That morning, Li Huaiyu was awakened by the sound of a falling iron pot.
“Bang!” The loud crash startled her, and she jumped out of bed. Before she even opened her eyes, she heard Chuniang shouting, “Oh no, oh no!”
Rubbing her eyes sleepily, Huaiyu sat on the edge of the bed, looking at her, “What’s going on?”
Rushing over to her, Xu Chuniang suddenly choked up, her face turning red with embarrassment, and she seemed a bit lost.
She… she forgot her lines…
Chi Jin caught up from behind and continued for her, “There’s a thief in the kitchen.”
What? Huaiyu raised her eyebrows, “In the kitchen?”
“Yes, it’s a mess in there now. Some servants said they saw bear paw prints.” Chi Jin lied without blinking an eye, “The shopkeeper suspects a wild bear from the mountains has come down and is hiding somewhere in the estate.”
Xu Chuniang swallowed nervously, wondering why it changed from a thief to a bear. Where were they supposed to find a wild bear? But Huaiyu’s interest in the bear outweighed the thief. Her eyes lit up upon hearing Chi Jin’s words, and she jumped up, exclaiming, “Qing Si, help me get ready!”
Seeing that she didn’t ask about the jade carving, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
However, as she sat in front of the dressing table, Huaiyu felt puzzled. She looked at Qing Si in the mirror and was about to speak.
“Mistress! We need to move quickly!” Qing Si interrupted her with a serious expression, swiftly styling her hair into a neat bun and inserting the wooden hairpin bought by Chi Jin and Chuniang. Then, she helped Huaiyu up and led her outside.
Huaiyu was bewildered. “Is it urgent?” she asked Chuniang.
Xu Chuniang blushed and stammered, unable to explain herself. Qing Si’s heart sank, and she glanced at Chi Jin, signaling to him—Miss Xu isn’t good at lying!
Chi Jin pulled Xu Chuniang behind him, then spoke for her with a grave expression, “It’s urgent. We can’t leak the news to the public, for fear of causing panic, but we also don’t want the bear to harm anyone if it escapes.”
Huaiyu nodded, her expression turning serious as well. She followed them to the kitchen.
Liu Jingxing and Murong Qiji were at the kitchen door. Seeing them approach, they were about to discuss the thief’s situation as planned. However, before they could speak, Chi Jin stepped forward and asked, “Where are the bear paw prints?”
…Bear paw prints?
Liu Jingxing’s eyes widened, and Chi Jin’s gaze was meaningful. After exchanging a glance, Liu Jingxing reluctantly swallowed his words and said to Huaiyu, “They’re back there.”
Huaiyu was thrilled. She had grown up in the palace, and there were no wild bears in the capital. She had only heard about them in books. Now, she finally had the chance to see one. She lifted her skirt and hurriedly walked inside.
The kitchen was a mess, with dishes and utensils strewn about, and vegetable leaves scattered everywhere. The hooks that usually held meat were now empty under the eaves.
Liu Jingxing asked Murong Qiji in a low voice, “Has His Highness ever seen bear paw prints before?”
Murong Qiji crossed her arms and replied casually, “Yes, there are many wild bears in the mountains of Eastern Jin. I even hunted two last spring.”
Seeing Huaiyu already searching for paw prints, Liu Jingxing had to put aside their recent disagreements. He bowed to Murong Qiji and said, “Please enlighten me, Your Highness.”
With a sidelong glance, Murong Qiji chuckled, “We’ll talk over dinner on the pleasure boat, or not at all.”
Liu Jingxing: “…”
Yawning, Murong Qiji said, “Hurry up and decide. She’s going to turn this whole yard upside down.”
Taking a deep breath, Liu Jingxing nodded, “Okay.”
“Excellent!” Murong Qiji smiled, revealing two dimples, then pulled him to a corner where Huaiyu couldn’t see. She squeezed his hand, then pressed it firmly onto the ground, creating a deep pit with her foot. Using the tip of her toes, she pressed his five fingers, making round imprints.
Liu Jingxing asked puzzledly, “Why to use my hand?”
“It’s the same with His Highness’s hand,” Murong Qiji released his hand and said nonchalantly. “But His Highness couldn’t be bothered to wash his hands.”
Liu Jingxing: “?”
As Huaiyu searched excitedly for bear paw prints, she suddenly heard a cry, “Your Highness, over here!”
