Chapter 56 Do you know what my sword is called...?
Seventeen leaped forward, drawing his sword and blocking the fierce arrow. The clash between the sword and the arrow caused a sharp pain in his hand.
After deflecting the arrow, Seventeen opened the broken window and leaped out like a bird.
Mingyue also drew her sword and stood protectively in front of Long Zhaoming, cautiously looking around. She then pulled out a rope that she had been carrying at some point and used it to tie up Jingyuan, who was trembling with fear.
The waiter below heard the commotion and hurriedly came forward to knock on the door: "Is there anything you need, esteemed guest?"
Long Zhaoming frowned deeply and said coldly, "No need."
The waiter left looking worried. He had clearly heard a noise just now.
With his mouth gagged, Jing Yuan slumped to the side like a deflated balloon, his eyes gloomy.
Long Zhaoming looked at the window that Seventeen had pushed open, his breathing long and heavy.
Soon, a nimble figure slipped in from outside.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, we didn't catch up with him."
Long Zhaoming nodded, his face grim and serious: "As expected, Seventeen, go back to the manor and have Xiao Mowen come to meet you. Don't attract the attention of others."
He nodded at seventeen and climbed out the window again.
Mingyue's gaze fell on Jingyuan, who remained silent, and she asked in a cold voice, "What should we do with this person?"
Long Zhaoming closed the fan and gently placed it on the table, but it still inevitably made a "click" sound. At this moment, the room was unusually quiet, and the click sound seemed like a death knell.
But Jingyuan bit her lower lip tightly and remained silent, offering no explanation.
There's nothing to argue about; he did something wrong, so what's there to argue about?
"Tell me, how did you threaten me?"
Long Zhaoming's voice was the same as before. A glimmer of hope rose in Jing Yuan's heart. After hesitating for a long time, he lowered his head and confessed everything: "A few days ago... someone came to my house and said that he could help my mother get treatment and take her to Yejing for treatment, but... I have to do something for him."
Jing Yuan's voice is actually quite pleasant; he rarely falls asleep when he talks long, rambling speeches to Long Zhaoming.
"They said that the prince would return to Jiangnan in a few days, and asked me to... to invite the prince out of the mansion."
He took a deep breath, paused, and then said, "I was suspicious and asked them why they wanted to arrange a meeting with the prince through me. They said they wanted to get to know the prince, and since they heard that I had a good relationship with him, they didn't think too much about it and agreed."
"The more I thought about it, the more something seemed wrong. The prince is known for his kindness. If he really wanted to get to know him and ask for an audience, he could have just sent a formal invitation. Why did he have to go through me? But I can't contact that person anymore, and I don't know what to do."
Jing Yuan's voice grew softer and softer, and Long Zhaoming understood a bit more: "So you've always wanted to come to the Prince's mansion because you think it's safe inside, is that right?"
"Yes, I thought it would be safer inside the Prince's mansion than outside, with guards around. It would be difficult for that person to find an opportunity to do something bad."
Jingyuan's chest heaved noticeably, clearly indicating that he was extremely nervous and frightened.
"Then why didn't you just tell me directly?"
"Because...because they kidnapped my mother!"
Jing Yuan seemed to have lost all his strength, his vision blurred, he couldn't see or hear anything clearly, and he just murmured, "After I sent the letter yesterday, I thought it would be better to just tell the prince directly than to torture myself like this. But when I got home, when I got home, my mother was gone. There was a note on the table, in my pocket."
Mingyue stepped forward and pulled the note out of his arms.
Long Zhaoming took it and looked at it; his expression became even more gloomy and terrifying.
The other party left a threatening note saying that if Jing Yuan told Long Zhaoming about this, they would kill his mother.
The room remained quiet for a long time, then a sigh was heard.
"Let's deal with it according to the law."
He casually tossed out a sentence and turned to leave, just in time to meet Xiao Mowen who had just entered.
"Your Highness! How are you? Seventeen said there's a thorn—"
Before Xiao Mowen could finish speaking, Long Zhaoming patted him on the shoulder with his fan, silencing him immediately.
"The person who caused the loss to the Prince's Mansion shall be taken back and dealt with according to the law."
"Yes!" Xiao Mowen watched Long Zhaoming's departing figure. The workers and commoners below just looked up curiously, unaware of what had just happened.
Turning his head, Xiao Mowen's gaze upon Jing Yuan seemed to be laced with poison.
Mingyue walked past him, patted his shoulder, and whispered, "His Highness said to arrange everything properly."
Xiao Mowen nodded. He had been by Long Zhaoming's side for a long time and naturally knew Jing Yuan very well. Similarly, he also understood Long Zhaoming's meaning.
Back at the palace, Long Zhaoming let out a breath of stale air, feeling a bit of a headache.
"Your Highness, who was the assassin?"
Seventeen poured him a cup of tea and asked curiously. Long Zhaoming took the tea and smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.
"It must be someone from the Xie family."
Seventeen nodded, understanding the connection.
Mingyue walked in from outside and said, "The person has been found. He died in the river outside the city. No clues were found about his identity."
"It was expected; they wouldn't let someone who failed in an assassination attempt go back alive."
Long Zhaoming's eyes were dark as he pondered his next move.
"Seventeen." Sugan ran in from outside. Upon hearing that His Highness had been assassinated, his first thought was not His Highness's safety, but Seventeen, who was his bodyguard.
"Greetings, Your Highness. Are you alright?"
The worry in Sugan's eyes seemed genuine. Long Zhaoming smiled and unfolded his fan: "It's nothing, just some petty thieves."
"So, are we still practicing martial arts today?"
Long Zhaoming thought for a moment and said, "Little Seventeen, go with him. This matter of mine should be over."
