Chapter 64 The Pavilion Lost in the Mist, the Moon Lost in the River (Part 8) "Speak! You hid her..."
Inside the Prince Ke's mansion, the air was filled with the fragrance of sandalwood.
The thin piece of paper held between Chu Xi's fingers curled and charred in the candlelight, turning into a few wisps of light ash that drifted away without a trace. He gazed at the last wisp of smoke, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"Your Highness," a maidservant announced cautiously from outside the door, "that person... still refuses to eat. The porridge, dishes, and snacks that were brought to him have all been thrown out untouched."
Chu Xi raised his hand, his slender fingers rubbing his temples. His handsome, brooding face showed no anger; instead, his smile deepened, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Then go tell her," he said.
He spoke slowly and deliberately, his voice not loud, but clear enough to make the maid outside the door tremble, “Tonight I might be interested in visiting her room. If I don’t eat my fill and gather some strength, I’m afraid… even my attempts to push her away and make a fuss will seem weak and uninteresting.”
The maid gasped in shock, hurriedly replied "Yes," and retreated in a flustered manner.
Almost at the same moment the maid withdrew, the Prince's steward scrambled into the courtyard, his voice trembling with panic: "Your Highness! Your Highness! His Majesty... His Majesty has arrived! We servants could not stop him—"
Before the word "stay" could be uttered, the heavy palace doors were kicked open from the outside!
Dressed in a deep purple robe, Chu Huaili stormed in, sword in hand, radiating a chilling aura and an almost palpable rage. Without a glance at the trembling guards and servants kneeling before him, his longsword flashed from its sheath, its gleaming blade like lightning, aimed directly at Chu Xi, who sat behind the desk. The next moment, the cold blade was firmly pressed against the other's neck.
Chu Xi didn't even flinch, and even had the leisure to gently place the teacup she was playing with back on the table. The bottom of the cup touched the sandalwood, making a slight crisp sound.
"Why is Your Majesty so furious?" He raised his eyes, his peach blossom eyes shimmering with tears, reflecting the sword light so close at hand, and there was a strange composure in them.
Chu Huaili's hand gripping the sword had bulging veins, his eyes were bloodshot, and every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, carrying a bloody stench: "Tell me! Where did you hide her?!"
The sword blade moved closer, its sharp edge easily slicing through the skin, and a trace of crimson blood immediately seeped out, slowly sliding down Chu Xi's fair and slender neck, disappearing into the dark collar of her clothes, spreading out a small patch of dark color.
A sharp pain shot through him, but Chu Xi didn't even try to dodge; instead, she slightly raised the corners of her lips.
"Your Majesty, for the sake of a woman," he chuckled, his voice carrying a perfectly timed hint of surprise and mockery, "is willing to turn your sword against your own uncle, and even... risk the crime of murdering your own uncle?"
"I'm asking you!" Chu Huaili tightened his grip on the wrist, causing the blood to flow more rapidly. He took a step closer, almost able to smell the lingering, languid fragrance mixed with the stench of blood emanating from the other man. "Where is Ye Yixiang?!"
Chu Xi sighed, looking somewhat helpless. "Your Majesty has truly misunderstood me this time."
He raised his hand and gently brushed away the bloodstains on his neck with his fingertips, the movement as elegant as wiping away insignificant dust. "Your Majesty, I truly knew nothing about this matter." He raised his eyes, his gaze meeting Chu Huaili's furious eyes directly. "On the contrary, Your Majesty has disappointed me somewhat."
"Urgent reports of floods in Jiangnan have been arriving in the capital one after another. Rivers are silted up, disaster victims are displaced, and resentment is already brewing among the people. As the ruler of the country, Your Majesty does not think of sitting in the central government and coordinating disaster relief. Instead, for the sake of a woman, you personally took up arms and broke into the Prince's residence... In Your Majesty's heart, what is more important?"
Blood stained his fingertips and a small patch of his collar, which, against his excessively pale skin and smiling face, gave him an almost eerie beauty. "If Your Majesty truly believes that beauty is more important than the throne."
He paused, slowing his speech, each word carrying a heavy weight, "Then this position... perhaps should be given to someone who understands the importance of things better. Since I have been able to help Your Majesty ascend this throne..."
Chu Xi stopped speaking at the right moment, but his unfinished words echoed clearly in the cold air—he naturally had the ability to pull him down.
The blatant threat, like a poisoned needle, pierced Chu Huaili's taut nerves. The storm in his eyes intensified, and his killing intent almost burst forth.
"If my royal uncle dies," Chu Huaili's voice was icy cold, "the threat to me will naturally cease to exist!"
Upon hearing this, Chu Xi chuckled softly and shook her head, as if listening to a child's innocent words.
He raised his hand and gently pinched the blade that was pressed against his skin with two fingers, slowly pushing it away.
His movements seemed casual, yet the force was irresistible. "Your Majesty is still young and thinks too simply." He stood up, the wound on his neck bleeding a little more from the movement, but he didn't care. "However, Your Majesty can rest assured."
