Crowned Consort in Golden Age-Chapter 227 - 226. Time flies, father and son conflict

Chapter 226: Time Passes, Father-Son Rivalry

After the wedding of Qin Zheng and Xu Qingze, Licheng seemed to have finally calmed down. In the outside world, Yelv Hong and Yelv Ye of Beirong engaged in open and hidden fights. Mo Jingqi and Mo Jingli maintained outward harmony but harbored inward disagreement. Beneath the seemingly solid reign of the Southern Garrison Prince, the Xiling royal family was restless. Yet, none of these disturbances could affect the tranquility in the Northwest. With the protection of hundreds of thousands of Mo Family Army soldiers and Prince Ding’s fostering reform through brilliant youngsters such as Xu Qingchen, the people of the entire Northwest felt utterly peaceful and joyful under the protection of Prince Ding’s Mansion. If they used to worry about their fate after the split with Great Chu, then now, even if they were asked to rejoin Great Chu, the majority of the people probably would not want to. In the hearts of the people, Prince Ding and Princess Consort Ding, who brought them peaceful and worry-free days, were the ones they truly supported.

Time marched on, and the years quickly passed. Five years had gone by in the blink of an eye.

「Inside Prince Ding’s Mansion,」

A small child in a black brocade robe embroidered with silver dragon patterns was slowly walking along the corridor. His fair and delicate face tried to keep a solemn look, but it was still cute enough to make people want to pinch his cheeks. The child had a pair of black eyes as beautiful as black pearls, coupled with a serious expression as if he were a little adult, which made him seem as exquisite as if carved from snow and polished jade. He already had an impressively handsome and graceful appearance at such a young age. However, the people behind him all looked worried and hesitant towards the young master in front of them, showing a pitiful look of wanting to discourage him but not daring to speak up. As if sensing the resentment behind him, the child turned his head and glanced at the people following him, and snorted indifferently, "I’ve told you not to follow me. Isn’t my word good enough?"

Everyone felt a chill down their spine and couldn’t help but shed silent tears. Heir, who did you learn this intimidating tone of speech from? It’s really scary, you know?

"Um... Heir, His Highness has instructed you to copy the Biography of Prince Ding from the Chronicles of Great Chu ten times. His Highness will check it when he returns," a servant quickly reminded him.

The round eyes squinted slightly; the child calmly said, "This heir knows. You all leave now; this heir is going to greet Mother Consort." The people looked at each other, not knowing how to deal with this. Not allowing the heir to greet the Princess Consort was unquestionably unacceptable. Everyone praised the heir’s filial piety towards his mother. But if they let him go, the homework assigned by His Highness would most likely be shirked by the heir. By then, when His Highness returned, they would be the ones to get into trouble.

"HUMPH!" The heir snorted heavily, knowing full well that his father king’s assignment of so many people around him was not in good faith. His Mother Consort was his, and it was not something that old man could seize with a simple demand! He glanced disdainfully at the attendants, swished his sleeve, and briskly walked toward his mother’s chambers.

「In her study,」

Ye Li sat behind her desk, reading the newly presented petition intently. Five years had not left too many traces on her. In fact, compared to five years ago, her experience in a high position these past few years had endowed her with even more eye-catching dignity and elegance. Ye Li closed the petition in her hand, looked up at Qin Feng standing next to her, and asked, "The transformation and reorganization of the Mo Family Army is almost complete. How is Qilin?"

Qin Feng replied with a smile, "Please rest assured, Princess Consort. Qilin now has a total of two thousand soldiers. Each one is the elite of the elites that we have carefully selected and trained."

Ye Li grinned, "Being elite isn’t just about saying so; the Northwest has been too peaceful in recent years. The reorganization of the Mo Family Army has just been completed. There are many newly recruited soldiers who have never been on the battlefield. I fear that the combat power of the Mo Family Army will not increase but decrease instead."

Qin Feng smiled, "Princess Consort, you’re overthinking. Although the new recruits have never been on the battlefield, His Highness and the generals have been conducting rigorous training and have never slackened. As for the issue of experience, they will naturally adapt after one or two battles."

Ye Li nodded, then looked at Qin Feng. Having followed Ye Li for many years, Qin Feng had a certain understanding of Ye Li’s changes in expression. He asked curiously, "Does the Princess Consort have any ideas?"

Ye Li tapped her finger lightly, nodded, and said thoughtfully, "Indeed, I have some ideas, but whether they can be implemented needs further discussion."

Qin Feng respectfully said, "This subordinate is eager to hear more about it."

Ye Li curled her lips and smiled, "To prevent the soldiers from becoming clumsy due to a lack of battlefield experience, how about... conducting a military exercise?"