Huaiyu squatted down and looked at the thick paw print, which was completely different from a human footprint. Amazed, she stood up and instructed, “Quickly search every corner of the estate, inside and out. Report immediately if there’s any sign of the bear!”
“Yes!” The servants responded and dispersed, armed with long poles.
Remembering that her little rascal and little troublemaker was still with the wet nurse, Huaiyu turned and ran to the main courtyard.
Xu Chuniang was very pleased. She whispered to Chi Jin, “The master always says that Her Highness is stubborn and lacks some of the motherly tenderness. But now, you see, when there’s danger, Her Highness is still very concerned about the safety of the young prince and princess.”
Chi Jin remained silent, and he gestured to Xu Chuniang. She looked puzzled but followed him to see.
Huaiyu joyfully held two children—one in each hand—as she walked outside, saying, “My darlings, Mother will take you to see a bear today!”
Xu Chuniang：“……”
Perhaps inheriting the courage from her mother, both babies in the swaddle didn’t cry, their eyes wide open, giggling. Li Huaiyu lifted the little rascal and said, “Your father said, a son born is to protect his mother, so if a bear charges later, you must protect me!”
Qing Si’s eyelid twitched. The image of her lady tossing the young master forward when facing a wild bear flashed in her mind, making her shudder.
“Your Highness, the young master is only three months old,” she reminded.
Li Huaiyu paused, lowering her head to look at the little rascal. She muttered, “True, he needs a few more years.”
Qing Si glanced at Xu Chu Niang, who hung her head. “Pretend I didn’t say anything,” she said.
Both children reaching three months safely was undoubtedly thanks to Lord Ziyang and the wet nurse. The King pampered the Princess so much that, in her eyes, both herself and the babies were equal. She didn’t understand the concept of “protection.”
“Still no sign of the bear?” Li Huaiyu asked.
Xu Chu Niang snapped back to reality, quickly turning to Red Gold. “Right, where’s the bear?”
“The bear…” Red Gold bowed, “will be captured soon. Your Highness, please wait a moment.”
With that, he left the main courtyard and found Lin Sihai.
Lin Sihai was the burliest among the executioners. Landlord Li had already sent the bear fur over at lightning speed. A group of people hid in a dark hut, hurriedly wrapping Lin Sihai in the fur.
“Won’t it look suspicious?” Lin Sihai glanced at himself.
“No.” Landlord Li chuckled behind his fan. “You look just like a bear, flawless!”
Mourning wrapped the rope tightly. After a tug, she quipped, “What’s my connection to your Highness that I should help?”
Despite her words, her hands moved swiftly.
Landlord Li praised her, “You tie better than Red Gold.”
“Of course.” Mourning lifted her chin arrogantly. “I’ve tied people to sink in the lake often. I’m quite skilled.”
There was a brief silence in the room. Everyone exchanged glances, pretending not to have heard her, and continued wrapping the bear fur. Landlord Li’s hand holding the fan stiffened. He thought maybe they should skip the boat dinner and find a place without a lake to dine with her.
June’s heat had started to rise, and everyone wrapping fur started to sweat. Lin Sihai, wrapped in bear fur, was sweating profusely, looking uncomfortable. However, he didn’t utter a word, waiting until the disguise was done before climbing into the cart that Red Gold had found, shaping himself into a bear.
Mourning watched, initially finding it funny but then her expression darkened.
“Why do you all treat her so well?” she asked, her eyes clouded with gloom. “People have no inherent connections. Even blood relatives are fabricated for alliances. You can all live without her. Why go through all this trouble just to make her happy?”
This person had a paranoid way of thinking and a twisted sense of evil. She always felt there was something strange about her, but couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Hearing her words, Landlord Li suddenly understood.
She had no one close to her, not even servants. She seemed to have a natural hostility towards people. Seeing so many people around Princess, it was understandable she wouldn’t comprehend the idea of “care.”
Feeling a pang of compassion, he closed his folding fan, gently tapping her shoulder. “If you treat people well, they’ll naturally treat you well. That’s common sense.”
Mourning raised her eyes, scanning his face with her bright gaze. “So if I treat you well, will you treat me well?”
The pang of compassion vanished, and Landlord Li smiled wryly. “Nope.”
Given his painful lessons over the past few months, being targeted by this Queen was no small matter.
He squinted, and Mourning snorted, flicking her sleeve. She climbed onto the wall, then paused, perched there. “Dinner. Don’t forget,” she reminded.
