Pregnant Salted Fish Chapter 49

TL: Hua

Yin Yuancheng finally felt relieved. He accompanied the young master, passing some time in Changxin Palace, before leaving the palace. When he arrived home, he saw his sister sitting by his courtyard gate, waiting like a rabbit by a tree stump.

“What are you doing?” Yin Yuancheng was utterly confused.

Yin Yuanshuang, however, wished she could brandish a great sword in front of her brother. Upon seeing him, she said with a cold face and a sarcastic tone, “Brother has been very busy lately, running around every few days.”

Yin Yuancheng stood tall and upright, embodying gentleness and humility: “That’s because the Emperor entrusted me with tasks, so naturally I’ve been a bit busy.”

“Then why did you buy a pile of small things for children?” Yin Yuanshuang’s beautiful eyes stared directly at her brother: “Tell me, if you don’t have a convincing reason, you don’t need to go back to your room today.”

“Yuanshuang, what exactly are you suspecting?” Yin Yuancheng couldn’t casually reveal that Young Master Xu was pregnant right now, so he could only continue to be evasive with his sister.

“Brother, Yulin is my best friend, and now she’s engaged to you. Tell me honestly, have you been keeping some messy woman outside, and now you even have a child?” It wasn’t that Yin Yuanshuang intentionally slandered her brother; it was just that her brother’s recent actions were truly baffling. She had thought about it for a long time but couldn’t figure it out, so she had to come and ask her brother for an explanation.

Running out every day for more than ten days straight, and even collecting children’s toys these past few days, made Yin Yuanshuang feel a bad premonition. On one side was her lifelong best friend, and on the other, her brother, who had always protected her. Princess Jing’an was also very conflicted.

Yin Yuancheng never expected his sister to completely miss the mark. He truly felt extremely wronged: “Yuanshuang, I am your brother. Do you just casually speculate about your own brother like that?”

Brother is wronged; brother wants to cry.

Yin Yuanshuang was not flustered in the slightest: “I didn’t actually think that. I was just asking you casually. Surely you wouldn’t hide even such a small matter from your own sister, would you!”

The young marquis covered his chest. Indeed, his sister always knew how to handle him since childhood. The young marquis was truly distressed!

“Anyway, I’m pure and clean; I truly haven’t done anything bad.” At most, he just bickered with Young Master Xu, and most of the time, Young Master Xu unilaterally crushed him.

“Alright, I’ll reluctantly believe you this once.” Yin Yuanshuang’s eyes fell on her brother, her lips curving into a very sweet smile: “But Brother, you have been terribly busy lately and haven’t had time to take me out to play. Tomorrow, you must accompany me, your sister, to go shopping.”

“Alright, alright, you’re full of little schemes.” Yin Yuancheng finally understood. Eight out of ten, his sister was probably short on accessories again.

That’s why she found an excuse to fleece him. Being a brother was hard; being Princess Jing’an’s brother was even harder, but Young Marquis Yin accepted it gladly.

—

In Grand Princess Zhaoyang’s chambers, an old nanny walked in: “The Young Marquis just returned, but he was blocked outside the courtyard by the Princess, who insisted that the Young Marquis must have someone outside…”

A glimmer of shrewdness flashed across the grand princess’s noble brow: “And now? Are the siblings still bickering?” “No, the princess threw a tantrum, asking the young marquis to accompany her out to play tomorrow, and the young marquis readily agreed. Now the siblings are reconciled as before, and they’ll probably come to pay their respects to Your Highness soon.” The old nanny smiled. These two had always bickered like this since childhood, so it wasn’t unusual.

The grand princess had slight wrinkles around her eyes. She raised a hand to rub her temples but didn’t engage in conversation with the nanny. She knew her daughter best; the fact that Shuang’er made such a fuss today and then easily let it go meant she probably had another motive in mind!

However, the grand princess didn’t intend to expose her younger daughter’s thoughts. After all, she was also very curious about what her son had been busy with recently.

But she naturally understood her son’s character. Secretly keeping an outside mistress was certainly not something her son would do. She guessed it must be related to the Emperor.