"A military exercise?" Qin Feng asked curiously. Although it sounded very unfamiliar, he could glean a bit of Ye Li’s meaning just from the term. Actually, all countries conducted some drills when training their armies, such as naval exercises, troop formations, and various unit training. But Qin Feng always felt that the Princess Consort would certainly have a more interesting method.

Ye Li nodded, thinking as she smiled, "Yes... Qin Feng, you should look around and see which part of the Northwest would be suitable for such a large-scale exercise."

Qin Feng raised an eyebrow, "Do we need a large place? The new Mo Family Army training ground, built fifty miles outside Licheng, should be big enough."

Ye Li shook her head and said with a smile, "What I want is not that kind of place. It’s a battlefield!"

"Battlefield!" Qin Feng was startled. "What does the Princess Consort mean?"

Ye Li nodded and smiled, "Exactly. A place with complex terrain and a vast area, enough to support a real battle. I want a joint exercise involving multiple branches and types of troops. Not just the Mo Family Army, but also the Black Cloud Cavalry, and even Qilin must participate."

Qin Feng pictured the scene Ye Li was describing and suddenly felt his blood boiling. He immediately responded loudly, "Princess Consort, rest assured, I will find a suitable place!"

Ye Li nodded contentedly, "Very good. You may go about your work. I will discuss this with His Highness later. Before that... keep it a secret."

"This subordinate obeys orders!" Qin Feng’s handsome face was filled with an excited smile. These few years have indeed been rather idle. Although it’s just an exercise and not a real battlefield, it sounds very interesting just from the Princess Consort’s few words.

"Mother Consort..." Outside the door came the light footsteps of a child, coupled with a soft and coquettish call.

Ye Li’s smile deepened with a touch of motherly tenderness. She looked up and saw her little darling walk in with a pitiful look, gazing at her pleadingly. Standing by the side, Qin Feng’s mouth twitched imperceptibly as he stepped aside, "This subordinate greets the Heir."

Mo Xiaobao noticed there was an outsider in the study. His pitiful expression froze for a second. Ye Li smiled softly and asked, "Darling, what’s wrong?"

Mo Xiaobao directly ignored Qin Feng, rounded the large desk, and threw himself into Ye Li’s arms, rubbing his little face against her. "Mother Consort... I’m not a baby. Chen’er has grown up..."

Ye Li reached out to hold Mo Xiaobao in her lap, tapping gently on his little forehead as she chuckled, "Alright, sorry, Mother Consort forgot again. Chen’er, what brings you to see Mother?" It had to be said, the power of subtle influence was truly formidable. When Mo Xiaobao was just a newborn, Ye Li recalled her intention to call him by his given name more often, to prevent his nickname from becoming too widespread and causing him embarrassment when he grew older. Regrettably, before Mo Xiaobao even had the ability to protest, Mo Xiuyao had so thoroughly spread his son’s nickname that the entire Mo Family Army knew it. If Mo Xiaobao’s formal name hadn’t caused quite a stir initially, it’s likely everyone would now think the Heir of Prince Ding’s Mansion was named Mo Xiaobao.

Only then did Mo Xiaobao cuddle contentedly in his mother’s arms, taking pleasure in her faint, comforting scent. Blinking his huge eyes, he said, "Your son came to accompany Mother Consort for the midday meal."

Ye Li glanced at the sky outside and then sideways at Qin Feng. Qin Feng glanced downwards, coughed lightly, and managed to suppress a chuckle as he said, "Replying to Your Highness, it has just passed the Hour of the Snake."

Ye Li lowered her gaze to Mo Xiaobao and raised her eyebrows. "Did you do something naughty?"

Mo Xiaobao pouted and pitifully raised his small hand to Ye Li. "Mother Consort, my hand hurts..."

Ye Li sighed helplessly. "What did your father order you to do?"

"Father commanded Chen’er to copy the Biography of Prince Ding ten times; he said I can’t have lunch until I complete it. WAAAH... Chen’er’s hand is going to be ruined..." There were eight sections in the Biography of Prince Ding in the Chronicles of Great Chu, each with at least two to three thousand characters, totaling nearly twenty thousand characters. Writing it ten times would be over two hundred thousand characters. Mo Xiaobao trembled and clung to his mother tightly. He absolutely couldn’t write that much; his hand would be ruined! So he seized the opportunity when his father was away to run to his mother for rescue.

