SSEWC Chapter 35

The next day, a light snowfall graced the capital.

Adjacent to the streets, some dozen miles from the imperial city, stood a dignified and elegant mansion. Its red walls and black tiles were covered in a blanket of pristine white snow. Prominently engraved on the central plaque were the solemn characters “Wang Mansion”. Two meticulously carved stone lions guarded the entrance, presenting an imposing sight.

As the morning passed, the streets outside became lively, with occasional cries of peddlers and servants being heard.

At this moment, a sedan chair conveniently halted by the roadside. Wang Jingyuan extended his hand, parting the curtains, and with the assistance of his attendants, stepped out of the sedan chair gracefully.

At this moment, he had just concluded today’s morning court session.

Similar to yesterday, Wang Jingyuan once again employed his tried-and-true tactics in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, joining forces with the civil officials of the cabinet to exert pressure on the emperor.

He was curious to see how Wen Liangyu would resist the collective remonstrance of the ministers this time.

As for the choice of the empress, he had long had a plan in mind. Now, one could say that everything was in place, only awaiting the final nod.

As long as Wen Liangyu agreed, the empress and the future crown prince would undoubtedly be individuals associated with the Wang family.

With these thoughts in mind, Wang Jingyuan twirled his long beard and, assisted by his attendants, walked through the accumulated snow towards his residence.

However, as soon as he pushed open the mansion’s main gate,

“Master! You’ve finally returned!”

The steward of the mansion was already anxiously waiting there, his voice sounding somewhat shaky.

Upon seeing this, Wang Jingyuan’s heart skipped a beat. He raised his gaze towards the steward, his tone a bit uneasy, “Is the madam…”

While Wang Jingyuan held a commanding presence in the court, privately he had earned a unique nickname given by some. Throughout the capital, everyone knew of it. This distinctive title was “Old Turtle King”. Although it sounded like an insult, it actually referred to his tendency to be timid and cautious behind closed doors, much like a turtle retracting into its shell.

Within the Wang mansion, Wang Jingyuan’s wife, Lady Lin, was known for her firmness; she held Wang Jingyuan tightly in her grasp.

Wang Jingyuan had to report his whereabouts and return times to her daily, and his entire monthly salary had to be turned over to her.

Therefore, upon hearing the steward’s words, Wang Jingyuan’s initial reaction was that his wife, Lady Lin, had once again discovered something amiss and was ready to express her displeasure.

He could only silently pray in his heart that she hadn’t found out about his secret stash of money.

Just as Wang Jingyuan was lost in his thoughts, the steward abruptly interrupted him, “Master, no! Madam went to the temple to offer incense in the morning and hasn’t returned yet.”

“But, but…”

“But what? Spit it out!” Wang Jingyuan felt like he was being strung along, finding it hard to catch his breath. He urged the steward impatiently.

The steward’s face had almost turned as sour as a bitter gourd. He leaned in and whispered to Wang Jingyuan, “This morning, an unexpected guest arrived at the mansion. He’s someone not to be trifled with; even the juniors dared not stop him. And he didn’t come alone; he brought…”

Just then,

“I mentioned that this is a surprise specially left for Lord Wang,”

A deep male voice interrupted their conversation. Wang Jingyuan and the steward turned to look in the direction of the voice.

There stood He Heng, clad in a black jacket, at the edge of the eaves, smiling at both of them with an air of satisfaction.

His jacket was adorned with a fox fur collar, and the cuffs and waistband were cinched tight. It had black cloud patterns with dark edges embroidered on it. For an ordinary person, it might be overwhelming, but He Heng’s tall stature and outstanding appearance made him even more conspicuous. He looked like a noble prince accustomed to a life of luxury.

Seeing the two still standing there, He Heng brushed off the snow on his shoulder and walked towards Wang Jingyuan with a smile,

“If you tell Lord Wang about this now, can it still be considered a surprise?”

Witnessing He Heng’s half-smiling expression, the steward immediately fell silent, not daring to make a sound, almost trembling.

