DCPXEP CHAPTER 114

Very Well, Whoever Eats Is a Little Dog

The man’s face was tightly drawn, the corners of his lips straight and thin. A killing chill poured from him without restraint, and his whole countenance was full of fierce menace.

That was until he saw Chu Yuan.

The fierce aura surging in Lu Ronghuai’s eyes vanished in an instant, and the rigid line of his jaw gradually eased.

“Your Highness.”

Chu Yuan rose to his feet. Unafraid of the dark expression he had worn just now, he looked toward him with smiling eyes.

Lu Ronghuai strode over, stretched out a long arm, and pulled him into an embrace, holding him tight with force.

Hearing the rapid, fervent beating within his chest, Chu Yuan lightly rose on his toes, rested his chin upon the man’s broad shoulder, and wrapped his arms around his waist.

The two of them held each other in silent tenderness for quite some time, until a light cough sounded nearby.

“Ahem.”

Chu Yuan abruptly came back to himself, remembering Jiang Ni was still present. His face reddened as he pushed Lu Ronghuai away.

“Your Highness, Ah-Die is here,” Chu Yuan reminded him in a small voice.

Lu Ronghuai obligingly called out, “Ah-Die.”

Jiang Ni: “...”

Jiang Ni looked at him, a smile that did not reach his eyes. “This ‘Ah-Die’ from Your Highness truly does overwhelm Jiang so.”

Lu Ronghuai could see Jiang Ni’s displeasure. He paused, then shamelessly said, “Wangli came in haste and brought no gift. Many thanks to Ah-Die for caring for Ah-Yuan these past days. Another day, this one will come to the door to apologize and make amends in due course.”

“I would not dare. Your Highness honors us with your presence. How would we dare fail to welcome you?” Seeing Nie Siran appear at the doorway rubbing his shoulder, the smile on Jiang Ni’s face grew even gentler.

“...”

With an expression of utter innocence, Lu Ronghuai averted his gaze and pretended not to hear the blades hidden in those words.

“Has Your Highness only just returned?” Chu Yuan tipped up his face and deftly eased the tension.

Lu Ronghuai silently breathed a sigh of relief, a smile rising into his eyes. “Mm. I did not even stop for the midday meal. I came to bring Ah-Yuan home.”

Chu Yuan curved his lips. “Then eat here. It so happens that we have not yet taken lunch either.”

Nie Siran walked over. Hearing that, he gave a cold laugh. “What a pity. This residence advocates frugality. The kitchen cooked only enough for five mouths. There is no share for Your Highness.”

Seeing Nie Siran continuously rubbing his shoulder, Chu Yuan looked a little embarrassed and quietly closed his mouth.

Lu Ronghuai said calmly, “No matter. I can go without.”

Nie Siran let out another cold laugh. “Very well. Whoever eats is a little dog.”

Inside the Nie family dining hall, the six of them took their seats.

Lu Ronghuai sat at Chu Yuan’s side and took the initiative to ladle him a bowl of soup. “How have you felt these past two days? Has there been any discomfort?”

Holding the bowl, Chu Yuan gently shook his head.

Seated at Chu Yuan’s other side was Nie Siran. Picking up the serving chopsticks, Nie Siran placed a piece of braised pork into Chu Yuan’s bowl. “Here, Ah-Yuan, eat more meat. You are too thin.”

Jiang Ni also placed food into his bowl. “This sour radish is sweet and tart and whets the appetite. Yuan-Yuan likes it.”

“The soup is a little hot. Ah-Yuan should eat first.” Nie Siran casually took the bowl from Chu Yuan’s hands and stuffed a pair of chopsticks into them instead.

There was not even a bowl and pair of chopsticks set before Lu Ronghuai. Yet the Nie family all seemed not to see him. They ate their meal as if nothing were amiss, adding food to Chu Yuan’s bowl from time to time. Not once from beginning to end did they spare Lu Ronghuai so much as a glance.

With meat in his mouth, Chu Yuan’s cheeks puffed out. Biting lightly on his chopsticks, he tilted his head and secretly glanced at Lu Ronghuai.

Resting his chin upon one hand, Lu Ronghuai watched him eat with a raised lip and a posture of easy elegance. Catching that little expression of secret peeking, he reached out and poked his cheek with one finger.

Chu Yuan glared at him. Lu Ronghuai laughed softly. When he withdrew his hand, he discovered that everyone at the table was looking at him.

Nie Chouwen: “Your Highness, do not disturb Yuan-Yuan while he is dining.”

Nie Siran: “Childish.”

Jiang Ni: “Your Highness might as well wait outside.”

Nie Xuxing: “Mm.”

Lu Ronghuai, besieged on all sides: “...”

Chu Yuan bit his chopsticks and secretly laughed.

Lu Ronghuai looked from one side to the other, at a complete loss whether to laugh or despair. He had only been away for a few days. How had the Nie family’s opinion of him grown so poor?

“I...”

