20 – You care about me?
General Wang was just ascending the steps when he heard Wen Nian’s voice, nearly missing his footing and tumbling to an untimely demise. He turned toward the sound and, sure enough, there was that little troublemaker dressed in court robes. Noticing his gaze, Wen Nian even let out a light chuckle, raising an eyebrow as he said, “It seems General Wang has missed me. Barely recovered from a long illness and just arrived for court, yet the first thing you do is inquire about my situation.”
As soon as these words were spoken, the clamor of voices instantly fell silent. Dozens of pairs of eyes turned in their direction, and upon seeing Wen Nian, the smiles on their faces froze in an instant.
Damn it! How is this little troublemaker here again?!
Is he haunting us? Can’t even hide from him??
And aren’t you being a bit too arrogant?!
General Wang was so furious he nearly choked, taking a deep breath before sighing heavily. “You… Crown Prince, this… what kind of behavior is this? Do you think the court is your own home, coming and going as you please?”
Wen Nian tilted his head with a smile, his tone indifferent. “General Wang, do not make baseless assumptions. I was also ill—seriously ill. I was bedridden for seven days and came to court as soon as I recovered.”
General Wang fumed, “Do you expect us to praise you for that?”
Wen Nian replied with a smile, “Well, that wouldn’t be entirely unacceptable.”
Those around broke into a cold sweat, thinking to themselves that indeed nothing had changed—the Young Master was still the same Young Master. Even those who had just indignantly spoken ill of him dared not say another word.
One of them, who had earlier described Wen Nian as “excessively unruly,” broke out in a fine sweat on his forehead, swallowing nervously in sheer terror. Knowing Wen Nian’s temperament, he whispered to the person beside him, “Do you think… did the Young Master hear what I just said? When exactly did he arrive?”
“Who knows,” the person in front shrugged helplessly, shaking his head. “Don’t worry, he probably didn’t hear—”
Before he could finish, Wen Nian smiled and answered for him, “I heard.”
The two of them froze simultaneously, stiffly lifting their heads to look at Wen Nian, inwardly lamenting their misfortune.
The Youth chuckled lightly, thinking they hadn’t understood, and kindly repeated himself, “I said, I heard.”
“What was it you called me? Utterly unruly? Going against you? Not taking you seriously?”
The man couldn’t help but shiver, resigning himself to his fate as he blurted out, “Your Highness! You cannot act so recklessly! You must prioritize the greater good!”
“Oh? Vice Minister Zhao, that’s an interesting statement,” the Youth replied. “Have I done anything to harm our dynasty?”
Not only Vice Minister Zhao but also the other civil and military officials were taken aback. Upon careful reflection, aside from his usual casual and leisurely demeanor, this person hadn’t actually committed any substantial wrongdoing.
“Moreover, the court is precisely the place for officials to speak freely and offer suggestions for the betterment of our dynasty. If everyone holds the same opinion, without criticism or blind obedience, is that your understanding of the court?”
General Wang furrowed his brows, looking at Wen Nian with some surprise at his insight, and asked, “You… truly think this way?”
“Not necessarily,” the Youth said with a smile. “Some people, I just can’t stand them.”
“…”
Well, the Young Master was still the same Young Master—arrogant as ever.
Before leaving, Wen Nian told Sang Yun and the others not to wake Shi Sui. Surprisingly, Sang Yun and the others obediently didn’t call her, allowing her to sleep until the sun was high in the sky. She slept so deeply that she even felt a bit dazed upon waking, momentarily confused about where she was.
Later, she heard that Little Black Flower had actually kept his promise and attended court. Shi Sui was overjoyed—Wen Nian’s life was gradually getting back on track, even if the process was somewhat absurd.
As soon as Sang Yun entered the room, she saw Shi Sui sitting on the bed with a dazed expression, her hair messy like a little lion’s mane. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, Shi Sui stretched slightly upon seeing Sang Yun and muttered to herself, “Mmm… I’m so hungry.”
Earlier that morning, Sang Yun had seen Wen Nian leaving Shi Sui’s room and found it strange. It wasn’t until Wen Nian instructed her not to wake Shi Sui and let her sleep naturally that she belatedly realized what had happened. Excited for quite some time, she now hurried over with a smile as Shi Sui woke up and asked, “Crown Princess, are you feeling unwell?”
Shi Sui snapped out of her daze and looked at Sang Yun, whose cheeks were slightly flushed and wore an expression of eager curiosity. Slowly, a question mark formed in her mind: What’s with that expectant look on your face, sister?
Seeing Shi Sui silent, Sang Yun continued, “The Crown Prince stayed here last night, you know.”
Shi Sui yawned, already speechless. Let them say whatever they want—after all, sleeping while holding him last night was quite comfortable.
