The Eunuch's Declaration of Loyalty

Chapter

The speaker was right in front of him, yet Qin Shu felt as if the words were echoing from beyond the heavens, faint and indistinct. He even suspected that the words were something he had imagined. So, somewhat bewildered, he looked at the smiling Liu Qingrong and Yang Sushu before him, and asked hesitantly and doubtfully, "Just now… what did the Imperial Brother-in-law say?"

Liu Qingrong was handsome and always acted with the refined and gentle demeanor of a scholar. Hearing Qin Shu's words, he chuckled and shook his head, appearing very amiable. Without any hesitation, he continued, "When Qingtang was thirteen years old, families interested in forming a marriage alliance with the Liu family came in droves to inquire, and others went to great lengths to visit the Liu family. Among them were many sons of officials from noble families, elegant gentlemen from wealthy merchant families, and so on. I was the one who received them all."

"At that time, Qingtang was renowned for her exceptional talent in both calligraphy and painting, and with the Liu family's reputation, it was truly a case of 'a family with a daughter, a hundred families would seek her out.' So I asked Qingtang how she would choose." Liu Qingrong spoke in detail as she gestured for Qin Shu to sit down and personally poured him a cup of tea.

After hearing those words, Qin Shu was somewhat disoriented and temporarily forgot about the rules of etiquette. He sat down and listened to him, holding a cup of tea that had been handed to him.

"Qingtang laughed with me at the time, saying that it didn't matter which one they chose, because they wanted a girl from the Liu family who was good at calligraphy and painting and had a good family background, while she was actually a stubborn and unruly young woman. Who knows, the other party might send her back not long after marrying her." Liu Qingrong took a leisurely sip of tea. "Then I said that she was not afraid of being sent back, but that she thought those people were not good enough."

"She nodded confidently and told me that the way they pretended to be gentle was really awkward. No matter who the other person was, she wanted to marry someone who was so good to her that she would want to smile every day, otherwise she would not marry and would stay at home and be supported by her brother and father."

“Qingtang always seems cheerful, but she’s really hard to coax when something’s wrong. I don’t think there’s anyone in this world who can make her happy every day, so I jokingly made a bet with her, saying that if she could find that person and bring him to me, I would…” Liu Qingrong’s tone changed, and she said with some sadness, “I would lose all my savings to her.”

Qin Shu didn't know how to react. His mind was a complete mess, and it took him a long time to sort out the cause-and-effect relationship that "the Empress Dowager brought him to the Emperor's brother-in-law, so he is the person the Empress Dowager wants to marry."

But when he got this conclusion, he was even more incredulous. He had no merits, had done nothing for the Empress Dowager, had not only failed to make her happy but also always said things that angered her. And with such a body, how could he... how could he be worthy of the Empress Dowager's word "marry"?

Was the Empress Dowager joking? But neither the Empress Dowager nor the Imperial Uncle seemed to be joking just now. But if they weren't joking, why would the Empress Dowager take a liking to him? This seemed to have become an unsolvable dead end; no matter how I thought about it, it didn't make sense.

Qin Shu froze after hearing this, while Liu Qingrong secretly looked him up and down under the guise of drinking tea. Then she whispered to Yang Sushu, who was calmly drinking tea beside her, "Judging from his expression, he obviously hasn't realized what's going on yet. Qingtang is really willful, dumping him in front of me without even talking to him properly."

"Qingtang probably doesn't want to say it herself, so she wants you, her older brother, to do it for her, since she's a girl." Yang Suwen's face was as handsome as jade, and his smile was as warm as a spring breeze.

“She’s never shy.” Liu Qingrong said, noticing Yang Sushu’s smile, a smile also appeared on his handsome face: “Sushu, you’re smiling like a dashing young master. Are you perhaps planning to do something to her? If that’s the case, you’d better be careful Qingtang gets angry.”

