TL: Hua
Chapter 26: Rumors – “Am I that lame?”
The Crown Prince didn’t comment on his previous remark but instead said, “There’s a rumor among the court and the public that whoever gets the four treasures can get the imperial seal. Po Yinlin is one of them.”
Pei Xiting was curious: “What is the connection between a dagger and the imperial seal?”
Yu Shaoyun said, “Forcibly destroying the golden chamber where the imperial seal is stored will only trigger the mechanism and reduce the seal to dust in an instant. Therefore, in order to obtain the imperial seal, one can only find the key to unlock it. The key is a cipher lock, which has four parts. Only when all four parts are correctly matched at once can the imperial seal be unlocked; otherwise, it will still self-destruct. The imperial seal is extremely precious, and most of the time, only the emperor can know the information about it.”
Pei Xiting said, “So that’s how it is.”
Emperor Xining is now recuperating in his bedchamber and no longer goes out. Compared with breaking into the heavily guarded Forbidden Palace to kidnap the emperor and force him to make a decision that goes against his ancestors and the dignity of an emperor, collecting the treasures one by one is indeed a simpler method.
Pei Xiting suddenly remembered that when Yuan Fang tested the dagger before, there was indeed a water pattern on the scabbard of the dagger. At that time, he only thought it was beautiful and never expected it to be part of the ciphertext.
“But people would actually do all this just for a rumor that has never been verified?” Pei Xiting sneered.
“Today, if I spread a rumor that there’s a treasure thousands of miles away from east to west, which can enrich one’s wealth, tomorrow the world will gather and countless people will run amok. There is no need for empirical evidence.” The Crown Prince said in a calm voice, “Words are like swords, which can save or kill people. Rumors are mysterious, full of temptation and bewitching. Some people easily believe them, some people believe them despite the suspicion, and some people don’t believe them but are afraid of the one in ten thousand possibility. All of these are not surprising.”
“That’s right.” Pei Xiting shook his head and asked, “When did this rumor start?”
“Around February.” The Crown Prince said.
Po Yinlin was only given to Shangguan Jie in early spring, and there were rumors about this in February, which were really exaggerated. Pei Xiting looked at the Crown Prince’s calm expression with some curiosity. “Your Highness, do you regret handing over Po Yinlin to Shangguan… Young Marquis?”
“I’m not a prophet; why should I regret it?” The Crown Prince said, “Rumors are just rumors after all. Now is not the time for warlords to vie for power. Can one usurp the throne by getting the imperial seal? Besides, this is the imperial seal of my Zong family.”
“Outsiders may not have a chance, but there are more than just Your Highness in the Zong family.” Pei Xiting met the Crown Prince’s calm eyes and said in a normal tone, “If Your Highness is killed, the East Palace will be without a master, and someone else can take the throne. Whoever has the imperial seal will be helped by heaven. Even if His Majesty is unwilling to issue an edict, there will naturally be a wave of public opinion that “it’s against the heavens” rushing towards the emperor.”
This is the truth, but his words are too bold. Eunuch Lai and Yu Shaoyun held their breath and concentrated, not daring to peek at His Highness’s expression.
The Crown Prince looked at Pei Xiting without any displeasure and just asked, “Do you want to see this scene?”
“A good bird chooses a sturdy tree to live in. Although I’m not a person of many talents who can enter and leave the court nor a brave man who can protect Your Highness in the sword and shadow, I just want to respectfully call Your Highness ‘Your Highness.’”
Pei Xiting bowed and cupped his hands. “Your Highness, please take care. I have to be on duty tomorrow morning, so I need to go down the mountain first.”
The Crown Prince looked at Pei Xiting quietly for a while before saying, “Go.”
Pei Xiting nodded, turned, and left, the belt behind him fluttering in the wind, disappearing from the end of the Crown Prince’s sight.
The Crown Prince lowered his eyelids and looked away.
“Your Highness.” The guard lightly walked up to the Crown Prince and asked, “That painting has a wet corner. Do you still want it?”
He was asking about the painting that Eunuch Lai brought back from the pavilion—Pei Xiting’s world in the rain.
The painting is damaged, but it was specifically requested by His Highness to be painted by Pei Xiting. Will His Highness still want it now? The subordinates are not sure, so they have to ask. The Crown Prince was silent for a long time and said, “Pack it up.”
