Chapter 145: The Abandoned Cheng Chumo (Second Update)

After the imperial banquet concluded, Li Yi left the imperial palace with Yue'er. Emerging from the gates of the Taiji Palace, they made their way toward their family carriage.

To their surprise, Cheng Zhijie was walking toward them with a beaming smile, accompanied by Cheng Chumo.

Standing before the Li family carriage, Cheng Zhijie came to a halt. He carefully scrutinized Li Yi for a moment before suddenly turning his gaze to Li Jing, chuckling and sighing, "Yaoshi, your third son is truly a man of exceptional talent! The younger generation is indeed to be feared."

Upon hearing this "flattering" remark from Cheng Zhijie, Li Jing immediately glared at him with an expression of annoyance.

How could Li Jing not see through the little scheme Cheng Zhijie was plotting in his heart?

Yet, what Li Jing had not expected was that Cheng Zhijie's skin was even thicker than a city wall. Earlier, Li Jing had assumed Cheng Zhijie was merely joking with him, but who would have thought that this scoundrel would actually bring Cheng Chumo along?

Judging by the posture, it seemed Cheng Zhijie would not leave in resignation unless he managed to dump Cheng Chumo off on him.

"My third son is merely a mischievous and naughty child; how could he possibly be considered a man of exceptional talent?" Li Jing gave a self-deprecating, modest laugh, then cupped his fists toward Cheng Zhijie and said by way of farewell, "I have matters to attend to at home, so I shall take my leave."

Having dropped these words, Li Jing turned around on the spot, climbed into the carriage, and firmly pulled the carriage curtains shut behind him.

It was entirely an attitude of "closing the door to decline visitors, and I shall not trouble myself to see you off."

Seeing this, Cheng Zhijie felt not the least bit awkward. Instead, he threw back his head and let out two hearty laughs: "Ha-ha!"

As his laughter subsided slightly, Cheng Zhijie patted Cheng Chumo on the shoulder and solemnly instructed, "Dalang, your father has to make a long journey today. You will go with the Li family's third son for two or three days at your Uncle Li's residence. Once I return, I will send someone to fetch you."

Cheng Chumo was instantly stunned into silence, a look of utter bewilderment washing over his face.

*The old man is going on a long journey? But as far as I remember, our family doesn't have any distant relatives...*

*Where on earth is the old man going?*

*Why did I not know the slightest bit about this beforehand?*

"Father..." Cheng Chumo started to speak, intending to ask Cheng Zhijie where he was headed, but before he could finish, Cheng Zhijie glared fiercely at him.

"You unfilial wretch, do you dare talk back to your father?" Cheng Zhijie furrowed his brow with a trace of anger, pointing his right finger at Cheng Chumo and reprimanding him.

Cheng Chumo was so frightened that he instinctively shrank his neck and twitched the corners of his mouth, nodding with helpless resignation. "Yes, Father. This son will surely obey."

"That's more like it!" Only then did Cheng Zhijie smile with satisfaction. He turned his attention back to Li Jing inside the carriage and said casually, "Yaoshi, I'll leave my Dalang in your hands. I have pressing matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave first!"

With that, Cheng Zhijie abruptly turned around and strode away with a dashing gait.

Inside the carriage, Li Jing was so infuriated by Cheng Zhijie's shamelessness that he yanked open the curtain, glared angrily at Cheng Zhijie's retreating back, and bellowed, "Cheng Yaojin, you old rascal, get back here!"

However, Cheng Zhijie paid him no mind. Instead, he let out a smug, triumphant laugh as he climbed into his own carriage, instructed the driver to move slowly, and vanished from everyone's sight.

Seeing this, Li Jing angrily snapped the carriage curtain shut once more.

"Sanlang, you and Chumo follow along and return together. I have matters to attend to and will take my leave ahead of you." With these words, Li Jing had his carriage driven away from the main road.

Li Yi and Cheng Chumo stood there, staring at each other in blank dismay.

They simply could not comprehend why Cheng Zhijie had departed with such a loud, cheerful laugh while Li Jing had flown into such a rage.

After a long while, Li Yi looked down the long, paved bluestone road, where most of the carriages had already departed and only a few pedestrians remained, and suddenly spoke up, "Brother Chumo, could it be that... you've been abandoned by your old man?"

