The Golden Cage Sigh - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

When he heard me agree, a smile had only just appeared on His Majesty’s face.

Then he suddenly began coughing violently again.

After he had calmed a little, he looked toward the young boy beside him-the one he wanted me to keep company.

“Go outside for now.”

My father pressed his lips together and placed my hand into the Crown Prince’s.

The Crown Prince’s eyes were rimmed red as he reached his hand out to me.

I obediently took his hand, walked two steps, then turned back to look.

I was terribly afraid Father and His Majesty would talk for too long, and that greedy-guts Elder Brother of mine would secretly eat up all the osmanthus cake Amah had made.

So I reminded him,

“Father, we still have to go home later to eat osmanthus cake, okay?”

Father turned back and looked at me without saying anything.

Only after a long while did he nod.

Then I happily held the older boy’s hand and walked out.

We had only just stepped out of Zichen Hall when the older boy plopped himself down on the steps by the palace doors.

With his head lowered, he quietly wiped away his tears.

No wonder His Majesty the Emperor said he was fond of crying.

When boys are sad, they don’t like other people seeing them looking miserable.

So I didn’t say anything. I just quietly sat down beside him.

When I guessed he had cried enough,

I poked his arm.

He sniffled and turned his head to look at me.

I lifted my sleeve and wiped his runny nose for him.

He turned away, a little embarrassed.

“I… I don’t actually like crying.”

I nodded. Boys all cared about saving face. I knew that.

When Father spanked Elder Brother, no matter how much it hurt, he would never cry in front of other people.

But at night, he would hide alone under the quilt, clutching his bottom and howling.

He would even threaten me fiercely, saying I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone, or else he would eat the biggest candied hawthorn on the candied hawthorn skewers himself and never give it to me again.

I gave the older boy a sweet smile, tilted my head, and asked him,

“Why are you so sad?”

His mouth drooped. Hugging his knees, he said gloomily,

“My Imperial Father is sick. Very badly sick.”

I opened my mouth in surprise, then said innocently, “Amah told me that if you eat properly and take your medicine obediently, you’ll get better.”

His voice was thick with tears. “He won’t get better.”

“But Amah said you can get better. Every time I got sick before, as long as I took my medicine and ate properly, I always got better.”

He didn’t say anything more.

Actually, His Majesty looked very young, but his hair was already full of white.

I had never seen an illness that made people grow white hair.

In my heart, I thought that when I got home, I would ask Amah how to cure the illness of growing white hair.

Once the illness was cured, the older boy wouldn’t be sad anymore.

He quietly stared ahead in a daze.

I copied him too, hugging my knees and staring ahead.

The imperial palace was really, really big, but it wasn’t lively at all.

I felt a little bored.

So I asked the older boy, “Do you always live here?”

He nodded.

I asked again, “Do you really not have any friends?”

He thought for a moment, then nodded again.

I asked again, “Then have you ever eaten the osmanthus cake my Amah makes?”

He shook his head.

I beamed at him. “Then I’ll treat you to some.”

As I spoke, I pulled a bundle wrapped in a brocade handkerchief out from my clothes, carefully opened it, and held it out in front of him.

I had secretly taken it from the plate when we left home.

The osmanthus cake had just come out of the steamer, and Amah had pressed it into my favorite little cat shape. It had still been a little hot then, and hidden against my chest, it had felt warm and cozy.

But now it had already gone cold, and it had been crushed too, so it looked a little ugly.

“The osmanthus cake Amah makes is very fragrant and very sweet. If you eat something sweet, your heart won’t feel sad anymore.”

“But I only brought one piece, and I want to eat some too, so I can’t give it all to you.”

“If you taste it and like it, I’ll bring you more next time.”

He stared blankly at the osmanthus cake cupped in my hands.

I thought he disliked it because I had crushed the cake.

I pouted. “If you mind, I’ll just eat it myself.”

I had just pinched up a little cat head and was about to put it in my mouth when a hand reached out in front of me.

“I don’t mind.”

Smiling, I placed the little cat head in his palm.

And so the two little children sat there in front of the palace gate,

smacking our little mouths as we ate the broken bits of osmanthus cake in our hands.

He said his name was Li Yanhe.

I said my name was Wei Jin’an.

My pet name was Man Nuer, because Father said I was born on the day of Grain Buds, and I was his little treasure.

So I was called Man Nuer.

Li Huaize said I was his first friend.

I said I had lots of friends, and that in the future, I would bring him to meet all of them.