Chapter 58: The Fake Princess and His God of War Prince (15)
Xiao Ji said he didn’t dare, but Xiang Yinnian knew that Xiao Ji dared very much.
And given Xiao Ji’s temperament, if he didn’t take the initiative to talk things out, there was no guarantee Xiao Ji wouldn’t keep up this lukewarm attitude until they were sixty.
The more Xiang Yinnian thought about it, the more stifled he felt. “Can you stop just fishing for a moment? I want to talk to you.”
Regarding clear requests made by Xiang Yinnian, Xiao Ji would always comply.
He put down the fishing rod. “Talk here?”
Xiang Yinnian bent down, took his hand, and pulled him up from the small folding stool. “Let’s go back to the room.”
From the courtyard to the bedroom, Xiang Yinnian held Xiao Ji’s hand the entire way. Under the furtive gazes of the servants along the path, they returned to the bedroom, and he locked the latch behind him.
Xiao Ji leaned against the table, standing eight poles away from Xiang Yinnian.
Since Xiang Yinnian didn’t speak, he waited quietly.
Eventually, it was Xiang Yinnian who lost his patience first. “It’s not that I wanted to avoid you, it’s just that I needed to digest this matter.”
Xiao Ji nodded. “Have you digested it now?”
Xiang Yinnian shook his head. “Seventy percent.”
“If the Wangye has something to say, you might as well ask directly. From the day I entered the Wangfu, I never intended to hide anything.” Xiao Ji threw the words out, clarifying his stance.
Xiang Yinnian looked at Xiao Ji’s face—a face that made him lose his composure every time he saw it. “I want to know the reason.”
Xiao Ji met Xiang Yinnian’s gaze.
“How about listening to a story?”
Xiang Yinnian nodded. “Alright.”
Xiao Ji pondered for a moment, his tone calm and without fluctuation:
“Nineteen years ago, the Empress went into labor with her second son. A great omen of misfortune descended from the heavens. Rumors spread that this child’s fate was tied to the destiny of the nation. His identity had to be concealed to confuse the public until the child reached the age of crowning (twenty); only then could misfortune be turned into blessings.”
“The Ninth Prince became the Ninth Princess. In public, he did not study policy or strategy, did not learn the six arts, but only studied the eight elegances and female virtues. In private, he hid his light and bided his time, working his heart out, stealing light from cracks in the wall to study.”
“Originally, he only needed to wait until his crowning ceremony to restore his identity as a prince, announce it to the world, and unfold his grand ambitions. But as luck would have it, right at this time, he was sent to the Northern Border to be married as a wife, trapping the latter half of his life in the inner courtyard.”
With that, Xiao Ji fell silent, gazing quietly at Xiang Yinnian.
Xiang Yinnian was dumbfounded.
He had guessed Xiao Ji had his difficulties, but he never expected that his marriage to Xiao Ji had directly cut off the possibility of Xiao Ji inheriting the throne in the future.
These words left Xiang Yinnian with mixed feelings.
This wasn’t a small matter; this was Xiao Ji’s fate for his entire life.
Just because of his, Xiang Yinnian’s, sudden whim and impulse to annoy the Emperor, he had twisted Xiao Ji’s destiny.
He couldn’t speak, not knowing how to justify or excuse himself. After a long while, his voice trembling slightly, he asked Xiao Ji:
“Does this Ninth Prince… harbor resentment? Does he hate me?”
Xiao Ji said to Xiang Yinnian, “Come here.”
At this moment, Xiang Yinnian felt that even if Xiao Ji suddenly pulled the wooden hairpin from his hair and stabbed it into his chest right now, it would be human nature.
He couldn’t face Xiao Ji, yet he couldn’t refuse him. He could only walk toward Xiao Ji with guarded, stiff movements, almost moving his same arm and leg together.
But he was grabbed by the wrist and pulled into Xiao Ji’s embrace.
“It was just a joke. I have no great ambitions. I was sick of the filthy matters in the palace and only wanted to live peacefully in a corner. You took me out of the Imperial City; I should be thanking you.”
Xiang Yinnian’s mind was a bit chaotic at the moment. “If it weren’t for me…”
“This has nothing to do with you,” Xiao Ji interrupted him.
