Chapter 75
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In the letter, it was written: Changming Army temporarily under the command of Deputy General Xu, currently integrating with the more than ten thousand troops of the Western Frontier Ningyuan Wang. Young Marquis Xu has not left the capital.
Chu Xie held this thin piece of paper, suddenly trembling at the wrist, “Where is Jiang Yanchi? Where is Jiang Yanchi?!”
Xu Chunmu never left the capital. Jiang Yanchi detained him.
Why, why detain Xu Chunmu.
He suddenly walked outside, but was stopped by guards with knives. Chu Xie had come to this place through the book for more than ten years, been to the desolate grasslands, the icy northern border, and when he first arrived in the capital, Su Mingan was there to protect him. He had never been so impolitely blocked by someone with weapons. Chu Xie glanced and found that they were not ordinary guards.
They were forbidden troops.
Jiang Yanchi was afraid that ordinary guards wouldn’t be able to resist Chu Xie’s intimidation, so he specifically sent forbidden troops.
Chu Xie sneered in his heart. This blockage unexpectedly interrupted his urgent mood, but it made him calm down a bit.
He looked at the thin writing on the paper again. Indeed, it was personally written by Deputy Steward Liu from the mansion.
Jiang Yanchi was so strict about this place, how could Deputy Steward Liu have the ability to deliver such a large piece of paper? Chu Xie’s mind was sharp, and he immediately sensed that something was not right.
Someone deliberately sent this letter in.
Chu Xie raised his eyes, immediately alert – it was Su Mingan.
This matter cannot be handled recklessly. Su Mingan is cunning and enjoys unraveling the secrets of the heart. Chu Xie had dealt with him many times in the earlier years and knew about his talent for deciphering people’s intentions.
Indeed, he found it strange. Just a few days ago, everything was fine. How did Jiang Yanchi suddenly turn against him?
It turned out that Su Mingan was manipulating things behind the scenes.
How did he convince Jiang Yanchi to detain Xu Chunmu? Chu Xie couldn’t figure it out for a moment.
He hadn’t yet understood the motive behind Zhao Lingqu’s desire to kill Xu Chunmu, and now Su Mingan was getting involved in the matter.
Did he also want Xu Chunmu dead?
What exactly did Xu Chunmu do? A child raised on the border, who had never entered the capital, how could he provoke the Four-Time Grand Tutor to such an extent?
Does it really take a knife to Jiang Yanchi to unlock the entire plot?
Chu Xie’s thoughts were in chaos. Unable to unlock the plot, whatever he planned seemed like punching into cotton.
For now, he could only confirm the authenticity of this letter.
In extraordinary times, extraordinary measures must be taken. Fortunately, Jiang Yanchi couldn’t see through his details. He thought that by removing all of his trusted confidantes from the Chengluan Hall, and intercepting the previously skinned letter falcon, he could completely cut off Chu Xie’s intelligence network.
How laughable.
When Jiang Yanchi was still in the Cold Palace, he had already used his ill health as a tool to control the powerful ministers.
Did the Little Emperor really think that marrying him would turn him into a harem lady, ignorant of the outside world?
There were no scissors in the room. Chu Xie struggled a bit and tore off a piece of red silk, wrapping it around one end of the window lattice. In no time, a night falcon flapped its wings and landed on the tree outside the window.
Chu Xie dipped his pen in ink, tossed the letter paper into the air.
The well-trained grassland night falcon immediately caught it and flew towards the Chu Mansion.
Night falcons were different from letter falcons. They flew high and were almost silent, their ink-like feathers blending into the night, making them nearly invisible.
In a short while, it brought back a reply from Zhu Qi.
No information about Xu Chunmu was obtained, and it was unclear whether he had left the city in the past few days. However, it brought more accurate information from the side –
Zhao Lingqu had entered the capital and was currently imprisoned in Zhao Prison.
Detained by Jiang Yanchi.
