Ping Zhao Lu

Chapter 123 The King of Yue

Chu Heyuan was awakened by a loud noise.

He opened his eyes sleepily and muttered, "Who is it this early in the morning?"

The anxious voice of the palace attendant came from the door: "Your Highness, wake up quickly, the princes and princesses are here to see you!"

Chu Heyuan couldn't help but wonder, "Why are you here so early? Doesn't the palace banquet start in the evening? You're really disturbing my sleep!"

Although he felt somewhat dissatisfied, he quickly stood up and allowed the palace servants to help him dress and wash. In a short while, he was dressed neatly.

"Your Highness, they have been waiting in the courtyard for a long time." Shi'an reminded cautiously.

Chu Heyuan responded unhappily, "I know." His face was full of displeasure.

Seeing this, Shi An gently advised, "Your Highness, please calm down a bit. After all, these people are all your elders."

Chu Heyuan frowned and said impatiently: "I know!"

Shi'an sighed helplessly, thinking that his worries might be unnecessary.

Sure enough, when Chu Heyuan stepped out of the room, came to the courtyard and saw the royal relatives, he instantly seemed like a different person.

His face was immediately filled with smiles, and he walked towards the crowd with light steps. His well-behaved and cute appearance was simply irresistible.

Princess Jianing was particularly fond of Chu Heyuan. When she saw him, she couldn't help but reach out and want to pinch his fair face. Thinking of this, she actually took action.

"Aunt, please stop pinching me..." Chu Heyuan's fair face was flushed like the sunset. He turned his head slightly, trying to avoid the hand that was kneading his face.

Upon hearing this, Princess Jianing's beautiful eyes curved into crescents as she looked at her shy nephew with love in her heart: "Oh my, my royal brother has such a good eye. Look at the prince's little appearance. He is so handsome and cute. When he grows up, he will surely charm thousands of girls... Oh no, maybe even thousands of boys will be attracted to you!" As she spoke, she couldn't help but reached out and gently pinched Chu Heyuan's little face.

Hearing this, the other princesses and their husbands-in-law who were standing nearby all showed different expressions.

Some of them seemed to be a little impatient with such a scene, with their brows slightly furrowed and the corners of their mouths slightly turned down; while others looked calm, making it difficult to guess what they were really thinking.

At this moment, the sound of a wheelchair scraping against the ground reached everyone's ears, accompanied by a slightly frivolous bass voice: "Jianing, the prince is still young, don't tease him like that."

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to the noise, and they all looked in the direction where the sound came from.

I saw a man sitting in a wheelchair made of locust wood, being slowly pushed forward by the guards.

As the distance got closer, his handsome face could be clearly seen, but his pale skin and the occasional coughs showed that he was weak.

"Second Emperor...Uncle" Chu Heyuan hesitated for a moment, but still called out this title softly.

Although he had never met the emperor's uncle, he was able to quickly form a general image of the other party in his mind based on Shi'an's vivid description.

You know, in this royal family, apart from the King of Yue, it is probably difficult to find another person who sits in a wheelchair all day long, with a haggard face, a weak body and a sickly look.

Chu Yunyi pressed his fist lightly to his lips, coughing several times to conceal his anger. He then spoke slowly, "I'm truly ashamed! When the Crown Prince first entered the Eastern Palace, I was ill and couldn't go in person to congratulate him. I hope the Crown Prince won't be offended. Now that I've met him, I know he's truly as handsome and lovely as the rumors say. It truly brings joy to my heart."

Faced with such praise from Chu Yunyi, Chu Heyuan's face was as calm as water, without any ripples in his heart.

Somehow, the feeling this person gave Chu Heyuan was just one word - pretending!

This deliberately created sense of intimacy and kindness makes people feel particularly false and artificial.

Chu Heyuan lowered his eyes slightly, as if thinking about how to respond to Chu Yunyi's polite words that seemed enthusiastic but were actually full of routine.

At this moment, Princess Jianing, who was standing nearby, took the initiative to block him and said with a smile, "Alas, Second Brother, you still look so unwell. In fact, you don't have to force yourself to come to this palace banquet. I'm afraid your precious body can't bear the tossing and turning like this!"

Princess Jianing's words were like a thunderclap exploding in everyone's ears, and the surroundings instantly fell into deathly silence.

The smile on Chu Yunyi's face suddenly froze as if under a spell, and it remained there for a long time without returning to normal.

Because everyone could hear that Princess Jianing's words were clearly meant to mercilessly poke at his sore spot in public!

Chu Heyuan raised his head in a daze, his eyes fixed on his aunt who was standing in front of him, and he silently gave her a thumbs up from the bottom of his heart.

"Thank you, my dear sister, for always thinking of me." Chu Yunyi said as he coughed again, "It's a rare family reunion, so I have to come."

Seeing him like this, Princess Jianing's slightest hint of evil amusement vanished instantly. She turned her head away, ignoring her brother, as if she felt that even looking at him any longer would upset her.

For a moment, the whole scene became silent again, and the atmosphere became increasingly awkward.

Chu Heyuan felt a headache when looking at these relatives. He really just wanted to escape from this suffocating place as soon as possible and stay away from these complicated interpersonal relationships.

So he looked at Shi'an for help.

Shi An understood immediately and quickly bowed to everyone present, performing a standard salute. He said respectfully, "It's already late. Your Highness the Crown Prince still needs to go to Fengluan Palace to pay his respects to the Queen."

After hearing this, everyone looked at each other and realized that it was not appropriate to stay here for long, so they stood up and said goodbye and left.

As the crowd gradually dispersed, only the King of Yue remained where he was, with no intention of leaving at all.

Chu Heyuan was a little puzzled.

Shi'an also looked at King Yue in confusion.

After about a while, the silent Chu Yunyi finally opened his mouth slowly and said softly, "The Crown Prince is going to Fengluan Palace, and I just want to go to Cining Palace to see your grandmother. It just so happens that we are on the same route, so why don't we go together?"

After hearing Chu Yunyi's words, Chu Heyuan, who had been a little absent-minded, suddenly came to his senses. An idea flashed through his mind - that's right! Today is the fifteenth day of the lunar month. According to tradition, he should pay his respects to the Queen Mother!

Shi'an, who was standing by, was also shocked at this moment, and secretly blamed himself for being careless.

If the King of Yue had not reminded her, the Queen Mother would have taken this opportunity to cause trouble for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince after learning about this!

Although Chu Heyuan didn't particularly like the King of Yue, at this moment, since the other party had already offered him a way out, he might as well go with the flow.

He gathered his thoughts briefly, then smiled and replied, "Since Second Imperial Uncle also wants to pay his respects to the Imperial Grandmother, I will take him along. After all, you haven't been to this palace for a long time, and I'm sure many of the roads here are a little fuzzy. Let me accompany you and give you some guidance."

Upon hearing this, Chu Yunyi's lips curled up slightly, revealing a faint smile. He replied humbly, "Then I'll have to trouble the Crown Prince to lead the way personally."