Chapter 29 [VIP]
Inside the Golden Palace.
The hall was silent. Xue Yi put down the memorial; his eyes ached from reading it. As he put it down, the memorial transformed into a book, and a figure appeared beside him. A young man with brown eyes gazed at him and called out, "Brother."
"Brother, if your eyes hurt, don't read. You can't possibly finish all the books. Your health is more important," Lu Xuejin said to him.
He pressed his temples, his ears ringing. One moment it was the incessant chatter of ministers offering their advice, the next the reports from guards whispering in his ear, and then the discussions of palace servants. All sorts of sounds mingled together, drilling into his ears and annoying him.
“Song Zhao, where is Changyou?” he asked.
Song Zhao helped him review all his memorials, filtering them out batch after batch. With natural disasters and palace affairs raging, there were simply too many memorials to read. Hearing this, Song Zhao looked up from among the pile of memorials.
"Lord Lu left the palace with His Highness the Ninth Prince today," Song Zhao replied.
"When did you leave the palace?" Xue Yi asked quietly. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Song Zhao: "I said this afternoon that His Majesty was seeing Lord Li and did not respond."
With a "thud," Xue Yi overturned the inkstone. Recalling Lu Xuejin's words from the previous day, a look of exhaustion crossed his face. His eyes, now cleansed by the inkstone, resembled butterflies on ink-stained branches.
“I’ve been too busy lately. I finally managed to visit him yesterday, but I said something wrong and angered him… All I did was ask him to call me ‘husband,’ and he mocked me and even told me to find someone else to marry.”
Xue Yi said helplessly, "Song Zhao, do you think it's my fault?"
"..." Song Zhao continued reading the memorial, and after a moment of silence, said, "Given Lord Lu's personality, if His Majesty speaks to him like this, he might think that His Majesty is humiliating him."
"That's right. I always lose my composure in his presence, my mind wavers because of him, and I lose my sense of proportion," Xue Yi analyzed.
“He’s been spending a lot of time with that rebellious son lately, and I can’t stand it,” Xue Yi said. “But the wedding banquet is just around the corner, and he’s keeping that rebellious son around until the banquet is over. Speaking of which… when you interrogated him the other day, did you see any flaws in his behavior?”
“No, he acted naturally, and I could not see anything,” Song Zhao said. “Whether he is hiding his talents or it is his true nature, I believe that the Ninth Prince must not be allowed to live.”
"I think the same way you do," Xue Yi said, his eyes narrowing slightly, his complexion much better.
"Before he leaves, let him witness my marriage to Changyou. No matter how he pretends in front of you and me, his feelings for Changyou are genuine."
How did he know? No one coveted Lu Xuejin more than him, no one wanted to possess Lu Xuejin more than him, and no one loved Lu Xuejin more than him. He could tell what others were thinking just by glancing at Lu Xuejin.
Xue Yi asked, "When will they be back?"
Song Zhao glanced at the time. "I agreed with Miss Yue to return at 7 PM. She should be back soon."
"I'm going to Changyou's place," Xue Yi said. "Leave these memorials for now. If you're going to find Miss Yue, just go directly there."
The golden dragon palanquin stopped at Fangze Palace. Ziyan, who was guarding the palace, saw Xue Yi, and her expression changed slightly. Ziyan bowed to Xue Yi. At this moment, her young master also returned, followed by a little tail.
Lu Xuejin spoke softly to the boy beside her. The boy caught a glimpse of something, a dragon pattern flashed by, and his gaze involuntarily stopped.
The air quieted down. Xue Yi was waiting for him in Fangze Palace. When he saw the two of them, Xue Yi's expression remained unchanged, but his eyes were warm as he carefully examined him.
Xue Yi: "You're back?"
Lu Xuejin kept an eye on the boy beside her. When the boy saw Xue Yi, his expression changed slightly.
"Ziyan." Lu Xuejin ignored Xue Yi and said to Murong Yue, "Ninth Prince, let's go back today."
"Why send him back?" Xue Yi immediately asked, turning to Murong Yue. "The two of you are close; you don't need to be reserved in front of me."
"Changyou, I misspoke earlier, will you blame me?"
Lu Xuejin said lightly, "Of course I wouldn't dare. But I'm exhausted from leaving the palace today and I'm afraid I won't be able to meet the Emperor. Your Majesty should go back soon."
Murong Yue remained where he was, standing guard beside Lu Xuejin. Upon hearing this, Xue Yi turned to him and said, "Look at him. He's still angry with me."
"Changyou, you are tired. I will help you relax. Please don't send me away."
Xue Yi walked to the door, almost forgetting about the person, and said to Murong Yue, "You come in too."
Lu Xuejin heard Xue Yi's words and paused slightly. The two of them entered the hall together behind him.
