Pregnant Salted Fish Chapter 69

Posted by April Fox, ? Views, Released on July 14, 2025

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TL: Hua

As Yin Yuanshuang and Tuoba Jinshu entered the palace hand in hand, they saw the salted fish young master, Xu Yanqing, pushing a baby carriage and dashing out of Yunluan Palace as if he were being chased by a ghost.

Yin Yuanshuang burst into laughter: “What did Young Master Xu do to feel so guilty, running so fast?”

The little cub in the baby carriage, with wide eyes, laughed happily as he stared at the small trinkets swaying back and forth above him. Xu Yanqing panted heavily, waving his hand repeatedly: “Don’t even mention it. The scene in there was more terrifying than being chased by ghosts.”

Tuoba Jinshu supported Yin Yuanshuang, who was laughing so hard her stomach hurt. When Yin Yuanshuang stopped laughing, she slowly walked to the baby carriage and gently peered at the well-behaved little prince inside.

Yin Yuanshuang also leaned in. This was her first time meeting her little cousin. The little cousin was exquisitely pretty, like a carved jade doll, and smiled at everyone he saw with his little mouth, looking incredibly adorable.

So Yin Yuanshuang turned her head to her friend and boasted, “Isn’t the little prince very beautiful!”

Tuoba Jinshu nodded earnestly upon hearing this, her expression openly gentle: “Indeed, I have rarely seen such a beautiful child as the little prince.”

Although the King of Xiling doted on his daughter Tuoba Jinshu, as a monarch with a penchant for romance, the Xiling harem was never short of newborns.

Counting them up, Tuoba Jinshu had indeed seen many children, but she didn’t have deep feelings for her younger siblings. In fact, she deeply felt that those siblings were not as adorable as the little prince, who had just passed his full month.

After all, they were all young ladies, so Yin Yuanshuang pulled Tuoba Jinshu along to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager in Yunluan Palace first, before turning to accompany the salted fish young master to another location.

As for why Yin Yuancheng wasn’t there? The answer was he had been dragged away by Prince Huai to be a strong laborer again.

Mu Yu took over pushing the baby carriage for the little prince. The group returned to the quiet Hanliang Palace. The salted fish young master finally let out a comfortable sigh and nestled into a lounge chair. Small talk with a group of unfamiliar ladies was truly exhausting for a salted fish.

“Already tired?” Yin Yuanshuang was gleefully teasing the adorable little prince in the baby carriage. She turned her head and saw Young Master Xu’s listless appearance, her lips curving slightly as she couldn’t help but tease, “This is just the beginning. His Majesty’s side will have another round later, and the situation there will surely be even more annoying than Yunluan Palace. I’d like to see how you handle it then.”

Xu Yanqing lazily shifted slightly in the lounge chair, and upon hearing this, he said indifferently, “Since Taoist master is here, I certainly don’t need to worry about anything. What’s there to be bothered about?”

This was truly the plain truth. Yin Yuanshuang found herself speechless, for given His Majesty’s temperament, no minister would dare to disrespect Young Master Xu.

Tuoba Jinshu pursed her lips and chuckled. Her gaze fell upon the small pendants hanging on the baby carriage, finding them quite familiar. They seemed to be what Marquis Wu’an’s prince had bought at the Treasure Pavilion previously.

After a moment of distraction, Tuoba Jinshu regained her composure and slowly swayed the small pendants, attracting the little prince’s gaze all around.

By the time Yin Yanjun entered Hanliang Palace, the Grand Princess had already called Yin Yuanshuang and Tuoba Jinshu away. His salted fish young man was lying on a lounge chair, idly teasing the little cub in the baby carriage while chatting with Wen Jing.

Seeing the Taoist master, who was as slender as jade, Xu Yanqing propped his chin with his hand and smiled: “Taoist master, come quickly and coax your son. He’s such a clingy little troublemaker!”

The little prince in the baby carriage had no idea his father was badmouthing him. His small mouth happily blew bubbles, and his chubby little hands waved, as if welcoming the arrival of his imperial father.

