Extra 1: Chronicles1实录 – Veritable Records of the “Cheating” High-Pitched Cat2夹子猫 – Basically means a cat with super cute high-pitched meows. Breakdown: 夹子 – Refers to humans speaking in a forced, high-pitched, fake-cute voice; 猫 – Cat (Part One) (Turning into a Cat)
Grand Historian Yan has returned to Linjing to visit his family. He had left suddenly, and his return date is not confirmed.
Even the palace attendants serving in the sleeping quarters could not say for sure when he had left the palace, but since the Emperor and Eunuch Shen both said so, the others, though puzzled, dared not question it.
It was just that on the very day Grand Historian Yan left, the Emperor somehow brought back a snow-white, long-haired lion cat3t/n: There’s a footnote about it in chapter 9 too. Here’s a different picture of it:
. It was so beautiful that people could not help taking a few extra glances, especially at those ice-blue eyes, which were round and looking all around, yet filled with obvious fear and unease.
The cat lowered its head and shook its paws, then ran to the bronze mirror and stared blankly for a long while. Finally, its tiny pink mouth opened, and it let out a pitiful meow.
As soon as this meow came out, the hearts of the palace attendants in the distance melted. After all, who doesn’t love a soft, beautiful little cat? The Emperor certainly did.
The Emperor bent down and scooped up the cat with one hand, soothingly stroking its fur. He whispered something into the cat’s ear, and the kitten gradually calmed down. It obediently let itself be carried to the dining table, where a bowl of mixed rice was pushed in front of it.
Yan Yihuan stared at the bowl of rice before him, still unable to accept it. Why had he turned into a cat when he woke up the morning two days ago?!
“Go ahead and eat.” Li Xuanming was already much calmer. He stroked the dejected cat’s head. “I heard that Zhengyangzi will be back in another ten days. He will surely have a way.”
Yan Yihuan instinctively lifted his head and rubbed against the palm stroking him, narrowing his eyes as he purred.
“Alright, I have to receive foreign envoys this afternoon. Huai De will come take care of you later.” Li Xuanming turned serious. “Also, calling you ‘Yihuan’ would be inappropriate now. We need to give you another name.”
Only then did Yan Yihuan suddenly remember that when the Emperor was young, he had also raised a white cat. No matter how he had asked back then, the Emperor had never told him what that cat was called. But when he thought about how the Emperor had once had other little kittens and had held them like this, rubbing their heads and stroking their fur, he suddenly felt a little annoyed.
“Meow, meow, meow!”
Li Xuanming looked at the suddenly angry cat in bewilderment. He thought that turning into a cat really was troublesome. He had no idea what the cat was thinking. Why had it suddenly flared up just because he suggested giving it a name?
Still, the way it puffed up was adorable, and he does not mind making Yan Yihuan even cuter.
“Why don’t I call you…” Li Xuanming suddenly smiled in a way that sent a chill down Yan Yihuan’s spine. “Manman?”
Yan Manman froze. His pupils suddenly widened, and he stared blankly for a long while. Then he suddenly began meowing furiously.
“How do you know the name Manman4Reminder: Yan Yihuan’s childhood nickname. First mentioned in chapter 79.?!”
“I bet it’s definitely not just a coincidence!”
“Yeah, I can confirm it is not a coincidence just by looking at your eyes!”
“Think about it, does this name suit me at all? It’s obviously the name of a little female cat!”
Uh… The cat was indeed getting a little loud.
It was already getting late. Amid the furious meowing, Li Xuanming finished his lunch and affectionately stroked the cat’s fur. “Don’t wear yourself out, Yan Manman. I can’t understand you anyway.”
He raised a hand and had Shen Zhaoquan bring another bowl of hot food for Yan Yihuan, then left the bedchamber to receive the envoys.
Yan Yihuan angrily lowered his head and finished his food. A pair of gentle hands picked him up and used a soft cloth to wipe his mouth. “His Majesty told this old servant to call you Manman for now.”
Yan Yihuan was already too exhausted to be angry. He let Huai De clean him up, then jumped onto the dragon bed in frustration and deliberately scattered his cat fur everywhere.
But after all that struggling, he was the one who ended up exhausted. In the end, Yan Yihuan lay sprawled on the bed and let out a heavy sigh.
“Manman.” Huai De smiled gently. “Actually, this old servant also misses that white cat named Manman very much.”
