Chapter 38 Mistaken Jealousy
“Your Highness, calling me ‘Wen Da Ren’ is too much,” Wen Yuanru sighed. “I’ve already confessed everything I could in prison.”
“I know you were forced to be a pawn. If the truth comes to light, restoring your position isn’t impossible.”
“…” Wen Yuanru remained silent.
“Very well, I didn’t expect you to change your story so quickly,” Chu Lianmo changed the subject. “But I’ve always been curious about the matter of my mother, the late Noble Consort Liang. Can you tell me something about it?”
Qi Xiaojun was startled.
Chu Lianmo’s true intention was not just to investigate the recent incident but also the case of Noble Consort Liang years ago.
Chu Lianmo continued, “The Empress accused my mother of having an affair with the imperial guard Wen Cheng and presented their correspondence from before she entered the palace…The letters were indeed from them, and Mother admitted to writing them. While they weren’t affectionate, they did reveal a past relationship. I want to know how your sister found these old letters? Was she in cahoots with Wen Cheng?”
“…” Wen Yuanru remained silent.
“It’s hard to verify after so long, just help me understand. My father won’t suddenly appear from anywhere, will he?” Chu Lianmo smiled faintly, glancing outside the hut.
The hut was sparsely furnished, with bare walls and few plants, offering no place to hide anyone.
“…Your Highness, I don’t know anything about this.” Wen Yuanru remained tight-lipped.
“Really?” Chu Lianmo’s expression turned cold. He picked up the silver notes he’d left on the bedside. “Then I’ll be going.”
“Your Highness!” Wen Shan exclaimed. “You’ve already given the money, why take it back?”
Chu Lianmo sneered, “My money, I give it when I want, and take it back when I want.”
“You…can’t you just consider it a loan? I’ll find work to support myself and Father, but Father can’t even move, and I must care for him. How can I earn money?” Wen Shan’s eyes reddened.
“Wen Da Ren, look,” Chu Lianmo looked at Wen Yuanru again, “Your son is very filial. Why make things difficult for someone who truly cares for you because of so-called relatives who don’t care about your life or death?”
“…” Wen Yuanru was silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth. “I’ll tell you!”
He began to recount the past:
“Noble Consort Liang was a noble lady, and most imperial guards were also from noble families. Chu’s customs were open, not strictly prohibiting women from having relationships before marriage, so Noble Consort Liang naturally had male friends before entering the palace. Yingying investigated all her former friends.”
“Yingying” was Empress Wen Yingying.
“Eventually, Yingying discovered that Noble Consort Liang had a close relationship with someone named Wen Cheng. Yingying had the Wen residence searched and found those letters.”
“…” Chu Lianmo broke out in a cold sweat. The Empress had been deliberately targeting Noble Consort Liang. Whether her former acquaintance was Wen Cheng, Zhang Cheng, or Li Cheng, as long as she had any male friend, she would fall into this carefully woven trap!
Emperor Chu Wen had been suspicious, but lacking evidence, he only withdrew his affection from Noble Consort Liang and didn’t punish her or Wen Cheng.
Rumors spread wildly in the palace. Some said Noble Consort Liang and Wen Cheng frequently met secretly; some even said Chu Lianmo wasn’t Emperor Chu Wen’s son. To prove his innocence, Wen Cheng castrated himself, becoming a lowly eunuch doing odd jobs, his promising future ruined.
This drove Noble Consort Liang to despair. She had a huge argument with Emperor Chu Wen—if he hadn’t been suspicious, none of this would have happened.
But Emperor Chu Wen became even angrier, convinced of her affair, and never stepped foot in her palace again.
From that day on, Chu Lianmo and Noble Consort Liang closed their hearts, avoiding others.
Remembering the cause and effect, Chu Lianmo clenched his fists in silent rage—the Empress was responsible for all of this!
However, verifying this old case was difficult.
Fortunately, Wen Cheng, a key witness, was still alive, providing an opportunity.
“Thank you for telling me this,” Chu Lianmo thanked Wen Yuanru, softening his expression and placing the silver notes back down. “I’ll arrange for a servant tonight. If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“…Thank you, Your Highness, Prince Rui.” Wen Yuanru’s face was full of bitterness. He never wanted to be involved in palace intrigues, but his sister trusted her and told him everything. This time she insisted on his involvement, leading to this situation.
“A Yun, it’s late. Let’s go back.”
“Good.” Qi Xiaojun nodded to Chu Lianmo, then said to Ji Hua, “A Hua, you’ve worked hard. Where are you staying? Will you be around for a while?”
