Palace Fighting: Naive Concubines' Ascent to Power-Chapter 408: Raising Birds? How about Raising Eagles!

Chapter 408: Chapter 408: Raising Birds? How about Raising Eagles!

Lian Hua felt deeply that the little girl was genuinely earnest—any kindness shown to her, she would want to return tenfold.

Lian Hua’s brows relaxed, "Like that, well, all right then." Nanny said so, and it was quite reasonable, so let’s not do it then.

But what should she do next?

Stand idle? That won’t do.

Thinking about it, Lian Hua’s brows furrowed again. In her mind, standing idle was truly suffering; it was too much of a delay for playing and could bore her to death.

Nanny Qi seemed to know her thoughts like a serpent in her belly; she understood what Lian Hua was thinking just by seeing her furrowed brows and couldn’t help but suggest, "When we have time later, why not manage a flower room to grow some flowers?"

Growing flowers is nice, it cultivates one’s character, is elegant, and delights the heart and eyes.

Lian Hua shook her head and said directly, "Nanny, if you want flowers, just pick them from the Imperial Garden. I used to go to the Imperial Garden every day to pick flowers to put in a vase. If you want some, I’ll pick them for you right now."

As she said this, she was about to get up.

Lian Hua wasn’t interested in growing flowers; it was not fun, took too much care, and wasn’t very useful. It was better to plant trees which would bear fruit the following year; the fruit could be picked and eaten, whereas flowers could only be looked at. Besides, the Imperial Garden already had ready-made flowers, so why bother tending her own with little gratitude and much effort.

Nanny Qi: "..."

She was speechless, thinking about the grounds outside turned over in messy patches, and sighed in her heart. freёnovelkiss.com

She had forgotten that the little girl valued pragmatism; to her, refined taste didn’t exist, she couldn’t appreciate it.

Helpless, Nanny Qi caught Lian Hua and made her sit down and continued, "You don’t have to pick them, I was just saying. If you don’t want to grow plants, then do something else, how about raising some birds?"

Raising birds wasn’t bad either; it wouldn’t tire people out, it could be amusing during the day, kept in a birdcage, hung under the eaves, and when it got colder, just find a room to put it in. Whenever she felt like it, she could go and play with it—it was also serene.

Lian Hua sat down, following the momentum of Nanny Qi’s pull, biting her lip and thinking, raise birds?

Birds?

Then...

She voiced out an "Eh" aloud, her mind conjuring the image of a mighty bird soaring through the azure sky. After imagining for a moment, raising birds seemed not too bad.

She said, "Nanny, how about raising a hawk? I’ve heard they can be used for hunting." It was both imposing and practical.

Just as Nanny Qi had taken a spoonful of porridge into her mouth, she almost choked upon hearing these words, quickly covering her mouth with her handkerchief and swallowing the porridge.

What kinds of ideas were in this little girl’s head, ordinary things could hardly pique her interest, and when it came to raising birds, she thought of raising hawks. Her frame was not large, and she was delicate, yet she thought about raising a fierce raptor.

Lian Hua did not notice Nanny Qi’s expression and kept thinking to herself, becoming more and more excited as she thought, her eyes shining bright with excitement. She forgot to eat and excitedly said, "Nanny, hawks eat serpents. The serpents are scared of hawks, raising one would take care of the backyard all the way to the Imperial Garden. Hmph, let’s see if there are any serpents that dare not keep their eyes open."

The thought of having a fierce and imposing hawk excited her.

Nanny Qi quickly suppressed the tickling in her throat, which was caused by the choking, and immediately spoke up to stop her thoughts, "Raptors can easily hurt people, and they are not allowed to be raised in the palace." Her voice was tinged with a hint of urgency.

If she had known earlier, she wouldn’t have suggested raising any birds at all. Nanny Qi had suggested raising small birds like the ones smaller than a palm, such as parrotbills or light-vented bulbuls, never expecting that Lian Hua would want to raise a fierce hawk.

