Becoming Puppet Emperor of a Paranoid Eunuch - Chapter 16

This time, Wu Jing was not taken to the small compartment in the study room. 

 

He was even led to the dragon throne.

 

He was the true emperor of Da Zhou, but at this moment, he dared not sit down tremblingly. With a pretend-to-be-innocent face, he foolishly asked, “Brother, sit here?”

 

Meaning, isn’t this the place where Brother usually sits? Why ask him to sit here?

 

The scene of the emperor gesturing for him to sit on the dragon throne was simply laughable, but the courtiers in the study room all acted as if they were blind, deaf, and mute.

 

Even Fuchen was perfectly natural about this scene.

 

A glimpse into the hearts of wolves and tigers can reveal their intentions.

 

Ning Qinghong had a smile on his face, but his tone brooked no resistance, “Sit.”

 

Wu Jing sat down uneasily.

 

The wooden dragon throne, decorated with gold carvings, was very spacious. With cushions laid out, after he sat down, there were still many empty spaces behind and on both sides of him. So he shifted over, leaving the middle position vacant, and moved closer to the dragon body carved on the armrest, leaning slightly towards Ning Qinghong’s side.

 

Like a fledgling bird seeking refuge, even a fool knows who to stay close to for safety and comfort.

 

Ning Qinghong comforted him, “Wuwu, if you’re bored, you can take a nap.”

 

Wu Jing nodded blankly.

 

Even though he was sitting in the main seat, the one actually in power was still Ning Qinghong. Wu Jing watched as the palace attendants rearranged all the utensils on the table, placing them towards Ning Qinghong’s side where he sat in the position of the Grand Preceptor.

 

The study room’s desk was very large, with documents piled up on the side, but even if they were piled up on the side, they didn’t seem to bother Ning Qinghong’s space.

 

When Ning Qinghong really got busy, Wu Jing had nothing to do. Some tea, snacks, and fruits were brought in front of him, but he wasn’t hungry.

 

He couldn’t play with the dog.

 

And unlike in the past, when he could secretly read extracurricular books while in school.

 

Wu Jing started fidgeting out of boredom again.

 

Ning Qinghong didn’t hesitate to spread out the documents on the table, and he didn’t even glance at them with any covetous intent.

 

Fuchen inexplicably remembered the phrase “judge others’ minds with a villain’s heart”, which the master said for no reason last time in the study room. Then he looked at the young emperor playing with his hands and inexplicably felt relieved.

 

After several intentional or unintentional attempts by the master, a quick glance revealed that this emperor was indeed a fool.

 

Sure enough, not long after, the master made a gesture and asked him to summon the hidden spies from the Imperial Guards stationed in the capital.

 

Wu Jing saw a man dressed as a guard coming up, still somewhat curious, and saw that the ordinary-looking man didn’t say a word, knelt down directly in front of Ning Qinghong, and began to report in a low voice.

 

“In the seventh month of the Xinnian year of Xianning, Gongbu Right Assistant Minister Yu Zhengde was transferred to the Dushui Supervisory Office of Qianzhong County. That night, he hosted a banquet at his residence. Gongbu Water Department Assistant Minister Kong Gaoxuan, Household Department Revenue Department Assistant Minister Ma Yan, Left Minister’s son, Lu Liang, and the palace attendant… came to see him off, dispersed after the fourth hour, and the next day, in the seventh month of the Xinnian year of Xianning, on the day of Renzhu, at the hour of the dragon, at the corner tower of the West Xuanmen, the Left Minister came alone to see him off…”

 

“At the same time, the disaster relief matter was discussed by the Cabinet, and it was decided to let the Revenue Department Treasury Department Assistant Minister… That night, he…”

 

Wu Jing started to listen attentively at first, but later he became more and more drowsy. Separated like this, he could understand every word, but when put together, it all turned into unfamiliar words to him.

 

What is Xianning? Is it the reign title?

 

What is Xinyou? Is it a day of the month? But he doesn’t remember the lunar calendar, and he has no idea when it is.

 

“What is Qianzhong Commandery? Last time, wasn’t it related to the Right Assistant Minister and the matter in Jiangnan?”

 

“What are those official positions? What role do they play in the court? Who are the people behind those official positions? I only have a vague impression, and I need to follow this person’s information to continue to deduce his network of connections.”

 

Forget about guarding against him; even Wu Jing, sitting here listening attentively to everything, couldn’t understand a single word.

 

But Ning Qinghong, while reviewing the documents, could occasionally respond and raise some doubts, prompting the spy to report more detailed information.

 

Compared to this person, Wu Jing felt embarrassed to claim he wasn’t foolish.

 

Ning Qinghong even found time to, after reviewing the documents, prioritize urgent matters and instruct Fuchen to submit important matters to the relevant departments and take action promptly.

 

Is he still human?

 

Wu Jing swallowed and continued fidgeting with his hands.

 

He didn’t know what they would have for lunch later, if there would be any other delicious food for dinner, if the dog would accompany him to sleep tonight… so boring.

 

Ah, feeling sleepy.

 

Would he be caught if he took a nap?

 

When it was time for lunch, even though the spy hadn’t finished reporting the events of the past ten days, Ning Qinghong still stopped writing, got up, and had Fuchen wake up the emperor who had fallen asleep on the table.

 

These matters were not urgent. Otherwise, even if Ning Qinghong was sick, he would still take care of them. It’s just that at that time, out of sight, out of mind, he didn’t want to bother, but now he was in the mood to handle all the piled-up matters one by one, and to warn those who conspired and embezzled.

 

Then there was suddenly a lot of work.