Following the steward’s gaze backward, Wang Jingyuan also noticed Xie Chong, who was tall and robust, trailing behind He Heng, along with a column of solemn-looking guards.

“Prince Jing, what’s this about?” He forced a strained smile on his face while inwardly lamenting,

Wasn’t it just a few days ago that the emperor surrounded the Prince Jing’s mansion?

How come He Heng is so boldly appearing in broad daylight?

Before he could organize his thoughts, He Heng abruptly interrupted him,

“I’ve said it’s a surprise,” he smiled at Wang Jingyuan, “Lord Wang, come with me to the backyard and see for yourself.”

For some reason, Wang Jingyuan couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something unsettling about He Heng’s smile. Ultimately, with a knot in his throat, he followed He Heng to his own backyard with an uneasy heart.

The Wang mansion’s backyard was tastefully arranged. In the center was a courtyard perfect for admiring snow and flowers, surrounded by artificially carved channels where colorful fish swam.

However, as soon as Wang Jingyuan set foot on the backyard’s stone steps, a strong scent of cosmetics hit him.

In that instant, an inexplicable premonition arose within him. Just as he turned to leave, He Heng firmly pressed his shoulder. When Wang Jingyuan looked back, he was met with He Heng’s smiling face,

“Lord Wang, don’t you like the eighteen courtesans I’ve sent for you?”

“Ah, well, this…”

Wang Jingyuan’s face suddenly transformed into seven different colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. His eyes, which usually seemed almost impossible to open, widened in astonishment.

In fact, in that brief moment, he had a vague suspicion that He Heng’s surprise might involve concubines or mistresses, the kind of thing that would surely provoke his wife, Lady Lin. However, he never expected it to be eighteen.

Even the emperor wouldn’t choose eighteen concubines at once.

Was this something a person could actually do?

And in the midst of Wang Jingyuan’s stunned silence,

“Lord~”

From the backyard, several alluring voices filled with coquetry reached his ears. Those voices seemed like the soul-binding wails of the Black and White Impermanence¹The Heibai Wuchang, or Hak Bak Mo Seong, literally “Black and White Impermanence”, are two Deities in Chinese folk religion in charge of escorting the spirits of the dead to the underworld. As their names suggest, they are dressed in black and white respectively. , each sound striking directly at his heart.

It almost triggered a heart attack.

Wang Jingyuan immediately clutched his chest and turned to look. He saw eighteen individuals approaching him with small, delicate steps.

Among these eighteen were both men and women, a diverse array of figures, each one dressed in a captivating manner.

This was the first time in his life that Wang Jingyuan had seen so many vibrant colors appear together. Even the embroidered mandarin ducks on Mrs. Wang’s bed in the adjacent alley weren’t as dazzling and flamboyant.

In the blink of an eye, as if out of nowhere, thirty-six small hands simultaneously landed on his shoulders, as if attempting to pull him into an abyss.

Helplessly, he cast pleading glances around, only to see He Heng blocking the way for all the household servants. He himself stood on the side of the stone steps, still wearing that familiar smile, as if enjoying the spectacle.

“Yesterday, Lord Wang, on the court, advised His Majesty to widely accept concubines, to continue the bloodline of our Great Wei. Wise ministers like Lord Wang, who contribute to the glory of Great Wei, deserve to be rewarded.”

“Today, I present these eighteen concubines to Lord Wang. What do you think?”

Wang Jingyuan shook his head vigorously, like a tambourine, “Absolutely not, Your Highness, you mustn’t do this.”

Being in the center of the storm, Wang Jingyuan attempted to push aside the people crowding in front of him. However, these eighteen individuals gathered around him like a thousand-handed Guan Yin²The Thousand Hands Guan Yin (千手观音) is the designated guardian for those born in the year of the rat (1960, 1972, 1984, 1996). As one of the most notable and formidable manifestations of the Goddess Guan Yin, she is one of the most beloved deities amongst the Buddhist pantheon. Buddhist legend from the Full History of Guan Yin and the Southern Seas talks about how Guan Yin made an oath to worry about all living things until they are free from problems and suffering.

