Chapter 39
King Jing memorized the Carp Spirit’s name, thinking that the surname Li and the name Yu were quite fitting. Usually, he called him Xiaoyu, which was not wrong.
However, the demons in the storybooks ranged from a few hundred years old to over a thousand years old. A demon that was only eighteen years old was considered old for a human, but still too young for a demon.
However, it was also possible that the age the Carp Spirit told him was false ….. But this did not hinder King Jing’s judgment. He had long felt that the Carp Spirit’s cultivation level was not very high. After all, he was a demon that could only transform for two hours.
As for why he came here, the Carp Spirit seemed to have kept it a secret. King Jing was not in a hurry to ask, so as not to scare Xiaoyu away.
King Jing continued to write, “Why did you save me?”
Li Yu: “???”
Li Yu did not take the fact that he had helped King Jing to clean his eyes earlier to heart. For him, it was a piece of cake.
He thought about it and thought that King Jing was asking about Duke Chengen Mansion, so he tried to be brief. “I found out about the Second Prince’s scheme by chance, so I wanted to inform Crown Prince Ye so that he could be more vigilant. I only wrote a letter. The rest of it all depended on Your Highness and Heir Ye’s plan. I did not save Your Highness.”
King Jing was stunned by his irrelevant answer, but he did not correct him. Xiaoyu did not even claim credit for saving Ye Qinghuan, so he probably would not mention helping him clean his eyes.
King Jing became more and more satisfied with this fish.
King Jing wrote again, “Where do you live now?”
Li Yu thought, “Isn’t he still living in King Jing’s mansion? Isn’t he with King Jing every day?”
However, if he said this, King Jing would be suspicious. Li Yu lied, “I … don’t have a fixed residence. I wander around …”
King Jing: “…”
King Jing really wanted to expose this fish, but at this very moment, there were still the Emperor, the concubines, and a bunch of other people outside the warm room. It was impossible for him to pick such an important time to reveal his cards.
Not only could he not expose him, but he also had to think of a way to protect him. It would be best if he could immediately put this lying human-shaped fish under King Jing’s banner. It was too ostentatious and too dangerous for him to appear directly in the Imperial Palace.
Since he had no place to stay, he went to King Jing’s mansion. King Jing’s pen did not stop.
Li Yu: “…”
Li Yu couldn’t believe that King Jing … was willing to give him, an unknown person, a place to stay?
“You, you want to take me in?” Li Yu wanted to confirm it again. “But why, I’ve only met you a few times?*
With a grave expression, King Jing wrote, “You saved me and Duke Chengen Mansion. I believe you.”
Li Yu: “…”
The identity that had troubled him for a long time was actually resolved so easily?
“But if I enter King Jing’s mansion… I, I’ll be very busy. I’m afraid I won’t have time to help you…”
Li Yu looked troubled. If he really put himself under King Jing’s name, it would be great. He would be able to move around in the mansion in the future. But if he did that, he would have to work seriously for King Jing. He couldn’t just ‘live’ in the mansion for free. According to the condition that he could only transform into a human for two hours a day, the most he could do was to clean the courtyard. King Jing shouldn’t be short of such temporary workers, right?
No one knew the daily life of this fish better than King Jing. He ate and drank every day.
Occasionally, he would accompany him to read and paint. Most of the time, he would spit bubbles, swim around, or sleep under a quilt made of aquatic plants.
Recently, the carp spirit couldn’t even absorb gold. King Jing didn’t know whether he was really lazy or pretending to be busy.
No matter what, it was impossible to let this fish clean the courtyard. King Jing wrote, “Don’t worry too much. You just need to do one thing well and you can stay in the mansion.’
‘… What is it?” Li Yu asked expectantly.
King Jing: “I have a fish. When I’m not here, help me raise it.”
Li Yu: “!!!”
King Jing seemed to be afraid that he didn’t understand, so he pointed in the direction of the crystal bottle. When the two of them sat down, Li Yu deliberately used his body to block the crystal bottle, so that King Jing wouldn’t notice that the fish in the bottle was missing.
In the end, King Jing didn’t seem to notice it. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have pointed it out to him.
So King Jing wanted him to raise the fish?
Li Yu quickly nodded. Of course, he had to agree to such a good thing. He didn’t know anything else, but he was very good at raising his own fish!
