Zhu Helin dozed off just before dawn. When he woke, the sun was already high, and Su Yan, who had been lying beside him, was gone.
The palace attendants had all been ordered to withdraw far away the night before; without summons, none dared approach, so the surroundings were empty. Zhu Helin jumped out of bed barefoot and searched the hall, but found no trace of Su Yan. He suspected that upon waking and seeing him still asleep, Su Yan had taken the chance to slip away.
For a moment, Zhu Helin had the absurd illusion that he had run into a libertine who, after having his fill, patted his backside and left, while he himself was the pitiful, well-bred maiden abandoned after being toyed with.
With a dark expression, he flung open the hall doors and called out, “Fubao!”
Fubao hurried over at the sound. Seeing the emperor still in his sleeping robes, he quickly draped an outer garment over him and said with a smile, “Congratulations, Your Majesty, you’ve finally gotten what you wished for.”
Only Fubao knew the inside details of Su Yan staying the night; even Cheng Sheng was kept in the dark. Having witnessed over the years how deeply the young master had yearned for Lord Su without attaining him, Fubao felt genuinely happy for him now that his wish had come true.
Zhu Helin felt both joy and worry mingling in his heart as he asked, “Have you seen Qinghe?”
Fubao was taken aback and replied, “Lord Su left the hall half an hour ago, saying he was returning to the office to handle government affairs. I thought it was with Your Majesty’s permission. What, did he not say a word to Your Majesty before leaving?”
Zhu Helin gazed at the bright daylight outside the hall and ground his teeth. “Is he avoiding me?”
Fubao smiled. “Feeling shy after serving in bed for the first time and not daring to face Your Majesty, it’s only natural.”
Shy? Zhu Helin recalled the jade pillow that had nearly struck his forehead and shook his head with a laugh. “Then you’ve greatly underestimated him… Forget it. If I go see him now, I probably won’t get a pleasant reception. Better to take it slow.”
That agreement of “only one night” would still need to be overturned somehow in the future, he would have to find a way to change Qinghe’s mind. For these few days, he would let him be, Zhu Helin thought.
After leaving the palace, Su Yan did not return home but went to his spacious office at the Ministry of Personnel. Though his muscles ached all over, official business still had to be handled. He ordered the servants to prepare a large tub of hot water; after soaking thoroughly in a bath, he began working.
When it was time to leave the office, he sniffed himself repeatedly, making sure there was no lingering scent before boarding the carriage. He was worried the sharp noses at home would catch it and stir up trouble in the household.
The events of last night had ultimately gone off track, seemingly deviating from the original purpose of curing his illness. Whether to let Qilang and Ah Zhui know about this, Su Yan hesitated. On one hand, he did not wish to hide anything from them; on the other, he feared that if Shen Qi found out, he might do something insubordinate, giving the emperor a reason to deal with him.
Since the illness had been cured and the debt settled, and Zhu Helin had agreed that things would end here and no personal feelings would be discussed in the future, perhaps it would be better to suppress the matter for now and tell Qilang and Ah Zhui after everything had settled? At this time of both internal and external troubles, it was unwise to let his private affairs create further complications. Su Yan made up his mind not to speak of it for now.
As for the other Emperor, just thinking of him filled Su Yan with guilt and unease. Last time, little Zhu had said a bunch of nonsense right in front of his father; Su Yan always felt the old emperor could actually hear it. Ashamed to face him, he hadn’t gone to Lotus After Rain Villa for several days afterward. Now that those rash words had come true, wouldn’t the old emperor be furious… furious how? Jump up and beat them soundly? Wouldn’t that ironically hit the mark?
Su Yan slapped his thigh and exclaimed inside the carriage, “If it’s scolding, I’ll take it; if it’s beating, I’ll endure it, as long as he can wake up, I’ll throw away this d*mn face of mine!”
The coachman, Su Xiaojing, didn’t hear clearly and stopped the carriage, poking his head in to ask, “My lord, are you thinking of detouring to Bilian Residence? Then I’ll tell Brother Zhui you had a sudden engagement with colleagues? But before returning home, my lord, you’d better wash off any scent of rouge and powder, Brother Zhui’s nose is sharp.”
“…I’m not going to a brothel.” Su Yan’s face darkened. Then a thought flashed through his mind, and he blurted out, “I was just regretting that I shouldn’t have offended the emperor last night. He’s still willing to give me some face now, but that might not be the case in the future.”
Su Xiaojing showed a look of concern and climbed into the carriage to sit beside Su Yan. “What happened? Isn’t my lord the emperor’s most trusted minister? How did you offend him?”
Su Yan sighed. “It’s all because of the uproar over the demonic book case recently. The emperor is furious and said the mastermind behind it is definitely not just the Void Sect and the Players.”
“Besides them, who else?”
