A Precious Pearl in the Imperial City-Chapter 66

"I recall you had some acquaintance with the Fourth Prince?" Ming Jingzhou countered with a question instead of answering: "In these past two years, have you corresponded with him?"

"It can hardly be called an acquaintance. Prince Qi merely read a few of my essays and praised my talent, that sort of thing." Ming Jiyuan reflected on his interactions with Prince Qi: "I didn’t take it seriously—just attended a few of his tea gatherings. Beyond that, nothing else."

"Then did you know that after you left the capital, Prince Qi publicly declared you his confidant, claiming that reading ten of your essays was worth ten years of study?"

"That’s utter nonsense!" Ming Jiyuan, having served in the north for two years and frequently interacted with the locals, had even picked up a hint of their accent. In his agitation, it slipped out: "Do I look like a fool? Becoming a grown prince’s 'confidant'—do I not have enough trouble already?"

Ming Jingzhou shot him a glance: "Straighten your tongue and speak properly."

"Father, I truly have no such deep ties with Prince Qi." Ming Jiyuan tugged at his sleeve. "I knew it—none of these princes have good intentions. 'Confidant' my foot. Every last one of them is scheming."

"Enough. Don’t get worked up. Just keep your distance from him in the future." Ming Jingzhou eyed his sleeve-pulling. "Pull your sleeve back properly. Remember, when we Mings step out, we are refined scholars of grace and dignity. Understood?"

Ming Jiyuan took a deep breath. "Father, tell me about how Prince Chen and Consort Su saved my sister."

"By the time your mother and I learned the truth, you were already on your way home. We feared letters might be intercepted and cause trouble, so we didn’t inform you." Ming Jingzhou began recounting the events of Jiuzhu’s childhood.

When he described how Jiuzhu had been bound and thrown into the icy river by the Zheng Family’s servants, Ming Jiyuan could no longer contain himself. He slammed his fist into the garden rock, sending a large chunk crashing to the ground.

"The Zheng Family dared to be so ruthless!" Ming Jiyuan gritted his teeth. "I’ll make them pay."

"You returned too late. The Zheng Family has already been imprisoned—their patriarch sentenced to execution, the adults exiled, and all descendants enslaved." Ming Jingzhou glanced at the shattered rock. "Control your temper. Haven’t I told you? As scholars, we must remain composed and steady. Let others rage—we stay unshaken. And as for the cost of repairing this rock, it’ll be deducted from next month’s salary."

"Father, you moved that fast?" Ming Jiyuan bent to pick up the broken pieces, trying futilely to fit them back together like a shattered bowl.

"It wasn’t just my doing." Ming Jingzhou smirked. "The moment I began investigating the Zheng Family, multiple factions handed me evidence. In this capital, plenty wanted the Fourth Prince’s maternal relatives to fall."

Many praised the Fourth Prince as a virtuous ruler, but just as many were eager to kick him when he was down.

"The Zheng Family is finished. The Fourth Prince’s birth mother was executed, and he’s been stripped of all titles." Ming Jingzhou clasped his hands behind his back, leading his son toward the eastern courtyard. "Jiyuan, the moment Jiuzhu became Prince Chen’s betrothed, our family could no longer remain uninvolved."

"Unless…"

Unless they abandoned Jiuzhu as their daughter, letting her marry Prince Chen without interference, no matter what befell her.

"No." Ming Jiyuan cut him off before he could finish. "Father, we lost her once. Now that we’re finally reunited as a family, we can’t do this to her!"

Ming Jingzhou studied him.

"Back then, we had nothing—and no Jiuzhu." Ming Jiyuan’s eyes reddened. "Now that we have her, even if we end up with nothing again, it’s nothing to fear."

"Is that your decision?" When Ming Jingzhou wasn’t smiling, no one could decipher his thoughts.

"Yes." Ming Jiyuan nodded.

"But you’re still green." Ming Jingzhou chuckled. "If you want to stand up for your sister, learn well from me and your uncle—the ways of governance and the ways of men."

"Your Highness," Lady Shen asked Prince Chen, "do you have any dietary restrictions?"

"This prince is not picky. Anything will do." Prince Chen lied through his teeth.

Jiuzhu, however, eagerly listed several of her favorite dishes. Lady Shen arched a brow at her daughter and the prince. Since when had Jiuzhu developed a taste for these dishes?

"Very well. I’ll instruct the kitchen to prepare them." She rose and stepped outside. "Jiuzhu, accompany His Highness for a stroll in the manor."

"Gladly!" Jiuzhu cheerfully agreed, tugging at Prince Chen’s sleeve. "Your Highness, let me show you the little white horse."

Prince Chen recalled the dog-like steed—the very one he’d gifted her. Had he not been selecting that horse for her that day, he might have ridden the crazed one instead.

"Ming Piglet." He stopped her.

"Hm?" Jiuzhu turned to look at him.

"Tell me…" He took her hand. "Are you the bride the River God of Huaxi sent me?"

"Impossible." Jiuzhu shook her head. "Master said there’s no River God in Huaxi—those are just scams."

No rain? The River God is angered—offer sacrifices.

Too much rain? The River God is angered—offer more sacrifices.

All tricks by false priestesses and charlatans, yet they’ve ruined countless lives.

Prince Chen: "…"

Well. This conversation was going nowhere.

"Though Huaxi has no River God, Your Highness is an immortal descended to earth." Jiuzhu beamed at him. "Without you, I’d have long been fish food in that river. Where would I be now?"

