Broken Bonds

80

Chapter 80

In Beijing where the Beitang Palace was, there was a Buddhist Hall.

A little boy in white silk clothes bowed his head in front of the Buddha statue. The little head was drooping, revealing a delicate neck. He had been kneeling for a long time. The thick soft cushion underneath was not enough for the tender and crispy leg bones of the child. 

He cannot withstand such long torture but he didn’t dare to move. Tears fell on the small face that should have been innocent and bright.

A mother walked by the door and saw his weak figure quivering in the lonely and solemn Buddhist Hall. She couldn’t bear it but did not dare to violate the Beitang Wang Fei’s orders. She sighed softly, shook her head, and left in silence.

“Do you know where you went wrong?” Lin Yanyan, who dressed in plain but graceful clothes, walked in with the support of the maids and asked coldly.

*Beitang Ao became Beitang Wang (Prince Beitang), so Lin Yanyan became his Wang Fei (Princess Consort) 

The child raised his head, revealing a small face that was still immature but could see his future’s grace. That rare beauty, even if he was still a child, was astonishing.

“I─I… No, it’s the boy. The boy knows where he went wrong.”

“Then where did you go wrong?”

“I─Boy. The boy shouldn’t have eaten the rabbit meat sent by brother… ” His pretty big eyes were filled with moisture but he dared not cry.

“What else?”

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

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“Then who are you? What’s your name?” 

“I─Boy. The boy is the second son of Beitang Wang, his name is Beitang Yaohui. Woo…”

Lin Yanyan nodded and said, “Get up.”

Beitang Yaohui was about to stand up, but after kneeling for a long time his legs were already numb. His body shook and threw himself to the ground.

“Woo… It hurts…” 

A maid behind Lin Yanyan wanted to come and hug him.

“Stop. Let him stand up!” Lin Yanyan stopped the maid.

Beitang Yaohui lay on the cold ground for a long while, his body was numb, bloody, stiff, and painful, but he did not dare to disobey his mother’s order. He struggled for a long time and slowly got up, his face flushed with tears.

“Okay, don’t cry.” Lin Yanyan saw that the boy was still obedient, and her face eased. Then to the little maid behind her, she instructed, “Take the second son down to rest. If he is hungry, you will get something for him to eat.” 

“Yes. ”

Lin Yanyan turned and left, not looking at the child.

The little maid went up and hugged the shaky little body. “Second little prince, this maidservant will take you back to rest.”

“Woo… Xiu’er, when will my brother be back? Huo’er… Woo…” 

“This…” The little maid also didn’t know, so she had to comfort him, “The first little prince will be back soon, so the second little prince shouldn’t worry.”

Beitang Yaohui’s cries became sadder when he heard this as he was picked up by the little maid and taken back to his courtyard.

***

In the countryside courtyard, a family of three had lunch together. 

In the afternoon, Beitang Ri was very active and wanted to go hunting in the mountains.

Beitang Ao knew that Yan Feili had gone through last night’s love affairs and was physically fatigued. He was afraid that it would be inconvenient for Yan Feili to ride a horse.

Instead, he took Yan Feili to the small valley in the back mountains and captured a few tits, rabbits, and other small prey at random.

After returning, Beitang Ri was very happy, full of joy. And Yan Feili had time to find someone to give Liu Qi a letter. In the letter, he said that he would stay with the two for a few days so that Liu Qi would not have to worry. 

A few days after that, Beitang Ao and Yan Feili took Li’er all over the countryside and visited all the interesting places around. Yan Feili and his son were inseparable and their bond grew deeper.

“Father, when will we return to the palace?” Beitang Ri asked after lunch one day.

“Why? Do you want to go home now?”

“No.” Beitang Ri was still young, and this other courtyard was far away from the capital where he could live and play freely. How can it be comparable to a palace with many rules? Naturally, he didn’t want to go back. 

“Then what do you ask it for? Wouldn’t it be okay to stay here with your father for a few more days?”

Yan Feili saw him by the side and asked, “Who does Li’er miss?”

Beitang Ri thought for a while and said calmly to his foster father, “I miss Hui’er. It would be nice if Hui’er comes.”

“Hui’er is in poor health and cannot come here.” Beitang Ao patted him, “Besides, your Mother Concubine still wants him to be with her. ” 

“The Mother Concubine is in the Buddhist Hall all day, so there isn’t anyone to accompany him.” Although Beitang Ri was young, some things were surprisingly clear to him.

Yan Feili heard him call Lin Yanyan the ‘Mother Concubine’ at the beginning and felt a little uncomfortable, but after a long time, he let it go.

Beitang Ao calmed the little prince and asked him for some horse riding. With his child’s character, after a while, he forgot about Hui’er.