The customs and traditions of Jiangnan during the festive season were somewhat different from those in the capital. The moment the sun sank below the horizon, lanterns all along the streets began to light up one after another, as though a fantastical river of light were winding endlessly into the distance.
The money Chu Zhaohuai had brought out with him was already completely spent but whenever he came across something that caught his fancy, he would still openly stop to play with it for a while.
Whenever the stall owner began to grow impatient, he would pretend that someone nearby was calling for him and shout, “Hey, hey! I’m coming!” before getting to his feet and darting away.
Using this method, he managed to play his way through an entire street without spending even a single copper coin.
Seeing that it was getting later and later, Chu Zhaohuai was still reluctant to leave. He squatted beside a street stall, picked up a small bronze mirror and examined it with great fondness. Once he finished playing with this one, he planned to return to the residence.
The mirror seemed to have come from the Western Regions. It was inlaid with gemstones and its polished surface was so smooth and clear that it reflected a person with exceptional clarity.
Chu Zhaohuai raised it toward his veiled face and took a look at himself. Without leaving any trace of his intention, he subtly tilted his hand, angling the mirror toward the crowd some distance away.
Several tall, broad shouldered men behind him appeared to be shopping.
In reality, their eyes had been fixed on him the entire time.
It was not his imagination.
Someone really had been following him.
Chu Zhaohuai’s heart gave a sudden jolt.
Could it be that his pursuers from Jiangnan had actually followed him all the way to the capital?
Chu Zhaohuai genuinely could not remember offending any particularly powerful figure. He had always treated people among the common folk and the consultation fees he received were pitifully small. The most recent incident he could think of was when he had detoxified the prefect’s son.
Surely the prefect could not repay such kindness with hostility, could he?
Using the little mirror, Chu Zhaohuai secretly observed his surroundings once more.
The stall owner finally lost patience. “Hey, are you buying it or not?”
Chu Zhaohuai repeated his old trick. He set the mirror down and rose to his feet. “Hey, hey! I’m coming.”
With that, he walked briskly toward a narrow alley not far away.
The several men who had been scattered around him silently closed in on one another, following him warily.
There were no lanterns lit inside the alley. Only the candlelight spilling faintly from the long street allowed the silhouettes within to be seen. The men exchanged glances before entering the alley in silence.
Suddenly, several dull thuds came from the mouth of the alley, sounding like bodies crashing heavily onto the ground.
Chu Zhaohuai stepped out of the darkness, seemingly with medicinal powder still drifting down from the wide sleeves of his robe.
He slowly straightened and smoothed the hem of his robe, casually brushing the medicinal powder away. His mind was already elsewhere as he thought, “Mm, that Huarong Pass game just now was pretty good. I’ll play one more round before heading back.”
The young man lifted his foot and continued on his way, his cloak sweeping through the air in a graceful arc.
Behind him, several men lay sprawled haphazardly across the ground, already unconscious and completely insensible.
….
The five taels of silver he had so extravagantly spent had served an important purpose. The rumors spread with astonishing speed.
By the time Chu Zhaohuai had played to his heart’s content and returned to the residence, the story had already spread far and wide. Throughout the capital, the same thought surfaced in countless minds.
The Jing Prince has really gone mad, hasn’t he?
Over the years, Ji Xun’s methods had been ruthless. There were countless people in the imperial court whom he had casually dragged into factional struggles until their families were ruined and killing someone in the middle of the street was practically an everyday occurrence for him.
A human shaped demon of slaughter like that was benevolent?
Bah.
Of course, no one could say such things aloud. They could only curse inwardly while putting on an expression of astonishment and sighing with exaggerated admiration. “So the Jing Prince is actually such a compassionate person, one who cherishes the weak and helpless. Rumors truly are wicked.”
Night had already fallen.
Under the glow of candlelight, the supposedly benevolent Jing Prince sat in his study with his eyes lowered, reading the documents sent over by Jin Ling.
Yin Chongshan said, “The newly appointed Provincial Administration Commissioner seems to have set his sights on the military farmland accounts the moment he took office. The weather in Jinling has been dry and the accounting office where the ledgers were stored happened to catch fire. He seems to have anticipated this and immediately changed course to investigate the private mines in Jinling instead. It will be somewhat difficult to get the second fire started.”
Ji Xun gave a casual “Mm” and picked up a piece of meat from the table before tossing it away without a second thought.
