Chapter 038 – His Majesty wants to celebrate a Spring Hunt

Xue Yuan had never felt this way.

Even when he applied medicine for the Emperor, Xue Yuan had only thought that the young Emperor’s skin was as tender as tofu. But now, seeing Gu Yuanbai revealing a completely different side from his usual cruelty, Xue Yuan felt his scalp tingling as if his head was going to explode.

They were all men, but, like jade, his thing was completely different from Xue Yuan’s. He had always thought that everyone’s thing looked hideous, but, unexpectedly, Gu Yuanbai’s didn’t.

The Emperor was indeed made of jade, impeccably beautiful and precious in every way.

Xue Yuan took a step back, feeling a little hot. With strong restraint, he shifted his gaze away, returned to the wooden door, knocked on it and called out, “Your Majesty, this official is bringing tea.”

His brain kept saying, it’s pink, it’s actually pink.

Gu Yuanbai was startled and squeezed too hard with his hand. His expression twisted in pain for a moment and, after relaxing his hold, he ordered quietly, “Set it down.”

Xue Yuan was still a little dazed and didn’t hear this response.

Gu Yuanbai didn’t hear him walk away, and he was forced to stop. When he turned his head to look, he saw a black shadow standing outside the door. The black shadow was tall and standing in front of the door like a guardian statue.

Gu Yuanbai was stuck in such a position, still feeling heated, and he reluctantly asked, “Xue Yuan?”

Xue Yuan said without thinking, “It’s very beautiful.”

Gu Yuanbai: “?”

Gu Yuanbai asked, “What? ”

Xue Yuan came back to his senses in an instant. He looked at the wooden door, and he thought he spotted the young Emperor1 through the lattice. He was crazy. He had to be crazy. He actually thought that the thing the Emperor was playing with was more expensive and precious than fondling a bar of jade.

It should be warm… so there really are men that look pink and tender like that…

He coughed heavily and said, “Your Majesty’s voice sounds off, are you feeling uncomfortable?”

Gu Yuanbai looked down at his hand and said, “…it’s nothing, step back.”

Xue Yuan turned around, took a few steps, and sensed that something was wrong when he was about to step out of the palace door. He looked down and realized that he was still carrying the freshly brewed tea in his arms.

Xue Yuan stood there in silence for a while, then went back and put the tea in front of the door, and then strode out of the palace.

When Gu Yuanbai got out of the bath, half an hour had passed. He was wearing a robe, and the palace attendant outside was called in to wait on him. Once he was neatly dressed and the water in his hair had been wiped off, the sun outside had moved to the west.

As soon as the Emperor walked out of the palace gate, Xue Yuan looked over and saw that the parts of the Emperor’s white skin that were visible had turned red from the steam. Xue Yuan felt his head explode again and went completely red.

Among all the guards, his expression was the strangest. Gu Yuanbai looked sideways and remembered the pot of tea he had placed in front of the door, so he lazily said, “Official Xue, go and get the pot of tea you brought me and bring it back.”

Xue Yuan replied, “Yes.”

He walked quickly to the hall and, within a few breaths, he found the pot of tea next to the door. Xue Yuan picked up the tea and looked at the bath inside the door. Its sweet scent reached him.

Xue Yuan couldn’t help himself and wondered whether that pale noodle had also been steamed by the hot water.

…Xue Jiuyao, it’s none of your business whether the young Emperor is pink or not.

Xue Yuan walked out carrying the drink with a cold face.

Gu Yuanbai took a few sips and his dry lips finally felt better. He had just gotten off. What was a pleasant surprise was the fact that, although his thing was tender and not very big, it had great stamina, which at least let Gu Yuanbai have some self esteem as a man.

He returned to the palace in a good mood. The day’s affairs had been processed ahead of schedule, and Gu Yuanbai took out a document to read it. After a while, he suddenly thought of something. “Is this year’s Spring Hunt happening soon?”

Tian Fusheng replied quietly, “There is still about half a month to go.”

