Chapter 53
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Hearing this, Jiang Juan could no longer enjoy the wisteria cake.
“Where is His Highness?”
Worrying about the worst, Jiang Juan furrowed his brows and asked, “Is it serious?”
Steward Gao said nothing, only adding, “Your Royal Consort, please follow me.”
The rain was still falling. Jiang Juan took a few steps, and Lan Ting hurriedly opened an umbrella to follow him. Steward Gao glanced back anxiously, feeling extremely nervous.
Sigh, there was nothing he could do.
It was true that His Highness had stayed up all night and braved the rain to buy the wisteria cake for Jiang Juan. However, the part about catching a chill and starting to cough up blood was false. It was merely His Highness making a scene to gain Jiang Juan’s sympathy.
Steward Gao knew the truth but couldn’t say it outright, as this incident was caused by his own meddling.
To keep his own life safe, he was entirely reliant on His Royal Consort. However, as long as His Royal Consort remained angry, Steward Gao had to be on edge, knowing that if His Highness was displeased, he might suffer the consequences.
What could Steward Gao do?
He could only inwardly curse His Highness while faithfully helping to smooth things over with His Royal Consort.
Upon arriving at Liangfeng Courtyard, the maidservants came and went, carrying a golden basin. A handkerchief soaked in water was stained with traces of blood. Jiang Juan looked at it and grew even more worried.
“…Your Highness.”
He hurried inside, and the man was leaning against the bed, glancing over.
Xue Fangli, usually dressed in dark, elaborate robes, had changed into lighter attire today. He looked tired and somewhat unwell, and his naturally striking appearance seemed a bit refined in this moment.
“Why are you here?”
Seeing this, Xue Fangli’s gaze swept over and finally settled on Steward Gao. His voice was cold as he said, “What did I tell you?”
Steward Gao: “…”
He spoke through gritted teeth, “I, I—”
“Your Highness, don’t blame him. I kept asking.”
Jiang Juan quickly defended Steward Gao, who lowered his head in shame and sighed inwardly.
Sigh, His Royal Consort is so kind-hearted; Steward Gao shouldn’t have acted this way.
And His Highness, taking advantage of His Royal Consort’s kindness, kept deceiving him. It really was too much.
Jiang Juan anxiously asked, “Your Highness, how are you?”
Xue Fangli responded casually, “I’m fine.”
With his pale complexion and exhausted demeanor, he didn’t look fine at all. Jiang Juan asked again, “Has the imperial physician come?”
Xue Fangli nodded, “I need to rest for a few days.”
Jiang Juan responded with a soft “oh,” still unable to feel reassured. As he was about to say more, Xue Fangli, seemingly casually, asked, “Did you try the wisteria cake?”
“Do you like it?”
Even though the wisteria cake had made Xue Fangli cough up blood, he still asked if Jiang Juan liked it. Jiang Juan slowly shook his head. “I don’t like it.”
Hearing this, Xue Fangli showed no reaction, merely saying in a flat tone, “If you don’t like it, then it’s fine. I’ll get you something else next time.”
Jiang Juan was taken aback. “Your Highness…”
Xue Fangli asked, “Hmm?”
Yesterday, Jiang Juan was genuinely upset by His Highness’s lies, but now, he felt truly touched. He lowered his eyelashes and sighed softly, “I was lying.”
“I like wisteria cakes, but…”
Jiang Juan continued, “Your health is poor, so next time, don’t go out in the rain to buy wisteria cakes.”
Xue Fangli looked at him and knew that Jiang Juan had been mollified. He smiled lightly and replied, “Alright, I’ll listen to you.”
With that, Xue Fangli waved his hand, dismissing all the servants. Then he said to Jiang Juan, “Come and lie down with me for a while.”
Jiang Juan, who had planned to return to sleep, was not in the mood to argue further. He removed his shoes and socks and was about to climb into bed when he felt a hand on his waist. Suddenly, he was pulled into a warm embrace.
Jiang Juan collided with Xue Fangli and, not feeling any pain, focused on asking, “Your Highness, are you alright?”
Xue Fangli lowered his head, resting his chin on Jiang Juan’s head. He inhaled the youthful scent, almost greedily taking in Jiang Juan’s essence. His voice was deep and hoarse, “How could I be alright?”
The scent of the young man had a magical ability to soothe his restlessness and anger, even alleviating the chronic headaches that plagued him.
After a night apart, Xue Fangli longed to hold Jiang Juan again and missed the scent that belonged to him. At this moment, his embrace was finally filled once more.
Jiang Juan: “Ah?”
Jiang Juan was startled and tried to get up, but the hand on his body seemed intent on keeping him in place. He asked, “Did I hurt you?”
The faint sweet aroma lingered between them. Xue Fangli relaxed and closed his eyes, speaking with pleasure, “Do you think I’m you?”
Jiang Juan was taken aback, realizing His Highness was teasing him about fearing pain. He looked up at him for a while, then lay back down, mumbling, “If it doesn’t hurt, then it’s fine.”
—For His Highness’s sake, he decided to let it go and not argue.
Xue Fangli chuckled softly and began to absentmindedly stroke the back of Jiang Juan’s neck.
Outside, the rain pattered softly, and inside was peaceful and quiet. Jiang Juan, lying in Xue Fangli’s arms, soon began to drift off to sleep. But just as he was on the verge of unconsciousness, he suddenly remembered something and grabbed Xue Fangli’s sleeve. “Your Highness.”
Xue Fangli looked down. “What is it?”
Jiang Juan murmured, “I almost forgot the most important thing.”
Xue Fangli regarded him as Jiang Juan earnestly said, “Please don’t lie to me again, alright?”
