Chapter 26

Ye Shu sprayed a mouthful of ginger tea and very nearly choked himself to death.

The physician quickly stepped forward to help him, but Ye Shu waved him off. "Don't touch me — did you just say that I— cough — that Consort An… what happened to him?"

"With child." The physician said. "Close to two months along."

"Cough cough cough——!"

Ye Shu erupted into an even more spectacular bout of coughing.

With child???

Was he talking about the kind of "with child" he was thinking of???

The kind where you get a big belly and give birth to a baby???

It took Ye Shu quite a while to recover. His hand moved instinctively to his own abdomen.

Yangxin Hall was warmed by underfloor heating. He was only wearing a single thin inner garment. Beneath the thin cloth, he could clearly feel the small, soft curve of his lower belly.

For these past two months, he had been frequently drowsy and nauseated — yet he had never known why.

The physician had found nothing wrong, so he hadn't worried too much about it. The possibility of pregnancy had never even crossed his mind.

Obviously — what normal man would ever think of pregnancy???!

And another thing — why did this old man look completely unsurprised?

What kind of novel had he transmigrated into???

Ye Shu's mind was a complete tangle. He forced himself to calm down and asked the most practical question. "I… Consort An is male. Why would he… be pregnant?"

He forced out those two words with difficulty. Imperial Physician Feng answered casually: "Consort An is a kun-sovereign. By nature, pregnancy is entirely possible."

"Kun-sovereign?" Ye Shu was confused. "Isn't a kun-sovereign a pleasure house worker?"

Imperial Physician Feng: "?"

Ye Shu: "…"

The two of them looked at each other. Ye Shu pressed his fingers to his forehead. "Forget it — keep talking."

A short while later, Ye Shu's head full of terminology he'd never heard before in his life, he flopped flat on his back on the small couch.

He had thought that after everything he had been through, no new element in this novel could possibly surprise him anymore — but what Imperial Physician Feng had just told him was far beyond anything he had expected.

What were qian-sovereign and kun-sovereign? What was a pheromone scent? Why could men in this world get pregnant?!

"Young Master?" Imperial Physician Feng saw him silent for a long stretch and called out beside him. "Young Master, this is no small matter. What do you intend to do about Consort An?"

Do about him?

Right now I want to do something about you!

This man couldn't possibly have been hiding the pregnancy news on his own initiative. The fact that he hadn't said anything before was absolutely Jin Wang's doing.

If he hadn't accidentally found out the truth through posing as Consort An, who knows how much longer this man and Jin Wang would have kept it from him.

Good thing he'd found out in time. If they waited until the child was born — what then?

Accomplice!

Ye Shu shot Imperial Physician Feng a fierce glare.

Imperial Physician Feng: "???"

Ye Shu grew more furious the more he thought about it. Suddenly an idea struck him. He sat up. "This matter involves the imperial family's reputation and must not be reported to His Majesty. He must not know that you are aware."

Imperial Physician Feng was taken aback. "Not telling His Majesty — then…"

"Of course we can't tell His Majesty." Ye Shu sat cross-legged, his expression grave. "Think about it — once His Majesty hears of this, he'll be furious and have Consort An executed. And not just executed — to keep this from spreading, to preserve His Majesty's honor from being… compromised… wouldn't he have to silence everyone involved?"

Ye Shu said this with utmost seriousness. "At that point, neither of our lives would be safe."

Imperial Physician Feng nodded in understanding and asked: "Then Young Master means…"

Ye Shu thought for a moment and asked quietly: "I want to know — if I were to terminate this pregnancy now… would it be too late?"

Imperial Physician Feng understood. "Young Master wishes to quietly deal with the child in Consort An's womb, and then inform His Majesty? That way, the matter would be resolved appropriately without any damage to His Majesty's dignity. Young Master truly has a talent for this."

Ye Shu looked at Imperial Physician Feng with an expression too complicated for words.

…What exactly had this man learned from the rear palace.

Ye Shu gave a small cough. "Yes, that is what I mean. Is there a way?"

"Naturally." Imperial Physician Feng sounded rather proud of himself. "Before three months, the embryo is unstable and a natural expulsion is not difficult. This subject has developed a medicinal preparation that can cause a painless, harmless termination — though there is a risk that the mother may have difficulty conceiving afterward."

