Xu Duofu was “convalescing” by imperial decree.
He hadn’t even suffered a scratch, but when Companion Wang carried him back to the Eastern Depot, the room full of eunuchs and palace maids was scared half to death. Zhu Yue’s face turned white. Tucked in Companion Wang’s arms, Xu Duofu waved his arms and hurriedly said, “I’m fine, I’m not hurt! I won the fight, a total victory!”
Wang Yuanyuan let out a smile.
“Companion Wang, I can get down and walk by myself.”
Wang Yuanyuan set Xu Duofu down and affectionately patted the young master’s head, saying, “In the Eastern Depot, no one spreads idle rumors.”
It meant he didn’t need to feign illness or fainting here.
Xu Duofu asked with some curiosity, “Does His Majesty know what happens inside the Eastern Depot?”
Wang Yuanyuan simply shook his head without speaking, thinking to himself: In any other place in the Great Sheng Dynasty, His Majesty might truly need to send spies if he wanted to know something, but the Eastern Depot is the sole exception.
Xu Duofu had only asked in passing. After asking, he remembered—his father’s few hobbies included “chatting about family matters,” but only with close acquaintances. Once he trusted someone, he was genuinely good to them in a simple, down-to-earth way. He was an upright and loyal man who didn’t hide what could be said and didn’t open his mouth about what shouldn’t be.
He had saved Wang Yuanyuan in the past, making them life-and-death friends.
As for Zhong Cheng, there was even less to be said. Xu Xiaoman had followed him from the Cold Palace all the way to Wuzhou—a place that was remote, poor, and infested with miasma and poisonous insects. Later, when Zhong Cheng rebelled, Xu Xiaoman had disregarded his own life upon hearing the news, bringing his cub back to join a cause that could have cost them their heads.
The only thing he had kept from Zhong Cheng was the matter of birthing the child.
Regarding internal matters of the Eastern Depot, his father didn’t exactly have the mindset of reporting to the Emperor. It was more like a couple behind closed doors, blabbing about everything out of boredom while “doing it.”
When Xu Duofu had read the book, his sharp critique was: If he can be bored at a time like that, the Emperor is no good.
As for now—
He was the biological cub, and he no longer wanted to endure the plot where he couldn’t speak up.
Xu Duofu was a filial cub.
In the Eastern Depot, Xu Duofu moved like a crab—he went wherever he pleased, and no one stopped him. There was also one most important point: the Eastern Depot inside the Taiji Palace was essentially a clerk’s office; the interrogation rooms and prisons were all outside.
His father wasn’t there, and he hadn’t seen his teacher for morning lessons yet, having been sent back after a fight. The serving eunuchs and maids surrounded him with concern, bringing him pastries, snacks, and hot milk.
After a short while, Zhao Erxi arrived carrying several items, followed by a young medical apprentice from the Imperial Academy of Medicine.
Once Zhong Cheng finished listening to Zhao Erxi’s report and knew Xu Duofu was fine, he dismissed him. Zhao Erxi had just lifted his foot to withdraw when he was called back, standing in place to wait for His Majesty’s orders. The Ningwu Emperor sat on the dragon throne, his expression somewhat cold as usual. Zhao Erxi didn’t dare to rush His Majesty and continued to wait.
After a few seconds, he heard His Majesty ask in a cold voice, “If a young child is startled during the day but doesn’t react, is he prone to nightmares at night?”
“Yes… that should be the case.” Zhao Erxi read the room and immediately said, “Your Majesty, this servant doesn’t have a son and doesn’t understand these things well. Should I ask the imperial physician to go over and keep an eye on him?”
“Go see to it. Also, take some pearls and send them along.”
“As you command.”
Only after Zhao Erxi went to His Majesty’s private treasury to fetch the pearls did he suddenly understand. Pearl powder was very gentle for calming the mind and settling the spirit. His Majesty was cold on the outside but soft on the inside; he said that with Wang Yuanyuan there, Xu Duofu would be fine, yet he was still worried.
Then again, one only had to look at who raised the cub—he was picked up by Supervisor Xu.
Even if he wasn’t biological, he was special in His Majesty’s heart.
At that moment, the imperial physician took his pulse once more.
