Chapter 115
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“The remaining documents, I’ll leave it to you,” whispered Prince Yan. “Mother Empress ordered me to enter the palace to assist Ninth Brother. It seems not causing trouble is the best I can do.”
Han Jiao turned to look at Prince Yan, who appeared disheartened, but didn’t know how to console him.
Xie Duo realized, in hindsight, that he had been too impulsive in pointing out the oversight of his Sixth Brother.
At the same time, he also noticed that a part of his heart seemed to have grown numb, as if he couldn’t genuinely feel his Sixth Brother in front of him.
After learning about his shocking heritage, Xie Duo hardly had time to contemplate his own feelings. He had to stand up, ready to face the closest person who might turn against him at any moment.
This bizarre reality had caused a part of his perception to malfunction.
For example, at this moment, he couldn’t understand Sixth Brother’s disappointment as he used to.
Because when he attempted to treat his loved ones with the identity of the former Ninth Prince, he had to consider whether these people had always been wearing masks to deceive him.
This would make his heart ache.
Everything from the past had become illusion.
Starting from the moment he drank that bowl of soup, Xie Duo felt like he had been completely severed from the former Ninth Prince.
The Empress’ son, Prince Yan’s brother, had fallen into a deep slumber.
Freed from it all, Xie Duo could treat these closest people as strangers, even as potential foes.
Whether this detachment was good or bad, he felt the pain in his heart lessen.
In this world, it seemed like only Han Jiao could bring him genuine joy, only Han Jiao could make him feel alive.
When Xie Duo came back to his senses, he heard Sixth Brother saying to him, “Father Emperor didn’t make a mistake.”
Still the same upright and generous demeanor and tone, the same selfless Sixth Brother as before.
Just like the Empress who still cared for Xie Duo with love and concern.
A flash of murderous intent crossed Xie Duo’s eyes.
This love that was hard to distinguish between genuine and false made him feel a bone-deep fear and made him question whether all the emotions he had invested in since birth had resulted in this insincere affection.
“Your Highness, you should take a rest,” Han Jiao had just advised Prince Yan when Xie Duo, standing nearby, suddenly rose and quietly said, “I’m tired,” and strode out of the study.
Han Jiao and Prince Yan were both puzzled.
As Xie Duo’s figure disappeared at the door, Prince Yan turned to Han Jiao and asked, “Ninth Brother has been lost in thought these past few days. Could he still be at odds with Father Emperor in his heart?”
“Lost in thought?” Han Jiao looked outside in confusion, then back at Prince Yan. “I thought the Ninth Prince seemed quite cheerful lately.”
Prince Yan lowered his head and pondered. “Maybe it’s because he recently became the Crown Prince. He might not feel secure in his heart. Spend more time talking with him.”
Han Jiao nodded in agreement.
In the evening, Senior Minister Li discreetly informed the Crown Prince: the Emperor has awakened.
Xie Duo secretly sneaked into the Emperor’s sleeping chamber in the middle of the night.
These days, Xie Duo had been deliberately avoiding anything related to the Emperor.
The Emperor, the one who had become the thorn in the side and the bane of existence to those closest to him, was the only person in this world who might hold some genuine affection for him.
It was so ironic, but Xie Duo didn’t want to dwell on that thought.
At this moment, the once strong and robust Emperor who stood tall just half a month ago was now lying in a feeble state on the bed.
The dormant Ninth Prince within Xie Duo’s body was suddenly awakened.
He hurried to the bedside, grasping the Emperor’s hand. “Father Emperor?”
“…Duo” The Emperor’s lips, tinged with bluish hue, trembled. It seemed like he hadn’t spoken in a long time, and his voice was like dried leaves being crushed. “Don’t cry… be a man…”
Xie Duo’s numb defenses were shattered instantly.
Before coming, he had many questions to ask this Emperor who had disrupted his entire life. But now, the words that tumbled out were filled with fear and despair, “Father Emperor, please don’t leave me.”
The Emperor couldn’t remember how long it had been since his son had been this disoriented and sought refuge in his embrace. He summoned all his strength, raising his arm to hold his son’s shoulder, wanting him to feel the protective strength that remained.
“Senior Minister Li has already informed you.” The Emperor’s voice suddenly regained its former authority.
The bewilderment on Xie Duo’s face disappeared in an instant. The sudden pain caused the awakened Ninth Prince to retreat back into the depths of his soul to continue sleeping.
Xie Duo, separated from his other self, sat up straight and answered with a numb expression, “Yes.”
“It’s my fault.” Guilt appeared in the Emperor’s eyes. “You shouldn’t have known about this, and the Empress shouldn’t have suspected.”
Xie Duo stared at him with an expressionless face.
The Emperor coughed a few times and frowned. “Father Emperor knows you must be very sad, but the deed is done. You must collect yourself. Don’t be afraid. Father Emperor can hold on. Don’t let the Empress realize her methods have been exposed. You have to work together with Father Emperor and gradually root out all the troubles in the court.”
Suddenly, Xie Duo’s lips curled up. He looked at him with a playful glance. “Remove which troubles? Mother Empress and Sixth Brother?”
“What are you saying…” The Emperor looked at his son in panic. “Didn’t Senior Minister Li tell you? She’s not your Mother Empress.”
“As long as she is willing, she will always be my Mother Empress.”
“A’Duo! Cough… Cough…” The Emperor was startled, trying to sit up, but he fell back weakly. After a violent coughing fit, he gasped and spoke, “She wanted to poison your Father Emperor to disrupt the court and help the Sixth Prince take the throne. How could she still acknowledge you as her son?”
“Mother Empress treats me just like before.”
“She’s pretending! She only wants you to obediently surrender your authority and then take your life!”
“Is that so?” Xie Duo turned his head, looking elsewhere with an expressionless face.
“Have you gone mad? Cough… Cough!”
Xie Duo turned to him. “Any plan can fail. Father Emperor taught me in the past that a true man shouldn’t fear failure. Confronting failure helps us find our mistakes and avoid repeating them. Your plan has failed, and now we can start over together in the next life.”
The panic on the Emperor’s face gradually turned into a dark expression. “A’Duo, everything Father Emperor did, was for you…”
This statement made Xie Duo feel nauseous, but he remained calm. “Father Emperor never asked for my consent. Where does this ‘for me’ come from? I’m just a pawn in Father Emperor’s game. I can’t bear the weight of all your mistakes.”
The Emperor gazed at him intensely. “Do you want to enrage your biological father and grant that wicked woman, who has no connection to you, her desires?”
“I don’t wish for anyone to die,” Xie Duo replied honestly. “I haven’t lived enough myself. If Father Emperor had been open with me ten years ago, I might have been an outstanding piece in the game, but now… now?” Xie Duo laughed with self-deprecation. “What do you want me to do to the woman who raised me for seventeen years?”
“I told you, she’s not your mother,” the Emperor spoke darkly. “She won’t only take your life. She’ll make you my greatest shame.”
“She despises you,” Xie Duo shook his head. “At least she once believed I was her own.”
The Emperor slowly closed his eyes and gave a bitter smile. “What difference does it make if you’re her biological child? Do you think she cares about her children? She only cares about an unshakable position of power. Forget that you’re not her real son. Let’s talk about how, over these years of rivalry between the Old Seventh and Old Sixth for the throne, she whispered slander about Old Seventh into my ear? She’d rather see her own son, who doesn’t listen to her, be dragged out and beheaded. Do you really think she cares about your life or death?”
A hint of shock flickered in Xie Duo’s eyes, but he quickly regained his composure. “That’s impossible. Every time she mentions Seventh Brother, she sheds tears.”
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