Blissful Days After Widowhood - Chapter 397

Gu Ye and Feng Yu were taken aback by Lu Xu’s insistence on following them. It was unclear why he was so insistent on joining them, and their initial annoyance gave way to confusion.

Lu Xu stood defiantly with his hands on his hips and issued a playful threat in his youthful voice, “If you don’t take me, I’ll start crying! I’m really good at it!”

Crying for no reason would certainly not be attributed to Gu Ye or Feng Yu by Emperor Zhengyuan. However, they were already running short on time due to the upcoming lunch break, and providing an explanation for another person would only further delay them.

Frowning, Gu Ye responded, “You can’t fit in this sedan chair. How about I take you next time?”

The sedan chair was typically meant for a single occupant. Although Gu Ye and Feng Yu, as children, could share it, adding Lu Xu into the mix would be too crowded.

Lu Xu turned to Xiao Luzi and suggested, “Why don’t you fetch my sedan chair? I can ride my own.”

Xiao Luzi smiled and replied, “Your Highness, you’re only in Yonghe Palace every day, and the sedan chairs there belong to the noble concubines.”

Unfazed, Lu Xu proposed, “Then have my Mother Concubine’s sedan chair brought here.”

Xiao Luzi explained, “Wenhua Palace is half an hour’s walk from Yonghe Palace. We’d need to get permission from the noble concubine, and there isn’t enough time.”

Tears welled up in Lu Xu’s eyes, and he complained, “Why did his sedan…s-sedan chair get here so early, but I have to wait so long? I don’t care, I don’t care! I just want to go!”

Xiao Luzi, looking contrite, replied, “Your Highness, please forgive me.” He lowered his head and added, “I heard that His Highness and Young Master Feng were leaving the palace today, so I had someone bring Prince Lie’s sedan chair in advance.”

The situation became increasingly tense, and the impasse continued until Qian Sansi arrived from the Hall of Mental Cultivation. He approached with a warm smile and relayed a message, “His Majesty heard that the two Highnesses and Young Master Feng were leaving the palace, so he asked me to come over and convey his wishes. He said today is a good day, and he knows you must be tired from your morning studies. So he granted all of you a half-day off this afternoon.”

This unexpected announcement left Gu Ye and Feng Yu thoroughly puzzled.

Qian Sansi approached Gu Ye, taking note of the crooked hat he was wearing, and with respectful deference, he proceeded to straighten it. While fixing the hat, he spoke in a hushed tone to Gu Ye, “His Majesty is keeping a close watch on this place after the incident yesterday. He hopes to see His Royal Highness Prince Lie and His Third Highness build a brotherly relationship, so there’s no need to be concerned. Enjoy your outing.”

After these reassuring words, Qian Sansi stepped back from Gu Ye.

Upon reflection, Gu Ye understood the implications of what Qian Sansi had just revealed. It seemed that anyone from the palace, particularly those from Yonghe Palace, had been diligently reporting the events in Wenhua Hall to Emperor Zhengyuan. This new level of awareness had led to the unexpected day off and the emperor’s desire for the two young princes to strengthen their fraternal bond.

Realizing his role in this, Gu Ye first thanked Qian Sansi. Then, he turned to Lu Xu and said, “Shall we go now? Aren’t you coming?”

Lu Xu, who had been drying his tears, immediately stopped crying upon hearing this. Seeing Feng Yu and Ge Ye disembarking from the sedan chair, he instructed Xiao Luzi to carry him up. But the three ended up walking to the gate.

While walking, Gu Ye and Feng Yu whispered to each other.

Gu Ye confessed, “I hadn’t really thought about this. Since the emperor allowed him to come along, I suppose I have to accommodate him to some extent.”

Having Lu Xu along was one thing for the sake of taking care of him, but there was another reason. Lu Xu could serve as a messenger and inform Concubine Feng about the events of the day. Concubine Feng had been unaware of Feng Yu’s private visit to his mother and was undoubtedly anxious about it.

Feng Yu agreed, “That’s right. We have a whole half day to relax. We don’t need to rush it..”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll stay with him for now, and you can use this opportunity to have a conversation with Aunt Zhu,” Gu Ye suggested. While they were discussing their plan, Lu Xu, sitting in the sedan chair, huffed, assuming they were talking negatively about himself.

In the end, the finely arranged sedan chair prepared by Xiao Luzi remained unoccupied, and the three of them exited the palace on foot.