When Shang JunLin heard what the man said, his face sank. But when Shen Yu turned to look at him, he'd already returned to his expressionless appearance.
Still, Shen Yu could feel Shang JunLin's displeasure.
The more he didn't show it, the more it revealed the depth of his anger.
At first Shen Yu felt offended, but when he heard the next thing the man said, he just thought it was funny. Imagine, there was someone who lusted for beauty so much he was rushing to his own death.
It was rare for His Majesty to get so angry.
Shen Yu drew closer to Shang JunLin, poked his arm, and asked in a low voice, "Ah Lin, how does it feel to be robbed in the street for the first time?"
"Ah Yu doesn't seem to be angry at all?" Shang JunLin also lowered his voice.
"Of course I'm angry, but I know Ah Lin will get justice for me. Also, I don't think it's worth getting upset over the words of a clown. Is Your Majesty unhappy?"
Clearly, Shang JunLin was displeased, but not for the reason Shen Yu thought. He was angry because Shen Yu was coveted by someone else. How dare that person have thoughts about his noble monarch!
The man across from them obviously had no idea whom he'd provoked. When he saw the two whispering together, he thought they were tempted by his proposal and he redoubled his efforts.
"You see, there are too many people here. Even if you hurry, you might not find a good place to see the show, and when the time comes, all these people might jostle you. If you come with me, you'll avoid these annoyances. I promise my place isn't crowded. Not only that, it has the best view."
A servant spoke up. "As our young master says, you should appreciate the honor of this invitation. You're lucky our young master condescended to invite you."
Shen Yu was growing curious about the identity of this young man in fancy clothes. There were a lot of powerful figures in the imperial capital. Someone with no influence at all couldn't have said such a thing.
"Does Ah Lin know who that person is?"
"I don't."
Shen Yu didn't recognize him either. In his previous life, he dealt with many dignitaries for the King of Yue, but he never met such a person. Maybe it was just his family that was powerful, and the young man himself didn't have any achievements.
"We don't even know you. Shouldn't you introduce yourself before inviting us somewhere?"
"That's an oversight on my part. Go on, tell them who I am."
"Our young master is Qian MingFu, the di son of the Qian family. In the future, our young master's di sister will enter the palace and become the empress." The young servant's face was proud.
What a coincidence. The Qian family was the family of the King of Li's princess consort. They were also the family of the young woman he was fighting so hard to send into Shang JunLin's harem.
"Ah Lin, what do you think is going on with the Qian family? Why are the young master and this young lady so eager...?"
"The Qian family has quite an appetite," Shang JunLin interrupted. "What does Ah Yu say, yes or no?"
Shen Yu knew of the Qian family. When the previous emperor was in power, they were just a minor family in the capital. Later, a daughter of the Qian family married the King of Li as his official wife. The King of Li backed the right side when Shang JunLin ascended the throne. The Qian family's boat lifted with the tide, and with the help of the King of Li, they grew more and more powerful over time.
"I think Ah Lin would say that the unworthy should give way to the virtuous," Shen Yu said.
Thanks to the King of Li's manipulation, many younger members of the Qian family had become officials. If they had actual ability, that was fine, but if they only knew how to enrich themselves, it would be better to vacate their positions as quickly as possible.
Qian MingFu thought the two men were astonished by his background. His beauty-addled brain had finally woken up a little, but he wasn't willing to give up yet.
With a single glance he'd fallen in love with the young man in the fox mask when he saw him across the crowd. He could only see half of Shen Yu's face, the part that was visible below the mask, but that delicate jaw and the thin waist under his robes enticed his heart and soul.
He'd seen a lot of beauties and knew at a glance that this young man was a rare and unique specimen, far more delicious than anyone else he'd tasted.
When he considered that the young man might come from an impressive background, Qian MingFu knew he couldn't be too aggressive. He just had to do some coaxing with some nice-sounding words at first. Then, when they got to his place, he could do whatever he wanted.
