Chapter 282: I Heard You Died
This novel is translated and hosted on BCatranslation
Minister Yuan glared down at the boy in front of him. The boy looked nervous but determined to keep up his lie. After a moment, Minister Yuan sighed and said, “Alright, you can go.”
“Really? Just like that? No test?” Xie Yu Zhou’s face brightened up, his grin so big it showed all his teeth.
But then he remembered something—Lu Chao Chao. His smile faded away, replaced by a sad frown.
“You, take him back home,” Minister Yuan instructed his young assistant.
The assistant nodded and mumbled, “Yes, sir.”
Xie Yu Zhou looked like he wanted to say more but held back. He didn’t want to risk the Minister changing his mind. Instead, he nodded quickly and left.
As soon as Minister Yuan turned his attention away, Xie Yu Zhou stuck out his tongue at his classmates, making a silly face, and then hurried out of the room.
Meanwhile, Lu Chao Chao peeked her little head out from behind the main gate, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
[I wanna use my pocket money to buy Grannie a pretty wooden box. Grannie likes the smell of wood, so she’ll definitely like the coffin.] she thought, excitement bubbling up inside her.
But just as she was about to climb into her carriage, she spotted Xie Yu Zhou coming out too.
“Why you goin’ too?” she asked, tilting her head to the side, her eyes wide with curiosity.
Xie Yu Zhou puffed up his chest proudly. “My dad passed away! I’m goin’ home to mourn. No tests for me!” He did a little dance, clearly happy about getting out of the test.
He looked at Lu Chao Chao and grinned, as if to say, “See? I get to skip the test too!”
Chao Chao blinked her big eyes, confused. “Oh? Uh… sorry your daddy gone,” she said, still puzzled. [Why’s he so happy if his daddy just died?]
“Hmph! You got three days off ’cause your Grannie passed away. I only get one day for my dad!” Xie Yu Zhou grumbled, thinking it wasn’t fair.
But at least he was getting out of a test and a scolding today!
After he left, Lu Chao Chao’s face turned serious. “Duke Jingxi is Grannie Dowager’s youngest son. She must be real sad,” she said softly.
“Yuhua, we need two big wooden boxes,” she added.
“I’ll send one to Duke Jingxi’s house first. Then, Chao Chao will visit Grannie…”
Soon, two black coffins were being carried down the main street, following Lu Chao Chao’s carriage.
“Princess Sunshine, what’s going on here?” The Grand Princess, stepping out from the palace, noticed the coffins trailing behind Chao Chao’s carriage.
Chao Chao’s little face was full of concern. “Auntie Princess, Chao Chao so sad for you…”
“Brother Yu Zhou said Duke Jingxi died. You should go comfort Grannie, Auntie Princess. She gettin’ old, and… Hey, hey, hey, Auntie Princess!”
“Quick, help Auntie!” Chao Chao nearly jumped out of her carriage, panicking.
The Grand Princess gasped and stumbled backward. Thankfully, a maid caught her just in time.
The Grand Princess’s face had turned pale, and she was trembling, cold sweat forming on her forehead. “Chao… Chao Chao, who… who did you say died? Chao Chao, who passed away?”
“Brother Yu Zhou said Duke Jingxi died. You… you need to be strong, Auntie,” Chao Chao said gently, her big eyes looking worried.
The Grand Princess looked to the maids behind Chao Chao, only for Yuhua and Yuqin to exchange glances before nodding.
“Yes, we heard Young Master Yu Zhou say the duke has passed.”
Their faces, however, showed uncertainty.
“Your Highness!” a maid cried out, alarmed.
The Grand Princess could hardly stand; her legs were shaking.
“How could this happen? Jingxi is still so young! Oh, heavens, why?!” she cried out.
“Oh no, how will Mother cope with this? A mom shouldn’t have to bury her child—it could break her heart!” The Grand Princess sobbed uncontrollably, the servants struggling to keep her steady.
“How am I gonna tell Mother this? He was just fine this morning. How could he be gone now?” The Grand Princess was overwhelmed with grief, her hair messy as she staggered back to her carriage.
“I need to go back to the palace to tell my royal brother. What should I do…” The Grand Princess was clearly panicking as she hurried toward the palace.
“Chao Chao, Chao Chao… you gotta come with me to the palace. My mother loves you; you gotta help cheer her up,” the Grand Princess pleaded, gripping Chao Chao tightly, not wanting to face the sad news alone. She looked truly scared.
Chao Chao looked up with sad eyes. “Chao Chao’s Grannie also passed away. Chao Chao has two funerals today.”
But seeing the princess almost in tears…
“Okay, okay, don’t cry. Chao Chao will go with you to see King Daddy…” Chao Chao agreed, following the Grand Princess into the palace surrounded by a crowd.
By the time they reached the palace, the Grand Princess had cried until she was exhausted, her voice raspy and weak, barely able to lift herself from the sedan chair. Palace maids had to help her into the hall.
“Where’s King Daddy?” Chao Chao asked, her eyes wide with curiosity as she looked around.
“His Majesty is in the royal study,” one of the maids answered.
Recently, messengers from the Southern Kingdom had arrived, and all the officials were busy with urgent discussions in the royal study.
“Princess Sunshine, Grand Princess, what’s the matter?” Chief Eunuch Wang began to ask, but he stopped short when he saw the Grand Princess leaning heavily on a maid, looking utterly drained and sad.
“Hurry, tell the king,” the Grand Princess whispered, her hair messy, eyes swollen from crying, her voice shaky. “Jingxi… is gone. Duke Jingxi has passed away.”
Eunuch Wang, usually so calm, was visibly shocked. His face changed as he realized how serious this was. Without waiting for another word, he pushed open the study door.
“Your Majesty, Duke Jingxi…” Eunuch Wang rushed forward and fell to his knees at the entrance of the hall, his face pale.
The king, who had been standing by his desk, looked up sharply. “Jingxi? What happened to Jingxi?”
Eunuch Wang pressed his lips together, his face tense.
Seeing this, the king’s heart sank, realizing something terrible had happened by the look on Eunuch Wang’s face—he was always calm, even in the worst situations.
“Your Majesty, please be strong. Duke Jingxi… has passed away,” Eunuch Wang announced, bowing deeply, his voice shaking.
Crack.
The teacup in the king’s hand shattered.
He seemed to lose all his strength as he stumbled back into his throne.
“You… what did you say?” The king’s voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.
Eunuch Wang, now tearful, repeated, “The Grand Princess and Princess Sunshine came to inform you. Duke Jingxi… has passed!”
Hearing this, all the officials in the room dropped to their knees before the throne.
“Your Majesty, please stay strong.”
“Dowager!” A sudden shout echoed from outside the royal study.
The faces of the Grand Princess and the king turned grim as they hurried outside.
There, they found the Dowager collapsed on the ground, overwhelmed by the shock.
“Quick, call the royal doctor!” the king shouted urgently.
As the royal doctor applied a golden needle, the Dowager took a deep breath and slowly regained consciousness.
When she opened her eyes, she began to weep loudly.
“My Jingxi! My Jingxi!! Oh, Jingxi, he was the late king’s favorite son. How could he be taken from us?!” the Dowager’s wails echoed through the halls, while all around her, the officials knelt silently, the air thick with mourning.