He clearly promised to kill Zhao Lingqu, but now the person was right in front of him, and Jiang Yanchi kept it a secret from him.
As for Xu Chunmu, no news is bad news. If he had successfully left the city, there would have been some movement at the relay station; there would have been some rumors.
That means he’s truly detained.
Chu Xie crumpled the letter paper in his hand, turned it into ashes, and sneered.
Jiang Yanchi, a move that leaves no room for a countermove.
He thought that by suppressing the news in and out of the capital, he could deceive everyone.
I am not like your sickly old father, lying in bed obediently and letting others manipulate me.
In the end, the former emperor’s suspicion had no basis—Jiang Yanchi had Yue Clan lineage in his body, and he might have more affection for Great Wei, or perhaps, he was even closer to Yue Clan.
No matter how much he argued, Su Mingan’s few words managed to change his mind.
Upon careful thought, the idea of inciting the Xiongs to create chaos in the western border might also be Su Mingan’s suggestion—Su Mingan had personally experienced the turmoil of the Yongan Rebellion, so it wasn’t surprising that he came up with a way to stabilize Jiang Yanchi’s position.
And he even talked about becoming my blade.
I helped you ascend to the throne, and you eagerly became someone else’s weapon.
Zhao Lingqu is probably also from the Yue Clan.
Well, Jiang Yanchi had always been wary of the excessive military power in the northern border. How could he willingly give up such a good opportunity to reduce military power?
For him, supporting the Zhao family was advantageous for securing his own position.
He was naturally suspicious. Xu Yi had just rebelled, and how could he genuinely believe his grandson.
Chu Xie couldn’t help but smile internally, not knowing if he was laughing at Jiang Yanchi or at himself.
The world was always in chaos, and everyone acted for their own benefit. Maybe he had gone mad during this period.
Why did Jiang Yanchi have to be an exception, always doing unprofitable business? In the end, Jiang Yanchi was probably only attracted to Chu Xie’s appearance.
He had deceived people so much, and now he was deceived in return. The taste was quite refreshing.
As Chu Xie thought about this, a spark of anger ignited in his heart, but it extinguished as if it had been poured with cold water after a moment.
At this point, why bother thinking about these things? The crucial thing was to find another way and silently send Xu Chunmu out of the city.
After sending another letter, before receiving a reply, Chu Xie heard some movement outside, perhaps someone’s footsteps crunching in the snow.
Unconsciously, the snow had fallen quite thick. Well, it was already late in the night.
The person who came was Jiang Yanchi.
He seemed not to expect that Chu Xie hadn’t slept yet. When their eyes met, the gaze initially dodged a bit before finally stepping into the room completely.
Chu Xie walked to the window, seemingly casually unwrapping the red silk, saying, “It’s so late, why is Your Majesty here?”
“Ah Xie, let’s have a good talk.”
Hearing the voice behind him, Chu Xie’s hand, he didn’t know why, paused. His tone remained calm, “Sure.”
Pushing the red silk into his sleeve, he rolled his hands lazily, leaning against the window.
Jiang Yanchi heard the sharpness in that word, but he didn’t explode, maintaining a good-tempered appearance.
With the red silk clutched in his sleeve, Chu Xie’s hands gathered, and he lazily leaned against the window, saying, “Speak, what do you want to talk about?”
“You promise, from now on, not to lie to me anymore. Is that okay?” The Little Emperor spoke quietly.
Chu Xie laughed, “How do you know if my promise is not deceiving you?”
There was silence from the person behind for a long time.
Chu Xie turned his body to the side, looking at the silent snow outside. His peripheral vision glanced at the person in the room, and his voice was unusually calm, “Jiang Yanchi, I find this quite boring.”
“If you want me not to lie to you, sure, I’ll tell you a truth now—I don’t like you, and I don’t like men at all. Our alliance is based on mutual interests. If one day our paths diverge, we will no longer be allies.”
