Headache
I instinctively felt I needed to confront him, so just as he was about to enter the restaurant, I swung my bone whip and jumped down from the building to lash him out. He dodged it with remarkable agility, and the disguised guards in front of the restaurant drew their swords and stood up. I was surrounded by them. The Crown Prince twitched his lips and said, "I knew something was off. Turns out it was you."
I dragged the bone whip step by step to him, my voice steady: "You should know that I will definitely be there."
The prince narrowed his eyes, smiled, waved his hand to dismiss everyone around him, and then bowed to me in a proper manner, saying, "Greetings, Aunt."
I raised my hand and lashed out with the whip again. He raised his hand to block, and the bone-splitting whip left a long, bloody welt on his arm. Blood flowed from the wound, carrying a dark gray, menacing aura… The men around him stepped forward, intending to subdue me, but he stopped them with a gesture. He took two steps closer to me, not even glancing at his wound, and said only, “Aunt, you should know that I am now the Crown Prince. I should thank you, Aunt. If it weren’t for you, Aunt, how could I have seen the light of day again?”
"Okay, I'm really angry." I nodded and said, "Hmm, let me whip you a few more times. What if things change?" After saying that, I raised the whip to continue whipping. The prince took a step back, and the man beside him immediately stepped forward and kicked me. I was hesitating whether to dodge or take the kick, when I was pulled back a few steps. Mu Li raised his fist and punched the man's kick, causing the guards beside the prince to stagger backward.
Muli then bowed to the Crown Prince and said, "Muli greets the Crown Prince."
"Mu Li?" The Crown Prince raised his eyebrows. "The eldest grandson of the Mu family?" After saying that, he raised his hand to stop the servants around him again, and only bowed to me. "Goodbye, Aunt."
I had just taken a step forward when Mu Li grabbed my arm. He tilted his head and whispered, "There's plenty of time," before pulling me away. When we sat back down on the second floor of the restaurant, the people opposite us had already gone into the private room across the hall…
I tapped a chopstick here and there, sighing, "Sigh..."
"What's wrong?" Mu Li asked with concern, "Why did you hit the Crown Prince?"
The thought of that dripping blood, tinged with malevolence, made me sigh even more deeply: "Sigh..."
I was so frustrated that I grabbed Muli's arm and shook it: "What should I do? What should I do? I'm going crazy..."
He took my hand: "What's wrong? Is there something wrong with the Crown Prince?"
"Yes, something's really wrong! Like, there's no going back, ahhhhh..." I grabbed Muli's arm again and shook it: "I'm going crazy, I'm going crazy..."
He smiled, raised his other arm and patted my head, comforting me: "Don't be angry, we'll always find a way."
"Sigh..." It's now confirmed that the Crown Prince has been completely corrupted by the malevolent energy, and he's even lost his mind...
Now I only have one path left: depose the crown prince.
Thinking about this gave me an even bigger headache… Me, a cultivator, being forced to get involved in the power struggles of the imperial court? What kind of nonsense is this? And I have absolutely no skills in it! I'm completely inept at political maneuvering…
Feeling frustrated and helpless, I could only slump down and rest my head on Murasaki's arm: "What should I do, Murasaki..."
"I'll help you. The prime minister and I will both help you."
I heard his comforting voice above me. I looked up, rested my chin on Muli's arm, and looked at him silently. Suddenly, he lowered his head and kissed the mask on my forehead...
The frustration I felt about being the deposed crown prince was instantly overwhelmed by another kind of trouble. I pushed his hand away, utterly incredulous: "What are you doing? What were you just doing?"
He blushed and laughed, "I... I didn't do anything..."
Could he like me? I took a deep breath and stood up abruptly: "You...you..." My mind was a mess, and I could only think of one reason to refuse: "We're from different generations!"
He stood up, walked over to me, and tilted his head: "No, how could that be? You didn't marry your grandfather."
"But...but..." I thought of another reason: "Humans and ghosts are different, we...we are on different paths, we can't be together!"
Unexpectedly, he still took a step closer to me, looking at me with a warm smile: "I don't ask to die together, I only ask for a moment."
A moment later? "You scumbag!"
"Xu Yi misunderstood. What I meant was, I just want you to be with me right now."
"Are you crazy? I'm just a skeleton!"
"But the bones are just the surface; inside is still the loyal and affectionate Xu Yi that I love."
Is this some kind of soul-body theory coming at me?
I held out my hand in refusal: "No, what would a little kid like you know? You like it?"
“It’s okay,” he said, brushing his fingers against my fingertips. “I was just too sudden. Don’t worry.”
What's the rush?! No, what's the rush?!
...
Forget it, I'm speechless. I waved my hand and said, "I need to go and discuss this with the Prime Minister..."
"I'll stay with you."
“You…” I remembered that inexplicable kiss just now: “You won’t suddenly…”
"No, Xu Yi, I'm quite reliable when it comes to serious matters."