The goddess tried out of all forces to help people, she saw their helplessness. Because of these aspirations and impulses to come to the rescue, the head of the goddess split into 11 parts. Buddha Amitabha noticed Guanyin woes and gave her 11 heads. So the goddess began to hear better many voices that need her.

At this point, the goddess tried to help ordinary people and noticed how her hands began to be torn apart. Amitabha helped her and gave her thousands of hands. Since then, Guanyin has been helping everyone who asks for it. . He pushed away one hand, only to have another immediately take its place.

“Hmm?”

Upon hearing this, He Heng raised an intrigued eyebrow. He then waved his hand towards the crowd in front of him. The crowd instantly dispersed, creating a pathway for him.

Approaching Wang Jingyuan, he placed a hand on the other’s shoulder, looking down at him condescendingly. “Look at you, without even a son. In the future, no one will inherit your family business. Isn’t it appropriate to take concubines?”

“This,” Wang Jingyuan felt beads of cold sweat forming on his forehead, and his legs began to tremble. He cautiously glanced around and said, “This is a private matter for my family. Your Highness need not…”

“Ah, Lord Wang, you’re mistaken,” He Heng immediately interrupted him, smiling. “Since you are advising His Majesty to accept more concubines, as a courtier, shouldn’t you set an example?”

“In my opinion, how about this?” He continued, applying a bit more pressure with the hand on Wang Jingyuan’s shoulder.

“If you take a concubine, I’ll persuade His Majesty to take in another consort. How does that sound?”

Forced to retreat by He Heng, Wang Jingyuan subconsciously shook his head.

If his wife found out about these matters, not to mention eighteen concubines, even one would jeopardize his life.

Meanwhile, He Heng continued to press the issue,

“If you dare divorce Lady Lin and establish another main wife, I’ll have His Majesty appoint a consort today.”

As he spoke, He Heng even raised his voice a few notches.

At this moment, Wang Jingyuan’s back was drenched in sweat, and he looked at He Heng in panic, muttering, “No, no…”

The only fortunate thing was that Lady Lin had gone out to offer incense today and wasn’t currently in the mansion.

If she were to see this, it would be…

However, Wang Jingyuan hadn’t even had time to consider the consequences of being seen by He Heng. Suddenly, a deafening roar erupted from behind him,

“Old Wang, you’ve really made progress!”

“One is not enough; you take eighteen!”

Both He Heng and Wang Jingyuan turned to look,

There stood Lady Lin, angrily standing at the entrance of the backyard, holding a shiny kitchen knife in her hand.

The next moment,

He Heng suddenly released the hand resting on Wang Jingyuan’s shoulder. He gracefully took a step back, curled his lips, and silently mouthed something to him,

“Lord Wang, good luck with this one.”

Following that, to the astonishment of the onlookers, Lady Lin, wielding the kitchen knife, sprinted like a professional runner. In the blink of an eye, she reached Wang Jingyuan,

“I see the Wang mansion has become too small. It seems it can’t accommodate a great Buddha like you anymore. Why don’t you take your eighteen concubines and directly move into the bridge cave?”

“Don’t bother coming back for at least eighteen years!”

“No, it’s not!”

Seeing the kitchen knife about to land on his head, Wang Jingyuan instinctively raised his hands to shield his head and cowered,

“Madam, listen to my explanation! This really isn’t what it seems!”

“Explanation? You still want to explain to me?” Lady Lin was furious; at this point, she wasn’t willing to listen to any explanations.

She couldn’t believe that Wang Jingyuan, who usually appeared honest and straightforward, would dare to marry eighteen concubines at once and even talk about divorcing her. This was beyond belief!

The servants had never witnessed such a scene, especially with the main lady holding a kitchen knife. Who dared to intervene?

In the end, they could only stand by the stone steps and silently cheer for their master, hoping he could run faster.

Wang Jingyuan scampered away, shielding his head, while Lady Lin chased after him with the knife.