Li Yu said happily, “Okay, I can do that. I can help Your Highness raise the fish!”
As the two of them were talking, there was a sudden knock on the door of the warm room. King Jing glanced at Li Yu, and Li Yu quickly covered his mouth.
Wang Xi said from outside, “Your Highness, His Majesty is asking about you.”
King Jing used the excuse of changing clothes to stay in the warm room in the side chamber. He couldn’t stay for more than two to four hours. King Jing glanced at Li Yu again and finally wrote,
“You will watch the fish for me. The warm room will be guarded. Don’t worry.”
King Jing patted Li Yu’s shoulder lightly.
*Your Highness …”
Li Yu’s heart was suddenly filled with warmth. He was so touched that he sniffled. King Jing had solved the problems he was most worried about. Not only that, he also wanted him to be at ease.
Because it was King Jing’s promise, he really believed it.
No wonder he was so happy when he learned that King Jing was willing to take him in. It was because staying by his tyrant master’s side was the most reassuring thing for him.
King Jing walked out of the warm room and ordered Wang Xi to continue guarding the room for him. No one was allowed to enter or leave.
Although Wang Xi didn’t understand, he still did as he was told.
The Emperor ordered the imperial physician to check the wound on Madam Chou’s arm again, but he didn’t find anything wrong. The Emperor also wondered if he had misunderstood Madam Chou, so his attitude towards Madam Chou was slightly better.
With all the concubines present, Madam Chou couldn’t stay in the bedroom all the time. Soon, she came out with the Emperor to meet the concubines.
Concubine Qian saw that she still had exquisite makeup on and wore a thin and weak jacket even though she was ill. Concubine Qian secretly cursed Madam Chou for being a fox. However, Concubine Qian wouldn’t embarrass Madam Chou in front of the Emperor. Since the Emperor didn’t punish Madam Chou again, Concubine Qian followed the Emperor closely. She stopped questioning Madam Chou in time and affectionately called her sister.
When Madam Chou was still an imperial concubine, she didn’t like Concubine Qian, who didn’t have much beauty. Now, she even went along with Concubine Qian’s laughter, as if the two were very close.
King Jing originally wore a black robe, but now he wore a sapphire blue robe with silver edges. The Emperor rarely saw that he didn’t carry a crystal bottle with him, so he teased, ‘If you get wet a few more times, you’ll know how to let it go.”
Wang Xi was responsible for guarding the warm room, so he couldn’t follow King Jing. King Jing wanted to find an excuse to evade and let the Emperor understand his thoughts. It was a bit troublesome, so he simply kept silent and let the Emperor misunderstand.
While Madam Chou was chatting with Concubine Qian, King Jing was watching Madam Chou from afar. Although he secretly sent someone to deliver news to the Third Prince, it seemed that the Third Prince’s progress wasn’t smooth.
Concubine Qian was scheming and wanted to help Madam Chou several times. However, Madam Chou was very alert and always had a confidant beside her to protect her. They promptly pushed Concubine Qian away, so Concubine Qian couldn’t get close. Thinking of her son’s instructions, she was a bit anxious, but she couldn’t let Madam Chou see it.
The Third Prince was also in a difficult position. Although he received the news, he was still skeptical. His people went to the Imperial Garden to look for the palace maid named Huan Hua.
He couldn’t rashly suggest to check Madam Chou’s injury before the situation was clear. After all, Madam Chou was his shu mother.
The Sixth Prince had the same idea as him and hinted that he should continue to wait for news.
The Third Prince could only ask about Madam Chou’s injury in a roundabout way. The Emperor was a bit impatient and coldly stared at the Third Prince. The Third Prince was afraid that deliberately overdoing it would make the Emperor dissatisfied, so he quieted down after a while.