Xiang Yinnian was of similar stature to Xiao Ji. Being held by Xiao Ji felt a bit strange somewhere. He broke free from Xiao Ji’s arms and re-wrapped his own arms around Xiao Ji before feeling better.
The two embraced, silent for a long time.
Just as Xiao Ji began to suspect if he had gone too far with his story and plunged Xiang Yinnian into guilt again, Xiang Yinnian suddenly pushed Xiao Ji away and raged:
“Forgive my bluntness, but your Imperial Father is truly not a damn decent thing!”
“Just based on one-sided words, he let you suffer such grievances. You wait, Xiao Ji. Laozi doesn’t regret marrying you one bit. What is yours, I will personally seize back for you!”
Even if Xiao Ji restored his status as a prince and had some power in the palace, seizing the throne would be no easy task.
The Northern Border was a sharp blade.
Since he had abducted Xiao Ji, he had to be responsible for him. He, the King of Beichen, had hundreds of thousands of personal troops, all strong soldiers and sturdy horses. At worst, he would conquer the empire and gift it to Xiao Ji, considering it a supplementary betrothal gift.
Xiao Ji was dumbfounded. “That is not my intention.”
He had zero interest in that dragon chair. To put it bluntly, rather than wasting mental energy fighting for that chair, he found it more interesting to toss Xiang Yinnian around on the bed a couple more times.
But Xiang Yinnian had clearly made up his mind, looking at Xiao Ji with burning eyes:
“You married into my Beichen Manor, so you are Xiang Yinnian’s person. As long as you are of one heart with me, I will absolutely not let you swallow these broken teeth into your stomach.”
Xiao Ji knew Xiang Yinnian wasn’t someone easily swayed. He couldn’t hide his identity forever; sooner or later, he had to explain it clearly to Xiang Yinnian.
Xiao Ji was merely stating the facts, but right now, Xiang Yinnian was clearly angrier than he, the actual person involved, was.
He had a bit of a headache. “I have no desire for the throne, nor do I intend to use you as a spear.”
Xiang Yinnian wasn’t happy. “What business is that of yours? Laozi is willing!”
Xiao Ji didn’t want to tangle with him on this issue anymore. To prevent Xiang Yinnian’s temper from rising further and having him curse that cheap father of his sitting on the dragon chair endlessly, Xiao Ji could only reach out, cup Xiang Yinnian’s face, and kiss that busy mouth.
Xiang Yinnian hadn’t been intimate with Xiao Ji since the wedding. Under the current circumstances, Xiang Yinnian’s attention was long gone from the question of whether Xiao Ji was male or female.
The anger held back in his heart for days had nowhere to vent; now that Xiao Ji had lit the fuse, the war broke out instantly.
Clothes fell all over the floor. The padded jacket Xiao Ji was wearing had its seams torn open by Xiang Yinnian.
Amidst the push and pull, Xiang Yinnian attempted to resist Xiao Ji once more:
“Let me try.”
Xiao Ji refused, forcefully using his right hand to lock both of Xiang Yinnian’s wrists above his head. “You won’t try. Be good.”
Xiang Yinnian compromised.
It was as if that “let me try” just now was nothing more than a dying struggle of unwillingness, rather than truly wanting to try.
But just as Xiang Yinnian said, regarding this matter, he had only digested seventy percent.
As for the remaining thirty percent, Xiao Ji felt that he had simply planned to pick a fight with Xiao Ji in bed.
“Speak. You are so skilled—did you have a lover in the past?” Xiang Yinnian asked.
Xiao Ji: “No.”
“Before the princes in the palace are crowned, even if they haven’t taken a consort or concubine, they surely have maids attending to them early on. Don’t think you can deceive me.” Xiang Yinnian continued.
Xiao Ji covered Xiang Yinnian’s mouth from behind:
“Can’t you tell? I have the passion of Longyang.”
Xiang Yinnian couldn’t speak; he could only endure everything.
But after the wind calmed and the waves settled, and the ship docked, he still felt that Xiao Ji played him far too skillfully. And coincidentally, he could always grasp the key points, making him hover between life and death.
The more Xiang Yinnian thought about it, the more suspicious he felt. He was relentless:
“No matter how many storybooks you read, it’s nothing more than paper talk. If you confess honestly, I will let bygones be bygones. But if you hide it from me again, I will definitely make you suffer the consequences!”
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