This year the Empress Dowager is ill and cannot stay up with the Emperor to celebrate the New Year, so the young Emperor sent Ying Cheng Enlai, a subordinate of An Fengde, to deliver an imperial decree to invite His Royal Highness Prince Yan to the palace to celebrate the New Year with him.
When Xie Shiguan saw the person coming, he knew that the person in the palace was still angry with him. He was a close minister of the emperor. Usually, it was the chief eunuch An Fengde who came to convey the emperor's orders. Today, the little emperor asked Ying Cheng'en to come first to give him some face.
Even though he could see it, the prince was not angry. As usual, he asked Shen Que to give Eunuch Ying a bag of small gold ingots for the New Year.
Eunuch Ying took it and subconsciously weighed it in his palm, pretending to be surprised, but did not accept it immediately: "Your Highness, this is unacceptable. How can I bear such a blessing?"
"In previous years, I gave it to your grandfather as a reward," Xie Shiguan said nonchalantly, "Since you are here this year, I will give it to you."
Ying Cheng'en did not conceal the joy on his face. He was the most favored adopted son of An Fengde and a favorite of the emperor. He had a small oval face covered with a thin layer of powder and narrow smiling eyes. He looked like a very kind person.
"Thank you for your reward, Your Highness." He smiled and uttered a few auspicious words that he could think of at random. After he finished speaking the auspicious words, he paused and said, "Your Majesty has one more thing to say, which is not in the imperial edict. I have ordered this servant to read it and say it to you."
Xie Shi looked at him and said, "Speak."
Eunuch Ying said hurriedly, "The emperor said that he heard that there is a close attendant in the prince's mansion named Shen Que, who is as loyal as a sunflower and as beautiful as the sun. He is a rare and loyal servant who protects his master. The emperor... wants to meet him."
Shen, who was waiting at the side, heard him mention his name in vain. His heart skipped a beat and there was a hint of fear and confusion in his eyes.
Xie Shi looked at him in silence for a moment, then turned to Ying Cheng'en and said with a half-smile, "Your Majesty has a wide range of ears and eyes. He has even found out everything about the attendants in my palace and their personalities."
His words were obviously presumptuous. Ying Chengen was a little flustered and said hurriedly: "My ancestor, I dare not say such words. If the emperor knew about it..."
"If Eunuch Ying doesn't tell me, will my personal guards tell me?"
Ying Cheng'en was speechless, but he was in the presence of the emperor after all. Although Xie Shiguan's words made him feel a little embarrassed, he still had a kind smile on his face: "Look, I have been in the palace for a long time, and the strings in my brain are too tight. That's why I am so nervous. I am afraid that Your Highness will laugh at me."
"Lord Shen will not tell anyone else, and I am a tight-lipped person," he said, changing the subject, "The dragon eaves from the palace are parked outside. Your Highness, do you want to ask the servants to prepare it, or do you want to go directly to the palace now?"
After he finished speaking, he respectfully leaned sideways in front of Xie Shiguan and listened attentively to his answer.
"No need," Xie Shiguan said coldly, "I will go on horseback."
Originally, only the regent and the prime minister were qualified to ride horses in the palace. Now that Prime Minister Qu was imprisoned and the rest of his followers were also arrested, only Xie Shiguan was still qualified.
Shen Que rode his horse to the palace gate and dismounted. Xie Shiguan heard the sound of horse hooves stopping from behind, pulled the reins and looked back, shouting at him: "Come here!"
Shen Que handed the reins to the green-clad guard guarding the palace gate, and knocked his fist twice on his side arm, meaning, "Thank you for your help."
It was unclear whether the guard understood what he said or not, but he bowed to him while holding the reins.
Perhaps because he was tired of the slow pace, Xie Shiguan drove his horse slowly towards him. The snow-white horse stopped beside him, and the prince sitting on it stretched out a hand to him condescendingly: "Get on."
Shen was stunned. He was not of high rank and was not even qualified to ride in a sedan chair into the palace. More importantly, the person sitting on the horse was Xie Shiguan.
"Still standing there?" Xie Shiguan was a little unhappy. "Are you going to crawl there instead of riding a horse? You are so slow. Do you want me to wait for you outside the Funing Palace?"
Naturally, Shen didn't dare to let him wait, so he stretched out his hand hesitantly, and the next moment, it was grasped by Xie Shiguan.
Your Highness was good at riding and shooting when he was young, and he could easily pull the eight-stone strong bow left by the old emperor. You should know that since the death of the old emperor, the only one in Kyoto who could pull this precious bow was the brave general.
Although it doesn't look like it, there is a thick layer of calluses on the palms of Xie Shiguan. His palms are broad, but they feel cold to the touch.