Madam Chou estimated that her trick of injuring herself to gain sympathy had worked, so she knelt down and begged, “Your Majesty, Zhao ‘er really knows that she was wrong. Chenqie was injured this time, and he is very concerned about chenqie’s injury. Since he left the palace, chenqie hasn’t seen him. Could you please ask Your Majesty for leniency? Please let Zhao ‘er enter the palace to accompany chenqie. chenqie would be very grateful. “
Mu Tianzhao dared to scheme against the Duke Chengen Fu. Madam Chou knew that he had caused a great disaster, so she didn’t dare to directly ask the Emperor for forgiveness. She could only ask for An Hou to be lifted from his ban. As long as he could still enter the palace, she could slowly make plans. Although the Second Prince had been hastily bestowed the title of Marquis by the Emperor, based on Madam Chou’s understanding of the Emperor, as long as the Emperor was soft-hearted this time, she could slowly coax him in the future. Perhaps the Emperor could change his mind and once again bestow the title of Marquis …
Even the Fifth Prince, this mute, could be bestowed the title of Marquis. How could Madam Chou be reconciled? Her Zhao ‘er was the oldest prince!
Madam Chou originally guessed the Emperor’s thoughts quite accurately, but the Emperor had already seen An Hou’s memorial. When Madam Chou came to ask for the same thing again, the Emperor’s heart was once again filled with apprehension. Madam Chou was injured because of the fire. Could it be that she still had merit? Why did one or two people ask for his grace?
The Emperor faintly said, “First recuperate. Don’t mention anything else.”
The Emperor did not relent. Madam Chou was stunned. Even if she had a stomach full of words, she did not dare to ask again.
The Emperor did not want to talk about An Hou anymore and deliberately changed the topic, *Oh right, the fish in King Jing, have you seen it before?”
….. Fish??
When Madam Chou heard this word, her embarrassing memories came flooding back like a tide.
She could forget anyone, but she would never forget this shadow. The fear of being hit in the face by the fish made her almost bite through her red lips. She panicked and said, “Why did the Emperor suddenly want to talk about the fish?”
The Emperor smiled and said, “This fish is not an ordinary fish. Now that it has grown golden scales, I think it is a good omen. You should also come and take a look.”
Zhong Cui’s palace fire was, after all, not auspicious. The Emperor saw the fish in King Jing as a good omen. Thinking that Madam Chou did not seem to like the fish, he naturally hoped that Madam Chou would not go down a dead end. Wouldn’t it be better to use this opportunity to reconcile with King Jing than to drag An Hou into it? At the same time, it could also wash away the bad luck on Madam Chou’s body.
Madam Chou: Ah??
Madam Chou could not follow the Emperor’s train of thought. The Emperor had already turned to King Jing with a smile and ordered King Jing to bring the little carp over.
King Jing’s heart tightened. Two hours had not passed, and he did not know if the little fish had changed back.
King Jing could not go to the warm room to bring the little fish out at this time, so he thought of a plan to stall for time. Because Wang Xi was not by his side, King Jing asked Luo Ruisheng to prepare a brush and ink. He picked up the brush and slowly wrote, wasting some time.
When the Emperor saw King Jing’s flamboyant handwriting, he was quite happy. King Jing’s general idea was that when he was changing clothes in the warm room in the side hall, he fed the fish. The fish ate until it was full and took a nap.
The Emperor was speechless.
The Emperor was deeply embarrassed. Because he knew that King Jing loved the fish very much, and now that the fish had grown golden scales, the Emperor thought that this auspicious sign would be more or less different from that of ordinary fish, so he had to be extra tolerant.
The Emperor smiled and said, “In that case, King Jing will be punished to play chess with me for a few rounds. Let’s wait for a while.”
King Jing nodded in agreement, and Luo Ruisheng immediately rushed to get the chessboard …
The Emperor had almost never lost when playing chess with others, but he lost two rounds in a row with King Jing. However, King Jing won each round by a narrow margin. The Emperor laughed and scolded in his heart, What a stinky brat! But even if he lost, the Emperor was still calm.
During this time, the Third Prince came to watch the game. He wanted to join in the fun, but unfortunately, the Third Prince’s chess skills were the worst among the princes, so he could not understand the game. Occasionally, he would open his mouth, but it only made the Emperor feel that he was an eyesore and ordered the Third Prince to move aside.
When the Third Prince looked at King Jing again, his eyes were full of envy and jealousy. In the past, he wanted to win him over, but now he was a little wary.
The Sixth Prince smiled and reached out to pull him, “Third Brother, I don’t really understand the game. Brother, you should wait with me on the side.”
Because the Sixth Prince came to the Third Prince’s rescue in time, the Emperor unexpectedly
thought highly of this son of his who always acted like an invisible person.