“The emperor believes that whoever stands to gain the most is the most suspicious, even if not the mastermind, they must be colluding with the Players.”
Su Xiaojing asked blankly, “Who… stands to gain the most?”
Su Yan flicked his forehead with a smile. “You look clever most of the time, how do you get muddle-headed when it comes to serious matters? Think about it: the demonic book directly points at the late emperor and the current one, claiming they are not true Sons of Heaven. If that’s the case, who would be the legitimate heir, qualified to sit on that dragon throne?”
Su Xiaojing’s heart began pounding like a drum. Enduring the buzzing in his ears, he said hoarsely, “This humble one is slow-witted, could it be… the imperial princes?”
Su Yan nodded. “In terms of bloodline alone, several of the late emperor’s brothers would qualify. ‘If there is a legitimate son, establish the legitimate; if not, establish the eldest.’ Xin Wang was the eldest son of Emperor Xianzu and should have ranked first among the princes, but he has long since passed away. The others, Ning Wang, Wei Wang, Gu Wang… all stay obediently within their fiefs. Even eagles, once penned in, become chickens, where would they get the wings to soar to the heavens?”
While trying hard to steady his nerves, Su Xiaojing probed, “From what my lord says, it seems you don’t agree with His Majesty’s view?”
Su Yan frowned. “You know my usual way of handling things, ‘leave some leeway for others.’ The princes have already had their military power stripped by the late emperor. If His Majesty still refuses to let it go and insists on pinning crimes on all of them to punish them, how will the officials and common people view it? That’s not the conduct of a benevolent ruler. Last night, it was precisely because I disagreed with His Majesty on this matter that I got…” He sighed dejectedly and did not continue.
Su Xiaojing’s heart pounded as he thought: No wonder my lord didn’t return all night, he must have been punished. Truly, accompanying a ruler is like accompanying a tiger… No, that’s not right! What I should be concerned about now isn’t Lord Su, but…
He forced a smile and comforted him, “My lord needn’t be too downcast. In the future, just go along with His Majesty more, say pleasant things, flatter him a bit, and that will do.”
Su Yan laughed, amused. “Where did you pick up such slick talk! If all officials acted as you suggest, who in court would actually get real work done?”
“This lowly one is talking nonsense, please don’t take it to heart, my lord.” Su Xiaojing made a face and climbed out of the carriage to continue driving.
After the curtain fell, the smile on Su Yan’s face disappeared.
That night, Shen Qi still did not appear. When it was time to sleep, Su Yan called Jinghong Zhui into the bedchamber and told him about how he had deceived Su Xiaojing in the carriage.
Jinghong Zhui thought for a moment and asked, “Why did my lord shift the blame onto the princes? Do you suspect them?”
Su Yan shook his head. “Not at all. For now, the princes all seem fairly obedient, but there’s no guarantee that as the contents of the demonic book spread further, they won’t develop rebellious intentions. I deliberately told Su Xiaojing that the emperor, disregarding kinship and benevolence, is preparing to strike at the princes first, to see whether he would pass this information to Mr. He. Ah Zhui, if you were the Player, how would you make use of this intelligence?”
Without hesitation, Jinghong Zhui said, “Spread the news to the princes across the land, make them think they’re in imminent danger, and incite them to rebel?”
Su Yan said, “Rebel with what? Five hundred guards from each princely residence?”
Jinghong Zhui: “……”
Jinghong Zhui: “If there were a princely guard with martial skill at my level, one alone would be enough to keep the young emperor uneasy, constantly fearing death by a hidden blade.”
Su Yan burst out laughing. “All right, all right, we know our Ah Zhui’s martial arts are number one under heaven. But don’t you dare say that in front of little Zhu, he’ll have your head.”
Jinghong Zhui didn’t think the young emperor could actually take his head, but he still had to give his lord face, so he returned to the main topic. “Then what is my lord’s purpose in deliberately leaking this false information to the Player?”
Su Yan said, “To make him think the new emperor is guilty and flustered, resorting to such a foolish move that invites condemnation for lack of benevolence. After all, when little Zhu was still crown prince, they already pinned the label of ‘cruelty’ on him, now we’ll just add another one.”
“That’s right, the new ruler is weak, young, and invites doubt; the younger one lacks the elder, bah, bah, I’ve been led astray by you, Ah Zhui, lacks his father’s capability, can’t keep his composure, can’t command the situation, can’t win over people’s hearts. If the Player doesn’t make a move now, when will he?”
Jinghong Zhui came to an understanding. “You want to lure the Player into rebelling?”
Su Yan said, “Besides luring the enemy, I also want to force him to reveal his trump cards.
“When Qilang investigated the demonic book case, he carried out large-scale arrests and interrogations of believers, nearly destroying the remaining foundation of the Void Sect, this is the first layer of pressure; if the nationwide public memorial proceeds smoothly and public opinion among the people reverses, that will be the second layer of pressure; if the armies led by Yu Chezhi and Qi Jingtang can defeat Madman Liao, that will be the crucial third layer of pressure. After that, we just wait for the Player to step forward on his own, raise the banner of rebellion, and expose his identity.”
