番外編 太子殿下の護衛の一日 後編
こうして宦官の立彬となった立勇が雨妹を探そうとすると、後宮に張り付いている明賢の密偵が姿を現し、黙したままスッとある方向を指す。
――今日の雨妹の居所は、あちらか。
そこいらの木に背をもたれさせ、竹筒から水をぐいっとあおっている様子は、どこか元気がないというか、気落ち気味に見える。
「どうした、具合でも悪いのか?」
立勇はそう声をかける。
だとしたら医局の
雨妹は立勇にちらりと視線をよこしたかと思えば、ボソッと呟いた。
「......お腹が空きました」
どうやら腹を空かせてへばっていたようだ。
今日は間食するものを手に入れ損ねているらしい。
「では、今ここにちょうど菓子の入った箱があるのだが」
「食べていいんですかっ!?」
立勇が箱を見せると、雨妹はとたんに目を輝かせる。
「......貰い物だが、わけてやろうと思ったものだ。
雨妹はそんな説明はおざなりに聞き流すように、視線を巡らせ座るのによさげな場所を探し、物置小屋の軒下の石段に腰を下ろす。
実に単純な娘である。
せっかくだから、立彬様も一緒に食べましょうよ!」
雨妹に手招きで誘われ、立勇は「どうするかな」と考える。
――誘われたのだから、断るのは失礼だな。
雨妹が満面の笑みで糕を頬張りながら、そんな感想を漏らす。
確かに、作り立ての糕とは美味しいものだろう。
出来たて料理とは縁遠い明賢が聞いたら、羨ましがることだろう。
だから立勇も、たまに太子宮の台所で試食という名のつまみ食いをしていることは、絶対に知られないようにしている。
繰り返すが護衛は体力勝負なため、食べないと身体がもたないのだ。
こんな風に考えていると、ふと今朝の事を思い出す。
「そうだ雨妹、朝の寝起きの悪いものを速やかに起こすための、よい方法というものを知らないものだろうか?」
「早く寝てください」
立勇の質問に、雨妹が当然と言えば当然な答えを返してくる。
「ああ、あと神経が疲れていても、身体が疲れていないと眠れませんから。
「黙秘だ」
立勇はそう答えをはぐらかすと、思案してみた。
糕を食べ終えると雨妹と別れ、再び近衛の服装に着替えて明賢の執務室へと戻ると。
「おかえり立勇」
そう言って迎える明賢の前に積まれた書類が、あからさまに増えている。
それに明賢が真面目だからこの量を黙々とこなしてしまうのだが、よく考えれば明賢一人がほんの少々仕事を放り出しても、国がすぐに潰れてしまうなんてあり得ないだろう。
「明賢様、外はとてもよい天気ですよ。
「珍しいことを言うものだね、立勇」
主の予定に基本的に口出ししない立勇の言葉に、明賢は眼を瞬かせると、「いいねぇ」と顔を綻ばせる。
そして官吏たちの「そのようなこと、いけませんぞ!」という悲鳴を丸無視して、近衛の訓練の視察という名目で散歩に出ることとなった。
――あの連中はもっと、皇帝陛下を執務室に留める努力をするべきだろうに。
代わりを簡単に引き受ける明賢がいるせいで、官吏たちはそのあたりを楽しているように思える。
こうして急遽変更となった予定だったが、これが予想外の効果をもたらした。
――さては、明賢様がせずともよい仕事が、だいぶ混じっていたな。
明賢とてそうした仕事は突き返しているものの、それらの書類を確認する手間というものが発生するわけで。
それから机仕事に戻った明賢は、減った書類のおかげで余裕ができたため、官吏を排して雨妹の様子を聞いたりして、執務室には久しぶりにのんびりとした時間が流れていた。
「本当に、あの娘は食べることが好きだねぇ」
そう会話しながら目を細める明賢は、なにかと不自由な己の代わりに、雨妹の自由を望んでいるように感じる。
複雑であやふやな雨妹と明賢の関係だが、主がよい方向へ変化するといいと、立勇は思う。
それから仕事を終えて後宮へ戻り、いつもより夕食が進んだ明賢は、その夜はいつになくぐっすりと眠ったようで。
翌朝は自分で起きて来たのであった。
雨妹の言葉通りの効果に、立勇は改めてあの娘の力を知る。
――礼として、饅頭でも差し入れるか。
Li Yong must change from his imperial guard uniform into the eunuch garb, but doing it multiple times in a day was really troublesome. He had a feeling he already mastered how to swap outfits quickly. After disguising into Libin, Li Yong decided to look for Yui Mei, when Ming Xian's secret guard, who was staying in the Inner Palace, appeared and wordlessly pointed him to another direction.
Li Yong slightly raised his hand towards the secret guard to express he understood, and he strode towards the place he pointed to. He saw Yui Mei's figure after a while.
'So that's where the girl is today.'
She was leaning against a tree as she gulped water from the bamboo tube. She appeared to be languid and seemed despondent.