"Though I am not a gentleman, I would not stoop to harming a mere woman. Your Majesty has probably turned Chang'an and the surrounding prefectures and counties upside down over the past month, hasn't he? Since you have found nothing, Your Majesty might as well consider: who else in this world has the ability to 'deceive the heavens and cross the sea'?"
He took a half step forward, getting closer to Chu Huaili, whose expression had changed slightly at his words, and lowered his voice, which carried a seductive tone: "Instead of wasting time with me here, we should quickly return to the palace and issue an edict to local governments to widely distribute portraits and strictly investigate key waterways and land routes."
"Tsk, Her Majesty has been missing for over a month. If she is no longer within the territory of our Southern Dynasty by now... then it will truly be too late to help her, and we will regret it too late."
*
Deep in the remote Luming Mountain, far from the hustle and bustle of the city, the embers of a small fire that had just been extinguished were still warm.
The charred ruins on one side of the east wing grotesquely jutted out in the thin moonlight, and the air was thick with the pungent smell of smoke and dust.
Ye Yixiang was grabbed by the arm without any politeness, dragged across the cold stone floor, and thrown into an empty room. The heavy iron chain clattered onto her wrist, the other end deeply embedded in the wall.
The chains were short, allowing her to move only within a small area.
She collapsed helplessly to the cold ground, the rough stone slabs digging painfully into her skin. The desperate arson and escape had exhausted all the strength and courage she had mustered in the darkness, resulting only in a faster and more disheveled arrest.
My heart felt like it was being crushed by a boulder, so heavy I could hardly breathe. Deeper still, there was the coldness of a failed plan and anger at my own incompetence.
Footsteps sounded outside the door, and Yun Yi calmly reported: "Master, the person has been caught and has not escaped far. However, although the fire in the east wing has been brought under control, the damage is severe and it is temporarily uninhabitable."
After a moment of silence, that harsh yet gentle voice spoke: "With such a thick cloud of smoke, it might alert the local officials patrolling the mountains. If anyone comes to inquire later, you know how to handle it."
"yes."
The door was gently pushed open, and someone walked in. His steps were slightly slow, carrying the unsteadiness of someone injured, yet still steady. A cool night breeze swept in, dispelling the stuffiness in the room and bringing with it the unique scent of that person, a mixture of bitter medicine and fragrance, like pine and bamboo after a snowfall, but at this moment it only made her feel nauseous.
Ye Yixiang huddled in the corner, her empty eyes straining to see the source of the sound, even though she couldn't see anything. She could sense that the person had stopped not far in front of her.
"Young lady, please don't do such dangerous things again in the future." His voice remained calm, even carrying a faint sigh, as if he were just admonishing a willful child.
Then, she heard the soft sound of a porcelain spoon lightly touching the rim of the bowl, and a warm breath carrying the sweet aroma of rice porridge approached her lips.
The anger, fear, and shame of being fooled that had been suppressed for so long suddenly exploded at this moment! She raised her hand sharply and swung it hard with all her might!
"Clang!"
The porcelain bowl was sent flying, crashing against the wall and shattering, splashing warm porridge everywhere. The heavy iron chain swung violently with her movement, slamming unexpectedly into the person in front of her.
"Cough...cough cough..." A muffled cough, barely suppressed, rang out, the sound carrying obvious pain and weakness. Clearly, the blow had struck his still-healing wound.
Hearing the cough, Ye Yixiang felt a fleeting sense of pleasure, which was quickly replaced by a deeper chill. Her empty eyes stared fixedly ahead: "What exactly do you want?"
She paused, breathing heavily as if gathering her last strength, and then, word by word, crystal clear, like a knife chilled to ice, she hurled it fiercely at the unseen figure in the darkness:
"Master Prime Minister!"
The address was uttered, and the room fell into a deathly silence. Even the suppressed cough seemed to freeze instantly.
Immediately afterward, a barely audible sneer came from the other side.
The laughter was brief, carrying a sense of understanding and helplessness.
“I didn’t expect,” Zhe Yu’s voice rang out again, still gentle, but seemingly having shed the last trace of pretense, frankly admitting, “that you still…found out.”
Ye Yixiang's tense body trembled almost imperceptibly. Although she had suspected it, hearing him admit it with her own ears still felt like a dull knife slowly cutting into her heart.
"In the heart of the city, before the gates of a Buddhist temple, right under the emperor's nose, they brazenly kidnapped people." Her voice was hoarse, every word dripping with icy hatred. "They traveled by both land and water, evading layers of government checks, and finally hid in these deep mountains and forests... Under heaven, besides the current prime minister who oversees the government and holds the power over all postal services and customs, who else could have such ability, such meticulous planning, and such... ability to distort the truth!"
She couldn't see his expression at that moment, but she could feel the complex and unfathomable gaze upon her.
He coughed softly twice, the cough sounding particularly clear and weak in the empty room.
Seemingly catching her breath, she slowly said, "Turning black into white... perhaps." Her voice lacked the panic of being exposed; instead, it held a strange calm, even a hint of weariness. "But at least, you're still alive, here unharmed."
"Completely intact?" Ye Yixiang almost sneered. "Blinded and locked in a place like this, this is what the Prime Minister calls 'completely intact'?"
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