Chapter 72 Chapter 72
"Are you staying here to find out if I remember what happened after I got drunk, and to see my reaction?" Jiang Huai asked directly.
Xiao Jingzhao was silent for a moment, then nodded again, his hands unconsciously curling up at his sides. Jiang Huai's question made him feel that Jiang Huai cared about him. Perhaps things were not as he imagined...
Facing Xiao Jingzhao's answer, Jiang Huai took a deep breath. Just now, when he thought his guess was wrong, he wanted to leave completely. If he had not discovered Xiao Jingzhao's existence, he might have acted in this direction.
But now...
Jiang Huai felt so depressed that he couldn't help but sigh.
The sigh made Xiao Jingzhao's heart rise instantly, and his body stiffened and he dared not move.
Jiang Huai raised his eyes and looked at Xiao Jingzhao carefully, feeling a little emotional. No wonder they say that beauties become more beautiful the more you look at them under the light. Last night, Xiao Jingzhao really became more and more beautiful, otherwise he wouldn't have seen her as a puppet in his dream. Now, although her face was a little pale and in a bad state due to lack of rest, she looked even more fragile when coupled with the other party's nervous and uneasy gaze, which made her look even better.
Wait, what is he thinking?
Realizing that he was bewitched by Xiao Jingzhao's appearance again, Jiang Huai abruptly withdrew his gaze, and the tips of his ears turned red.
Jiang Huai is very aware of his face-obsession. When he sees a good-looking person, he can't help but look at them a few more times, and his attitude will become better. However, this attribute seems to be enhanced in Xiao Jingzhao. I don't know if it's because of his feelings.
Jiang Huai shook his head, trying to sober himself up and not be easily fooled by the face. Even if he liked Xiao Jingzhao, Xiao Jingzhao's identity and his previous concealment still made Jiang Huai unable to face him with the same mood.
However, Xiao Jingzhao had been keeping a close eye on Jiang Huai's every move. Jiang Huai's gaze stayed on his face for an unusually long time, which made Xiao Jingzhao unconsciously think of Jiang Huai's performance last night.
It seemed that when facing him, Jiang Huai would soften his heart for a moment.
Of course, even though her heart would eventually harden, that was because he left.
Xiao Jingzhao found that he seemed to have found a way out of the dilemma. Although this method could not completely solve the problem, as long as there was a possibility, he could not give up.
So the most urgent thing is to not be kicked out by Jiang Huai and to stay here for a while.
Without waiting for Jiang Huai to speak, Xiao Jingzhao handed him a piece of paper with dense writing on it.
"Is this... your answer?" Jiang Huai's tone was full of doubt, but he was certain of his guess in his heart and took it.
"You prepared these specially because you were afraid that I wouldn't listen." Jiang Huai glanced at it and shook the paper in his hand.
"I'm afraid that you'll see that I'm upset and won't listen to me." Xiao Jingzhao lowered his eyes, with a trace of uneasiness on his face. His expression became softer, which made Jiang Huai unconsciously think of the way he saw Xiao Jingzhao when he was in exile. The other party's eyebrows were also so soft at that time, and then slowly turned to a cold and hard look, but he was still soft when facing him.
"If you insist on saying it, I can't refuse." Jiang Huai blinked and didn't rush to read the content.
From the time Xiao Jingzhao secretly came to see him last night, and even when he treated her like a toy, she obediently let him touch her. Jiang Huai knew what was said above without even reading it.
There was a hint of sarcasm in Jiang Huai's words, but it made Xiao Jingzhao feel relieved. If Jiang Huai had really let it go completely, given Jiang Huai's personality, the other party would definitely speak very appropriately and would not be rude to him. However, that fake smile also meant that Jiang Huai no longer cared about him. Now it actually showed that Jiang Huai cared about him.
"Huai'er, apart from my identity, I have never pretended anything else in front of you." Xiao Jingzhao said in a low voice, "regardless of my personality, preferences, or feelings for you..."
Jiang Huai believed that Xiao Jingzhao's feelings should not be disguised. After all, to be honest, with Xiao Jingzhao's current identity, even if his feelings were disguised before, there is no need to continue pretending now. At most, it is a matter of the depth of the feelings. However, the other party can express it so restrainedly, which is enough to prove that Xiao Jingzhao's feelings for him are definitely not shallow.
Because love is possession and restraint. If there is only possessiveness but no restraint, Xiao Jingzhao can't bear it like this.
As for preferences, Jiang Huai wasn't sure if they were real or fake, but his personality...
"I remember everyone was talking about His Royal Highness the Crown Prince..." Jiang Huai blurted out. Not to mention the character of Xiao Jingzhao described in the original text, most of it talked about Xiao Jingzhao's performance after he ascended the throne, but the current timeline has changed a lot from before.
Not to mention what he did, his relationship with Xiao Jingzhao was not in the original text, and the impact it had on his character was definitely not small.
The main thing is to compare it with the original character. Although Jiang Huai didn't know Xiao Jingzhao before, Jiang Taifu was the prince's teacher. Jiang Huai had a deep impression of the prince. He was gentle and elegant, soft on the outside and strong on the inside...
