the hole in the court gown, her fingertips circling the damaged area. "Look at this hole, it has a sense of 'remembering the bitterness and thinking of the sweetness'! It's a good opportunity to let those old ministers see that the prince can also experience the life of a commoner. Maybe he can even be called the 'Benevolent Prince'. The next palace examination will test 'On the aesthetics of the torn court gown'." As soon as she finished speaking, Henkeng stopped crying and clapped his hands and shouted: "Dad! Commoner! Handsome!"
Xiao Yu looked at himself in the bronze mirror, draped in tattered court robes. The inky python pattern was faintly visible in the damaged areas, making him look like a sesame seed cake gnawed by a hungry wolf. But Shen Weiwan was still goading him, her fingertips poking his waist: "Next time, ask Hekeng to cut you a pair of beggar's pants. Pair them with this cloak, and stand at the palace gate. I'm sure you can swindle three hundred yuan, enough to buy ten strings of candied haws."
"Enough!" Xiao Yu, unable to bear it any longer, ripped off his court robes and threw them on the couch. The brocade made a dull thud as it fell to the ground. "From today on, I will hire a tutor for Kengkeng. I'll find that old scholar on West Street who knows how to use a ruler. He will properly discipline his lawless temper. If he's not disciplined, he'll one day tear the roof off the palace!"
"Teacher?" Chen Weiwan raised an eyebrow, her fingertips twirling around the tassels of her round fan, the jade beads on the tassels making a crisp sound. "Your Highness, have you forgotten how the last few tutors ran away? The last one was choked by itching powder and coughed for three days. He drank ten bowls of loquat paste before he recovered. The one before that was so frightened by the fake snake hidden in the book that he submitted his resignation at night. He didn't even dare to ride in the carriage when he returned home, for fear that there was some treasure hidden inside."
Xiao Yu was speechless, slumped on the couch, and watched as Keng Keng picked up the scissors and lunged at his jade belt. His chubby little hands gripped the scissors like some peerless weapon. He suddenly felt that being a prince would be less stressful than being a street performer. At least there wouldn't be sand in his tea.
"Forget it," Shen Weiwan sat down beside him and secretly slipped him a piece of osmanthus cake, which was stained with a few suspicious red powders. "It's just a court dress. I can ask the Shangyi Bureau to embroider a patch with gold thread, making it look like a dragon flying out of the hole. Maybe it can even set a trend in the capital. Then the streets will be full of torn court dresses. It will be so lively."
When Kenkeng heard the compliment, he immediately ran over with a pair of scissors in hand. With a "click", he cut another hole in the corner of Xiao Yu's robe and called out in a baby voice: "Dad! Cucumber!" The hole was crooked and really looked like a gnawed cucumber.
Xiao Yu looked at the newly torn corner of his robe and lost his temper completely. He took the osmanthus cake handed to him by Shen Weiwan and took a bite. Suddenly, it was so spicy that he stuck out his tongue, his throat felt like it was on fire, and tears were about to come out - the cake was filled with finely chopped chili powder, which was obviously the work of the pit.
"Ahem! You..." Xiao Yu took a sip of cold tea, which was so spicy that sweat broke out on his forehead.
Shen Weiwan laughed so hard that she fell backwards, pointing at Kangkeng, and she could hardly hold her round fan steady: "Look, Kangkeng was afraid that you would get sick of the sweet food, so he specially added some ingredients. How thoughtful, he knows your taste better than the royal chef."
Kenkeng licked his fingers covered with chili powder. He stuck out his tongue because of the spiciness, but still shouted proudly: "Spicy! Daddy! Smells good!" He looked like a little kitten who had secretly drunk some strong liquor.
Xiao Yu looked into his son's bright eyes, which reflected his own miserable state, and suddenly felt the spiciness of the food warm his heart. He rubbed his dented head helplessly. Although his court robes were ruined, his tea was stained with sand, and his pastries were filled with chili peppers, these chaotic days didn't seem so bad. At least they were a hundred times better than being alone in the cold palace in his previous life.
"Forget it," he sighed, picking up Kenkeng and placing him on his knees. The little ball of flesh twisted and turned in his arms like a lively fish. "Next time you want to cheat me, can you try a cheaper method? Like, mix flour into your mother's rouge, or stick a chicken feather in your grandmother's phoenix coronet. Don't go after your father's court robes or tea."
Kenkeng tilted his head and thought for a while, then suddenly grabbed the ink stick on the table and stuffed it into Xiao Yu's mouth, calling in a baby voice: "Daddy! Eat! It's sweet!" The ink stick was shiny black and gave off the aroma of pine smoke.
"You can't eat this!" Xiao Yu pushed it away quickly, but the ink stick fell on the inkstone with a "bang", and the splashing ink splashed on his face, instantly drawing an ink-colored ghost face on his face, and even his eyebrows were stained with ink spots.
Chen Weiwan laughed so hard that she slapped her thigh, tears streaming down her face. "Did you see that, Your Highness? This is how I teach you to be 'elegant and refined'. I'm afraid you won't be able to write good articles in the future if you don't drink enough ink, so I'm letting you taste the ink stick."
Xiao Yu wiped the ink from his face and watched his wife and children burst into laughter. Chen Weiwan's eyebrows curved like two crescent moons, and her chubby little face was filled with a smug smile. He suddenly felt that his role as a prince was indeed quite "humble", but looking at these two lively people in front of him, he couldn't help but curl his lips.
Perhaps, it is not bad to be cheated by this mother and son for a lifetime.
That night, when Xiao Yu took off his official boots and poured out a full shaft of cassia seeds, he just shook his head helplessly. He even helped Kenkeng fill his other boot with cassia seeds as well, watching his son clap his hands and laugh happily. After all, in this family, resistance was futile. It was better to enjoy the "fun" of being cheated. At least it proved that he was alive, living a lively and fulfilling life.
Hiding behind the screen, Shen Weiwan watched Xiao Yu resigned himself to his fate and secretly gave him a "great" gesture, a sly glint in her eyes. She knew that while her prince complained, he doted on this little devil to the skies. Life in this prince's mansion was destined to continue in a whirlwind of laughter and laughter, like a pot of tea perpetually brewing with interesting stories, steaming hot and fragrant.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
