Chapter 122

Chapter 122: The Loudest Cry

This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.

The Prince suddenly leaped to his feet.

“Outside the door?”

“How much did Zhou the Penny-Pincher repay? Surely not much? He’s infamous for being miserly, a complete cheapskate who wouldn’t part with a single coin!”

“How much was recovered? Three thousand taels? Five thousand?”

“It must be because she cried at his doorstep to shame him into paying. Probably gave her just enough to send off a little beggar.” The Prince nodded smugly.

He only knew that the debt had been collected but had no idea about the exact amount.

The attendant scratched his head awkwardly. “Your Grace, I asked around. She didn’t cry.”

“But Lord Zhou did.”

“They say he bawled his eyes out, sniffles and all, and personally escorted her out the door.”

“Before she left, he even gave her two handfuls of golden melon seeds, pleading with her as she walked away…”

“Oh, and Lord Zhou had borrowed thirty thousand but repaid fifty thousand.”

The Prince nearly sprang up in shock.

“How much did you say he repaid? That miserly Zhou handed over fifty thousand?” His eyes widened as if the heavens had fallen. Everyone in court knew that Zhou’s stinginess was legendary.

Whenever his colleagues went out drinking, he’d mysteriously disappear when it came time to pay the bill!

“You don’t know the half of it, Your Grace. He even had the gold bricks embedded in his walls pried out to cover the debt.”

The Prince’s eyelid twitched incessantly.

“Good heavens! My emperor nephew actually found himself a treasure-hunting mouse?”

“Her ability to sniff out riches is remarkable! And all it costs is a bottle of milk? That emperor sure knows how to make use of people.”

“But that miserly Zhou is hopeless. Watch how I’ll make him cry even harder!”

“Pay back the debt? No chance in this lifetime! Dream on. The late emperor lent it to me; does he think I’d ever return it?”

He was the late emperor’s youngest brother. Back when the late emperor was conquering the realm, he was just a six-year-old child. The late emperor treated him as half a son, pampering him greatly from a young age.

Even the current Emperor Xuan Ping had been bullied into tears by him in his youth.

Lu Chao Chao let out a satisfied burp, her pockets bulging with golden melon seeds.

When she was ushered into the prince’s residence, the Princess Consort was heavily pregnant but beamed with joy as she looked at her.

“You’re not allowed to bully Chao Chao,” she warned gently. The Princess Consort was in her thirties, having borne one child before, and this pregnancy came after a thirteen-year gap.

“I only conceived after holding Chao Chao.” The Princess Consort’s smile carried a trace of maternal tenderness.

“Alright, alright, I won’t bully her.”

“Little chubby one, I hear your father doesn’t want you anymore?” The Prince grinned mischievously at Lu Chao Chao.

Chao Chao huffed angrily. “Don’t talk about him!”

“Oh my, not even allowed to mention him now.”

“I’ll say it nine times, what will you do about it?”

“If you tell me how you got the miser Zhou to repay his debt, I’ll reward you five thousand taels.”

He looked at Lu Chao Chao with amusement, deeply curious about how such a little milk-drinking toddler had managed to reduce the iron rooster to tears.

“What’s there to feel? What’s there to reason?”

“I talked reason! He even gave me golden melon seeds…”

Chao Chao patted her pouch, casting a meaningful glance at the Prince.

The Prince almost burst out laughing.

Seriously? A toddler not even two years old, and you’ve already learned to pocket a cut for yourself?

Where did you learn this craftiness?

It’s uncanny!

“If you have the guts to persuade me, how about this? If you can convince me, I’ll honestly repay my debts.”

“And if you can make me cry, I’ll pay you back in full.” The Prince chuckled as he massaged his wife’s shoulders, playfully teasing Chao Chao.

He had always been an emotionally guarded man. Growing up without closeness to his parents, the late emperor had raised him, though something had always felt lacking. After marriage, his initial relationship with his wife was distant.