Yang Sushu, who was pretending to be a young master but was actually a woman, ignored him and said to herself, "To be honest, if Qingtang hadn't suddenly received an imperial decree to enter the palace, she was actually planning to marry me at first."

Upon hearing Yang Sushu's words, not only did Qin Shu, who had been lost in thought, instantly perk up and look at her with a start, but even Liu Qingrong couldn't control herself and almost dropped her teacup.

"Qin Shu, Qing Tang must have told you about my situation to some extent, right?" Yang Sushu said with certainty, and Qin Shu answered just as readily, "The Empress Dowager did mention Lord Yang's matter briefly."

“I’m taking on the identity of my deceased brother, so I can’t get married, and I can’t marry and hold innocent women back. Qingtang was annoyed by all the marriage proposals, so she secretly discussed with me the idea of ​​marrying me directly, which would solve both of our problems at the same time.” As Yang Sushu spoke, her clear black eyes were fixed on Qin Shu.

Hearing this, Qin Shu felt a surge of jealousy, a feeling he hadn't had since learning that Physician Yang was a woman. At this moment, he didn't care whether the other person was a woman or not; just thinking about how the Empress Dowager had once wanted to marry him made him feel sour.

When you love someone deeply, you might even feel jealous that a flower she likes steals her attention.

"Knowing that I am a woman and still caring so much, it's clear you really like Qing Tang, and that's good. As long as you continue to like Qing Tang like this, Qing Tang will like you more and more. Qing Tang is a very gentle person; whatever you give her, she will always give you back even more, and she doesn't like to joke. Even if you don't believe it now, you will believe it in time."

As a doctor, Yang Sushu was adept at reading people and had already noticed Qin Shu's problem. Therefore, her gaze softened as she looked at Qin Shu, whose face seemed expressionless, and she taught him like a gentle older sister:

“I’ve seen you many times and noticed some things. Qin Shu, I want to tell you to trust yourself more, and also trust Qing Tang more. She doesn’t just be nice to anyone casually, but once she’s nice to someone, she’ll stay nice forever. Just now I noticed again that you’re too nervous, whether it’s about the issues between you and Qing Tang or your interactions with her. I can guess what you’re thinking, it’s nothing more than Qing Tang’s identity and your own identity, but she doesn’t care, so please get used to not caring either.”

"What Qingtang wanted to say has been conveyed to you through our words, do you understand?" Yang Sushu spoke in a soothing and gentle tone, her bright eyes easily captivating people. Even Qin Shu, who had always harbored inexplicable hostility towards her, unconsciously listened. After understanding the intention behind her words, Qin Shu couldn't help but feel ashamed of the dark thoughts she had once harbored.

For the first time since arriving at the Liu residence, he relaxed his expression, stood up, and bowed to Yang Sushu and Liu Qingrong.

"Qin Shu understands. Thank you both for your guidance."

He had been nervous ever since he learned he was coming to the Liu residence. He was nervous about meeting the people the Empress Dowager liked and cared about, afraid that they would have a bad impression of him because of his habitually stern expression. He was also afraid that if the Empress Dowager brought up this matter, her relatives and friends would disapprove, which would put the Empress Dowager in a difficult position. He was also afraid that his status and everything he had would bring shame to her.

Perhaps there was also a sense of guilt. He felt unworthy of the Empress Dowager, but he couldn't bear to refuse her. Getting so close to her was like ruining a masterpiece, and now seeing the people who collected and cherished this masterpiece made him extremely uncomfortable.

But how lucky he was to have met such an open-minded and intelligent person. Qin Shu understood that they couldn't possibly be without objections to his status as a eunuch, but because they cared so much about the Empress Dowager and only wanted her to be happy, and wanted people who cared about her as much as they did to be by her side every day, they didn't seem to care so much about his status.