Shen was pulled onto the horse by him, and then the prince put his arms around him, shook the reins, and the horse started moving. Shen heard him whisper in his ear, "Hold on tight."
The wind whistled in his ears and the horse's back was bumpy. Even though he was heavy, he dared not move at all. However, he would still bump into Xie Shiguan's body from time to time. The woody scent on the prince's body was like an airtight net that bound him tightly.
And he looked even more miserable than the prey struggling in the spider's web.
Close, too close.
He was so close that his hands and feet went numb and he almost lost all strength. His heart was beating as fast as the sound of horse hooves hitting the ground, but he could only hold on to the saddle tightly and grit his teeth, hoping to reach his destination as soon as possible.
Fortunately, riding a horse was obviously much faster than riding in a sedan chair. They walked towards the main road and the palace servants along the way all gave way to them, so the two of them soon arrived outside the Funing Palace.
The palace was warm and cozy. It was the beginning of the morning. Red gauze lanterns had been hung outside the Funing Palace, and red decorations were everywhere, creating a festive atmosphere.
Without the emperor's order, Shen could not enter or leave the Funing Palace at will. As soon as Xie Shiguan arrived, he was welcomed in by the palace maids, while he stood under the eaves waiting. When no one was watching, he secretly straightened his clothes.
Xie Shiguan always rode recklessly and refused to restrain himself in the palace, forcing Shen Que to dismount. He was always suspicious that his hair was messy and his belt was loose.
In just a cup of tea, a waiter came out of the hall and said to him with lowered eyes, "Guard Shen, the emperor invites you into the hall."
Chen Que's heart skipped a beat, and he didn't dare to hesitate. He followed the little fire maker into the hall obediently.
He had followed His Royal Highness Prince Yan for so many years, and even when he occasionally followed him into the palace, he would just wait outside the palace. He only caught a glimpse of the royal carriage from afar once, but he did not dare to take a closer look.
The emperor was afraid of the cold, so it was not enough to have the floor heating burning in the Funing Hall. Even the charcoal basin was burning very vigorously. A long carpet with exquisite patterns from Persia was spread on the floor of the main hall. There were incense burners on the four corners. The whole surrounding was immersed in a very special sweet fragrance, but there was no trace of white smoke coming out of the incense burner.
Shen walked across the carpet to the hall, lowered his eyes, and knelt three times and kowtowed nine times in ceremony.
No one in the hall said a word until the last bow, and no one from above said "stand up", so Shen had to kowtow for a long time and did not dare to stand up.
The little emperor seemed not to notice him. He took a sip of tea and said in a casual tone, "I heard that there are often little singers from the opera house coming to the emperor's uncle's house recently?"
When he asked this question, his tone was filled with a hint of disdain. Without waiting for Xie Shiguan to answer, he continued, "Doesn't the emperor dislike opera singers? Why is he quarreling with them now?"
"I've eaten too much porridge and rice," Xie Shiguan said with a smile, "I want to try soup noodles occasionally."
The little emperor didn't like seeing him like this, and frowned: "If the emperor's uncle's room is short of people, Guan Yizhi can ask for it. It's just a matter of a word."
"Your Majesty knows that I am a romantic minister, and there is never a shortage of people on my bed," he answered casually, "so Your Majesty will not have to worry about it."
After that, silence fell between the two, and no one spoke.
Such a long silence made Shen, who was kneeling in the hall, feel his back go numb and his palms full of cold sweat.
After a long while, Xie Shiguan, who was sitting below the emperor, put down his teacup and said, "He's just an attendant. Why bother him?"
The superior heard this without even looking up: "It's not a problem, it's just that I didn't hear him say 'Long live', how would I know if he bowed or not?"
After he finished speaking, the emperor seemed to have finally seen the man in the hall. He stood up and walked down the hall, then stopped in front of Shen Que neither slowly nor hurriedly.
The little emperor lowered his eyes, as if he was looking at a lowly dog. Unfortunately, the dog was very well-behaved and didn't even show off a single hair, so he couldn't find any fault with it.
"Look up and let me see." He said coldly.
Chen slowly raised his body, but kept his eyes down and chin slightly raised. He could just see the hem of the bright yellow satin dragon robe of the man in front of him. The pattern of sea water and river cliffs outlined by a circle of gold thread was vivid and eye-catching.
As soon as he saw his face, the little emperor seemed to be relieved and turned his head to look at Xie Shiguan: "You almost took my uncle's life just for him?"
Xie Shiguan met his gaze impartially: "Your Majesty has no evidence, how can you be sure that I was the one who did it? If you are accusing me wrongly, wouldn't it be like a woman from a branch of the Miao family lost a handkerchief in her boudoir and you are blaming me for it? How unfair."
