Chapter 24
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
Trembling, Fu Nian lifted the last few semi-transparent layers of gauze. Although his face remained expressionless, his breathing had become uneven.
Gazing at the figure on the dragon bed wearing a wedding gown and a phoenix crown, Fu Nian reached out and placed his hand on the hand of the “person.”
The touch of jade and stone wasn’t as cold as he had imagined; instead, it was somewhat warm.
A warm jade-made figure?
Could it be that the so-called affectionate Empress was actually a fake?
With doubts in his mind, Fu Nian’s hand continued to move along the “person’s” sleeve and gradually reached inside. He touched about two inches in but found his progress limited due to the narrow cuff.
Indeed, it was a fake figure made of warm jade, Fu Nian confirmed.
—If he had truly met the Empress in person, he would have fulfilled his lifelong wish and could have passed away contentedly after expressing his gratitude. But now, lying before him was a fake person, deepening his confusion.
With questions swirling, Fu Nian’s hand moved slowly towards the veil covering the “person’s” face, and he lifted it open.
In that moment of revelation, he froze in place as if petrified, his breath suspended for a long time.
—The person looked exactly like him from his previous life.
Not only the facial features, but even the scars on the face were exactly the same as in his previous life.
Fu Nian stared blankly at this “person” who looked exactly like himself from his previous life, his mind a complete void.
The scene before him had no connection whatsoever to any of the outcomes he had imagined.
Clearly… when he was alive, he had never tasted any warmth from Chu Zhaoyi, and at most, during moments of embracing, he might hear a few rehearsed endearments.
Even during tender moments, Chu Zhaoyi had never implied giving him a status or an official position just to coax him.
Stunned for who knows how long, Fu Nian mechanically pulled the veil back over the face, his hand moving slowly down to the wedding gown worn by the “person.”
Layer upon layer of golden embroidery, the craftsmanship beyond words, even more extravagant than the dragon robe.
Lost in his reverie, Fu Nian suddenly heard a commotion coming from the direction of the door.
“Hey, don’t be surprised. I heard that you found the prosthetic limb of that dog a while back—”
“His name is Fu Nian!”
“Alright, alright, I’ve known the name of your pet—”
Fu Nian, who had been staring blankly at the dragon bed, instantly realized that the owner of the sleeping quarters had returned due to the argument outside.
Hastily, he straightened the clothes of the “person” before him, smoothed the wrinkles on the bed with his prosthetic limb, and hastily arranged the layers of thin gauze curtains.
Exiting through the main door was definitely not an option.
Surveying his surroundings, in his haste, Fu Nian ignored the wound on his right shoulder and swiftly leaped onto the beams of the room. He took cover behind the carved beams and painted columns, crouching silently.
At this hour, Chu Zhaoyi wouldn’t be retiring for the night. At most, he would come to the sleeping quarters to take a look before returning to the main hall to handle political affairs. Waiting for Chu Zhaoyi to leave and finding a way to exit later would be much safer than forcing his way out now.
Hunched on the beams, Fu Nian could faintly hear the sounds of an altercation outside. More precisely, it was only Chu Zhaoyi who was furious, while his Senior Brother continued to speak provocatively as always.
After a while, Fu Nian finally saw Chu Zhaoyi stride into the room. Upon entering, all the guards and officials instinctively stopped outside the screen, leaving only Chu Zhaoyi to walk into the inner room with big strides.
Fu Nian watched as this man in imperial robes approached with heavy breathing, walked towards the dragon bed, pulled aside the cloud-like gauze curtains, and stared fixedly at the “person” lying on the bed.
—In the next instant, the man’s expression, which had been cold and stern just a second ago, suddenly softened as he gently approached the cheek of the “person” on the dragon bed. Like a cat, he gently rubbed against it, saying softly, “Good, did you rest well today? Did I startle you earlier? Hmm? Alright, I’m not scolding you. Don’t be angry…” Finishing his words, he kissed the forehead of the “person” reverently for a long time, then reluctantly rose, “There are still some affairs of state left to handle. I’ll come back to accompany you later, alright?”
Fu Nian’s eyes widened, and he involuntarily clenched his fists.
The surge of qi and blood left his mind blank, his hands and feet trembling uncontrollably. He almost lost his balance and nearly fell off the beam.
He hadn’t expected Chu Zhaoyi to be capable of speaking such saccharine words. So, it wasn’t that Chu Zhaoyi was incapable of saying such things, he just hadn’t said them to him…
Waiting for Chu Zhaoyi to stride out, Fu Nian heard the commotion outside the sleeping quarters continuing. Presumably, the guards who had been drugged were still not fully recovered.
Even though he was filled with doubts, Fu Nian had no choice but to leave quickly.
Taking advantage of the chaos, slipping out of the sleeping quarters was relatively easy.
Once out of the sleeping quarters, Fu Nian found an unoccupied corner and was about to leap over the wall when he felt a tug on his collar. He was lifted up in the air.
In his peripheral vision, he recognized the attire of his Senior Brother, and the face covering had been torn off, revealing a stern expression.
It wasn’t until they reached the rooftop that Fu Nian was set down.
“Are you satisfied now?” Fu Zhen had a stern face as he asked, “If you are, settle the payment.”
Fu Nian adjusted his breathing, “Very satisfied. Thank you for your assistance, Lord. How much do I owe you?”
