I, The Substitute, Am With The Main Character Chapter 48

These words made Xueya’s already pale face even more bloodless. Trembling, he looked at the pearl fan in Empress Lei’s hand. The pearls on the fan were clearly no ordinary items, each one full, round, and lustrous without a single flaw.

Xueya pressed his back more tightly against the wall, “No, please, no.”

“At least try it first. Saying no without trying is not very polite.” Empress Lei grabbed Xueya’s hand, making him hold the pearl fan. “However many pearls you can fit, they’ll all be yours.”

Xueya tried to release the fan, but Empress Lei tightened her grip on his hand, forcing him to hold it.

“I’d prefer you do it yourself, but if you really refuse, I’ll have to do it for you. If I help, it’ll be done to my liking, and crying about it afterward won’t help you at all,” Empress Lei said in a soft voice. As she spoke, her hand reached for Xueya’s belt.

Her slender fingers twisted the belt slightly, her gaze locked onto Xueya’s face. A slight smile appeared on her lips, and with a flick of her fingers, she pulled off the belt. Xueya was trembling all over, and as he felt her move to pull down his robe, he couldn’t stop himself from pushing her away and trying to escape from the bed.

But just as he reached the edge, she pinned him down.

He was stunned that a woman could have such strength. No, to be precise, her weight pressing down on him made his chest ache.

“If you won’t do it, I’ll just have to do it myself,” Empress Lei’s voice whispered in his ear, and she blew softly against it. “Honestly, I was afraid you’d agree, because I much prefer forcing someone.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a noise came from outside. It sounded like the door opening.

Empress Lei’s face flashed with annoyance as she raised her head and called out, “Who is it?”

Footsteps approached the inner chamber, and Empress Lei quickly realized that the steps were heavier than those of a palace maid. Her face changed immediately. She got up, but the person had already entered the inner chamber.

When Cui Lingjing saw the scene on the bed, his face turned red with fury. The look he gave Empress Lei was one of utter disdain, as though she were already dead. Xueya was completely frozen, never expecting Cui Lingjing to appear.

After her initial panic, Empress Lei calmly descended from the bed and curtsied to Cui Lingjing. “Your Majesty, greetings. Why have you come?”

“If I hadn’t come, would you be indulging in such depravity within the harem?” Cui Lingjing’s voice was darker than it had ever been.

Empress Lei smiled, “Your Majesty must be joking. I was only teasing Xueya for being cute. After all, Xueya is your servant; we’re practically sisters.”

Cui Lingjing let out a cold laugh. “Sisters? How long are you planning to keep up this charade? Do I need to have someone strip you myself before you’ll admit it?”

At these words, Empress Lei’s expression visibly shifted. She glanced at Cui Lingjing for a moment, then stood up straight. “Your Majesty, I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“Come in!” Cui Lingjing shouted toward the outside.

A palace maid quickly entered the inner chamber. As soon as she came in, she knelt on the ground, casting a fearful glance at Empress Lei before immediately speaking, “Your Majesty, every word I said is true. The Empress never allows us maids to attend her during baths. That night at Qianfo Temple, I had forgotten a piece of clothing, so I went to deliver it to Her Majesty. That’s when I saw—”

She didn’t finish her sentence, but the implication was clear.

Xueya understood as well. He stared in disbelief at Empress Lei by the bed.

The Empress wasn’t a woman?

Cui Lingjing’s icy gaze was fixed on Empress Lei. “Your Lei family really is audacious. Your father concealed the existence of twins, and now you and your brother have been playing tricks under my nose. Did you think I was a fool?”

“Empress Lei” quickly glanced at the window and rushed toward it. But as soon as he climbed over, a sword was pressed to his throat.

Yi Yefeng stood outside the window, expressionless, as if he had known all along that this would be the escape route. Cui Lingjing had not brought many attendants to the Empress’s chambers—only Yi Yefeng—since the fewer people who knew about this disgraceful matter, the better.

Seeing Yi Yefeng, “Empress Lei” knew there was no escape. In moments, Yi Yefeng bound him up and dragged him back into the chamber, forcing him to kneel. Cui Lingjing stepped in front of him, his expression cold. Suddenly, he delivered a vicious kick to “Empress Lei’s” lower body.

***

Hearing the screams outside, Xueya immediately rolled to the far side of the bed, curling up in terror. He thought he was done for. Last time, when the matter between Consort Shu and him was discovered, Consort Shu was merely sent to Qingyan Convent. But this time, it felt different.

“Cut him!” Cui Lingjing seemed beside himself with rage, kicking several more times in fury. He turned to Yi Yefeng and ordered, “Cut it off and send it to Lei Qiurong, that old thing, soaked in wine.”

Yi Yefeng’s expression didn’t change. He drew his sword and brought it down on “Empress Lei,” who was rolling on the ground in pain. The agony broke his concentration, causing his body to revert to its natural male form, and his screams turned into a deep, masculine wail.

“Empress Lei” was drenched in cold sweat, his gaze filled with venom as he looked at Cui Lingjing and Yi Yefeng. He opened his mouth to say something, but Yi Yefeng swiftly broke his ribs with a kick, and the dual pain caused him to pass out.

With “Empress Lei” unconscious, Cui Lingjing finally seemed to calm down. He closed his eyes and said in disgust, “Deal with it. Don’t alert anyone yet. Find Lei Xiangxuan and send Lei Qiurong this man’s severed part.”