Cheng Chumo wore a bitter, melon-like expression. He blinked in a daze for a moment and nodded, saying, "I have that exact feeling in my heart!"

Li Yi couldn't help the twitch at the corner of his mouth. Regaining his composure, he turned and instructed Yue'er, "Come, Yue'er, let's get in the carriage and go home."

"Yes, Young Master." Yue'er nodded with a smile and followed Li Yi into the carriage.

Outside the carriage, Cheng Chumo finally snapped back to reality when he realized he was left standing all alone.

"Brother Bo'an, wait for me!" shouting at the top of his lungs, Cheng Chumo grabbed the carriage handle and lifted his foot, preparing to climb inside and accompany them to the Li residence.

To his dismay, the hand he had just used to grab the door handle was suddenly struck sharply by someone, stinging so badly that he instinctively pulled his hand back and stumbled, nearly falling over.

"Brother Bo'an, why did you hit me?" Cheng Chumo glared resentfully at the carriage, frowning in incomprehension.

"Brother Chumo, my Yue'er is also inside the carriage. If you were to climb in as well, a lone man and an unmarried woman sharing a carriage like this... I'm afraid if word got out, it wouldn't look good for either of our reputations," Li Yi's voice drifted slowly from within the carriage.

Cheng Chumo felt his mouth twitch uncontrollably upon hearing this. After a couple of dry coughs, he said, "Brother Bo'an, can't you just have your Yue'er get out and let me take her place?"

"Yue'er's constitution is frail; she cannot endure the cold wind," Li Yi stated flatly.

"Well, my constitution is frail too! I can't endure the cold wind either!" Cheng Chumo retorted indignantly.

"You're a big, strapping man. A little breeze will only make you healthier, what is there to be afraid of?" Li Yi laughed.

Cheng Chumo was thoroughly angered by these words. He took a deep breath, furrowed his brows with bitter resentment, and asked, "Brother Bo'an, how can your heart bear to leave me out here in the biting wind? What if I catch a chill? That could cost a life!"

Inside the carriage, however, no immediate reply came.

Cheng Chumo only heard Li Yi inside the carriage suddenly ask Yue'er, "Yue'er, do you have the heart to leave Brother Chumo outside, hardening his bones in the cold wind?"

"It truly is a bit hard to bear, Young Master," Yue'er's soft voice drifted out. But a moment later, she added with a completely straight face, "However, if Young Master Cheng does indeed catch a chill, Yue'er will order the kitchen to brew some chicken soup for him."

"Chicken soup is too expensive, and isn't there soup at their own estate?" Li Yi objected. "Besides, Brother Chumo must be sick of delicacies from land and sea by now."

"Ah, that's true, Young Master. Yue'er is so foolish almost to have forgotten. Then how about Yue'er orders the kitchen to brew him a bowl of ginger soup instead?"

Yue'er nodded in sudden realization with a smile, then blinked and paused before continuing, "Young Master, Yue'er will put only a single slice of ginger in it. If we put in any more, I... I'm afraid Young Master Cheng might recover too quickly."

"Well said! You are truly a teachable pupil," Li Yi nodded approvingly.

"Thank you for the undeserved praise, Young Master, hehe," Yue'er beamed, her face splitting into a happy grin.

Outside the carriage, standing in the piercing, bone-chilling wind, Cheng Chumo heard this entire exchange between the master and servant, and his complexion darkened instantly like storm clouds at night.

By this point, Cheng Chumo understood completely. In short: Li Yi simply refused to let him into the carriage!

"Hmph!" Wrapping his outer garments tighter around himself, Cheng Chumo shrank his neck and cursed angrily at the carriage, "Li Bo'an, neither master nor servant among you is anything good!"

At that moment, Li Yi lifted the carriage window curtain and looked out at Cheng Chumo with an innocent smile. "Brother Chumo, I have matters to attend to and will be on my way first. Take your time."

With that, Li Yi instructed the coachman to drive the carriage forward slowly, leaving behind only a single spare horse in the cold wind to exchange blank stares with Cheng Chumo.

Cheng Chumo never imagined that this fellow Li Yi would actually go through with it.

