Jealousy, No One May Stop Me Leaving the Palace

If William Wang Jinling punishing Little Dumpling by making him wash clothes was already bad enough, then letting Prince Nolan find out about it was like throwing Little Dumpling straight to the wolves.

After Prince Nolan received the news, his mood never improved; in the whole palace, only Serena Feng dared approach him.

His Majesty was terrifying—his chill could freeze a person to death. Even the flowers in the imperial garden must have died from his cold glare.

"Don’t be angry. Little Dumpling must have done something to deserve Grand Heir’s punishment, or he wouldn’t have obeyed so quietly." Serena knew her son well; Little Dumpling was never the type to just follow orders.

"Even if Little Dumpling did something wrong, he’s still my son. How could my son possibly be made to wash someone else’s clothes?" If he had to wash clothes, it should be for his own father, not anyone else.

Little Dumpling has never washed a single piece of clothing for me, and now he’s being made to wash William Wang Jinling’s? Outrageous!

"It’s good training, actually. In the future, when Little Dumpling travels, he’ll be able to care for himself and won’t be helpless without servants." Serena didn’t think it was wrong for boys to do laundry—Nolan himself could do these chores too.

Whenever the two of them traveled in the past, they never brought servants; they handled all the chores themselves and found it much more comfortable that way.

"Little Dumpling is already very independent; he doesn’t need extra training." What Prince Nolan really minded wasn’t the laundry, but that it was for William Wang Jinling.

Little Dumpling is his son—who does William Wang Jinling think he is?

"William—the Grand Heir—knows how to keep things in proportion. He’s just disciplining Little Dumpling; he won’t really make him do all that." Serena tried to calm Prince Nolan, but it was no use—his anger never cooled, especially after receiving Spring’s letter.

"Didn’t I tell the Valley Master to keep Sweet Dumpling from leaving the valley?" Prince Nolan slammed the letter down on the table. Serena carefully slid it out from under his hand.

"That Cui boy is clever—he actually thought to bring Sweet Dumpling over. This time, Little Dumpling is going to lose." Serena secretly gave the six boys a mental thumbs up.

With Sweet Dumpling there, Little Dumpling would soon have to back down. He’d never let his precious little sister get hurt.

"If those boys could come up with a plan like this, I’d be amazed. Odds are, it’s William Wang Jinling’s handiwork." That was the real reason Prince Nolan was angry.

Is William Wang Jinling deliberately opposing him?

He’d ordered Sweet Dumpling to stay in the valley, but William Wang Jinling had brought her to the foot of Skyvault Palace, mixing her in with that pack of rowdy boys.

"Looks like Little Dumpling really did something outrageous this time, or the Grand Heir wouldn’t keep intervening." Serena could just imagine Little Dumpling’s defeated expression.

Little Dumpling, who always had the upper hand, was finally going to suffer a setback.

"Only petty men quarrel with children." Prince Nolan continued to look down on William Wang Jinling, but then made a decision: "I’ve decided to leave the palace and go in person." If William dared bully his son, he’d better be ready to face his wrath.

"Why are you getting involved in kids’ squabbles?" Serena didn’t believe the ministers would agree to let Prince Nolan leave the palace.

"It’s not kids’ squabbles anymore." William Wang Jinling broke the rules, so of course Prince Nolan had to go out and back up his son.

"I think you’re just looking for an excuse to get out of the palace." Serena didn’t think such a trivial matter warranted Prince Nolan’s personal attention.

"Ahem..." Caught out, Prince Nolan nearly lost his composure, but quickly regained it and declared seriously, "Whatever the reason, I’m leaving the palace this time—and you’re coming with me." With the Empress by his side, the ministers surely wouldn’t object.

"To Skyvault Palace?" Serena leaned against the desk, teasing Prince Nolan.

"That’s not urgent," Prince Nolan replied solemnly. "You know I never care about the process—only the result."

"So?" Serena leaned in, lifting Prince Nolan’s chin with queenly authority.

"So..." Prince Nolan’s Adam’s apple bobbed and his breath quickened. "All we need to do is..."

...

Ever since Sweet Dumpling was born, Prince Nolan and Serena hadn’t left the palace. They had devoted themselves to their imperial duties, and whatever happened in private, in public they were the model emperor and empress, admired by all.

For years, the emperor and empress had lived cautiously, devoted to improving the lives of their people and making the Nine Provinces Empire prosperous. The ministers had nearly forgotten that their emperor could still be capricious.

When Prince Nolan announced at court that he intended to leave the palace in plain clothes, time seemed to freeze; all the officials stood stunned, forgetting what they’d been doing just moments before.

They must have misheard.

A rustling of movement signaled the officials snapping back to reality; they all bowed and prepared to end the session, convinced that the emperor’s announcement was just a trick of their overworked minds.

Even Prince Nolan was taken aback by their reaction; he’d expected at least some persuasion, if only for form’s sake. But instead...

Not a single person objected—only Felix Fuller and Holden Cui remained motionless. But Prince Nolan never cared about their opinions; once he’d made up his mind, who could stop him?

Prince Nolan wondered if he’d been too forceful lately, making the ministers afraid to contradict him.

The more he thought about it, the more it seemed true—he’d always ruled with an iron hand, and once he made a decision, no one dared question it, let alone change it.

With no objections from the ministers, Prince Nolan simply stood up to leave. But just as he turned to go, the officials at the door suddenly realized what had happened and whispered to each other, "Did you hear the emperor say he’s leaving the palace?"

"You heard it too? I thought I was imagining things."

"Wait, if it was a hallucination, not everyone would have imagined it."

"Is His Majesty really leaving the palace?"

"No, Your Majesty... you can’t leave the palace."

The officials snapped back to attention and rushed back inside; Felix Fuller and Holden Cui, who’d never moved, could only smile wryly. They’d seen this coming all along...

Even though the Nine Provinces were unified, there were still troublemakers in the provinces, and rumors of rebellion cropped up from time to time. The officials would never agree to let the emperor leave the palace.

If anything happened to the emperor and empress while they were out, the young heir would have to take the throne. No one knew if the newly unified empire could survive such upheaval.

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!" The officials knelt in the hall, some weeping and pleading, listing all the dangers of leaving the palace.

In short, it was too dangerous outside. For the sake of the empire, His Majesty shouldn’t act on impulse—his safety was the fortune of all, and if anything happened, they wouldn’t be able to go on living...

Their heartfelt words moved everyone, but Prince Nolan was unmoved. He turned away, tossing out, "Ridiculous." Ignoring the officials’ wailing, he left...

Once he’d made a decision, no one could change it!