Extra · Court Life with Cubs 1
[I]
Wei Chang’an.
Personally named by the Emperor of Great Wei, he was the Emperor’s darling and hailed as the court’s number one auspicious symbol.
Not only was he established as the Crown Prince immediately after birth, but he also had the fortune of having Xiao Ji, a descendant of a family of scholars, as his Grand Tutor, and Tang Tuan, a titled noble of the court and a famous battlefield general, as the Junior Guardian of the Heir.
When he was born, the rivers of Great Wei ran clear and the seas were calm; the mountains and rivers were stable, and the four barbarian tribes submitted. While still swaddled in his infancy, Wei Chang’an’s tiny body was already fully stacked with “newbie village” buffs.
However, little Wei Chang’an was a child who possessed a very, very, very strong sense of gratitude.
Not long after he learned to speak and understood a bit about the world, he realized that everything he possessed came from his Imperial Father and his Father, the Regent. Therefore, the little Crown Prince cherished his blessings immensely, often to the point where he left Xiao Ji, his Grand Tutor, speechless.
“Your Highness, the spring scenery is just right, suitable for an outing. This subject shall accompany you to the Imperial Garden, where we may read the ‘Xi’ chapter of the Analects together.”
The five-year-old dumpling of a Crown Prince replied, “The spring scenery is just right, and the peace within the Four Seas relies entirely on Imperial Father’s virtuous governance. After the lesson, this student requests to pay respects to Imperial Father alongside Grand Tutor and report on today’s insights.”
Xiao Ji: …Well answered. There isn’t a single thing I can correct.
“Your Highness is wise.”
Wei Chang’an’s precocious wisdom was not limited to being overly sensible.
In the afternoon, after finishing the lesson on the ‘Xi’ chapter, Xiao Ji led the dumpling Crown Prince into the Linde Hall. There was a banquet being held for the Kingdom of Talas. Talas was originally far from Great Wei, but after Great Wei pacified the Turks, settled Tubo, and won over Gaochang… having shaken the various northwestern borders, they were now bordering Talas.
One could imagine how fearful the King of Talas must be of the powerful Great Wei!
It was also easy to imagine that when the Talas envoys arrived at the state banquet, they wouldn’t just sit there quietly—they would surely play some tricks.
At the banquet.
“His Majesty’s prestige spreads far and wide; the Kingdom of Talas is filled with admiration. Our country has heard that your noble nation possesses countless talents versed in both the pen and the sword. Thus, we have specially presented a jade Nine-Linked Ring. We wish to see if the clever people of Great Wei are capable of disentangling it…”
—Is the plot really this lazy now?
Wei Wanlan secretly stifled a yawn.
To be honest, knowing that this state banquet would involve a confrontation with the unchivalrous Talas, he had actually made some preparations and felt somewhat confident.
But he really hadn’t expected that as the world of the book expanded toward Central Asia and the map grew larger, the provocation tactics would still be the clichéd tropes commonly found in TV dramas and cartoons. It was terribly tacky.
If he weren’t the Emperor, he would have wanted to smash that Nine-Linked Ring to pieces, claim he solved it, and hog the spotlight.
But Zhen couldn’t do that now. He had to save face.
Wei Wanlan lifted his eyelids and saw his own little one. Before he could even give a secret signal, Wei Chang’an had already walked steadily to the front. He bowed first, then addressed the Talas envoy:
“The territory of Great Wei spans ten thousand miles of fertile soil. To use a mere Nine-Linked Ring as a ruler to test the virtuous talents of my dynasty—is the envoy not treating this too much like child’s play?”
How could he have guessed that his cub wouldn’t even smash the rings?
Wei Wanlan chuckled softly. “Indeed, too much like child’s play.”
He beckoned for the wet nurse to pass the cub over for a hug. The little cub soared into the air, and Wei Wanlan rubbed the cub’s head. The cub sat properly in Wei Wanlan’s arms. Wei Chang’an’s current appearance was clearly milky and obedient, yet his expression was forced into a certain stiffness—err, the solemnity exclusive to His Highness the Crown Prince.
The Talas envoy became anxious. “If you cannot even solve a mere Nine-Linked Ring, how can you claim to have a land of ten thousand miles filled with talent!”
Sigh. Cub, you really should have just smashed it.
The palace servants presented the Nine-Linked Ring on the imperial table. Wei Chang’an’s small hand grabbed the ring. He shook it, the jade rings clinking with a crisp sound. He aimed at just one ring, flipped it around in his hand a few times, and one of the jade loops of the Nine-Linked Ring detached. He placed the loop steadily back on the table.
“You see, Envoy? This Prince can solve it.”
“This Prince also has some toys used by the children of Great Wei to pass time. Only smart children can solve them. Can you solve it?”
As he spoke, An Ruyi quickly signaled with his eyes. Palace maids slowly brought out His Highness the Crown Prince’s Luban Lock, which had been invited all the way from the dragon bed in Zichen Hall. Because of Wei Wanlan’s doting, although the Crown Prince was over five years old and had been effortlessly granted a residence, he had not yet moved into the Eastern Palace and still lived together with the Emperor and the Regent.
