Chapter 757

The Great King once bought a wind cloud beast named Er Pang at Phoenix Market, intending to give it to Wei·Ni as a companion, but Wei·Ni thought it was a local specialty, opened his mouth, gave it a couple of bites, found it was all fur with nothing to bite into, couldn't eat it, and immediately lost interest; the Great King then gained another freeloader, for whom pets are never in short supply, and now, thinking of a gift for his great‑niece, he thought of Er Pang.

If Er Pang were an object, it could just sit there, but unfortunately Er Pang needs to eat!

What Secluded Prefecture lacks most is food.

The Great King reckoned it was a perfect idea that killed two birds with one stone.

When Li Xu came to bid farewell that day, the Great King personally saw him off and finally had someone bring the wind cloud beast Er Pang over.

"Li Er brother, this is the gift I give to my great‑niece, the wind cloud beast Er Pang. Isn't it cute? It's a rare exotic beast unique to the Great Jin—take it back to Guangling and have your younger son raise it well; a wind cloud beast this fat is the only one in the world."

Li Xu examined it carefully…… He had indeed never seen one before. It was white and chubby, its appearance was indeed not bad, it's the kind of small animal children would like.

The Great King earnestly instructed: 'It can run really fast; without Lord Zhetian, if it gets lost it won't be easy to catch; you must always be careful!' He then handed him a sheet of paper, saying, 'I've written down its habits and dietary customs on it; just raise it according to that.'

Li Xu could only thank on behalf of his niece, but it wasn't over yet.

After the Great King finished instructing him, he took Second Fatty over to the side and began to be reluctant. 'Second Fatty~ I don't really want to give you away, but Baili Heng isn't an ordinary person—he's a big shot! I'm sending you to mooch off a big shot!'

Li Xu: ……

Zhao Bao: ……

I don't dislike you; it's precisely because I like you that I have to send you away. Life in You Prefecture is hard for you; if you stay with us, you'll be a third-rate pet, constantly bullied by Little Gold and Lord Zhetian. I can see you're afraid of them—such a life is truly meaningless, so I've found you a good place. From now on you'll go to the Guangling Prince's Mansion and follow the little princess, enjoying the best of food and drink; it will surely be more comfortable than life in You Prefecture.

Li Xu:? I can hear that!

Zhao Bao cleared his throat tactically, reminding the Great King that enough was enough.

'……Second Fatty, once Baili Heng returns to the capital, that'll be the day we meet again. Eat well at his place, and we'll see each other again in You Prefecture, Second Fatty!'

Second Fatty's big, fluffy face wore an innocent expression, having heard but not understood. Since all that was said about the Wind Cloud Beast's specialty was running, with no mention of intelligence, it wasn't worth mentioning.

Li Xu understood.

This wasn't really a conversation with some Wind Cloud Beast; it was clearly meant for him to hear, urging the Prince of Guangling to decide quickly to return to You Prefecture.

He led his team in departing again, and the Great King grabbed his sleeve. 'Remember, it has a name—it's called Second Fatty.' This fellow, giving a gift, won't let anyone change its name; he's just here to mooch off meals.

Li Xu: '……Your servant remembers.'

The Great King didn't want to let them kowtow and see them off a third time, so he didn't delay further. After he returned and had his meal, he then stood on the top floor of the Star-Plucking Tower and discovered he could still see Li Xu's troop.

I just said this is a great place! Without even mentioning the panoramic view of the mountains, looking southeast from this window you see the highway to Tranquil Peace, with all traffic clearly visible. Standing here, I have the inside scoop!

Although he didn't know what use this inside information had, Zhao Bao grew even more worried upon hearing it, as Xie Xiang had urged him to persuade the Great King to move down.

Zhao Bao quickly discovered that the Great King could also settle down; he spent half an afternoon there watching the flow of pedestrians and vehicles on the highway, sometimes lost in thought, sometimes yawning out of boredom. It was so boring that he didn't even go down to find Xie Xiang to study.

The next day, after court was dismissed, Xie Yuan caught hold of him; before the other could speak, the Great King took the initiative.

'Sir, I read books myself yesterday at the Star-Plucking Tower.'

Xie Yuan didn't believe him.

But he had to give affirmation.

Xie Yuan gave a half-hearted compliment in two sentences; as soon as he finished, the Great King said, 'The book says that studying at home emphasizes 'cautious solitude,' while studying away from home is for 'broadening one's horizons.' Is that right, sir?'

Xie Yuan nodded, saying, 'No matter how profound one's learning, there are always biases; study cannot……' Wait! Xie Yuan suddenly realized, this fellow was setting a trap for him!

Sure enough, the Great King happily said, 'Since you also say that, sir, I can relax! I can't bury my head in study on Yingtai Isle, narrowing my path! Shutting oneself away to tinker won't do! I'll go to Anyang for two days of study to settle my thoughts!'

Xie Yuan: ……

You're just making the road too wide!

Anyang, a township under Tranquil Peace.

'Your Majesty, think again—there might not be a single literate person in all of Anyang.' Going to such a place to study? It's nothing but wanting to slack off on work and skip lessons.

The Great King said, 'Sir, that's wrong; as the saying goes, three clumsy craftsmen……' Seeing Xie Yuan glare at him, the Great King quickly changed his tune: 'Three… three people walking together, there must be a teacher among them. Anyang has so many people—divide by three, and there are at least a thousand teachers. Huh? Sir, what's wrong with you!'

Xie Yuan felt a migraine coming on.