"Hmph! Riding a horse is riding a horse. Damn it, I'm a grown man, who the hell is afraid of whom!" Gritting his teeth in discontent, Cheng Chumo cursed aloud, hoisted himself onto the horse's back, and began to ride at a slow pace.

However, before he had ridden even a few paces, the cold wind caused Cheng Chumo to shrink his neck, shivering all over, panting in the freezing air, and cursing the heavens: "Damn it, what kind of ghost weather is this!"

Right at that moment, Cheng Chumo caught sight of Li Yi's carriage coming to a halt ahead. He quickly spurred his horse forward with a disgruntled scowl.

Along the way, Cheng Chumo continued to curse Li Yi and Yue'er incessantly through gritted teeth...

***

Otomo no Furuhito and Hokonichi departed the imperial palace thoroughly disgraced and returned to the Sifang Pavilion arranged for them by Li Shimin.

The moment the Japanese envoys inside the Sifang Pavilion caught sight of their returning ambassadors, they stepped forward with eager, beaming smiles.

The one among them of slightly higher status asked with an ingratiating grin, "Ambassador-san, did the Emperor of Tang bestow any rewards upon us?"

"Indeed, Ambassador-san, can you tell us first?" The others chimed in with laughter while rubbing their hands together.

Clearly, they could hardly wait to see what kind of treasures the Tang Emperor had rewarded them with.

However, the scene they longed to witness did not materialize. Instead, Otomo no Furuhito and Hokonichi both glared at them with knitted brows and snapped harshly, "Get back to your rooms and stay put! For these coming days, aside from your normal attendance at lectures, do not step foot outside for any reason. Violators will commit seppuku!"

Having thrown down this ultimatum, Otomo no Furuhito and Hokonichi strode into their quarters with gloomy faces, slamming the door shut behind them with a loud *clang*.

The group of Japanese left outside stared in blank astonishment. They could not fathom why the two ambassadors had returned from the palace with such towering rage.

After a short while, one of them spoke up, "By the way, what about that fellow Otomo Shunji? Didn't he go to the palace with the two ambassadors? Why didn't he return with them?"

"That's right, where is Otomo Shunji..." They exchanged bewildered, blinking glances, feeling deeply perplexed while a vague sense of unease began to stir within them.

Shaking their heads at one another in bafflement, they turned and retreated to their respective rooms with heavy hearts.

Inside the quarters of Otomo no Furuhito and Hokonichi:

"Baka!"

The moment Otomo no Furuhito sat down, he flew into a rage, swinging his arm to slam a fierce palm down onto the table. He gritted his teeth and cursed through his clenched jaw, "Li Bo'an, you disgusting bastard, I will never let you get away with this!"

Sitting in the Japanese style opposite Otomo no Furuhito, Hokonichi cast a glance at him upon seeing his explosive fury.

Though his own heart burned with intense rage, Hokonichi was evidently much better at keeping his composure than Otomo no Furuhito.

After pondering with a furrowed brow for a long moment, Hokonichi finally spoke to advise him, "Otomo, for the next few days, I'm afraid we must keep a low profile. The Emperor's plan will have to be postponed for a while."

Upon hearing this, Otomo no Furuhito gritted his teeth, raised his eyes to look at Hokonichi, took a deep breath, and agreed profoundly, "That is for the best. Besides, we still have two years!"

"Mmm," Hokonichi nodded in agreement, then added with a solemn expression, "As for this fellow Li Bo'an, sooner or later we must kill him, but not right now. Our top priority at present must be placing the mission entrusted to us by the Emperor above all else."

Pausing for a moment, Hokonichi curled his lips into a smile and continued, "As for Li Bo'an, we can afford to play with him slowly; there is no need to rush things at this moment!"

"I am in no rush!" Otomo no Furuhito let out a cold, malicious chuckle. Raising his gaze to lock eyes directly with Hokonichi, he smiled and said, "Rest assured, after a little more time passes, I will dispatch a Tang native to assassinate him. Even if it is discovered, it will be an internal matter among the Tang people themselves, and they can never pin it on us."

"Ah, an excellent plan!" Hokonichi nodded with a smile, raised his teacup, and partook in the tea alongside Otomo no Furuhito with a chuckle.