Chapter 67

The wind swept over the fallen leaves, carrying a putrid stench in the upturned earth, making one feel nauseous.

Xie Chaoyun dealt with most of the black-clad assailants barehanded. He fired a signal flare to alert those below, but then he saw the Regent standing amidst the raging flames, nearly stopping his heart.

Had he seen something inside the house?

Shouting “Accept our condolences,” he dragged Xiao Heng out of the blaze. The fire had already reached the woman on the ground; Xie Chaoyun was about to try to save the body of his brother’s mother when Xiao Heng stopped him.

“It’s Miao Ruoqiu.”

Xie Chaoyun paused. It made sense; the mountain was filled with fresh blood, likely recently spilled. Lu Pei showed no mercy, desiring all of Miao Ruoqiu’s blood. He saw that the corpse’s mouth was stuffed with cloth, to prevent Miao Ruoqiu from making a sound.

“Her mouth is even gagged.”

This is why people shouldn’t be too greedy, coveting to much wealth and prosperity. The Regent had let her go, but she didn’t appreciate it and brought this upon herself.

“What did you say?” Xiao Heng’s heart thumped violently, his face turning pale. “Not good, let’s go back!”

Miao Ruoqiu had once claimed she could cure him, yet she couldn’t even discern that the Gu in his body had already been neutralized by Chu Zhaoyou.

Relying on her unique constitution to attempt to neutralize the Gu was simply the work of a mediocre doctor.

However, at this moment, Xiao Heng suddenly realized that when he first saw Miao Ruoqiu, she didn’t appear completely confident. After examining him, her certainty seemed to grow.

Did this certainty imply that she had realized but intended to take advantage of the situation?

Did Miao Ruoqiu inform Lu Pei that he had already neutralized the Gu?

Miao Ruoqiu might have chosen not to disclose this information to emphasize her importance to Lu Pei.

Lu Pei wouldn’t have initially gagged Miao Ruoqiu; what if she had said something?

So, did Lu Pei, fully aware that this tactic wouldn’t work on him, still bring him and Chu Zhaoyou here, simply aiming for Chu Zhaoyou’s life?

The blood was intended for Chu Zhaoyou, while the fire and the corpse were aimed at him. If… if he was the mastermind, he would certainly cover all bases to prevent an impostor posing as Chu Zhaoyou.

Chu Zhaoyou is in danger!

Xie Chaoyun, seeing that the Imperial Guards had already stormed the mountain, followed the Regent back to the capital.

…

Chu Zhaoyou propped up his chin, waiting for the Regent. When his head nearly hit the table, he snapped back to alertness.

His delicate brain mustn’t be injured like a certain big fool.

The individuals behind the sweet potato vines incident were much more then the people in Wuyun Temple. After the Regent departed, through coercion and manipulation, Chu Zhaoyou finally managed to get Qian Shicheng to spill some information.

There was news about the Regent’s mother.

No wonder Xiao Heng was so agitated. Chu Zhaoyou speculated that perhaps someone had captured Xiao Man to threaten the Regent, further solidifying the need to await his return.

Chu Zhaoyou couldn’t stand in the way of a son rescuing his mother, even if she was an irresponsible one.

Perhaps Xiao Man truly believed she had found a good place for her son, and Xiao Heng’s appearance, wasn’t suited for traveling with her and while performing, it might have been detrimental for him. This could have been the reason she was willing to leave her child behind.

Chu Zhaoyou imagined the young Xiao Heng at Lingbi River, and his heart clenched.

Was singing really that great? How astonishing was her voice and talent, that not singing would cause such a significant loss to the culture and arts of Da Chu?

Even if Xiao Congwen led a frugal life, there should still have been some money from selling off their property, right?

Xiao Man might not have been strapped for cash—she just wanted to sing. She knew she couldn’t have Xiao Heng accompany her to the theater, so she found him a new home.

Chu Zhaoyou resolved never to sing in front of the Regent again. It shouldn’t be too difficult to do. He just needed to endure it.

As midnight passed, Chu Zhaoyou looked at the moon hanging in the eaves, waiting for Xiao Heng to return.

Regardless of the outcome, the Regent would need a hug from him. He also believed that the Regent would surely be fine.

The Regent had an irresponsible mother, and he certainly wouldn’t become an irresponsible father.

Chu Zhaoyou noticed some light in the side hall and inadvertently strolled over to the window near Lu Jinghuan.

A Fight.

The palace was often dull, and Lu Jinghuan was his source of entertainment.