The Xiao Jingzhao he knew was kind-hearted yet cruel, cold yet gentle, and quite liked to play tricks on him. Then, because he was too honest, he was bullied by him. Although they couldn't be said to be completely opposite, the gap was quite large.
Xiao Jingzhao understood what Jiang Huai meant, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly. He asked, "Huai'er, do you think that the way you look in the eyes of outsiders is different from the way you really look?"
"Or is it different from how you are around people you're close to?"
Although Xiao Jingzhao's words were just a hint, they made it very clear that he had not actually changed much, but in the eyes of outsiders, he might have changed.
…
When Jiang Huai saw the sealed palace in front of him, he was still a little confused and didn't know how he followed Xiao Jingzhao here.
"Don't you have to deal with government affairs?" Jiang Huai looked at the brightening sky. Although he did not understand the court's recent procedures for handling government affairs, it would not be appropriate for Xiao Jingzhao, an emperor who was only waiting for the coronation ceremony, to abandon government affairs.
Moreover, Xiao Jingzhao has only been in Beijing for a short time. If he doesn't work hard, he might not be able to sit firmly on the throne. But if he loses his position on the throne, Xiao Jingzhao will definitely not have a good ending.
"Huai'er, are you worried about me?" Xiao Jingzhao could hear Jiang Huai's worry about him. It was obvious that the other party was not looking for an excuse to leave, but was genuinely worried about him. "No, I've already taken care of it before coming here."
After all, although he is busy now, he has promoted some officials who should be promoted. He even worked overtime to handle government affairs yesterday, otherwise he would not dare to come to Jiang Huai like that.
"Then how do we get in?" Jiang Huai looked at the sealed door. Xiao Jingzhao said that he would take him to see where he lived as a child so that Jiang Huai could have a clearer understanding of him, and then he brought him here.
But the palace was sealed, and unless the seals were removed, how could anyone get in? If the seals were removed, he would be discovered as soon as he entered. Even with Xiao Jingzhao's current status, being discovered wouldn't be a big deal, but it would be a bit embarrassing.
Jiang Huai looked around. He knew that Xiao Jingzhao would definitely not come out alone. There should be secret guards around him. However, he looked left and right and could not find where the secret guards were hiding, let alone anyone coming out to help.
"We won't go through the main gate." After Xiao Jingzhao said that, he pulled Jiang Huai around to an alley on the side. After walking for a while, he suddenly jumped onto the wall and climbed over it easily.
Jiang Huai was stunned. Although he knew that Xiao Jingzhao did not fit his impression of a prince from the moment he climbed up the beam, his action of climbing over the wall was too skillful.
"This is the courtyard where I lived when I was a child. I used to go out often from here, and my uncle would often pick me up here." Xiao Jingzhao lowered his head, his tone filled with nostalgia. Even if he wanted to go out at that time, he knew that if he went out alone, it would be dangerous on the one hand, but as long as he went out once, without anyone to help cover him, he would be exposed soon.
"Is Wei Xuan the only one who knows about this?" Jiang Huai looked up.
Xiao Jingzhao chuckled and nodded.
Jiang Huai knew that if more people knew about it, Xiao Jingzhao would never be able to master such a skillful wall-climbing technique.
But Xiao Jingzhao did climb up. How did he get up there?
While Jiang Huai was struggling, Xiao Jingzhao jumped down again, then turned over again while holding Jiang Huai. Jiang Huai only had time to scream before he felt his body flying into the air. He stayed on the top of the wall for less than a second before falling into the courtyard wall.
Xiao Jingzhao was very familiar with this place. He pulled Jiang Huai into the courtyard. The courtyard was very large. Although no one had lived there for a long time, the layout and furnishings were still exquisite. It just seemed that it had not been cleaned for some time and looked a little shabby.
Xiao Jingzhao hasn't been back for a long time. After all, he has had no chance to come back since he entered the palace.
However, just because he hadn't been back for a long time didn't mean that Xiao Jingzhao had forgotten this place. When he returned to his old place, Xiao Jingzhao pointed to the courtyard and began to introduce it.
Xiao Jingzhao wanted Jiang Huai to have a clear understanding of his childhood. When he brought Jiang Huai here, Xiao Jingzhao thought he could tell a lot of things. But when he really introduced them to Jiang Huai, Xiao Jingzhao found that his childhood was extremely boring. The only thing he could say more about was his parents' relationship.
After all, because of his birth, Wei Shu's body was damaged and she could no longer conceive. It was impossible for Xiao Hong, who was the third prince at the time, to have only one child. This number of offspring was too few. Once something happened to Xiao Jingzhao, and he had not married a concubine to have children, Xiao Hong would be older and might not even be able to have children, which would mean that he would have no descendants. After all, Wei Shu became pregnant with Xiao Jingzhao several years after she married Xiao Hong.
Because Xiao Jingzhao prevented Wei Shu from getting pregnant, and Xiao Hong married a concubine, Wei Shu's attitude towards Xiao Jingzhao was sometimes good and sometimes bad, so that since Xiao Jingzhao could remember, he had been studying non-stop, because only by showing his excellent side could Xiao Hong take a second look at him and make Wei Shu more satisfied.
But this makes childhood very boring.
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