QT: LAC Chapter 155: Ninth World (20)

Chapter 155: Ninth World (20)

Translated by Shiya of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Edited by Sulo

 

Cáo YùYíng — no, it should be Cáo YùYīng now — was holding the imperial edict and being supported by the eunuch in charge, the first reaction he had was to turn around and look at his father-in-law.

Imperial Counsellor Bai was still kneeling on the ground, his eyes were empty and his face was blank, which made Cao YuYing feel guilty. Subconsciously, he couldn’t help peeping at his little lover — and then was severely stared at by the other side.

Cao YuYing, “…………” 

——It’s over. The fire broke out at the same time in both the front door and back door. It’s a bloody huge loss!

Cao YuYing opened his mouth and tried to explain as he lifted his father-in-law’s arm up, but he heard the chief eunuch’s anxious persuasion, “Your Highness, His Majesty is eager to announce that you will return to the palace. It’s better not to delay…”

The chief eunuch was wholeheartedly thinking about his new young master’s well-being, but Cao YuYing wished that his cheap father could roll as far away as he could. However, hearing the eunuch’s words, Imperial Counsellor Bai finally came back to his senses and looked at him with complicated eyes.

 

Cao YuYing looked at his gaze, then Imperial Counsellor Bai moved his arm that was held by Cao YuYing. He took a step back, and bowed, “Please return to the palace as soon as possible!” Then he glanced at his son, “As for the rest, I believe my son will explain everything in detail.”

Cao YuYing, who did something wrong but made his lover carry the pot was once again stared at by his lover, “…………”

 

“Father-in-law — no, Lord Bai……” Cao YuYing said it by habit. He quickly corrected it, but still angered Imperial Counsellor Bai, as an obvious blue vein popped up on his pale white face. Cao YuYing said, “This is all my fault. Little Duan was just fooled by me. Please don’t blame him…”

 

“I will judge on that myself. Please go to the palace as soon as possible,” Imperial Counsellor Bai clenched his teeth in silence and repeated it again after a bow.

Cao YuYing was reluctant to give up. He was afraid that he would make his lover suffer as soon as he left, but he was driven away again and again by his father-in-law. He finally followed his elder’s orders and turned around and worried about his future step-by-step. Of course, before that, he also removed his makeup and changed into his man’s clothes, which made him look like a normal teenager.

Seeing such a handsome Fourth Prince, Imperial Counsellor Bai almost fainted. He really didn’t know if he should praise his perfect makeup skills or to blame himself for being blind. Then, when he thought of his expectation that the Fourth Prince would give birth to a fat grandson for himself a while ago, Imperial Counsellor Bai was terrified and also… so angry that he wanted to curse.

——His good daughter-in-law turned out to be a man. Who can understand the pain!

——His good son, unexpectedly united with an outsider to pit his own father, such pain, who can understand!

 

After seeing Cao Yu get on the carriage and leave the household with the eunuch, Imperial Counsellor Bai immediately picked up the wooden ruler and gave his son two hard beatings. Seeing his son’s pitiful shrunken body, he knew that his son knew he was wrong and didn’t dare to evade. He was even more angry.

 

“Is your father that untrustworthy?! You’ve concealed such a big thing for so long and you haven’t told me a word,” Imperial Counsellor Bai was smart so he almost immediately guessed the whole situation. With the simple narration from Bai Duan, he soon got the whole story clear, “You… You bastard! It’s hard for you to keep it from me! If anything happened, can you bear the responsibility?! As they say a newborn calf is not afraid of tigers! Thanks to your good luck, you actually successfully found a way to release the bug. Otherwise, if something happened to…”

 

Bai Duan lowered his head and silently accepted his father’s scolding. He dared not retort. Imperial Counsellor Bai scolded him for a long time, which just slightly subsided his anger and he sighed, “As your father, I know that you are a good child who is loyal and patriotic. Although this trip was risky, it really was done to protect the Royal Family’s only legitimate blood from the Enchantress, even though your methods are a bit… outrageous. However, you are right in doing it. As they say ‘those who make great achievements don’t sweat the small things’ and ‘those who make great achievements should use special strategies in extraordinary times’.”

Bai Duan, who once encouraged Cao YuYing to attack the Emperor, and was now called a “loyal and patriotic child”, “…………”

 

——It’s really… He feels a bit unworthy of the praises.

 

After scolding and encouraging his beloved son, Imperial Counsellor Bai finally calmed down, and began to worry about whether his disrespectful words towards the Fourth Prince would make the other party unhappy — although from today’s performance by Cao YuYing, he didn’t seem to mind any of it.

