After fooling Chenxi, Ye Jingchen had a wonderful sleep.
That sleep lasted until sunset, and it was time for dinner again.
This evening meal was much more lavish than the one he had eaten when he first woke up. It was full of nourishing dishes, and thanks to the imperial chef’s superb skill, it was neither greasy nor heavy, and especially delicious.
By the time the palace maid spoke up to stop him, Ye Jingchen had, as expected, overeaten again.
The main reason was that the original body was far too weak, and its appetite was small, so it simply could not eat much.
There was no electricity in ancient times. Although palace lanterns provided light, they still could not compare to electric lamps. Going outside for a walk after dinner at night could easily lead to accidents, so he drove all the palace attendants out and walked alone in his bedchamber. Anyway, his bedchamber was large enough… visually, it was several hundred square meters… so it was perfect for a stroll.
More importantly, the original body was the Crown Prince and was especially favored by the Emperor. Every ornament in the bedchamber was extraordinary. In modern times, these things would only be seen in a museum, but here, he could look at them whenever he wanted and touch them whenever he wanted. That feeling was simply beyond words.
He was only holding back because he did not know where Chenxi was hiding. Otherwise, he would have exposed his uncultured, down-to-earth side. He might even have hugged those antiques and kissed them!
But as he walked, Ye Jingchen became a little sentimental. Ancient entertainment was too scarce. Especially without a phone or computer, half of life’s pleasures were gone.
Still, not having a phone or computer had one benefit: it could eliminate the possibility of him suffering sudden death again.
After all, a seasoned bookworm could hardly resist the temptation to stay up late reading.
Once his stomach was no longer so full, Ye Jingchen had someone come in to help him bathe.
The palace maid led him to the side hall. The place where the original body bathed actually had a large bath. Judging by the material, it seemed to be made of jade. Stepping on it barefoot felt very smooth, and there was not the slightest hint of coldness.
The place where hot water was poured into the bath was a vividly carved golden dragon head. Hot water flowed out of the dragon’s golden mouth. Ye Jingchen had good reason to suspect that this dragon head was truly made of gold.
After the bath was filled with hot water, the palace maid was just about to throw flower petals into the water when Ye Jingchen quickly stopped her.
“Does Your Highness not like bathing with flower petals anymore?” the lead palace maid asked in confusion.
“Right now, this prince doesn’t like it!” Ye Jingchen said with a stern face.
The palace maid quickly replied yes and put the petals away.
“You all can leave. I… this prince wants to bathe alone.” Ye Jingchen stepped back, avoiding the palace maid who was about to help him undress, waved his hand, and ordered.
As soon as he finished speaking, all the palace maids and eunuchs in the side hall knelt down at once.
The lead palace maid said anxiously, “Your Highness, you must not! What have we done wrong to make Your Highness dislike us? Please punish us directly! Even if Sister Fangfei came to serve you personally, that would be fine. If no one serves you, how can Your Highness bathe? And what if something dangerous happens?”
Ye Jingchen found this both angry and amusing. He held out both hands in front of the palace maid and asked expressionlessly, “What are these?”
The palace maid was stunned for a long moment before answering hesitantly, “They are Your Highness’s hands?”
“Since this prince has hands, why can’t he bathe by himself?” Ye Jingchen asked.
Although his body was that of a child, his mind was that of an adult. If he let these young girls serve him while bathing, wouldn’t that be acting like a lecher?
Besides, he did not have the habit of exposing his body in front of others.
“But Your Highness only just fell into the water and fainted. Now you want to bathe alone. What if you drown again? That would be too dangerous!” the palace maid said bravely.
“The water in this bath is so shallow that it doesn’t even reach this prince’s chest. How could this prince drown? Or are you deliberately cursing this prince?”
The crime of cursing the Crown Prince was no small matter. Ye Jingchen said it on purpose to scare them and settle the matter once and for all.
“This servant would never dare!” The palace maid was so frightened that she kept kowtowing.
“If you don’t dare, then get out!”
This time, no one said anything else. Everyone fled as if running for their lives.
Ye Jingchen spent several minutes figuring out how to take off the three layers of clothing on his body. When he finally stripped himself clean and soaked in the hot water, he felt utterly refreshed.
The water in the bath was indeed not deep. Standing up, it only reached his thighs, but if he sat inside, it could submerge everything below his neck.
There were gaps in the jade wall around the bath, and jade pillows were placed in those gaps, perfectly suited for resting his head while leaning back against the wall.
In modern society, the poor loser version of Ye Jingchen could never have experienced such luxurious enjoyment. His room was not even as big as this bath. The combined area of the bathroom and shower room was only a tiny four square meters, barely enough to turn around and stretch his legs while showering. A bath? Not even worth thinking about.
Ye Jingchen rested his head on the jade pillow and closed his eyes to enjoy the pleasant moment.
As for the drowning risk the palace maid mentioned…
What a joke!
How could anyone drown in such shallow water?
Once his body felt comfortable, his mind became even more active.
Once Chenxi had investigated everyone in the Eastern Palace and placed the information before him, he would gain a preliminary understanding of the Eastern Palace. He would also be able to learn some things about the court and the harem by the way. After all, he was the Crown Prince. The palace attendants in his residence could not possibly all be innocent. There were definitely spies planted by consorts from the harem and ministers from the court.
With enough basic information as support, he would no longer have to fumble around in the dark.
After that, he could try stepping out of the Eastern Palace.
The Third Imperial Prince, Ye Jingyu, happened to be a good breakthrough point.
He could use the excuse of offering condolences, concern, and an apology to go see Ye Jingyu and clear up the misunderstanding.
After all, psychological manipulation should be done early, and done while the target is still young, so the effect would be better.
In the original story, the Third Imperial Prince, Ye Jingyu, and the Noble Consort were relatively simple and less scheming. This was mainly thanks to the Third Imperial Prince’s maternal family, the Noble Consort’s maiden family… the Ji clan… the largest prestigious aristocratic family in the Dayuan Dynasty, aside from the imperial Ye family.
The Ji clan was a hidden thousand-year-old family that had survived who knew how many dynastic changes and still stood firm. Talented people emerged from the clan in endless succession, and the power and wealth accumulated over a thousand years had reached an extremely terrifying level.
The Noble Consort, Ji Wushuang, was the youngest daughter of the Ji clan’s family head. She was cherished by everyone in the clan, but unfortunately, she was a hopeless romantic. She fell in love with the Emperor at first sight and, despite her family’s objections, insisted on entering the palace as a consort.
On the surface, the Ji family cut ties with Ji Wushuang, but in reality, they still revealed her identity to the Emperor. Otherwise, the Emperor would never have made Ji Wushuang, who outwardly seemed like an orphan, the head of the four consorts as Noble Consort, a rank second only to the Empress.
In the original story, the Noble Consort was punished by the Emperor and forced to kneel because of the Crown Prince’s drowning incident, injuring her knees. Later, even after it was proven that it was the Crown Prince’s fault, the Emperor brushed it aside lightly and even began to neglect Ji Wushuang. Once this matter reached the Ji family, they were furious. They secretly reconnected with Ji Wushuang, and because of this incident, Ji Wushuang’s heart grew cold toward the Emperor. She instead began to cultivate Ye Jingyu, wanting him to replace the Crown Prince.
To Ji Wushuang, the Emperor was absolutely a complete scumbag. But to the late Empress, as an emperor, being able to pour so much feeling into her and favor her son and daughter could definitely be considered deep affection.
So it is with your honey and my arsenic.