“Teacher Fu, this prince…sniff, I…sniff,” Gao Qingxuan stammered. 

Fu Donglai bent down on one knee to be at the same level as Gao Qingxuan. He looked into the boy’s eyes as he inquired, “Has Young Crown Prince something he wishes to share with teacher?” 

Gao Qingxuan opened his mouth but couldn’t put his thoughts into words. His hands were clenched on the hems of his sleeves. The memory of what happened was still fresh, but he didn’t want to remember. Gao Qingxuan shut his mouth tightly and his gaze was firmly locked on the floor. 

“Young Crown Prince doesn’t have to tell me what happened,” Teacher Fu smiled, “but how about we drink a cup of tea ba?” 

Gao Qingxuan contemplated while stealing one or two glances at Fu Donglai. 

“Or not? Then I will take my leave.”  

Gao Qingxuan panicked. He pursed his lips, then shook his head. “This Prince wants to drink tea.” 

The two walked back to Gao Qingxuan’s courtyard and ordered tea. The little milkbun still kept silent and simply twiddled his thumbs. Fu Donglai didn’t urge him either and simply took out a book of poetry.  

Gao Qingxuan gradually calmed down when he saw his teacher elegantly flipping the pages like an immortal. The time it takes to drink a cup of tea passed, but Gao Qingxuan’s cup remained untouched. Instead, the little boy was pulled in by the appeasing ambience that Fu Donglai emanated. Not hearing any sounds from the little prince, Fu Donglai glanced back and saw a little boy with a runny nose staring at him. Their gazes met and the older raised the corners of his mouth while the youngling realized that he had been staring for too long. Gao Qingxuan shyly ducked down his head to sip his tea that had turned cold already.  

Fu Donglai turned his attention back to his book. Despite not seeming to care, he skillfully took out something from his sleeves and shoved it in front of Gao Qingxuan. It was a pure white handkerchief with very fine embroidering at the borders. Looking closer, Gao Qingxuan saw flying cranes and a flowing river. The boy quietly took the cloth and wiped clean his nose and the traces of tears around his eyes.  

It’s so soft, he thought. The fabric was sleek and gentle to his irritated skin unlike what he usually had to wipe his face. It was even better than the fabric his mother was using for her handkerchiefs! 

Gao Qingxuan wanted to ask where his teacher got such a great cloth. He wanted to give his mother a handkerchief like this.  

If I give Imperial Mother a handkerchief like this, won’t she be happy?  

He imagined his mother smile again, but he also remembered the scary face of his father earlier and became depressed again. 

Sigh… 

After thinking about his grievances, he dispiritedly chunked down his remaining tea in one go. 

Fu Donglai pretended to not pay attention to the little boy, but from the periphery of his eyes, he could always glance at the condition of Gao Qingxuan. The sorrowful mimics naturally didn’t escape his perception and his gaze involuntarily lingered for two heartbeats before shifting away without the intention of saying a word of comfort. 

If someone were to describe Gao Qingxuan, then the words cheerful, timid, and innocent would be fitting. Although he always had been a quiet child, he still had the energetic vigor typical for children. But the current Gao Qingxuan looked like a wilted eggplant bitten by frost and hit hard by the vicissitudes of life. 

He wanted to chunk down another mouthful of tea, but his cup was already empty. So he could only put down the cup and look regretfully at the pretty tableware that lost all appeal in his eyes. 

While he let out a dull huff, his hand moved habitually to the side. He groped around to search for a fluffy head, just to grab nothing but empty air. 

“Ah!” Gao Qingxuan finally remembered something important. 

His family’s Kumquat was not with him!  

Flustered, he became restless again. Unlike before, Fu Donglai didn’t ignore Gao Qingxuan this time. 

“Young Crown Prince seems to miss something. May I be of help?”  

Gao Qingxuan looked at him with big eyes. “I- this Prince can’t find our fox, Kumquat!” 

Fu Donglai closed his book with an imperceptible ‘thump’, put it back into his sleeve, and took a sip from his cup. It was unknown when he had refilled the tea, but it was still piping hot. The movements of him were graceful and without haste. When he finally looked at Gao Qingxuan, the boy was waiting expectantly with big eyes.  

However, Teacher Fu was unfazed, “Can Young Crown Prince remember where he left the fox?” 

Gao Qingxuan thought about it, but he couldn’t remember when they parted! 

