Chapter 3 Contracting Lovesickness _1

From the warm spring of March in Lin'an, where peach and plum blossoms were in full bloom, to the heavenly spring of April in the Capital City, where the blossoms at Mountain Temple were nearly shed, Hua Yan had not yet arrived in the Capital City.

Zheng Erhu had been living in the Eastern Palace for a month, waiting until the spring flowers were almost withered and still no sign of Hua Yan's arrival. He secretly wondered whether Miss Hua Yan might have run away halfway or if she was just deceiving the Crown Prince and never intended to come to the Capital City?

His heart was uneasy, unsure of what to believe, thinking if she had run away and left him in the Eastern Palace, even with good food, drink, and clothing provided, and the Crown Prince's orders ensuring nobody treated him poorly, the strict rules left him unable to move about freely. The whole palace was quiet every day, the servants diligently doing their work without speaking to him. He was nearly stifled with boredom, feeling it was better to be locked up in the cells of Lin'an Governor's Office where at least there were people to talk to.

He anticipated day by day, longing more and more for the cells.

Having hoped for so long, he actually fell ill with lovesickness.

One day, after reporting to Yun Chi about Zhao Zaipu's upcoming birthday and inquiring what gift the Crown Prince should send to prepare in advance, Yun Chi pondered for a moment, said "No rush," and then the butler reported another matter, saying, "The person sent by the Crown Princess Consort to deliver a letter to Your Highness has fallen ill."

Upon hearing this, Yun Chi ordered, "Have the Imperial Physician see him."

The butler quickly replied, "He has been seen."

Yun Chi, noting the butler's troubled expression, raised an eyebrow, "What illness? Can the Imperial Physician not cure it?"

The butler said helplessly, "The Imperial Physician says he has lovesickness, and for this ailment, the cure must come from the source."

"Oh?" Yun Chi looked at the butler, "Who is he pining for?"

The butler, embarrassed for a moment, replied, "I asked him, and he said that if the Crown Prince sends him to the cells, his illness will be cured. He is longing for the cells."

Yun Chi couldn't help but laugh, "This is quite novel; are there really people in the world so eager to go to prison that they fall ill from longing?"

The butler was also puzzled, "That's why I'm also confused; I don't understand what is going on."

Yun Chi asked, "How long has he been in the Eastern Palace?"

The butler answered without hesitation, "I remember, it was the second day of March, and today is the sixteenth of April. He's been here for a month and a half."

Yun Chi nodded, "A month and a half, it's been quite some time."

The butler nodded, thinking to himself why the Crown Princess Consort hadn't arrived yet. She had said she would come to the Capital herself, without needing the Crown Prince to fetch her, but she still hadn't appeared. If the Crown Prince had sent someone to fetch her, one could have traveled from the Capital to Lin'an and back twice by now.

After giving it some thought, Yun Chi instructed, "If that is his request, then just as he says, send him to the Capital Central Government Office."

The butler agreed, "I will arrange for someone to take him there immediately."

Yun Chi waved him off, "You go personally."

The butler was startled, then quickly realized—entering a government office was easy; leaving, not so much. This man was tasked with delivering a message for the Crown Princess Consort; though he seemed like a big, foolish brute, they couldn't let him die. Otherwise, how would they explain it when the Crown Princess Consort arrived? He promptly replied, "Yes, I will personally take him there."

Yun Chi nodded.

The butler, with help, moved Zheng Erhu out of the room, helped him onto a carriage, prepared all the necessary lavish bedding, and personally escorted him from the Eastern Palace to the Capital Central Government Office.

As the saying goes, a seventh-rank official in front of the prime minister's gate—the butler of the Eastern Palace was indeed a face of the Crown Prince. Hearing the news, the staff of the Governor's Office hurried out to receive them.

The butler greeted the official from the Governor's Office with clasped hands, asking, "Mr. Zhao, does the Governor's Office have a vacant cell to lend us for a while?"