Xu Duofu sat on the soft couch. For a moment, he felt like “I was the one who got beaten” rather than the one who did the beating. Zhu Yue handled the aftermath, seeing off Eunuch Zhao and arranging for the physician and apprentice to rest in the side courtyard.
Oh, and there was someone to grind the pearl powder.
“Young Master, look, these pearls are truly large.” Zhu Yue held the box for the young master to see.
The wooden box was filled to the brim with pearls the size of glass marbles. Every one was round and lustrous, clearly of the highest quality. And they were going to be ground into powder for him to drink with water just to calm his nerves? How extravagant.
Xu Duofu stared blankly, holding a pearl in his palm.
Zhu Yue thought the young master wanted to play, so she left a few for him as toys. She had asked the physician; grinding one pearl into water was enough. The young master would be fine after three to five days of rest. At the same time, she softly instructed the little eunuchs and maids to keep watch outside so the young master could rest in peace.
The room grew quiet.
As Xu Duofu stared at the pearls, his eyes grew a bit moist. He turned his small body over and lay down, facing away from the door so others couldn’t see his emotions.
He used to have moments like this.
It wasn’t that the pearls were extravagant, but rather… the concern of family.
One could tell from his name. Back then, before his grandfather passed away, his parents truly loved each other. When he was born, the whole family doted on him. His mother would say: “The name Xu Duofu is a bit rustic, but it’s a homophone—our child must have ‘many, many blessings.'”
So he was named Xu Duofu.
The decision was final.
In elementary school, boys were mischievous and rowdy, and Xu Duofu was no different. If he messed up and the teacher called his parents, they would apologize, but on the way home from school, they would buy him treats.
Starch sausages, spicy strips, ice cream.
Those were the happiest memories of his childhood.
But the feelings of adults could change in an instant. One year, his father struck it lucky and made some money. From then on, the arguments at home increased, and eventually, his parents divorced.
His mother had screamed hysterically: “You’ve lost your heart to someone else, it’s emotional infidelity! If I hadn’t found out, you two would definitely be in bed together.”
“You truly disgust me.”
The two divorced, the assets were split, and the child went to the father. Father Xu’s business grew better and better, but as he became rich, he became busy. Xu Duofu grew up living with his grandfather, though his mother often came to visit him.
Later, his mother remarried and lived a happy life, so it was inevitable she didn’t have enough energy to look after him.
His mother said: “Your father and I had a long-distance run from high school through university. I remember every way he used to love me. When we took our marriage vows, I was certain we would be happy. Now that he loves someone else, I really can’t stand it.”
If there wasn’t that much love, perhaps one could walk through a marriage with one eye closed.
After entering high school, his grades dropped because of gaming. Someone picked a fight with him; he fought and won, but he ended up bruised. The homeroom teacher called his parents, but they were both busy. No one ever came to clean up his messes again, and no one asked if he was in pain or if he felt wronged, or bought him starch sausages, fried chicken, ice cream, or spicy strips to make him happy.
Now, he had fought, and someone was backing him up, calling an imperial physician and sending pearls for fear he had been startled.
…Xu Duofu sniffled, his eyes red as he muttered to himself, “You’re eighteen, not a kid anymore. Why are you crying? How embarrassing.”
Then he thought, there was no one here to see him anyway.
In his senior year of high school, he had accidentally opened The Eunuch Male Empress. Although it was a shock for a straight guy to see two men in love for the first time, and he had been flushed and embarrassed by the author’s superb “steamy scenes”—
Xu Duofu hadn’t closed the page. He watched the lead couple love each other through hardships.
Even though the author committed the ultimate sin of a sudden tragic turn to vent their frustrations on society.
Even though there were many regrets.
Even though he had been so heart-wrenched that his eyes were red and swollen from crying under his blanket.
Something in Xu Duofu had still been smoothed over by The Male Empress. From then on, he fell in love with reading novels, because the worlds in novels were so happy.
After sending Duofu to the Eastern Depot, Wang Yuanyuan headed straight for the palace gates to find Xu Xiaoman. Xu Xiaoman had said that if anything happened to Duofu, Wang Yuanyuan should let him know if it was convenient.
And if it’s not convenient for you?
