Chapter 77: The Fake Princess and His God of War Prince (34)
Xiang Yinnian had lost a noticeable amount of weight.
Xiao Ji didn’t even need to reach out to hold him to see his sunken cheeks and eye sockets that looked much deeper than when they had parted.
Xiang Yinnian kept his bright eyes open, staring unblinkingly at Xiao Ji. In his trance, he couldn’t quite distinguish between familiarity and strangeness.
It felt like they hadn’t seen each other for ages, yet also as if they had only just parted yesterday.
He held Xiao Ji’s wrist, pressing his cheek tightly against the palm. “I missed you. I missed you so much I couldn’t sleep well.”
Xiao Ji reached out to press the back of Xiang Yinnian’s neck, his fingers threading through his hair as he kissed him gently. “Missed me? Where did you miss me?”
Originally, Xiang Yinnian hadn’t been thinking of anything explicitly sexual.
After a long separation, he simply wanted to hold Xiao Ji and talk properly.
But the moment Xiao Ji said those words, Xiang Yinnian felt as if electricity had shot through his entire body, numbing him from his toes to his tailbone. his legs went soft instantly.
When Xiao Ji felt Xiang Yinnian quietly shiver, he paused and asked, “Did you wet the bed?”
Hearing this, Xiang Yinnian seemed to snap back to reality and punched Xiao Ji. “What nonsense are you spouting? How is it that after not seeing you for some time, you’ve become so full of rubbish?”
Xiao Ji flipped over and pinned Xiang Yinnian down, reaching out to check. “Let me see.”
Xiang Yinnian struggled half-heartedly. “Cut it out.”
Xiao Ji didn’t listen. He kissed Xiang Yinnian and soothed him, “Don’t clamp down on my hand. Be good.”
…
Nights spent in pairs under mandarin duck quilts; a pear blossom presses upon the begonia.
At first, Xiang Yinnian was uncharacteristically more reserved than he had been on their wedding night. But later, perhaps true to his words about missing Xiao Ji too much, he completely let himself go, threatening that if Xiao Ji dared to stop, he would dig up Xiao Ji’s ancestral graves.
Unfortunately, time was tight, and the two couldn’t be affectionate for too long.
Xiang Yinnian had rushed on horseback for over half a month, and after such vigorous tossing about, he was surprisingly awake and energetic enough to ask about business.
“What’s the plan for the next step?”
Xiao Ji held Xiang Yinnian, gently patting his back.
“Go hijack the prisoner. Claim to be from his mother’s family and help him sneak into Chengming Hall. The Emperor needs a strong dose of medicine. When the time comes, the Crown Prince and I will be attending to the Emperor’s illness in Chengming Hall. We will use his hand to get rid of the Crown Prince.”
Letting Xiao Yu dangle before the executioner’s blade and walk a circle in front of the King of Hell would make him understand the logic that there is no construction without destruction.
As long as the news of the Emperor’s impending death was released, Xiao Yu would know what to do without needing anyone to egg him on.
The Twelfth and Thirteenth Princes were young; the Emperor would never allow them to ascend and let their maternal families control the court. Only by entering Chengming Hall and killing both the Crown Prince and Xiao Ji before the Emperor breathed his last could Xiao Yu force the Emperor to abdicate to him, securing a sliver of a chance at survival.
Xiang Yinnian understood Xiao Ji’s meaning but frowned. “There are many experts in the palace. It might not be that easy to sneak in.”
Xiao Ji said, “That isn’t something we need to worry about. Just help him escape. He has his own people; to survive, he will give it his all.”
And all Xiang Yinnian had to do was one thing: after Xiao Yu made his move against the Crown Prince, he was to “clean up the chaotic elements around the sovereign” (act as the savior).
This sounded simple, but in execution—whether hijacking the prisoner or drugging the Emperor—it was incredibly risky. Xiao Yu was a desperate man with nothing to lose and would fight with his life. There were many variables, and if anything went wrong, the consequences would be unimaginable.