A furry head suddenly emerged from beneath the desk. It belonged to a large snow wolf, its body a full size larger than an ordinary wolf. Even from several zhang away, it radiated such a chilling presence that anyone who saw it could not help but feel the hairs on their body stand on end.
The snow wolf opened its jaws wide, caught the piece of meat in one bite with an “Awoo,” chewed twice and swallowed it whole. It then lazily lowered itself back down beside Ji Xun’s feet, flicked its tail and closed its eyes.
The matter was of great importance. The slightest misstep could result in suspicions of “rebellion.” Yin Chongshan’s expression became solemn as he waited for his prince’s instructions.
The prince said, “Has the wangfei returned?”
Yin Chongshan: “…”
Yin Chongshan nearly choked. After steadying himself and taking a breath, he said, “Reporting to Your Highness, the wangfei spent the entire afternoon outside listening to the rumors. After getting his fill of them, he returned to the residence. He should be having dinner at this moment.”
Ji Xun: “Mm.”
Watching his prince maintain such an air of calmly having everything under control, Yin Chongshan’s expression grew solemn once more. “Could it be that the wangfei and the Provincial Administration Commissioner…”
Ji Xun slowly tossed another piece of meat to the snow wolf. “No. I was just asking.”
Yin Chongshan: “…”
Just then, a personal guard came forward to report. “Your Highness, the wangfei left the residence today and we discovered a group of people secretly following him. They are likely people sent by the Crown Prince.”
Without even raising his head, Ji Xun said casually, “Deal with them.”
The guard hesitated. “The wangfei has already taken them down.”
Ji Xun’s hand, which had been stroking the wolf, paused. He raised his eyes.
“The wangfei entered an alley and those men seized the opportunity to make their move yet after some time, only the wangfei came out,” the guard reported hesitantly. “We followed them in to investigate and found that those men had all been poisoned and rendered unconscious. They have already been brought to the prince’s residence and are awaiting Your Highness’s disposition.”
Yin Chongshan’s brows drew tighter and tighter. “Are you certain the wangfei was the one who did it?”
“There was no one else in the alley.”
Yin Chongshan dismissed the guard. After hesitating for a moment, he said, “Chu Zhaohuai stayed at the Bai residence in Lin’an. He must have learned quite a bit of medicine there. On the night of the wedding, it seemed that he could even detect the poisonous herbs in the incense burner.”
Ji Xun propped his head up with one hand, his interest slowly piquing.
Lin’an. The Bai family.
Poison?
……..
Chu Zhaohuai sneezed again.
After finishing his meal, he lit a lamp and began writing at a small desk.
A closer look revealed that the paper was densely covered with every bit of Chu Zhaohuai’s entire fortune, even several copper coins had been painstakingly recorded.
Chu Zhaohuai added Madam Bai’s dowry to the list, then carefully wrote down the hundred taels of gold bestowed by the palace as well. Resting his chin in his hand, he sat there waiting for the ink to dry, deep in thought.
With the rumor that the “Little Marquis intends to offer himself to Prince Jing” spreading so fiercely throughout the capital, Chu Jing would most likely come looking for him within the next few days. Chu Zhaohuai had no idea whether he would ask him to leave the capital or propose some other kind of exchange.
If the Marquis of Zhenyuan’s residence agreed to inform Prince Jing’s manor about the matter of the substitute bride, Ji Xun might drive him away. Having prepared himself for that possibility, Chu Zhaohuai began thinking about finding an opportunity to feel his pulse and examine his condition.
Just as he was thinking about this, the sound of a wheelchair rolling came from outside the canopy bed.
Ji Xun had returned.
Chu Zhaohuai hurriedly put his veil back over his eyes and pricked up his ears, carefully listening to the movements outside.
Ji Xun stood up. There was the sound of footsteps, followed by the sound of him sitting down on the edge of the bed, taking off his clothes and climbing onto the bed.
Chu Zhaohuai froze, a bewildered expression appearing on his face.
Those few footsteps just now… why hadn’t they sounded like the footsteps of a genuine cripple?
If there was nothing wrong with his legs, then why did he sit in a wheelchair and put his feet up all day for no apparent reason?
Chu Zhaohuai simply couldn’t understand it.
Just as he was wondering about this, Ji Xun’s voice came from beside him.
“Wangfei hasn’t gone to sleep yet?”
Chu Zhaohuai coughed and immediately began talking nonsense again.
“The breathing of the hidden guards in the bedroom is so loud. It’s too noisy to sleep.”