“This Prince can’t.” 

“Then, where was Young Crown Prince before we met in the corridor?” 

“This Prince was…this Prince came from Imperial Mother’s chamber.” Gao Qingxuan nearly blurted out that he came from the imperial study, but that’s a secret he had to take to his grave! Even though he knew by heart that he shouldn’t lie to people with good intentions, he was already a small criminal. He went where he shouldn’t go and heard things he wasn’t supposed to hear! 

“Shouldn’t the little cub be with the empress then?” 

Teacher Fu observed his little pupil’s reaction, who sat across him with a straight back. His eyelashes shivered for a short moment, but the eyes that were deep black never avoided his gaze. 

“Oh...Teacher Fu is right! This Prince forgot to take Kumquat with us.” The boy nodded his head eagerly. Technically, he didn’t lie this time. He really forgot Kumquat with his mother! The only problem was that he didn’t know if his fox was still with his mother! 

Once again, the mimics of the boy changed with every minute and Fu Donglai continued to observe. His fingers touched his chin, then he suddenly squeezed his goatee as if he wanted it to disappear.  

Interesting. This boy can lie without batting a lid, yet his mood is openly written on his face. If it’s him… 

“Young Crown Prince appeared to be upset earlier. I thought it might be related to the fox cub since it didn’t follow your highness, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Would Young Crown Prince confide in teacher ba?” 

“Eh?” Gao Qingxuan made a dumbfounded expression. He tilted his head right and left, but...he really wasn’t that upset anymore! In the end, he was still a child who could laugh after falling in the mud. As long as he had his Kumquat at his side, he would be happy! 

“Many thanks for Teacher Fu’s concern, but this Prince has to stand aloof from things on the ground that are of no concern to one's¹stand aloof from things on the ground that they are no concern of one's: to feel unconcerned and let matters rest; wordplay with his surname Gao (high, above average).” 

Now it was Fu Donglai’s turn to be dumbfounded. Did he interpret his behavior wrong and this delicate little flower really hadn’t encountered any problems? He squeezed his goatee again. 

“Is that so? Then I can rest assured. However, Young Crown Prince shouldn’t bottle up too much, it’s not good.” 

“En, Teacher Fu shouldn’t pull too much either, or it will really fall out one day ah!”  

Fu Donglai’s mouth twitched and he had problems keeping his smile. However, Gao Qingxuan said it with a face full of sincerity, so that he couldn’t make a scene and reprimand him. Else he would seem like a petty adult, who couldn’t let matters rest even though his student just mentioned it! 

He cleared his throat and continued, “It didn’t occur to me before, but Young Crown Prince is able to put thoughts and feelings into clear speech. Yet he seems to understand, but not to understand either. The lack of work brings a thousand diseases. It’s too late when the sleeping dog is awake.”²For all confused people who are interested in Fu Donglai’s poetic speech—He first praised Gao Qingxuan for being a good speaker, then criticized that being smartass can be a bad thing, since he could offend people with his words and it’s too late to regret after causing big trouble. In short, he’s being salty for our ML’s rudeness and came back with this petty method. :’D (next footnotes are the idioms)

³able to put thoughts and feelings into clear speech: to be clear and eloquent—⁴to understand, but not to understand either: not fully understand; have only a hazy notion; knowing a subject (lesson) half well —⁵lack of work brings a thousand diseases: wise after the event (idiom); with hindsight, one should have predicted it; It is easy to be wise after the event —⁶wake a sleeping dog: cause trouble; make trouble; stir up trouble

Gao Qingxuan stared at Fu Donglai for a long time, but he couldn’t understand what he meant at all! 

“Teacher, this Prince couldn’t understand.”  

“En, so it seems.” Fu Donglai wasn’t surprised at all. There wouldn’t be a need for him, if the boy had truly understood the hidden meaning. 

“Won’t Teacher Fu explain for this Prince?” Gao Qingxuan asked with a sullen face. He felt like being played with. 

“Then how about we make a bet out of it ba?” 

“A bet? Gambling is bad!” 

“He, betting with money is gambling, but this an exchange of wits. Our bet is a promise between gentlemen.” 

Gao Qingxuan’s mouth formed an ‘O’ and he nodded as if he had an enlightenment. “So what is the bet?” 