He was experienced at this kind of thing and knew how to sweet talk his targets.
Shen Yu pretended to be persuaded. "Why don't we go and have a look?"
Shang JunLin didn't know what Shen Yu wanted to do, but he was certain he could protect Shen Yu, so he didn't object.
Seeing the two were persuaded, Qian MingFu looked happy. He quickly ordered his boy to lead the way.
The place Qian MingFu mentioned was the upper floor of a restaurant, partially open to the night air. Shen Yu stood on the upper level and looked out at the sky. He sighed. "This really is a good place."
The view was wide open and unobstructed. When the fireworks began, they could enjoy the view to the fullest with no one else around them. But that also meant that if someone tried to do something here, it wouldn't be easy to call for help.
The restaurant waitstaff sent up good wine and food. After confirming the guests had no other needs, they withdrew.
"How does the place chosen by Ah Lin compare to this?" If it weren't for that annoying person, Shen Yu thought this would be a good place to watch the fireworks.
"If Ah Yu likes it, we can watch from here."
Shen Yu and Shang JunLin huddled together as they talked, completely ignoring Qian MingFu. Qian MingFu waited with growing impatience. He hadn't invited this pair here to watch them enjoy themselves together.
He poured two glasses of wine and walked over to them. "Our meeting was fated. Let me toast you."
Shen Yu didn't accept the wine.
Shang JunLin took a glass, but he didn't sip from it. He put it directly on the table.
Qian MingFu's face grew distorted. "Gentlemen, what do you mean by this?"
He wanted to use soft methods, but now it seemed that was impossible.
Shen Yu didn't appear to notice Qian MingFu's ill temper. "I don't mean anything. I'm not in good health and can't drink."
"What about him?"
"Him? He probably just doesn't want to drink it. After all, who knows if there's something in the wine that shouldn't be there," Shen Yu said lightly.
"Are you saying I drugged the wine?" Qian MingFu's face took on a sinister smile. "I wanted to do this the easy way, but you obviously don't know how to behave. Don't blame this young master for what happens next.
"Men, take them down!"
Shen Yu and Shang JunLin remained peacefully in their seats. They waited a while, and none of the men Qian MingFu shouted for appeared.
Shen Yu rested his cheek in his hand and smiled. "Oh no, Young Master Qian, do you think you should shout a little louder? Maybe they didn't hear you."
When Qian MingFu saw the calm appearance of the two men, he felt flustered. "What are you trying to do? Do you even know who I am?"
"Isn't that the question we should be asking you? Qian MingFu, you seem to have a lot of experience at this. How many other men and women have you tricked?"
"Do you know my uncle is the King of Li? Aren't you worried the King of Li will come after you?"
"The King of Li? The King of Li can't even protect himself. Instead of saying we should be worried, why don't you worry about yourself?"
Shen Yu stood up and came out from behind the table. With every step he took, Qian MingFu took a step back.
In order to facilitate his "act", Qian MingFu sent everyone else away. He intended to use wine to drug the two men. He didn't think they'd avoid his trap entirely.
Maybe they were planning this from the start!
When this thought crossed his mind, Qian MingFu was filled with anger.
The candlelight shone down from overhead, illuminating half of Shen Yu's face. Qian MingFu looked at the face half-covered by the mask and his courage grew, inflamed by resentment. He reached out to snatch the mask from Shen Yu's face.
He wanted to see who this person really was!
He was too furious to let this go!
Before he could touch Shen Yu, a chopstick flashed through the air—
"Ah!"
Qian MingFu clutched his pierced hand and fell to the side.
Shang JunLin walked over and gazed down at him with an icy expression. "Who said you could touch him?"
Qian MingFu gasped in pain. "How dare you! I won't let you walk away!"
"Is that so?" Shen Yu came forward and stepped on Qian MingFu's wound with one foot. "Does that hurt?"
