The Sickly Seedling Dresses Up As An Unfortunate And Muddled Monarch - Chapter 11

Whether his face was red or not, Yi Yuan didn’t know, but he was indeed quite irritated now.

 

For the past decade or so, he had been diligently studying for his imperial examinations, aspiring to carry on the legacy of the sages and bring peace to the world. So, when his parents sent maidservants to attend to him, he never even touched them, pretending not to see.

 

But even so, it didn’t mean he was ignorant of matters of love and romance, or that he hadn’t secretly read some romance novels out of curiosity. Subconsciously, he still understood some of the flirtatious words and gestures.

 

So, every time he heard Qiu Junyao say these ambiguous words to him, his heart would inexplicably skip a beat, and he would subconsciously ponder.

 

However, Qiu Junyao’s expression when saying those words was too sincere, so sincere that Yi Yuan almost felt as if he were bathed in a layer of sacred purity, illuminating the dirtiness within his own heart.

 

Could it be that he was just overthinking?

 

Yi Yuan lowered his head in confusion, only to meet Qiu Junyao’s sprawled sleeping posture.

 

…Great, the dog emperor was once again comfortably sleeping on his thigh.

 

Yi Yuan gritted his teeth in frustration, wondering if he was a cushion for Qiu Junyao, how come Qiu Junyao fell asleep as soon as he lay on him?

 

Actually, it wasn’t Qiu Junyao’s fault. The ancient work schedule was just too cruel, leaving him exhausted. As the emperor, Qiu Junyao had to rise before dawn, and unlike the ministers who could take leave, Qiu Junyao couldn’t. He had to attend court every day, work until late at night, and by the time he finished his bath and crawled into bed, Qiu Junyao could barely keep his eyes open.

 

But fortunately, this high-intensity lifestyle didn’t last long. Five days later, Qiu Junyao had his first day off.

 

It was the first time in Qiu Junyao’s life that he wasn’t woken up before dawn.

 

He slept until past nine, waking up amidst the aroma of food.

 

Turning around, he didn’t feel the familiar warmth beside him, and he groggily opened his eyes:

 

“Yi Yuan?”

 

“Your Majesty?”

 

Lai Fu had been waiting by Qiu Junyao’s side, and upon hearing him speak, immediately bowed and asked:

 

“Are you getting up, Your Majesty?”

 

Qiu Junyao suddenly startled, fully awake now, realizing who he had just called out for. He regretted it immediately and hurriedly asked:

 

“What about the Empress?”

 

“Her Majesty is in the front hall receiving greetings from the noble ladies and the princes.”

 

“Oh…”

 

Hearing these still somewhat unfamiliar terms, the just-awakened Qiu Junyao was suddenly stunned.

 

His hazy mind gradually regained some rationality, slowly recalling that he was now a sickly emperor, not an ordinary high school student.

 

With this in mind, for some reason, Qiu Junyao suddenly felt a hint of loss creeping in.

 

Perhaps he was reminiscing about the country where he never had to worry about his personal safety, or perhaps he was longing for his passionately free student life, or perhaps he was missing those kind-hearted people who had warmed his life.

 

Qiu Junyao had been too busy saving his life before, so he hadn’t had time to think about those people or things that had once been so important to him. Now, suddenly remembering them, he felt a inexplicable pang of discomfort in his heart.

 

Seeing Qiu Junyao staring blankly, lost in thought, Lai Fu became somewhat worried.

 

He intended to quietly remind Qiu Junyao, but he couldn’t be sure if Qiu Junyao wanted to continue sleeping or get up for breakfast, so he could only accompany Qiu Junyao in silence.

 

Both the master and servant harbored their own thoughts, and neither of them spoke.

 

So when Yin Yuan returned to the inner hall, what he saw was such a scene—

 

Qiu Junyao sat on the edge of the bed as if his soul had been drained, while Lai Fu looked at him with a worried expression. When he saw Yin Yuan, he seemed to see a savior and quickly greeted:

 

“Your Majesty.”

 

“What’s wrong with His Majesty?” Yin Yuan carefully examined Qiu Junyao’s expression. “Is he feeling unwell again?”

 

“The servant doesn’t know.” Lai Fu bowed, his brows furrowed in worry. “As soon as His Majesty woke up, he called out for you. Seeing you weren’t here, he became like this, completely lost.”

 

He called my name?!

