Becoming Puppet Emperor of a Paranoid Eunuch - Chapter 81

Wu Jing was unusually focused today, not daydreaming during class as he usually did. Instead, he skipped his nap and diligently wrote down the characters that the old tutor had taught him.

He managed to remember most of the simpler characters, but some of the obscure and complex ones were still difficult for him to recognize.

Since he hadn’t rested well during the nap, Wu Jing found himself dozing off after noon. He struggled to stay awake, forcing himself to write a few characters before succumbing to drowsiness again.

In a half-dreamy state, he heard the person sitting in front of him remind him, “Ning Jing? Ning Jing, the old tutor is looking at you.”

Wu Jing immediately woke up and straightened his posture.

After a while, the old tutor finally shifted his gaze away.

Wu Jing sighed in relief.

The person in front of him, Ma Qingyang, who had previously introduced his name, slightly leaned back, pretending to look forward without turning around, and asked, “Why the sudden burst of diligence?”

The person sitting next to him, Meng Chao, also leaned back slightly and asked, “You didn’t take a nap after lunch, did you?”

Liu Cheng, who was sitting on the other side of the aisle, leaned in to listen but was too far away and afraid of being noticed by the old tutor, so the other two didn’t involve him.

Wu Jing replied softly, “Not really…”

He had indeed been focused on his studies.

The two were surprised because Wu Jing used to daydream often, and although he wasn’t exactly lazy, his attitude was more like, “I’ll learn if I can, but it’s not a big deal if I don’t.”

There was no need for him to rush.

There were no endless assignments or never-ending tests pressuring him, and he wouldn’t need to worry about his daily necessities in the future. He had everything he needed.

Learning slowly was fine.

After class, Wu Jing fell asleep on the desk. The servant was about to wake him but withdrew quietly, as the Prince was waiting outside the academy.

As the students of the academy gradually left, a carriage from the Ning family arrived and moved slowly towards the academy.

Wu Jing didn’t know how long he had been asleep until he was touched and suddenly woke up. He was soothed by the familiar scent near his nose and heard someone softly call, “Wu Wu?”

Sleepiness overcame him again.

The young man relaxed, nodded in a sleepy state, and in the next moment, he was unexpectedly picked up. As Wu Jing prepared to open his eyes again, he felt someone gently patting his back.

He soon fell back to sleep on Ning Qinghong’s shoulder.

Ning Qinghong held him face-to-face, supporting him under the buttocks, and covered him with a crane cloak to prevent Wu Jing from feeling embarrassed about attending class the next day.

His bright red official robes were still on him, standing out conspicuously among the otherwise plain attire of the academy.

A few students who had not yet left looked on with curiosity. They did not recognize Ning Qinghong’s identity, but seeing his official robes, they bowed their heads and stepped aside. They noticed that he was holding a boy completely covered by the cloak, revealing only a bit of dark hair and white skin. The intimacy between them was evident.

The students didn’t recognize Ning Qinghong, but the tutors did. They frequently called out “Lord Ning” every so often.

The academy’s dean arrived specially after hearing the news and said, “Greetings, Lord Ning. Why did you not inform us of your visit in advance? I was afraid I might not entertain you properly.”

Ning Qinghong smiled softly, “Dean, don’t joke. I am merely here to pick up my child. There’s no need to trouble yourself.”

Unlike the students, the dean did not dare to look at the person in Ning Qinghong’s arms. He only said, “If you are taking him, may I see you off?”

Ning Qinghong declined, “Please don’t disturb him.”

The dean quickly bowed, “Then I will take my leave.”

Ning Qinghong then continued his slow walk towards the academy gate.

Once Ning Qinghong’s figure was completely out of sight, the dean dared to straighten up, not even daring to imagine what had just happened, and hurried off to handle official documents.

Wu Jing was carried into the carriage and then back home, sleeping drowsily for almost an hour before being awakened.

“Wu Wu? It’s time for dinner.”

“Sleep Again Once Night Falls?”

Ning Qinghong’s actions to wake someone were remarkably gentle. He slowly stroked Wu Jing’s side face and used a soft voice, calling him several times before he finally woke the deeply sleeping youth.

After Wu Jing opened his eyes, he stared blankly for a long time, taking a while to realize that he was no longer in the academy but had returned home.

He looked up at the person in front of him, then down at his own position and the crane cloak still draped over him. His face flushed red from the neck up.

He couldn’t believe he had been carried back home by Ning Qinghong.

And that so many people had seen him along the way.

Just thinking about the crowds at the academy after the bell rang made Wu Jing wish he could bury himself in a hole.