After listening to his father’s worries, Bai Duan didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, and repeatedly promised that Cao YuYing would never be angry. Imperial Counsellor Bai stroked his beard, nodded his head, and boasted that the Fourth Prince was tolerant of humiliation and full of means and great fortune. Then he couldn’t help making fun of his son and said, “I never knew my son is so good at acting. You really deceived a lot of people from the way you acted, everyone thought you fell in love with the Fourth Prince at first sight and loved him very much even after marriage. Even I, your father, did not doubt it for a second!”

 

The corner of Bai Duan’s mouth twitched and said, “Of course you didn’t.” He took a deep breath and looked calm, “Because it was not an act. It is the truth.”

The movement of touching the beard stopped, Imperial Counsellor Bai, “…………”

Bai Duan clicked his tongue, “I really fell in love with him at first sight. I won’t be marrying anyone beside him.”

Imperial Counsellor Bai, with a blank mind, “…………”

Bai Duan blushed, “Our love after the marriage is true too.”

The Imperial Counsellor Bai, who began to weather after petrifaction, “…………”

“Your son is unfilial. I think… I can not continue the bloodline for the Bai family anymore!” Bai Duan bent his knees and knelt on the ground and kowtowed heavily.

The Imperial Counsellor Bai, who turned into a pile of powder, which dispersed between heaven and earth, “…………”

 

Just as Bai Duan officially came out to his father, Cao YuYing also expressed the same thing to his father in the Royal Library.

 

After hearing Cao YuYing’s words, the Emperor was as inconceivable as the Imperial Counsellor Bai, and his right hand, which had been slightly quivering, could not help shaking more ‘livelier’. Fortunately, he had a strong will, and quickly maintained the composure of an Emperor. 

With a heavy tone he said, “Not being able to produce an offspring is not a small sin. I can’t entrust the throne to you if you do this!”

“Sure, then don’t entrust it to me,” Cao YuYing knelt on the ground, with a sonorous voice, “Your son never wanted to inherit the throne. Detoxification for my father was one, out of filial piety, and two, to get rid of the threat of the Enchantress and live in this world peacefully.” Cao YuYing’s eyes were calm, and he seemed to have no half reverie about the throne. It was just his words that the Emperor couldn’t understand, “You would give up on the throne just for a man?”

 

“It’s not just a man, it’s the love of my life!” Cao YuYing frowned slightly, obviously not very fond of the Emperor’s scornful tone.

“Oh, dear,” The Emperor sneered. Ever since his experience of “love” expressed from the Enchantress, he was very disgusted by this kind of feeling, so his words were full of ridicule with some subtlety. “Are you sure that ‘the love of your life’ is also willing to accompany you till death without a child of his own, and be scorned by people all over the world?”

“He will,” Cao YuYing ignored the Emperor’s sarcasm and smiled, “as long as we are together, there is nothing we can’t bear.”

The Emperor was disgusted by Cao YuYing’s image of a saint with love. He took a deep breath, “Well, since you are so obsessed with it, I can’t control you. If you want to take Bai Duan out of the capital, I can allow you. But before that, you need to help me stabilize the court.”

 

“Father means…?” Cao YuYing frowned slightly. He had known for a long time that the emperor’s right hand was useless, but at this time he pretended not to know and was surprised.

The Emperor clenched his teeth in silence, “My right hand. There’s something wrong with it. I can’t read the documents for the time being by myself. Now, you must follow me in the name of studying the imperial government. Listen to the official’s report and reply to them in my stead. When I find someone else I can entrust the throne to, you can leave the capital.”

Cao YuYing puckered his lips. Obviously, he didn’t like the task very much, but the Emperor’s mind had been decided, even the imperial edict had been issued, and he could not resist at all.

From then on, Cao YuYing lived a life of getting up early and going to the court, and then going to the imperial study to read seemingly endless documents. He got up earlier than a chicken and slept later than a dog. How sad!

The only consolation was that every few days or so, the Emperor would allow Bai Duan to enter the palace and let the two lovers who had been ‘torn apart’, heal their lovesick souls. When he saw the same-sex couple lingering lovingly, the Emperor, as a pure straight man, had the feeling of being fed dog food. At first, he doubted whether Cao YuYing did this just to defuse his own defense. Later, he had to admit that they were really in love with each other — although he couldn’t understand or even feel disgusted about this kind of love.

 

Even though he couldn’t accept Cao YuYing’s ‘love’, the Emperor had to admit that his son was excellent in all other aspects, even when compared to when he himself was just a teenager… Cao YuYing was even more like a good Emperor than he was. He thought in detail, judged accurately, and even occasionally came up with some ‘fantastic ideas’ that were highly feasible and beneficial to the country and the people, which made the Emperor unable to help but marvel at him.