Lei Xiangxuan was the real Empress Lei. At this moment, she was happily enjoying herself with her lover in the theater troupe, unaware that disaster was looming.

Lei Xiangxuan wasn’t the only daughter of General Lei. She had a twin brother. Years ago, General Lei had risen to great fame, drawing suspicion from the late emperor, who feared he might overshadow the throne. Twenty years ago, when General Lei’s wife was pregnant, the emperor had personally visited the Lei residence and promised that if the child were a daughter, she would be the future empress, regardless of which prince took the throne.

“No matter which of my sons ascends, I guarantee she will be his empress. But there must be no imperial in-laws,” the late emperor had said.

So, to protect himself, General Lei hid the fact that his wife gave birth to twins, claiming only a daughter was born. The son was raised in secret.

Later, General Lei was injured in battle, losing his ability to father children, so he kept the son’s existence even more hidden. But because they were his only children, he adored both twins, spoiling them to the point where they dared to pull off a deception right under the emperor’s nose.

Lei Xiangxuan didn’t like men, and she especially disliked the Cui family, whom her mother cursed every night in private. She had a lover, an opera performer who played female roles. A few months ago, when she learned in advance that the palace planned to invite the troupe her lover was part of to perform, she couldn’t resist hatching a scheme.

She pleaded with her brother to enter the palace and take her place as empress for a while, while she enjoyed a final period of sweetness with her lover before returning to the palace to resume her duties as empress.

They did not inform General Lei of this plan.

***

After dealing with the “Empress Lei” situation, Cui Lingjing entered the inner chamber, stopping a few steps from the bed. “Get down.”

It took a while before there was any movement. Xueya, having put on his clothes, knelt on the floor without daring to look at Cui Lingjing. When he saw the bright yellow boots step into view, he stammered, “Y-Your Majesty, I was forced… I didn’t…”

Before he could finish, a slap landed on Xueya’s face, knocking him to the ground. His ears rang, and for a moment, he couldn’t get up.

***

Xueya was locked away, unsure where he was. The door was bolted, and guards were stationed outside. Terrified, he spent every waking moment crying, eventually sobbing himself to sleep, constantly regretting ever going to meet the “Empress Lei.”

Would Cui Lingjing kill him?

He surely would, right?

Xueya didn’t want to die. In desperation, he thought of He Xulan. Panicking, when a servant came to deliver food, he grabbed their hand, pleading, “Please, do me a favor. Go tell the Empress Dowager that I’m being held here. I swear I’ll repay you someday. I swear!”

The servant quickly pulled away without saying a word and left. Xueya thought all hope was lost, but to his surprise, that very night, He Xulan appeared before him.

When He Xulan entered, Xueya thought he was seeing things. After staring at him for several moments, he rushed forward.

“Brother, save me! His Majesty wants to kill me! You’re all I have left!” Xueya burst into tears as he threw himself at He Xulan. He had barely eaten for days and had lost a lot of weight.

At that moment, He Xulan was like his last lifeline, and Xueya clung to him desperately.

Afraid He Xulan might refuse, Xueya quickly explained why he had gone to the Empress’s chambers, recounting the events of that night at Qianfo Temple when he encountered the “Empress Lei.” Of course, he didn’t mention that he had gone because he didn’t trust He Xulan; instead, he claimed he was afraid the “Empress Lei” would say something that would harm He Xulan.

“If word got out, His Majesty might punish you, so I went… for your sake. Brother, please save me. I don’t want to die.”

Xueya, worried He Xulan might misunderstand, made sure to emphasize that nothing had happened between him and the “Empress Lei.”

“I know nothing happened between you and him,” He Xulan said.

Xueya’s hope was rekindled upon hearing this. Just as he was about to say, “I’m glad you believe me, brother,” He Xulan spoke again.

“But you should know in your heart whether you went to the Empress’s chambers for my sake or for yourself.”

Xueya froze. Seeing the mocking look in He Xulan’s eyes, he felt a chill. “Brother… I did it for you, of course.”

He Xulan pulled his hand away from Xueya’s grip, calmly saying, “It’s fine if you don’t want to be honest. I’ll make sure you keep your life. After all, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to confirm that the Lei family had a pair of twins.”

In that instant, Xueya suddenly recalled the palace maid who had knelt and reported the situation a few days ago.

For days, he had thought the maid looked familiar. Now he remembered where he had seen her.

She had served at Ningfu Palace.

Xueya stared at He Xulan and took two steps back, biting his lip. “It was you. You were the one who summoned His Majesty, weren’t you?”

He also remembered the events at Qianfo Temple. In hindsight, it all seemed too coincidental.

He Xulan had come to see him, just as “Empress Lei” happened to spot them. Then, when he went to the Empress’s chambers, Cui Lingjing had shown up at exactly the right moment.

Everything had been a trap, and not only for the “Empress Lei,” but for him as well.

“You intentionally let the fake empress see us? And you deliberately let His Majesty catch me with that fake empress, didn’t you?” Xueya was furious. “Didn’t you say you liked me? Why would you do this to me?”

He Xulan looked at him with the same expression as when they had first met—the one he had when Xueya had knelt before him, looking down on him as if he were something filthy.

“Do you think you’re someone worth liking?” He Xulan said.

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