Becoming Puppet Emperor of a Paranoid Eunuch - Chapter 15

The young emperor followed the palace attendants obediently.

 

At first, Wu Jing couldn’t understand what the palace attendants were saying, but Yanzhi, who was waiting on the side, heard and translated for the little fool, saying they were taking him to see his brother.

 

Wu Jing immediately followed along obediently.

 

When he saw Ning Qinghong, he stood there holding the little dog somewhat timidly until the other person waved at him, then he happily ran over.

 

His outer robe was dampened by the morning dew, so Ning Qinghong had ordered the attendants to remove the crimson official robe outside, leaving him with four layers of clothing inside. At this moment, dressed all in white, he showed no signs of being disheveled, instead wearing a dark blue fox fur coat.

 

He stood leisurely by the table, waiting for the attendants to bring the new clothes.

 

The sharpness he had just displayed was softened a bit,

 

gentle as a gentleman.

 

Ning Qinghong lifted his fingertips to gesture.

 

Approaching respectfully, he took the wild puppy from the emperor’s arms.

 

Wu Jing stared at the taken-away puppy with some reluctance, determined not to look again, and walked up to Ning Qinghong.

 

It’s time to practice acting again.

 

Ning Qinghong asked, “Why didn’t you come over just now?”

 

Wu Jing looked up at him and said slowly, “Brother doesn’t like Wuwu.” He seemed a little unhappy, “He didn’t come to play with me.”

 

“Didn’t come.”

 

Ning Qinghong chuckled. “Is that so?” He said softly, “But I heard people say that Your Majesty thinks of me every day.”

 

Wu Jing blinked blankly, somewhat puzzled.

 

Ning Qinghong knew his quirks and changed his title, “Does Wuwu ask Brother every day if he will come or not?”

 

Wu Jing pouted, “But Brother never comes.”

 

Ning Qinghong smiled and took Wu Jing’s hand, examining it carefully, “Is Wuwu’s hand sore from carving marks on the table?”

 

Wu Jing shook his head, “It doesn’t hurt.”

 

Ning Qinghong pressed his fingertips against Wu Jing’s worn-down nails and rubbed them, feeling the tiny pricks between his fingers, and furrowed his brow slightly.

 

He had no other thoughts, but he couldn’t help but make Wu Jing feel a sense of itching, causing him to involuntarily shrink his fingers and then be pressed down by Ning Qinghong.

 

This person is so strange.

 

It was as if they hadn’t seen each other for ten days; there was no trace of unfamiliarity, and he was calmly treating him as if he had never neglected him.

 

If he was in a bad mood, he would turn around and leave,

 

if he was in a good mood, he would hook his finger.

 

At this moment, he was especially focused on trimming his hands, and Fuchen brought the tools over, a pair of bronze scissors and a curved hook made of ivory jade.

 

The blade was sharp, which made Wu Jing feel scared, but even if he was afraid, he could only flatten his hands and stretch them out.

 

Ning Qinghong sat down, and he stood in front of him, lowering his eyes slightly, showing great interest, and slightly bowed, holding the emperor’s hand.

 

Wu Jing was very afraid.

 

This person was high-ranking and powerful, needing to be attended to everywhere. He really couldn’t imagine that someone like Ning Qinghong would still do these chores, afraid that if the other person was a little unfamiliar, he would cut off his hand.

 

With this in mind, his hand couldn’t help but tremble slightly, curling up his fingertips.

 

Ning Qinghong whispered, “Your Majesty, don’t move.”

 

Because he ate less, there wasn’t much flesh on Wu Jing’s hands, and his wrist bones were prominent, his fingertips thin and weak. At this moment, with his hands flat and stretched out, he couldn’t imagine them being aggressive, afraid that he wouldn’t even be able to scratch someone.

 

Even if he was scared, he could only curl up his hands and dare not resist.

 

Seeing Wu Jing not moving, Ning Qinghong smiled again, “Wuwu, open your hand.”

 

Wu Jing had no choice but to accompany him to his death, closed his eyes and opened them.