King Jing calculated the time and found that it was almost time, so he got up and went to the warm room to look for the fish.
Wang Xi had been diligently guarding the warm room. King Jing said that he would not let him in, so he did not let him in. Even the servants who wanted to enter the warm room to serve tea were stopped.
Outside, the Emperor was answering questions, and every word was said with fear, as if he was walking on thin ice. Li Yu, on the other hand, was hiding in the warm room, relaxed and carefree.
When King Jing left, he left the jade box for the fish. There was fish food and snacks inside, all of which were the fish’s favorite.
Li Yu hugged the jade box and ate as he waited for the time to end. King Jing was still outside, so he was relieved. He felt that time had sped up again. The system’s countdown had begun, so he closed the jade box and went to wait beside the fish tank obediently.
Just as Li Yu jumped back into the crystal bottle, King Jing came back.
Oh, Master, the fish will obediently feed itself! Li Yu shook his tail vigorously.
Little Carp was originally a little worried that King Jing would look for him if the human figure “disappeared,” but King Jing did not. He walked straight over and took the fish and the crystal bottle away.
“Your Highness, the person in the warm room just now …..”
Wang Xi wanted to ask about the whereabouts of the male concubine. He couldn’t always appear and disappear suddenly, and it was so surprising.
King Jing glanced at him. “He’s already gone.”
Wang Xi: “???”
Eunuch Wang could not make head or tail of the situation. Little Carp, who was by King Jing’s side, felt relieved. It was as if King Jing had gotten used to his constant disappearances.
Li Yu was brought to the Emperor by King Jing. Little Carp was also very surprised when he saw Madame Chou. Why was Consort Liangliang still here? Did no one slap her face?
Or could it be that this plot was different from what he knew?
The Emperor ordered King Jing to bring the fish closer. At the same time, he also asked Madame Chou to come closer. Madame Chou’s whole body stiffened. She stared uncomfortably at the fish in the crystal bottle, and her eyeballs were about to fall out.
Although the fish’s belly and tail had grown golden scales, she was sure that this was the fish that had slapped her face before. Even if this hateful fish turned into ashes, she would still recognize it!
The Emperor actually wanted her to take good care of this fish. Madame Chou was extremely unhappy, but she couldn’t go against the Emperor’s wishes. Especially since she could already feel that the Emperor valued this fish very much.
Madame Chou forced herself to come closer. Her lips trembled as she smiled with difficulty. She wanted to say a few words of praise for the fish, but she had already scolded this fish no less than ten thousand times in private. Now that she was suddenly asked to praise it, Madame Chou was stunned!
Li Yu was scared by Madame Chou’s stiff smile and trembled. Then, the fish smelled the cedar scent.
Yi, didn’t Consort Liangliang still use the original trick? Why didn’t the Sixth Prince and the Third Prince do anything?
Li Yu secretly glanced at the Third Prince again. This guy had a bitter look on his face and couldn’t wait to throw himself at the fish. Li Yu suddenly understood. Could it be that the Third Prince was useless and couldn’t find the right time to shake it out?
This wasn’t good. Li Yu thought that maybe he and Consort Liangliang were really fated to be together. It was his turn to shake it out!
Li Yu smiled mischievously. Let’s see if he will do something different this time.
Madame Chou’s eyes were already staring at the fish without blinking. Suddenly, she had a strange premonition. Was this fish going to do something bad again?
The fish kept shaking its tail at her. It had a black fishtail with a trace of golden color. It was flirtatious and beautiful. Madame Chou looked at it and was somewhat entranced. Suddenly, the fish’s body shook heavily. With a pop, it spat out a long string of bubbles. It paused, shook again, and spat out a second string of bubbles.
Madame Chou, ‘…”
When the fish spat out the first string of bubbles, the Emperor and King Jing were close to it, so they both noticed it.
The Emperor was surprised, “Tian Chi, what’s wrong with the fish?”
King Jing knew that this was the carp spirit’s idea again. How could he not praise the fish? He deliberately looked at Wang Xi, who was finally here.
Eunuch Wang immediately spoke for His Highness, “Your Majesty, this fish has a habit. Every time it smells a pungent smell, it will feel uncomfortable. It is sneezing.”
Li Yu, “…”
