In the past few days of autumn, Ye Chongjin's illness gradually improved. This time the illness entered the body through the mouth. He became more careful about what he ate, for fear that if he ate something harmful to his health, he would suffer. If he messed up again, the entire Prime Minister's Mansion would also be on tenterhooks.
There is a lush old sycamore tree in Funing Courtyard which was planted when Ye Chongjin was born. It was transplanted from the old man's courtyard. On weekdays, grandma An and a few girls like to enjoy the cool air under it. At this time, the leaves of the tree were drifting down in twos and threes and it looked a bit desolate.
The chubby little child was lying in front of the window. He looked out blankly and murmured: "Autumn is coming."
Grandma An took an ivory comb and carefully took care of his black hair. She said with a smile: "Exactly, this summer was difficult and the Young Master also suffered. It will cool down in a few days. Wait for the sweet-scented osmanthus in the outer courtyard. Once it is in full bloom, grandma will make sweet-scented osmanthus cakes for the little master to eat as well as the sweet-scented osmanthus tea that the little Master praised last year. I will prepare more tea this year."
Ye Chongjin said: "The tea made by grandma is very good and A-Jin likes to drink it."
Grandma An smiled even more heartily, her fingers deftly tied the little child's long hair. The brocade-like silk fell obediently on the shoulders. However the strand of curly hair on his forehead was beyond imagination so she had to let it go. It continued to behave wilfully, looking a little naughty.
The little doll tugged on the curly hair, smiled mischievously and said: "Are you thinking that this hair is just like A-Jin? It's very difficult to take care of."
Grandma An was startled for a moment then smiled and said: "These words are not what the old slave said. If the Young Master wants to blame me, he can't do that to the old slave."
Ye Chongjin pursed his lips, pretended to be innocent and said, "How dare A-Jin offend grandma? What will happen if grandma doesn't feel sorry for A-Jin anymore?"
Knowing that this little master is the best at coaxing people, having sugar-coated bullets at his fingertips, grandma An still enjoyed it as if she had eaten honey. Her face turned into a smile and she waved her hand and said: "This old slave absolutely doesn't dare to do that."
Xia He, the eldest girl in the room, was the smartest. When she heard the words, she agreed: "That's right, who would be willing to hurt our little Master? Grandma talked in her sleep last night and she kept urging the little Master to drink medicine. It can be seen that she is thinking of you day and night."
She deliberately emphasized the word "drink medicine" and all the girls in the room started laughing. Grandma An also laughed out loud. Only Ye Chongjin wrinkled his face and snorted softly.
A few people were laughing and joking when suddenly Manager Liu hurriedly walked into the courtyard. There were many members of the fairer sex in the house. He stood outside the window and gave a half salute to Ye Chongjin. He lowered his eyebrows and said, "Grandma An, I have an order. Please invite the Young Master to meet the guests in the front hall."
Grandma An frowned and replied: "Manager Liu, our Young Master has never seen guests because he needs to rest. In the past, Luo Shangshu came to the house as a guest and said he wanted to see the Young Master and the masters all refused. Who is the important guest today for such a big confrontation?"
Manager Liu looked embarrassed and said: "It is indeed a very important guest. Master Shangshu can't compare. You shouldn't ask any more questions. Please change the Young Master's clothes."
After saying this, he bowed to Ye Chongjin, turned around and returned.
The child lying on the window edge blinked, a little puzzled. It was really rare for someone to be called a "distinguished guest" in the Prime Minister's Mansion. Moreover, judging from the concealed appearance of Manager Liu, he seemed very mysterious. Maybe he is someone he knew in his previous life.
Ye Chongjin became interested and grinned: "Grandma let's go over now."
Grandma An responded, put on his shoes and socks and went into the inner room to get his coat. When she turned around, the child had already ran out. At the courtyard gate, Xia He and several other girls followed him, calling, "Little Master, be careful where you step, don't fall."
Ye Chongjin said, "If I don't hurry up, grandma will wear that damn hot jacket on me."
Grandma An looked at the clothes in her hand and she couldn't laugh or cry immediately. It was just a layer of rabbit wool added and it turned into a coat. This little ancestor just recovered from his illness but then forgot the lesson he learned when he was sick.
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The music in the room is melodious accompanied with the faint fragrance of tea. The warm breeze of late summer was blowing. It was originally a pleasant and comfortable morning but Ye Yanbai broke out in a cold sweat.
The young man sitting in the seat was dressed in black clothes and his young face already had a somewhat stern look. He said calmly: "Gu heard that the Taifu was ill earlier and gu was worried. Unexpectedly, the Taifu was seriously ill at home but he is actually here listening to music and drinking tea."
"The tea is good tea." He put down the tea cup in his hand and the delicate porcelain made a soft sound when it hit the rosewood table. He said, "But what should gu do about the crime of deceiving the Emperor?"
Ye Yanbai felt that it is really unjust. There are only two public holidays in Daegu in a month. In order to have some free time, officials will take a few days off every one or two months. Prime Minister Ye is a decent person and has never been lazy for a day. This time it happened that his beloved son was ill. After a few leisurely days, who knew he was caught?
In other words, everyone makes mistakes but only he, Ye Yanbai, was unlucky enough to be targeted by the Crown Prince.
This matter may be big or small, it all depends on the intentions of His Highness.
Ye Yanbai was thinking about how to respond when suddenly there was a lot of noise from outside the door. The Ye family is a century-old scholarly family and all the servants are well-behaved and polite. No one can find anything wrong with them. There is only one exception and that is his youngest son's Funing Yuan.
The child suffered a lot from birth and Prime Minister Ye and his wife were reluctant to discipline him so they allowed him to follow his own whims and even the servants in the yard followed suit.
"...Little ancestor, you can't take off this coat. Madam has told me that it is better to be hot than cold." This was the voice of grandma An.
Then a child's soft voice said aggrievedly: "But A-Jin is very hot and is already sweating!"
Seeing that they had arrived at the front hall, grandma An quickly made a shushing gesture and warned: "No noise is allowed here. Young Master, please bear with me, I will take it off when we get back to the courtyard after seeing the guests."
Ye Chongjin curled his lips, snorted, and walked into the house with his short legs.
When he entered the room, Ye Yanbai was kneeling on the ground to plead guilty.
Behind the fragrant white jade screen, the musician played music nervously. The warm wind outside the window carried a wisp of fragrance into the room. Ye Chongjin was stunned when he saw his father kneeling on the ground. He raised his head slightly and looked into a deep pool without any warning.
The boy in the seat was no more than eight or nine years old. He was dressed in black and white clothes with a purple and gold jade hairpin holding his hair in a bun. His brows were cold and majestic and he was looking down at him with a disdainful attitude.
Ye Chongjin felt pain on his cheeks as a sharp gaze swept over his face and he subconsciously took a step back.
This shouldn't be the case. They had been together day and night for more than ten years and had the most intimate relationship. This man even said that he loved him more than his own life. However Ye Chongjin was just afraid of him.
Gu Chen is often more like a beast than a human being.