usatvline Chapter 44 The whole family ate, but I was the only one kept in the dark?!
Chapter 44 The whole family ate, but I was the only one kept in the dark?!
Chapter 44 The whole family ate, but I was the only one kept in the dark?!
"Splash—!"
The sound of shuffling the cards seemed particularly abrupt in the quiet backyard, yet it carried a strange sense of warmth and life.
Li Yuan learned it very quickly.
He didn't even look at the cards; he just imitated Su Mu, touching the cards with his thumb to know what they were.
"Two of bamboo".
Li Yuan slammed the cards on the table with great force, "No."
"bump!"
Su Mu, quick-witted and agile, took the cards and said, "Thank you for the reward, sir."
Li Yuan blew on his beard: "You little brat, trying to steal my beard?"
"On the battlefield, there are no fathers and sons; at the card table, there are no superiors and inferiors."
Su Mu grinned in a way that made him want to punch someone. "If it's meant to be touched, then it's meant to
Li Lizhi sat at the lower end of the table, her palms sweaty.
She held a "Fortune" card in her hand, unsure whether to play it or not. If she played it, the Emperor Emeritus might touch it; if she didn't, she wouldn't have a complete set.
"Play your card already, what are you dawdling for?"
Li Yuan urged, his eyes fixed on the river, his decisive and ruthless aura returning, as if he were facing not a small wooden table, but a battlefield where two armies clashed.
"Hit—hit this one."
Li Lizhi closed her eyes and threw out the "Get Rich" card.
"Damn it!"
Li Yuan shouted loudly, startling Fang Qingjun so much that she dropped the "five strips" in her hand.
The old man drew a card from the end of the deck.
He gently stroked the lines on it with his thumb.
The courtyard was so quiet that only the sound of breathing could be heard.
Little Sizi lay on his tiptoes beside Li Yuan's legs, peeking out and muttering softly, "Whiteboard—no drawing—"
Li Yuan's lips slowly parted into a wide grin, which grew larger and larger until he finally slammed the card onto the table.
Snapped!
"Self-draw! Pure suit! All pairs!"
Li Yuan pushed his cards aside, his face flushed, his hands trembling with excitement: "Hahahaha! I won! I won!"
The exhilarating feeling that shot straight from the soles of my feet to the top of my head was even more direct than when we conquered Chang'an!
There's no need to consider the fate of the world, no need to weigh the power of powerful families and clans; it's simply about winning and losing, and simple joy.
"Give me the money! Give me the money!"
Li Yuan stretched out his hand, as if demanding a debt, "A bet's a bet, don't try to renege!"
Fang Qingjun and Li Lizhi looked miserable as they counted the copper coins in front of them that they had used as chips.
Su Mu remained calm, counted out ten copper coins and pushed them over: "Not bad, old man, the newbie aura is quite strong."
Li Yuan held the handful of copper coins, listening to the clinking sound of them clinking together, and grinned from ear to ear.
He was wealthy beyond measure, and had seen all kinds of gold and silver mountains. But these dozen or so copper coins he won felt incredibly heavy to him, as if they were worth more than the national treasury.
"happy!"
As Li Yuan arranged the cards, he exclaimed, "This thing is interesting. It's much more interesting than sitting in that... broken chair listening to those old fogies chanting scriptures!"
"Little brother, what's wrong with your brain? This thing—good! If everyone in the Tang Dynasty played this game, there wouldn't be so much time for intrigue and backstabbing."
After several laps, it was completely dark.
Su Mu yawned and pushed the cards in front of him away: "I'm not playing anymore, I'm sleepy."
"Just one more lap! Just one more lap!"
Li Yuan was hooked and unwilling to let go, saying, "I've only just figured out how to do it!"
"Get up early tomorrow."
Su Mu got up and stretched, his joints cracking. "This is a woodshed, not a gambling den. I still have to chop wood."
Li Yuan stared at the table full of wooden blocks, his hands itching with desire.
He thought for a moment, then simply found the wooden box that had just been used to store the mahjong tiles and quickly swept them into it.
"This thing is mine now."
Li Yuan stuffed the box into his robes and said matter-of-factly, "Consider it your gift to me."
"Take it, take it."
Su Mu waved his hand, looking disgusted.
Li Yuan wasn't annoyed. Holding the box, he hummed an unknown tune and walked out with light steps.
As he walked to the door, he turned back to look at the copper pot and the young man who was neither humble nor arrogant.
"Tomorrow—at this time again?"
Li Yuan asked tentatively.
"It depends on my mood."
Su Mu closed the gate and said, "Remember to bring your own food. Don't always freeload."
"Hey! You little rascal!"
Li Yuan wasn't angry. Instead, he laughed and cursed, then turned and disappeared into the night.
Da'an Palace, Hongyi Hall.