Gu Yuanbai smiled and said, “We haven’t gone hunting for a long time, government affairs have kept Us too busy. Even We want to relax.”

Tian Fusheng couldn’t help but say, “Your Majesty, the imperial doctor asked you not to think too hard. How can you endure staying busy all day long?”

If the Emperor’s body were healthy, Tian Fusheng would never dare say such a thing, trying to convince His Majesty not to be too diligent. However, the Emperor was weak and prone to getting sick, and such a busy schedule would wreck him.

Gu Yuanbai smiled and said, “Let’s arrange the rules of Spring Hunting.” The Emperor switched topics, and Tian Fusheng could do nothing but step back and arrange for someone to place the Spring Hunt on the agenda.

The Spring Hunt and the Autumn Hunt had a specific set of regulations since ancient times, and implementing them didn’t cause much trouble. The Imperial Army set off ten days in advance to secure the mountain and ensure there’d be nothing that might threaten the Emperor’s safety.

The Spring Hunt was supposed to take place in March, but the examinations had been held in March that year, so it was postponed. Now it was May, and the spring wasn’t over yet. The breeze was very pleasant, neither too cold nor too hot, and it was a good time for hunting.

Naturally, the entirety of the court followed the Emperor’s orders.

The Spring Hunt was a grand hunt in an enclosed area. There were requirements for all the Imperial family members and officials of the court who could participate. A few days ago, everyone at the palace had been afraid to speak up or even breathe. First, they were frightened by the matter with Prince Qi and the Imperial Censor, and then by seeing how those that spoke up in Prince Qi’s favor were sent to rural posts. These days there seemed to be a heavy rock crushing them, and everyone behaved cautiously with their words and actions, fearing committing a grave mistake.

And such an atmosphere wouldn’t be conducive to the stability of the court.

Therefore, Gu Yuanbai proposed the Spring Hunt. Another purpose was to ease the relationship between the Emperor and his courtiers, so as to have them worry less.

The idea worked well. As soon as the news came out, the capital became lively, and various government offices began to speed up various proceedings to make time for the Spring Hunt.

And Chu Wei, who had been shoved into the Imperial Censor’s office, became as busy as Kong Yilin.

Their official positions were still part of the Imperial Academy, and their current workload could be considered just a part-time job granted by the Emperor. Even so, they were very satisfied doing one more job with just one salary.

Gu Yuanbai appreciated their mentality a lot. Look, look at these ancient workers. They didn’t get tired working more and being paid less. They’re willing to work 996 and 007 every day,2 employees like that in the modern era would be crushed by their boss until they died.

That day, Chu Wei had arrived to meet with the Emperor and tell Gu Yuanbai about the situation with the Imperial Censor. He spoke carefully and even analyzed diverse factions around the previous Impecial Censor, and found them and split them apart one by one. Some were punished, some were praised, and official posts were granted, real or false, at high and low levels, as a means to implement checks and balances.

It had to be said that his words were very reasonable. Even though Gu Yuanbai already had plans to deal with the department, he couldn’t help but beam at him.

Chu Wei’s talent was sharp and useful once he started to find the right direction.

Gu Yuanbai listened with a smile, and then said, “Official Chu, you’ve worked hard.”

Chu Wei smiled slightly, his face looking like a calm spring breeze, and he calmly said, “This is simply my duty as an official.”

That statement was clearly false. Chu Wei’s father didn’t have a high position, and even after the issue with the water he was transferred to the Ministry of Works and assigned a position that was just for show. He never had the ambition to improve his status.

The Water Department of the Ministry of Works was more powerful than the Ministry of Rites. They were in charge of controlling the weirs and dams, together with the local lords, and they were able to determine the water level and canal waterways for farming using the government degrees. And because Chu Xun was a peaceful man, he couldn’t be of much help to his son. One had to wonder how much effort Chu Wei needed to figure things out so clearly.

Gu Yuanbai said warmly, “Official Chu, you did a good job.” The young Emperor’s words were soft, and Chu Wei couldn’t help feeling taken aback. In his memory, the Emperor had only spoken to him in such a gentle voice once.