“It’s simple—Young Crown Prince wins as long as he can tell the meaning of my words before our ties as teacher and student end. If he can’t, then it will be my win. The loser has to answer one question of the winner.” 

“En, it’s a promise! Teacher Fu can’t back out when this Prince wins!” Gao Qingxuan said smugly with a winning smile. 

“I hope Young Crown Prince will keep his word too.” 

After saying a few words of concern, Fu Donglai left without looking back. He neither tried to curry favor with Gao Qingxuan nor did he ask for things out of his boundary. 

While the curtains on the milkbun’s side ended, the drama on Rong XingLi’s side seemed to expand. 

Liu Nana walked back to her courtyard with her head held high with an unyielding spirit and a fluffy cub on her arm. The bleeding on her injured hand already stopped thanks to the imperial physician and was wrapped into a thick gauze.  

Due to her reckless behavior before, a few crimson drops landed on her clothes. The jade pin which was rumored to be his majesty’s love confession to the empress was also missing. If the attendants still couldn’t discern that something was wrong, then they weren’t fit to serve under the emperor, where any misstep could cost their life. 

Tsk, there‘ll be definitely rumors in just a couple of hours.  

Rong XingLi observed Liu Nana and their surroundings carefully. He would let a low growl whenever a servant dared to look too long. Liu Nana on the other hand didn’t seem to care about the stares. She only caressed Rong XingLi lightly to appease his anger. 

The head steward who followed along couldn’t follow her example though. His hair stood on end and he was still in shock. The empress didn’t explain how she got the injury, she just faintly explained that the pin had gotten broken and that she had her hand injured while picking up the scraps. On top of getting hurt, she even got grounded for three months! 

Ai, what would be left after three months? Everyone will know how she has lost favor and will alienate her, suppress her family! But all she does is petting the small furball ah! 

The head steward imagined several scenarios and became even more worried. After all, Liu Nana was someone he supported and he cared for instead of the Liu Family’s Head. But now the well-being of a small fox seemed more important than her own situation. 

“Empress…” Steward Han wanted to give her some advice but was interrupted. 

“Head Steward Han doesn’t need to worry. This Empress isn’t easily bullied. Not by any man or woman.”  

Her unwavering tone made Steward Han not doubt her words. He glanced at her and saw clear eyes that were focused only on the way ahead. The empress he had accompanied since she first stepped into the imperial harem as a maiden, didn’t let her past infatuation with the emperor get the upper hand. Only then did he let out a breath of relief. However, just as his heart regained some composure, Liu Nana said something unexpected. 

Her eyes became gentle and a sweet smile appeared on her face as she looked at the little thing in her embrace. “Steward Han worries too much. Even foxes can’t withstand my charisma.” 

Rong XingLi who got called out presented himself as a hamster pancake who purred like a satisfied cat under the attentive petting of Liu Nana. Forget being on guard, he even closed his eyes to be more comfortable. His silly appearance made Steward Han really consider believing in her words. Only the empress and the young prince could tame the cub to obedience. The fierce cub from earlier was nowhere to be seen. He could only silently shake his head at his own lacking affinity with animals.  

They finally reached Liu Nana’s courtyard and Steward Han urged her to lie down on her bed to rest. He lectured her until she finished a cup of tea, then bid his farewell to go back to the emperor’s side. Unexpectedly, he discovered a familiar small face as soon as he turned around. 

His heart immediately became lighter when he saw a composed little milkbun. Gao Qingxuan hid behind a corner and beckoned Steward Han with his chubby hand. The old eunuch helplessly followed suit and bent down to listen. 

“Grandpa Han, is Imperial Mother back?” Gao Qingxuan asked. 

“It’s Steward Han, Young Crown Prince.” Steward Han smiled at the milky voice who called him affectionately ‘grandpa’. “The empress just returned. Gao Qingxuan pursed his lips together and took a deep breath, “Is our fox cub with Imperial Mother?” 

“Yes, did Young Crown Prince forget to take the cub with him?” 

“En… has Imperial Mother asked for this Prince? What should I do... I can’t tell Imperial Mother that I was there…” 

Gao Qingxuan stammered out of fear. But he had to take Kumquat back himself, since his mother was unable to leave her courtyard. Steward Han looked at his conflicted face and whispered lightly, “Young Crown Prince may I suggest something ba.” 

Gao Qingxuan perked up his ears and nodded solemnly. 

