Chapter 14: Rage

Song Xian came over and frowned, "What are you thinking about?"

Sui Yan asked, "Who is responsible for the wine at today's banquet?"

Song Xian pointed at himself and said, "Me."

Sui Yan looked at him suspiciously: "As a guest, why are you going to take care of these things? There is no one available in the Third Prince's Mansion?"

Song Xian said, "I came early and was bored anyway, so I just picked up a job. Why are you asking this?"

Sui Yan blinked at him and whispered, "Then can you secretly replace my wine with peach honey?"

Song Xian: “…”

Jiang En and Wu Xin Wu Fei also hurriedly said, "Me, me! I want one too. Can you give me ginseng soup instead?"

Song Xian: “…”

Song Xian looked at the two men as if they were idiots, and after a while he said speechlessly, "Are you two here to mess things up?"

Sui Yan burst out laughing and stopped teasing him.

After a while, Duan Zhisu came back. Maybe there were too many guests to receive, so he didn't sit in the side courtyard for long before dragging Song Xian out. Jiang Enhe seemed to find it amusing and followed him out.

Before leaving, Sui Yan held the small hand stove and raised his voice: "Your Highness, do you need my help?"

Even though he said this, he didn't even show any sign of getting up. Duan Zhisu was so angry that he laughed and said, "It's so cold outside, just stay here and don't make trouble for me, I'll be thankful."

Sui Yan could now be lazy openly, and he smiled.

Sui Xun was probably too bored of waiting, so he found a book from somewhere and started reading.

Sui Jia was a military official, and because of the stubborn temperament of the Manchus, he could not curry favor with the powerful, and he did not get along well with both the civil and military officials in the court.

Because Sui Yan and Duan Zhisu had been friends since childhood, and the entire Sui family had extensive contacts with the Third Prince's lineage, others secretly said that the unfavored Third Prince had somehow found some good fortune to be able to board the Sui family's big ship. With the support of the Sui family, Duan Zhisu had unknowingly gained a bargaining chip to compete for that position.

But only Sui Yan himself knew that the reason why the Sui family was on good terms with Duan Zhisu was not to serve the king and seize power, but simply because Sui Yan and Duan Zhisu were good friends.

If Sui Xun was still alive in the previous life, he would definitely not let himself get involved in the turmoil of seizing the throne.

For example, now, if it weren't for the close relationship between Sui Yan and Duan Zhisu, according to Sui Xun's status, he would not have come to a prince's birthday party.

It seemed that many guests had come to the prince's mansion, and faint noises of noise could be heard.

Sui Xun glanced outside and said, "Aren't you going out to join in the fun?"

At his age, it is the time for him to enjoy the excitement.

Sui Yan shook his head, took a sip of tea, and said calmly, "No, I'm old now, I'd better drink tea and watch the young people make trouble."

He grabbed a servant and said, "Do you have any wolfberries? Make me another pot of tea with them."

The servants are too busy.

Sui Xun: “…”

Sui Xun put the book down, walked over and touched his forehead, frowned and said, "Are you sick and stupid?"

Sui Xun was seldom so intimate with him. When she got close to him, Sui Yan froze for a moment, holding his tea and looking up at Sui Xun blankly.

Sui Xun asked, "What's wrong?"

Sui Yan put down the tea and shook his head. Sui Xun was about to go back but was grabbed by Sui Yan by the corner of his clothes.

"Brother." Sui Yan whispered, "After the New Year, can you... not go to the border?"

Sui Xun thought he was going to say something important, but when he heard this, he was stunned for a moment and said, "Why are you suddenly talking about such childish things? Although there is no war at the border for the time being, the bandits in the southern border are eyeing the Beilan territory covetously. If I don't go, if something goes wrong, I will die a hundred times. Didn't the master tell you all this?"

After he said this, he felt that he was being too harsh, so he coughed and lowered his voice: "Stop messing around."

Sui Yan pinched the corner of his clothes and shook it gently, saying in a sad voice: "Brother..."

Sui Xun was used to Sui Yan's unreasonable and noisy appearance, so she was a little uncomfortable seeing him being so soft and coquettish. She looked down at him awkwardly, and for a moment she didn't know whether she should shake off his hand.

Sui Yan immediately took advantage of the situation and put his arms around Sui Xun's waist, buried his face in his arms, and said in a muffled voice: "Even if...even if you want to go back, go back later, okay? Just this once, promise to forget about returning, okay? Brother."

Sui Xun's lips moved slightly: "You..."

Sui Yan raised his head and looked at him eagerly: "When I was young, I was naughty, playful and ignorant, but now I have grown up and want to spend more time with my brother."

The usually cold-blooded general was at a loss and could only say, "Don't act like a spoiled brat."

Sui Yan saw that it worked, so he got even more excited: "Second brother, brother, you left for several years and I was bullied in Beijing and no one stood up for me..."

Hearing this, Sui Xun raised his eyebrows and asked coldly: "Who has bullied you?"

Sui Yan was just about to take this opportunity to complain again when he heard a chuckle from the side and he tilted his head to look.

