Chapter 64
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However, Jiang Yanchi remained in a daze and simply said, “No, Doctor Wu, you don’t know…”
“If Your Majesty has any doubts, perhaps I can take a look at the injury. The Empress could almost be my granddaughter, and there is no need to hide such matters. This would also make it easier for me to treat…”
After more persuasion, Jiang Yanchi reluctantly allowed Doctor Wu to take a look.
The doctor glanced briefly, and Doctor Wu shook his head with certainty. He explained in a deep voice, “Your Majesty must have misunderstood. It is indeed their first time. The tearing is severe now, likely from the beginning. Tonight, he needs careful attention. As for the other matters between Your Majesty and Niang Niang, I am not aware. It would be better to wait until he wakes up and ask him about it to clarify the matter then.”
The doctor’s words made Jiang Yanchi anxious.
Having sent the people away in a daze, he only instructed Little Xizi to go with them to fetch medicine.
Following the doctor’s instructions, he personally treated the wounds behind Chu Xie. After careful examination, it was indeed torn in several places. During the treatment, the person would mumble incoherently.
He dressed Chu Xie in clothes. It had been several days since he had slept on a bed, and it had been a long time since he had held him to sleep.
Originally, after the last argument, the two of them were doing well, and the atmosphere had become more harmonious. Now, after this disturbance, everything seemed to have changed.
Jiang Yanchi held the person and saw that his brows were always furrowed, even in his sleep, looking uncomfortable.
But how could it be possible? If he was inexperienced, how did he manage to escape unscathed from Huchi Er’s hands in the northern border?
Remembering several years ago, when Huchi Er first entered the capital, he had plotted against Chu Xie. Since then, that northern Xiongs had been eyeing Chu Xie, perhaps even earlier.
The young emperor had deeply hated him before, but after tasting the flavor of admiration, he became enamored, understanding the charm of this person.
Many years ago, he engaged in some shady business in the remote border areas of the northwest. At that time, he met Huchi Er, who was not yet the Left Virtuous King of the Xiongs. The two had frequent dealings, and even though he suffered losses at the hands of Chu Xie several times, the man could never let him go.
He was even willing to abandon a favorable situation for Chu Xie, retreating ninety miles in the northern border just to please him.
—Indirectly leading to the current dilemma of having to negotiate.
Thinking about it, Jiang Yanchi’s heart itched densely, like a chaotic, itching sensation, completely devoid of sleepiness.
Chu Xie, this person.
He was willing to marry him to kill Jiang Jingan.
He was willing to give himself to kill Zhao Lingqu.
He was accustomed to trading anything to get what he wanted, so how could things be straightforward and innocent with that northern Xiong?
Although he thought so, every toss and turn brought him back to that night when he rushed to the northern border and witnessed Huchi Er drawing his sword to stab.
What was going on?
Jiang Yanchi really wanted to ask him thoroughly, but…
He was afraid that he would continue to face full-mouthed lies and evasions.
Now he was in a difficult situation. He could only hold the person in front of him tightly, gently kissing his furrowed brows.
Fortunately, the wounds were treated in time. Jiang Yanchi spent a sleepless night, but the person in his arms gradually fell into a deep sleep and did not have a fever during the night.
He rejected all the remaining matters for the next two days, only staying in the room with Chu Xie. It wasn’t until the afternoon that the person slowly woke up.
When he opened his eyes and heard the sound of flipping letters, he caught a glimpse of the emperor reading memorials in the room. Chu Xie’s face turned pale again. As Jiang Yanchi approached, painful memories surfaced in his mind.
Seeing the fear in his eyes, Jiang Yanchi stopped in his tracks. “I…” Chu Xie quickly adjusted his expression, calmed his emotions, and sat up with some hoarseness in his voice. “Get me some water.”
He immediately poured a cup and handed it over.
Chu Xie leisurely drank the water, his eyes staring at the young emperor without blinking. Observing that he no longer resembled the crazed dog from the previous night and seemed to have calmed down, Chu Xie spoke seriously, “Jiang Yanchi, I have something to tell you.”
