Chapter 212

Chapter 212

Just as Pot Lid Head was about to take another step forward, wanting a hug, Su Yi smiled and refused, instructing the palace maid to take him aside to clean his paws first.

Pot Lid Head, having failed to coax a hug, looked as if he had just lost his favorite fish snack, feeling wronged and in disbelief as he was carried away by the palace maid to have his paws wiped.

Kangxi was secretly pleased but kept it to himself, just 'happened' to glance at Pot Lid Head, who happened to meet his gaze. Pot Lid Head immediately let out an angry meow, then turned his head away, presenting his back to Kangxi.

Having lost face in front of the human, Pot Lid Head's plump figure seemed to be sulking in anger. Despite his anger, when asked to lift his paw, he did so obediently, allowing it to be cleaned.

Kangxi's secret joy didn't last long before he heard the Consort saying something terrifying: "Your Majesty, would you like to cut red paper together tonight?"

Kangxi: Huh?!

Why drag him into this?

"Why the sudden idea?" Kangxi asked, forcing a smile as he recalled the 'so-called masterpiece' the Consort had sent him earlier.

At that time, he hadn't looked at it but pretended in front of the Consort that he had. Later, when he finally did, he realized he had missed the best opportunity to express his true feelings about it.

Thinking it might be a bit rough and not very refined, he was completely unprepared for the bizarre, mythical creature style that resembled something out of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas."

Did the Consort directly copy from the "Classic of Mountains and Seas"?

This 'window decoration' was something else, so much so that if it were actually pasted up, it might scare people at night.

No wonder the Consort stayed up late working on it.

Especially when he discovered that the finished product the Consort gave to Baocheng was another adorable and childlike cat paper cut, Kangxi felt a mix of emotions.

So what got the Consort going this time, making her want to stay up late cutting red paper again? Did she realize how terrifying her suggestion was?

Kangxi imagined the scene in his mind: him sleeping soundly, while the Consort stayed up late, with her usual morning grumpiness, sitting there cutting out mythical creatures from the "Classic of Mountains and Seas." The thought made his head start to ache again.

"Inspired by the moment, isn't that how those who compose poetry and couplets do it?" Su Yi said, as if it were the most normal thing.

Then she glanced at Kangxi with a slightly odd expression, quickly looking away as if nothing had happened.

Kangxi was confused by that look, sensing something off about the Consort's playful tone, which made him uneasy.

He soon found out the reason.

"Some folks can write poetry their whole lives, composing two or three poems every day. What is this called? It's the passion that drives people forward, just write, regardless of whether it's good or not, it's all art. What I'm doing is nothing in comparison," Su Yi said earnestly, starting to ramble.

Your grandson Qianlong composed 43,630 poems in his lifetime. Even a line or two could be considered poetry, and it didn't stop him from writing every day.

His talent knew no bounds.

Writing two or three poems a day, he could produce six to seven hundred a year. Composing a poem took no more time than washing his hands.

He was either on his way to write a poem or in the process of writing one, a real poet at heart.

His passion never ceased for a single day, truly admirable.

The poets of the Tang dynasty, over two thousand of them, wrote a total of just over 48,000 poems.

Qianlong's poetry output nearly matched that of over two thousand Tang poets.

That's a lot, huh?

He sure could write a lot.

Haha, luckily, there aren’t many to memorize, and his poems never make it into exams.

Kangxi was utterly shocked—forty-three thousand six hundred and thirty poems?!

Later, Kangxi realized that despite writing so many poems, not a single one was worth reading—the kind that wouldn’t even make it into exams.

This made Kangxi furious in an instant. Even though there are no grandsons yet, it didn’t stop Kangxi’s anger from flaring up.

How could he spend all day writing poems?!

Kangxi felt like he was about to explode inside, but on the surface, he smiled and pretended not to know. “Oh, yes.” He forced a smile, “But it won’t do if the Imperial Consort keeps this up every day. I’d worry about your health.”

He reached out and held the Imperial Consort's hand, giving her hand a gentle pat.

He looked genuinely concerned.

“That won’t happen. It’s just a sudden inspiration, not an everyday thing,” Su Yi replied with a gentle smile. Her tone shifted, “Wouldn’t Your Majesty like to try it? Cutting red paper at night is really fun. Wasn’t the paper cut from last time quite interesting?”