 

After a while, he dared to sneak a peek, and when he looked down, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

 

Ning Qinghong’s movements were very skilled, not making him feel uncomfortable at all, and certainly not causing any situation where he might cut himself. The ivory jade hook smoothed his fingertips, making them round and smooth, extremely beautiful.

 

Wu Jing inexplicably thought of something.

 

This person was a eunuch, a eunuch by birth. Before he took up his current position, had he ever served another master?

 

He also felt a little bored.

 

Shouldn’t this nine thousand-year-old be very sensitive about others mentioning his past? That’s how it’s portrayed in dramas. Once a person rises to power, wouldn’t they seek revenge for the humiliations they endured in the past?

 

And then it becomes a bottom line of touchiness,

 

no one can mention it, and no one can touch it.

 

But Ning Qinghong seemed not to care at all, not to take it to heart, and now he was… serving himself.

 

Thinking of those two words, Wu Jing couldn’t help but swallow his saliva. What kind of ability did he have to make the nine thousand-year-old serve him?

 

But this person was just in a mood.

 

Ning Qinghong put away the tools in the sandalwood tray carried by the attendants, “That’s it,” he praised, smiling, “Wuwu is very obedient.”

 

The emperor’s claws had been gradually smoothed out by him, and now even if the young man learned to scratch people, it wouldn’t hurt at all.

 

Wu Jing withdrew his hand and hid it in the wide sleeves, rubbing his fingertips against his fingertips, and found that no matter how hard he pressed, he could only sink into the soft flesh, feeling no pain.

 

For some reason, a chill ran down his spine.

 

“Master, the clothes have arrived.”

 

Fuchen stepped forward.

 

Wu Jing stared blankly as Ning Qinghong stood up, the dark blue fox fur coat removed and replaced with the crane-repairing court dress.

 

Before he could react, a warmth enveloped him.

 

Upon closer inspection, it was Ning Qinghong who had taken off his fur coat and put it on him, the remnants of the other person’s body temperature still lingering on the fox fur, and in his inadvertent breath, he could still smell the warm fragrance of the calming incense cake that this person was accustomed to using.

 

Ning Qinghong asked, “How is Your Majesty’s illness?”

 

Fuchen replied, “Just a few more days of medicine, and it will be fine.”

 

Ning Qinghong acknowledged with a sound.

 

Fuchen tentatively asked, “Master, would you like to have breakfast? At this time, the morning court has already dispersed.” He pleaded earnestly, “You haven’t been eating well these days. You don’t eat much every day. Don’t let Your Majesty recover only to have you fall ill again.”

 

After saying that, he lightly slapped his mouth, “Pah,” and said, “Look at me, always talking about bad luck.”

 

Why doesn’t this person eat properly?

 

Wu Jing continued to eavesdrop.

 

Ning Qinghong looked at him, “Is Wuwu hungry?”

 

Wu Jing’s eyes lit up, taking the initiative to tug at the man’s clothes, “Brother, Wuwu wants to eat delicious food.”

 

How can someone not eat properly?

 

The food prepared by the Imperial Kitchen was so delicious that he had been showing off these days.

 

Fuchen was so grateful to the emperor that he sincerely smiled and said, “Quickly, bring the food.”

 

The stone table in the pavilion was not very big, and the palace attendants brought several dishes and filled it up. The remaining dishes were held by the eunuchs, kneeling down with their hands raised to the height of the stone table, waiting for Fuchen to serve the two masters.

 

Wu Jing was not very used to this scene, keeping his head down, concentrating on holding the bowl and drinking sweet soup. He had already had breakfast, and Fuchen knew he couldn’t eat much, so he only poured him a bowl of sweet water.

 

Even after drinking, he still wasn’t satisfied, staring eagerly at the plate of ice cream with osmanthus honey on top.

 

This was ancient ice cream, all-natural and additive-free, so delicious!

 

Fuchen smiled and brought it to Wu Jing, “Does Your Majesty want to eat this?”

 

Wu Jing was about to pick up the spoon when he heard the person next to him utter three words, “It’s cold.”

 

Fuchen tactfully took away the plate of ice cream again.

 

Ning Qinghong said, “Your Majesty, you are still weak and recovering from illness, so you should be careful about your diet.”

 

Wu Jing didn’t understand, he just pursed his lips and turned his face away unhappily.

