Zhou Ye noticed how loudly he was yelling and couldn’t help but worry someone nearby might overhear. If any of the Emperor’s spies were around, they might run off and report this straight to Xiao Heng. He quickly lowered his voice and warned, “Watch your words! Be careful!”

“I, Duan Yunfeng, have never learned the meaning of ‘watch your words’ in my whole life! So what if he’s the Emperor? When the Northern Garrison marched into the capital back then, the man was nowhere to be seen—probably hiding somewhere and crying his eyes out…” Duan Yunfeng scowled and ordered a nearby soldier, “Didn’t your Emperor summon me? Where is he? Lead the way!”

The way he stormed ahead was like a man collecting debts.

…

West Capital Palace, Inner Hall.

Xiao Heng was currently in discussion with Luo Shiwei and Luo Tong about how to provide relief to the famine-stricken people and cultivate barren lands, when suddenly someone outside raised their voice to report:

“Your Majesty, the heir of the King of the North has arrived to request an audience—!”

Xiao Heng waved a hand toward the hall. “You’re all dismissed. We’ll talk about this another day.”

The two men obeyed and withdrew in turn.

Luo Tong had just stepped down from the platform when he heard a rush of hurried footsteps.

He had never seen the heir of the King of the North in person, only heard tales of such a figure. Judging by the Emperor’s attitude, he seemed to hold this person in unusually high regard. His curiosity piqued, Luo Tong watched more closely as the newcomer approached.

What he saw was a strikingly young man in a full set of imposing military attire. His temples were bound with a silver crown, and his appearance was rather handsome, with especially vivid features. Yet the man entered the inner hall without removing his sword, nor even his shoes, and marched straight in, brimming with forceful energy.

Luo Tong couldn’t help but marvel inwardly: What a bold “sword at the waist, shoes on in the hall” sort of man.

It was practically rebellion.

Once inside the hall, Duan Yunfeng noticed a bamboo curtain hanging from the main beam—quite a refined touch. Through the curtain, he could faintly make out a tall figure wearing an imperial crown.

But Duan Yunfeng had no time for aesthetics. The moment he stepped forward, he demanded, “Where is the princess?”

From behind the curtain came a low male voice: “Is this your idea of courtly decorum?”

The voice was so cold it might as well have come from a corpse dead for a hundred years, and there was even a hint of mockery within it.

That lit Duan Yunfeng’s temper on the spot.

Decorum? Really?

This damn tyrant—still putting on airs in front of him?

He couldn’t hold back any longer and lifted the bamboo curtain with his scabbard. “Still hiding your face behind a curtain? What, got something to be ashamed of? You—”

His eyes swept inch by inch over the man’s phoenix-shaped eyes, his cool, thin lips, and a face that looked far too similar to the one in his heart.

There couldn’t possibly be another face like this in the world.

His stormy momentum faltered all at once, his voice faltering as he stood dumbfounded. “You…”

Xiao Heng said calmly, “What? Don’t recognize me?”

The man before him wore a black robe embroidered with dark patterns and a jade belt at his waist—radiating full imperial presence. Duan Yunfeng stared from head to toe, eyes wide with disbelief. “You… You’re a man??? Not the princess?!”

CLANG—

His blade dropped to the floor with a loud clatter. His amber eyes widened in complete shock as he stared at Xiao Heng.

“You… You’re the Emperor?!”

His chest heaved violently twice, as if a thunderbolt had struck his mind—he was completely numb. All he could do was instinctively part his parched lips.

“Then why did you lie to me?”

The man before him still looked calm as ever, utterly composed, not stirred by anything. He only lifted his brows slightly and said, “When did I ever say I wasn’t the Emperor?”

“You can’t twist things like that!” Duan Yunfeng was furious. He strode up to Xiao Heng, staring into those utterly indifferent eyes, as if trying to find the truth buried within. “When I asked you if you were willing to marry me, you… you, you, you…”

He suddenly realized—this man never actually spoke a word back then!

Following that logic, the guy could now deny everything.

Duan Yunfeng was so frustrated he couldn’t even breathe right. He racked his brain, then finally gritted out, “You tricked me into thinking you were mute!”

Xiao Heng said evenly, “I had no choice.”

“No choice?” Duan Yunfeng let out a furious, mocking laugh. “What a convenient excuse. Pretending to be mute—no choice. Disguising yourself as a princess—no choice. Marrying a man—also no choice. Have you ever said a single true word?”

Wait—he hadn’t! The man literally never said anything back then!

“You—” Duan Yunfeng was too enraged to speak properly. “You really are a performer—played mute like it was real!”

It couldn’t have been easy, keeping up the mute act for so long right in front of him.