It seemed like Lu Jinghuan was arguing with Feng Xingzhou; the latter insisted on returning home in three days, a decision the young emperor disagreed with.

“Who’s there?” Feng Xingzhou asked.

“It’s me,” Chu Zhaoyou coughed and said to Lu Jinghuan, “Want to take a walk?”

“Sure.” Lu Jinghuan seized the lifeline and promptly bounced out of the room.

The April weather was neither hot nor cold. Chu Zhaoyou and Lu Jinghuan walked to a less crowded square, and he pointed out sharply, “You clearly have a thing for someone’s face!”

“No, I don’t!”

“You do, otherwise, how did you get that burn under your ear?”

Lu Jinghuan blushed, lacking conviction as he retorted, “Nonsense.”

“Although I’d love to keep you entertained, you two are, after all, the ruler and the imperial Preceptor.”

Lu Jinghuan replied, “What’s so fun about being an emperor? Let’s go on an adventure together; someone else can handle the memorials.”

Chu Zhaoyou: “If you had said that three months earlier, I might have been swayed. Why don’t you agree to Feng Xingzhou? It seems like you don’t dislike him.”

Surprisingly, Lu Jinghuan appeared somewhat melancholic at the question, gazing at Chu Zhaoyou as if he were about to cry.

“He agreed to assist the regency for six years at my father’s request.”

His mother had pleaded desperately, but she couldn’t persuade Feng Xingzhou to extend it by a year.

This year marked the fifth, and next autumn, Feng Xingzhou would shave his head and return to seek his master.

Lu Jinghuan had been frail in his youth and hadn’t learned much about kingly strategies. When Feng Xingzhou emerged, he recovered, and during these five years, Feng Xingzhou had been urging him to study rigorously, especially strict, and had appointed a very stern tutor.

Initially, Lu Jinghuan had been somewhat afraid, as Feng Xingzhou would check his studies every time he appeared. Eventually, he calmed down and gradually understood his own feelings, but then he started fearing other things.

Lu Jinghuan: “Do you think he wants to experience things he hadn’t done before during his final year before returning to secular life?”

Chu Zhaoyou: “… Have you asked him yourself?”

Lu Jinghuan: “Do I even need to ask? The National Preceptor has never said he likes me. His master never agreed to let him leave the mountain, saying that if he stayed there, he would achieve greater accomplishments in Buddhism. The National Preceptor said he needed six years, and his master agreed. Six years means six years.”

Feng Xingzhou only shows affection, forcing him to like him.

Chu Zhaoyou enthusiastically reassured him: “If he likes you, extending it to sixty years wouldn’t be out of the question.”

Lu Jinghuan looked despondent: “A monk doesn’t lie.”

Chu Zhaoyou thought that powerful officials might have a common flaw—believing they have everything under control. They probably don’t feel the need to swear oaths or make promises like regular men when they like someone. Overconfidence.

The Emperors on the other hand,  might also have a flaw—fearing to trust.

“In the end, if he doesn’t say, maybe it’s because you haven’t asked,” Chu Zhaoyou suggested. “Go back and ask him now. If he doesn’t answer well, I’ll have him thrown out immediately.”

Lu Jinghuan hesitated: “What if he says he wants to become a monk?”

Chu Zhaoyou pinched the burn under Lu Jinghuan’s ear with his thumb: “How did you get this wound? Who treated it?”

“The National Preceptor.”

“He used some useless ointment, deliberately leaving you scarred. What kind of monk is this beast? You’re the emperor; if he dares to become a monk, I’ll have his temple demolished.”

Lu Jinghuan was stunned. “You can do that?”

“It’s better to demolish ten temples than to ruin one marriage, have you heard that saying?” Chu Zhaoyou glanced at the sky. “That’s the principle. We can’t act like tyrants.”

Considering the Regent had previously lived in a temple, it was best to show some mercy.

Encouraged, Lu Jinghuan suddenly wanted to go back and ask.

As they walked and talked, Chu Zhaoyou, worried about the Regent, focused on Lu Jinghuan, making himself worry about him and leaving no room for other thoughts.

Four eunuchs passed by, each carrying newly sewn summer clothes, and respectfully bowed when they saw His Majesty.

Chu Zhaoyou glanced at the lead eunuch, feeling a bit unfamiliar. It was quite late, yet they were still rushing to finish the summer clothes. He reflected for a moment.

Had he not been attentive enough to the lives of the palace staff lately? It wasn’t right to make people work overtime.

With a quick scan, he noticed something irregular about the fabric, as if it were covering something.