"What happened, are you feeling unwell?"
Li Yong called out to her.
In that case, it would be good if she asked for medicine from Doctor Chen, the clinic physician, since she seemed to have a great relationship with him.
Yui Mei glanced at Li Yong, and then mumbled.
"....I'm hungry."
So she was feeling down because she was hungry.
Apparently, she missed the chance to get something to eat as a snack today.
"Well, there's a box here full of snacks, though."
"Can I have some!?"
Yui Mei's eyes were shining as she stared at the box Li Yong showed her.
"...It's a present I received, but I thought I'd share it with you. Go ahead and eat."
Ming Xian instructed him to explain it as such, since it was uncertain whether there were eavesdroppers around them. Yui Mei let it slide, and she looked around for a place they can sit safe from prying eyes, then she sat down on the stone steps under the eaves of a storage shed.
She was truly a very simple girl.
"Wow, it's gao!! Let's might as well eat together, Libin!"
Yui Mei beckoned to Li Yong. He contemplated his next move.
'She invited me, so it would be rude to turn her down. Besides, I was made to go on a round trip to and fro the Imperial Palace and Inner Palace, so I guess this much is fine.'
Yui Mei was grinning ear to ear while stuffing her cheeks with the cake as she expressed her impression.
Indeed, freshly made cakes were truly delicious.
If Ming Xian were to hear about it, he would surely be envious, since it was far beyond his means.
That was why Li Yong could never reveal that he would sometimes use food sampling as pretense to snitch food at the crown prince's palace kitchen.
To emphasize once again, being a guard was a test of one's stamina, so if he didn't eat, he would ruin his health.
Following this line of thought, Li Yong suddenly remembered the incident that morning.
"By the way, Yui Mei, do you know a good method to help a person who has difficulty waking up in the mornings to rise more easily?"
"Please sleep early."
Yui Mei replied with an obvious answer to Li Yong's question.
"Ahh, another thing, even if the mind is tired, if the body is still full of energy, it'll be difficult to sleep. I recommend doing light exercises in the sun... So , is His Highness weak in the morning?", Yui Mei added, and finally asked.
"It's confidential."
Li Yong evaded the question, then he ruminated on Yui Mei's answer.
After eating gao, he parted ways with Yui Mei, and once again, he changed from his eunuch clothes into the uniform of the Imperial Guards, then he returned to Ming Xian's office.
"Welcome back, Li Yong."
The memorials in front of Ming Xian obviously increased. Probably, the emperor's share was also passed on to him. It was a regular occurrence, but he couldn't help but feel it was worsening over time.
Besides, Ming Xian was serious, so he would still complete his work without complaint, but if one were to think about it carefully, the country would not collapse immediately even if Ming Xian left behind some of his work.
"Your Highness Ming Xian, we have nice weather outside. Would you like to leave your work for a while and take a stroll?"
"It's rare for you to say that, Li Yong."
Fundamentally, Li Yong never interfered with his master's itinerary, so Ming Xian blinked.
Ming Xian broadly smiled.  He ignored the ministers' protests as they told him that 'it should not be done!!', and went on a stroll under the pretext of observing the imperial guards' training.
'Those guys should spend more effort in making His Majesty stay at his own office, instead.'
The ministers were taking it lightly, since Ming Xian would readily stand-in for the emperor.
Their stroll was an abrupt change of schedule, but it brought unexpected change. When Ming Xian went back to do office work, he noticed that after observing the training, the pile of memorials had lessened.
'So, a lot of work which did not require His Highness Ming Xian's perusal got mixed in.'
Even if Ming Xian rejected those kinds of jobs, it would still take him a lot of time to check all those memorials. That useless time would give pressure on Ming Xian's day.
Thanks to the decrease in his workload, Ming Xian had some free time, so he dismissed all the ministers, asked about Yui Mei's condition, and for the first time in a while, he was able to relax in his office.
"Really, that girl truly loves to eat."
Ming Xian narrowed his eyes as they conversed. It was as if he wanted Yui Mei to enjoy freedom in his stead, contrary to his shackled self.
Yui Mei and Ming Xian had a complicated relationship, but Li Yong thought it would be good if Ming Xian's ways changed for the better.
They returned to the Inner Palace after work ended, and Ming Xian had his dinner at an earlier time than usual, afterward, he slept soundly that night.
The next day, he woke up by himself.
Everything turned out as Yui Mei said, so Li Yong came to know of her strength once again.
'Maybe I could give her some manju as thanks.'
Housekeeper of the Hundred Blossom Palace
百花宮のお掃除係～転生した新米宮女、後宮のお悩み解決します。
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/housekeeper-of-the-hundred-blossom-palace/
Fantasy Romance Shoujo Slice of Life
Adapted to Manga Ancient China Complex Family Relationships Different Social Status Female Protagonist Imperial Harem Love Interest Falls in Love First Reincarnated in Another World Royalty
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n4104ev/
黒辺あゆみ