The young emperor’s face turned gradually pale, and with a forced refusal, he said, “Whatever it is, let’s talk in a few days. If you want to eat something, I’ll go to the kitchen…”
“I want to talk now.”
His throat moved up and down.
“Our deal needs to change.” Chu Xie carefully chose his words. As soon as he uttered half a sentence, he saw the little emperor’s face change drastically, and he immediately pounced to the front of the bed.
“No, Ah Xie, listen to me. I really, really…”
Mentioning yesterday, cracks appeared once again in Chu Xie’s originally calm eyes, as if unintentionally recalling something.
“Listen to me.” Chu Xie wiped the sweat from his forehead. Even now, any slight movement still caused pain behind him. “I can’t do it. Find a concubine, whether male or female… don’t come to me for a solution, I beg you.”
The young emperor was stunned.
He almost thought Chu Xie was going to break off the engagement.
Seeing his distressed expression, Chu Xie’s eyes reddened bit by bit. “Is it hurting a lot?”
“Jiang… Your Majesty, go and choose a concubine you like and quickly take her in. Day or night, don’t come to me again.”
“Next time, I will definitely…”
“Is there a next time? There won’t be a next time.” Chu Xie shook his head repeatedly. “Once is enough for this kind of thing. I don’t want to do it again. It’s too painful for me. Your Majesty, please don’t make it difficult for me like this. If you have other conditions, you can continue to discuss them with me, but this, I will never cooperate with again.”
The young emperor felt like he had been hit on the head with a stick.
His heart was full of unspeakable bitterness.
Wait a moment, Chu Xie just said, once is enough. Does that mean he…
“Ah Xie, can I ask you something?” The young emperor took a deep breath, silently clenching his fist in his sleeve. “When you were in Changye County, how did you persuade the northern Xiongs to retreat ninety miles… Can you, tell me the truth?”
Chu Xie’s brows furrowed tightly.
He pondered for a long time, and Jiang Yanchi didn’t know if he was fabricating lies. He just waited quietly for him to speak.
But after waiting for a long time, Chu Xie didn’t say a word.
The young emperor’s heart sank bit by bit. The veins on the back of his hand gradually protruded. This time, he firmly suppressed his emotions and only his eyes became deeper. “Tell me, no matter what happened… I can understand you.”
“In that situation, you were also for self-preservation, right?”
“I… understand. I…”
“Your Majesty, do you want to extract such important information from me with just a few words?” Chu Xie seemed to have finally figured out something. His complexion became more composed, and he added, “Now the situation in the war is difficult on both sides. If you want to capture Huchi Er with clever tactics and gain the upper hand in negotiations, I can help you negotiate.”
Jiang Yanchi was stunned for a long time.
Then he heard Chu Xie say with a serious expression, “But I repeat, you have to use Zhao Lingqu’s life as a bargaining chip.”
“…”
“What’s the matter? Don’t you trust me?”
Seeing his silence, Chu Xie thought he might still have some doubts in his mind, so he raised an eyebrow. “I can make the Northern Xiong send at least three thousand warhorses. Your Majesty, the Great Wei cavalry is not that numerous, isn’t this condition good enough?”
However, Jiang Yanchi’s expression grew worse.
Chu Xie’s overconfident tone was like the final straw that broke the camel’s back.
“Oh?” The young emperor’s voice was as calm as still water. “Tell me, how do you plan to negotiate? Who gave you the confidence that you’re worth three thousand warhorses?”
“I’m not valuable, of course.”
Chu Xie seemed to hear something strange, glanced at the young emperor, then lowered his voice, “But now the northern Xiongs are in trouble. Although it seems like he has the upper hand in this war, in reality, he can’t afford to sustain it. It’s definitely not a fight he can win. I gained many benefits from his brother in the past few years and also got some handles for self-preservation.”
“He wants to unify the northern and southern tribes, and he needs some reasons. The old grudges in the account of the northern Xiong king haven’t been settled at all. The benefits I can offer him far exceed the value of three thousand warhorses.”
Chu Xie spoke freely, but he was actually probing the young emperor’s eyes all along.
In the original text, the young emperor also had ambitions. Although this might be borrowing a tiger’s power to attack a wolf, as long as he could pacify the tiger, everything would be fine.