His heart began to race. Calmly, he pulled Lu Jinghuan closer, away from the eunuch. “Go and ask the National Preceptor right now.”

If these four individuals were suspicious, the two of them wouldn’t be enough to handle it. They couldn’t risk alerting them; if needed, one would run. In the past, when the Regent didn’t oversee palace matters, the Empress Dowager controlled things like clothing production. If there were people from the Empress Dowager’s faction in the eunuch department, things might not have been thoroughly cleaned up.

The two lead eunuchs, unexpectedly encountering the Emperor, didn’t waste any time. They immediately lifted the fabric, revealing gleaming knives.

The eunuch’s five fingers clenched the dagger as their eyes turned fierce, aimed to strike at Chu Zhaoyou.

The bodyguards were too far to intervene, and it was already too late.

Pushed back by Chu Zhaoyou, Lu Jinghuan felt something was amiss and turned around, eyes wide. Trembling, he retrieved a bottle of medicine, almost shaking as he sprayed it at the eunuch.

The master physician gave his disciple anti-wolf medicine.

The eunuch holding the dagger felt a sharp pain in his eyes, missing his mark as he tried to strike, clutching his eye with one hand while preparing to strike again.

Lu Jinghuan, selflessly, stood in front of Chu Zhaoyou.

Chu Zhaoyou: “You go first!”

Just as Xiao Heng arrived and saw Chu Zhaoyou and Lu Jinghuan together, he breathed a sigh of relief, but the situation suddenly changed. The eunuch drew a sharp dagger.

The area in front and behind the hall was spacious, with no concealed weapons in sight.

He glared at a nearby stone railing, then exerted all his strength to leap toward Chu Zhaoyou. He could save Chu Zhaoyou from this distance.

In the blink of an eye, the Regent realized both he and Xie Chaoyun were covered in poisoned blood.

If he approached Chu Zhaoyou… then…

I must save him!

Xiao Heng’s eyes were bloodshot as he calculated the farthest way to neutralize the eunuch while keeping Chu Zhaoyou safe.

Suddenly, a sideways thrust targeted the eunuch’s neck, blood flowing from the wound, staining the white-clad figure’s hands, freezing the scene in an instant.

Xiao Heng’s expression turned stern as he executed an unimaginably difficult maneuver, turning mid-air and colliding with Xie Chaoyun, both rapidly retreating dozens of meters in an instant.

Feng Xingzhou had been following not too far away. Bolder than his guards, he trailed them openly, wanting to hear what Lu Jinghuan and Chu Zhaoyou discussed every day.

The Emperor’s  calm and concealed heart meant the two of them chattered all along, oblivious to his presence, and consequently, he heard every word.

Now he calmly released the other deceased eunuch, Feng Xingzhou said to Lu Jinghuan, “Taking life, breaking vows of celibacy—no longer can I be accepted by the Buddhist sect.”

Lu Jinghuan’s eyes reddened, staring blankly at the crimson blood on Feng Xingzhou’s hands, trickling down from his fingertips, while his white robes remained untainted.

Chu Zhaoyou released his companion from their earlier struggle and hurried toward the Regent.

He had heard the Regent’s inability to control his strength, the sound of him hitting the ground.

“Don’t come over,” Xiao Heng cautioned.

Chu Zhaoyou halted, realizing the Regent’s intent.

Xiao Heng  patted Xie Chaoyun, “You can go back to recover; you’re not allowed in the palace for ten days.”

The tension has dissipated; come back later.

Grumbling, Xie Chaoyun departed.

Xiao Heng  sat on the ground, looking up at Chu Zhaoyou, and smirked, “Your Majesty, I remembered something.”

Chu Zhaoyou was taken aback. “Remembered what?”

“Everything.”

“Do you remember when I didn’t share my buns with you at first?” Chu Zhaoyou’s nose tingled. “I didn’t mean to, no, I did it on purpose.”

Xiao Heng hesitated for a moment. “I remember.”

“But I’m not hungry,” the Regent immediately added.

Chu Zhaoyou: “How about the name Xiao Hei?”

Xiao Heng: “Excellent.”

Chu Zhaoyou sniffled and suddenly felt a kick in his abdomen.

“I think it’s excellent too, Regent. Our little one missed you just now.”

Xiao Heng tensed. “You need to see the physician immediately.”

Chu Zhaoyou: “It’s no use. His father missed you a bit too, just a bit.”

Author’s note: It’s almost the end of the month. Little Star puts the pacifier’s straw into your nutrient solution. Sip.