Just as she was thinking, the two young masters from the grand princess’s mansion came walking towards her, chatting and laughing.

—

The next day, Yin Yuancheng still made a trip to the palace. Seeing the young master’s increasingly prominent belly, Young Marquis Yin said, “Today, Yuanshuang insisted I accompany her out shopping. Is there anything you would like?”

“Young Marquis, did you come to the palace just to say that?” The salted fish young master put down his storybook and raised an eyebrow: “I heard the Young Marquis and Miss Chu’s engagement has been discussed. If the young lady found out you bought things but didn’t give them to her, she might feel quite frustrated.”

Yin Yuancheng immediately thought of his sister’s tantrum yesterday and couldn’t help but smile wryly: “Never mind. If you don’t say, I’ll just decide on my own.”

With that, he came and went in a hurry, leaving the imperial palace again.

Mu Yu, standing nearby, looked utterly bewildered: “Why is the Young Marquis so good to you, young master? Could it be that he has improper thoughts about you?!”

“You silly oaf, you’ve probably been brainwashed by storybooks,” the salted fish lightly tapped Mu Yu’s head with the book in his hand: “Our young marquis is most likely carrying out the Taoist master’s instructions; that’s why he’s running to the palace every few days.”

Mu Yu rubbed his head and gave a foolish smile: “His Majesty is truly good to you, young master.”

The salted fish Young Master, hearing this, gripped the storybook in his hand and started to drift off. Lately, the Taoist Master seemed particularly busy.

Therefore, he visited Changxin Palace less often than usual, usually only coming at night. By then, the salted fish young master was already nestled in bed and asleep.

Having heard Mu Yu mention this a few times, the young master couldn’t help but wonder now if something had happened, causing the Taoist Master to avoid him.

However, the next two days were the palace banquets for various kingdoms, so it was only natural for the Taoist Master to be busy. Thus, the salted fish quickly dismissed that thought from his mind.

—

Yin Yuancheng walked out of the imperial palace and saw a carriage already hitched at his doorstep, with his sister, wearing a veiled hat, and a personal maid waiting by its side.

“The Young Marquis is finally back! The princess has been waiting for you for a long time!” The maid was clearly relieved.

Fearing that he might offend his noble princess again, Yin Yuancheng didn’t dare say anything more after hearing his sister’s cold snort. He quickly helped her onto the carriage. However, he was still puzzled because he never saw his sister wearing such a strange hat when she went out.

The carriage gradually moved away. Princess Jing’an, elegantly dressed, walked out from the grand princess’s mansion, a triumphant smile playing on her lips.

Yin Yuanshuang had once suspected why her brother wasn’t home every few days, but she still trusted his character. Only when she learned that her brother had bought a pile of children’s toys did she become slightly suspicious.

Later, she bribed and coerced her brother’s servant and only then found out that her brother had been going to the palace every few days.

However, she was truly too curious about her brother’s recent secretive behavior, so she asked Chu Yulin to help her stage a play.

Entering the palace without any hindrance, Yin Yuanshuang didn’t directly ask the guards where her brother usually went. Instead, she first went to meet the Emperor.

“Why did Yuanshuang think of coming to the palace today?” Yin Yanjun, who was reviewing memorials, looked up faintly.

Yin Yuanshuang gracefully curtsied: “Mother misses Your Majesty, so she asked Yuanshuang to come and see you.”

Since the Emperor was busy, Yin Yuanshuang didn’t stay long and excused herself from the imperial study. She dismissed the palace servants and wandered alone in the imperial garden.

She looked up and saw Imperial Physician Han carrying his medicine chest, walking towards another direction. That direction was neither the Emperor’s imperial study nor the way back to the Imperial Hospital. Yin Yuanshuang’s lips curved upward: “This is just too easy.”

She secretly followed him, and the path led straight to Changxin Palace. Then, Yin Yuanshuang was blocked by guards outside the door.

“My brother left something in Changxin Palace. This princess is merely here to retrieve something for him. Are you going to stop this princess too?” Yin Yuanshuang looked up at the two guards standing outside the palace door, her expression clearly displeased.

