One Hundred Eleven
Updated: April 1, 2024
Renjun walked ahead, down the stone path in the Imperial Garden, a gentleness in his steps as Xiao Yue happily trotted by his feet. A new delivery of summer flowers had arrived a few days ago, and his mother requested that he come to overlook the processes on his day off. As he walked, the servants greeted him kindly before turning to their work. They worked diligently despite the sweat that drenched their backs as the heat of the summer sun blared down on them. Not a single person slacked off, carefully planting or potting the new plants and then moving them to their respective locations.
Seeing their conditions, Renjun felt hot and tired. He turned to a an overseeing eunuch and waved him to order some cool damp towels and cool water for the servants, giving them all a break.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty is too kind."
"Your Majesty's kindness is too much."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
A blue flower caught Renjun's eye, and he walked up to it, crouching down to feel the cool bed of water it was sprouting from.
"Your Majesty," said a eunuch. "These are Egyptian Lotuses from Egypt. They arrived a week ago."
"Egypt?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. They are lovely, aren't they?"
Taking his wet hand out of the water, he reached to touch the soft velvet petals. "Yes..." He looked at the eunuch. "Are there any seeds for this flower?"
"Yes. Does Your Majesty want some of these seeds delivered to your residence?"
"Yes. If you could."
"Of course." The eunuch bowed once before heading off to get the order in.
Renjun stayed crouched by he flower for a little longer, pulling the petals gently to observe the beautiful blend of blue and purple on its surface.
"Injoonie likes these flowers?" Jaemin's voice came from behind him.
Renjun invited both Jaemin and Jeno to this small outing, wanting to spend some time with them after a long week of work. But, not only that, he wanted to share with them the beautiful flowers the Huang Empire gets sent yearly (even if they, too, saw similar flowers back in their own empires).
"I... I want to have some planted in my residence," he replied, standing up and drying his hand on his handkerchief. He looked back at Jeno and Jaemin with a smile. "They are pretty, aren't they?" His gaze shifted back to the lotuses. "I think they'll look great next to the pink ones."
"You seem very fond of lotuses," Jeno pointed out.
Renjun smiled again, "they're beautiful. They're grown in such dirty conditions, yet they sprout so beautifully without a single mud stain on their petals." He looked at the two of them again, making eye contact with their warm eyes. "What do you think?"
Seeing the smile on Renjun's face, Jaemin couldn't help but smile cheekily as he shamelessly said, "They are just as beautiful as you, Injoonie."
Flushed, the emperor turned his head back to the flowers, clearing his throat as he changed the topic slightly, "they bloom the same every year too. It doesn't matter how thick the mud is or how muddy the water is. The flowers always bloom just as beautifully as the year before. Sometimes even more beautiful."
"But, they are hard to grow, aren't they?" Jeno asked, looked at the blue lotus sitting prettily in the water.
Renjun laughed a little. "Yeah. In the wild, they grow fine, but in the drier and harder ground here, it's definitely harder."
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