EOL Chapter 40

“You’ve been going out quite a lot lately.”

 

Xiu said this while still lying in bed when Alfred got up.

 

“The emperor only took back my military power, but he didn’t ban me from traveling,” Alfred said. “I can go out and play whenever I want.”

 

Xiu Dao: “You went to see the Grand Marshal.”

 

Alfred paused in his dressing moves, neither confirming nor denying.

 

 

“Did you tell him?”

 

“Tell him what?” Alfred asked knowingly.

 

“It seems that there is none.” Xiu said calmly, “Aren’t you afraid that I will contact him myself?”

 

Alfred certainly had such concerns. However, he could not take away Xiu’s communication tools and restrict his contact with the outside world like he did on Xueli Star – although the crown prince was now under house arrest and out of power, he actually controlled the Dawn Palace, so if he wanted, he could do so.

 

Alfred said nonchalantly, “You can contact Marshal Stone yourself and see if he will believe you.”

 

“Why won’t he believe me?”

 

“Thank you, High Priest. In all the existing reports in this world, your identity is that you are the emperor’s firstborn son, my brother from the same father and mother. No matter how you investigate, it is true. I have already dealt with the two test reports that I requested privately. The person who did the appraisal is my confidant.”

 

 

“Your confidant.” Xiu repeated.

 

The royal medical team was directly loyal to the emperor, and it was difficult for outsiders to infiltrate. The high priest had studied at the Royal Medical College when he was young, so he had been cultivating private relationships with several people in the medical team for decades. Even if they did not help the crown prince, they would not turn to the third prince.

 

It was also a coincidence that Alfred had a doctor available – Dites was reprimanded by the Crown Prince and then kicked out of the royal medical team a few years ago. His research was interrupted and years of hard work went to waste. That’s why he was recruited by Alfred two years ago and rebuilt his team and laboratory with Alfred’s funding.

Another coincidence related to Xiu.

 

But at this point, it doesn’t matter whether this was a “coincidence” or intentional.

 

Alfred could have simply taken away all of Xiu’s communication tools, but he didn’t. Instead, he went through so much trouble and settled for the next best thing, discouraging Xiu from contacting the Grand Marshal.

 

This is because he needs to repair so that he can contact the outside world, and he needs to repair so that he can contact the high priest.

 

The high priest was very cunning, and brutal interrogation was unlikely to be effective. The spies that the Grand Marshal had placed in the Holy White Tower were far from being at a core position. If one wanted to obtain intelligence from the high priest, one had to break through from someone else. This person had to be close enough to the high priest and have deep interests involved. There were very few such candidates, Joshua was one, and the crown prince could also be one.

 

Joshua was in the Holy White Tower, out of their reach, but the Crown Prince was right under their eyes.

 

This was the idea proposed by the Grand Marshal. Alfred neither told Marshal Stone that the person he was plotting against was his own nephew, nor did he reject the plan to use Xiu. Instead, he nodded and praised him: Good idea.

 

 

Therefore, he could not cut off the contact between Xiu and the high priest, but instead hoped that Xiu would contact the high priest more. The more Xiu knew, the more he could get from Xiu – it was still difficult to get intelligence from Xiu, but it was better than the high priest living in the Holy White Tower.

 

After a while, Alfred came out of the cloakroom neatly dressed and sat on the bed in a daze, with no intention of getting up.

 

It was very rare for Xiu to be in a daze, not to mention sitting on the bed in a daze with disheveled clothes and messy hair. Alfred stared at her for a while, but he couldn’t help it, and he felt that he didn’t need to, so he walked over and grabbed Xiu’s chin, forcing Xiu to raise her head and kiss him.

 

“Forced” was the scenario Alfred had imagined. After all, Xiu struggled every time they kissed, but today, for some reason, Xiu did not resist at all and almost accepted the deep kiss docilely.

 

“What’s wrong with you lately?” Alfred stepped back slightly and asked.

 

 

His lips were almost touching Xiu’s lips, which were wet from kissing Xiu just now.