No wonder he’d never let Duan Yunfeng touch him. No kisses, no nothing—he’d thought it was just the “princess” being shy. Turns out the damn guy was a man!

That bastard of a man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He’d been duped for so long by a man!

Xiao Heng’s brows creased slightly. “Duan Yunfeng.”

Duan Yunfeng froze for a second. That was the first time the other man had ever called him by name.

Xiao Heng looked at him coldly. “Watch your words.”

Duan Yunfeng, now slightly more composed, muttered, “If you’re the Emperor… then the Emperor was always in Luoyang. That royal edict summoning loyal forces—where did that come from?”

He looked up at Xiao Heng. “Did you write that too?”

The other man’s dark eyes remained calm and deep, wordlessly confirming it.

Duan Yunfeng said, “You wrote that edict. You knew Li Jichang would turn on me… You never really intended to marry me… You sent me to Fengxiang so I’d fight An Youliang for you… You didn’t let Song Shiyu come so you could split up the Northern Garrison’s strength… Then you summoned me to the capital alone—why? Are you afraid I’d rebel?”

Xiao Heng’s long lashes lowered slightly, his pale skin and sharp features casting a cold contrast. His black-and-white eyes had always held a natural trace of irony, especially when he wasn’t smiling.

“Rebel?” he said.

“Just because I haven’t brought certain things up,” he continued, “doesn’t mean they didn’t happen. For example—when you led troops into Luoyang. Even so, I can give you another chance. Let the past be the past…”

“‘Let the past be the past’? Ha.”

Duan Yunfeng stared at him in disbelief. That face—so cold, once enough to make his heart race, once like a deity from the heavens. Now he finally realized—perhaps emperors truly had no heart.

His eyes were slightly red. Maybe it was from the wind and dust on the road, maybe not. But in that moment, he clearly didn’t want to look at Xiao Heng any longer. Without another word, he turned and walked out of the inner hall.

In the vast hall, only the sound of footsteps slowly receding remained.

A moment later, Li Jinxi came in, looking a bit uneasy. He asked if His Majesty wanted to call the heir back.

“Let him go,” Xiao Heng said.

The Emperor’s face remained expressionless, but his tone clearly revealed his anger.

Li Jinxi said no more and quietly retreated from the hall.

…

Duan Yunfeng stormed out in a fury, heading toward his horse—but before he could even leave the Xijing Prefecture, he was stopped by two armed guards.

“Do you know who I am?” he snapped, seething with anger. “Who gave you the guts to block me?”

The two soldiers kept their heads down, exchanging uneasy glances…

You’re the very one His Majesty specifically told us to stop.

But of course, they didn’t dare say that out loud.

Zhou Ye, who had been waiting outside the inner hall, quickly stepped forward when he saw the situation. He caught up with Duan Yunfeng and pulled him aside, lowering his voice. “What did His Majesty say to you just now?”

He’d originally feared that if the Emperor were truly ruthless, he might take the opportunity to wipe out the Northern Garrison. But now, seeing the heir storm out of the hall completely unharmed after making such a scene, it seemed the Emperor still intended to make use of their forces.

Duan Yunfeng snapped, “Ask him yourself! Why ask me?!”

Zhou Ye had been at the King of the North’s side for many years and was well accustomed to the heir’s temper. He patted Duan Yunfeng on the shoulder. “You came all this way, haven’t even eaten yet, have you? Come to my place first, grab a bite to eat, yeah?”

Seeing that Duan Yunfeng didn’t budge, Zhou Ye grabbed his arm again and coaxed, “Come on, eat something. Just eat first…”

After much patient persuasion, he finally convinced the temperamental young lord.

Duan Yunfeng followed Zhou Ye back to his quarters. He barely touched his food, but he knocked back bowl after bowl of wine. By the time night had fallen, his whole face—and even his neck—were flushed red. He was slurring, “You all knew he wasn’t a princess, didn’t you? Huh? I was the only one who didn’t know…”

Zhou Ye felt wronged. “We didn’t know either!”

Well… to be fair, he had found out a few days earlier than Duan Yunfeng, but that was only because Xiao Heng had confronted him. And even then—how was he supposed to tell the heir under those circumstances?

Duan Yunfeng didn’t believe him. He let out a grunt. “So I was the only fool in the dark… You all lied to me… lied to me…”

With that, he slammed his bowl down heavily and got to his feet. “Forget Luoyang, forget Chang’an—I’m done with this godforsaken place! I’m going home!”

“This whole capital… full of liars. Especially the good-looking ones… they—they scam your heart and your money.” Duan Yunfeng staggered toward the door, not watching his step, and suddenly tripped on the edge of a stone step, tumbling forward with his left foot catching his right.