Mr. Zhao hurriedly clasped his hands in return, "Recently, the Capital has been very peaceful with no petty criminals causing trouble; the Governor's Office has plenty of vacant cells." After saying this, he inquired tentatively, "Has someone from the Eastern Palace committed an offense? Do they need to be detained for a few days?"

The butler shook his head, "No one has committed a crime, rather, someone has fallen ill and longed for the cell. I reported to the Crown Prince, and His Highness agreed, dispatching me personally to bring this person here. His name is Zhao Erhu, a distinguished guest of the Eastern Palace. I hope you can take extra care of him during his short stay in the Governor's Office cell, and see to it that no mistakes occur."

Master Zhao was startled. Someone longed for a cell?

The butler bowed, "Thank you for your trouble, Master Zhao, the person is in the carriage."

Although Master Zhao did not understand the situation, since it was the Eastern Palace's butler acting on the Crown Prince's orders to personally bring the person over, he could not refuse to take him in. He whispered, "Butler Fu, this distinguished guest… how many days will he stay?"

The butler shook his head, "It's hard to say, whenever he recovers from his illness, that's when he will leave."

Master Zhao was alarmed, "He is sick?"

The butler sighed deeply, "Indeed."

Master Zhao hastily asked, "Is the illness serious? Is it contagious? Or some unspeakable secret ailment? I need to know the nature of the illness to take proper care of him for His Highness."

The butler fell silent for a moment then said, "Lovesickness."

Master Zhao was stunned again.

The butler had Zhao Erhu helped down from the carriage. He seemed extremely happy upon seeing the Governor's Office cell, thanking Butler Fu and Master Zhao profusely with hehe's and laughter, "Thank you both, and thank you, Crown Prince. I just love staying in the cell."

Butler Fu and Master Zhao exchanged glances and looked on at him, speechless.

Master Zhao arranged a single cell for Zheng Erhu. Upon seeing it, Zheng Erhu immediately shook his head, "Master, I don't want a separate cell. I want to be squeezed in the large cell with everyone else." With that, he made a large sweeping gesture with his hands.

"This…" Master Zhao looked to Butler Fu, "The environment in the large cell is not good…"

Zheng Erhu promptly said, "I am not afraid."

Seeing this, Butler Fu told Master Zhao, "Just arrange it as he says."

Master Zhao had no choice but to nod his agreement.

Now that the Capital City was at peace, there were few criminals, and the largest cell in the Capital Central Government Office housed only a handful of prisoners. But this was enough to make Zhao Erhu happy. As soon as he went in, he cheerily greeted everyone inside, a stark contrast to his weak, bedridden state in the Eastern Palace, becoming lively in an instant.

After settling Zhao Erhu, Butler Fu bid farewell to Master Zhao of the Governor's Office and returned to the Eastern Palace.

He reported to Yun Chi about the arrangements made for Zhao Erhu and tentatively suggested, "Your Highness, it has been a long time since the Crown Princess Consort arrived. Could there have been a mishap on the road? Should we send someone to search for the Crown Princess Consort's whereabouts along the way?"

Yun Chi countered with a question, "Is her residence ready?"

The butler hurried to reply, "It was ready two months ago, cleaned every day, just awaiting the Crown Princess Consort's arrival."

Yun Chi glanced at the dry Apricot Flower Branch that had been lying on the desk since the day Zheng Erhu handed it to him and said coolly, "In another three to five days, she will be here, no need to search."

The butler, looking at the withered branch, thought to himself that gifting flowers was customary, but sending an apricot branch was highly unconventional. The Crown Princess Consort's actions were indeed peculiar. A month and a half had passed without her arrival, could she really arrive in another three to five days?

Yun Chi chuckled and said in a tepid tone, "She sent someone with an Apricot Flower Branch to tell me that as soon as the apricot blossoms in the Capital City had faded, I would see her just as I saw this withered branch. Now, with the apricot blossoms lasting another three to five days, won't they all have fallen?"

The butler suddenly realized.