 

Xiu did not resist this ambiguous gesture, nor did he avoid it. He said, “Nothing, I was just thinking…”

 

He stretched out his fingers and gently touched Alfred’s cheek with his cool fingertips.

 

Alfred froze, not daring to move nor wanting to retreat, allowing Xiu to slowly stroke his face. Then he heard Xiu’s voice, very soft.

 

“You’ve passed.”

 

“What?” Alfred was a little confused. “What do you mean?”

 

Xiu didn’t answer him, but stepped back and straightened his collar. He looked calm and expressionless, and the inexplicable ambiguity and warmth just now had disappeared completely.

 

 

Alfred looked at him suspiciously, and felt that he was more and more abnormal.

 

The intercom beside the bed rang. Alfred picked it up and it was the servant asking where breakfast was delivered.

 

“Send the prince’s portion in. I’ll go downstairs to eat.” Alfred said. After a pause, he added in front of Xiu, “The prince has been unwell recently. Tell the guards, especially the guards at the gate, to pay special attention to the prince’s safety.”

 

Xiu did not respond to this explicit instruction to “keep a close eye on the prince”, but simply said, “Don’t send meat patties for breakfast, they’re too greasy.”

 

Alfred relayed this message, put the intercom back, and prepared to go out.

 

“Alfred.”

 

Xiu called out from behind him.

 

Alfred turned around and saw Xiu standing there in thin pajamas. He looked a little pale, perhaps because of his recent irregular schedule, but his eyes were firm and steady.

 

“I said I’d think about your question before answering you.” Xiu said, “I’ve thought about it.”

 

Alfred’s expression suddenly changed.

 

He was not actually going to see Marshal Stone at this moment, but was summoned by the emperor to go to the Holy Golden Palace for a chat, so he could not be late at will. But now, he did not care about the time at all, stood at the door of Xiu’s bedroom, nodded and said, “I’m listening.”

 

 

“The answer is: No.” Xiu said, “I don’t know who has been helping you, but it’s not me. No matter in the past or now, no matter whether I regard you as my own brother or not, I have never thought of helping you.”

 

Alfred’s temper did not ease until the emperor asked him “what he thought about the position of crown prince.”

 

“Your Majesty, instead of testing whether I want to be the crown prince, you might as well investigate the high priest.”

 

The emperor said coldly: “If I hadn’t investigated him, would it be your turn to answer this question?”

 

He was very dissatisfied with Alfred’s attitude, but as the investigation became more and more in-depth, there was more and more evidence that the prince had been in close contact with the high priest for many years. After all, the prince was young and had revealed many clues in his past work. The emperor became more and more frightened as he investigated, and he had already begun to think about deposing the prince.

 

No matter what long-term plans he has for the future, at the moment, he really only has one heir available, and he has to use him first, whether he likes it or not.

 

“You have been investigating for so many days, but you are only busy investigating the internal strife among us?” Alfred said bluntly, “It’s already this late, and you are still only focusing on these power struggles. It’s a waste of time for me to come to the palace to meet you.”

 

The emperor was furious and said, “How dare you! Do you think you have secured the throne of the crown prince, so you can talk to me without restraint? Do I have to appoint a crown prince? There have been cases in history where the throne was passed on to a relative!”

 

 

Alfred took a deep breath and said in a very cold tone: “Your Majesty, your high priests, grand marshals, clan nobles can fight among themselves, your sons can fight among themselves, but you absolutely cannot, because the national crisis is about to come. As an emperor, if you are unwilling to open your eyes and face the crisis at this time, it will ruin the entire empire. Unfortunately, it seems that you are the one fighting the most vigorously now. It is also true that what you are best at in your life is to wield power…”

 

“Are you crazy?!” the emperor shouted angrily, “Do you think I will rely on you if you insist on making up those rumors? Come! Give him to me…”

 

“Your Majesty!” the guard pushed open the door and shouted. Without waiting for the emperor to finish his order, he hurriedly ran past Alfred and delivered the message to the emperor.

 

“Someone from the Dawn Palace reported that… His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is missing.”

 

Alfred’s pupils suddenly shrank, and he turned around and rushed out of the Holy Golden Palace.