Jinghong Zhui nodded silently.
Su Yan pondered. “There’s one thing that concerns me, Mr. He bought over Xiaojing because he stays by my side and has my trust, making it convenient to gather intelligence? Xiaojing may be somewhat impetuous and rash, but he’s not someone who would easily betray others. What exactly did they use to sway him?”
Jinghong Zhui said, “The truth will come out eventually. When it does, I’ll bring him bound before you and have him beg your forgiveness.”
Su Yan let out a long sigh.
“Ah Zhui, tonight I want to go to Lotus After Rain Villa.”
“…When do we set out?” Jinghong Zhui asked.
“At midnight. The situation is chaotic now, we should act as discreetly as possible. We must not expose the secret that the Emperor Emeritus is still alive.”
Jinghong Zhui nodded. “Then my lord should rest first. I’ll wake you when it’s time to depart.”
***
Late at night, during the hour of Hai, at Lotus After Rain Villa after the rain.
Zhu Helin removed the black cloak that concealed his figure and face, walked to the bedside, knelt on the footboard, and gazed at his sleeping father.
“Royal Father… Qinghe is mine now.” A smile lingered at his lips, light in his eyes, his face unable to hide his excitement and high spirits. “I loved him for three years, and worked for three full years, little by little changing the image I held in his heart, until he no longer looked at me as a junior. Now, he has no choice but to face my feelings and desire, whether he rejects, accepts, or struggles in conflict, it is as one man to another, not brushing off a child. Will you be proud of me, Royal Father?”
“I know that even after sharing a night of passion, he still has knots in his heart. The greatest obstacle is the blood relation between you and me. Why can’t he understand? No matter what our relationship is, father and son, brothers, or strangers, it will not change our feelings for him.”
“It is precisely because we are father and son that we can better understand the feeling of hearts being connected, of loving the same person. When I hold him, sometimes I think about how Royal Father held him. I think that might have been the only moment in your life when you lived for yourself, and I feel happy for you. Though I can’t help but feel a bit competitive, wanting my place in his heart to be heavier, still… I am happy for you, and I hope you will be happy for me.”
“Royal Father, you can hear what I’m saying, and you understand how I feel, don’t you?”
Zhu Helin murmured for a long time, but no response came. He lifted his father’s hand and placed it against his own forehead, rubbing it gently, then suddenly laughed. “Royal Father, if you still don’t wake up, you will gradually harden into a scar in Qinghe’s heart. In the coming years, ten, twenty, I will eventually heal that old wound. And when that happens, from body to heart, he will belong entirely to me.”
Past midnight, Zhu Helin left Lotus After Rain Villa.
Not long after he departed, Jinghong Zhui carried Su Yan and drifted into the courtyard like a wisp of smoke, landing on the outer corridor of the second floor.
“I’ll wait for my lord at the pavilion by the lotus pond,” Jinghong Zhui said.
“No need, Ah Zhui,” Su Yan stopped him. “Come inside with me.”
Knowing that his lord’s trust in him had risen another level, greater even than before he had left, Jinghong Zhui felt secretly delighted. Even when Su Yan sat sideways on the bed, tucked the old emperor’s hand into his robes, and pressed it against his chest, the jealousy he felt was reduced by three parts.
Su Yan quietly gazed at the man on the bed, warming the other’s hand with the affection that filled his chest at every moment.
Half an hour passed, and he still did not say a single word. He only slowly bent down, lowering his head to rest his face against Zhu Jintang’s chest, softly humming a folk song from his hometown: “…asking if my lord is long, asking if my lord is short, asking when my lord will return from this journey?”
The humming echoed again and again in the quiet room, no longer carrying the sorrow of parting between life and death.
When feeling has not reached its extreme, the meaning is already deep; when heart and unfeeling share the same truth, if so, what need is there to put it into words?
At the fourth watch, when dawn was about to break but had not yet, Jinghong Zhui urged Su Yan again, “My lord, it’s time to go. Traveling at daylight will not be discreet enough.”
Su Yan let out a long breath and stood. “Thank you for the trouble, Ah Zhui.”
Their figures vanished from the second-floor corridor in an instant, as silent as when they had come.
On the bed, Zhu Jintang’s fingers trembled faintly without cease.
Another half hour passed, and the sky grew dimly bright. A young medicine boy, yawning, carried a basin of hot water upstairs to perform the routine wiping of the long-sleeping patient.
With a sudden clang, the bronze basin fell to the floor, water splashing everywhere.
The boy’s startled cry shattered the stillness of the villa: “Master! Master, come quickly! He opened his eyes, come look! He opened his eyes!”