 

And he became completely lost when he saw I wasn’t here?!

 

For some reason, Yin Yuan’s heart suddenly skipped a beat.

 

His heart was like a disturbed pool of water, beating so fast it was frightening. He felt a rush of blood to his head, his mind went blank, and his ears rang. All he could think about was this one sentence, written in bold and capitalized letters—

 

He became completely lost when he saw I wasn’t here?

 

Yin Yuan’s body stiffened, and he lowered his eyes, almost staggering to Qiu Junyao’s side, as if he had to move in sync with him.

 

He crouched down, looking up at Qiu Junyao’s dejected expression, and before he could even think, he blurted out:

 

“Your Majesty, I’m here.”

 

“……..Hmm.” Qiu Junyao was brought back to his senses by Yin Yuan’s words.

 

Looking at Yin Yuan’s eager expression, Qiu Junyao suddenly thought of the kitten he had raised at home before crossing over.

 

It was also like Yin Yuan, with big round eyes, as beautiful as a delicate little princess, but with a bad temper, taking a long time to tame.

 

Thinking of the pet cat he used to have at home, a faint smile appeared on Qiu Junyao’s face involuntarily.

 

He subconsciously reached out and brushed the stray hair from Yin Yuan’s forehead, his voice unintentionally becoming softer:

 

“Where did you just go?”

 

“I went to the front hall. Today, all the palace ladies and princes came to pay their respects.”

 

Yin Yuan nuzzled Qiu Junyao’s palm with his cheek, glanced at Qiu Junyao, and said cautiously:

 

“The ladies have all left, but several princes are still outside and want to see Your Majesty.”

 

“I don’t want to see them.” Qiu Junyao frowned. “What do they want again?”

 

“The Crown Prince said he recently wrote a strategy and wants to show it to Your Majesty. The Second Prince doesn’t have much to say, just wants to play chess alone with Your Majesty, and the Fourth Prince stayed behind because he saw the Second Prince staying in the palace.”

 

“Chess?”

 

Qiu Junyao was puzzled. “But I don’t know how to play…?”

 

The character “qi” got stuck in Yin Yuan’s puzzled expression, but was then swallowed by Qiu Junyao just in time, narrowly avoiding a disaster.

 

His brain was racing at this moment, and for some reason, his expression became somewhat unpleasant.

 

However, Yin Yuan was still unaware of the sudden change in Qiu Junyao’s expression and continued, “Your Majesty’s chess skills are renowned throughout the Great End, and giving some guidance to the Second Prince shouldn’t be difficult.”

 

Damn it, Qiu Junyao thought: he doesn’t know how to play chess at all!

 

Why did the Second Prince suddenly propose to play chess at this juncture? Did he notice something unusual in Qiu Junyao’s recent behavior and specially come to test him?

 

With this in mind, Qiu Junyao suddenly stood up, paced around anxiously, and after a moment, clenched his fist and turned to Lai Fu, saying:

 

“Go tell the Second Prince.”

 

Qiu Junyao continued, “I heard recently that there’s a skilled artisan in the common folk who handmade a pair of pink and white jade chess pieces. Tell the Second Prince to find them. I will play chess with him as soon as he finds that set.”

 

In the original work, these pink and white jade chess pieces were actually sought by the Second Prince to cheer up Yin Yuan.

 

Yin Yuan had been melancholic because she had married a frail old emperor, so the Second Prince specifically found a pair of pink and white jade chess pieces to delight Yin Yuan. Their relationship also deepened through occasional chess matches.

 

However, these jade chess pieces were hard to find, and the Second Prince had searched for a long time before finding them, almost letting the eldest brother snatch them away and win over Yin Yuan’s heart.

 

Fortunately, Qiu Junyao had read the original work, so this move not only avoided the Second Prince’s probe and gave himself an opportunity, but also prevented Qiujing from using this move to get close to Yin Yuan in the future.

 

After instructing Lai Fu, Qiu Junyao sent the princes back to the palace.

 

Because of the morning incident, Qiu Junyao’s mood was not good. Seeing this, Yin Yuan suggested that Qiu Junyao take a walk in the Imperial Garden to relax.

 

Coincidentally, the snowstorm outside the palace walls had also stopped, and the orchids in the Imperial Garden were blooming profusely, resembling blue waves on the sea, creating a magnificent scene.

 

Qiu Junyao loved to play, so after some thought, he agreed.