Although Seventeen didn't understand why His Highness said that, she still obediently nodded and took Sugan to the outer courtyard.
Are you going back to Yejing?
Mingyue placed the sword on the table and asked, Long Zhaoming pondered, "I don't think I need to go back for now. The Zhou family hasn't sent me any word yet."
"I still don't trust you enough, and I'm afraid you'll ruin the plan."
A dark glint flashed in Mingyue's eyes. Long Zhaoming could choose not to go to Yejing, but he had to set off.
"A fight's about to break out. Aren't you going back now?"
Long Zhaoming leisurely took a sip of tea, not too worried. The Zhou family and the Xie family were still in the stage of testing each other, waiting for his good brother to take another drastic measure.
That night, Seventeen had just finished washing up when she saw someone standing at the door.
He wasn't panicked; this was the Prince's residence, and everyone here was one of his own.
"Seventeen."
Mingyue's voice came from outside. He was startled, put on his outer robe, and went to open the door: "Brother Yue? What's wrong?"
Mingyue must have finished washing up and changed her clothes before standing at the door.
"...Let me come in first."
His voice was low, and Seventeen suddenly felt a little flustered. His instincts told him that something was wrong with Mingyue.
After the door was closed, Seventeen asked with a worried frown, "Brother Yue, what happened?"
Seventeen looked up and his gaze met Mingyue's, which made him slightly stunned.
That was a look he knew very well... full of emotion and meaning.
But Seventeen was in a state of confusion. He believed that he did not have feelings for Mingyue that went beyond friendship, and his blank experience left him unsure of how to handle this relationship.
"Seventeen."
Mingyue's voice was low. He slowly stepped forward and stood in front of Seventeen.
The two were very close, almost to the point that their breaths mingled.
They had been closer before, but there was no affection between them then.
Seventeen's heart raced, and she dared not look at the person in front of her, but her feet seemed to be glued to the ground, unable to move an inch.
Mingyue's soft sigh rang in her ears. Seventeen felt a heat approaching her and tried to move away, but her lower back was grabbed.
Seventeen was immediately flustered, and just as she was about to say something, she heard Mingyue's soft voice: "Seventeen, do you know the name of my sword?"
"Huh?" Seventeen turned to look at him blankly, taken aback by the sudden topic.
"No, I don't know."
He really didn't know. All he knew was that Brother Yue's sword was rarely used, and it was completely black, but it was clearly a good sword.
Mingyue's soft laughter rang in his ears, sending shivers down his spine.
"I'll tell you what it's called when I have the chance."
Seventeen was puzzled. Why wait for an opportunity? It's just a name; you can just say it offhand.
But just as he raised his eyes to say something, he was stunned by Mingyue's eyes.
It's just...too similar.
For a brief moment, Seventeen almost felt as if His Majesty was standing right in front of him.
Whether it's their eyes or their voices... they seem somewhat alike.
Is the bloodline between brothers really that miraculous? Seventeen thought to himself, his mind a jumble of thoughts.
I feel that Your Highness sometimes resembles His Majesty.
Mingyue pinched Shiqi's cheek with her hand, and the ambiguous atmosphere from before vanished. He looked down at the beautiful person in front of him, feeling both sour and soft-hearted.
Seventeen let Mingyue pinch his soft cheeks, and the panic in his heart did not dissipate even in such an ambiguous atmosphere.
This made him very uneasy.
"Get some rest."
Mingyue didn't say anything else, as if she had only come over to tease Seventeen's heartstrings and pinch his cheek.
Seventeen stood there, stunned. Her cheeks, which Mingyue had pinched, were hot and red, but it seemed... it wasn't because of the pinch.
He groggily threw himself into the blankets, still unable to figure out why Brother Yue had come all this way.
But that night, he had that dream again, that...dream of three people.
Upon waking up, Seventeen wanted to slap herself a few times! She clearly never reads these kinds of stories, so why does she keep having these kinds of dreams?!
Could it be, could it be that he really is such a thirsty person—
Painful and shameful sobs came from under the covers. Seventeen twisted and turned, almost as if she wanted to wrap the covers around herself like a snake.
After a long while, he finally let go of the poor quilt and made up his mind to find out the truth!
He didn't like being kept in suspense like this, and he wanted to find out the truth, whether he liked it or not!
＊
"When did you leave?!"
Seventeen stared wide-eyed at Long Zhaoming in disbelief, forgetting all about the usual formalities.
Long Zhaoming raised an eyebrow and asked, "Didn't he tell you?"
Seventeen, could it be that Yue-ge's unusual behavior last night was because of this?
But what would have happened if I had just told him? Why did you have to sneak away!
"Well, it was an emergency, and he left in a hurry. The situation in Yejing is not good, and His Majesty urgently summoned him back."
Long Zhaoming, in a moment of kindness, poured Seventeen a cup of tea. Looking at the other's anxious and angry face, he secretly chuckled to himself.
He thought his elder brother would explain things clearly to the Seventeenth Prince, but in the end, he didn't say anything.
It seems we still have a tough battle ahead.
"Then why doesn't His Majesty summon me back?"
Seventeen stared at Long Zhaoming, regretting her words as soon as they left her mouth.
He was sent by His Majesty; how could he presume to guess His Majesty's decisions?
"Hey, Little Seventeen, you can't leave! Who will protect me if Little Seventeen leaves?"
Long Zhaoming wasn't annoyed. He patted Seventeen's shoulder lightly and laughed, "Alright, don't be sad. I'll take you out to eat and drink the finest food, okay?"
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Author's note: We're in a long-distance relationship, but it won't last too long; we'll be able to see each other again soon! [Milk tea emoji]
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