Cao YuYing has no desire for the throne and had no need for the Emperor — the only requirement was that he let his little lover come by the palace several times. Therefore, when he was with the Emperor, he was not arrogant or inferior. Once he had different opinions on the same thing, he would argue with the Emperor forcefully — he even succeeded in preventing the Emperor’s decision to destroy the Miao area. Instead, he issued a series of decrees to prohibit the refining and rearing of insects, further promoting the Miao people to assimilate into the Han people, and strengthen the control of the local governments. Even those ancient Miao people who lived in dense forests were placed under the control of the local government.

In the end, the Miao people survived, and the witch doctor got her wish, but the Enchantress could not escape the death penalty.

In order to quell the people’s resentment, the Enchantress was pushed around the execution ground and beheaded in the eyes of all the people. As for the three Royal sons and daughter she gave birth to, the Emperor did not kill them.

In order to ensure that the three would not ‘avenge their mother’ in the future, the Emperor ordered them to be fed with drugs that would turn them stupid. After the Royal Doctor confirmed that they would not recover for life, he removed them from the Royal genealogy and sent them to the witch doctor to take them back to Miao and continue to raise them.

After witnessing her daughter’s death, the witch doctor almost wanted to follow her daughter’s footsteps, but when she thought of her grandson and granddaughters, she finally resisted the impulse. She dragged her body full of fatigue and despair, and left the prosperous capital city which was her nightmare.

However, no one could understand the pain of the witch doctor. The Emperor thought that his practice was merciful; the world also thought that the Enchantress deserved the punishment and was all very happy; as for Cao YuYing, he had already forgotten about her — at this moment, he was busy fighting the Emperor with wisdom and courage, which was contrary to his disinterest in the throne at the beginning.

The Emperor was angry and hateful about his only son ‘revolting’ and ‘turning his face mercilessly’, but he could not help it. Even though he had a thousand defenses and a hundred restrictions, he still experienced the consequences of ‘keeping the tiger only to suffer’.

The Emperor had initially ordered Cao YuYing to deal with the affairs of the court with him, which meant to cultivate him and let him inherit the throne. But since the other side liked a man and made it clear that he had no intention of inheriting the throne, the Emperor naturally changed his mind — unfortunately, Cao YuYing was obviously not the type that could be summoned at will.

 

The Emperor wanted him to be his right hand, but Cao YuYing didn’t want to be his puppet or tool. He was squeezed by the Emperor for the surplus value, which made him a bit angry. Although he still had no intention to have the throne, he would not allow the Emperor to control his thoughts and actions.

——The so-called search for ‘a new and trustworthy person’ basically meant that the Emperor would not succeed until he had cultivated a new successor. This was not a problem that could be solved in a day!

The Emperor wanted him to do the Emperor’s work, but he didn’t want to give him any welfare. What kind of joke was that? If so, it was better for him to be the Emperor himself, so that he could not live under his father, aggrieving himself and his lover!

——He was fed up with meeting his lover, and seeing him only when he got permission to!

Cao YuYing changed his idea of staying away from the throne, and naturally moved quickly. After contact with the government, he quickly emerged by virtue of his outstanding political talent and unique identity as a prince, plus the bad practice of the Emperor in the last ten years. Cao YuYing gained a huge advantage. Although the Emperor tried to suppress it by all means, yet they were all dealt with by Cao YuYing easily. On the contrary, it made all the ministers feel that the Fourth Prince was brilliant. The Emperor couldn’t even contain and suppress his only outstanding son. It was truly… not wise, he even looked a bit idiotic.

 

In this regard, the Emperor truly had it tough. He thought he had been the Emperor for many years. Cao YuYing, even though he was gifted, was still an immature brat. There was no way he could go out of his palm. However, he didn’t think that what he was trying to control was not some immature brat but an old person who had lived for many centuries, who had gone through big storms and was so black that he was practically leaking black ink. 

In the first year, Cao YuYing established a wise image of the future Emperor in the eyes of all the courtiers, attracting a large number of followers; in the second year, he had the strength to compete with the Emperor; in the third year, the Emperor found that his monarchy was a bit out of his hands; in the fourth year, the problem with his right hand was exposed, and all the courtiers learned that the documents all these years were written by Cao YuYing, the invisible prince. 

In the fifth year, the Emperor changed from an Emperor who wanted to be praised for thousands of years to a person who was kept in the palace harem by his son, he tried very hard to generate a new prince to fight with Cao YuYing.

——Before, he was proud of his supremacy and honor, and regarded women in the palace harem as ants. Now, he could only stay in the palace harem with the accompaniment of these women all day long. He couldn’t even walk out of the palace gate at will. His cavity of ambition and pride disappeared, which was also…. What goes around comes around.