"They all said it was you."
Xie Shiguan immediately asked back: "Who are they?"
The little emperor walked over quickly and slapped the table in front of him with one hand, his round eyes filled with anger: "You are always like this. In the past, I always turned a blind eye to you. I always pretended not to see the memorials submitted to me to accuse you. But what did you do this time?"
He paused for a moment, then raised his voice in vain: "That's my biological uncle!"
"If you cut off one of his hands," the little emperor glared at him, "it would be like a slap in my face..."
Before he finished speaking, the man at the table interrupted him calmly: "It's half a palm, Your Majesty."
"Xie Ling, do you really think I dare not punish you?"
The little emperor could no longer endure it and was so angry that he tore off the silk tablecloth on the table and threw the soup, wine and bowls and dishes to the ground, shattering them with a clang. One of the jade chopstick rests hit Xie Shiguan directly on the brow.
Shen, who was sitting in the hall, was startled by the noise. His heart trembled and he looked towards the prince desperately.
The little emperor obviously didn't expect to accidentally hurt him. He was stunned for a moment and pursed his lips in helplessness.
But Xie Shiguan didn't even blink, he stood up slowly, walked over the broken pieces of porcelain, and knelt in front of the emperor: "Your Majesty, calm down."
With just this one blow, a small piece of skin above his brow bone was broken, and the blood that seeped out dripped little by little, passing through the corner of his eye and falling into his eye socket. Coupled with his delicate face and flawless skin like white jade, the blood color made it even more creepy.
The little emperor looked at his wound, his eyes welling up with sadness, and the grievance in his heart suddenly surged up: "They all came to me to ask for an explanation. Because of this incident, my mother refused to spend New Year's Eve with me this year. They all forced me, uncle, are you going to force me now too?"
Xie Shiguan didn't answer.
The little emperor then squatted down and used his sleeve to wipe the blood from under his brow bone bit by bit. He said in a low voice, as if he had given in to him: "It was my fault just now. I shouldn't have been angry with you."
"I know you are angry, but your uncle is just very fond of his son. He is already over 40 years old and is suffering from the pain of separation from his own flesh and blood. It is understandable that he lost his mind for a while." He paused and continued to persuade softly, "It's just a worthless life, a rat or a sparrow. What's wrong with giving it to him?"
He spoke as lightly as if he were just mentioning an ant or a speck of dust on a branch.
Seeing that Xie Shiguan still didn't say anything, the little emperor simply knelt in front of him, slightly raised his head to look at him, and said with a little coquettishness in his tone: "Uncle, just allow me this time, okay?"
In the emperor's opinion, the uncle of the emperor had indeed lost half of his palm, and Xie Shiguan had indeed gone too far. However, he was reluctant to punish him, so he had to sacrifice his worthless life to please the uncle of the emperor.
If you can gain the best of both worlds by losing a small creature like a rat or a sparrow, why not do it?
He fully believed that as long as he gave in and spoke, Xie Shiguan would obey him. The prince had always been very indulgent towards him, so how could he disobey him for such an ordinary guard?
But this time he was wrong. Xie Shiguan didn't nod, but just looked at him coldly.
The little emperor's heart skipped a beat, and then he heard Xie Shiguan say, "Your Majesty, you said that I forced you?"
"Miao Zongping deserves to die, and the entire Miao family deserves to die!" Xie Shiguan sneered, and then approached, staring at him with a pair of blood-stained phoenix eyes: "Why did the late emperor want my mother to be buried alive with him? Was it just because she was a foreign woman?"
The little emperor was startled and stepped back subconsciously.
"I still have those few memorials advising her to be killed," Xie Shiguan covered the back of his hand with a half-smile, "Your Majesty, do you want to see them? Who are the people in them? Does Yizhi know or not?"
Yizhi was the nickname Xie Shiguan gave him. He called him so intimately, but said such frightening words.
How could he not know? There were three people who petitioned to kill Concubine Liu, one was his grandfather, the Crown Prince of the East Palace at that time; the second was the Prime Minister Qu Shanming; the third was his grandfather...
When Concubine Liu was dragged alive to fill the grave, Xie Shiguan was only eight years old. It is said that he was locked in the bedroom by the palace servants that day and no one paid any attention to him even when he fainted from crying.
"Your Majesty, why don't you dare look at me?" Xie Shiguan laughed and said softly, "If Miao Zongping was not your majesty's maternal uncle, he would have been a pile of bones in the ground. I spared his life because I loved you."
"Today he wants to kill Shen Que, tomorrow he will dare to go even further and want my life. I dare to ask, will Your Majesty give it to me when the time comes?"
Xie Yizhi lowered his eyes, his voice trembling slightly: "Uncle won't..."
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