Chu Yuan suddenly spoke. “Ah, there is a little squirrel outside.”

Everyone turned to look outside.

Chu Yuan swiftly picked up a piece of braised pork and stuffed it into Lu Ronghuai’s mouth.

Nie Siran was the first to react. The moment he turned back, he saw a certain prince with shining lips, smiling at Chu Yuan, that smile ostentatious enough to pain the eyes.

“What little squirrel? Plainly there is a great rat here stealing food.” Nie Siran stared at Lu Ronghuai, his tone faint and eerie.

Hearing this, the others all looked this way as well.

Lu Ronghuai spread his hands. “Ah-Yuan fed me. There is no help for it. Who told me I have such a good wife, one who knows how to cherish others?”

Everyone’s gaze fell upon Chu Yuan’s face again.

Like one caught doing wrong, Chu Yuan flushed from his neck to the tips of his ears. A mist seemed to gather in his eyes as he gripped his chopsticks tightly in nervousness.

That little expression of panic fell into everyone’s eyes like a startled fawn, blinking with bright, watery eyes.

Jiang Ni let out a laugh. “Very well, very well. Look how badly we have embarrassed our Yuan-Yuan. Someone, bring His Highness a bowl and chopsticks.”

Lu Ronghuai had always known how to climb the pole once it was set before him. Having received pardon, he nearly praised Jiang Ni to the heavens.

The corners of Jiang Ni’s mouth twitched. He quickly made him stop. “Enough, enough. That praise is making my gooseflesh fall all over the ground. Hurry and eat.”

After the midday meal, once his belongings had been packed up, Lu Ronghuai took Chu Yuan’s hand and made for home without delay.

Before they left, Jiang Ni drew Chu Yuan quietly to one side.

“Ah-Die, what is it?” Chu Yuan asked softly.

Jiang Ni glanced at Lu Ronghuai. Seeing that he was speaking with Nie Chouwen, Jiang Ni took hold of Chu Yuan’s hand and asked quietly into his ear, “Yuan-Yuan, you and Prince Li... these past two months, you have not shared the bed, have you?”

Chu Yuan’s face ignited.

He gave the smallest, almost imperceptible shake of his head.

“Listen to Ah-Die. No coitus in the first three months of pregnancy. His Highness is young and full of vigor. If the two of you stay together, it is difficult to guarantee that... in any case, do not indulge him. If there is truly no other way, let His Highness sleep in the study for a time.”

By the time Chu Yuan returned to Lu Ronghuai’s side, his whole body was so red he nearly seemed to steam.

“What is the matter? Are you unwell?” Lu Ronghuai immediately made to touch his forehead.

Chu Yuan avoided his hand, his gaze wandering aside. “Nothing is wrong. Your Highness, let us go.”

Lu Ronghuai cast a suspicious glance at Jiang Ni, then made his farewells to the Nie family and left with Chu Yuan in tow.

Upon returning to Fuju Courtyard, Lu Ronghuai held Chu Yuan in his arms and lay down with him on the daybed, muttering under his breath, “They seem to have a grievance against me. I have a grievance too. While I was away, they spirited off my wife. Hmph.”

Enclosed within his embrace, Chu Yuan still had Jiang Ni’s were still lingering in his ears, and before long he felt his mouth go dry, warmth climbing over him in layer after layer, and a thin sheen of sweat soon appeared upon his back. He wanted Lu Ronghuai to release him.

Yet the moment he lifted his head, he saw the man had closed his eyes and already fallen asleep.

At such close range, every one of the man’s lashes could be seen clearly. The folds of his double eyelids were deep, and the corners of his eyes tilted upward. Once asleep, the bold and imposing force he usually carried weakened, and in its place there showed a hint of youthful spirit seldom seen.

Chu Yuan stared at him for quite a while, then reached out a fingertip to touch the bridge of his nose. He amused himself this way for some time, but the man slept so soundly that he did not stir.

“How can anyone be this tired?” Chu Yuan’s fingertip slid beneath his eyes and lightly touched the dark shadows there.

Lu Ronghuai slept heavily, utterly unaware of the world outside.

Chu Yuan gave a small yawn. Finding a comfortable place in his embrace, he accompanied him in a midday sleep.

When Lu Ronghuai woke from this sleep, it was already deep into the night.

His arms were empty, and the room was silent. He sat up from the daybed, threw aside the thin quilt draped over his abdomen, got down to the floor, and walked outward.

“Your Highness is awake.” Chu Yuan was in the outer room selecting cloth together with Le Shu. “Le Shu, go to the kitchen and bring the meal.”

Lu Ronghuai walked to his side and sat down, his gaze falling upon the cloth in Chu Yuan’s hands. “What are these for?”

“With nothing to do, I thought to make a few saliva bibs.”

“Saliva bibs?”

“Mm. They may be used once the baby is born.”

Lu Ronghuai’s expression softened. He took the initiative to help choose, selecting from the pile of soft cloth pale pink, peach-red, lilac, and lotus-honey shades.