The guards, however, did not hesitate in the slightest: “Princess, please forgive us. Without His Majesty’s command, we cannot allow anyone to enter.”

Yin Yuanshuang, though spoiled, was also a person of propriety. Seeing how difficult those two guards were, she was just thinking of a plan when she saw Mu Yu approach from afar with a plate of pastries.

“Mu Yu, what are you doing here?” Yin Yuanshuang was surprised.

The impression Princess Jing’an had left on Mu Yu was simply too deep, so even though Mu Yu’s eyesight wasn’t great, he still recognized her: “Princess, it’s you!”

Yin Yuanshuang took the opportunity to glare at the two guards, then familiarly pulled Mu Yu towards Changxin Palace. “Speaking of which, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen your young master…”

The two guards exchanged glances, feeling that something wasn’t quite right, but Princess Jing’an had already entered Changxin Palace. So, one of the guards tentatively asked, “Should we inform the Chief Eunuch?”

“Alright.” The guard glanced into Changxin Palace, saw nothing, and could only turn to report.

Mu Yu was still a bit confused, and before he could react, Princess Jing’an had already walked into his master’s bedchamber. “Young Master Xu,” Yin Yuanshuang called out and looked up to see the young master in a reclining chair and Imperial Physician Han taking his pulse.

So, what was this situation? Princess Jing’an couldn’t understand; her eyes filled with bewilderment.

The salted fish blinked his slightly tired eyes. “Princess Jing’an, long time no see.”

Compared to Princess Jing’an, who was on the verge of dropping her jaw, the salted fish was obviously much calmer. After Imperial Physician Han finished taking his pulse, the young master withdrew his hand and lazily swayed the reclining chair beneath him.

“Young Master Xu, are you sick?” Yin Yuanshuang stared at Xu Yanqing’s prominently bulging belly, her face full of confusion.

Another uninformed person. Imperial Physician Han enthusiastically explained, “Young Master is not ill but rather pregnant with the emperor’s child.”

“So he really is having a child! No wonder my brother sends all those children’s toys to the palace every day.” Yin Yuanshuang rambled on, then suddenly realized, “Wait, Xu Yanqing, you should be a man… right?”

Yin Yuanshuang was beginning to doubt herself. She stared blankly at the young master’s face, then at his bulging belly, and suddenly asked, “Could it be that you are actually a woman?”

An opposite-sex friend turning into a sister was a bit too sudden for Princess Jing’an.

“Young master is a man, a real one, not a woman.” Mu Yu’s simple honesty delivered a perfectly timed heavy blow.

Imperial Physician Han smiled and gave a few more instructions to the young master nestled in the reclining chair before getting up and leaving Changxin Palace. Let the young people sort out their own affairs!

Thus, Yin Yuanshuang unceremoniously pulled over a small stool and sat beside the young master, her gaze still fixed in astonishment on his prominently bulging belly. “So you really are a man, but why would a man be pregnant? And with the emperor’s child, no less?”

The salted fish young master glanced at Princess Jing’an, whose worldview seemed about to collapse, and a faint smile touched his lips as he repeated an old saying: “One can only say that the Taoist Master has extraordinary talent and an amazing physique, which is why a poor and wronged young master like me could conceive his imperial offspring.”

Yin Yuanshuang wasn’t like her silly brother; she had rarely fallen for this person’s tricks since she met him. Hearing this, she glanced at the pretentious young master. “I think it’s your extraordinary talent and amazing physique. Otherwise, why haven’t other men conceived imperial offspring? It’s only you, the unique one among them.”

It must be said that Princess Jing’an has a unique ability. The salted fish young master clicked his tongue and, with a thick skin, said, “Hmm, it’s also possible that both of us have extraordinary talent and amazing physiques.”

“Isn’t that the truth!” Yin Yuanshuang leaned closer and whispered, “I’m still very curious; the emperor looks solemn and aloof, always exuding an aura of authority that keeps people at a distance. So how did you get into his bed?”

“Why can’t it be the Taoist master who got into my bed?” The salted fish blinked, making every effort to tarnish the tall and mighty reputation of the uncle in the niece’s mind.