The latter phrase, ’can’t eat until he finished writing,’ was definitely added by himself. Ye Li smiled with resignation, knowing her son’s tendencies all too well. However, she disagreed slightly with Mo Xiuyao’s punishment of making their son copy such a large volume of text. Mo Xiaobao wasn’t even five years old yet and could barely hold a writing brush steady. Copying more than two hundred thousand characters would take a considerable amount of time even for an ordinary person, let alone a child who hadn’t even recognized all his characters yet. After some thought, Ye Li said, "Then let’s change it to copying the Biography of Prince Ming of Ding one time." Prince Ming of Ding was the first-generation Prince Ding, Mo Lanyun, posthumously named Ming. Seeing a spark of joy appear in Mo Xiaobao’s eyes, Ye Li calmly added, "Once you’ve finished writing, you must know how to read every word. When your father returns, read it to him. Understand?"

Mo Xiaobao blinked, but seeing the unyielding expression in his mother’s eyes, he reluctantly agreed. Going from copying eight sections ten times to one section once was a considerable improvement already. He snuggled obediently into Ye Li’s embrace and said, "Your son understands."

"Good child," Ye Li ruffled her son’s hair, smiling.

Mo Xiaobao immediately nodded vigorously with a grin. "Your son is the best-behaved; your son loves Mother Consort the most."

Ye Li bent down to kiss his forehead and laughingly replied, "And Mother loves Chen’er the most."

Standing aside, Qin Feng watched the mother-son interaction and silently shook his head. Heir, you always run to the Princess Consort to act pitiful when the Prince is not around. Every time he returns, you are driven away and punished again. Is it really worth it?

"His Highness has returned," a servant girl announced from outside the door. Catching a glimpse of the heir still nestled in the Princess Consort’s lap, Qin Feng swiftly disappeared. "Your Highness, I shall take my leave."

Ye Li nodded her approval. "Go ahead."

As Mo Xiuyao entered the room, he saw his son sitting in Ye Li’s lap, acting like an obedient child, and couldn’t help but frown. Dressed in all white with his snow-white silver hair, he exuded an air of aloofness and superiority. It was only when he saw his wife sitting at the desk that his indifferent eyes softened slightly. "Ah-Li, what were you two talking about?"

Ye Li patted Mo Xiaobao, looked up, and smiled. "Nothing much. Chen’er just came to pay me his respects."

Reluctantly leaving his mother’s arms, Mo Xiaobao walked forward to pay respects to his father. "Your son greets you, Father."

Mo Xiuyao looked down at him for a moment before stooping to lift him to eye level. "Came to pay respects to your mother? Little Bao is truly filial. Your father is deeply moved." Held in his father’s arms, Mo Xiaobao struggled immediately, but his weak strength was no match for Mo Xiuyao’s grip. With all his might, Mo Xiaobao’s small face reddened, but he couldn’t budge those arms, which held him as firm as iron.

"What’s wrong with Chen’er?" Blocked from view by Mo Xiuyao, Ye Li didn’t see her son’s struggle and was puzzled why her son, who usually loved to rush into her arms, was blushing in Mo Xiuyao’s embrace.

Looking at his son with a loving smile, Mo Xiuyao said, "It seems Xiaobao is learning to be shy. He really has grown up."

Ye Li raised her eyebrows. Was that really the case?

Knowing that he couldn’t resist his father’s strength, Mo Xiaobao had no choice but to pretend to be shy and curl up in his father’s arms, which seemed to confirm what Mo Xiuyao said. Mo Xiuyao sat down beside Ye Li with Mo Xiaobao in his arms. Ye Li got up to pour him a cup of tea and asked, "How is the military camp outside the city?"

Mo Xiuyao took a sip of tea and said, "There are no problems. These years of hard work were not in vain. I saw Qin Feng leave in a hurry just now. Did Ah-Li ask him to do something?"

Ye Li nodded and repeated to Mo Xiuyao what she had told Qin Feng. Mo Xiuyao was clearly interested. "Military exercises? Ah-Li always has such peculiar ideas. Compared to those perfunctory drills, this idea is indeed much more interesting."

Ye Li nodded and laughed. "This method not only tests the common soldiers but also the commanding officers. Haven’t we deliberately selected a group of young officers for special guidance these years? We need to see how effective it has been. If we’ve cultivated a group who can only discuss military strategy on paper, it would be better to throw them directly onto the battlefield to fight."

Mo Xiuyao nodded in agreement. "That’s excellent. Ah-Li, write down the plan, and I’ll look at it later. Then we can have people prepare. However... since it involves two armies battling, there will inevitably be a Supreme Commander. Do you have anyone in mind to lead the troops?"

Ye Li smiled and nodded. "I have thought about it. How about you personally lead one army?"