“Young Crown Prince can just say that his pet got lost while taking it out for a stroll. The empress didn’t confirm the cause of the fox’s sudden appearance yet. As for us subjects, we didn’t see the young crown prince,” Steward Han guaranteed.  

The little milkbun nodded his head excitedly and went to see his mother. 

Gao Qingxuan hastily stepped towards the inner chamber where Liu Nana rested with Rong XingLi on the bed.  

Liu Nana leaned against the bed frame with a simple robe draped over her shoulders. The always tied-up black hair fell down like the swaying leaves from a popular tree. Coupled with her gentle smile, it gave her beauty a touch of softness in comparison to her usual aloof and stern image.  

Rong XingLi stared at her rare appearance without makeup and had to admit—The little bunbun totally took after his mother! It wasn’t apparent at first glance with her strong eyeliner, but Gao Qingxuan inherited his gentle eyes from her. 

But that wasn’t the point, because those very eyes of her gazed at him with kindness while teasing him. She wasn’t resting at all and bullied (petted) him to no end ah! 

No longer able to take this, the small furball beside her kneaded her leg with two round paws. 

“Arf!”— You must rest! 

Rong XingLi urged her to lie down and ignore him. But Liu Nana only chuckled and continued to pat his head.  

“Does our Kumquat haven’t had enough stroking yet?” For her, he just looked strikingly silly.  

Misunderstood and not taken seriously at all, he tasted the inconvenience of not being able to speak for the first time. Instead of urging her, he put physical distance between them. What he didn’t expect was that Liu Nana lifted him up before he left her reach. Stuck between a wall and a rock he left it to destiny and prayed. 

Jing Yi, where are you? I need mental support ba. 

Just as he gave up all hope a mellow voice resounded.  

“Imperial Mother, Imperial Mother! Please look at Qingxuan’s calligraphy ba.” 

Liu Nana and Rong XingLi looked to the incoming little prince, who brought a scroll with him. Along with the male lead, a certain system also revived from the dead and drowned out the merry chatter of Gao Qingxuan.  

“Ding— Special Mission cleared. Additional ‘Random Item’ received. Host can redeem the item anytime when needed.” 

“Ding— Requirements to open the item shop achieved.” 

A wave of relief and joy overwhelmed Rong XingLi when he heard the two familiar voices. Even though they weren’t separated for long, the incident made it seem like an eternity.  

“Jing Yi, what happened to Qingxuan while I was with his mother? Your last notice made me think something bad had happened to him,” Rong XingLi looked at the smiling boy with rosy cheeks and continued, “but he looks perfectly fine!” 

“Ding— The male lead met Fu Donglai along the way and drank tea,” Jing Yi said perfunctorily.  

Rong XingLi, “…” 

“Without another person leading him, this world’s male lead would have gotten lost and cried until someone found him in some dark corner of the palace. Therefore, issuing the notice was a precautionary measure,” he added. 

What Jing Yi said sounded both absurd yet logical that Rong XingLi had nothing to refute!  

Ever since Kumquat appeared, Gao Qingxuan didn’t need an eunuch following along to show the way. The two already remembered their necessary routes and Kumquat proved to be very reliable in leading them back in time. Thus, after they set off together, nobody of his servants would assume that he could get lost. Of course, there were still shadow guards who always followed Gao Qingxuan silently to ensure his safety. But they wouldn’t appear to comfort the crying child. 

Thinking so far, a sudden realization struck Rong XingLi.  

“Jing Yi, won’t the shadow guards let the emperor know that Ah Xuan was there?” 

“Ding— Not necessarily, but host won’t have time to bother about that,” Jing Yi answered mildly. 

“Hm? What do you mean by that?” Rong XingLi asked puzzled as he turned his attention back to the mother-son-pair. They were awfully quiet… 

Pat— 

“Sniff, Imperial Mother…sniff, does it hurt?” 

Big tears fell from Gao Qingxuan’s face onto the blanket as he looked at Liu Nana’s wounded hand. The boy already had thick swollen eyes like walnuts, which seemed to be dipped in cinnabar. His ruddy nose was just as red as them, whereas his lips lacked any color. In the blink of an eye, his face was smeared with tears and snot. 

Rong XingLi gaped at his pitiful appearance and something clutched his heart tightly. That was not the crying face of someone who just began to cry! That was the unsightly look of someone crying for several rounds! 