That's true, Mu Li is indeed quite reliable when it comes to serious matters. Moreover, he is a military officer, while the prime minister is the head of the civil officials; the two of them together will think more comprehensively. "Alright, let's go together."
When the three of us sat back down in the secret room of the Prime Minister's residence, the Prime Minister looked quite unwell, and his tone was very irritable: "At this critical juncture, this kind of trouble has to come up. I haven't taken action in years, and now I have to do something big..."
I smiled apologetically: "It was my oversight, it's my fault. Please don't be angry, I don't know anything about these things, so I can only rely on the two of you."
The prime minister sighed and looked directly at me: "Xu Yi, if it is really as you say, and the crown prince has been corrupted by resentment and cannot be saved, then we have no choice but to deal with the crown prince. In recent years, thanks to His Majesty's delegation of power, the crown prince has gradually gained influence, with many talented people under his command. Moreover, the crown prince has the right to rule, and at a glance, there is no one who can rival him..." He paused here: "In the entire royal family, the only one of similar age to the crown prince is the tenth prince."
Is this a reminder to put Ah Shi on the throne? Do I really have to push Ah Shi out? No, no, he finally embarked on the path of cultivation and no longer has to suffer in the mortal world. How can I push him back?
In fact, the prime minister said that since the crown prince was corrupted by resentment, he has acted more appropriately and more like a crown prince than before...
But if the prematurely deceased third prince were to replace the crown prince and inherit the dynasty, and if the deceased were to bear the fate of the dynasty, it would only push the dynasty into an abyss of destruction...
The Crown Prince's violent nature will only become more uncontrollable as he grows older. He can still control his behavior now, but who knows what he might do later? Moreover, with his unorthodox perspective on the world, it's unimaginable what outrageous things he might do...
This thing is like a hemp rope; once the rope unravels, it will transform into countless tiny threads, affecting many aspects of the mortal world…
This precedent must not be set... I didn't hear a single word of what the prime minister and Muli discussed afterwards...
After leaving the Prime Minister's residence, my heart was heavy... I rode in Mu Li's carriage back to the Imperial Observatory in silence, my steps unsteady even as I got off the carriage... Mu Li quickly steadied me, looking at me with concern: "Be careful."
I nodded and said, "Thank you." Then I pushed him aside and walked into the Imperial Observatory alone.
It was late, and most of the people at the Imperial Observatory were resting; the entire corridor was shrouded in silent darkness. When I walked under the eaves and saw the two empty chairs, my heart sank for a moment.
Never mind, the sun will still rise tomorrow. I'll get some sleep first...
When I opened my eyes the next day, I noticed the difference in my body. I looked up and saw a pair of complete hands covered in flesh and blood, then a complete arm and body... What was going on? My flesh and blood grew back overnight?
I walked under the eaves in great surprise and waved my flesh and blood hands at the supervisor: "Supervisor, I grew flesh and blood overnight!"
"Hmm," the supervisor nodded, "Yes, little Xu Yi, congratulations on taking another step forward, but be careful."
"Be careful of what?"
"People say that every hurdle is difficult to overcome, and this is another difficult hurdle to get through."
"What barrier? What are you talking about?"
The supervisor waved his hand: "It's nothing, it's nothing, you'll find out later..."
The way he said that made it sound like he already knew. I pouted and said, "Okay, okay, I'll just be careful! By the way, why did I suddenly grow flesh and blood overnight?"
"You've had an idea, little Xu Yi."
"A thought? What thought?"
"Love."
"Feelings?" I examined myself: "No! I don't like Muli!"
“Affection is not emotion; you are attached to appearances and desires.”
What is this all about? I can't understand a single word...
Just as I was marveling at this, Ah Shi rushed over in a panic. He was first surprised: "Auntie...Auntie, you have meat?"
What kind of talk is that? "Yes, yes, I've grown flesh and blood."
"I didn't expect my aunt to be so beautiful, much prettier than in the royal portraits."
"Does the royal family even have a portrait of me?"
"Haha, little Xu Yi, you did sacrifice yourself for your country, so of course you deserve a portrait!"
Never mind, it's not important. I asked Ah Shi, "Why did you rush over here in such a panic?"
"Oh right, Auntie, there's something wrong with the pool."
"Abnormal?" I sat bolt upright. "What's abnormal?"
"The pool used to be very clear, but today the servants who were watching over it discovered that there was a thick layer of moss floating on the surface, and it also had a faint stench. The guards were worried that someone had thrown a corpse into it, but they dared not go into the water because of your and General Mu's orders, so they came to me for help."
Sigh... what's meant to happen can't be avoided...
I resignedly followed Ah Shi to the edge of the pool. As soon as we got close, I smelled a stench. No wonder the guards suspected there was a corpse inside; the smell was just too awful of decay…
I wanted to take off my clothes and go down to check, but then I remembered that I was now flesh and blood, so I pointed at Ah Shi and said, "Ah Shi, go down and see if there's anything unusual."
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