Glancing at Young Master Xu’s thin arms and legs, which hadn’t gained much flesh, Princess Jing’an scoffed, “Come on, you’re only good at talking nonsense. If you have the guts, why don’t you let the emperor climb into your bed and try?”

Then Yin Yuanshuang changed the subject, “How many months along are you with this child?”

“Uh, seven and a half months, almost eight months, I guess!” They say fish only have a seven-second memory, and the salted fish was a bit hazy on the exact timing.

“It doesn’t seem as terrifying as when Qingzhu… Auntie was seven or eight months along.”

The young master nodded, “Perhaps it’s a bit smaller than an ordinary woman’s belly.”

—

Inside the Imperial Study, Yin Yanjun’s expression remained as calm as ever upon receiving Wen Jing’s report, but the hand holding the brush finally paused.

A moment later, he put down his vermilion brush and rose calmly, though his steps as he walked out were slightly quicker.

Standing outside the young master’s bedchamber, he could hear the voices of the two inside. It was clear that the young master and Princess Jing’an got along very well, chatting happily.

Yin Yanjun’s eyes held a touch of depth. He lingered, but upon hearing the sound of the reclining chair swaying, he stepped into the bedchamber.

“Your Majesty?” Hearing the voice, Yin Yuanshuang turned her head, then awkwardly stood up from the chair. So, she had been caught. How terribly would she be punished?

“Hmm.” Yin Yanjun didn’t dwell on his niece’s sneaking into Changxin Palace. He simply walked to the young master’s side and placed a hand on his head. “Did the child trouble you today?”

As the months passed, the little bean in his belly moved more and more frequently, making the already languid young master even less inclined to move.

The young master showed no resistance to the Taoist master’s familiar gesture, shaking his head as if accustomed to it. “It’s alright, not too uncomfortable.” Anyway, there were only two more months left. After the little bean came out, the vengeful young master secretly swore to show the little bean a thing or two.

Yin Yuanshuang silently blinked as she watched the interaction between the emperor and Young Master Xu. It seemed her mother’s worry about the emperor dying alone was far too premature. Hadn’t he already found someone he liked?

Seeing the situation, Yin Yuanshuang wisely chose to take her leave. She couldn’t possibly hinder the emperor from charming Young Master Xu; anything else could wait.

After lunch, Yin Yanjun took a book for children’s enlightenment and read it slowly. The salted fish young master reached out, tugged at the Taoist Master’s robe corner, and slowly closed his eyes, falling asleep not long after.

Yin Yanjun put down the book; his gaze, slightly deep and profound, fell on the young master’s face. A moment later, he raised a hand and stroked the prominently bulging abdomen.

The young master was currently half-aware and half-unaware, which was a bit headache-inducing, but Yin Yanjun found joy in it. Xu Yanqing didn’t sleep long this time. With a large belly, any movement felt awkward. He kicked his leg in a dream and woke up.

He rubbed his slightly hot cheeks blankly, then got up and saw the Taoist Master sitting at the desk, busy with something.

“Taoist Master, you never take afternoon naps. How do you still have such good spirits?” The salted fish young master was very puzzled.

Yin Yanjun poured a cup of warm water and handed it over. “Perhaps it’s because I’ve never had the habit of napping since childhood.”

“Hmm.” The salted fish gulped down the warm water, then lazily propped his chin and sighed, “That’s why Taoist Master can become the emperor, while I’m just a little good-for-nothing salted fish.”

“What are you thinking about every day, Young Master? Your head is full of crooked theories.” Yin Yanjun couldn’t help but be amused.

The salted fish young master blinked his bright, clear eyes and said without hesitation, “Of course I’m thinking about the Taoist Master!”

Yin Yanjun paused, put down the book in his hand, and his gaze, somewhat profound and obscure, fell upon the young master.

The young master also sensed a bit of discomfort, so he straightened up slightly and, with a hint of guilt, changed his words: “I’m living on Taoist Master’s territory now, and all my food and expenses depend on the Taoist Master. Naturally, I’m always grateful, so it’s not wrong to think about the Taoist Master every day.”