This gentle attitude was far better than he had imagined. Thinking about what Physician Yang had said, Qin Shu suddenly remembered the sleeves the Empress Dowager had made for him, and his disbelief and uncertainty vanished instantly. His heart, like a blade of grass growing in a crack in the rock, finally gripped the ground firmly beneath its feet.

If the Empress Dowager wanted, he would risk his life to please her and make her happy, to give her what she wanted. Some say that servants in the palace are all timid and afraid of death, because those who are bold and unafraid of death cannot survive in the palace. Servants in the palace, especially those eunuchs without roots, live like weeds clinging to the ground. Only by being timid and afraid of death can they take every step with extreme caution.

Qin Shu felt he was just an ordinary servant in this vast imperial city. He was indeed timid, for he had kept the Empress Dowager in his heart for so long without daring to touch her. But what he feared most was not death, but the Empress Dowager's unpredictable heart. Now that he understood her, he was no longer afraid of anything.

"It seems Qingtang asked us to give her some advice." Liu Qingrong had been listening quietly for a while, then clapped her hands and laughed, before glaring at Yang Sushu, "Marry you? You two little girls are really delusional! If Father finds out, you two will have to copy the Art of War hundreds of times."

"Back then, when Father asked me to entertain those young masters, he would secretly watch from the sidelines. Once, to test a young master, he even personally led a group of guards to scare them. Neither father nor daughter was satisfied with any of them, so Father simply kicked them out and forbade them from coming again. Even if Qingtang hadn't been summoned to the palace, Father's pickiness probably wouldn't have allowed her to marry, let alone marry a tomboy like you."

Yang Sushu let him ramble on, but smiled and remained silent, as calm and composed as the wind.

Seeing that she didn't react, Liu Qingrong, feeling rather bored, turned her gaze back to Qin Shu, who was quietly standing in the background.

"Qin Shu, do you want to hear about Qing Tang's embarrassing childhood stories?" Seeing how hesitant Qin Shu was to get close to his sister, constantly addressing her as "Empress Dowager," it was all because he didn't know her well enough. Once he knew all the embarrassing and silly things she did as a child, the distance between them would surely shorten. Liu Qingrong found a perfectly legitimate reason for betraying her sister.

The Empress Dowager's embarrassing childhood stories? Qin Shu couldn't resist the temptation and silently picked up the teapot to add tea for the Imperial Uncle, indicating his interest.

"Ahem, let me tell you one story first. It happened when she was seven. I'm five years older than her, twelve at the time. One day, she insisted on going to the market, and I had no choice but to take a few people with me. Who knew she didn't actually want to go shopping, but to go to Foyun Temple. She heard from somewhere that the Empress, our eldest sister, was going to burn incense at Foyun Temple. Our eldest sister had only been in the palace for a year, and since we didn't have any female relatives, it wasn't appropriate to bring Qingtang to the palace to see her. Qingtang, who hadn't seen her eldest sister for a year, probably missed her very much, so she thought of sneaking in to see her. I wasn't paying attention and she slipped away. When we got to Foyun Temple, we found out that she had planned to come here from the beginning."

"It wasn't anything serious at first. The Empress was inside offering incense, and there were heavy guards around. A little girl like her couldn't get in. I thought she'd just wander around outside and come back if she couldn't get in. But look at her! When I found her, she was sitting on the ground, covered in soot and crying." As if recalling the two little girls with messy buns and faces covered in soot from crying, Liu Qingrong laughed heartily. "Qin Shu, you can't imagine what happened to her."

"According to the soldiers who caught her, she found a dog hole in the outer wall of the back gate of Yunfo Temple and was about to crawl in. But she was a glutton when she was little, and she was very round, so her waist got stuck there. She struggled and was caught by the patrolling soldiers who heard her. They couldn't do anything about her, and they couldn't hurt her, so they had to find someone to slowly knock on the wall and turn the dog hole into a big hole before they could pull her out."

