Chapter 42: Suspicious? Part 2

Xunqi stood up. The Crown Prince stepped over the threshold. Seeing her, he was a little surprised, but still smiled. “The Young Mistress Yan is here too.”

“Chased by a dog, I had no choice but to come into the palace to hide.” Xunqi didn’t hide it and said it directly.

The Crown Prince was puzzled. “Who dares to force you?”

Xunqi sized up the Crown Prince. At ten years old, he was already very steady. Was he the future heir?

She withdrew her thoughts. “Li Sanlang.”

The Crown Prince had been smiling as he spoke. Hearing this, he couldn’t smile anymore. He said stiffly, “Prince Ji, my grand-uncle, has failed to discipline his son. I apologize to the Young Mistress on his behalf.”

“It has nothing to do with Your Highness.” Xunqi didn’t accept the Crown Prince’s apology. “I’ll handle it myself.”

The Crown Prince puffed out his chest, his gaze steady. She stared at him. Such a Crown Prince, not arrogant, not willful. How would Her Majesty choose?

The Crown Prince had come to find the Chief Eunuch. Xunqi didn’t want to stay. She turned and left.

Walking out of the tea room, she took a dozen steps along the corridor when she saw the Left and Right Prime Ministers walking out of the grand hall together. She stopped and didn’t approach.

Two old foxes!

Neither of them noticed Xunqi not far away. They spoke to each other. Yan Zhi’an said, “Princess Zhaohui is now in Jiangnan, with great prestige.”

“If you don’t throw money at it desperately, and she has no prestige, wouldn’t heaven be destroying her?” The Right Prime Minister’s tone was indifferent. “Left Prime Minister, I feel uneasy.”

Yan Zhi’an found it amusing. “What are you uneasy about? Your Shangguan family’s matter?”

“No, it’s Xunqi.” The Right Prime Minister sighed softly, a hint of worry on her brows. “Left Prime Minister, she’ll be sixteen after the New Year.”

Yan Zhi’an frowned, pausing in the sunlight. The Right Prime Minister said, “Think about it. She’s now a battalion commander…”

“She can’t be ruthless towards the Crown Prince. Her Majesty came to me before, and she’s already wavering. Xunqi is kind-hearted. How could she go after the Crown Prince?” Yan Zhi’an said frankly. “Do you know how many commoners froze to death in the capital this year? Xunqi sent people to bury them all. Do you think she would personally bring down the Crown Prince?”

“As a subject, it’s one’s duty to share the sovereign’s worries. Right Prime Minister, do you think this is the right time to say this?”

The majestic palace was cold and imposing. The two stood on the Hanging Dragon Path, their shadows stretched long, like upright bamboo shadows.

From afar, they looked beautiful yet dignified.

Xunqi watched the two quietly. Footsteps sounded behind her. She turned and saw the Female Emperor. She quickly lowered her head and bowed. “Your Majesty.”

The Female Emperor didn’t make a sound. Instead, she followed Xunqi’s gaze and saw the two heavyweights. She couldn’t help but find it amusing. “One is your mother, the other is your teacher. They are your closest people. Why are you spying on them from here?”

“I couldn’t bear to disturb them. Look.” Xunqi pointed at their backs. “Pillars of the state, and women at that.”

The Female Emperor understood her meaning in an instant. She nodded. “Your thoughts are good. Xunqi, the two of them are very important to my dynasty.”

Their hearts were for Xunqi. For Xunqi, they were willing to do many things. She told Xunqi, “The two of them are not only pillars of the state, but also upright people.”

But they were also Prince Ji’s formidable enemies. Once the Crown Prince ascended the throne, these two would not come to a good end.

“Mother.”

The Female Emperor was startled, looking at Xunqi. How she wished this ‘mother’ was Xunqi calling her. But it wasn’t. It was the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince came out of the tea room, strode over, and stood before the two. “Mother.”

“You’re here too.” The Female Emperor’s voice was soft, unable to hide her disappointment. But seeing it was getting late, she took the opportunity to say, “Both of you stay and have a meal with me.”