The candlelight inside the hall was dim, giving it a cold and desolate feel.
Li Shimin stood at the palace gate, took a deep breath, and adjusted his expression. These past few days had been busy with state affairs, and the drought was causing him distress; he hadn't come to pay his respects to the Emperor Emeritus for several days.
Every time he came, the old man would either refuse to see him with a cold face or make a few sarcastic remarks, leaving Li Shimin with a heavy feeling in his heart.
"Wang Dequan, look at my clothes, are they neat enough?" Li Shimin said in a low voice.
"Your Majesty is so elegant and poised," Wang Dequan replied softly.
Li Shimin nodded and stepped into the palace.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty."
Li Shimin bowed deeply, his head bowed low, awaiting the expected cold reception or scolding.
However, the main hall was quiet except for a strange rustling sound.
"Erlang is here?"
Li Yuan's voice came from the Luohan couch, and it sounded surprisingly—quite light and cheerful?
Li Shimin was taken aback and slowly raised his head.
The old man, who usually had a gloomy face and looked old and dejected, was now sitting cross-legged on the couch, holding a wooden box in his arms and a few wooden blocks in his hands, fiddling with them by himself.
What shocked Li Shimin the most was Li Yuan's face.
On that wrinkled face, the corners of his mouth were turned up high, glowing red.
On that neatly trimmed, white beard, there was a drop of yellowish-brown sauce.
It dried up, formed a scab, and hung on the retired emperor's beard, swaying with his movements.
Li Shimin's eyelids twitched violently.
Is this still the same retired emperor who went on a hunger strike and constantly clamored to return to his hometown of Taiyuan?
"Father—what's wrong?"
Li Shimin couldn't help but take a step forward, his nose twitching twice.
A very familiar smell wafted towards me.
The aroma of sesame, the scent of charcoal, and—that spicy flavor that haunted his dreams yet remained unattainable!
Li Shimin's Adam's apple bobbed suddenly.
This taste! You can't go wrong!
"Oh, it's nothing serious."
Li Yuan straightened the "20,000" bill in his hand, looked at his son with great pleasure, and said, "Coming here so late, aren't you tired? Go back and rest, don't stand here blocking the light."
Li Shimin: "————"
If they were kicked out in the past, they would have done so with resentment.
But what she said today sounds like she's annoyed that he's disturbed her enjoyment.
"Father, have you had your dinner yet?" Li Shimin stared intently at the sesame paste on Li Yuan's beard, wishing he could reach out and scrape it off to smell it.
"I used it."
Li Yuan smacked his lips, seemingly savoring the taste, "The food was good. Much better than the pig swill served at the Imperial Kitchen."
Pig feed?
Li Shimin's lips twitched.
The Imperial Kitchen is home to the Tang Dynasty's top chefs. If they're making pig swill, what am I eating every day?
"Who prepared your meal?" Li Shimin asked tentatively.
Li Yuan paused, raised his eyelids, and gave Li Shimin a look that was neither a smile nor a frown.
"Why are you asking about this? Do you want to arrest someone? Or try to bring them to justice?"
Li Yuan clutched the wooden box in his arms tighter, as if protecting his own offspring. "Let me tell you, mind your own business. This is all the fun I have in the palace. If you dare to ruin it—"
"Your subject dares not!" Li Shimin quickly lowered his head.
"Alright, you can leave now." Li Yuan waved his hand dismissively, as if shooing away a fly. "I have to get up early tomorrow, don't keep me from sleeping."
Li Shimin left Da'an Palace looking completely bewildered.
Standing in the night wind, he looked back at the still-lit main hall and the faint "click" sound coming from inside.
The Emperor smiled.
He even ate too much and didn't even wipe his beard clean.
Li Shimin touched his empty stomach; the smell of sesame paste he had caught from Li Yuan was like a hook tugging at his stomach.
"Wang Dequan".
"This old servant is here."
"Investigate." Li Shimin gritted his teeth, staring in the direction of the imperial kitchen. "Where did Father Emperor go tonight? Who did he see? What did he eat?"
He paused, his tone tinged with grievance and resentment.
"Why is it that Father Emperor can eat his fill of delicious food while I'm stuck here starving?"
And what kind of magical artifact is that piece of wood that could make Father Emperor not even want the throne anymore?
Wang Dequan said with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, the people on the Emperor Emeritus's side are tight-lipped—"
"Strict my ass!"
Li Shimin flicked his sleeves and strode back. "I can smell it! It's that smell! And mutton! It must be that scoundrel living in the woodshed again!"
Li Shimin grew angrier the more he thought about it.
Well, first she made fried rice for Sizi, then she made kebabs for Lizhi, and now she's even won over the old man.
So the whole family ate there, and I was the only one kept in the dark?