Chapter 347 : It’s Not Easy Being the Head of Household (31)
With the protection of their big thigh Shi Sheng, the Jun Clan developed swiftly and completely eclipsed the imperial family in terms of influence.
But their big thigh…
Okay, to be honest, only one person had ever been allowed to hug it…
So they were all actually clinging to Sir Ling Yue’s big thigh…
Only if they pleased Sir Ling Yue would they get a chance to see the Prime Minister and convince her to act.
‘Never in all of history has anyone been spoiled this much!’
Shi Sheng ended up handing the reins of power to the other Jun Clan members. Her job was done anyways. Now, the fate of the Jun Clan would be in their own hands.
Shi Sheng brought Ling Yue and the two Yues with her to Mt. Wanyuan to stay. It was obvious that Ling Yue preferred to stay here rather than outside.
Shi Sheng naturally followed along with his preferences.
And besides, it was much easier to have Ling Yue to herself once they were away from the crowds, so she was satisfied.
The only thing was…Gu Su had nearly been chopped to death by Shi Sheng several times.
Had it not been for Dai Yue’s timely appearances, Gu Su would’ve died many times over.
After the nth time Gu Su was taken away by Dai Yue, Shi Sheng finally blew her top.
“I(lz) told you not to touch him! Can’t you understand me?” Shi Sheng wanted to smack Ling Yue to death right now.
The latter merely had an innocent expression on. “He’s my Junior Brother.”
Shi Sheng, “…”
‘So what if he’s your Junior Brother? I’m your spouse dammit! Can your Junior Brother accompany you for life? Of course not! I’m(bbb) going to be angered to death…’
Shi Sheng left in a huff with a toss of her sleeve. ‘If you don’t cajole me(bbb), I’m not sleeping with you tonight!’
Ling Yue helplessly shook his head and chased after her, grabbing her hand. “Let’s go down the mountain to walk around.”
“For what? Not going!” Shi Sheng shook him off, a cold expression that practically spelled ‘I’m very angry right now! Nothing you say is of use!’ all over it.
The tips of Ling Yue’s ears flushed slightly as he gave her a slight peck on the lips. “How about now?”
“Not a chance.” ‘I’m(bbb) not that easy to bribe!’
Ling Yue kissed her again.
“I’ll consider it.”
More kisses.
“Not sincere enough.”
And on it went…
Only once Shi Sheng’s temper had subsided did she agree to go down the mountain.
The moment they heard that Shi Sheng wanted to leave the mountain, the two Yues and Gu Su looked at her with three pairs of teary eyes, expressing their wish to come along too.
Shi Sheng, “…” ‘I don’t wanna bring these cockblockers!’
“Your Excellency…” ‘Let us go! Please let us go!’
“Hmph!” ‘I’m only going for Senior Brother!’
In the end, Shi Sheng still brought the three 2-kilowatt lightbulbs[1] with her down the mountain.
She hadn’t participated in government affairs for two years, but the moment she entered the city gates, she was swarmed by people.
“Isn’t this the Prime Minister? Have you come back to rebel?”
“How long has it been since the Prime Minister attended court…”
Ever since the capital had been besieged by the Protector General, the most common back and forth these people had was: Is the Prime Minister going to rebel today? Nope.
The only reason they dared to speak this way was because they knew the Prime Minister wouldn’t rebel.
If she wanted to rebel, she would have long done so.
Shi Sheng’s face was dark as she pulled Ling Yue away from the crowd, shaking off the three annoyances.
As Shi Sheng watched the surrounding crowd, she felt something was a bit strange. ‘Why is it so lively today?’
Shi Sheng shielded Ling Yue with her body so that he wouldn’t be bumped into by other people. Ling Yue had already grown used to Shi Sheng’s protectiveness, so he had no qualms about enjoying it.
The two strolled along the streets, stopping every once in a while to rest. They found a place to eat, and by the time they finished their meal, night had already fallen.
Only now did Shi Sheng realise why the atmosphere felt a bit off.
‘It’s the Double Seventh[2] Festival today!
No wonder I felt something strange… All those things the stalls were selling are related to the Double Seventh Festival.’
“Lil priest~” Shi Sheng called Ling Yue in a meaningful tone. ‘What’s his intention for dragging me out here today of all days, eh?’
Ling Yue glared at her.
‘Woah, now you even know how to glare at me! Your temper’s certainly gotten worse!’
The festival was very lively as pairs of young men and women met up to stroll through the streets together and light the occasional flower lantern[3]. The atmosphere was altogether very harmonious.