“Not much, a thousand taels of gold. That old fox caught me red-handed, and the rewards and land I was promised last time all vanished. Considering you don’t have much money, I’ve already asked for much less than I initially intended,” Fu Zhen said, then sighed, “You’ve really put me in a difficult situation. From now on, I won’t inquire about any information related to that old fox. It’s bad luck.”
A thousand taels of gold, isn’t that quite a sum?
Fu Nian thought that he hadn’t been able to eavesdrop on the exact contents of their argument on the beams earlier, and now he didn’t even know how to argue.
Besides, the scene he had witnessed in the sleeping quarters had been too overwhelming; he was still processing it.
“Did you hear me? One thousand taels!” Fu Zhen, seeing his lack of response, intentionally raised his voice.
“I heard. I’ll give you a hundred taels upfront, and the rest, I’ll try to gather—” Fu Nian was cut off by Fu Zhen, who said impatiently, “Don’t take your time. Within a month.”
Within a month? Fu Nian thought that even if he sold himself as a laborer, he couldn’t possibly gather that much money. Returning to his old profession… he had committed too many sins in his past life, even the underworld wouldn’t accept him.
“If you can’t gather it, come to my residence and help with work,” Fu Zhen interrupted his thoughts irritably. Seeing his perplexed expression, Fu Zhen added, “I’ll find a way to inform you of the specific location of the mansion in a couple of days.”
“Understood, I will obey your orders,” with limited resources, Fu Nian reluctantly agreed, “Your kindness is immense, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to repay it.”
After agreeing, Fu Nian kept thinking about the scene he had seen in the sleeping quarters. Since his senior brother knew that his prosthetic limbs had returned from the previous life, he must also be aware of what had happened in the sleeping quarters. Fu Nian decided to probe further.
“Also, sir, how come you have no fear when facing the Emperor? I truly admire that,” Fu Nian asked.
“He also has needs from me, and I have needs from him. It’s a symbiotic relationship where neither can do without the other for now. Why should I fear him? The more you grovel like a dog, the more he’ll look down on you,” Fu Zhen replied and quickly added, “Of course, I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t fear him either. I used to grovel before those surnamed Chu in the palace, because at that time I didn’t have any use for them.”
Fu Nian lowered his head and humbly said, “I understand.”
Although he didn’t know why there was mutual dependence between his senior brother and Chu Zhaoyi, he was certain it wasn’t a minor matter.
“There’s another matter. When I entered the sleeping quarters, I unintentionally saw… a fake person lying on the dragon bed. I was quite puzzled, wondering if you’ve heard anything about it, Lord.”
Fu Zhen almost immediately responded, “What? There’s a fake person on the dragon bed? That old fox has such a peculiar taste?”
Fu Nian: …
“When I was still a newcomer in the palace, I heard about how affectionate the Emperor and the Empress were. This time, when I entered the sleeping quarters, aside from having the intention to steal something, I also wanted to take a peek at the Empress’s true face, so I could sell the information for some money. But unexpectedly, I only saw a fake person dressed in wedding attire…” Fu Nian lowered his voice as much as possible, trying to sound perplexed.
There was a long silence, and then Fu Nian heard Fu Zhen mutter, “Oh.”
After a long while, Fu Nian finally heard Fu Zhen speak, “Understood.”
Fu Nian waited for Fu Zhen to continue.
However, he waited for quite a while, and Fu Zhen still didn’t continue speaking.
After a long time, Fu Nian finally heard Fu Zhen mutter, “They actually created another fake one, how persistent…”
“What?” Fu Nian heard clearly, but he still pretended to be puzzled and asked.
His senior brother must surely know something, Fu Nian thought to himself.
There was a hint of malice in Fu Zhen’s eyes as he calmly spoke, “I see you’ve figured out what the statue is. I can only remind you not to use your curiosity in such matters. That old fox’s fetishes are even more unimaginable than you think. At least now it’s just a fake, but what was there before… that was truly nauseating.”
“What do you mean by ‘at least now it’s just a fake’?” Fu Nian quickly asked. “And what was so nauseating before?”
Fu Nian was certain that his Senior Brother knew something, and that’s how he felt.
A trace of maliciousness flashed in Fu Zhen’s eyes, and he spoke in a calm and unhurried manner, “I see, I understand what you’re referring to now. I’ll remind you, curiosity is not meant to be directed towards something like that. The old fox’s peculiar taste is far more unimaginable than you think. At least now it’s a fake person, but what existed before… that was truly disgusting.”
“What do you mean it’s at least a fake person?” Fu Nian hurriedly asked, “And what was it before that was so disgusting?”
The impact of the scene from earlier was too overwhelming. Confusion clouded his mind, and he temporarily disregarded their different statuses. He was relentlessly pursuing answers, his breathing grew uncontrolled, and his tone finally contained traces of “emotion.”
After asking, Fu Nian didn’t hear a response for a long time.
Just as he was about to speak up again to continue his questioning, he saw Fu Zhen turn his head towards him, fixing him with a steady gaze.
“I see. I’ve known you for some time now, and in the past, you’ve always been composed and indifferent when speaking or acting. Today is the first time I’ve seen you so worked up over something,” Fu Zhen said coldly, intentionally pausing for a moment. “Tell me, can you really become so interested in that ‘fake person’ after sneaking in and stealing something? So quickly?”
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
