Chapter 0177: Melancholy Xie Chengze, Horrified Emperor Jian
After Xie Chengze left, Cao Qingran nearly collapsed, gasping for breath as her fingernails nearly dug into her palms.
She had always been composed and restrained, yet only when facing Hua Ning and Xie Chengze could she hardly conceal her true emotions.
“Attendant,” she finally managed to regain her composure, her face returning to its cold demeanor as she summoned her trusted aide. “Go to the Cao family and inform them that the Second Prince has set his sights on the Imperial Guard Cavalry Division. They must prepare thoroughly and eliminate anything that shouldn’t appear.”
“Yes.”
After the aide departed, Cao Qingran remained unsettled. She couldn’t shake the feeling that Xie Chengze knew everything.
Where had Xie Chengze’s soul gone during the time his body was usurped?
Could it have lingered in the imperial palace, witnessing all she had done?
No, impossible.
Cao Qingran tightly clutched the peachwood prayer beads in her hand. If that were truly the case, the moment his soul returned, he would have come for revenge!
She closed her eyes deeply. Since Xie Chengze hadn’t confronted her immediately, it proved he was just like that lone soul—merely inheriting past memories without knowledge of many secrets.
She needed to calm down and not lose her composure.
…
The next day, despite being entitled to five days of court leave, Xie Chengze unexpectedly attended the morning court session.
Xie Zimiao was delighted to see him, tugging at his sleeve to ask, “Second Brother, why have you come to court?”
“Staying in the palace is stifling,” Xie Chengze replied with a troubled expression. “I came here to vent my frustrations and relax a bit.”
Xie Zimiao: ?
Ah, it seemed someone was about to face misfortune again?
As Xie Zimiao pondered this, someone stepped past him from behind. Looking up, he saw it was the Crown Prince, Xie Jinyu.
“Elder Brother,” Xie Zimiao greeted according to protocol, only to notice Xie Jinyu seemed not to hear him, staring intently at their pale-faced second brother.
“Second Brother, are you in a bad mood?”
Xie Jinyu moved to Xie Chengze’s other side, his golden crown prince robes brushing against the striking crimson court attire. In a corner unseen by others, his fingertips entwined with those slender, cool fingers, transferring warmth from his own palm.
Xie Chengze lowered his gaze.
Since returning from disaster relief in Yingzhou, Xie Jinyu had developed a habit of holding his hand before court sessions, acting as a hand warmer. Though initially resistant, Xie Chengze had gradually grown accustomed to it after repeated instances.
Considering it, Xie Jinyu was merely at the age of a freshly graduated high school student. Having been separated from his beloved elder brother for so long, his clinginess was understandable.
Especially…
Memories of the Crown Prince from childhood surfaced frequently. Little Jinyu’s childhood could be described as a living hell—neither parent showed him affection, and their demands were excessively harsh. If his studies fell slightly behind, he would be caned as punishment at Kunning Palace, even denied medical attention by palace servants, forced to kneel alone on the ground reflecting throughout the night.
This treatment intensified when he reached martial arts training age. Though Xie Jinyu lacked innate talent for martial arts, as Crown Prince he was required to excel in both literary and military arts, surpassing all other princes to secure his position. Kunning Palace imposed nearly inhuman standards, while Emperor Jian turned a blind eye, tacitly approving these methods. Other consorts in the rear palace remained aloof, not daring to interfere.
At that time, the only one who dared to care for little Jinyu was “himself.” To prevent the Kunning Palace from criticizing him for meddling in others’ affairs, he deliberately went to the Imperial Study each time to borrow Eunuch Zhao, using the “Emperor’s” name as a pretext to care for the punished and injured little Jinyu.
The few joys in Xie Jinyu’s childhood were all given by “himself.”
No wonder in the original work, Xie Jinyu was endlessly indulgent and soft-hearted toward the Second Prince, refusing to kill him. Initially, it was thought that the Crown Prince was overly compassionate in brotherly affection, but now it seemed that “himself” was like Xie Jinyu’s “security blanket”—the intense dependency made it impossible for Xie Jinyu to sever his existence.
The one who made him stay forever in Jingcheng, forever by his side, was likely Xie Jinyu, wasn’t it?
But why was the Second Prince in the dream so fearful?
With the Crown Prince’s protection, he shouldn’t have to worry about being purged by the other after the Crown Prince ascended the throne, right?
Thinking this, he lost focus until a glimpse of a purple robe in his peripheral vision startled Xie Chengze back to reality. He abruptly withdrew his hand and frowned deeply.
He had nearly been careless—he couldn’t afford to show any closeness to the Crown Prince in front of Sheng Shihai, or the act would be exposed.
The sudden emptiness in his hand made Xie Jinyu instinctively narrow his eyes. He rubbed the lingering warmth on his fingertips and, seeing the weary, almost avoidant expression on Xie Chengze’s face, felt his heart sink.
Second Brother was indeed acting very strangely today.
Was it because… he had met with the Empress yesterday?
A trace of panic arose in his heart. Uncertain of what the two had discussed, Xie Jinyu clenched his fist, refraining from any rash moves, and fixed his gaze on the Dragon Throne, his eyes growing increasingly profound.
It seemed he needed to ascend to that position quickly.
…
When Emperor Jian arrived for court and saw Xie Chengze, who should have been on break, present as well, he couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise, “Oh, has the sun risen from the west?”
Unexpectedly, this time Xie Chengze didn’t respond with grumbling or complaints. Instead, he gazed at Emperor Jian with a complex and sentimental expression, his overly dramatic look sending shivers down the emperor’s spine and raising goosebumps.
“Why does Zhen feel that Ze’er is acting strangely today?” Emperor Jian quietly asked Eunuch Zhao.
Eunuch Zhao glanced at Xie Chengze. “Perhaps… it’s because Lord Shen has been imprisoned for too long, and the Second Prince is resentful?”
“Tsk…” Emperor Jian couldn’t help but sigh. “It seems Ze’er’s feelings for that Shen Yuan run deep indeed, to drive even someone as lazy as him to attend court.”
Eunuch Zhao chuckled. “Your Majesty is right.”
Emperor Jian stroked his chin. Though he pitied Ze’er, it was a shame—Shen Yuan couldn’t be released yet.
My Ze’er, you must endure a little longer!
Emperor Jian cast an even more exaggerated, sentimental look toward Xie Chengze.
Xie Chengze, receiving this overly affectionate gaze, nearly lost his composure. Fortunately, he managed to adopt an expression of anger and restraint in time, turning his head away to avoid exposing the act.
Standing among the ministers, Sheng Shihai observed everything clearly.
It seemed the Second Prince had already learned of his true origins. Yesterday, after meeting his wet nurse, he had erupted in anger at Cheng Huan Palace, likely realizing that if he didn’t start forming alliances in court, this fake royal would only be purged by the Crown Prince.
But this wasn’t enough.
More fuel was needed to make him fully aware of his predicament.
After the court assembly, just as Emperor Jian announced his intention to enfeoff Xie Chengze and Xie Zimiao as princes, two ministers suddenly stepped forward to memorialize. They detailed the Second Prince’s previous corrupt practices, including accepting gifts under the pretext of illness, and privately confiscating county magistrates’ illicit funds during his trip to Yi Province without reporting. They petitioned Emperor Jian to punish the Second Prince according to the law and retract the plan to enfeoff him as a prince.
These two ministers had always openly belonged to the Crown Prince’s faction. Xie Chengze glanced at Xie Jinyu and, as expected, found his younger brother the Crown Prince’s expression deeply troubled. Clearly, he hadn’t anticipated these two would impeach him without his permission.
However, this was merely the prelude.