Seeing that the man remained silent, Xue Yi calmly said to him, "I have nothing to do today. I finally finished my duties at court and wanted to come and see you."
"I have already announced the marriage to my ministers, and this matter cannot be taken back. If you do not like the complicated ceremony, I will have it shortened later."
"Your Majesty can decide this matter," Lu Xuejin replied quietly.
“I always say things you don’t like to hear,” Xue Yi said softly, her gaze tracing his features. “Let’s not talk about this anymore. Did you have a better day going out? Was it hot and lively outside?”
Lu Xuejin replied, "It's quite lively. If Your Majesty wants to know, why don't you go out of the palace and see for yourself?"
He repeatedly and tactfully refuted Xue Yi's feelings, but Xue Yi did not get angry in front of others; his pale face was filled with tenderness.
“Changyou, that’s a good suggestion,” Xue Yi said, turning to Murong Yue. “I’ve heard that the Ninth Prince has recently become close to two students and they often go out together. They even went out of the palace together today… How are your studies going?”
Murong Yue stood in front of the two of them and replied, "Your Majesty, my studies have been going well recently, thanks to Miss Yue and Xiao Shen."
"You're quite sensible," Xue Yi asked. "Did Changyou tell you about the wedding banquet?"
At this point, Lu Xuejin noticed that Murong Yue was looking at him, and a pure, dark light welled up in the young man's eyes. He remembered the promise he had just made.
He then said, "Your Highness, you will accompany the ceremonial guard and leave the palace with me."
"I specially chose you," Xue Yi said with a smile, "to be the witness for my marriage to Changyou."
The air fell silent. Murong Yue remained expressionless, then bowed and replied, "Your subject understands. Your subject will certainly attend in full regalia."
"Changyou is unaware that the Ninth Prince is resolute and admirable. A few days ago, Song Zhao discovered that the murderer was a former servant who had served in the Ninth Prince's palace. The Ninth Prince went to investigate the case with Song Zhao. He watched the person being executed in prison without changing his expression. Even we, who are his age, vomited for half a day after seeing a dead person for the first time."
Murong Yue listened and replied, "Those whose crimes are unforgivable need not be pitied by your son."
"Good. Very good." Xue Yi smiled, but there was no smile in his eyes. He said to Murong Yue, "Changyou likes you. Today, you should put in a good word for me. I have ordered someone to re-sew the wedding dress. You put it on him for me and I will see if it fits."
The servants then presented the wedding attire: a red brocade robe with the flying cranes on it repaired. The dragon patterns were now more tightly interwoven, as if they were about to suffocate the outstretched bird.
Seeing that Murong Yue was about to kneel down and beg him, Lu Xuejin looked at the boy's thin figure and couldn't bear to see his back bent.
“If you want me to try on clothes, just say so. Why make things difficult for a child?” Lu Xuejin said.
Xue Yi was in his palace. The boy was like a doll whose soul had been taken away. He could only hear Xue Yi's words, which were devoid of emotion and vitality.
“Lord Lu, it’s alright, I’ll help you,” Murong Yue said.
The boy walked to the tray, picked up the wedding dress, smiled at the two of them, and his smile brought a touch of life to his face.
"This wedding attire suits Lord Lu very well. The snow cranes transform into flying celestial beings, and the jade brocade is embroidered... The colors complement Lord Lu perfectly."
Xue Yi: "He liked bright colors when he was young, but unfortunately you never saw him like that. He was completely different from how he is now."
Lu Xuejin wasn't reserved. Xue Yi insisted that he try on the clothes today, so he complied. He took off his outer robe, and both of their eyes fell on him at the same time.
“Bright colors are too eye-catching. I’m old now, and I’m not as spirited as I was when I was young. My mindset has changed a lot.” Lu Xuejin said, placing her outer robe on the screen.
He didn't ask Murong Yue for help and changed into the red robe himself. When he glanced at the person in the mirror, his originally delicate face was made even whiter by the red, his eyes were brown with a dark tinge, and his lips were bright red, as if he had just stepped out of a painting and was now tainted by worldly desires.
The golden crane pattern on his neck flew out. He raised his eyes and met his reflection in the mirror without any emotion. However, he noticed that the boy beside him was staring straight at him.
"The clothes fit perfectly; there's no need to trouble the craftsman with alterations," he said.
Xue Yi sat behind him, and the belt at his side fell into Xue Yi's palm. Xue Yi stroked the gold thread pattern on it and touched it with the tip of his nose.
"You are dressed very appropriately. I feel that you are reluctant to appear in public on your wedding day."
Lu Xuejin sensed something subtle. Xue Yi tightened his grip, and the thin ribbon in his palm overlapped into an invisible chain.
"If Your Majesty likes it, you may change it yourself," he said.
Xue Yi sat behind him. He glanced sideways and noticed that Xue Yi was still staring at him. A sickly blush rose on Xue Yi's pale face, and his palms trembled as he exerted force.
