Call Me The Mother of Quick Transmigration

Chapter 75 – My Son is The Nine Thousandth (part 15)

While Li Su practiced calligraphy, she heard Lu Xi and Little Que Er’s laughter. She stopped writing and looked at the children’s innocent smiles.

It started to snow again. Li Su gently opened the window and the cold wind entered. Li Su shivered, then quickly closed the window.

She wondered how Yi Cheng was now. Was he cold? Was he hungry? Li Su sighed.

At this time, Li Yi Cheng had settled next to the charcoal basin and was drinking hot milk tea and eating the burgers and sandwiches he brought with him with his new master.

Li Yi Cheng looked at the 12th prince, who was eating the hamburger. He silently lowered his head. Foster father, I really did not want to let the 12th prince eat this, but he wanted to eat it. He pushed me since he is my master. I couldn’t help it!

On the first day Li Yi Cheng entered the palace, he had to familiarise himself with the environment and learn how to deal with the people around him. He also had to calmly observe the 12th prince and note his preferences. After class finished in the afternoon, the 12th prince returned to the palace, then went to wash up and rest. Li Yi Cheng felt hungry. He remembered the snacks his mother packed for him, so he took it out. He prepared some hot water and had some of the food to fill his stomach.

After he had taken 2 bites, the 12th prince was suddenly standing in front of him.

Li Yi Cheng hurriedly knelt. The 12th prince didn’t speak. He just stared at the sandwich in Li Yi Cheng’s hand.

Li Yi Chen hesitated. “Your Highness is honourable. This…”

The 12th prince did not speak but continued to stare at him.

In the end, Li Yi Cheng had no choice but to serve him the rest. The 12th prince was not stingy and offered him hot milk tea. The two of them huddled next to the charcoal basin and began to eat.

Li Yi Cheng sighed. He knew that the 12th prince was pitiful, but he didn’t expect him to be this pitiful. Although this palace was the 12th prince’s residence, he was the only one living in it. The rest of the princes and princesses lived with their biological mothers. Regardless of whether their mothers were favoured or not, they had their mothers to look after them. Naturally they did not have to worry about food or clothing. Only the 12th prince didn’t have such a thing. There were many eunuchs and maids serving him in this palace, but they were not dedicated to him.

When the two of them had almost finished eating, a few eunuchs and servants came in with a food box. The head eunuch, Si Zhen, frowned when he saw this, but he knew that Li Yi Cheng was Sir Jiang’s adopted son. So, he swallowed back his complaints. “Your Highness, dinner is ready. Here is your meal.”

The 12th prince nodded.

Si Zhen glanced at Li Yi Cheng and motioned for him to leave first.

After Li Yi Cheng left, Si Zhen persuaded him in a low voice, “Your Highness, a person’s heart is hard to predict. It is better to be careful.”

The 12th prince glanced at him and continued to eat, not speaking. Si Zhen waited to the side, guessing that the 12th prince should be full. He then persuaded, “Your Highness should eat less. Take care to accumulate food.”

The 12th prince put down his chopsticks.

“Your Highness, shall these servants help you prepare to rest?” Si Zhen asked.

“No, the homework that Sir assigned hasn’t been completed. I want to practice calligraphy, then let him come over.”

After Si Zhen heard that, he nodded slightly and turned around to call Li Yi Cheng.

The 12th prince was practicing calligraphy. Si Zhen added another charcoal basin to the room. The 12th prince glanced at Si Zhen. “Go rest. Have him come here.”

Si Zhen glanced at the 12th prince. “Your Highness should rest early. Your health is important.” Then, he called Li Yi Cheng aside and said, “His Highness is weak. Please persuade him. Don’t let His Highness be troubled.”

Li Yi Cheng nodded to express his understanding.

The 12th prince practiced his calligraphy while silently reciting what they learned today. Li Yi Cheng ground ink beside him.

Although the 12th prince worked hard, he felt a pain in his wrists after a while. After a while, his entire body ached.

He was a little depressed and put the pen on the table. He then coughed violently while he covered his mouth. Li Yi Cheng quickly brought over a cup of hot tea, but the 12th prince shook his head. The 12th prince sighed after he finally stopped coughing.

In the study room, he wasn’t the youngest, but his marks were at the bottom. He couldn’t even compare with his 13th brother, who was a few years younger than him. Therefore, he was considered a dull person. The other princes were given rudimentary knowledge when they were 3-4 years old. When they went to study at 6 years old, they could keep up with the work. Only the 12th prince began to recognise words at 5 and then could officially study at 9.

The 12th prince knew that he could only be successful if he relied on himself. Nobody cared about him. Therefore, he had to work harder than the others. It was a pity that his broken body always dragged him back.

Seeing this, Li Yi Cheng said boldly, “Your Highness, is there something you don’t understand?”

The 12th prince glanced at him. “You know this?”

“This servant has the courage to try it out,” said Li Yi Cheng.

“Okay. Then tell me, what does this article mean?” The 12th prince put the book in front of Li Yi Cheng.

Li Yi Cheng held up the book. “The body grows skin. The parents endure it and don’t dare to cause injury. This is the beginning of filial piety. Move on in life by propagating one’s belief and become famous at a later time to show your parents. This is the end of filial piety. The husband’s filial piety starts with a marriage, then he must be a gentleman, and finally he can get on with life.1 This means…”

The 12th prince was lounging, but he slowly straightened up and had a serious look on his face. “Have you learned all of this?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Li Yi Cheng said respectfully.

The 12th prince slapped Li Yi Cheng’s hand and said, “I know Lord Jiang would not arrange for me to have a companion for no reason. In that case, you have to teach me! I am late to study, so I have to work harder than everyone else. But, I don’t have a biological mother, no family background, and my teacher in the study class does not take me seriously. There is nobody around me. You have to help me!”