Still immersed in the joy of “her ship sailing,” Sang Yun pulled Shi Sui to the dressing table and began combing her hair. The hair tonic was overly fragrant, making Shi Sui sneeze repeatedly. Eventually, Sang Yun noticed and switched to a lighter-scented hair tonic. As Shi Sui looked at herself in the mirror, she couldn’t help but marvel at the female lead’s thick and lustrous hair every time it was combed.
Shi Sui asked, “Where’s the Young Master?”
Still braiding Shi Sui’s hair, Sang Yun chuckled and replied, “He went to court, of course. The Young Master truly listens to you.”
Hearing this, for some reason, Wen Nian’s words echoed in Shi Sui’s ears: “If I don’t attend court, my wife might run off with someone else.”
Shi Sui helplessly rubbed her temples—it must be because I didn’t sleep well.
“But…” Sang Yun whispered, “I heard from Guard Yuan that His Highness seemed to have argued with General Wang again during court.”
Shi Sui thought: Seriously, Little Black Flower, can’t you be a bit more competent?
“Did he win the argument?”
Sang Yun: “…” Is that the point?
As soon as she said it, Shi Sui felt it didn’t quite fit her peace-loving female lead persona. So she shifted the topic and asked with a smile, “I mean, what did they argue about this time? Did you find out?”
Sang Yun said, “I don’t understand matters of state, but from what Guard Yuan said, the Emperor believes our country is vast, rich in resources, and its people prosperous, so there’s no need to trade with smaller nations. He advocates restricting trade.”
Shi Sui stiffened, inwardly lamenting: Why does this plot sound so familiar?
Ignoring Sang Yun’s braiding, she turned around to confirm, “…Closed-door policy?”
The plot was so shocking that Shi Sui broke out in goosebumps. To make sure, she deliberately enunciated each of the four words slowly, afraid someone might mishear.
Sang Yun had little formal education, only recognizing a few common characters, and didn’t understand these matters. She was merely repeating Yuan Youdao’s words as she said, “I… I’m not sure either. That’s what Guard Yuan said.”
Shi Sui frowned, looking at her reflection in the bronze mirror, and asked, “What did General Wang say?”
Sang Yun replied, “It seems it was General Wang who petitioned the Emperor.”
Shi Sui thought: Damn it, General Wang, you’re confused! Aren’t you part of the main protagonist group? How could you advocate for isolationism??
Seeing Shi Sui’s utterly devastated expression, Sang Yun immediately sensed something was wrong. She had never seen her Crown Princess look like this before and hurriedly added, “Crown Princess… is… is there something inappropriate about this?”
Shi Sui was certain this segment didn’t exist in the original novel. After the male lead Mu He disrupted the wedding in the original story, the focus shifted entirely to the tragic romance between the female lead and Mu He. The early parts of the book never mentioned anything about the state of the nation, and she had no idea the country was implementing isolationist policies during that period.
So, with this hidden plot inexplicably triggered, Shi Sui felt somewhat weary.
Since it was General Wang—Mu He’s most significant backer—who proposed the idea, and with the protagonist group’s plot armor empowered, Shi Sui figured there was an eighty percent chance this blind Emperor would implement it. Besides, as a mere woman, how could she possibly obstruct the promulgation of national policies?
Irritated, Shi Sui asked, “Is there anything else?”
“Yes,” Sang Yun blinked and said earnestly, “Only one person stood up to refute General Wang—the Young Master.”
Shi Sui’s eyes instantly brightened. She just remembered Sang Yun mentioning earlier that Wen Nian seemed to have argued with General Wang in court—it must have been over this matter.
Shi Sui asked, “What did he say?”
Sang Yun replied, “The Young Master cited historical texts, giving examples from other dynasties to argue that closing off trade and becoming arrogant would only lead to stagnation. Every word was profound, and General Wang was so angry he couldn’t speak.”
Shi Sui suddenly recalled the historical discussions she had with Wen Nian before. Could it be because of that?
Sang Yun added, “The Young Master also said he once heard a saying… something like… the only lesson humans learn from history is… is…”
Shi Sui finished the sentence, “Humans never learn from history.”
“Yes!” Sang Yun exclaimed excitedly, “That’s it! But it’s so profound… Sang Yun doesn’t understand.”
Shi Sui blinked. For some reason, she suddenly felt in high spirits. Wen Nian had truly taken her words to heart.
Just as she was about to ask more, a light, calm voice came from the doorway: “The Crown Princess seems particularly concerned about court affairs.”
Glancing toward the entrance, Shi Sui caught sight of a hint of light blue. Wen Nian was wearing light blue robes today. At his age, youths grow quickly—his figure was slender and lean. A blue hair ribbon tied around his forehead further accentuated his youthful aura.
“I just wonder if it’s the affairs of the state that concern you, or if it’s me?”
Shi Sui, bearing the humiliation, replied, “…You.”
Perhaps because Shi Sui answered too straightforwardly, the Youth was momentarily stunned before breaking into a smile.
This little girl’s words were somewhat infuriating, yet somehow made it impossible to get angry.