After giving away the fishes, Lin Feilu continued to walk back to her palace. As she was approaching closer to the front gates, she saw from afar that Xiao Lan was already waiting outside. Seeing her daughter had come home, Xiao Lan walked up to her and said in an anxious tone, “You’ve finally returned.”
Lin Feilu noticed that something else was bothering her. When the eunuch who carried her fishes for her had left, she asked, “Mother, what’s the matter?”
Xiao Lan looked on with worry as she led her inside, “After you left this afternoon, the Fourth Prince’s servants had sent many things to our palace.”
That was when Lin Feilu saw that their house was filled with wooden chests and boxes. There were food, brocades, jewelry, and all sorts of things that she had never seen before. There were so many gifts that it had occupied the entire floor area of their home.
Lin Jingyuan, that little brat, can be quite considerate too.
Lin Feilu liked gifts, naturally she was happy to receive them. However, Xiao Lan was worried, “I worry what will happen if Consort Xian finds out about this.”
Lin Feilu had gotten used to her overcautious tendencies, so she did not respond to her and happily ran over to open the gifts. Today, Lin Feilu had caught so many fishes that there were still some left after dinner. Yunyou kept the remaining fishes in a small waterhole in the courtyard, which Lin Zhanyuan had a great time playing with.
Compared to Mingyue Palace, the air was tense in Changming Palace.
By the time Lin Jingyuan had arrived, Emperor Lin was already inside. He was drinking tea with Consort Xian, when he saw Lin Jingyuan come running in, sweating profusely and heavily panting. The emperor’s face darkened, displaying his annoyance. Consort Xian was angry when she saw Lin Jingyuan present himself with such disgrace. She was even more angry when she recalled the report she received this afternoon from her palace maids. They said he had sent many things to Mingyue Palace for some inexplicable reason.
Lin Jingyuan knelt down and kowtowed.
Emperor Lin coldly said, “You went out to play again?”
Lin Jingyuan replied honestly, “I went fishing.”
Emperor Lin scoffed, “You idle away and neglect your studies. I see you seem to have more interest in fooling around for your trivial hobbies!”
Consort Xian attempted to placate his anger, “Your Majesty, please calm down. Jingyuan is still young. He just wants to have a little fun. Wait for him…”
Annoyed, Emperor Lin interrupted her and retorted, “That’s what you think! Eight years old is not a young age. When I was his age, I was able to compose three papers worth of National Tax Laws!”
Consort Xian replied, “Your Majesty is gifted with tactical acumen and knowledgeable in civil affairs. How can Jingyuan compare with Your Majesty?”
Emperor Lin took another sip of tea to suppress his anger. His eyes inadvertently fell on Lin Jingyuan’s bulging chest. He asked with a frown, “What are you carrying in your bosom?”
In the past, this little rascal would tuck dead birds inside his chest when he went to Imperial School to frighten the teachers. When Emperor Lin thought of his previous actions, he could not help but to suspect that this time he was carrying a dead fish inside his chest to re-enact a similar prank.
Consort Xian was angry and anxious at the same time. However, she could not say anything more. She watched as her son raised his hand, rummaged inside his chest, then took out a copy of “The Analects of Confucius”.
What???
The Analects of Confucius???!!!
Is this not the same son who gets dizzy and has a headache whenever he reads books???