Kangxi hesitated, “I saw it, indeed… very special, trying it wouldn’t hurt.” He paused briefly, then quickly added, speaking faster, “But I’m usually swamped with state affairs. I doubt I’d enjoy it fully, so let’s forget it.”

He looked genuinely regretful—so convincing, in fact.

Su Yi would only believe him if she were a fool.

Kangxi knew the Imperial Consort didn’t buy it, but he put on a troubled look, “Sigh, I’d love to join you, but I can’t nap during the day like you. If I’m not energetic, the courtiers might laugh at me.”

Su Yi thought, ‘This jerk has really changed.’

As if any courtier would dare laugh at him! They’d probably think Kangxi was burning the midnight oil on memorials and say, ‘Your Majesty, take care of your health.’

If you think less innocently and more suggestively, well, men get it.

Tsk, who’d have guessed he was staying up late cutting paper?

Such a pure, innocent act.

Now he’s even smoother with words than she is.

“So, what do you think of my cutting? I felt like I held back last time. The rest were so bad I burned them all. I picked the decent ones just for you. This is the first time I’ve tried to surprise you, after all the surprises you’ve given me.”

Su Yi spoke with a shy smile, fiddling with the Imperial Consort snake bracelet on her wrist.

The morning after they returned, Kangxi had slipped it back onto her wrist while she slept.

Thinking about it, she rarely surprised Kangxi, so when the chance came, she jumped at it. Ordinary surprises were too bland—Su Yi couldn’t bring herself to give those.

The handsome Emperor said gently, “You did well, but next time, don’t bother.”

Was that really holding back?!

He was truly ‘surprised’—if there were more such ‘surprises,’ his heart would always beat very fast, the kind of fast that makes one anxious.

Su Yi found his words quite unpleasant. Her smile faded, her small fists clenched slightly, her tone soft, “Hmm?”

Although she often finds Kangxi annoying, she’s quite biased.

It's like, I can criticize you, but if you dare criticize me, I'll show you just how rebellious I can be.

At first, Kangxi acted like a clueless straight guy with no sense of self-preservation, but then the tone shifted: "Because it's cut so well, it's tiring."

It's like testing the dangerous edge, ready to turn back at any moment.

You say he has no survival instinct, but he does.

Su Yi, who was eager to show off, was immediately disappointed.

Why is he like this? Doesn't he give others a chance to shine?

Su Yi dryly said "Oh," almost losing the thread of the conversation.

Now there's no jerk who can't keep up with the conversation.

The pot-lid head, after wiping its paws and cleaning its fur, had already scurried over with nimble movements.

In a hurry, it looked up and circled around Su Yi's feet, meowing and hinting with its eyes, wanting to be held.

It even lifted its paw to lick it clean, meowing.

Although the pot-lid head's arrival temporarily paused their sparring, this fat cat is really in the way.

Kangxi smiled very hypocritically, "Looks much cleaner than before. By the way, the noble consort has really raised it well—it's grown very..."

Kangxi pondered over the words, "sturdy."

No, that's fat, all fat.

Su Yi felt a little guilty and modestly said, "It's all thanks to the palace servants taking good care of it."

Not only does she not have to scoop poop or feed it, but she can also pet the cat anytime, which is really too happy.

Su Yi picked it up, skillfully pinched the cat's big cheeks on both sides, kissed its head, and started grooming and massaging it.

Yes, that's it, she just needs to pet the cat.

Sigh, she's really an unqualified poop scooper.

A poop scooper who doesn't scoop poop, what kind of qualified poop scooper is that?

She's just after the little cat's body.

Sigh, so trashy.

But so happy, heehee.

The pot-lid head has always been a good cat with a great personality, not holding grudges against Su Yi.

It immediately forgot the grievance and anger from failing to get Su Yi to hold it earlier, started purring comfortably, then spread out its soft belly, allowing petting, holding, and kissing, really very cat-virtuous.

Except for Kangxi, the most hated human, the pot-lid head doesn't talk about cat virtues with this human.

Kangxi watched as the noble consort was already immersed in the joy of petting the cat, hands all over the cat, completely uninterested in him now.

Yes, her heart was full of thoughts like, so soft, the cat feels so good to touch, the texture is so nice, I want to sniff it a few times, really want to kiss it a few more times.

It was Kangxi's mistake not to be present when the noble consort chose the cat. Kangxi sat for a while longer, as if remembering there was still work to be done, told Su Yi he would come later in the evening, said he had things to attend to, but didn't seem in a hurry to leave at all.