But over time, her kindness and patience gradually melted his defenses. Now their bond was strong, and he held her dearly. The manor housed only three concubines, gifts from the emperor, whom he rarely visited.

Chao Chao glanced at the elegant Princess Consort, then tightly covered her mouth with her hands.

“I won’t say anything now!”

“Why tease her? She’s so young, carrying such a heavy burden. You’ll stunt her growth.”

“The Emperor shouldn’t trouble a child like this,” the Princess Consort said softly, clearly fond of Chao Chao.

“Go back and tell the Emperor that his uncle has no money. He’d better drop the idea.” The Prince helped his wife to their chambers, his expression rarely so gentle.

“Remember to retrieve the bracelet; it’s our token of love.”

“It’s my fault for being so plump; the bracelet you gave me no longer fits,” she said with a wistful smile.

The bracelet had shattered due to a careless mistake by the Prince. His wife had cried bitterly, nearly fainting. He painstakingly collected the fragments and had them repaired but had yet to return it.

The Prince’s eyes trembled with emotion. “Yes, take good care of yourself.”

“Maybe I should just get you a new bracelet? Something even prettier and better.” He gazed at her tenderly.

The Princess Consort smiled gently. “But it wouldn’t be the same. That bracelet has a special meaning for us.”

She retired to her room, leaving him lost in thought, a rare daze overtaking his normally sharp demeanor.

“Little beggar, off you go. Take a thousand taels from the accounts room as payment and call it even.” His mood seemed darker now, a hint of melancholy replacing his earlier amusement.

“But you haven’t cried yet,” Lu Chao Chao reminded him.

“Little beggar, let me teach you a lesson today: people must know when to take a hint, or they’ll be disliked.” Without the Princess Consort present, his arrogance returned, his gentleness evaporated.

“People need to understand their place. Do you think you can make me cry?”

“Escort her out,” he ordered, rising to his feet.

Lu Chao Chao tilted her head, then calmly said, “Your bracelet wasn’t meant for the Princess Consort.”

!!!

The Prince whipped his head around to stare at her, his pupils constricting sharply.

“Your love letters and your bracelet were meant for…”

Before she could finish, her mouth was covered again.

“Don’t say it! Don’t say it!”

The once-arrogant Prince now looked panicked, sneaking a glance toward the door.

Leaning in close, he whispered, “Please, I’m begging you, keep it down.”

Heaven help him—how did she know?

Back when the Stabilizing Duke’s Manor and the Cen family were neighbors, their daughters had been close friends. Rong Wan Er was graceful and gentle, Cen Wan Wan lively and plump.

At first, his heart had been set on Rong Wan Er! He even crafted a bracelet for her himself.

But when she was selected for the imperial harem, he begged the late emperor to grant him a marriage decree.

On that fateful day, Emperor Xuan Ping decreed Rong Wan Er to marry the Stabilizing Duke, while he was paired with Cen Wan Wan.

On his wedding day, he grieved as if in mourning.

But over time, Cen Wan Wan’s cheerful and sincere nature captivated him. Her every smile and gesture became his world, and thoughts of Rong Wan Er faded completely.

Yet a guilt lingered in his heart.

Wan Wan had always believed that his heart and hand were meant for her.

“You love the Empress!” Chao Chao declared with deliberate emphasis.

Crash…

From outside came the sound of a teacup shattering.

That night…

Wails echoed through the Prince’s manor.

The once-proud Xie Yu Nan knelt outside his wife’s door, sobbing uncontrollably.

The louder his past arrogance, the louder his cries now.

“Wan Wan, I was wrong! I was so wrong… Wan Wan, I didn’t mean to deceive you!”

“Lu Chao Chao, get out, get out! Waaaah…”

Lu Chao Chao stood behind him.

“Your wife doesn’t want you anymore…” she quipped.

Xie Yu Nan thought bitterly, [Serves you right for having such a loose tongue!]