151 – A Night Tour in the Imperial Palace

It was lovely spring sunshine in the 4th lunar month. On both sides of the gurgling river, fragrant grass was abundant, the willow’s young leaves stirred gently in wind, colorful butterflies and diligent bees flew about on the wildflowers, and charming yellow orioles sung on the branches.

A carriage stopped by the river. White Spot was the first to jump out of the carriage and ran to and fro on the shiny green grassland.

There were other sightseers on a spring outing by the river, who gathered in twos and threes, either taking a walk or sitting lazily in the sun on the grass. There was also a lively 13 to 14 years old girl, who was running on the grass while pulling a kite. Her spry laughter was as sweet-sounding as a silver bell.

Lei-Qin Le, Lei-Qin Zhong, and Lei-Qin Shun successively removed the woolen blankets, barbecue racks, charcoal, food ingredients, and so on from the carriage.

Manman raised his head and looked at other people’s kites flying so high. He was envious. He shook Qin Mian’s hand and said, “Dad, I want to fly a kite.”

Qin Mian rubbed his small head, “Alright, no hurry. Ask your Old Dad to bring your kites.”

Not far away, a teen boy and a teen girl sat together. Upon hearing what was said, they turned to look over, a little curious. How can such a small child fly kite?

Lei Tie took out four kites from the carriage. Once unfurled, they were two big kites and two small kites. The two small kites were a tiger and a black wolf.

A glimmer of surprise flashed through the teen boy’s eyes. He had never seen such a small kite before. It was obvious that the father of two little children made it, especially for his children.

There were no stones on the grass, so Qin Mian didn’t worry that the two little boys would get hurt. He put five-fingered gloves on the two little boys’ hands to prevent the string from cutting their skins. Then, he gave them the two kites but didn’t teach them how to fly the kites.

“Go to play.”

Yuanyuan and Manman were not surprised by their Dad’s attitude. If they couldn’t fly a kite, they would have to find a way by themselves. They turned and watched how other people fly a kite.

Qin Mian embraced Lei Tie’s shoulders and stood not far away.

The more open their actions were, the lesser others would think.

Yuanyuan pulled Manman’s little hand, “Didi, drag the kite and run.”

“En.” Manman nodded with understanding. He grinned at his Old Dad and Dad before running with his Gege while dragging the kite.

Unfortunately, the little boys ran slow. Even if they understood how to fly a kite by looking, it was hard to maneuver. The little boys ran on the grass for a long time, but the kites didn’t fly.

Both the teen boy and girl could not help laughing in a low voice. The other sightseers in the distance also looked at the two little children in amusement.

Yuanyuan and Manman looked at each other and ran to their Old Dad and Dad. Yuanyuan accidentally fell. As if nothing had happened, he got up, patted the grass on his legs, and continued to run.

“Dad, Old Dad, the kites can’t fly.”

Qin Mian squatted down in front of Yuanyuan and asked with a smile, “Does Yuanyuan know why?”

Yuanyuan said, “Didi and I are too small.”

Manman put his small hand on his head as he added, “Gege and I are so much shorter than others with short arms and short legs. Running is slow, too.”

The smile on Qin Mian’s face became more and more gratifying. Manman might not understand the real reason why the kite couldn’t fly, but he could analyze the difference between himself and other people. For a three-year-old, it was really rare.

“Really smart.” Qin Mian took turns to kiss his two sons on the forehead. “Dad and Old Dad will take you two to fly the kites.”

He let Yuanyuan sit on his shoulders and then put his hand behind his son’s back for protection, to prevent him from falling back.

“Yuanyuan, let’s compete with your Didi to see whose kite flies the highest. Hold on to the kite.”

Yuanyuan and Manman clapped their hands and cheered, “Alright!”

“A-Tie, run when I shout ‘start’.” Qin Mian gave a very sly smile at Lei Tie. “Start!”

As soon as his voice fell, he ran away and yelled, “Yuanyuan, quickly let the string out, lift it a bit.”

“Dad is stupid.” Manman laughed. Even if his Old Dad didn’t speak, he could follow his Dad’s words. His small hand pulled out the string, and learning from other kite-flying people, he lifted the string higher. In the wake of Lei Tie’s run, the little tiger slowly flew up.

“Old Dad, my little tiger is flying!”

Lei Tie said in a calm and unhurried manner, “No hurry. Count to three and let the string out.”

“En.”

While the father and son here cooperated very well, the father and son over there were not bad either; the little black wolf leisurely ascended.

White Spot watched the black wolf that looked like it flew higher and higher, making it so excited that it howled and scared the people around. They were relieved only when they turned to see that it was sitting on the ground and didn’t move.

Yuanyuan happily cried out, “Dad, the little black wolf flies so high!”

Qin Mian laughed and looked back at Manman’s tiger before turning to run back. “Can still fly higher. Son, keep letting the string out.”

“Alright—aiyah!” Yuanyuan was so excited that he failed to grasp the string firmly in his hand. The little black wolf spurred the coil to fly higher. Yuanyuan reached out to grab it, but he couldn’t. He was greatly anxious. “Dad, the little black wolf has run away!”

“Yuanyuan, don’t worry.” Qin Mian held Yuanyuan tightly, stooped a little, and jumped to the tree at the side. By the means of the impact, he flew into the air and raised his hand to grasp the kite’s string. The white figure stepped on empty air and landed leisurely.