…It was the time he had been tied to the Imperial bed.

Chu Wei’s ears blushed subtly, and he lowered his eyes and said, “As long as I can share the Emperor’s worries, then it’s all good.”

Beauties are pleasing to look at, especially talented ones. Gu Yuanbai took Chu Wei with him for a walk to the Imperial Gardens as a show of favor.

Chu Wei’s poems and prose were also superb. The six arts of gentlemen are all first-rate. Seeing the Emperor smile among the flowers and plants, he couldn’t help but ask, “Your Majesty, would you allow me to make a painting of you?”

Gu Yuanbai felt amused. “A painting of Us?”

Chu Wei nodded.

Gu Yuanbai thought for a moment and realized he hadn’t gotten any portraits done yet, so he asked Tian Fusheng to bring a chair, find a background full of flowers, and he sat down leisurely.

The palace attendants brought painting tools to Chu Wei. Every sheet of paper was precious, and every pigment was bright and beautiful. The palace attendants stood on both sides, quietly watching Chu Wei painting.

The Emperor had a smile on his pale lips, eyes bright and divine, between his eyebrows was his confidence in the power in his hands. This confidence and power were so appealing it made a beautiful jade seem like a pile of dust, full of energy and capable of catching everyone’s eye.

Interestingly, even though the young Emperor didn’t have good health, he looked very alive. Some people are perfectly healthy, but they always look lifeless. The bright and fiery air unique to the Emperor was like a blazing flame.

With many thoughts in his mind, Chu Wei picked up a slender brush, dipped it with water and light ink, and scribbled out a sketch.

As the sun moved westward, the warm light covered the Emperor in gold. Chu Wei raised his head to look at him, and then lowered his head to draw a stroke. He had a serious look on his face, but Xue Yuan always felt that he was pursuing public affairs.

Every time Chu Wei glanced at the young Emperor, Xue Yuan felt that he was ill-intentioned. He drew the young Emperor’s brows and eyes on the paper, which had to mean that he had licked the young Emperor’s brows and eyes with his own gaze.

Then there were the eyes of the Emperor.

Xue Yuan held the hilt of the sword at his waist with a smile on his face.

The retainers in his mansion had informed him of the results of investigating Chu Wei last time, and he did not find anything about Chu Wei having a preference for men. Xue Yuan didn’t believe the bullshit they found. So he doesn’t like men?

So someone that doesn’t like men can deliberately hold the Emperor’s waist before him?

He sneered, thinking that it wasn’t that Chu Wei didn’t like men, but that the one he liked was the Lord of the Imperial Throne, so he didn’t dare to say anything.

Chu Wei fixed his gaze on the Emperor’s face for a little bit and then looked away to continue painting. There was no need for the Emperor to sit there all the time. It was too exhausting after all. Chu Wei jotted down the scene in his brain, and suggested to Gu Yuanbai to get up and walk away. If he forgot something, he could just look up and look at the Emperor.

”
”
It took time to complete a good painting, and the portrait was still unfinished by the time they had to leave. With the Emperor’s permission, Chu Wei could take it back to his manor and present it once it was finished.

When leaving the palace, Chu Wei and Xue Yuan walked out of the palace one after the other.

A carriage owned by the Chu family was waiting outside the palace gates, and Xue Yuan rode a horse. Xue Yuan passed by Chu Wei’s carriage. Chu Wei looked at him coldly, full of disgust.

And Xue Yuan, who had passed by Chu Wei’s carriage, had already stopped smiling, thinking with a blank expression about how to teach Chu Wei a lesson.

There’s always some people with ambitions that go higher than the sky, and they dare to think about things that shouldn’t be thought of.

Without being taught a lesson, he won’t know his worth.

Xue Yuan thought about bloody ideas with a neutral expression while riding his horse very slowly. He only snapped back to his senses when he passed by a jade store.

…inevitably, he thought of something pink.

His scalp suddenly felt numb.