They ran from the backyard courtyard all the way to the kitchen in the main hall, putting on a spectacular performance in the Wang mansion—a thrilling display of “he flees, she pursues, and neither of them can escape”.

Even the chickens in the backyard were disturbed, filling the courtyard with the sounds of clucking.

After pausing to watch for a moment, He Heng turned away and addressed the eighteen “concubines” behind him, “Let’s go. Don’t make it too hard for him.”

As he passed by the steward, he sighed lightly and even showed a remorseful expression,

“Lord He wanted to give Lord Wang a surprise, but didn’t expect it to turn into a farce.”

However, the smile hidden in the corners of his eyes and lips betrayed any sense of remorse.

On the other side, Wen Liangyu was handling memorials at Ganqing Hall.

As he started to read the memorials submitted by Wang Jingyuan and other ministers from the Cabinet,

“Your Majesty!”

Eunuch Liu Fuyuan hurriedly reported that Wang Jingyuan wanted to withdraw the memorials that had already been submitted.

“Oh, and why is that?” Wen Liangyu raised an eyebrow.

He could guess the contents of these memorials without even opening them—just the usual requests for him to accept consorts and establish a queen.

But why would Wang Jingyuan suddenly withdraw the memorials he had already written?

Wen Liangyu couldn’t comprehend the reason behind his actions at all.

Liu Fuyuan also didn’t know how to explain this situation and stammered, “Lord Wang said he had not considered things thoroughly earlier.”

Seeing that the Emperor still appeared puzzled, he leaned closer to him and recounted in detail everything that had happened in the Wang mansion this morning.

After hearing this story, even the well-mannered young Emperor couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

Having some free time after lunch, Wen Liangyu decided to visit He Heng’s mansion directly.

It was a few hours earlier than usual, and for some reason, the young Emperor felt a hint of excitement in his heart. It was similar to the joy he felt when, during morning lessons in the Wen Hua Hall, the tutor suddenly announced that the class could end an hour early.

In the study of Prince Jing’s mansion, one could faintly smell the elegant fragrance of sandalwood, and wisps of smoke drifted from the incense burner beside the desk.

He Heng had ordered the lighting of sandalwood incense, known for its calming and soothing properties.

He knew that Wen Liangyu had always had shallow sleep, often struggling to have a good night’s rest. Even if he managed to fall asleep, he would frequently wake up in the middle of the night. Recently, with the increased responsibilities of governing during the day, he found it even more challenging to get a good night’s sleep.

So, every time the young Emperor visited, He Heng would have someone light this calming incense in the room. When they had some free time, he would also take Wen Liangyu to stroll around the private garden. All of these efforts were aimed at helping Wen Liangyu sleep better at night.

At this moment, He Heng was sitting at his desk, holding a brush, and fully engrossed in practicing his calligraphy. However, he had a vague feeling that someone’s gaze was occasionally falling on his face.

Sure enough, when he lifted his eyes, he met the furtive glance that Wen Liangyu was casting at him from the other end of the room.

The young Emperor still held a book in his hand, but it was evident that his mind was not focused on the pages. The moment he met He Heng’s gaze, he immediately shrunk his head back, pretending to earnestly read the book.

At this moment, the system’s voice suddenly rang in He Heng’s mind,

[Protagonist’s Blackening Value has decreased by 2, from 50 to 48.]

Upon hearing this, his hand, which was writing, paused abruptly, and a stroke directly crossed the edge of the paper.

What’s going on?

How come the Emperor’s blackening value starts to decrease just from him giving me a glance?

After observing it repeatedly for a while, He Heng realized that Wen Liangyu would sneak a few glances at him every now and then, and each time he looked at him, the blackening value would decrease a bit.

He Heng appeared somewhat puzzled. He stopped his writing and asked the system 996 in his mind:

‘What’s going on? Why does he keep sneaking glances at me, and every time he does, the blackening value decreases?’

996: [Well, I can’t provide a definite answer to this question, but generally, the Protagonist’s blackening value is directly linked to his mood. For example, when his mood is good, the blackening value tends to decrease appropriately.]