"But she was so ashamed that she refused to admit she was the young lady of the Liu family. When the soldiers threatened to interrogate her, she simply threw a tantrum, sitting on the ground and crying loudly, saying they were bullying a little girl like her. Half her hair was disheveled, her clothes were covered in soot, her shoes were off, and her eyes were swollen from crying, making her look like a little kitten..."

As Qin Shu listened with excitement to the Empress Dowager recount her childhood achievements, he felt a sense of wonder mixed with a profound sense of loss within him.

"Speaking of this, as Qingtang's good friend, I naturally know quite a bit about it, so I'll join in the fun." Yang Sushu slowly put down her cup and began to reveal her friend's secrets.

Author's Note: Did you notice the name change? Some girls said their original name sounded cool, so I changed it~ I think it looks pretty good~

Here's a short, imaginative skit~

*********When Chief Steward Qin from many years later travels back in time to the Empress Dowager's childhood mini-drama*******

Qin Shu remembered walking along a palace path, a very ordinary stroll, but in the blink of an eye, he found himself in another place. Before he could even be surprised, he realized it was the back gate of Yunfo Temple. The Empress Dowager also came here once a year to worship Buddha [actually to eat delicious vegetarian food], so he was quite familiar with the place.

But why had he suddenly come here from the palace? And this Yunfo Temple seemed different from the one he had visited not long ago. Steward Qin didn't want to dwell on these questions. Dressed in his dark blue brocade robe, he turned to return to the palace. The Empress Dowager was waiting for him to coax her to eat; he had no time to waste here. Steward Qin, quite calmly, took a few steps when he suddenly heard a panting sound. He looked down in confusion and saw a little girl stuck in a dog hole behind the steps.

The little girl, wearing a pink and blue dress, was kicking the ground with her little bottom sticking out, kicking up a cloud of dust. Her front half squeezed through the dog hole into the wall, while her waist remained stuck outside, creating a rather comical sight.

Qin Shu stood there watching the little girl huff and puff as she dug at the ground for a while, and the scene seemed somewhat familiar. Then he remembered that the Empress Dowager had done something similar when she was a child. With that thought in mind, the ruthless Chief Eunuch Qin, known as the "Living Yama" in the palace, decided to help the little girl.

After some effort, the little girl was brought out. Looking at her chubby face, plump arms, round body, and round eyes, the little girl, who was as cute as a little pig, Chief Steward Qin felt inexplicably familiar.

The little girl rubbed her chubby waist, ran to the wall, put on her shoes, and then, with her half-undone bun hairstyle, tugged at Qin Shu's sleeve, tilted her head, and smiled, "Hug~"

Chief Steward Qin, who had seen countless prisoners cry out in despair and pleas with cold indifference, miraculously found his heart softening drastically. He reached out and picked up the rather heavy little bundle of flesh, and then heard her say, "Come, come, brother, please put me on that wall."

Qin Shu, who was over forty years old, was called "Big Brother" by a seven or eight-year-old girl, which made him both laugh and cry.

"The wall is too high, no way." He said coldly, with his usual expression. This expression had frightened countless young princes and princesses, but the little girl wasn't afraid at all. She patted his shoulder and giggled, "Why don't you come in with me, big brother? Go down to the inside first and then pick me up. My older sister is burning incense inside. She's very powerful. Big brother, if you help me see her, I'll ask her to make you a high-ranking official, okay?"

"This is bad." Qin Shu felt that the development of the whole thing was becoming more and more bizarre and familiar.

"Please, please~ Please say yes to Qingtang~ Please~ Waaaaah~"

"Qing...Tang...?" Finally realizing something was wrong, Steward Qin noticed the familiar bracelet belonging to the Empress Dowager on the hand of the chubby little dumpling in his arms. When he looked at the little chubby child again, he was completely petrified.

My Empress Dowager was really cool when she was little.

[A truly lazy person]

October Lemon

肥喵

晨离

Will follows the heart

[Shanpu-chan Rabbit] Baby, thank you for the landmine, muah~