His gaze met Xue Yi's, and amidst the deathly stillness, vibrant colors burst forth, colors that seemed to devour him, transforming into patches of dark flames, giving him an inexplicable sense of foreboding.
"...Xue Yi?" Lu Xuejin reacted and immediately grabbed Xue Yi's wrist. Xue Yi only showed such a symptom when he had an attack. As he grabbed the wrist, Xue Yi coughed, his sickly red face withering and clumping together, his fingers gripping his and refusing to let go.
"I'm fine," Xue Yi said, his chest rising and falling as he looked at him. "I was just a little happy, which is why I fell ill."
“Just now, seeing your expression, it was like before… when Father was still alive, and I was lost in thought. If you leave the palace, you will be in a better mood. In the future, I will change the access control of Fangze Palace, and Changyou can go out at any time. However, I am still not very at ease about you leaving the palace, and you still need to have a guard accompany you.”
Lu Xuejin saw the crane pattern on her shoulder in Xue Yi's eyes. Her father had bought them brightly colored clothes before. The clothes were originally bought for Xue Yi. Her father felt that Xue Yi was always lifeless. When he saw the clothes, he tried them on and then took Xue Yi to see his father. That day, they went to the academy together, their mood as joyful as the bright colors.
He rarely reminisced about the past these days; those memories had been relegated to a corner of his mind. Xue Yi would occasionally dredge them up, plunging his thoughts into chaos. He frowned slightly, letting Xue Yi hold him, his knuckles damp with the coolness of Xue Yi's palm.
In the mirror, Xue Yi bent down and grasped his wrist. The two of them blended seamlessly. He looked down at the man, unaware that this scene was being observed by the young man beside him. Murong Yue's mind wandered away along with him.
Lu Xuejin pursed his lips. This was no longer the previous dynasty; there was no need to worry about him going out alone. He could no longer tell whether Xue Yi was worried about him or monitoring him. The two conflicting emotions mixed together, and he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
“Take care of yourself. No one can take your place when you're sick; if it flares up, you'll suffer the consequences yourself,” he said.
"Are you still angry with me?" Xue Yi asked, touching his forehead to his palm and kissing his fingertips. After the kiss, Xue Yi's eyes were warm, not minding that someone was beside him, as if he were begging for forgiveness for his mistake.
Lu Xuejin subconsciously tried to withdraw his hand, but his eyes caught sight of the young man beside him. Murong Yue concealed his aura, seemingly nonexistent in the hall, his clear black and white eyes silently observing everything.
“Nothing is worth getting angry about,” Lu Xuejin said, his fingertips clenching. The boy’s black boots were reflected in the corner of his eye. He had ordered Tengluo to deliver the boots. The boy’s slender fingers curled one by one, then slowly unfolded, clenching into a fist that cast a shadow beside the boots.
"How about we play a game of chess? Let the Ninth Prince go back," he said.
He finally compromised, for some reason, he didn't want Murong Yue to stay in the hall any longer, feeling that the young man would be uncomfortable and restrained there. Seeing him compromise, Xue Yi didn't seem happy at all. Instead, he looked at him and then at the young man behind him, a smile in his eyes.
“Changyou has spoken... He is much quieter in front of you, unlike in front of me where he always has a sharp tongue.”
Xue Yi looked at Murong Yue and said, "Go back. Next time you bring your classmates to your place, just tell the guards. I've heard that you always pick up old things that others throw away... If word gets out, people will think that I'm mistreating you."
Murong Yue opened his fan-shaped eyelids, his dark eyes reflecting Xue Yi's figure. Xue Yi's figure loomed over the palace like a shadow, obscuring his entire form and making him appear incredibly small. His emotions merged with the entire palace, seeping into its very core, casting a somber hue over the whole place.
"Yes... Your subject understands. Your subject takes his leave."
As the back bent downwards, it felt as if it weighed a ton. The boots retreated along the gaps in the floor tiles and disappeared into the door frame.
"..." Lu Xuejin stared at the boy's retreating figure for a long time, not blinking. After he left, his thoughts followed him, and Fangze Palace instantly became dull and lifeless.
"Changyou, how do you play chess?" Xue Yi's deep voice came.
His belt was still being held, and with a tug from Xue Yi, he involuntarily turned around. Xue Yi looked at him leisurely; the candlelight illuminated his pale face, making his sickly appearance even more pronounced, as if all the life force in his body was concentrated on him. Every change in his expression made Xue Yi's own aura dissipate.
Before he could speak, Xue Yi said, "How about we follow the previous rules? If I lose, I will rescind the order, and the Ninth Prince will not need to accompany me. I will let him stay in the palace."
"If Changyou loses... Changyou should stay here today and not go looking for him."
"……how?"
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