Chapter 280: The Regent’s Spoiled Little Eunuch (7)

Chapter 280: The Regent's Spoiled Little Eunuch (7)

Ying Chengan had held the position of a superior for far too long, so long that he could not let go of his pride and reveal his ambitions concerning the little eunuch.

Thus, the little eunuch began to thrive and gain influence in Tai'an Mansion.

The little eunuch was handsome and skilled in speech.

Although he was a favorite of the little emperor, he had no sense of looking down on others.

He treated everyone the same, whether it was the old steward who managed the mansion or the young kitchen hand who chopped vegetables. He treated them all equally.

In just a few days, the little eunuch had won over everyone in Tai'an Mansion.

They genuinely liked this person who smiled like a little ray of sunshine and treated everyone as equal, rather than looking down on them as a mere eunuch.

Because of the little eunuch's presence, the usually quiet Tai'an Mansion became livelier and more homely.

Ying Chengan observed these changes.

Another day after the morning imperial court session, the little emperor asked him to stay behind.

"Royal Uncle Wang, is Little Chu doing well?"

Ying Chengan, who had been casually lowering his eyes, slowly lifted his gaze upon hearing this.

A layer of waves seemed to rise in his eyes, only to disappear quickly.

"Naturally." His voice was icy, revealing no emotion, "Since he belongs to Your Majesty, my Tai'an Mansion would not cause any difficulties."

The little emperor felt relieved.

"That's good."

"I haven't seen Little Chu for a few days and I really miss him. May I ask if Little Chu can return to the palace for a visit?"

Ying Chengan knew that the little emperor could not wait and wanted to obtain some information from the little eunuch.

This was indeed a good opportunity.

A flicker of light passed through his eyes, "What about tomorrow?"

The little emperor naturally agreed.

After briefly discussing some political matters, Ying Chengan excused himself.

Returning to Tai'an Mansion, he went into the study and had someone call Song Chuyi over.

A quarter of an hour later, Song Chuyi burst in excitedly, with a bit of flour on his nose and his hands not very clean.

Ying Chengan slightly furrowed his brow, "What have you been doing?"

"Sir Wang said we're having his hometown specialty, dried vegetable pastry, for dinner. I was helping him knead the dough."

Ying Chengan knew that the little eunuch got along very well with the servants in the mansion and usually, he didn't pay much attention to it.

But now, seeing the little eunuch so excited, he felt an inexplicable discomfort.

"Come here."

He motioned to the little eunuch.

Song Chuyi walked over quickly, filled with curiosity.

"Sir, why did you summon me?"

Ying Chengan didn't reply but instead took out a handkerchief and slowly wiped his palm clean.

"Next time, clean yourself up before coming to me."

He placed the handkerchief aside, deliberately keeping the little eunuch's hand tightly in his palm.

"The little emperor ordered you to return to the palace tomorrow to see him."

He spoke with a smirk.

"The little emperor said he longs for you. Do you long for him?"

Song Chuyi shook his head hurriedly, "I don't, I don't."

To be honest, he wasn't mentally prepared to provoke the antagonist!

The world here is much more interesting than the last one.

He could play and chat with so many people here, and the antagonist completely ignored him. It was incredibly fun.

He hoped these carefree days could last a little longer.

He certainly didn't want to stay in bed all day.

Song Chuyi, who spent every day playing happily with everyone, had completely forgotten about the matter of intelligence.

As for Ying Chengan's talk of "enlightenment," he had completely forgotten about that.

Nothing could stop him from eating preserved vegetable pancakes tonight!

Song Chuyi swallowed hard, "Sir, if you don't need anything else, I need to go back and help Uncle Wang knead the dough."

Ying Chengan pinched the little eunuch's palm, just a little. Only when the skin turned red did he slowly speak.

"Do you understand why the emperor is summoning you tomorrow?"

Song Chuyi nodded confidently, "I know. He wants to learn about the intelligence from Tai'an Mansion."

He wasn't an idiot; of course, he knew the little emperor's intentions.

"I've gathered plenty of intelligence over the past few days."

"Oh?" Ying Chengan's interest was piqued.

Without his authorization, someone actually dared to leak information to the little eunuch?

"Yes, yes," Song Chuyi said, pulling his hand back and counting on his fingers, "Uncle Wang secretly raised two hens on the back hill. The hens are excellent at laying eggs."

"They lay five eggs every day."

"Also, Miss Li has a crush on Xiao Wang, who slices vegetables, but Xiao Wang only wants to surpass Uncle Wang to become a great chef."

Xiao Zhao from Dong Yuan had already saved up a hundred taels of silver and was waiting for his family to arrange his marriage.

........

Ying Chengan became uncharacteristically silent.

He didn’t pay much attention to the servants in the mansion, and these small issues didn’t concern him.

Yet, the little eunuch looked excited, treating these as if they were major events.

"Enough," Ying Chengan interrupted the excited little eunuch, "Are you planning to tell the little emperor about these things?"

Song Chuyi shook his head vigorously, "No, no, no. I’m going to tell Your Majesty about something very important."

Ying Chengan raised an eyebrow, "What?"

Song Chuyi grinned, bent over, and whispered into Ying Chengan's ear.

"The old steward has never married because he prefers men."

"He has a lover who lives on the outskirts of the city."

Ying Chengan's eyes narrowed slightly, ignoring the content of his words.

Or rather, the warm breath on his ear had captured all his attention.

At that moment, he couldn't focus on what should have been important news.

He swallowed slightly as Ying Chengan's large hand settled on the little eunuch's slender waist.

It was even more slender than he had expected.

He chuckled softly and bent down to the little eunuch's ear.

"Have you figured it out now?"

His gaze settled on the little eunuch's flushed ears, and he felt exceptionally good.

"Your performance today was good. I can share some information with you."

He leaned in even closer, nearly brushing the little eunuch's ear.

If he slightly opened his mouth, he could almost take the nearly transparent earlobe into his mouth.

But he didn't, only whispering a couple of sentences.

Song Chuyi blinked lightly and committed the information Ying Chengan told him to memory.

————

The next day, Song Chuyi was indeed summoned by the little emperor.

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the little emperor asked the little eunuch, "Do you have any information?"

Song Chuyi nodded and relayed what Ying Chengan had told him the previous day.

"It is said that the son of Minister Wen, who is quite talented, is being courted by the regent."

The little emperor's eyes lit up, "Good, good, good. I’ll go make contact right away."

He was worried about not having capable individuals to employ. Anyone who earned Ying Chengan's approval must have exceptional qualities.

He needed to reach the person before the Regent King could.

Inside Tai'an Mansion, in the courtyard closest to the main entrance, Ying Chengan was feeding the fish.

The old steward stood behind, awaiting instructions.

Ying Chengan spoke calmly, "You're getting old, and it's always inconvenient to travel back and forth. Bring your family to Tai'an Mansion and spend your remaining days in comfort."

The old steward was stunned, tears welling up in his eyes as he was deeply moved.

He knew exactly what his master meant and was overwhelmed with gratitude.

"Thank you, my lord."

Ying Chengan waved his hand, his eyes once again shifting to the entrance, his brows furrowed.

"Why isn't he back yet?"

The message had been delivered, so the person should have returned, right?