The Yao Emperor and His Human Doctor.

Chapter 37 - A Little Pampering

Ren Loo entered the Fortress first, running after the Empress screaming.
"A-niang! You need to see this!"
Qiang Yong raised his eyebrows. "Uhm... you'll become more popular than you were before." He whispered to the boy in his arms.
Su Ning "..........."

The Empress and the servants appeared accompanied by Ren Loo. The yao entered the room breathlessly, bursting with curiosity and let out long exclamations when they saw them:
"Ahhhhh!"
"I don't believe!"
"Is that him!?"

Su Ning was snatched from Qiang Yong's arms by the women's greedy hands. He felt a slight discomfort at this but didn't say it, the dragon's lap was warm and he felt strangely protected there. The Empress hugged him, stroking his head.

"By Buddha, how did this happen?" Aaahhh! What a cute child Dr. Su was!
"He was cursed. It was because of a certain useless snake and a phoenix who went to face an enemy stronger than her." Qiang Yong explained mockingly.
Huang Jia lowered her head, feeling guilty but An Shu protested.
"What? I don't think you managed to protect him either!"

The Emperor looked at him indifferently, what could he do after the damage done? And besides, just in case, he made sure to carry Su Ning in his arms at all times. After holding the child's fragile body in his lap for so long, a horrible fear that something would happen to him tormented him the entire time.

That yao could very well tear the doctor apart in that form with just one blow.
Su Ning didn't recognize the Empress, but that kind lady gave him almost the same comfort as the other dragon. He held his robe tightly, it would be foolhardy if it fell in front of so many women.
"You are hungry?" The Empress asked sweetly.

"Madam, wouldn't it be better if we got him some clothes?" Xiao Zong suggested.
"Ah! A-Shyu is bigger than him and I didn't even keep Qiang Yong's old clothes!" The Empress lamented.
"That's no problem madam." Hu Long intervened. “I can provide him with spider silk clothes right away!”

"Yes! Excellent!" The Empress thanked him warmly. Hu Long wove the robes to his size in less time than it took to burn an incense stick. Yao even managed to weave the colored pieces in a beautiful bluish tone.
"Come on, let's put it on! It's already the beginning of winter, and it's gotten really cold today, it'll probably even snow later." The Empress pushed aside his too-large robe. Su Ning ended up being startled by the sudden exposure.

"I can just put it..." He backed away.
"No need to be shy. You're just a kid." Ren Loo laughed pushing him back. Qiang Yong and An Shu exchanged glances of mutual understanding. It would be difficult for Dr. Su stay like a child next to so many maternal females. They would practically insist on even feeding him food.

All said and done, after being forcibly dressed, the doctor was dragged to eat a light meal, which he had given up that morning to accompany the phoenix to the barrier. Su Ning became even more withdrawn in his new clothes. He was not used to the softness and refinement of the fabric, which made him feel more embarrassed. He looked into the emperor's eyes with a strangely helpless look, as if asking for help.

The other gave a frivolous smile, there wasn't much he could do to help him at the moment. However, the emperor felt immense pleasure in seeing Dr. Su dependent on him for the first time. It was as if this time the roles were reversed. And he didn't think it was bad at all.

The Empress made them bring almost everything that could be eaten, from various fruits, sweets, salads, hot meat dishes and even rice porridge. Su Ning looked at the table strangely and asked worriedly, "What's wrong? Is something wrong?"
"Are you guys eating rice normally?" Su Ning indicated the pot of rice porridge.
"Huh? Yes, why?" Ren Loo sat next to him and the Empress. Huang Jia and An Shu sat next to her.

"Weren't you guys hit by the black fungus?" The boy continued, frowning. Ren Loo's smile suddenly disappeared.
"What is black fungus?" Qiang Yong noticed his sister's behavior and addressed her.
"The black fungus was a disease that attacked rice plantations a long time ago. People who were infected by the fungus died of poisoning within a few days. At first it was believed that it was contagious and many villages were burned and the residents were killed ." Ren Loo replied.

"It was only long after the disease was controlled that it was clarified that it could only be contracted through food. It spread through grains, especially rice. But other foods could also be contaminated."
The Empress lowered her eyes, sad. So Su Ning had perhaps even starved because of this epidemic at the time?

"You don't need to worry. You're sick it no longer exists. You can eat as much rice as you want." She handed him the full bowl, encouraging him. Su Ning took the offered delicacy awkwardly. His head was still confused, he was told that he was an adult who was cursed and had turned back into a child. He took a modest portion into his mouth, chewing the soft grain as he tried to digest this information, but more questions popped into his head.

"I can ask a question?"
Qiang Yong had no appetite in this rice situation and was playing with a peach, chopping it into pieces with his own claws. "Ask everything you can. You need to try to remember both the past and the current life. This way the curse will be broken faster."
"How did I meet you?"

"Dr. Su! I'm your assistant!" An Shu promptly raised his hand, also chewing his portion of rice.
"You've taken care of me since I was little and helped me when I was attacked by the chimera." Huang Jia said with a nod of thanks. “It also helped me in labor.”

"And you cured me of poisoning." The Empress smiled at him. "These are my servants, you also helped Hu Long when she was under the control of the evil yao. Ren Loo and Qiang Yong are my children. And there is Ren Shyu, my grandson."
The Empress hurried to introduce the latter, who had just arrived.
"What's going on? What's this commotion?" The young dragon stared at the strange gathering. He stared at the strange child sitting at the table, feeling some familiarity. "Who is this?"

"Oh! Don't you recognize him, A-Shyu?" Madam Ren provoked him. Ren Shyu stared at him intensely, trying to remember where he could have seen this person. Then he half-smiled.
"Could it be...Dr. Su Ning?"
"Nailed it!" Ren Loo hummed. Ren Shyu went into shock. How did this happen? The situation was made clear to him so that even Su Ning better understood what had occurred.

He went to accompany these yao to that barrier, where they were attacked by a dangerous enemy and he ended up like this. However, he felt a little happy. Did he really become a doctor? As his mother?
He could only eat the bowl of rice porridge, feeling very full. He wasn't used to eating so much.
"Well, now that you know a little about your current life, let's see what happened in your past." Qiang Yong declared, in a somewhat gloomy tone. Some wounds would have to be opened, so it had to be done quickly.

Author's Note

Poor Dr. Su, even I would be embarrassed by so much fuss.
Eh, Qiang Yong enjoying his dependent doctor, lol. Enjoy it while you can.