"Tsk, tsk! Children’s words carry no ill omen—auspiciousness prevails." Prince Chen cut her off. "No talk of life or death. It’s bad luck during the New Year."

Jiuzhu wanted to explain that Master never observed such customs, but seeing his earnest expression, she swallowed her words. "Then what should we say?"

"Say… 'Long life and prosperity.' Or…" Prince Chen coughed, turning his face away. "'A harmonious union lasting a hundred years' or 'growing old together' would also suffice."

He stole a glance at the girl. In eighteen days, they would wed.

"Isn’t that what others say to us?" Jiuzhu blinked.

"What’s wrong with blessing ourselves?" Prince Chen retorted. "Unless… you’ve never considered it?"

"I’ve never once thought of leaving Your Highness." Jiuzhu stated it as fact. "When I chose to leave Lingzhou for the capital, there were only two reasons: to reunite with my family, and to find Your Highness to repay my debt."

"And what if you hadn’t found me? Or if I’d already left the capital?"

"I don’t know." Jiuzhu shook her head honestly. "Because I’ve already found you."

Hypotheticals didn’t exist—so why dwell on them?

"A life saved is a life owed." Prince Chen chuckled ambiguously, bending to meet her gaze. "Ming Piglet, remember every word you’ve said today—for the rest of your life."

Jiuzhu carefully recalled all the words she had spoken to His Highness today—had she said too much? "All of them?"

"All of them." Prince Chen nodded, especially that line about never thinking of leaving.

"Alright." Jiuzhu nodded. She would do her best to remember everything that happened today, every word spoken.

After Ming Jiyuan finished bathing and changed into fresh clothes, he stepped out to see his younger sister strolling through the courtyard with a large white dog, Prince Chen walking beside her. Their heads were close together, and the prince had bent his entire body at an awkward angle to accommodate her height—neither dignified nor comfortable.

He couldn’t understand why they couldn’t just walk properly instead of maintaining such an uncomfortable posture.

"Brother!" Jiuzhu waved at him when she noticed him. Prince Chen, who had been twisted like a pretzel just moments ago, instantly straightened up, reverting to his usual lofty demeanor.

"Sister, walking the dog?" Ming Jiyuan approached the pair and glanced at the large white animal.

"Brother, this is a horse, not a dog." Jiuzhu patted the little horse. "Look again."

"Oh, ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‍a pony! How adorable." Ming Jiyuan reached out to stroke the horse, which stood obediently under his touch, gentle as could be.

"His Highness gave him to me a few months ago." Jiuzhu beamed even brighter at her brother’s praise.

Ming Jiyuan turned to Prince Chen, who offered a polite smile to his future brother-in-law.

"Jiuzhu!" A pair of trembling hands struggled over the courtyard wall, followed by their owner, who took his time climbing over. "I heard Third Brother was back, so I came to see."

"Sixth Brother." Ming Jiyuan stared in surprise at Ming Cunfu’s clumsy ascent. "Since when do you climb walls?"

His younger cousin had once been the epitome of refinement—even descending stairs required straightening his robes twice. What earth-shaking changes had occurred in the household during his two-year absence?

"If the whole family can climb, I can’t let myself be outdone by my little sister." Ming Cunfu panted, perched on the wall. "Third Brother, come help me down."

"Always wasting energy on nonsense." Ming Jiyuan stepped forward and hauled his youngest cousin down with one hand. "Did you just say my sister climbs walls too?"

He turned to Jiuzhu, who shrank behind Prince Chen with an embarrassed smile.

"It’s fine. Climbing walls means she’s healthy." Ming Jiyuan smiled. "A lively girl lives a long life."

Then he shot Ming Cunfu a sharp glare—was this how he taught his sister while he was away?

Ming Cunfu: "..."

If he said he’d learned wall-climbing from Jiuzhu, would Third Brother believe him?

"Your Highness, Young Miss, Young Masters," Chunfen announced as she entered the lively courtyard. "Luncheon is ready in the main hall."

A maid led the little white horse away, and Jiuzhu tugged at Prince Chen’s sleeve. "Your Highness, let’s go."

Ming Cunfu noted that the way she pulled the prince along was eerily similar to how she handled the pony.

After the meal, seeing her father and brother deep in discussion, Jiuzhu decided to accompany Prince Chen back to the palace.

Ming Cunfu mused silently—Prince Chen was a grown man surrounded by imperial guards. In the entire capital, only the Emperor was safer than him.

But Jiuzhu didn’t see it that way. Since the New Year’s banquet, she’d become convinced that the city was full of schemers, any of whom might harm her prince.

Holding the reins of his horse, Prince Chen walked side by side with Jiuzhu through the streets, stopping occasionally to buy her trinkets that delighted young girls.

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"Greetings, Your Highness!" A group of finely dressed young nobles passed by and bowed with grins. "Perfect timing! We just saw a magnificent rooster at the cockfighting pit—crimson crest like jade, talons like an eagle’s, incredibly fierce—"

"What rooster?" Prince Chen cut them off coldly. "As members of the imperial clan, is this all you occupy yourselves with—such frivolities?"

"Your Highness, not just any rooster, a fighting cock—"

"What fighting cock? I know nothing of such things." He turned to Jiuzhu with a pained, weary expression. "These distant cousins of mine idle away their days, giving me endless headaches."