Children are bound to cry, a crying child wouldn’t distress Rong XingLi this much. What he always wanted to prevent, however, was that Gao Qingxuan would cry alone in someplace where he couldn’t comfort him.  

Just like how his little Yangyang hid crying alone and didn’t let anybody know.  

But not only he felt helpless. Liu Nana didn’t fare better than him and was at a loss. Even though her son cried often, he was equally fast to appease. Yet, this time the cause couldn’t disappear with a simple flick of her sleeve. It was also the first time to see him in such a devastated and pitiful state. 

“My dear Qingxuan, don’t cry ba. It doesn’t hurt anymore. Mother was not careful, but the imperial physician already took a look at it so everything is fine.” Liu Nana comforted Gao Qingxuan while stroking his back.  

But the tears didn’t cease to drop, only the sobbing became more restrained. 

Rong XingLi couldn’t bear the sight any longer and with one slick motion nestled against his wet cheek. Gao Qingxuan felt his whiskers tickling on his face as the warm furry head took away all his tears. To be exact, Kumquat spread them all over his face and licked him with his coarse tongue on top of it. 

“Kekek…” a suppressed giggle escaped Gao Qingxuan between the quiet sobs. By the time Rong XingLi smeared his face completely with saliva, he already couldn’t stop giggling. Even Liu Nana couldn’t reign in the impulse to laugh as she watched their cute interaction.  

Under the relentless attacks of the slobber tongue, the mother-son pair had such a good time their stomachs already ached from laughing. After Rong XingLi finished his mission to cheer them up, he looked at his work and saw a really mucky face. It was hard to tell if the substance on Gao Qingxuan’s face still contained tears or consisted of saliva entirely. 

Liu Nana ordered her maid to bring a wet towel, who within an incense time brought a towel and a basin with hot water. When Liu Nana’s maidservant saw Gao Qingxuan stained with saliva continue playing with Rong XingLi happily, her face twitched for a split moment before regaining her composure. As Liu Nana’s maid from her days at the Liu estate, she had a deep insight into her master’s personality. Under normal circumstances, her highness would never tolerate the fox to lick the young prince as she found it unclean. Not to mention to this degree, and yet, she even allowed them to continue playing! 

But she knew that it was not her place to question her master in any way, thus she quietly left again after leaving the basin on the side drawer. Liu Nana dipped the towel into the water and gently wiped Gao Qingxuan’s face clean. 

Kumquat tactfully ceased his action to not disturb the cleansing process.  

“Very sensible,” Liu Nana commented. Rong XingLi tilted his head, he played dumb at the words that were meant for him.  

Liu Nana wiped Gao Qingxuan clean; her maid took the basin away and brought a small bottle of cream instead. 

Rong XingLi watched them attentively as Liu Nana applied the cream on Gao Qingxuan’s rosy cheeks. It had been a long time that he saw the little bun getting spoiled.  

One had to know that Gao Tianlu didn’t like too many maids waiting upon his son, as it may make him too reliant on servants. Thus, the things Gao Qingxuan had to do alone gradually increased. Even his birth mother was no exception, they were even separated into different courtyards ever since his fifths birthday. Therefore the time Liu Nana and Gao Qingxuan spend together each day was actually very short.  

With Gao Qingxuan fresh and calm again, they could have a proper talk. It was Liu Nana who began.  

“My Qingxuan, mother won’t be able to come visit you for the upcoming time.” 

“Why?” Gao Qingxuan looked at her with widened eyes, his surprise evident. He even forgot to ask politely and blurted out the very first word he could think of.  

Both Rong XingLi and Jing Yi gave him a thumbs up from the sidelines for his authentic performance. Nobody would think that this little boy already knew everything.  

Liu Nana already thought of an explanation for him. She left out the part of Consort Wei’s pregnancy and her dispute with Gao Tianlu, instead, she depicted her injury as the cause for her upcoming three months of confinement.  

Gao Qingxuan didn’t doubt her nor did he ask any questions. He simply smacked his lips sourly.  

Seeing him sulk, Liu Nana reached out her uninjured hand to stroke his head. “I can’t visit you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t come here.” 

The sour dumpling looked up with shining eyes. 

“But Qingxuan has to promise mother to not let anybody know, especially not your father ba,” Liu Nana emphasized. 

Gao Qingxuan was momentarily stunned, still, he nodded obediently.