Xunqi was surprised. The Crown Prince was delighted and quickly agreed.

The Chief Eunuch heard this and immediately sent someone to make arrangements.

Xunqi followed the Female Emperor to the table in a daze. The three sat down, the Female Emperor at the head, the two below.

The Female Emperor was in a good mood and ordered wine. Xunqi didn’t dare defy the imperial will. She took a small sip. The spicy taste irritated her throat, making her want to vomit. The alcohol went down her throat, rolled into her stomach, and her body immediately burned.

“I haven’t had a meal with Mother in a long time.” The Crown Prince sighed, his gaze falling on Xunqi.

Xunqi lowered her head, playing with her wine cup. After one cup, her face was slightly flushed, pink and beautiful.

The Female Emperor didn’t answer the Crown Prince. Instead, she looked at Xunqi. “I heard you’re doing well in the Patrol Battalion? Zhao Fu’s neglect of duty is truly detestable.”

Zhao Fu had indeed neglected his duty. Xunqi wanted to plead for him, but with the Crown Prince present, she could only change her words. “Commander Zhao was indeed wrong. But I have strictly ordered them not to be negligent.”

The Female Emperor smiled with relief, looking at Xunqi’s flushed cheeks. She sighed softly, then turned to ask the Crown Prince, “How is your grand-uncle, Prince Ji?”

“He’s getting old. This fall injured his foundation. He needs to recuperate.” The Crown Prince answered nervously, without Xunqi’s calmness.

The Female Emperor took in the reactions of her son and daughter. Her gaze softened. She raised her cup and drank it all. If only their father had been one person.

What a pity.

After she drank a cup, Xunqi blurted out, “Your Majesty, the weather is cold. Two cups are enough. Too much wine is bad for your health.”

After saying it, she was surprised herself. But the words were out. She could only steel herself and continue, “Your Majesty, too much wine is not good.”

Xunqi was nervous, her voice trembling at the end. How could the Female Emperor not hear it? She laughed. “Alright.”

Xunqi breathed a sigh of relief, lowering her head and sneering. Sure enough, Her Majesty treated her a little differently.

The Crown Prince beside her had a drifting gaze. He looked at his mother, then at the Young Mistress Yan. After a while, he stared blankly at Xunqi. That familiar feeling surged up, stronger than before.

The Crown Prince suddenly spoke. “Young Mistress, is your birthday in June?”

Xunqi trembled, her hands clenching involuntarily. “I don’t know. I’ve never celebrated my birthday.”

“The Young Mistress is fifteen this year, but she hasn’t had her coming-of-age rite. I was wondering about that. You don’t know, doesn’t the Left Prime Minister know either?” The Crown Prince smiled softly.

The Crown Prince’s words also made the Female Emperor hold her breath. Xunqi answered first. “Mother said it’s in the summer. The woman who raised me didn’t know.”

The Crown Prince didn’t ask further. He raised his cup and drank a cup. So it was in the summer.

The Female Emperor took the opportunity to bring up other matters, smoothing over the incident.

The banquet eventually had to end. Xunqi and the Crown Prince took their leave. The Female Emperor leaned against a soft pillow, watching the two leave. The Crown Prince was in front, Xunqi behind. The distinction between sovereign and subject.

“Your Majesty, have you had too much to drink?” The Chief Eunuch asked from the side.

The Female Emperor smiled. “I only had two cups.”

Xunqi was a girl, delicate-minded, and knew to advise against drinking. The Crown Prince feared her and would never do such a thing.

She smiled softly. After two breaths of laughter, she suddenly sat up, her whole body trembling. The Chief Eunuch was startled. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

“Xunqi advised against the wine…” The Female Emperor murmured. “Why did she advise against it?”

She had been a sovereign and subject with Yan Zhi’an for many years. Yan Zhi’an had never advised against drinking. Shangguan Li was the same. Xunqi, at her first banquet with her, had boldly advised against it.