Mo Xiuyao paused, put down his teacup, and looked at Ye Li. "Then what about the other side?"

Ye Li pursed her lips and smiled. "The other side will be led by me. General Zhang and General Lv are both veterans; they can act as observers and referees from the sidelines. They can also prevent any unforeseen circumstances."

Mo Xiuyao pondered for a moment, then nodded in agreement with Ye Li’s plan and smiled. "Good. They all say Ah-Li is a heaven-gifted talent. I, too, would like to witness how Ah-Li commands an army."

Hearing this, Ye Li could only respond with a wry smile. Who in this world could surpass Mo Xiuyao in terms of talent? And she, a mere dabbler, was nothing in comparison. However, she wouldn’t set up an unbalanced exercise. At least, having both sides relatively even would make things more interesting, wouldn’t it?

Mo Xiaobao sat in his father’s arms, cocking his little head to listen to his parents’ conversation. He didn’t necessarily understand, but he still listened quietly. Occasionally, he would blink his large eyes, which, in Ye Li’s view, was extremely adorable. She reached out her hand to Mo Xiuyao. "Let me hold Chen’er."

Mo Xiaobao was delighted and quickly extended his little hands to his mother. Mo Xiuyao slightly tilted his body, moving Mo Xiaobao even further from his mother. "He’s already five and not light; be careful not to tire yourself. Moreover, it’s not good to always hold a child. When I was his age, I hadn’t been held by anyone since I was two."

Ye Li could only look helplessly at her son, who was mentally gritting his teeth. She then heard Mo Xiuyao casually say, "On the way back to the city, I paid a visit to Mr. Qingyun outside the city. Mr. Qingyun said that Xiaobao is five and can begin his formal education."

Ye Li blinked, somewhat puzzled. "Haven’t we already started Chen’er’s primary education?" Although their son was not yet quite five, he had already learned most of the elementary children’s books like the Hundred Family Surnames and the Thousand Character Classic. In her past life, at five years old, she would have been in kindergarten, playing games and learning her ABCs.

Mo Xiuyao looked down at his son with a smile full of hidden intentions, but Mo Xiaobao only felt a chill creep over his scalp. "Ah-Li, you were a girl, so the Xu Family’s instruction wasn’t excessively strict. But you can ask any of the young masters of the Xu Family; which of them wasn’t reading by two or three and formally starting school by four or five? If that weren’t the case, how could everyone in the Xu Family achieve scholarly rank before they turned twenty? You should know, for an ordinary person, achieving scholarly rank by twenty-four or twenty-five is already considered extremely difficult. Since Xiaobao is the Heir of Prince Ding’s Mansion, the responsibilities he will have to bear in the future are inherently greater than others. If we are too lenient with him, we will only be harming him."

Ye Li had no counterargument. Was this also a way to prevent children from losing at the starting line? Who said children in her modern past had it tough? The children of the Xu Family were the ones who truly had it hard! Upon Mo Xiuyao’s mention, Ye Li also realized that almost all descendants of the Xu Family had achieved their scholarly rank before the age of twenty. For example, her eldest brother, Xu Qingchen, had passed the imperial examinations at the age of fourteen. Didn’t that mean they had to start their education at two or three? With some reluctance, she looked at her son and sighed softly, "All I hope for is that Chen’er can have a happy and carefree childhood."

Childhood? What was that? Why should his son have something he never had? Jealousy welled up inside Mo Xiuyao’s heart, but he said with a warm and gentle smile, "Given the state of the world today, it’s better for Xiaobao to mature earlier, rather than him knowing nothing if a time comes when we can’t protect him, don’t you think? Besides, with Mr. Qingyun personally instructing him, aren’t you reassured? Although Mr. Qingyun is strict with his children and grandchildren, he dotes on Xiaobao the most. Are you still afraid he’ll tire him out?"

Thinking about it, Ye Li realized that was true. If anyone in the entire Northwest doted on Mo Xiaobao the most, then if Mr. Qingyun ranked second, no one would dare claim first. Even Mr. Qingyun’s own great-grandson, Xu Zhirui—the four-year-old son of Xu Qingze and Qin Zheng—had to step aside. "Alright, Chen’er, when you go to Great Grandfather’s, you must listen to him, understand? Mother will visit you every other day, okay?"

Mo Xiaobao listlessly lay in Mo Xiuyao’s embrace, fiercely despising his despicable father in his heart. You just want to drive me out, don’t you? HUMPH! Wait until this heir grows up, let’s see what you, old man, will use to compete with me for Mother Consort! Mother Consort... WAAH, you have to wait for Chen’er to grow up! Chen’er will definitely win you back!