Ye Shu's eyes lit up immediately. "That one — please prepare it as quickly as possible."

This could not get out, and an abortifacient was a serious matter — Imperial Physician Feng would need a few days to prepare it.

Imperial Physician Feng left the bedchamber promptly. Ye Shu let go of all his tension and fell back on the small couch.

Calming down and thinking about it — from the moment he had transmigrated into this novel, nothing had been normal.

This was clearly supposed to be a story of strategic conquest, wars of unification across multiple nations. Yet after two months, not a single beat of the main plot had moved forward. And he, a bit player who was supposed to die at the very start, had not only ended up in bed with the male lead by a bizarre series of accidents — he had conceived the male lead's child.

And then there were all those qian-kun elements that had no trace in the original novel.

Ye Shu had heard that there were people online who liked to write fan fiction of popular novels. Could it be that what he had transmigrated into was…

Ye Shu covered his face.

If that was really it, it would explain why Jin Wang was so hopelessly devoted.

Thinking of the dog emperor, a fresh wave of irritation surged through Ye Shu's chest.

He had actually been starting to think the dog emperor treated him reasonably well recently. He had barely begun to look at him in a slightly favorable light — and now this massive "surprise."

He absolutely refused to have a child for this miserable dog!

"…Miserable bastard Jin Wang."

Jin Wang walked into Yangxin Hall at exactly that moment.

His brow gave a small twitch, but he wasn't annoyed. He smiled and asked: "What has We done to you now?"

Ye Shu turned to look at him, then rolled over to face away. "…Hmph!"

"…"

Jin Wang walked to the small couch and bent down to pull him into his arms. "What happened — who upset you? Tell Us, and We'll deal with them."

Ye Shu didn't look around. "If I told Your Majesty, would you really take my side?"

"Naturally." Jin Wang sat down beside him. "Don't be angry — the physician said frustration and sulking harms the body. You can't do this right now."

Ye Shu laughed coldly inside.

"Can't do this right now" — this person clearly already knew everything.

Dog emperor. He'd given himself away in one sentence.

Ye Shu's eyes shifted. He said quietly: "Actually, it's nothing that serious…"

Jin Wang held him close and said gently: "No matter — tell Us whatever you like."

"I just suddenly want to eat white peach pastry, locust flower cake, emerald crystal prawns, Songjiang perch soup…"

Ye Shu rattled off over a dozen dishes in a single breath. Jin Wang's head swam — he hadn't managed to retain a single one.

But he didn't hesitate. He said warmly: "Good — We'll have the imperial kitchen make them for you."

"That won't do." Ye Shu turned to look at him. "This subject wants Your Majesty to make them."

"…"

Jin Wang had never set foot in a kitchen his entire life. He couldn't tell rice from salt, let alone cook.

He was momentarily at a loss, and said with patience: "But We don't know how to cook."

"If you don't want to, then forget it." Ye Shu wriggled free of Jin Wang's arms and curled himself into a ball facing away. "I don't want to eat anything else."

Jin Wang frowned. "Ye Shu, don't be difficult."

Ye Shu didn't bother responding.

Starving himself would be one thing — starving the imperial heir was another.

He didn't believe Jin Wang could bear it.

Sure enough, Jin Wang let out a sigh and pressed his fingers to his brow. "Alright — I'll make it for you."

Jin Wang left and was gone a full afternoon.

Ye Shu was delighted to put him through the trouble. He lay in the bedchamber with not a care in the world and had a nap.

He was roused by the smell of food.

Ye Shu opened his eyes in a daze. Someone lifted the bed curtain and bent down to stroke his hair. "A Shu — time to eat."

Ye Shu's eyes focused on the face before him and he shot upright. "I really can't have any more!"

Jin Wang: "…"

Ye Shu's heart was still racing.

He'd just had a nightmare. In the dream he and Jin Wang had truly become husband and wife, and he had given birth to an entire litter of little dog emperors.

That whole litter of little dog emperors had squabbled and wailed and chattered through the entire dream.

And at the very end, Jin Wang had done exactly this — bent down to stroke his hair, and said softly into his ear: "A Shu — you're pregnant again."

It had made Ye Shu's scalp crawl in terror.

The bedchamber fell silent for a moment. The two of them looked at each other blankly.

Ye Shu came back to himself and let out a dry laugh. "I… did I say something just now?"