 

However, with the emperor and empress strolling together, the Imperial Garden, which was not very large to begin with, became crowded with people. Feeling uncomfortable with so many people around, Qiu Junyao didn’t want to be seen, so he dismissed the attendants and only left Yin Yuan to accompany him.

 

With no one else around, the two walked together for a long time until Qiu Junyao reached an especially lush orchid and casually picked it, saying:

 

“You’ve been watching me since you woke up.”

 

Qiu Junyao asked, “Do you have something to tell me?”

 

Yin Yuan was caught off guard by the direct question and blushed slightly. After a moment, he forced himself to remain calm and said:

 

“Actually, it’s nothing.”

 

Yin Yuan looked directly at Qiu Junyao and said, “It’s just that I feel Your Majesty has changed a lot recently.”

 

“You seem different, not like the previous Your Majesty.”

 

“And whose fault is that?” Qiu Junyao raised his head, looked at Yin Yuan, and smiled.

 

“Anyone who has escaped from the gates of hell three or four times would change.”

 

The character “qi” got stuck in Yin Yuan’s puzzled expression, but was then swallowed by Qiu Junyao just in time, narrowly avoiding a disaster.

 

His brain was racing at this moment, and for some reason, his expression became somewhat unpleasant.

 

However, Yin Yuan was still unaware of the sudden change in Qiu Junyao’s expression and continued, “Your Majesty’s chess skills are renowned throughout the Great End, and giving some guidance to the Second Prince shouldn’t be difficult.”

 

Damn it, Qiu Junyao thought: he doesn’t know how to play chess at all!

 

Why did the Second Prince suddenly propose to play chess at this juncture? Did he notice something unusual in Qiu Junyao’s recent behavior and specially come to test him?

 

With this in mind, Qiu Junyao suddenly stood up, paced around anxiously, and after a moment, clenched his fist and turned to Lai Fu, saying:

 

“Go tell the Second Prince.”

 

Qiu Junyao continued, “I heard recently that there’s a skilled artisan in the common folk who handmade a pair of pink and white jade chess pieces. Tell the Second Prince to find them. I will play chess with him as soon as he finds that set.”

 

In the original work, these pink and white jade chess pieces were actually sought by the Second Prince to cheer up Yin Yuan.

 

Yin Yuan had been melancholic because she had married a frail old emperor, so the Second Prince specifically found a pair of pink and white jade chess pieces to delight Yin Yuan. Their relationship also deepened through occasional chess matches.

 

However, these jade chess pieces were hard to find, and the Second Prince had searched for a long time before finding them, almost letting the eldest brother snatch them away and win over Yin Yuan’s heart.

 

Fortunately, Qiu Junyao had read the original work, so this move not only avoided the Second Prince’s probe and gave himself an opportunity, but also prevented Qiujing from using this move to get close to Yin Yuan in the future.

 

After instructing Lai Fu, Qiu Junyao sent the princes back to the palace.

 

Because of the morning incident, Qiu Junyao’s mood was not good. Seeing this, Yin Yuan suggested that Qiu Junyao take a walk in the Imperial Garden to relax.

 

Coincidentally, the snowstorm outside the palace walls had also stopped, and the orchids in the Imperial Garden were blooming profusely, resembling blue waves on the sea, creating a magnificent scene.

 

Qiu Junyao loved to play, so after some thought, he agreed.

 

However, with the emperor and empress strolling together, the Imperial Garden, which was not very large to begin with, became crowded with people. Feeling uncomfortable with so many people around, Qiu Junyao didn’t want to be seen, so he dismissed the attendants and only left Yin Yuan to accompany him.

 

With no one else around, the two walked together for a long time until Qiu Junyao reached an especially lush orchid and casually picked it, saying:

 

“You’ve been watching me since you woke up.”

 

Qiu Junyao asked, “Do you have something to tell me?”

 

Yin Yuan was caught off guard by the direct question and blushed slightly. After a moment, he forced himself to remain calm and said:

 

“Actually, it’s nothing.”

 

Yin Yuan looked directly at Qiu Junyao and said, “It’s just that I feel Your Majesty has changed a lot recently.”

 

“You seem different, not like the previous Your Majesty.”

 

“And whose fault is that?” Qiu Junyao raised his head, looked at Yin Yuan, and smiled.

 

“Anyone who has escaped from the gates of hell three or four times would change.”

 

Qi mean Chess in chinese