When Shen Yu spoke, the tail end of his words rose a little, as if he'd found something entertaining. He pressed down a little harder with his foot, and the chill in his eyes grew deeper and deeper.
Qian MingFu was in so much pain that he hunched over and couldn't speak.
"You deserve this pain. Have you ever thought about the pain of the people you prey on? Their pain is a hundred, a thousand times greater than yours."
"Who's bullying my son?" The door was violently pushed open. A middle-aged man in the blue robes of an official appeared at the door with a group of soldiers in uniform.
When the man saw the scene inside, he sucked in a breath. "How dare they be so bold! Capture these people at once! This official wants to know who dares to move against the Qian family!"
Before his soldiers could take a step, another team of well-trained men in black surrounded them all.
Shang JunLin slowly, carefully adjusted Shen Yu's loose mask, and then he turned back. "Minister Qian is such a powerful official."
As he spoke, he slowly removed the mask from his face.
"Your, Your Majesty?" Minister Qian's legs weakened and he immediately knelt down. "This, this minister didn't know, didn't know it was Your Majesty. Your Majesty, please forgive me."
By the end of these words, his voice was shaking with a tremor that couldn't be concealed.
When he heard what Minister Qian said, Qian MingFu's eyes rolled up and he immediately fainted.
It was unclear if it was from the pain or from fear.
Minister Qian knelt on the ground and lowered himself even further. "This servant had no idea my son offended Your Majesty. This servant will strictly discipline my son. Begging Your Majesty to be lenient...."
No matter how much Minister Qian dearly loved this son, he was full of bitterness. His son could have provoked anyone, but he had to provoke His Majesty himself! Was he worried that his family was too prosperous?
Even if Minister Qian could ignore the death of a son, he couldn't ignore the death of the entire Qian family. He only prayed that Qian MingFu didn't have time to cause a huge disaster.
Gritting his teeth, he continued, "Your Majesty can do whatever you want with my son. I just ask Your Majesty not to involve innocent people..."
"Minister Qian's words are interesting. What do you mean by His Majesty not involving the innocent? Should he turn a blind eye to your behavior of oppressing others?" Shen Yu smiled sarcastically. If he and His Majesty hadn't appeared here today, wouldn't someone else have been targeted instead? Did they deserve to be ruined by this scumbag?
"This servant..."
"Minister Qian needn't say any more. His Majesty has a clear distinction between public and private. As for your son and the Qian family, we'll certainly discover who is innocent and who is not."
Minister Qian fell to the ground, paralyzed. The King of Li was too distracted with his own affairs to do anything for him. Really, no one would be able to save them.
"It's time," Shang JunLin said in a calm voice.
Shen Yu was startled. "What?"
"Come with this emperor." Shang JunLin took Shen Yu's hand and walked out to a place with a wide view.
Almost the moment they reached it, there was a "boom", and a loud explosion rang out.
A sequence of huge fireworks bloomed in the black sky, turning the night as bright as day. All kinds of multi-colored light streamed down like a fairyland.
The noisy voices faded away, leaving only the enormous flowers in the dark, hanging between heaven and earth.
"Ah Yu, Happy New Year."
Amid the roar of the explosions, Shang JunLin's slightly magnetic voice was clear. Shen Yu squinted his eyes. "Ah Lin, Happy New Year."
At that moment they weren't emperor and noble monarch, but only themselves.
---
TL Notes:
quite an appetite - 心大 - "big heart"
official wife - 正妃 - official consort, proper consort etc.
involve innocent people - 殃及无辜 - Trouble involves the innocent people; bring disaster to the innocent; involve the innocent in the trouble; shoot at a pigeon and kill a crow
Transliterated names, places, and titles—new in this chapter:
Qian MingFu - 钱明弗
Minister Qian - 钱大人 - Alternatively: Lord Qian, His Excellency Qian, Mr. Qian
princess consort - 王妃 - wáng fēi