“These are pleasing to the eye. Our daughter will like them.”

Chu Yuan looked at him with fond exasperation. “Your Highness, what if it is a little boy?”

Lu Ronghuai’s brows drew together slightly. He stared at Chu Yuan’s stomach and said in all seriousness, “No. It will certainly be a daughter. I have a premonition.”

“Besides, would it look proper for a boy to drool?” Lu Ronghuai’s face was full of disdain.

Chu Yuan: “... Could it be that Your Highness never used a saliva bib when you were little?”

With great confidence, Lu Ronghuai said, “When I was little, I did not drool.”

Chu Yuan gathered up the cloth on the table, clearly not believing his words and said pleasantly, “Of course, of course. Your Highness should hurry and eat.”

“Have you eaten?”

Chu Yuan said, “I have already eaten. Your Highness slept too long. The hour for the evening meal had long since passed.”

The dishes were brought out and set one by one upon the table.

Chu Yuan sat beside him, keeping him company while he ate, and at the same time told him about the investigation into Zhang Ze’s first wife.

Lu Ronghuai ate very quickly. In the span of Chu Yuan’s few sentences, he had already filled a second bowl of rice.

“Mm, she should indeed be investigated. Oh, has there been any news from the western border these past few days?” Lu Ronghuai raised his head and asked.

“No. Your Highness should eat more slowly. If you eat too quickly, your stomach will suffer from it,” Chu Yuan said gently.

Lu Ronghuai smiled and slowed his pace. “I am used to it. During campaigns, there is no time to chew slowly. When battle suddenly breaks out, one simply stuffs food into one’s mouth at random. Only by eating more does one have the strength, and only then is there a chance to stay alive.”

Chu Yuan’s heart clenched.

Looking at Lu Ronghuai’s calm face, he found it difficult to imagine how one who had gone onto the battlefield at fifteen or sixteen had managed to survive.

Lu Ronghuai set down his bowl. “Ah-Yuan’s shop is almost ready to open, is it not?”

“Mm.” Chu Yuan took out a handkerchief and handed it to him. “Everything is already prepared. Grandfather found two painting attendants for me. The shop may open at month’s end. Will Your Highness come?”

“Ye Jing will not be peaceful in the coming days. Ah-Yuan would do best not to go out.”

Chu Yuan’s watery eyes widened slightly. “Father Emperor is about to issue orders to punish the Eastern Palace and the Liu family?”

“Mm. Father Emperor wants to cast one net and sweep them all in. The Crown Prince and the Liu family are entangled with many others behind them. Quite a few people will be dragged out.”

Chu Yuan’s lashes trembled.

Thinking he was afraid, Lu Ronghuai offered reassurance. “Father Emperor intends to uproot those in court who stand apart from him. The hands of the Crown Prince and the Liu family had stretched too far, far beyond the limit Father Emperor could bear... Yet none of that concerns us. Next month there is the Qiqiao Festival. I shall take Ah-Yuan out on a boat.”

Chu Yuan sighed and reached out to clutch Lu Ronghuai’s sleeve.

“I am not afraid. I am worried for Your Highness’s safety.”

Lu Ronghuai’s expression stilled in slight surprise.

Chu Yuan rose of his own accord and went over, sitting on Lu Ronghuai’s lap. His green robes trailed across the floor as he looped his arms around Lu Ronghuai’s neck and tilted his head to rest upon his shoulder.

“Wangli, do not let anything happen to you.”

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✧ A Word from the Author ✧

Lu dog: First day back home, my wife not only fed me with his own hands, but he also even took the initiative to hold me. He is so clingy, hehe.

Yuan-Yuan: Yes. Then the next day you will be sleeping in the study.

Lu dog: ...

IsitRo: Please ignore my ranting, i just need to let it out huhuhuhu, i was fuming when reading a specific part of the chapter. like, there’s a difference between playful ribbing and just....... not giving someone chopsticks at your dinner table. That’s not funny, that’s just rude hospitality. Lu ronghuai rode back from a multi-day mission w/o stopping to eat or change clothes, nearly had a heart attack finding chu yuan gone, and then gets sat at a table and ignored like he’s not even there. The “hehe” framing doesn’t land when the target is someone who’s done nothing but adore Chu Yuan obsessively for months.

Now I realized i was never into the whole “bully the in-law” trope. It can work sometimes but that’s only like, idk, when the in-law is oblivious or actually deserving. Lu ronghuai is NEITHER. The dude is aware, he’s trying, and he’s clearly devoted. It would hit so much better if the Nie family acknowledged that while teasing him to his face.

I’m just not a fan of it. i mean..... why is this supposed to be humorous?? i know Lu ronghuai has thick skin, but still!!!! imagine this happening to you irl? would you still be ha ha ha about it?? totally reminds me of awkward family dinners where they bring up your flaws while you’re literally just trying to eat. My fam, i am eating and you are literally disrespecting food? wtf??? ugh.

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