Although Nanny Qi found Lian Hua’s reason for wanting to raise a hawk touching, such a ferocious bird of prey was too dangerous for anyone to let her keep—what if it hurt her?

"Ah... They’re not allowed to be raised?" Lian Hua was taken aback and then asked persistently, "What about keeping them confined?"

"If it’s caged, there’s no fear of harming people."

Nanny Qi wiped her mouth, her face stern as her eyes widened in rebuke, "Even if it’s caged, it won’t do."

"Oh..." Lian Hua’s shoulders slumped, clearly disappointed. It seemed that keeping a bird was no longer a viable option.

Nanny Qi’s expression softened as she advised, "My girl, consider this: raising a hawk costs a lot of meat, and the palace has no place for it to hunt. And it can’t be let free; I’m afraid it would just end up wasted."

By now, she had come to understand Lian Hua, and she was certain such reasoning would persuade her.

True enough, Lian Hua’s eyes brightened as she nodded repeatedly, "Nanny is right, just eating without working for it and getting fat isn’t good."

A hawk fattened to the point of rotundity had lost its majestic allure. It was quite pitiful indeed.

This completely dispelled her thoughts on the matter.

Forget it, no more thinking about it.

The little idea that had just arisen disappeared once again.

Alright, she might as well continue her meal.

Nanny Qi secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She knew very well that despite the girl’s gentle demeanor, her fierce nature couldn’t be hidden from those outside. Against others, her innate feistiness was unmistakable.

Such a girl had strong initiative and loved to stir things up; she wouldn’t rest if she was uninterested, but once she had a notion, she’d pursue it fervently and without delay.

The key was that many of the girl’s seemingly fantastical ideas always managed to come true, and the results were often quite impressive.

If she were really to raise a hawk, she probably wouldn’t even finish her meal before rushing off to think about acquiring a birdcage, and by tomorrow, she might have already found every possible means to obtain a hawk...

Over in the South City Compound.

Divine Doctor Huang angrily demanded, "You lame brat, will you heal or will you not? Don’t tell me you’re scared!"

So many people had traveled long distances, begging tearfully for his treatment, yet this boy did not cherish the opportunity—outrageous, truly outrageous.

He had already spoken so, intending to stand his ground and have the younger generation come begging tearfully for his help. He had never expected to be bluntly rejected without any explanation, not even a reason given upon inquiry.

Outrageous! His competitive spirit was now fully stirred. Such a stubborn boy! He did not believe it; there was no one he wanted to heal that he could not. Once the boy agreed to be healed, he would make sure to break his leg again!

Lian Musu shook his head, "Thank you, Divine Doctor, but I’m not scared; I just have some matters to attend to at the moment and cannot be treated. In a few years, if my leg still can be healed, and Divine Doctor is still willing to treat me, I will definitely come to you."

His tone carried a touch of melancholy and loneliness.

He stood up and bowed to Divine Doctor Huang.

Before he had refused Divine Doctor Huang’s offer, he had thought it through and made up his mind. There were more urgent matters at hand that could not be postponed. His family’s wellbeing was far more important than his own. With gains, there must be losses—he was at peace with this.

In a few years, his family’s circumstances would have improved, and by then he could focus solely on his own issues.

Divine Doctor Huang was at the peak of his fury. Hearing Lian Musu speak in such a manner, he nearly flipped the table. To have the ability to heal yet deliberately procrastinating infuriated him like nothing else. He would berate anyone he saw doing so.

He stood up, pointing at Lian Musu’s nose, and began to scold, "Who do you think I am, someone you can just seek out whenever you fancy? I can’t stand people like you, neglecting to treat an illness, letting a minor ailment turn into a serious one. Even if your ancestors had accumulated virtue for ten generations, it wouldn’t save you, such a disobedient and unworthy descendant. If you had treated your leg properly when it was first injured, would you have ended up in this state? Becoming a cripple now, huh? What an impressive feat. You’ve brought great honor to your ancestors, haven’t you?"