“I can’t argue with you, Young Master.” Yin Yanjun’s eyes twinkled with a faint smile, and he couldn’t help but reach out and rub the young master’s head.

“The palace banquet for the envoys from various kingdoms is in two days. If you find it boring, you can go out and wander around.” Staying cooped up in Changxin Palace all day might make the young master even lazier.

“Hmm, we’ll see then!” The salted fish young master only wanted to lie flat. The few laps he took after dinner every day were enough to exhaust him; going out was impossible.

Like stroking a lazy cat, Yin Yanjun caressed the young master’s head. His eyes, unlike their usual clear and cool appearance, were slightly reddish, as if he had stayed up all night poring over memorials by lamplight.

The young master unconsciously reached out and brushed against him. The Taoist Master’s dark eyelashes fluttered gently, like the wings of a dancing butterfly: “Taoist Master, have you been sleeping well lately?”

Yin Yanjun took the young master’s hand, which had fallen onto his eyelashes, and subtly held it in his palm. He blinked. “I’ve been a bit busy lately. After this period, I’ll have some free time, and then I’ll take you to see someone.”

The salted fish young master nodded immediately and agreed without even asking who they were going to see. However, the hand held in the Taoist master’s palm couldn’t stay still.

Secretly reaching into the Taoist Master’s sleeve, the salted fish young master seriously marveled, “I’ve never seen you practice martial arts, so how are your arms so strong?”

It’s totally unlike his soft and flabby body. Fortunately, although the salted fish was a foodie, he wasn’t prone to gaining weight. Otherwise, he might turn into a rough man with a beer belly after giving birth to the little bean.

Yin Yanjun was quite helpless with the young master’s active mind. He allowed the young master’s hand to play mischief in his sleeve, his gaze, slightly profound, falling on the young master’s still somewhat slender arms, even though he was almost eight months pregnant: “After giving birth, you should also exercise.” More exercise would strengthen the body and naturally prevent illness.

The young master’s bright eyes twinkled, his fingers gently tapping in the Taoist Master’s sleeve, talking about everything else but responding to the Taoist Master’s suggestion to exercise.

Yin Yanjun was helpless. The young master was from Marquis Wu’an’s residence. If he were truly willing to practice martial arts, he would have long become a capable young general under Marquis Wu’an. But now, raised so delicately, it was also good…

At the Grand Princess’s residence, as soon as Yin Yuanshuang entered, she saw her brother wearing a dark expression on his face. She remained unfazed: “Ah, brother, why are you back so soon from shopping?”

“And who was I shopping with?” Yin Yuancheng’s face was stern: “No wonder you were so easygoing yesterday. You were waiting for me here!”

“Brother, really, why do you need to be so secretive about such a small matter? I was just curious.” Yin Yuanshuang didn’t care at all.

“So, what exactly did you see today?” Yin Yuancheng wasn’t worried about anything else, mainly that his sister might have some improper thoughts, especially since the emperor now valued Xu Yanqing greatly.

Yin Yuanshuang’s eyes curved with a meaningful smile: “Young Master Xu and I are close friends… Hmm, maybe in the future, we’ll even have to call him ‘Little Uncle,’ so brother, don’t overthink it.”

Yin Yuancheng’s expression was somewhat unreadable. He glanced at his sister: “Do you really have no other thoughts?” He had originally believed his sister had some small feelings for Young Master Xu that went beyond friendship, so was it really just his own overthinking?

“I still have some thoughts.” Yin Yuanshuang raised her hand to rub her chin. Her trip to the palace today had indeed yielded many insights. Young Master Xu was as interesting as ever, truly worthy of being her chosen friend.

And the emperor’s performance was even more interesting. Although speculating about the emperor’s intentions was a great taboo, the emperor wouldn’t know if she just secretly pondered a bit in her heart.

In other matters, Young Master Xu was as perceptive as could be, but when it came to matters of love, he was truly quite slow-witted.

Yin Yuancheng saw his sister’s inexplicable expression and wanted to ask more questions, but Yin Yuanshuang had something on her mind and no time for idle chat. She happily ran off to greet the Grand Princess.