A clump of Luban Lock—just looking at it caused a headache!
The Talas envoy’s face grew worse and worse. He had prepared for the Nine-Linked Ring before coming; he could actually solve a few steps of that.
But who knew that a mere child of Great Wei could solve it too!
Even worse, the tables were turned on him. A child could solve the Luban Lock.
But he couldn’t! He couldn’t solve it!!!
The Talas envoy’s expression deteriorated, his face flushing to a pig-liver color that was red bordering on purple. He constantly tried to mask his guilty conscience, his gaze darting around wildly while his hands gripped the fabric at his knees tightly.
“This—”
“This…”
Is he destined to make a fool of himself to the very end???
Wei Wanlan couldn’t help but shake his head slightly, feeling a bit of pity that the villain had encountered his family’s brain-power-obsessed, overachieving cub. He hugged the cub tighter, smelling the clean, woody scent, and suddenly felt his heartstrings tugged. He felt that the little cub was, in some moments, just too similar to the Regent.
The dumpling Crown Prince pressed on: “Since Your Excellency was able to come to my Great Wei, you must be considered a talent in your noble country. Do you admit that you are currently inferior to a five-year-old child of Great Wei?”
Yes! It was this kind of aggressive pressing—it was exactly like his Regent daddy.
Wei Wanlan secretly rubbed the little cub a few times. The cub looked ninety-nine percent like his Regent father; he was definitely going to grow up to be the noble, aloof, and proud type.
The Talas envoy, defeated by the Luban Lock, could only cup his hands in surrender and drink the penalty wine. The palace banquet concluded with the Talas side looking dejected and speechless.
The cub is so cute. Reward the cub with a candy bean.
Wei Wanlan picked up a piece of rose pine nut candy. Little Chang’an actually loved sweets very much—he got that from him—but having heard from someone that eating candy wasn’t “Crown Prince-like,” he always suppressed his true desires and endured not eating them.
Wei Wanlan teased him to open his mouth. “Ah—”
The little cub hesitated for a moment before opening his mouth to eat it. Visibly, like he had eaten a power-up bean, both his eyes lit up. His small hand waved gently in mid-air. He didn’t make a sound, but his meaning was clear: So sweet.
Wei Wanlan enjoyed the pleasure of feeding the cub and hugged him entirely. “Cub is the best.”
Wei Chang’an’s little face turned bright red.
Imperial Father is the gentlest. This son must grow up quickly to protect Imperial Father forever.
[II]
Su Lingyun.
Five years old, but regardless of age, he was a demon king. He had been rowdy even in the womb.
Correct. And because he had once caused havoc in “Heaven’s Palace” (the womb) and urged his Imperial Father to sleep early, on the tenth day after his birth, his biological father, the Regent, remembered this and personally came to settle the score.
When the score was being settled, Su Lingyun was still kicking about in the wet nurse’s arms. Lacking any survival instinct, he met his Father-Prince’s gaze head-on.
“So, it was you who kicked Little Wan often?”
“……” And he instantly behaved.
Confirmed by the look in his eyes: Father-Prince is someone I can’t afford to provoke.
So, who did the demon king Su Lingyun fear most? The answer: he feared his biological dad. His dad’s majesty was like a towering peak; a single look could make him go cold all over, instantly puffing up like a frightened furball.
Su Lingyun was raised together with Wei Chang’an, but if there was free time, his Regent dad would take Su Lingyun away to keep him under personal supervision.
It wasn’t because of favoritism, but because no one else could control him. No palace maid or eunuch dared to provoke this son. He was accustomed to pleasing Little Wan with glib tongue and smooth talk. Only by keeping him under his eyelids could the Regent ensure the task of raising the seventh generation of Su family famous generals.
During the noon nap, the Regent coaxed Little Wan to sleep and covered Wei Chang’an with a small quilt. The father and son were sleeping soundly and obediently.
Then the Regent lay down and pinned Su Lingyun down, forcing him to sleep whether he wanted to or not. His excitement slowly settled, and finally, on the not-so-large dragon bed of Zichen Hall, they lay in a perfect family of four.
Right, before sleeping, the Regent had to remind him: “You are not allowed to kick the blanket off again. If you kick it and break it, you sew it yourself.”
Su Lingyun had already kicked three brocade quilts to ruins.
It was a mystery how he did it—cotton exposed on the inside, holes on the outside. Every time An Ruyi came to clean up the mess, he had to quickly smooth things over: “Your Highness, quell your anger, quell your anger. Let’s consider this from another angle; this shows his internal energy is profound. The Heir’s leg techniques are quite good…”
After waking up, Su Jingzhi had to go to the Ministry of War in the afternoon to plan the defense arrangements for the border with Talas. Since there were many people inside and it wasn’t convenient to bring a little cub in, the Regent didn’t want to make special exceptions.
It was early winter. The curtains hadn’t been removed. Separated by curtains and a screen, Su Lingyun stood in a horse stance outside. Through the screen, a faint silhouette could be seen from inside.
Regarding Talas, defense was still the priority. It wasn’t that they couldn’t expand the territory further, but the domain was simply too vast to manage effectively. Places that were too remote couldn’t be controlled even if they wanted to, only increasing domestic burdens.