Ling Yue pulled Shi Sheng along as they followed the crowd. They soon reached their destination.
“Why are we here?” Shi Sheng stared at the giant tree that was covered in little plaques before giving a confused look to Ling Yue.
‘He wouldn’t really believe in this stuff, would he?’
As reality proved, Ling Yue actually did believe in this.
He bought two plaques from a stall and handed one to Shi Sheng.
Shi Sheng, “…”
She stared at Ling Yue for several seconds before helplessly taking a plaque from him.
It isn’t an easy feat to carve words on wood. Fortunately, there were woodcarvers who had set up shop to the side, hoping to make some money from the festival. Since there was one who knew how to carve words, Shi Sheng pulled Ling Yue over to him.
The people in the queue recognised them, so they exclaimed and took the initiative to make way for the two.
“Is that the Prime Minister and Sir Ling Yue? They look perfect for each other!”
“Sir Ling Yue is the Prime Minister’s sole husband, and she’s simply too good to him! Will I be your only one too?”
“This…”
“Hmph!”
“H-hey… Wait up!”
Several couples ended up separating in a huff, due to hesitation on the part of the women who answered.
Shi Sheng and Ling Yue exchanged a smile.
“What do you wish to carve, Sir?” The woodcarver asked, almost fearfully. ‘This is the Prime Minister…’
“Do you have paper and a brush?” Ling Yue politely inquired.
“Y-y-yes.” The woodcarver hurriedly pointed at the stack of parchment placed to the side.
There was a saying that if two lovers wrote their vows beneath the Eternity Tree, it would come true. And after accompanying each other til both were old and greying, they would be able to come back and look at what they had once promised.
Shi Sheng expressed apathy towards this.
‘By the time we grow old, the plaques on this tree will have changed countless times already! How are we supposed to find ours?’
Ling Yue told her, “Don’t look.”
Shi Sheng pouted. ‘Fine! Who wants to look?’
When Ling Yue went over to write his words, Shi Sheng spoke to the woodcarver. “Just carve both our names.”
“Got it, Prime Minister…” The woodcarver immediately took the plaque from Shi Sheng and lowered his head to begin carving.
By the time Ling Yue came over, Shi Sheng’s plaque was already carved.
Because the plaques were bound so that the carvings were facing inwards, they couldn’t see the contents.
Once they had been carved, they were tied together with red strings. Shi Sheng and Ling Yue made their way to the startlingly large Eternity Tree.
“You toss them.” Shi Sheng handed the plaques to Ling Yue.
He took them from her and placed his hands together, bowing towards the tree before tossing the plaques up. They hooked themselves on a green stem with a leaf on the end.
As the plaques settled on the stem, they shook, letting out crisp clacking noises.
Shi Sheng lifted her head to look at the plaques.
Ling Yue took the initiative to take her hand in his and interlocked their fingers.
The two stood there for a while before leaving.
As it got later, the bustling crowd soon dispersed. The woodcarver sitting beneath the Eternity Tree was just about to pack up and leave when…
Something blocked out the light, prompting him to look up. He was nearly scared into kneeling.
“P-Prime Minister.”
Shi Sheng squatted down so she was face-to-face with him. “Help me carve two more names.”
“Eh?” The woodcarver was confused. ‘The Prime Minister returned just for this?’
“But…there aren’t any more empty wood plaques.”
Shi Sheng frowned and scanned the surroundings. The peddler who had been selling wooden plaques was gone.
She remembered where Ling Yue had tossed the plaques though. Shi Sheng retrieved their plaques and told him to just carve on one of them.
Though the woodcarver found it odd, he didn’t dare to ask and obediently carved according to her instructions.
Shi Sheng took back the freshly carved wooden plaque and copied Ling Yue’s actions from earlier—placing her hands together and bowing before tossing it up.
As the night breeze blew, it caused the wooden plaques to knock into each other, creating a sound as lovely as windchimes.
One could faintly make out four names on the spinning plaques:
Ling Yue, Liyou.
Feng Ci, Shi Sheng.
[1] When you call someone a lightbulb, you’re basically calling them a third wheel. Seeing as how there are three of them though… I couldn’t use that expression. Also, please note that 2 kilowatts is roughly 100 times more than the energy requirement of a regular lightbulb.
[2] The seventh day of the seventh month, which is the equivalent of a Chinese Valentine’s Day because it’s the one day of the year when the Weaver Girl and Cowherd can meet after a year of separation. This is according to the lunar calendar.
[3] I think this is what it looks like: