Chapter 22
Ling Huanchen was not surprised to hear this. This prince was so persistent in wanting to see him that there was probably something wrong. It was either a demonstration or a way to sow discord. He had never been unaccustomed to such dramas as he was in the royal family.
"Why is this guy still haunting us? The master said he was missing." Xiao Qi muttered softly.
Ling Huanchen said calmly, "Let the prince go back."
The palace attendant lowered himself even lower. "The prince of the mermaid tribe asked me to pass on a message, saying that he has news to report about the mermaid king, and also... about your highness's mother."
After a moment of silence, Ling Huanchen picked up the scroll at hand again and said, "Propagate it as I say."
He had no interest in knowing either the Mermaid King or his mother who had disappeared for many years.
Ling Xu's repeated visits were met with rebuffs, and he stopped bothering her again. Ling Huanchen, however, didn't think he had given up. Since the mermaids intended to present the treasure to the King of Youcheng, how could they just give up? Prince Ling Xu himself couldn't possibly give up on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Mermaids presented to Mingcheng often met a tragic end, but he alone enjoyed the protection of the King of Youcheng. Most people believed that if there was a chance, there would be a second, and at the first sign of a chance, they would desperately try to get in. Success would guarantee a life of wealth and glory, while failure would lead to eternal damnation. Even so, it was better to take a chance than to sit back and wait for death.
"What are you thinking about? You didn't even react when I came." Yu Xi pretended to be angry, lifted up her skirt and sat on the chaise longue next to Ling Huanchen.
"I was so focused on reading that I didn't notice the king coming in." Ling Huanchen came back to his senses and smiled.
Yu Xi raised her eyebrows and snatched the book from his hand, "You are really focused. Since I entered the room, you have been staring at the title page for a long time."
Ling Huanchen sneered, "I am meditating while holding the book, which shows my respect for it."
Yu Xi groaned in silence, patiently listening to Ling Huanchen's serious nonsense, the smile in her eyes hard to fade, "If Huanchen said yes, then it must be true."
Ling Huanchen naturally understood his joking intention and quickly changed the subject, "Your Majesty, you came early today. You don't need to listen to the envoy's report?"
When he was first sent here, there were no envoys staying here, and he went to the palace to meet the emperor every day.
Yu Xi lifted a lock of hair from his shoulder and twisted it around her fingertips, playing with it. "That Lord Qiao said that the Mermaid King wants to trade with Youcheng."
Ling Huanchen raised his eyes, looking over with clear eyes, "What does the king think?"
"Of course, we're happy to see something mutually beneficial happen." Yu Xi leaned forward. "What's more, it was the Mermaids who initiated the trade, and Youcheng has many conditions to negotiate. It's a sure-win deal, so why not do it?"
Ling Huanchen couldn't help but laugh, "Even if the king were a businessman, he would definitely be extremely wealthy."
"I'll take it as a compliment." Yu Xi thought for a moment, "Do you have anything to tell me?" After all, his Huanchen is also a mermaid.
Ling Huanchen exchanged glances with him and knew he was thinking about himself. "I believe in the king's decision."
Yu Xi wanted to steal a kiss, but Ling Huanchen slipped away from him like a slippery fish. When he saw Ling Huanchen rolling to the other side of the chaise longue with a book in her arms and winking at him, Yu Xi felt that beauty could lead to misleading people.
"Your Majesty, I haven't finished reading the book yet."
"Okay, Huanchen wants to read." Yu Xi climbed onto the bed and pulled him back with one hand, "I'll read with you."
Trade between the two ethnic groups is no small matter. There are many details to be negotiated, so envoys' audience with the emperor became a common occurrence.
When Yu Xi was not around, Ling Huanchen would occasionally sit in the martial arts arena and watch the guards training from afar in the pavilion, but what he recalled in his mind was Yu Xi's heroic figure holding the sword.
"Who is trespassing?"
With a shout, spears were thrown, drawing screams. Soon, a guard came forward.
"Your Highness, this person is acting suspiciously. I wonder which palace he is from. He doesn't look like a palace servant."
Ling Huanchen put down the teacup slowly, he knew that Ling Xu would not stop.
"Let him go, this is the prince of the mermaid tribe."
Ling Xi, who had regained his freedom, rubbed his arm that was about to be dislocated, glared at the guards, and immediately put on a smile when he looked at Ling Huanchen, "Your Highness, I finally see you again."
Ling Huanchen waved his hand and asked the guards to retreat. "Why do you want to see me?"
"Don't you miss the Mermaid?"
Ling Huanchen paused and said softly, "I don't want to."
Ling Xu's expression changed, and he looked around. "I have something important to report. Your Highness, please allow me to come closer and tell you." As he spoke, he took two steps into the pavilion and was stopped by Yun He, who was serving beside him.
"Your Highness..."
"If you have something to say, just say it." What was there between them that was worth talking about?
Ling Xi clutched the edge of his clothes. "Your mother recently returned to the Jiao clan's palace." As he spoke, he secretly observed Ling Huanchen's expression. Seeing nothing amiss with him, he became even more anxious. "She left a token, saying she would give it to you when she saw you. The Jiao King sent me here with that item. It can't pass into the hands of others; only a Jiao clan can receive it."
Yun He looked at Ling Huan Chen, "Master."
"Let him in."
Ling Huanchen knew Ling Xi was most likely lying, but when he mentioned his mother, a person he barely remembered, his heart still stirred. What if there was news about her?
After Yun He retreated to the side, Ling Xu responded and entered the pavilion. He slowly took something out of his sleeve, as if he really had come with a token. However, the token was nowhere to be seen, and the man who had been keeping his head down suddenly rushed over.
There was a clear sound of breaking jade, and the teacup broke into pieces. Yun He twisted Ling Xu's arm and bent it behind his back. The guards gathered over after hearing the sound.
But at this moment, Ling Xu burst into tears unexpectedly.
"I deserve to die. Your Highness, please forgive me. I will never dare to do it again."
Ling Huanchen blinked. What new trick was this in the harem? How could he not understand it?
Ling Xi cried like a pear blossom in the rain, step by step, saving her strength at the beginning, and crying until Yu Xi came, then she could fully unleash her strength.
"What happened?" Yu Xi walked quickly to Ling Huanchen's side. Seeing that he was fine, she felt relieved. Then, seeing Ling Xu kneeling on the ground and crying, she frowned. "Why are you here?"
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was hoping to catch up with Your Highness when I accidentally wandered into the martial arts arena." Ling Xi wiped away the tears she had previously shed, and then two new tears fell at just the right moment. "Your Highness ordered me to serve tea, but I was clumsy and dropped the cup, causing Your Highness's wrath. This is all my fault. Your Majesty, please do not blame Your Highness for disrupting the martial arts arena."
The two looked at each other in bewilderment. When had Yu Xi ever said she was blaming him? And when had he asked Ling Xi to serve tea?
"That's nonsense!" Yun He scolded, "Don't confuse right and wrong in front of the king."
Ling Xu bit her lower lip, covered her arm, and said timidly, "Sister is His Highness's attendant. It is her duty to protect the master. Even if I am subjected to lynching, Ling Xu will not blame you."
At this point, Ling Huanchen finally figured out Ling Xu's intentions. It turned out that he wanted to win sympathy.
Sure enough, the token was fake, so he said that his mother was so eager to escape from the palace and stay away from him, so how could she come back?
Yu Xi suddenly asked softly, as if expressing great concern, "Are you saying that Yun He tortured you?"
Ling Xi was delighted when he heard this. "Your Majesty, please don't blame me. Your Highness has already asked this sister to show mercy. I think it's just a little swelling in the arm, not a serious matter. I hope Your Majesty will not pursue it."
Yu Xi nodded, "I'm sorry to have frightened the prince."
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty." Ling Xu became more and more proud. He glanced at Ling Huanchen. The king's favor was nothing special.
"However, since the prince made a mistake in serving tea, he deserves to be punished."
"Your Majesty..." Ling Xi looked up at Yu Xi, his reaction slow to a beat. "What does this mean?"
Yu Xi didn't answer, but turned around and pulled Ling Huanchen back to sit. "Since Yun He showed mercy just now, why not make up for it now and not break the rules."
"I obey your command!"
Things took a sudden turn for the worse, and Ling Xi was caught off guard. Facing Yun He approaching, he panicked, "Your Majesty, please forgive me! Your Majesty, please spare me!"
There was a dull sound of bones separating, and Yun He acted decisively. With one palm strike, Ling Xu's arm, which originally had only some red marks, was dislocated.
Ling Xi fell straight to the ground, like a dying fish, with his eyes wide open, mouth wide open, cold sweat all over his body, and unable to speak in pain.
"Come here, send the prince back. From now on, he should not go to places he shouldn't go to, meet people he shouldn't meet, or say things he shouldn't say. He should be careful in his heart, otherwise he won't be able to return to the mermaid tribe alive to report."
The guards hastily carried Ling Xi away and soon resumed their training, even more vigorously. After all, their king was sitting in the back watching.
A dislocated injury would definitely take a few days to heal, and Ling Huanchen felt that the palace had become much quieter these days. However, after Yu Xi's statement, the envoys from the mermaid tribe must have realized that the tribute was hopeless, and they might have a trick up their sleeve.
The two tribes had reached the end of their negotiations regarding trade. With that concluded, the merman envoys no longer had any excuse to remain in Youcheng. If they still wanted to pursue this plan, they would have to act within the next few days.
Ling Huanchen turned around to look at the person holding him. Perhaps he was tired from the recent busy government affairs. Before the lights were turned off, Yu Xi fell asleep before him.
Taking a look at the still burning candle, Ling Huanchen was in a dilemma. He had no internal strength and could not extinguish the candle from a distance. He could not let the red candle burn all night.
Ling Huanchen raised his hand slightly, and when he touched Yu Xi, the arm around his waist suddenly tightened.
"Your Majesty?"
Yu Xi frowned, as if trapped in a nightmare. No matter how Ling Huanchen called him, he couldn't wake him up.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!" Seeing that he couldn't wake him up or break free, Ling Huanchen left a tooth mark on Yu Xi's arm in desperation.
"Your Majesty, it's me."
Yu Xi suddenly opened her eyes, and a murderous aura rushed towards her, which frightened Ling Huanchen.
When his vision cleared, the murderous aura around Yu Xi slowly subsided, "I scared you."
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