——Duan Mingchong, dressed in black, was standing at the door, glancing at him with a smile on his lips.

Sui Yan was stunned for a moment, then his face turned red and he let go of her hand helplessly.

Sui Xun quickly came back to his senses, turned around and saluted: "Greetings, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Sui Yan sat aside with his head shrunk. Sui Xun pulled him up by the arm and said in a low voice, "Don't be rude."

Sui Yan quickly followed suit and saluted: "Please... greet Your Highness the Crown Prince."

When no one was around, he could shamelessly act coquettishly with his brother. After all, the embarrassment would only be brought to his own family. However, he did not expect that Duan Mingchong would see him in the act.

At this moment, Sui Yan wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into, feeling so ashamed and angry that he wanted to die.

Duan Mingchong was still smiling, and said, "No need to be polite, the relationship between the young marquis and the general is really good."

Sui Yan's face flushed red as he whispered, "I...I'm going to go see if the Third Prince needs my help. I'll be less busy."

After saying this, without waiting for Duan Mingchong to answer, he wrapped himself in his cloak and ran out quickly.

Sui Yan dived into the heavy snow, the wind and snow whistling in his ears, and he could faintly hear Duan Mingchong's chuckle behind him.

Sui Yan thought in despair: "Ah, I don't know how to put it, anyway... I want to die."

After he was reborn, he was disillusioned with the world and wanted to commit suicide, but now he was so embarrassed and ashamed that he wanted to die and even wanted to throw himself into the snow and suffocate himself.

Why can Duan Mingchong see every embarrassing moment of mine?

Sui Yan almost collapsed.

He hurriedly walked along the corridor, his black hair draped behind his back covered with white snow. After turning a few corners at the end, he finally arrived at the main hall of the Third Prince's Mansion.

It was snowing heavily today, and quite a few people came to give gifts and congratulate. Sui Yan took a look inside and found that most of them were civil officials in the court, chatting happily in groups of three or five.

Duan Zhisu was talking to a man in black clothes about something. He glanced at Sui Yan who was outside the door. He was stunned for a moment before he said something to the man and walked towards him.

Duan Zhisu pulled him in, brushed the unmelted snow off his black hair with his hands, and frowned, "Aren't you drinking tea in the side yard? What are you doing standing here? Are you cold?"

Sui Yan's teeth were chattering from the cold, and he shivered, "The Crown Prince was talking to me and my brother, and I didn't want to disturb them... so I ran out."

Duan Zhisu's brows furrowed even more tightly. He said a few words to Song Xian beside him, then took Sui Yan to the bedroom in the backyard.

A charcoal brazier was burning in the bedroom. Not long after Sui Yan came in, he felt the snow on his hair melt into water. Sui Yan took off his coat and said softly, "I have a lot to do today. You are weak and don't go out to fool around. Just sleep here for a while. I will call you when the banquet starts in the evening."

Sui Yan nodded.

Duan Zhisu asked: "Why, I just noticed that you have been yawning, did you not sleep well last night?"

Sui Yan took off his shoes, sat on the bed, hugged the quilt and looked at him, and said softly: "My brother punished me to copy books yesterday, so I didn't sleep well."

Duan Zhisu threw the calming incense into the small incense burner beside him and lit it, and white smoke curled up.

"Copying books? What did you do wrong again?"

Sui Yan shook his head, and Duan Zhisu was taking off his hair crown for him, saying, "Don't move. If your hair is pulled off, you will be the one who gets hurt."

Sui Yan had no choice but to stay still and said, "I didn't do anything. I just went to a brothel."

Duan Zhisu paused, frowned and said, "Didn't I tell you before that the brothel is not a good place to go? Even if you want to satisfy your sexual desire, you can't go there too often. You went there, but how come you were caught by your brother? Didn't he beat you to death?"

Sui Yan didn't want to talk, he rubbed his hair and fell on the pillow.

When Sui Yan was young, the Marquis's Mansion was always empty. Ever since Duan Zhisu had a prince's mansion outside the palace, he came to the capital to eat, drink and sleep there, and he got used to it after a while.

Duan Zhisu didn't ask any more questions. He asked someone to bring a bowl of hot ginger soup and watched Sui Yan drink it before turning around and leaving.

Sui Yan lay on his side on the bed, sniffing the crisp cold wood scent, his mind full of random thoughts. One moment he wondered who could have poisoned the wine without anyone noticing, the next moment he wondered whether Sui Xun would ever be able to come back from Southern Xinjiang. After a while, the calming incense took effect, and he fell into a deep sleep.

There was a faint sound of howling wind and snow in his ears, and Sui Yan's dream was also like a windy and snowy night with a cold knife blowing.

He was wearing a cloak and kneeling outside the Hall of Supreme Harmony. The snow was whistling in his ears and the cold was drilling into his bones.

The old eunuch who served beside the emperor leaned over with an umbrella and whispered to him, "Young Marquis, the emperor is angry now and won't see you. It's so cold, you should go back."

The young man shook his head, and as soon as he opened his mouth, his voice was blown away by the cold wind: "I must see the emperor today. I'll trouble the eunuch to help me pass the message again."