With a flourish of her jade fan, Landlord Li shielded his face. “I won’t forget.”
With a smirk, Mourning leaped off the wall. Landlord Li watched her silhouette, shaking his head repeatedly. Xu Chu Niang called him, “Landlord Li, come and help.”
“Here it comes.” He withdrew his gaze and followed the others to the main courtyard.
Li Huaiyu sat with the two children under the eaves, her eyes fixed on the approaching prison cart.
“Be careful, Your Highness!” Qing Si pulled her back nervously. “Stand further away.”
Li Huaiyu obediently stepped back, tiptoeing to get a better look at the fuzzy lump in the cart. She frowned, “I can’t see clearly from this far.”
“Take a quick look.” Red Gold said, “It will be sent away soon to prevent it from waking up and causing more harm.”
“Yes,” Xu Chu Niang chimed in, “I just took a look. It’s just an ordinary bear, looks the same from far and near.”
Clicking her tongue, Li Huaiyu asked, “Can we have a bear paw for lunch?”
Landlord Li broke into a cold sweat. “No.”
“Why not? I used to have it in the palace,” Li Huaiyu said. “Braised bear paw, a famous dish.”
“I don’t know how to cook it,” Red Gold shook his head.
“And there’s something you can’t do?” Li Huaiyu was surprised. “Let me try then.”
“No!” everyone exclaimed in unison.
The atmosphere became a bit strange. Li Huaiyu surveyed them all with a furrowed brow. “Are you hiding something from me?”
“No!” came the synchronized reply.
Rubbing her temples in frustration, they exchanged accusatory glances. Landlord Li stepped forward. “Don’t waste things. It’s not easy for this bear. There might be cubs waiting for it to come back. Let it go.”
Looking at the two babies in her arms, Li Huaiyu relaxed. “Alright, let it go.”
With these words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, their faces showing relief as if they had just escaped a disaster. They were about to shake hands in celebration when Li Huaiyu added, “I’ll personally release it!”
The “bear” in the cart trembled.
“Release… ” Holding his folding fan tightly, Landlord Li forced a smile, “Release it where?”
“Where else? Back to the mountains!” Li Huaiyu said. “Let’s go now while it’s still asleep. We can make it back before sunset.”
“Your Highness, let us go on your behalf,” Qing Si suggested. “You can stay home with the young master and miss.”
“No, such an interesting thing, I must go myself.” Handing the two babies to the nurse, Li Huaiyu said, “Bring my jade sculpture and let’s go. We can also gather some essence of the sun and moon for it.”
Mentioning the jade sculpture, everyone fell silent. They exchanged glances and pushed Qing Si forward.
Qing Si awkwardly said, “I’ll go get it. You… you go wait outside with Landlord Li and the others.”
“Alright!” Li Huaiyu clapped her hands enthusiastically, beckoning to Landlord Li. “Let’s go.”
Landlord Li forced a smile, looking worriedly at the “bear” in the cart. If they released it into the mountains, would it survive?
Qing Si took the empty box for the jade sculpture and held it close. Li Huaiyu tried to take it when she boarded the carriage, but Qing Si shook her head. “Let me hold it. Landlord Li has something important to discuss with you.”
“What’s the matter?” Li Huaiyu asked Landlord Li.
Landlord Li looked at the folding fan in his hand in silence. He also wondered what important matters he had to discuss with her.
Red Gold stepped forward to break the silence. “Is it about the matter with Baihua Jun?”
Xu Chu Niang added softly, “It seems Baihua Jun has disappeared. She was here just now, but did she have a conflict with the manager?”
Landlord Li shot Red Gold a meaningful glance, his eye twitching slightly.
Why bring up Baihua Jun when there were better options? It was like she had developed a liking for spectacles, and this was intentional! Wasn’t it just the other day that she accidentally interrupted his time alone with Xu Chu Niang? Why hold a grudge like this?
“Mourning? Speaking of which, she seems to enjoy being with you.” Li Huaiyu looked at him with interest. “Ignoring status, she’s no less beautiful than you.”
“Praising a man should use handsome and elegant. Thank you, Your Highness.” Landlord Li gritted his teeth. “I have no fate with Baihua Jun. What I wanted to discuss with Your Highness is… Baihua Jun has been in North Wei for too long. It’s not appropriate. We need to find a way to send her back to East Jin.”