Chu Xie rolled up his sleeves. The snow outside complemented his fair skin, but there were faint dark circles under his eyes due to prolonged lack of sleep, adding a touch of illness.
He looked delicate, almost fragile, evoking a strange sense of pity.
But Jiang Yanchi no longer felt pity for him.
He just felt resentment.
The faint melancholy in this person’s demeanor, the subtle depth in his eyes, was like a cup of sweet poison. It was refreshing and spicy, yet at the same time, it corroded the internal organs, making one want to spit out blood, wishing they could perish together.
At this point, in the restless night, the one suffering the most was still himself.
Chu Xie was not really sad.
Without himself, he was like losing a knife or a piece of clothing, without any sense of regret.
He would not feel distressed. His accusations and anger would only make Chu Xie start to ponder how much benefit he could still extract from himself. If it was meager, they would simply part ways.
More ruthless than the calculations in the account books.
He approached quietly, as in the past, wrapping his arms around Chu Xie’s waist.
Jiang Yanchi felt that sooner or later, he would kill this person, or perhaps die at his hands.
The fullness of resentment was like the deep snow in the late night, falling silently.
“Come in.”
“Bring the things in.”
Hearing these two sentences behind him, Chu Xie’s heart sank suddenly. With a creaking sound, someone came in and he wanted to turn around to take a look. However, his waist was tightly held, and though it seemed like an intimate embrace by the window, in reality, he was trapped.
The person quickly retreated, and this time, the door was tightly closed, and no voices could be heard outside.
Chu Xie faintly felt a sense of unease. Glancing at the objects on the red lacquered tray, he asked directly, “What is that?”
Struggling again, he said, “Jiang Yanchi, don’t go crazy… You said we should have a good talk, is this your idea of a good talk?”
The person lightly bit his earlobe, causing a tingling sensation. With a warm breath sweeping across the ear and reaching the neck, it was both hot and dangerous.
“Let’s talk.”
“No need to use your mouth.”
Saying this, he dragged Chu Xie towards the bed. “After all, you’re only good at lying with that mouth of yours.”
Lifting the cloth covering the red-lacquered tray, Chu Xie finally saw what was on top. At first, he didn’t quite understand, but as he seemed to grasp the nature of it, he found himself immobilized.
Jiang Yanchi took something about two fingers wide, applied some fragrant ointment mixed with Chu Xie’s favorite cypress scent. Similar to their wedding night, he began to please him, causing Chu Xie to squirm, his eyes turning red, before manipulating him further.
Pushing a bit inside, Chu Xie struggled violently as if he were a fish caught in a pot.
Jiang Yanchi lowered his head to kiss him, with a hint of alcohol, wiping away the moisture at the corners of his eyes, murmuring, “Ah Xie…”
This time, he was patient, slow, and meticulous.
It seemed like both a demonstration of affection and a form of torment for Chu Xie.
His body was weak; even if he resisted, the strength was like a cat’s scratch. Like the last time, biting his lip and enduring it, thin sweat formed on his forehead as he stretched his neck and shook it from side to side.
Jiang Yanchi was a bit more excited this time, but still considered not to hurt him. He changed to two and a half fingers wide, and then carefully teased for a while.
Suddenly, the person beneath him seemed to make some subtle sounds, like a cat with its tail stepped on, and then the person curled up. Jiang Yanchi unfolded his body, as if finally getting what he wanted, and bit down on his lips as if grinding his teeth.
Chu Xie gradually began to have trouble breathing.
But this time, it didn’t seem to be purely because of the pain.
“You… you!” Even the most stern words, at this moment, were spoken from those crimson lips, tainted with a charming color.
Jiang Yanchi bent down and single-handedly embraced him, his other hand behind him running down his spine.
Entangled in his ear, exhaling heat: “Lord Chu.”
“Aren’t you supposed to dislike men?”
The author has something to say: This chapter dares not to be too long.
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