The old eunuch said anxiously: "The emperor is about to rest, my little marquis, if you kneel here and get yourself into trouble..."

Sui Wanggui smiled lightly and said nonsense while shivering: "It's okay, I'm not cold."

The old eunuch had watched Sui Wanggui grow up, but had never seen him laugh so perversely. He was startled, and placed the umbrella next to Sui Wanggui to block the wind and snow from the vent, and returned to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, intending to persuade the emperor again.

But just as he walked into the hall, he saw the emperor reach out and gently knock on the table, saying, "Go pour a glass of wine and send it to the waiter."

The old eunuch was startled, his face pale, and he said tentatively: "Your Majesty, the young marquis is still kneeling outside. It is snowing heavily outside, and he has always been weak..."

The emperor frowned and said, "Send him in."

The old lady supervisor was delighted and quickly stepped back and walked out.

Not long after, Sui Wanggui came in covered in snow. When he saw the emperor, he immediately knelt down with his forehead touching the ground and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, please have mercy on me."

The old eunuch was waiting on the side with a glass of wine. She paused when she saw what was happening and was worried about Sui Wanggui.

The emperor looked at him coldly and said, "Who do you want me to show mercy to? How do I show mercy to you?"

Sui Wanggui said in a hoarse voice: "Even if the Third Prince has committed an unforgivable mistake, he is still your Majesty's own flesh and blood. I hope you will look upon him..."

Before he finished speaking, the emperor swept away the pile of memorials on the table with his sleeve and said angrily: "How dare you plead for him?! Look at these! These are all memorials from the civil and military officials of the whole court impeaching him. He can do such things as poisoning the prince and forming a clique for personal gain. He is really my good son!"

Sui Wanggui kowtowed and said in a trembling voice: "Your Highness the Third Prince is not the one who would murder his brother. Someone must have framed him..."

The young Sui Yan was ignorant of the ways of the world, and he was repeatedly accused by Duan Zhisu without thinking twice before speaking.

"The evidence is irrefutable! How do you know that someone else framed him?" The emperor was furious. In a rage, he picked up an inkstone and smashed it down, hitting Sui Wanggui's left shoulder directly, spilling ink all over him.

The old eunuch knelt down quickly: "Your Majesty, please calm down."

The emperor took a deep breath and said, "Sui Wanggui, others would avoid him when they saw him in trouble, why are you so heartless to go up to him?"

Sui Wanggui was speechless.

The emperor stared at Sui Wanggui, who was trembling on the ground, with sinister eyes, and said after a long while: "Duan Zhisu, you have murdered your brother, and you shall be sentenced to death. Send this cup of infamy to the Third Prince's mansion."

The old eunuch was shocked: "Your Majesty, this..."

At the same time, Sui Wanggui suddenly raised his head, his eyes red: "Your Majesty, please spare his life for the sake of our father-son relationship!"

The emperor looked at him coldly as he hit his head on the cold ground. Perhaps he hit his forehead with too much force, and traces of blood slowly left their mark.

"His Majesty!"

The emperor stood up slowly from his desk, looked down at him, and suddenly said, "Since you plead for him, I will give you this cup of poisoned wine."

Sui Wanggui was stunned for a moment, then slowly raised his head and looked at him blankly.

The emperor said to the old eunuch, "Go."

The old eunuch was trembling all over, but she did not dare to disobey the emperor's order. She slowly walked to Sui Wanggui and bent down. The jade wine bottle on the wooden tray in her hand was shining with light.

Sui Wanggui stared blankly at the wine jar in front of him. After a while, he picked up the jar with trembling hands and looked at it with his eyes lowered.

The emperor looked at him trembling with fear and sneered. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Sui Wanggui suddenly put the wine bottle to his lips with shaking hands and drank the wine in one gulp.

The emperor was startled and angrily said, "You!"

The old eunuch was so frightened that she also knelt down: "Young Marquis!"

The jade cup fell to the ground and shattered into pieces.

He swallowed the poisoned wine down his throat, which was cold yet a little hot. He was obviously scared and desperate, but he still touched his forehead to the ground and said in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, please spare the life of the Third Prince."

The emperor stared at him for a long time before he threw the candlestick on the table to the ground and said angrily, "What are you still standing there for? Go get the doctor!"

The old lady ran out in a hurry.

Sui Wanggui was still kneeling on the ground, trembling, but he still whispered: "Please, Your Majesty..."

Please, Your Majesty...

Suddenly, someone touched his forehead lightly, and the cool touch woke Sui Yan up suddenly.

Sui Yan slowly opened his eyes. He saw Su Su sitting beside his bed, frowning and looking at him. He asked, "Did you have a nightmare?"

Sui Yan couldn't tell for a moment whether this was a dream or reality, and just stared at him blankly.

Duan Zhisu touched his forehead again and said, "You don't have a fever. It seems that you are confused from sleeping."

He patted Sui Yan's pale face and coaxed him, "Wang Gui, do you still recognize me? The banquet will start soon, so you can't sleep any longer."