 

Ning Qinghong ate his food, “Have you taken your medicine today?”

 

Fuchen signaled to a palace attendant standing beside Wu Jing to respond, “Master, after His Majesty finished his breakfast not long ago, it happens to be time for his medicine now.”

 

Wu Jing looked helplessly at his sweet ice cream being replaced with a bitter medicinal soup. He held his breath and gulped it down.

 

At the right moment, a plate of candied fruit was brought over.

 

Ning Qinghong happened to look up and saw that the emperor had only taken one piece of candied fruit. He obediently put down his chopsticks. It seemed that the attendants also knew the emperor’s habits and directly took away the food tray.

 

Wu Jing hadn’t finished eating the candied fruit when his lips were wiped with a moist cloth. He didn’t understand why Ning Qinghong, who was eating his meal properly, suddenly started wiping his mouth for him.

 

Ning Qinghong sighed with a smile, “Wuwu is really obedient.” He signaled to Fuchen to bring back the plate of ice cream that had been taken away. “You can only have three bites, no more.”

 

Wu Jing’s eyes lit up. He obediently finished three bites and stopped, but still looked eagerly at Ning Qinghong, tugging at his clothes, “Wuwu is good.”

 

Just three more bites.

 

The ice cream was cold in his mouth, with the sweet taste of osmanthus honey and the lingering flavor of rich milk. There seemed to be crushed nuts inside, and he couldn’t tell what they were, but it was delicious.

 

He wanted more.

 

Ning Qinghong remained unmoved.

 

Wu Jing tugged at him again, “Brother, Wuwu is good.”

 

Ning Qinghong said, “Wuwu is not being good now.”

 

Wu Jing lowered his head, feeling unhappy, and murmured softly, “Oh.”

 

Ning Qinghong said, “Next time.”

 

Wu Jing cheered up again.

 

He didn’t realize that with just one sentence from Ning Qinghong, he would start looking forward again, and with a few words, his emotions would fluctuate.

 

After finishing breakfast, Fuchen approached, “Master, will you return to the mansion or submit the documents to the study?”

 

Ning Qinghong said, “To the study.”

 

Wu Jing knew he would have to follow along. He was about to go when he remembered something and turned to look at the crippled little stray dog that had been quietly curled up in the arms of the attendant since being taken away.

 

He didn’t know what it was afraid of,

 

so quiet.

 

When it had been playing with him in the imperial garden before, it had been very lively. Wu Jing felt a little worried and hesitated for a moment before tugging at Ning Qinghong’s sleeve, “Brother,” he pointed, “the dog.”

 

Ning Qinghong smiled faintly, “Does Your Majesty remember? That’s a stray dog from the imperial garden, unattended and untamed. It would be bad if it hurt someone.” He said, “Brother will have someone take it back, okay?”

 

Wu Jing stubbornly pursed his lips.

 

Ning Qinghong smiled knowingly, “Wuwu, why aren’t you speaking?”

 

How could he not see the emperor’s unwillingness?

 

If he had known, he wouldn’t have asked. Who knew that just one sentence from the nine-thousand-year-old would lead to someone rushing to deal with the dog.

 

He felt anxious.

 

Wu Jing tried to think of a solution and tentatively let go of Ning Qinghong’s sleeve. He stared at the man’s cuff and carefully reached out his hand, circling Ning Qinghong’s fingers, then looked up at him, shaking his hand slightly, “Brother.”

 

The last time he held this man’s hand, he became very easy to talk to. He didn’t know why this time, it was just a little dog, why didn’t he let him hold it.

 

Was he afraid the dog would bark?

 

But just now, the dog hadn’t made a sound.

 

Ning Qinghong pressed his smiling brows, hesitated for a moment, and then, as if helpless, said, “Wuwu can keep it by his side.”

 

“But you can’t touch it.”

 

“Otherwise, don’t hold Brother’s hand.”

 

Not allowed to touch the little dog?

 

What a strange request.

 

Was he afraid the dog’s fur would get on his freshly changed clothes? But Ning Qinghong didn’t seem so repulsed when he held them earlier, did he?

 

Wu Jing nodded dazedly.