He had been too naive before.
Thinking that lying down and letting him do as he pleased would be enough to fulfill the young emperor’s vague infatuation, he considered it his own compensation.
But d*mn, it was too painful.
I’d better get compensation in other ways.
How could anyone like men? How could anyone endure that kind of thing? Chu Xie rolled his eyes in his mind, calmly continuing to assess the young emperor’s expression, with a hint of seduction in his tone.
“How about it, have you decided? You go choose a beautiful consort, and I’ll go find Huchi Er to negotiate for you.”
“Three thousand warhorses are too few. I can also ask for at least fifty thousand taels for you. It’s a matter of taking advantage of the situation and making the best of it. I’ve done this kind of thing a lot, and I guarantee that you’ll only gain more, not less…”
Jiang Yanchi, well-versed in political calculations, immediately caught on.
Chu Xie was really audacious. At the age of thirteen or fourteen, he dared to target the kings of various tribes in the northern Xiongs, maneuvering between the royal families, exploiting the grudges and tug-of-war among the tribes to earn this gambling money.
One careless move, and he could be dragged to death by the northern Xiongs’ horses in the wilderness.
Well, he had done plenty of bloody work like this in Great Wei.
It turned out that he learned this from an early age.
“Let’s settle it this way for now.”
Chu Xie secretly supported his waist and tried to get off the bed. He winced and pulled a bit, sweating on his forehead. “What do you like? Probably something beautiful, right? I’ll go pick a few for you first, and you can make the final decision later…”
“Whether you want to tie up, use a whip, blindfold, or play any other tricks, I guarantee to find you an obedient and clever one.” Chu Xie smiled gently. “So, it’s settled, Your Majesty.”
“Chu Xie.”
Seeing that he was in pain, Jiang Yanchi reached out to support his shoulder. He saw him dodge a bit, and when he pulled away, he noticed a few green marks on his scapula from last night.
He forced a smile, “I don’t want others.”
“In this lifetime, I’ll only marry you.”
Chu Xie’s knees went weak as he forcefully sat on the embroidered jade bed curtains. “You…”
“So, what you mean is, nothing really happened between you and that northern Xiong person.” The young emperor saw him standing somewhat unsteadily, quickly reached out to support him by placing his hand behind his waist, unceremoniously getting close, and wrapped his arms around his slender waist. “You persuaded Huchi Er using the old accounts of the northern Xiongs royal family from previous years. Then why did the envoy in yesterday’s negotiations tell me…”
“You promised to marry Huchi Er.”
Chu Xie suddenly realized what Jiang Yanchi truly wanted to find out.
So, the young emperor thought that he and Huchi Er had some kind of affair, which is why he was so angry last night.
That wasn’t the case.
“I’ve promised many things before…”
Chu Xie said awkwardly, “If you can achieve something by just talking, why bother with real knives and guns?”
This statement made sense.
Jiang Yanchi was first surprised, then he hugged him tighter, and finally, he felt a sense of relief and remorse. He whispered in his ear, his hand sliding down his waist, “I’m sorry, is it still hurting? You, lie down for a while…”
While speaking, he choked up, “It’s my fault, Ah Xie. Don’t remember what happened yesterday… I was…”
“Whenever I think that you, like you are handling me now, also dealt with that northern Xiongs person, talked about marriage with him, slept with him, I…”
“I was confused…”
Chu Xie’s gaze became complicated.
Jiang Yanchi helped Chu Xie lie down on the couch and covered him with a blanket. “I swear, I will never doubt you easily in the future. I won’t believe what others say. I will only listen to you and believe what you say. Don’t be angry, okay?”
Chu Xie pushed his hand away. The young emperor saw two shallow bruises on his wrist and grabbed it gently, massaging and dissolving the bruises for him.
“Don’t mention finding me another spouse again. You know, I’ll never have anyone else in my life. If you don’t want me to touch you, I won’t touch you anymore.”
Chu Xie was overjoyed, “Really?!”
The joy was evident, and Jiang Yanchi’s heart skipped a beat. He lowered his eyes silently.
“Yes, a gentleman’s word is his bond.”
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