*
The carriage was parked outside the villa. Pei Xiting walked over and lifted the brim of Yuan Fang’s hat, leaned over, and asked, “Are you sleepy?”
The other party opened his eyes, which were cleared of any drowsiness. “No, but the sound of rain is pleasant, so I’ll take a nap.”
“Oh…wait a minute,” Pei Xiting leaned over to his chest and sniffed. “Why do I smell blood? Are you injured?”
“Oh, about that.” Yuan Fang lowered his head and patted his chest. “No. When the Crown Prince was attacked, I was lying in a carriage when suddenly someone rushed up and lifted my bamboo hat, looked at me, and finally pulled out a knife to attack me. It was simply inexplicable. I saw that he was in the same group with the assassins, and he seemed to have some skills, so I just killed him and his accomplices and got some blood splatter on me.”
This tone of killing people, like cutting watermelons, inevitably reminded Pei Xiting of the bloody scene outside the pavilion before. After a pause, he asked, “Is that man more powerful than those white-clothed assassins?”
Yuan Fang said without hesitation, “Of course, he must be the leader. When I closed my eyes, I heard the people around him address him very respectfully, calling him a protector?”
“This what-the-heck protector is not the master who is in charge this time, right?” Pei Xiting muttered, squeezed Yuan Fang to sit down, and drove the carriage away.
“Hey,” Pei Xiting asked on the way, “Have you ever fought with Yu Shaoyun?”
Yuan Fang said, “We did fight a few years ago, when the Crown Prince was still the fifth prince.”
Pei Xiting was curious: “Who is better between the two of you?”
Yuan Fang said, “It’s hard to compare. I’m better at killing people, but Yu Shaoyun’s swordsmanship is swift and fierce. In this line of work, he can be considered a genius. Few can rival him despite his young age. Despite his status as a government official, he has also made a name for himself in the martial arts world while following the Crown Prince. Who doesn’t know Yu Shaoyun’s ‘Dang Yun Xue (floating cloud and snow)’?”
“With such violent energy, the name of his sword is quite elegant.” Pei Xiting bent one leg while shaking the other leg with the carriage. “I heard that when the Crown Prince was still the fifth prince, he traveled all year round. Was he often assassinated at that time?”
“Yes, very often. There were hired killers, people who posted bounty lists, or some organizations.” Yuan Fang said, “In the past few years, the outside world was in chaos. There were many organizations in the underworld, and many were also destroyed by the Crown Prince. At that time, some people said that the fifth prince was a shower of rain, which messed up the whole forest. The mice that liked to jump but couldn’t run fast were all soaked to death, making the forest much cleaner.”
Pei Xiting thought of the scars on the Crown Prince’s body. The tail of the rain brushed across his face, leaving a refreshing wetness. He said, “Was the fifth prince so hated?”
“Those people tried to kill him for money, to provoke the royal family, and to prove how powerful they are, and some people are born to like killing. There are too many reasons for doing one thing; who knows? However, one thing is certain,” Yuan Fang turned the horse’s head to a corner, “Among those who hired the killer to assassinate the current Crown Prince, there were supporters of the previous crown prince, Prince Yuanhe. The East Palace can change its owner. The fifth prince was adopted by Empress Qu when he was a child. His biological mother was the most beloved Concubine Wan of Emperor Xining. Although he has been away for many years, he has his own supporters among the court officials and has a strong foundation. Prince Yuanhe’s party can’t help but be wary. Therefore, as soon as the Crown Prince ascended to power, the court underwent a major reshuffle.”
Pei Xiting sighed, “It’s really not easy for the Crown Prince to have come this far. Wherever he goes, there are flying knives and swords.”
Yuan Fang, knowing this man’s character, raised his eyebrows and said, “Are you pitying the fragrance and cherishing the jade?”
Mfn: 怜香惜玉 [lián xiāng xī yù]: A metaphor refers to the tenderness and care that men have for women.
“Can’t I?” Pei Xiting’s eyes turned. “Is it possible for me to pursue the Crown Prince?”
Yuan Fang commented coldly, “No.”
“How come?” Pei Xiting was not convinced: “Am I that lame?”
“What does ‘lame’ mean?”
“It means very bad.”
Yuan Fang didn’t comment on whether Pei Xiting was lame or not and said, “You like the Crown Prince’s beauty; I can understand. Who doesn’t like beautiful things? But if you want to show your love to him, it’s the same as seeking death in my opinion. Have you heard of Spider Woman?”