"…No." Jin Wang had clearly also been startled by that earth-shattering cry, and managed a somewhat strained smile. "Let's eat first."

A spread of exquisite dishes was laid across the entire table — beautiful in appearance, fragrant in smell.

Ye Shu's gaze swept across everything, and he was quiet for a moment. "You made this?"

Jin Wang was visibly uneasy. "…Not all of it."

Ye Shu slapped his chopsticks down.

Jin Wang quickly explained: "We did make some — but only this."

He pointed at a small covered bowl in front of Ye Shu.

Ye Shu lifted the lid.

Inside was none of the dishes he had listed — just a simple bowl of plain congee.

The congee had been poorly timed — neither thick nor white, with even a faint hint of scorched smell.

Jin Wang genuinely hadn't been lying about not knowing how to cook.

He had always been a prince at the very least — he had never cooked for himself. The original host, though, had at one of their bleakest moments, secretly made a fire behind the cold palace and cooked him congee.

Exactly like this — a plain, slightly scorched congee.

Ye Shu's chest gave a faint, quiet tremor.

It was strange. Those were the original host's memories — yet as they surfaced in his mind right now, an unavoidable twinge of bittersweetness rose with them.

As though… those really were his and Jin Wang's shared past.

Jin Wang clearly also felt the bowl of plain congee was somewhat too simple. He gave a small cough and said: "We've noted down everything you want. We'll learn to make it gradually. For today… just eat something else first — you can't go hungry."

Ye Shu drew a deep breath and put the lid back on. "All right."

"This subject trusts Your Majesty to follow through and not keep me waiting too long."

"Of course." Jin Wang said. "We successfully turned raw rice into congee on Our first attempt at cooking. Making everything else is only a matter of time."

"…"

Ye Shu looked at Jin Wang's confident expression, and held back the words "isn't cooking rice into congee something anyone can do."

The two of them sat down to eat in pleasant harmony. Only Gaojin, standing to the side waiting on them, looked close to tears.

What? His Majesty intends to keep learning?

…It seemed the other half of the imperial kitchen was doomed as well.

After dinner, once Ye Shu was well-fed and comfortable and lying on the small couch reading, he suddenly realized something was off.

He had been planning to make this dog emperor truly suffer — how had he let him off so easily?

The dog emperor had used all of this to soften his heart again. He really deserved to be punished.

Ye Shu was very dissatisfied with his own performance today and decided he needed to win one back.

Jin Wang was at the table reviewing memorials and instinctively felt a chill at the back of his neck. He looked up — and found Ye Shu heading toward him with a cup of tea.

Ye Shu poured him a cup and smiled pleasantly. "This is brewed by this subject's own hand. Please have some, Your Majesty."

If memory served, the last time Ye Shu brewed him tea, the result had been that he'd slept for half a day — and this person had made himself disappear entirely.

Jin Wang's nerves tightened. He shook his head decisively. "No need."

Ye Shu's eyes dropped. "Your Majesty dislikes this subject."

Jin Wang: "…No, We don't."

"Yes you do — why did you just hesitate, then?" Ye Shu slapped the teapot down on the table and said with a pout: "…Fine, don't drink it."

Jin Wang: "…" This person today was insufferably exasperating.

The physician had said a pregnant kun-sovereign would have volatile emotions — easily angered, easily irritated — and must not be upset, must be soothed.

Jin Wang talked himself into it, set down his memorial, and pulled the person into his arms. "A Shu, are you unhappy about something today?"

Ye Shu was not just unhappy — he was practically fuming.

But he didn't let any of it show.

Ye Shu smiled faintly and leaned into Jin Wang's arms, tipping his head back to look up at him. "Not at all. Your Majesty personally cooked for this subject today — this subject was so pleased, I wanted to repay you."

Jin Wang's expression softened. He asked quietly: "How did you want to repay Us?"

A trace of shyness passed across Ye Shu's face. "Well — what kind of repayment does Your Majesty want?"

Something stirred in Jin Wang's chest.

The body in his arms was soft and yielding, the collar slightly loose, revealing the porcelain-white skin beneath and the elegant lines of the collarbone.

Ye Shu's arms were hooked around Jin Wang's neck. His eyes were clear and transparent, carrying a look that said much and yet held back.

Jin Wang understood his meaning. The tips of his ears quietly went red.