The matters were mostly discussed. Su Jingzhi cast a glance toward the outside of the screen. The small shadow was still there, wearing a small round hat, seemingly standing quite steadily. He hadn’t moved.
Su Jingzhi breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.
But that breath didn’t last until the end. Outside, a Gold Guard immediately came running in, panic in his voice as he ran:
“Your Highness! The Heir fell off the warhorse…”
—Wasn’t he standing in a horse stance outside???
This was the cub Little Wan had risked his life to give birth to! The training grounds were so big, the warhorse so high—how did this brat pull a ‘Golden Cicada sheds its shell’ and get out there!
Su Jingzhi instantly felt blood rushing to the top of his head. Upon exiting the door, he saw a snowman outside the screen—short and stout, with Su Lingyun’s small cotton hat on top of its head. Several Gold Guards didn’t dare to report the truth, trembling as they explained to the Regent:
“Your Highness, it is this subordinate’s fault. We dared not disobey the Heir’s command. The Heir said we had been immobilized by his spell.”
Rebellion, pure rebellion.
First, go see if the cub is injured.
Even Talas wouldn’t make the Regent this angry!
In the training grounds, Su Lingyun was rubbing his ankle. Although he had fallen from the horse, he didn’t cry. Brother Horse had very principledly refused to carry the Heir; no matter how he climbed, Brother Horse remained motionless. Su Lingyun hadn’t grabbed hold firmly and fell off.
He wasn’t resigned and was still negotiating with his Father-Prince’s majestic warhorse.
“Eat a handful of grass, take this Heir for a ride~”
“When I grow up, I’ll give you lots and lots of soybeans. Take me for a ride…”
This kind of little devil, who could grind people down and had eight hundred schemes in his heart, was quite hard to deal with. The warhorse turned its head, refusing his bribe. Su Lingyun was about to continue his strategy when his vision went airborne. The scruff of his destiny had been seized by someone.
He kicked his two short legs and looked back. Seeing his Father-Prince, and seeing his Father-Prince’s slightly stern expression, he knew he had caused trouble and couldn’t escape this time.
So what to do?
Small face scrunched up, little deer eyes closed, and cry.
“Wuwu wah wah wah—”
“Child fell and it hurts so much! Child won’t dare do it again! Child just wanted to ride a horse. Standing in a horse stance outside is so cold, wuwu…”
Su Lingyun was naturally naughty and overly energetic, but he was truly born cute. He was an eighty-percent replica of Little Wan, and relying on this face, he always made Su Jingzhi want to spank him but unable to bring himself to do it. He had also perfectly learned Little Wan’s ultimate move: cry when necessary, with zero psychological burden.
But he was also a very kind-hearted cub: “Father-Prince, it was me who wanted to ride the horse. Don’t blame the big horse. The big horse wouldn’t let me touch him; Child fell on his own.”
Helpless, Su Jingzhi tossed him onto the horse’s back. He mounted the warhorse and took the cub for two laps.
The cub caught the wind along the training grounds, his little deer eyes blinking. Following his Father-Prince’s riding rhythm, he stretched out two short hands to shake the reins. After playing smugly on the horse enough, he was lifted down by the Regent. Still hanging around his Father-Prince’s neck, he pushed his luck:
“Can Child wear a sword this year?”
“No. This year is for building martial arts foundations.”
“Can Child do the horse stance for the Imperial Father to see?”
“Also no. Your Imperial Father will feel heartache.”
“Wu.” Su Lingyun asked, “Then can Child be exempted from punishment tonight?”
“Even more impossible. Acting recklessly and implicating the innocent. Since you know it was wrong, go back and copy books. You are absolutely not allowed to let your Imperial Father write it for you.”
QAQ……
The Su family’s seventh-generation famous general, the little devil, loved to go wuwu. He had a beautiful appearance and big eyes, looking completely innocent and harmless, but anyone could sense that this little guy was destined to be a genius in military tactics.
Because he fit one phrase too perfectly:
—Troops have no fixed formation, just as water has no constant shape.
The enemy armies facing him in the future were going to be miserable.
T/N: So cute~
Author’s Note: Thank you, little angels, for the 8 bottles of nutrient solution~ Yanyu ×8
A delightful little theater: Taking a family portrait. Outside Zichen Hall. Huahua (Author): “It’s about to end! Let’s take a family photo~” Huahua: “Wanwan, of course, stands in the very center.” Wanwan gets in position. Huahua: “Regent stands next to Wanwan. Each person holds one cub.” An Ruyi: (Walks over to distribute the cubs) Huahua: “General Tang and Prime Minister Xiao, take each side.” Tang Tuan and Xiao Ji get in position. Huahua: “Eunuch An should join too. Please stand next to them.” An Ruyi (Surprised): “Can this slave also take a photo with Your Majesty and the Lords…” “Count down three, two, one, then we shout what we want to say the most!” “Three.” “Two.” “One.” “See you in the next book!!!”
Both cubs are served up. Come see whose genes are stronger between Little Wan and the Regent, hehe. Thanks for reading!
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