The little fellow seemed too excited. When Yin Yanjun walked over and gently picked up the little cub, the little cub directly kicked him in the chest.

Yin Yanjun reached out a hand and pinched the little cub’s foot, revealing a warm, faint smile under the young master’s teasing gaze.

The family of three stayed quietly in Hanliang Palace for a while before Prince Huai’s side sent someone to urge them, saying they were afraid of missing the auspicious hour.

The salted fish young master blinked blankly, feeling a bit of admiration for Prince Huai, whom he rarely met. This was the first time he had heard that a full-month banquet also had to consider the auspicious time.

“Prince Huai’s temperament has always been unreliable,” Yin Yanjun said gently, coaxing the now energetic little cub in his arms, looking up at the young master.

It wasn’t until they were about to set off for Jiying Palace that the little cub was gently placed into the baby carriage by his imperial father.

Jiying Palace was decorated more festively than when various countries came to court, vaguely giving Xu Yanqing the illusion that the New Year was approaching. Catching sight of Young Marquis Yin and Prince Huai winking at him, Xu Yanqing couldn’t help but marvel at the unusually peculiar aesthetics of this uncle and nephew pair.

The emperor stood majestically below the high steps, one hand reaching towards the young master beside him, his gaze gentle and serene, seemingly capable of calming hearts instantly.

Xu Yanqing raised his eyes and met his gaze. He had never been wary of the ministers who were outsiders, so he raised his hand and slowly placed it on the Taoist master’s palm, his eyes curved and bright.

The Empress Dowager and Lady Su exchanged knowing glances, smiles spreading uninhibitedly across their lips. Their moved expressions were as if they had witnessed Yin Yanjun already marrying the young master.

Prince Huai volunteered to act as the master of ceremonies for the little prince’s full-month banquet, his brows raised as he loudly recited the praises.

Below the high platform, the ministers looked at the handsome, radiant, and spirited young master beside the emperor, all falling into a state of bewildered astonishment.

At this moment, on the other side, the ladies and young misses, sitting face to face with the ministers, looked at the barely contained expressions on their husbands’ and fathers’ faces, and a strange sense of satisfaction arose in their hearts. It was worth it that they had almost dropped their jaws in the Empress Dowager’s Yunluan Palace.

Unfortunately, the ministers were in shock and completely missed the strange glances cast their way by the women of their households. While still in shock, they saw His Majesty on the high platform already leading the second legitimate son of Marquis Wu’an to their seats.

Yin Yanjun completely ignored the bewildered and uncertain gazes in the ministers’ eyes, his gaze as cold and detached as ever. He raised a hand, signaling for all the ministers and ladies who had risen to bow to take their seats.

Prince Huai was still passionately reciting the eulogies he had been frantically “working overtime” on with the entire Ministry of Rites for the past few days.

However, he was not a person who adhered to strict rules, and as he spoke, he began to improvise freely.

When Prince Huai emphatically mentioned the little prince’s birth father instead of “birth mother,” the ministers felt as if they had swallowed an egg and were choked, holding their breath in their chests, unable to move it up or down.

Even though they had seen the young master eight months pregnant and with a bulging belly at the palace banquet, at the time they only thought it was some pregnant noble lady disguised as a man. They simply could not believe that the little prince had come from a man’s belly.

However, those ministers who vaguely recognized the second legitimate son of Marquis Wu’an felt at this moment that the sun must surely have risen in the west and set in the east today. Otherwise, how could such an unnatural event occur, and even more so, how could it involve His Majesty?

Daliang was considered an open-minded society. Unlike previous dynasties, the young ladies of Daliang could freely go in and out of their chambers and walk in the streets without needing to cover themselves with bothersome veils. Even homosexual relationships were not considered shocking.

What shocked these ministers was that their immortal-like, cold, and detached emperor, who had maintained his purity for nearly ten years after ascending the throne, had finally ended up with a man. And not only had he ended up with a man, but the little prince had also come from this man’s belly.

Indeed, the longer one lives, the more miraculous things one gets to see.