‘Alright, you don’t need to say more. I get it.’ He Heng interrupted 996, ‘That means his mood improves every time he sees me, right?’

996: […If you want to think of it that way, perhaps.]

After this brief exchange with 996, He Heng suddenly felt in a great mood. He confidently curled the corner of his mouth, and even the characters he wrote with the brush seemed to carry a pleasant fragrance.

He casually placed the brush back into the brush holder on the table, leaned back into the redwood chair behind him, and contemplated the little emperor who was “pretending to read” in the distance.

After noticing the gaze he cast, the young emperor immediately lifted his eyes, fluttered his long lashes twice, and looked in He Heng’s direction. At the moment their eyes met, the corners of the other’s slightly raised lips even curled upward.

Alright, case closed.

He Heng’s slender index finger rested on his chin, and a confident curve formed on his lips.

If seeing him makes Wen Liangyu’s mood better, what other reason could there be? He must think he looks handsome.

So, being handsome has such benefits, and just sitting there doing nothing can reduce the other person’s blackening value?

As He Heng was immersed in contemplating the extent of his charm, Wen Liangyu shifted his book upward a bit more, concealing the corners of his mouth that had involuntarily lifted in laughter.

It was a bit tiring to suppress his laughter sneakily.

In fact, there wasn’t anything particularly funny about it. Wen Liangyu had noticed that next to the pen holder where He Heng had been practicing calligraphy, there was a cerulean blue porcelain vase. The shape and patterns on the vase were quite similar to the one in his sleeping quarters.

Somehow, it reminded him of that night when the other person had placed the vase on his head.

Although a man’s serious calligraphy practice might appear solemn and earnest, the image in Wen Liangyu’s mind took a completely different turn. He always found himself subconsciously imagining what it would look like if He Heng put on that vase.

In the end, the scene in front of him turned into a man vigorously writing with a cerulean vase on his head. This image lingered in his mind, making it impossible for him to focus on the book in front of him. The lines he was reading had been reread several times.

Just as Wen Liangyu resolved not to imagine the sight of a man wearing a vase on his head, He Heng coincidentally looked over at him again.

So, the psychological preparation he had just done for himself over the past few minutes was suddenly abandoned. He couldn’t help it; he burst into laughter again.

What’s going on?

The little emperor covered his face with the book, hoping the other wouldn’t see through him.

Stop thinking about it!

You can’t burst into laughter every time you see him, right?

However, in He Heng’s eyes, this scene presented a completely different feeling. Wen Liangyu covering his face with a book, this attempt to hide from him, seemed like a playful act of teasing.

After careful consideration, He Heng arrived at a very convincing conclusion:

Wen Liangyu must have a crush on him.

With this conclusion in mind, he wore a confident smile throughout the entire day.

Author’s note:

Heng Bao: It’s so annoying, what should I do if my wife has a secret crush on me?

• 1
  The Heibai Wuchang, or Hak Bak Mo Seong, literally “Black and White Impermanence”, are two Deities in Chinese folk religion in charge of escorting the spirits of the dead to the underworld. As their names suggest, they are dressed in black and white respectively.
• 2
  The Thousand Hands Guan Yin (千手观音) is the designated guardian for those born in the year of the rat (1960, 1972, 1984, 1996). As one of the most notable and formidable manifestations of the Goddess Guan Yin, she is one of the most beloved deities amongst the Buddhist pantheon. Buddhist legend from the Full History of Guan Yin and the Southern Seas talks about how Guan Yin made an oath to worry about all living things until they are free from problems and suffering.
  
  The goddess tried out of all forces to help people, she saw their helplessness. Because of these aspirations and impulses to come to the rescue, the head of the goddess split into 11 parts. Buddha Amitabha noticed Guanyin woes and gave her 11 heads. So the goddess began to hear better many voices that need her.
  
  At this point, the goddess tried to help ordinary people and noticed how her hands began to be torn apart. Amitabha helped her and gave her thousands of hands. Since then, Guanyin has been helping everyone who asks for it.