She propped herself up and sat up. The Chief Eunuch stepped forward to help her. She pushed his hand away. “Go summon Xunqi back.”

“Your Majesty, why?” The Chief Eunuch was puzzled.

The Female Emperor held her forehead, her whole body trembling. She took a deep breath but couldn’t suppress the tension in her heart. She urged, “Hurry.”

Xunqi left the palace. The Crown Prince returned to the Eastern Palace. The two walked together until the intersection, where they parted. The Crown Prince didn’t leave immediately.

The Crown Prince stood with his hands behind his back. “I’ve been with Mother for many years. She has never kept me for a meal. Today, thanks to the Young Mistress, I was able to have a meal with Mother.”

“The Crown Prince is too afraid of Her Majesty. Her Majesty treats you very well. Don’t listen to outside rumors.” Xunqi advised in a low voice. “You and Her Majesty are mother and son. You should trust Her Majesty.”

“Young Mistress Yan, before I understood things, I heard people praise the Yan family for having a daughter, skilled at prospecting for mines, pure and chaste, and a pillar of the state by Her Majesty’s side. I tried several times to have her as my teacher, but the Left Prime Minister never agreed.” The Crown Prince complained, his smile bitter. “Later, I heard she had a daughter. I didn’t believe it.”

Xunqi understood his meaning. She pretended not to and smiled. “My mother and I have a very good relationship. Your Highness is too afraid of Her Majesty. You should know she is your mother, the one who gave birth to you and raised you. You shouldn’t be estranged from her.”

“Yes, I shouldn’t be estranged. I know she misses my elder sister.” The Crown Prince said frankly, sizing up Xunqi’s expression as he spoke.

Xunqi’s expression was blank, without any fluctuation. “That is her daughter. Do you mean she should abandon her daughter to choose you? You are both her children. How can you make her choose?”

“Young Mistress also thinks I should be magnanimous?” The Crown Prince asked back. “If you were my elder sister, how would you treat me when you came back?”

Xunqi’s eyelashes trembled. She had to look up. The Crown Prince was waiting for her answer with a relaxed posture.

“However Your Highness treats me, I will treat Your Highness the same.”

The Crown Prince sneered, turned, and left.

Xunqi watched his back, silent for a long time. Had the Crown Prince also noticed something?

“Young Mistress Yan, why are you walking so fast?” The Chief Eunuch came huffing and puffing. “Oh my, Her Majesty summons you back.”

“Why does she summon me again?” Xunqi didn’t understand. Was there something she couldn’t say in front of the Crown Prince?

The Chief Eunuch didn’t know either. He urged Xunqi to go back and see Her Majesty.

Xunqi had no choice. She followed the Chief Eunuch back.

The Female Emperor was already sober. She stood by the window, staring at the drifting clouds, her heart in turmoil.

Until the Chief Eunuch announced, “Your Majesty, the Young Mistress Yan is here.”

“Your Majesty.” Xunqi stepped forward and bowed.

“Come here.” The Female Emperor didn’t turn around. She directly beckoned her forward.

Xunqi was puzzled but boldly stepped forward. As soon as she got close, the Female Emperor grabbed her hand and asked directly, “Why did you advise against the wine?”

“Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, the mother of all people. Was it wrong for me to advise against the wine?” Xunqi was extremely nervous, but also felt a sudden realization. She was afraid the Female Emperor would pierce the window paper.

Hearing this, the Female Emperor released her hand and smiled with relief. “I see. When I see you, I always think of Zhaohui.”

The Female Emperor changed her words and denied it. Xunqi also smiled. “Her Highness will be back soon. When mother and daughter are reunited, Your Majesty will enjoy the happiness of family.”

“Yes, I also look forward to that day.” The Female Emperor’s tone was heavy. When that day came, she would have to give up one side.

Just like back then, when she killed Emperor Hui for Emperor Ming. She had to make a choice.

She closed her eyes, her heart aching, almost suffocating. At that moment, Xunqi spoke. “Just now, the Crown Prince asked me, if I were Princess Zhaohui, how should I treat him.”