But fortunately, Xiao Ji was calm, and Xiang Yinnian was bold; neither of them overthought it.
Xiang Yinnian left the palace before dawn.
Xiao Yu was a prince after all. To preserve the Imperial Family’s face, the execution would not be held at the vegetable market entrance outside the city gates for the commoners to mock.
Originally, the execution was scheduled for the Royal Hunting Grounds. However, last night, the Director of the Bureau of Astronomy had a dream that if Xiao Yu died, his restless spirit would bring disaster to Great Yue.
So, he climbed out of bed overnight to perform a divination. He calculated that only within a ten- zhang radius of the exit of the tunnel used specifically for carrying corpses out of the palace could the bad omen be avoided. He immediately reported this to the Emperor.
In these troubled times, the Emperor preferred to believe it than not, so he followed the Director’s advice and changed the execution site.
At this point, the Emperor no longer had the heart to care how many children he had left. More importantly, after taking his medicine at noon, he felt groggy and heavy.
Unlike his usual coughing of blood, today he was choking up blood directly from his lungs.
Upon receiving the news, the concubines from every palace hurried to wait outside Chengming Hall.
Including Xiao Ji, the remaining four princes all knelt outside the hall, waiting for the Imperial Physician to come out.
“He was fine when I came yesterday, how could he suddenly be…” Noble Lady Lin choked on her sobs while wiping her tears with a handkerchief.
The Empress looked grave and scolded her, “Shut your crow’s mouth. The Emperor’s illness has flared up more than once or twice; he will surely turn danger into safety.”
The atmosphere outside the hall was exceptionally oppressive. Xiao Ji knelt on the ground without saying a word, occasionally glancing at the water clock standing not far away.
Two hours later, just as expected, a young eunuch ran in hurriedly from outside, saying he requested an audience with the Emperor.
The Crown Prince stood up, pointed at the young eunuch’s nose, and cursed:
“Are you blind? Bengong is right here. If you have something to say, say it directly!”
Looking at the room full of people, the little eunuch knew the Emperor likely wasn’t doing well.
He quickly knelt and kowtowed to the Crown Prince. “Replying to Your Highness the Crown Prince… The Seventh Prince… has been hijacked!”
Everyone gasped upon hearing this. Just as the Crown Prince began to throw a tantrum, accusing the executioners of being useless waste, only Xiao Ji reacted. He spoke calmly:
“Concentrate the palace military forces and guard the main gate of Chengming Hall.”
The Crown Prince paused and looked at Xiao Ji. “You mean…”
Xiao Ji glanced at the Crown Prince. “Just in case.”
The Crown Prince understood. All the masters of the palace were currently at Chengming Hall. He began ordering people to concentrate all military forces at the main gate, but no one thought about the fact that there was a rear courtyard behind Chengming Hall.
Not long after, the Imperial Physician walked out of the inner hall. He first bowed to each of the masters present, then said to Xiao Ji and the Crown Prince:
“Two Highnesses, His Majesty summons you.”
Consort Yu, the birth mother of the Twelfth Prince, spoke up, “Did His Majesty summon the Twelfth and Thirteenth Princes?”
The Imperial Physician shook his head.
The Empress glanced at Consort Yu. “At a time like this, put away your petty schemes.”
Consort Yu lowered her head and fell silent.
Xiao Ji followed behind the Crown Prince into the inner hall. Wrapped in the stifling smell of bitter herbal medicine, he knelt beside the Emperor’s couch.
Seeing the Emperor in such a state, the Crown Prince immediately began to sob, holding the Emperor’s hand and calling out with a trembling voice, “Fuhuang…”
The Emperor, however, was not moved. He only patted the Crown Prince’s hand soothingly and said in a hoarse voice:
“Useless thing.”
The Crown Prince wouldn’t talk back at a time like this. He only said through fake tears, “Fuhuang is right to scold me. This son is still waiting for Fuhuang to recover soon and teach me more.”
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