 

Wu Jing opened his eyes drowsily, rubbed them, subconsciously reached for Ning Qinghong’s sleeve, still not fully awake. Occasionally, when Ning Qinghong looked back, he would see the young emperor with his eyes closed, his head still nodding, half asleep and half following him.

 

Ning Qinghong chuckled, “Lift your foot, we’re about to step over the threshold.”

 

Wu Jing murmured, “Oh,” somewhat clearer now, and looked up at him, “Wuwu lifted it.”

 

After lunch, they didn’t rest.

 

The emperor was like a little tail behind Ning Qinghong. Wu Jing watched as Ning Qinghong strolled leisurely in the imperial garden for almost half an hour, admiring the scenery and sitting in the pavilion drinking tea while reading a half of a leisure book.

 

After resting for about two hours, they returned to the study room, and then there were the troublesome matters left over from the morning.

 

This person is so strange. Clearly very busy, but not in a hurry to finish everything, instead spending a lot of time to indulge his own emotions.

 

Wu Jing had nothing to do but stare curiously at Ning Qinghong, but he didn’t dare to look too openly.

 

He was like a small animal that had just moved into someone else’s house.

 

At first, because everything was unfamiliar, he didn’t dare to move rashly, eating and sleeping timidly, slowly familiarizing himself with the new home in his own way. Then, he touched here and there, testing where he could play and what he could do.

 

Wu Jing didn’t dare to sleep when he felt drowsy in the morning, but by the afternoon, he had skillfully moved his teacup to another place, leaving a small space in front of him. He then propped his head on the cool table with his own broad sleeve and closed his eyes.

 

The spy’s report had become his lullaby.

 

Not long after he fell asleep, he was awakened by the voices of several people stacked together, “Greetings, Lord Ning.” Following closely was another sentence, “Greetings, Your Majesty.”

 

Wu Jing’s hand was numb from pressing it against his face. He blinked dazedly, seeing a group of ministers kneeling under the imperial desk, almost feeling like he was back on the day when the Left Minister was about to hit the pillar in the study room.

 

Thinking he had had a nightmare, he subconsciously reached out to tug on Ning Qinghong’s sleeve. He was afraid, but there was nowhere to escape. It seemed that only by throwing himself into Ning Qinghong’s arms could he find a trace of safety.

 

Seeing the emperor leaning towards him, Ning Qinghong gestured for them to stand up first, then patiently reassured the pale-faced Wu Jing, “It’s okay, big brother is here.”

 

Wu Jing blinked his eyelids, still showing traces of being startled awake, and murmured vaguely, “Big brother.”

 

Ning Qinghong half embraced Wu Jing, patted him on the back of his neck, and whispered softly, “What is the emperor afraid of? Did you have a nightmare?”

 

There were still several ministers kneeling under the imperial desk.

 

Ning Qinghong could only continue to lower his voice, using a tone that only they could hear, “It’s okay.”

 

“Wuwu, are you sleepy? Go back to sleep.”

 

“Would it be uncomfortable to sleep with your head on the table?”

 

Wu Jing regained some consciousness, realizing that the spy had left and the documents on the table had been cleared. It seemed that they had finished reviewing.

 

He slowly let go of Ning Qinghong, not daring to look up to meet the gaze of the ministers below. He followed Ning Qinghong’s irresistible force and lay down on the dragon throne.

 

Ning Qinghong leaned over and spread the thin quilt that had been draped over the young emperor by the eunuch earlier, carefully covering Wu Jing. “Lie down and sleep, be good,” he said softly.

 

At the same time, the eunuch knelt down and removed the emperor’s shoes and socks.

 

Wu Jing curled up under the blanket, still holding onto Ning Qinghong’s sleeve, unable to fall asleep completely.

 

He couldn’t shake off the thought: What mischief is this man up to now?

 

The ministers stood with bowed heads, and with curtains covering the underside of the imperial desk, Wu Jing was invisible to everyone except Ning Qinghong and the attending eunuch.

 

Before long, the voices of Ning Qinghong and the ministers discussing matters filled the room. Listening anxiously, Wu Jing realized that the discussions were unrelated to him. They seemed to be reviewing recent court affairs, reiterating decrees that had been issued days ago, ensuring that everything was in order.

 

Gradually, Wu Jing felt relieved, but he was no longer sleepy. He quietly raised his head to observe Ning Qinghong, who was lounging on the Grand Preceptor’s chair in a relaxed posture, occasionally tapping his finger on the armrest with no particular rhythm.

 

Most of the time, it was the ministers who spoke the most, while Ning Qinghong remained relatively quiet, only occasionally interjecting with a smile. He never deliberately embarrassed anyone and handled each matter with ease.

 

In the midst of it all, Ning Qinghong noticed the young emperor playing with the sleeve of his robe.

 

Wu Jing felt Ning Qinghong’s gaze and looked up to see him smiling faintly, silently saying three words: “Not listening, huh?”

 

Before Wu Jing could react, everything went black.

 

Ning Qinghong had gently brushed his brow with his hand, coaxing him to sleep.

 

Author’s Note:

 

Wuwu: Slacking off in class

 

PS: “Xian Ning” is the current era name of Da Zhou(The Great Zhou). Because Wuwu ascended the throne, it’s referred to as “the first year.” In the text, “July Xinyou” corresponds to the 16th day of the current lunar month, which is the same as the present year. “Renzhu” is the 17th day. “Qianzhong Commandery” in the Qin and Han dynasties represents the Jiangnan region. “Dushui Jian” refers to managing waterways. The official positions mentioned in the text are a mix from various dynasties, so don’t read too much into them.