“Ah—!” Zhou Ye only heard a loud CRASH as Duan Yunfeng fell headfirst into the water pit in front of him.

…

Xiao Heng had been in his residence attending to state matters when suddenly a commotion arose outside. He frowned and asked Li Jinxi, “What’s going on out there?”

Li Jinxi replied, “This old servant will go check.”

But before he could take a step, a loud shout rang out from outside: “The heir fell into the river!”

Xiao Heng calmly set down his document and rose from the desk. As he walked out, he asked with visible irritation, “When did the Xijing Prefecture get a river?”

He passed through the rear garden’s pavilions and courtyards until he reached the brightly lit area where a crowd had gathered. There, he saw Duan Yunfeng, dead drunk, sprawled in a shallow puddle. The water barely reached his knees.

Four or five servants and the son of the Xijing Prefect were trying to pull him up, but Duan Yunfeng, still sulking, stubbornly refused to move.

Xiao Heng looked at the muddy snowmelt splattered all over Duan Yunfeng’s robes. He drew a deep breath, his expression cold as he looked down at the man in the pit and spat out two icy words:

“Get up.”

The voice sent a shiver through Duan Yunfeng’s heart. He turned around and met Xiao Heng’s cold gaze, a look colder than the water in the pit. For some reason, the intensity of that gaze made Duan Yunfeng’s legs feel weak. His instincts told him that he shouldn’t stay in the pit any longer, but he was still upset. So, forcing a tight smile on his lips, he slowly stood up from the mud, clearly displeased.

Xiao Heng frowned as his eyes swept over Duan Yunfeng’s robes, now stained with mud. He instructed his attendants, “Take him inside and have him change into clean clothes.”

Watching Duan Yunfeng being led away, Luo Tong couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. How is it that someone so grown up could make such a fool of himself—especially in front of the Emperor? He was enjoying the scene when suddenly Xiao Heng’s gaze shifted, landing on him like a sharp blade. Luo Tong immediately stopped breathing.

Xiao Heng said coldly, “Xijing Prefecture certainly has its own charm. When did they build a river in the backyard? I had no idea.”

“Uh, this…” Luo Tong was no longer smiling, completely unable to gauge the Emperor’s mood. He stammered, “Your Majesty, this isn’t a river, it’s just a pit. Perhaps it hasn’t been repaired for a long time.”

Xiao Heng raised an eyebrow, his voice sharp. “Then what are you waiting for? Waiting for me to fix it?”

Luo Tong gasped, “I dare not, Your Majesty! I will have someone repair it immediately!”

With that, he rushed off in haste.

After settling the issue with the pit, Xiao Heng returned to his chambers.

Duan Yunfeng had already changed out of his dirty clothes and was now only wearing a thin undergarment. He seemed unaffected by the cold, crouching by the desk where Xiao Heng had been handling state affairs. He was absentmindedly flipping through the pile of books, not really reading anything. His hand shook, nearly tossing one of the ledgers into the fire.

Xiao Heng’s eyelids twitched. “Don’t touch anything.”

Duan Yunfeng slammed the ledger down onto the desk with a loud bang, dragging out his words, “Oh—so now you’re the Emperor, huh? Big shot… hmph… You used to say such sweet things… Oh wait, you can’t speak.”

Xiao Heng waved away the few attendants still in the room, then strode over to Duan Yunfeng, lifting him off the ground. “What exactly are you so angry about?”

Duan Yunfeng flailed his hands around, gesturing wildly. “I lost a whole princess, and now I can’t be angry?!”

Xiao Heng lowered his gaze, thinking for a moment. He said, “If you liked the princess, I can arrange for another one for you…”

Something about this triggered a surge of emotion in Duan Yunfeng. His voice suddenly rose, “How could it be the same?!”

“Are you going to make her jump into the lake too? Swim in the Nine-Bend Pool? Open the city gates for me in Luoyang, huh?”

Duan Yunfeng had traveled all the way from Yanzhou to Chang’an without eating along the way. Now, with the alcohol hitting him, his stomach burned with sharp pains. And Xiao Heng’s cold face was hovering before him again, reminding him that it was this very face that had fooled him, making him look like a big fool. Unable to tolerate it any longer, Duan Yunfeng grabbed Xiao Heng’s collar, uncaring, and kissed him on the lips.

All that nonsense about the Red Phoenix Star, about fated love—it was all a lie!

He had been deceived in matters of the heart, but that was nothing compared to the fact that he had been tricked by a man!

A man!!!

A damn man, pretending to be a princess, deceiving him, making him think he had found true love. How disgusting! Anyone could do that!