Xu Xiaoman: What major business do I have now? None, right? His Majesty’s backside is firmly planted on the throne. There’s only Duoduo…
Fine, fine, then even Duofu’s small matters are major matters. Wang Yuanyuan had cut him off, not wanting to hear Xu Xiaoman’s rambling.
So, Wang Yuanyuan tracked him down at the interrogation room the Eastern Depot had set up outside.
He explained this and that.
“…He’s not hurt. I’ve realized that Duofu usually looks well-behaved and honest just like you, but he’s secretly full of clever ideas. As soon as I mentioned Master Tian hitting people, he knew to pretend to faint.” Wang Yuanyuan still wanted to laugh as he spoke, his mouth splitting into a grin. “Not bad, Xu Xiaoman, you picked up a seed of your own. You father and son are so alike, even a biological one couldn’t compare.”
Xu Xiaoman was both worried and secretly delighted, thinking: What do you mean ‘picked up a seed’? What ‘couldn’t compare to biological’? This… Nine Thousand Years… Eunuch… personally gave birth to him! Birth!
He was so impressive, giving birth to Duoduo.
It was just a pity he couldn’t brag about it to Zhong Cheng. Look how amazing and capable he was.
He hadn’t said anything before because they were having a falling out then. Later, the misunderstanding was cleared, but Zhong Cheng was rebelling. Xu Xiaoman was selfishly unwilling to part with his son; he could die with Zhong Cheng—failure in rebellion meant losing one’s head—but Duoduo was only a year old, and he had a long life ahead of him.
Much later, Zhong Cheng became the Emperor. Logically, he could have said something, but—the Nine Thousand Years was too embarrassed to open his mouth. How could he say it? “Zhong Cheng, I’m a eunuch, I don’t have a ‘root,’ yet I birthed a cub for you?”
He was already cursed by people as a “dead eunuch” who was neither man nor woman; saying it would only confirm it.
And regarding what people said about Duoduo—being an adopted son was fine, but if he were biological, how would everyone look at Duoduo?
“No, I’m going back to check on Duoduo. Wang Yuanyuan, you keep an eye on things.” Before he even finished speaking, Xu Xiaoman had vanished.
Clearly, he was anxious.
Xu Xiaoman galloped straight for the palace gates. Arriving at the Eastern Depot, he realized he hadn’t slept since last night and his body still smelled of foul blood. In his worry for Duoduo, he hadn’t even had time to bathe. He changed his clothes, and in the meantime, heard from Zhu Yue that the physician had come, pearl powder was being used to settle his spirit, and Duoduo had fallen asleep.
As long as he was okay.
Once Xu Xiaoman had changed, he softly pushed open the door to the inner room. On the soft couch was the back of a thin, small child. Even covered with a blanket, he looked tiny. He couldn’t help but think: Duoduo’s constitution isn’t good. It’s not entirely due to not eating well while we were on the run; he might also take after Zhong Cheng. Children naturally look like both parents. Duoduo is already clever like me, so his thin frame must come from Zhong Cheng.
When Zhong Cheng was ten, he was nothing but a bag of bones.
Approaching soundlessly, Xu Xiaoman stood by the couch and reached out to pat the cub’s head. The sharp-eyed Nine Thousand Years saw the redness under his Duoduo’s eyes and the dried tear tracks.
He cried?
Xu Xiaoman froze. Didn’t Wang Yuanyuan say he wasn’t hurt? Why did Duoduo cry?
Did Tian Wenhe hit him?
Truly father-fucking despicable.
Xu Duofu was tickled awake. Opening his eyes dizzily, he saw his father—
“Dad?”
Xu Xiaoman held a small trinket in his hand, leaning in close to the cub’s face with a fawning expression. He coaxed him with a smile, saying, “Duoduo, look at this. Dad wove it. There’s a little rabbit, and I wove a tiger for you too. We aren’t scared, okay?”
Beside his pillow lay small animals woven from foxtail grass.
While he had cried himself to sleep, someone had patiently waited without waking him, finding grass to weave little toys to make him happy when he woke up, just like coaxing a small child.
The small head dove straight into his father’s arms.
“Dad, Dad…”
Xu Duofu didn’t know why he was crying; he just wanted to cry.
He was so happy.
The author has something to say:
High schooler Duoduo transmigrates in: Hot-blooded and righteous, I must save both my dads.