"Noble Consort, if you're really tired..." Kangxi said slowly.

Before he could finish, Su Yi was already nodding with a smile, her eyes filled with affection, as if touched by his thoughtfulness.

Got it, if I’m tired, I’ll just crash without a second thought.

"Then let's hold on a little longer and wait for me," Kangxi pulled a quick switch.

Su Yi pretended not to hear, tuning him out, thinking, 'What, you saying I should hit the hay early or something?'

Kangxi calmly added, "Otherwise, it wouldn't be good if I woke you up."

Listen to this jerk, saying such heartless things.

He’s not even bothering to put on an act now.

Su Yi bit back her words, knowing it wouldn’t look good to make a scene in front of everyone. This stupid image thing is such a pain.

"...Hmm," she forced out, her tone dripping with insincerity.

That single word was her final stand!

Kangxi, in a good mood, lightly booped her nose with his finger before leaving, feeling as refreshed as if he had just finished petting a cat.

Liang Jiugong was confused. The Emperor had wrapped up his work early today, so what was this sudden 'something to do' about?

Indeed, Kangxi was done, but whatever. If he said he had stuff to do, then he had stuff to do.

Then the princes got hit with a second round of their dad popping in to grill them on their studies.

Totally out of the blue.

This wasn’t the usual drill—it was a total ambush. Even the studious ones were sweating bullets, because, hey, it’s basically a pop quiz.

And having the Emperor breathing down their necks? Absolutely terrifying!

The second Kangxi was out the door, Su Yi got everything set up. The weather was perfect, and she was all about soaking up some sun.

Well, 'basking' under an umbrella, that is.

The servants hustled to set up a lounge chair in the courtyard, complete with a giant umbrella and a little table stocked with snacks and flower tea. Once everything was perfect, they backed off to a respectful distance, ready to jump if needed.

Off to the side, someone was meticulously cracking walnuts with a tiny hammer, carefully picking out the meat and arranging it on a plate.

Su Yi lay comfortably on the lounge chair, within easy reach of the snacks, while the cat lay beside her, its little head resting against Su Yi as it slept. The whole setup looked like pure bliss.

But for someone—no, a ghost—it was anything but cozy.

The moment the Emperor stepped away from Rong Noble Consort, the Junior Concubine saw her chance to make a move. But Rong Noble Consort turned and had the lounge chair set up in the courtyard, claiming she wanted to soak up some sun.

But with that giant umbrella, only a sliver of sunlight managed to touch her skirt.

The same white cat that had been hot on her heels earlier was now sprawled out, snoozing beside Rong Noble Consort.

The Junior Concubine immediately understood that even though she hadn't approached, Rong Noble Consort had already known she was there!

Even though the Emperor had left, it was now afternoon, with the sun shining brightly. If she tried to approach Rong Noble Consort, she would be immediately burned by the sunlight.

Earlier, dodging the cat, she’d been cornered under the only shady spot in the Yonghe Palace courtyard—a lone tree’s overhang—while the rest of the eaves baked in the sun.

Staying on the ground made it impossible to shake off that cat, as the white cat was extremely persistent.

She also had to be careful to dodge without being exposed to sunlight, and when she finally spotted a climbable roof, she immediately scrambled up.

She didn't go directly up the tree because she was afraid the cat would follow her up the tree.

The white cat had slipped while trying to climb the pillar and was about to climb up the nearby big tree when it was taken away by a palace attendant, which allowed the Junior Concubine to breathe a sigh of relief.

But she remained in the shadow of the big tree's overhanging branches, not daring to come down.

This was to prevent the white cat from suddenly running out and chasing her again.

Now, the Rong Noble Consort was right there, but how could she get close? Would she really have to wait until after sunset?

But although the Emperor had just left, he would come back in the evening to accompany the Rong Noble Consort, and then she still wouldn't be able to get close to her.

At this moment, Su Yi suddenly stretched her hand out into the sunlight, and the sunlight bathed her palm, making her fair skin glow.

She sighed, "What lovely sunlight today." After saying this, she withdrew her hand and casually stroked the glossy fur of Pot Lid (a nickname based on the cat’s appearance or behavior), smiling gently, "Isn't it, Pot Lid?"

Pot Lid squinted and rubbed against Su Yi's hand, responding with a playful, coquettish meow.