“Dad is amazing!” Yuanyuan hugged his Dad’s head, bowed, and kissed him on the cheek.

Lei Tie came with Manman on his shoulders.

Manman proudly said, “Gege, Old Dad and I won!”

Yuanyuan nodded and calmly said, “Next time, Dad and I will win.”

When Lei Tie saw the sweat on Yuanyuan’s head, he took out handkerchiefs from his inner pocket and handed them to the brothers.

The two little boys obediently wiped the sweat on their heads.

“Still playing?” asked Lei Tie.

Manman kissed his Old Dad’s face. “Old Dad and Dad have a rest. Gege and I will play later.”

“Alright.”

The fathers and sons returned to the carriage.

Lei-Qin Le, Lei-Qin Zhong, and Lei-Qin Shun were making barbecue. The aroma of barbecue transmitted along with the wind. When a group of people, who went on a spring outing, smelled the aroma, they all had the same thought: That’s what people call enjoyment.

Yuanyuan and Manman took off their shoes and rolled about on the blanket.

“Dad, I want to eat roasted chicken wings.” Manman lay on his stomach on the blanket with his chin propped up in his hands and his feet clapped each other.

Qin Mian took a look at the roasted wings on the grill. “It’s not ready yet, wait a bit. Manman, want to eat a lamb skewer with your Gege first?”

Manman obediently nodded, “Alright.”

“Careful, it’s hot.” Lei Tie gave Yuanyuan and Manman each a skewer of roasted lamb cubes. The rest was put on the plate and handed to Qin Mian.

Qin Mian patted the place beside him, and the two shared to eat.

The teen boy and girl in the distance gathered closer and talked in low voices.

“Brother, are they from the Capital? I’ve never seen the gloves and footwear that the two children wore.”

“More than that, have you ever noticed their carriage wheels? It’s unheard of.”

“Anyway, those two little boys are so adorable.”

After playing by the river until afternoon, Yuanyuan and Manman were tired. The family of four went back to the inn.

The students gathered in the lobby on the first floor of the inn as they did a few days ago, but it was rare that there was no noise. Instead, everyone was divided into two sides. Huo Sirui and the others were there. Qin Mian watched for a while. It turned out that they were reciting poems against each other and probing knowledge.

The family quietly went upstairs.

Qin Mian was still thinking about visiting the Palace.

In the evening, after Yuanyuan and Manman fell asleep, Lei Tie transferred them and White Spot to the big bed in the magical space. Then, he took Qin Mian to quietly leave the inn and flew in the direction of the Palace.

Qin Mian was very excited to be able to see the supreme ruler of the country soon.

At this time, around the end of the dog hour, the Imperial Palace was brightly lit. The Imperial Palace’s building complex was not much different from what Qin Mian had imagined – magnificent, stately, and solemn. He was not interested in this. He was more curious about the people in the Palace.

“Where does the Emperor live?” asked him to Lei Tie in a secret channel.

Lei Tie embraced him and took him to fly again.

None of the Palace Guards patrolling back and forth in the Palace noticed two figures passing by.

Qin Mian and Lei Tie quietly stopped on the eaves of a palace.

Lei Tie hugged Qin Mian from behind. “On the opposite.”

He raised his head and looked straight. There was a table with a bright yellow tablecloth on the opposite side of the open window. Behind the table sat a middle-aged man, wearing a golden crown and a bright yellow robe. It was obviously the current’s Emperor Xiaohui, who was slightly looking down at the folding book in his hands. Emperor Xiaohui was about 42 to 43 years old. He had regular features and dignified bearing; his monarch’s prestige was like nature itself. A chamberlain stood behind him quietly with a horsetail whisk on his arms, as seen in the TV series. The chamberlain’s features looked pretty and delicate with a white face; he was probably a eunuch. Behind the spacious and gorgeous dragon chair, two beautiful palace maids stood on the left and right with their heads drooped in silence.

Emperor Xiaohui suddenly raised his head; his eyes were bright and full of expression, gloriously twinkling.

Qin Mian was startled. For a moment, he forgot that he and Lei Tie were invisible. He thought the other party had noticed them.

Lei Tie tightened his hold and comfortingly stroked his wife’s back. “Don’t be afraid, I’m here.”

Qin Mian relaxed and leaned against him. His lips awkwardly curled up as he somewhat admired Emperor Xiaohui – he indeed had the so-called “domineering aura”.¹

He excitedly said, “Then, go to the Imperial Harem to have a look.”

Lei Tie didn’t move.

Qin Mian thought Lei Tie didn’t hear. “A-Tie, let’s go to the Imperial Harem to see.”

Lei Tie said in a low voice, “Haven’t been there.”

“The so-called ‘Imperial Harem’ is, of course, behind the Palace where the Emperor handles official matters…” Qin Mian looked up and pointed in a direction, “should it be over there?”²

Qin Mian suddenly realized. Is this guy jealous? He turned his head and looked at Lei Tie. Lei Tie evaded his sight. Qin Mian extended his head in front of Lei Tie and smilingly looked at him.

Lei Tie seriously said, “There’s nothing nice to look at in the Imperial Harem.”

Qin Mian embraced Lei Tie’s shoulders and put his head on his chest. He yawned and closed his eyes. “I’m sleepy, go back.”

Lei Tie’s eyes filled with profound tenderness. After pecking on his wife’s forehead, he flew up like an eagle spreading its wings and quietly disappeared into the night.

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