“Yes, since this servant is serving Your Highness, then Your Highness is this servant’s master. This servant will do his best.” Li Yi Cheng felt relieved that he had taken the first step. “Your Highness, the wind is cold and it is late. Your body is weak. Why don’t you go sit on the bed and this servant will explain it to you slowly?”

The 12th prince nodded and raised his voice. “Servants, I’m going to sleep.”

Si Zhen immediately brought people in to help the 12th prince wash up and change clothes. The 12th prince suddenly pointed at Li Yi Cheng. “You go wash up, then come over and talk to me.”

Si Zhen looked at Li Yi Cheng and nodded to signal for him to move.

From then on, with the help of Li Yi Cheng, the 12th prince studied hard all day and all night. He quickly caught up with the class and received praise for the first time from his teacher.

The 12th prince’s sudden emergence made some people unhappy. For example, the 13th prince’s biological mother, Concubine Shu. Soon, someone went about to suppress the charcoal fire in the 12th prince’s palace, and a lot of cold things were added to his diet. The 12th prince soon relapsed and fell ill. As he was afraid of infecting the other princes, he stopped going to the study room. He could not go back until the imperial doctor diagnosed his illness.

The 12th prince was flushed and lying on the bed. His body was hot, but his heart was cold.

Li Yi Cheng knelt at the head of the bed. “Your Highness, it was this servant who was not thoughtful and forgot to remember that one with outstanding talents are easily the targets of jealousy and blame.2 This servant was negligent.”

“It doesn’t matter. It is my fate!” The 12th prince laughed at himself.

“Does Your Highness accept your fate?” Li Yi Cheng saw that nobody was around. The eunuchs and servant ladies saw that the 12th prince had offended Concubine Shu, so they all hid. Si Zhen, who was still loyal to the 12th prince, had been beaten.

The 12th prince didn’t speak. Even the compliments from his teacher weren’t enough. What could he do if he didn’t admit defeat?

“It seems that Your Highness has accepted your fate, but I haven’t! Why can some people stand above the rest? Why did I have to be the one who was sacrificed? I am not convinced. One day, I believe that I can stand at the top with my own strength and look down on those who once looked down on me! Your Highness, your life is better than mine. Your starting point is higher than mine. You only need to put in a little more effort to get what you want. Do you really want to give up now?” Li Yi Cheng said, word by word.

The 12th prince sat up abruptly and said, “What can I do? My biological mother died when I was young, I don’t have the support of a family, and I am alone in the palace. Anyone in this palace can pinch me to death. What do you want me to do?” He was not happy, but what could he do?

“So what if Your Highness doesn’t have a biological mother, or support from an outside family? These are only your shortcomings now. But, one day, maybe these will be good things! Also, have you forgotten that it is your father emperor whose word is final! Instead of complaining and giving up here, why don’t you give it a shot?” Li Yi Cheng stared into the 12th prince’s eyes.

“How? If emperor father still thought about me, I would have been able to study earlier than nine,” the 12th prince said as he smiled sadly.

“This minister is willing to do work for Your Highness!” Li Yi Cheng solemnly bowed his head to the 12th prince.

The 12th prince was stunned and looked up at Li Yi Cheng. “What do you want?” There had never been such loyalty with no strings attached in this word. He knew that Jiang Zhi En sent Li Yi Cheng to his side. Li Yi Cheng had even said so. Then, what did they want? He had to weigh his options before he could decide.

“Your Highness, I want power and influence. I want to be in the highest position. For this, I am willing to give you my loyalty and my life!” Li Yi Cheng said seriously.

The 12the prince felt this was a little absurd. “If you want this, then you should go to the crown prince and not me.”

“Your Highness, I think that the friendship forged amongst the charcoal is more reliable than the icing on the cake.” Li Yi Cheng smiled.

The 12th prince felt a little at a loss. “Really? Do you think I can do it?”

“Of course. I believe in Your Highness!” Li Yi Cheng was very determined.

The 12th prince was silent for a while. Yes, he was also emperor father’s son. Why couldn’t he fight? He was a dignified prince. Did he have to live with help from others for the rest of his life? Besides, even if he didn’t fight, would those people let him go?

If that was so, then why shouldn’t he give it a shot? Perhaps the heavens would sympathise with him, then maybe he could succeed. Even if he failed, he would make sure his life was worthwhile!

“Okay, I, Xiao Qi Yu, swear to the heavens that if I really get what I want, then I will give you everything you want. You will be under one person, but above tens of thousands! If you break this oath, then lightning will strike you and you will not live long,” the 12th prince said solemnly. He did not doubt Li Yi Cheng’s loyalty, nor the truth of his words. After all, he was a prince with nothing. There was no need for others to conspire against him.

Of course, Xiao Qi Yu did not think that just Li Yi Cheng would help him get what he wanted. But, after what happened just now, he suddenly wanted to understand a lot of things. Li Yi Cheng was just the beginning. In the future, he would get more people.

Xiao Qi Yu also understood that his vow was a bit outrageous, but he didn’t know if he could get what he wanted in the end. But, at this moment with such circumstances, Xiao Qi Yu was willing to promise such a thing to the boy with firm eyes. It was the greatest promise he could give.

For the trust and the encouragement he received, he decided on this.

1.(身體發膚，受之父母，不敢毀傷，孝之始也。立身行道，揚名於後世，以顯父母，孝之終也。夫孝，始於事親，中於事君，終於立身。) I don’t know if I translated this correctly. It’s a passage from one of the 13 Confucian Classics.

2.(木秀於林風必摧之) idiom