Pei Xiting said, “I have heard of Spider-Man and Spider Spirit.”
Yuan Fang said, “Spider Woman is a killer, beautiful and charming, causing a lot of men to fall under her purple gauze skirt. On a dark and windy night, she sneaked into the room of the inn where the Crown Prince was, and her neck was crushed by him.”
“How do you know so clearly?” Pei Xiting was curious: “Were you hiding under his bed at that time?”
“No, I was eating pancakes on the first floor of the inn.” Yuan Fang recalled, “I should have eaten fried pancakes stuffed with bamboo shoots at that time—don’t ask me why I remember it so clearly, because the pancakes were really delicious. Suddenly, I heard a “bang” behind me, then I saw the spider woman being thrown down like a sack with her neck bones broken. Then the window was closed as if nothing had happened. The people on the first floor remained silent, and no one dared to go upstairs again. ”
“Again?” Pei Xiting was shocked. “Are they all coveting the Crown Prince’s beautiful body?”
“Do you think there are many perverts like you who are not afraid of death?” Yuan Fang Fang rolled his eyes. “They all came for his head, but none of them was a match for Spider Woman, whose death was like a silent deterrent.”
Pei Xiting recalled the scene where the Crown Prince crushed the assassin’s neck. His Adam’s apple rolled. He then looked Yuan Fang up and down and said suspiciously, “What were you doing there?”
“I happened to pass by at the time and went to that store to eat a pancake.” Yuan Fang shrugged, “In short, there are more than one similar precedent for both men and women. Their bones are much harder than yours, but even they were no match for the Crown Prince’s neck-cracking skill. Don’t seek death with your fragile body.”
“Your words are illogical.” Pei Xiting was not scared at all: “What do those so-called precedents have to do with me? Am I them? I don’t have bad intentions towards the Crown Prince. I’m pursuing him, not to r*pe or kill him. And he’s not a murderer; why would he kill me?”
Yuan Fang looked at this man and said, “You are really not subtle.”
“I’ll take it as a compliment.” Pei Xiting said, “Compared to those beasts in human form who have decent status but do inhuman things behind the scenes, I’m indeed much less reserved.”
“Indeed, the high-ranking courtyards look glamorous, but there are many dirty things inside. Those young masters seem to be more respectable than each other on weekdays, but many of them are beasts behind the scenes. However—” Yuan Fang changed the subject: “You typically come across as quite aloof, and neither are you a bold person. How come you are so open about romantic things?”
“My idea is to go for it if you like it and fight for it if you want it.” Pei Xiting held up his face. “In a few decades of life, you will meet countless people, but there are not many people you can get to know, and even fewer people who know you. This is the first person that has stirred up some romantic thoughts in me. If I hesitate and give up directly, then I will have regrets.”
Yuan Fang was convinced and said seriously, “Then I wish you success.”
Pei Xiting smiled, “I will try my best.”
The carriage drove down the mountain on the muddy road, entered the bluestone road, and disappeared smoothly at the end of the night.
The mountain hides in the dark night, ghostly shadows flicker, and a green shade brushes over the treetops. A man stands on the edge of the small cliff, staring at the end of the official road. “Pei Xiting,” he pondered the name. “What is the relationship between this person and the Crown Prince?”
The attendant stood behind the man with an umbrella and said, “If we have to talk about relationships, this person is the newly appointed clerk at the Longhe Division.”
“A mere clerk, according to the rules, should not be summoned by the Crown Prince, but he came down from the top of the mountain,” the man thought, “Not simple.”
“I heard that this person was with Shangguan Jie on the day when Po Yinlin was stolen.” The attendant said, “But Third Pei has always been weak and introverted. He doesn’t stand out among the children of officials in Yejing. There is only one thing that no one can surpass him.”
The man asked, “What is it?”
The attendant said contemptuously, “Face. Do you think the Crown Prince is attracted to that face?”
“You don’t understand the Crown Prince. He has never been interested in beauty since he was young. No matter how beautiful the face or how tempting the body is, he won’t linger for a moment. He is a dignified and self-restrained person with a heart as strong as iron.” The man smiled faintly, like a ghost in the dark forest, “As for this Pei Xiting, I will find a chance to appreciate him well, whether he’s pleasing to the eye. I happen to need a lamp in front of my house.”
After a whole day of swaying grass and rustling wind, the rain completely stopped by nighttime.
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