“I plan to stay a few days,” Ji Hua replied. “I’m at the inn near the stall. You can find me if you need anything.”
Qi Xiaojun smiled. “That’s great, I’ll catch up with you another day.”
Chu Lianmo pulled Qi Xiaojun’s hand, his face stern. “Let’s go.”
Qi Xiaojun couldn’t help but deal with his jealous temper.
Just then, a man around Ji Hua’s age rushed over. “Ji Meiren, I finally found you! I went to your stall, only to find you’d closed up. I searched everywhere and found out you came this way. I looked for you for a long time!”
The man was dressed in pink, with charming peach blossom eyes and a handsome face.
“What?” Ji Hua glared at the pink-clad man. “Do you have to find me every day?”
“Of course!” The man grinned, “The ancients said, ‘A day without seeing you is like three autumns,’ and it’s true! I already missed you terribly when I didn’t see you for a day, and now that we’re…in a relationship…”
“Shut up!” Ji Hua interrupted him angrily, “I’ve told you I was drunk that day!”
Qi Xiaojun’s eyes widened.
Ji Hua, such a cold and unfeeling person, finally found love?
“A Hua, who is he?”
Before Ji Hua could answer, the pink-clad man introduced himself, “Greetings, I’m Zuo Fei, a disciple of the Xi Shan sect.”
Qi Xiaojun was surprised. He’d heard of Xi Shan; it was a famous martial arts sect in Qi, and Zuo Fei was the eldest son of the sect leader. But his younger brother Zuo Yin was the current leader, so Zuo Fei was free to roam around, even coming to Chu.
“So you’re Zuo Shao Xia, the eldest disciple of the Xi Shan sect.”
“Oh?” Zuo Fei looked at Qi Xiaojun with a smile. “This beauty seems to know a lot about the martial arts world?”
Ji Hua sneered, “A Yun already has a partner. If you flirt with everyone, be careful that His Highness, Prince Rui, chops you up.”
Chu Lianmo was no longer jealous. It was obvious that Ji Hua and Zuo Fei had a close relationship…
Qi Xiaojun couldn’t help but smile, leaning close to Ji Hua’s ear and asking, “It seems you two have done something? Were you on top or bottom?”
“You!” Ji Hua glared at him, blushing. “When did you become so gossipy?”
Qi Xiaojun smiled, “Curiosity is human nature. As a friend, I naturally care about you.”
Ji Hua’s reaction confirmed he was the bottom.
Chu Lianmo finally relaxed, realizing his jealousy was misplaced.
“I’m going back to the inn!” Ji Hua turned and hurried away, seeming to avoid something.
Chu Lianmo, in a good mood, put his arm around Qi Xiaojun’s shoulder, “Let’s go home.”
Meanwhile, in the crown prince’s residence, Chu Ziqian finally woke up.
“Ziqian, you’re awake!” Jiang Yingnan, who had been sitting beside his bed, exclaimed, “How do you feel? Anything uncomfortable?”
“No. More than my body,” Chu Ziqian smiled wryly, “I’m heartbroken. I didn’t expect it to end up like this.”
Jiang Yingnan was relieved to see that he was fine. He had simply fainted from exhaustion from lack of food and water. After he had forced him to eat, he looked healthy and should be alright.
Then, it was time to worry about himself.
“Ziqian, I won’t serve you tonight… I’m injured, it still hurts.”
“What happened?” Chu Ziqian was startled. “How did you get injured?”
Jiang Yingnan’s eyes reddened. He lifted his clothes to reveal whip marks. “Look, the Crown Princess did this…She said she wanted me to help her practice her whip, but she’s inaccurate…”
“Oh.” Chu Ziqian responded indifferently. “I’m hungry, did you make any sweets today?”
“…” Jiang Yingnan looked at Chu Ziqian incredulously. That was his reaction to being injured by Liu Min? “I’ve been taking care of you, where would I have time to make sweets?”
Chu Ziqian heard the anger in his tone and frowned slightly. “You mentioned that to make me sympathize with you, don’t you think I didn’t notice? I’m also upset today, when would I have time to do that with you? Last time Liu Min made you serve tea, you said those words on purpose too, right? I know! I just let you use your little tricks.”
“…” Jiang Yingnan felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, leaving him cold inside and out.
He had used a little trick last time, but at least then he had Chu Ziqian’s compassion, and the trick worked.
What did he have left now? Just the exposure of his cleverness?
Did he want to use schemes and fight with a woman every day? Liu Min was the one to start each time, he just wanted to protect himself from harm! What was wrong with that?!
______________________