Wait, Yan Yihuan immediately lifted his head. His big eyes gazed brightly at Huai De, and he placed a paw on his hand, urging him to continue.
“At first, His Majesty did not pay much attention to that cat. He did not even give it a name. But after the Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet that year, His Majesty suddenly started calling it Manman.” Huai De narrowed his eyes slightly as he recalled the past. “After that, he became especially fond of the cat, personally tending to its daily needs.”
But didn’t Ming Zhang say that the little cat’s name was given by a child? That child had given the cat his own name, Manman. Isn’t that none other than his own childhood nickname?
Wait! Had he met the Emperor when he was a child?
Yan Yihuan began to carefully recall the past, but he had no memory of it. He only remembered that his family had indeed mentioned later that his father had once taken him into the palace while attending a palace banquet, hoping to find an imperial physician to treat his illness.
So… when the Emperor had been petting that little cat back then, had he actually been calling it Manman?
For some reason, Yan Manman suddenly felt delighted, and all the inexplicable anger from earlier vanished in an instant.
But why did his back suddenly feel a little itchy? He really wanted someone to scratch it…
Yan Yihuan rolled onto his back and rubbed himself against the bed. A sensation like an electric current suddenly shot through his mind. His head went blank as he looked down at the fur on his belly. A little red chili was hidden among the snow-white fur, looking particularly conspicuous.
The cat, which had been frolicking on the bed just moments ago, suddenly froze as if it had been turned to stone. Huai De approached worriedly to check on him, only to see Yan Yihuan abruptly roll over and bury his round face in his paws, his body trembling uncontrollably.
Could it be sick?
Huai De immediately became nervous and was just about to check on it when the cat suddenly raised its head, arched its back, and let out a meow before darting through the gap between Huai De’s arms and disappearing outside the door in the blink of an eye.
It felt so uncomfortable, so uncomfortable.
Yan Yihuan did not know what was making him feel so uncomfortable. All he knew was that his heart was pounding wildly and his body felt feverish. He really wanted to find someone to touch him, but after thinking about it, the only person he wanted to touch him was the Emperor.
Perhaps he had been overwhelmed by this inexplicable sensation. In any case, this impulse was already beyond the control of reason. After all, who could expect a little cat to possess any reason?
It was already evening. Yan Yihuan remembered that the envoys were to be hosted at Fengtian Hall that night, and he had been looking forward to enjoying the exotic singing and dancing.
But as the heat in his body intensified, everything was gradually thrown to the back of his mind. Yan Yihuan ran single-mindedly, the ball of white fur darting past the feet of a palace maid and startling her into repeated cries of surprise.
Fengtian Hall was already bustling with activity. In addition to the envoys from various countries, many high-ranking officials had also come to the banquet. The Jiaofang Bureau5教坊司 (Bureau of Music and Dance) – An official agency established during the Tang Dynasty that is responsible for managing court music, dance, and drama performances. Source: https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-cn/%E6%95%99%E5%9D%8A was currently presenting newly choreographed songs and dances, the sounds of strings and flutes filling the air, while laughter and conversation continued amid the clinking of wine cups.
A faint meow suddenly reached Li Xuanming’s ears. He froze, then shook his head. Yan Yihuan should not have left the bedchamber so easily. He was probably only imagining it because he was worried about him.
A weight settled on the top of his foot, making Li Xuanming’s heart jump. He looked down and saw a pair of fluffy white paws repeatedly kneading his shoe. The round cat face was tilted upward, its blue eyes filled with expectation.
Li Xuanming was somewhat startled, because before, there had been obvious human emotion in those eyes, but now they looked exactly like the Manman he had raised in the past.
Having raised a cat himself, he recognized the reason at a glance. This behavior was clearly…
Fortunately, the surroundings were noisy, and the little cat’s coquettish meows were drowned out by the overlapping conversations. Li Xuanming frowned. After all, this was such an important banquet. How was he supposed to take care of a little cat that was so desperately impatient?
At this moment, Yan Manman was clearly being driven entirely by instinct. He meowed as he turned around, lowering his front paws while raising his tail high into the air. His intentions could not have been clearer.
Li Xuanming felt a dull ache at his temple. He bent down and lightly tapped the little cat on the head, saying in a low voice,
“You’re a little male cat. Why are you sticking your butt up?”
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loquentes ineptias On PID Chapter 37.2