“…I really don’t like being kept in the dark.”
He implied that he would no longer hold a grudge about the jade pendant but wanted Xue Fangli to promise not to lie to him. Xue Fangli did not immediately respond, instead asking casually, “Have you ever lied to me?”
The words “No” almost slipped out, but Jiang Juan suddenly remembered his own deception regarding his heart condition.
After a moment of silence, Jiang Juan added, “Lies that are unavoidable are fine, but other lies are not…”
His heart condition was a built-in feature of his character and he didn’t use it frequently, only occasionally when he wanted to avoid social interactions.
It shouldn’t be a big deal, right?
After all, His Highness had little time left. Once His Highness passed away, the heart condition issue would be resolved.
Jiang Juan reassured himself but still felt a bit guilty. He buried his face in Xue Fangli’s shoulder. Xue Fangli glanced at him but did not take it to heart.
Jiang Juan’s lies were merely harmless contradictions. However—there were two things Xue Fangli had deceived him about from start to finish.
The first was that Jiang Juan misunderstood the blood cough issue. The second was that Jiang Juan believed him to be a good person.
Xue Fangli was making every effort to play the role of a good person.
He clicked his tongue inwardly and slowly lowered his eyelids, pondering if Jiang Juan would be afraid if he discovered his true nature. Would Jiang Juan still want to be close to him?
Thinking of this, Xue Fangli’s expression darkened slightly as he closed his eyes, feeling a bit of agitation and gloom.
In the Yangxin Palace.
“Declare—Prince Consort Feiyue arrived.”
Chief Steward Wang’s sharp voice rang out, and soon, someone walked in slowly. Su Feiyue, unhurried, greeted, “I, Su Feiyue, pay my respects to Your Majesty.”
Emperor Hongxing sat and looked at him with a neutral expression, not instructing him to rise. Su Feiyue remained calm and composed, allowing Emperor Hongxing to scrutinize him.
“You haven’t changed much over the years.”
After a long pause, Emperor Hongxing finally waved his hand. “Rise.”
Su Feiyue stood up. Though he was over forty, he didn’t appear aged. He smiled and said, “Your Majesty, you are still as impressive as ever.”
Emperor Hongxing snorted, “I’ve heard that you’ve been idle all these years, spending your time drinking and fishing.”
Su Feiyue considered for a moment and said, “Not entirely idle; there are occasionally some serious matters.”
Emperor Hongxing was intrigued. “Oh? What matters?”
Su Feiyue slowly replied, “Drawing eyebrows and painting flowers for Fuying.”
The Fuying he mentioned was the eldest princess. Emperor Hongxing scolded, “Stop jesting with me.”
After a scolding, Emperor Hongxing said, “You were once the top scholar, a prized student of the Bai Xuechao. Now, you only play around and have achieved nothing. Don’t you feel any remorse?”
Su Feiyue smiled and replied candidly, “Your Majesty, I can’t help it; this soft life is too enjoyable.”
Emperor Hongxing scolded him again before saying, “Before you and Fuying left the capital, I wanted to summon you into the palace, but you ran off so quickly, and Fuying kept stopping me. Now that you’ve seen your old friends and traveled around, it’s time for you to help ease my worries.”
Su Feiyue did not respond immediately, only saying, “That depends on whether Your Majesty’s concerns are manageable.”
Emperor Hongxing got straight to the point. “Among my sons, who do you think is most capable of taking on important responsibilities?”
“Over the years, I’ve become increasingly incapable. The matter of the heir, which I kept postponing, now cannot be delayed any longer.”
Su Feiyue was silent for a moment before asking Emperor Hongxing, “Would Your Majesty like to hear the truth or a lie?”
Emperor Hongxing glanced at him. “Let’s start with some pleasant words.”
Su Feiyue then said, “When I served as the Chancellor, I interacted with two of the princes. The eldest prince is straightforward and resolute; the fifth prince—His Highness the Prince Li—has great wisdom and an almost mystical presence. Even in his youth, he had considerable influence. As for the sixth prince…”
“Quite sincere and ambitious.”
Emperor Hongxing nodded. “These flattering words do sound nice.”
Emperor Hongxing paused for a moment and then said, “And what about the truth?”
Su Feiyue replied sincerely, “None of them are suitable for important responsibilities. Your Majesty might want to rule for a few more years and see if any of your grandsons prove themselves worthy.”
Emperor Hongxing, surprisingly not angered by this, inquired, “Why not Old Five?”
“Old Five has always had great talent from a young age. As for other matters—your imposing presence and unpredictable temperament might seem daunting, but these can be controlled.”
Su Feiyue frowned and reminded him, “Your Majesty, no one can control the fifth prince now. Who will control him in the future?”
Emperor Hongxing said, “Old Five has become more restrained since his marriage. Princess Fuying is hosting a banquet; you can observe him then.”
Su Feiyue didn’t take this comment seriously and responded, “Your Majesty has yet to appoint an heir because many officials in the court are dissatisfied with the fifth prince. Even General Jiang and Prime Minister Gu often advise you, and they too are worried.”
This time, Emperor Hongxing did not respond immediately. After a pause, Su Feiyue continued, “These matters are less important. The throne is Your Majesty’s to bestow upon anyone you choose. However—”
“Your Majesty, in my opinion, the fifth prince doesn’t seem interested in the position. Even if you wish to give it to him, he might not accept it.”
With a loud crash, the rain intensified. Emperor Hongxing slowly lifted his head. After a long moment, he finally realized, “Yes, he does hate me.”
“Even if I offer it to him, he might not accept it…”
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