He stuttered, “You, you, I—”

Ning Qinghong asked with a half-smile, “What’s wrong?”

Wu Jing didn’t know what else to say. He was the one who had been carried and slept on someone else, and there was no one else to blame.

“Alright, I specifically waited until everyone at the academy had left before coming to pick you up and let you sleep a bit longer.”

“Except for a few students who stayed behind, no one saw.”

Wu Jing still wasn’t fully reassured. “Then why did so many people greet you?” he had vaguely heard this in his sleep.

Ning Qinghong explained, “The tutors and officials at the academy, who recognize me, didn’t dare to look. And the crane cloak was covering you the whole time.”

“No one saw.”

He repeated it again.

Wu Jing slowly breathed a sigh of relief, and his flush began to fade. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Ning Qinghong say, “I heard from others that you were very tired because you didn’t rest at noon.”

He asked, “Why didn’t you sleep?”

Wu Jing attempted to explain, “At that time… I wasn’t tired.”

He managed to squeeze out those three words after much effort.

Ning Qinghong smiled, “Oh, really?”

Wu Jing nodded vigorously.

He was afraid Ning Qinghong would continue to question him, as this lie was clearly full of holes, but then he saw Ning Qinghong look resigned and say, “Don’t do that again.”

Wu Jing nodded, a bit dazed.

After this conversation, he went to have dinner.

At night, after Wu Jing had bathed, he went to bed early. However, since he had just slept not long ago, he couldn’t fall asleep right away.

But he still pretended to be asleep in Ning Qinghong’s arms.

He didn’t know how long it had been, but when he was almost falling asleep, he shook his head, glanced at the person beside him in the darkness, and then quietly got up.

Pretending to be getting up in the middle of the night, he managed to deceive the guards outside the bedroom. To avoid making noise, he didn’t wear his slippers and walked barefoot.

Fortunately, the red corridor was very clean.

A quarter of an hour, half an hour…

He still hadn’t returned.

Ning Qinghong got up with a sigh, put on a cloak, and went to look for him. He opened the bedroom door and asked, “Where is His Majesty?”

The servant immediately knelt down, “Your Majesty did not want anyone to follow. From the direction, it seems he went to the study.”

The study was not far from the bedroom, just a tea’s distance away.

When Ning Qinghong arrived, the study door was half open. Through the wide gap, he could see the dim yellow candlelight inside. He silently pushed the door open.

He saw Wu Jing leaning on the desk, lighting a lamp, and carefully reading something.

The youth was extremely tired, rubbing his eyes from time to time, struggling to stay focused on the book in his hand. He would ponder over the pen when he didn’t understand some characters.

He wrote down the unfamiliar characters to ask someone about them at the academy the next day and copied down what he thought were important sentences.

Even though Wu Jing could barely understand the characters, the obscure phrases were difficult for him to translate. His head nearly drooped from exhaustion, but he persisted in shaking his head, trying to keep reading.

Wu Jing was reading a medical book from the shelf in the study. Although it was just a random book he pulled out, and he didn’t even know the subject, he still sneaked out in the middle of the night to read it quietly.

“Wu Wu.”

A voice came from the door.

Wu Jing immediately panicked, hiding the medical book, blowing out the lamp, and not daring to move.

Ning Qinghong chuckled, “I’ve already seen you, come here.”

The youth reluctantly got up and walked over with his head down.

Ning Qinghong asked, “Why are you not sleeping in the middle of the night?”

Wu Jing instinctively lied, “I, I’m not tired.”

As soon as he said it, he regretted it. His eyes were red from sleepiness, and it was obvious he was lying. Wu Jing felt frustrated.

Ning Qinghong sighed lightly, “Really not tired?”

Wu Jing didn’t respond.

Ning Qinghong lifted Wu Jing’s face, “Wu Wu, look at me.”

Wu Jing’s eyes flickered, feeling guilty.

Ning Qinghong smiled helplessly, “How about we make a deal?”

Wu Jing looked up curiously.

“Every day, you eat your meals properly, sleep well, and don’t daydream or doze off at the academy. I’ll grant you one request every day. How does that sound?”

Wu Jing was puzzled, “But these are things I do every day.”

Everything seemed so ordinary and usual.

Wouldn’t it be unfair to use these for a deal?

“You can ask for anything you want,” Ning Qinghong said, “Anything.”

Wu Jing swallowed, not thinking about fairness, “Really? You won’t deceive me again?”

Ning Qinghong chuckled.

“I always keep my promises.”