It was not until Wen Jing took the little prince out of the stroller and placed him in the emperor’s arms that the energetic little prince put his little feet on the emperor’s legs.

The ministers could vaguely see the little prince’s appearance. The one-month-old child, with large eyes identical to Young Master Xu’s, stared at the ministers below the high platform, rolling his eyes around. Aside from his eyes, his face indeed strongly resembled the emperor’s.

Xu Yanqing boredly watched the shifting expressions of the ministers below the high platform, but he accidentally saw one of them giving him a respectful and friendly smile.

This was truly an old acquaintance—none other than Ye Qin, the prefect of Yuncheng, who was devoted to his people.

In an instant, Xu Yanqing remembered the scene he had acted out in front of Prefect Ye to tease the Taoist master. He felt a slight awkwardness in his heart but insisted on maintaining a faint smile in his eyes.

The salted fish silently curled his toes for a moment before returning to normal; anyway, he was used to being thick-skinned. He figured Prefect Ye must be a sensible and tactful person and wouldn’t actively joke about the time he deliberately acted with the Taoist master.

So, within moments, the friendly smile on Xu Yanqing’s face towards Ye Qin became even more sincere.

The little cub had played in his imperial father’s arms for a while and was already tired of him. He cooed twice at Xu Yanqing, as if asking his father to hold him.

A faint thread of doting love was subtly revealed in Yin Yanjun’s cold and detached brows as he gently placed the little cub into the young master’s arms.

The ministers clearly saw that their little prince was extremely attached to the second legitimate son of Marquis Wu’an. Nestled in the young master’s arms, he happily laughed, swinging one of his chubby little hands.

Immediately, the little prince’s childlike, joyful laughter filled Jiying Palace. Prince Huai seemed encouraged, his words becoming even more fervent.

The little cub played for a while, then nestled in his salted fish father’s arms and gave a small yawn. He turned his small head, pulled at Xu Yanqing’s lapel with one hand, and soon fell asleep.

When the little prince was soundly asleep, Wen Jing stepped forward and took the little prince from Xu Yanqing’s arms.

The Empress Dowager, seeing this, gave Wen Jing a few more instructions before letting Wen Jing carry the little cub out of Jiying Palace. This was actually the first time the Empress Dowager had appeared before the public since the emperor ascended the throne.

The various officials, seeing the Empress Dowager’s attitude towards the little prince and Young Master Xu, could discern some clues. They suspected that even the Empress Dowager’s emergence from Yunhe Palace was related to Young Master Xu. Otherwise, why would the Empress Dowager be so close to Madam Wu’an?

Although the little prince had been carried away, the full-month banquet continued. The ministers, having had enough time to recover from the shock of the little prince being born of a man, successively presented their congratulatory gifts for the little prince.

Amidst the clinking of cups and goblets, Xu Yanqing secretly took two sips of wine behind the Taoist master’s back. Having not touched alcohol for a long time, the sudden drink made Xu Yanqing feel that the wine was quite strong. His fair face quickly flushed red. Xu Yanqing smacked his lips. This wine truly deserved to be imperial wine offered to the palace; although strong, it was genuinely delicious.

So, seizing the moment when the Taoist master wasn’t looking, Xu Yanqing stealthily reached out his wicked hand towards the goblet filled with fine wine. But the next moment, his hand was firmly pressed down by Yin Yanjun, moving from the goblet to below him.

Gently kneading the young master’s soft palm, Yin Yanjun said softly, “Qingqing, you haven’t had wine for a long time. Two cups are enough for now; there’s no rush.”

Xu Yanqing felt guilty. It turned out that the Taoist master had seen him drink those two cups all along.

For the rest of the banquet, Xu Yanqing could only idly pick at his food with chopsticks. During this time, he vaguely sensed someone looking at him, so he looked up.

This time, the person smiling faintly at him was not Ye Qin, but a young gentleman Xu Yanqing had never seen before. The other party was dressed richly, sat below Yin Yuancheng, and had a rather handsome appearance.