Ji Xun’s brows lifted slightly.
The hidden guards lying on the beams and roof: “?”
He could actually hear that?
Ji Xun smiled and gave a slight wave of his hand.
The hidden guards hesitated for a moment before withdrawing from the bedroom one after another.
Yin Chongshan was standing outside on night watch. Seeing a large group of people emerge from the room, he frowned.
“What happened?”
The hidden guards answered awkwardly, “Wangfei said our breathing was too loud, so His Highness drove us all out.”
The two people standing beside him faced each other and began testing the sound of their breathing.
“Listen. Is my breathing loud?”
“I have ten years of internal cultivation and even I can’t hear it!”
Yin Chongshan fell silent.
Suddenly, his eyes became firm.
Yes. This must be His Highness testing whether Chu Zhaohuai would attempt to poison the Prince while there was no one protecting him.
His Highness was deliberately luring the enemy into a false sense of security.
What a brilliant strategy.
Once everyone had withdrawn, Ji Xun asked, “Is it still noisy?”
Chu Zhaohuai hurriedly shook his head.
“No, no, it’s not noisy anymore. I’ll go to sleep right now.”
With that, he blew out the candle with a puff, lay down on the bed, closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.
Chu Zhaohuai had originally intended to feign sleep for a while, wait until Ji Xun had fallen asleep and then sneak out to feel his pulse.
However, the charcoal brazier inside the canopy bed was burning exceptionally warmly. The longer he pretended, the more comfortable he became and before he knew it, he had fallen sound asleep, snoring softly.
By the time he woke again, dawn was just about to break.
Chu Zhaohuai sat up in confusion. He rubbed his eyes and remained dazed for quite some time before finally remembering what he had intended to do. Still drowsy, he draped his robe over himself and climbed down from the bed.
He didn’t dare light a lamp. He could only rely on the moonlight shining in from outside as he tiptoed toward the edge of the canopy bed.
It was only a few steps yet Chu Zhaohuai managed to knock his toes against the cabinet several times. The pain nearly made him jump up and cry out but he gritted his teeth and bit down on his finger, forcing himself to endure it.
As always, the lattice window of the bedroom stood wide open. Moonlight spilled through it, illuminating Ji Xun as he lay sleeping peacefully on the bed with his eyes closed.
Chu Zhaohuai sat on the footstool, grimacing as he waited for the pain to subside. After looking cautiously around him, he called out softly.
“Protect the Prince.”
No hidden guard dropped down from the roof like a bird.
It seemed they really had all left.
Chu Zhaohuai took a deep breath and cautiously reached toward Ji Xun’s wrist, which was hanging loosely at his side.
According to the rumors, Prince Jing had once been critically ill and had taken extremely potent and harmful medicines. From his observations over the past few days, Chu Zhaohuai had vaguely guessed that they were probably something like Wushi Powder.
His Majesty had even bestowed some powerful medicine upon Ji Xun in the past. With that in mind, the truth was probably not far from what he had guessed.
Chu Zhaohuai had an exceptional talent for medicine and his memory was excellent as well. The moment his fingers touched Ji Xun’s pulse, a whole collection of ancient prescriptions already surfaced in his mind.
As long as he could prescribe the right medicine for the right condition, Ji Xun’s illness…
Just as he thought this, Chu Zhaohuai’s brows suddenly drew together slightly.
He raised his eyes and stared at the wrist beneath his fingers, which was as cold as a stone.
This pulse…
Before he could finish thinking it through, the pale hand beneath the moonlight suddenly moved downward.
Without making the slightest sound, it turned back and caught hold of Chu Zhaohuai’s hand before he could pull it away.
Chu Zhaohuai was startled.
In the dimness, Ji Xun’s voice drifted over with a faint smile.
“Deep in the night, what is Wangfei doing?”
Chu Zhaohuai: “…”
“Bang!”
Yin Chongshan burst through the door, followed by a swarm of black clad hidden guards. Every one of them was brimming with murderous intent.
“There is an assassin!”
“Protect the Prince!”
The entire room instantly filled with the light of burning candles. Chu Zhaohuai’s body hair stood on end from the shock and he nearly suffered an attack of his heart condition and died on the spot.
“I… I… I didn’t…”
He had absolutely not been trying to assassinate the Prince!
Ji Xun’s hand was cold as a vengeful ghost’s. His thumb locked firmly around Chu Zhaohuai’s wrist bone and before Chu Zhaohuai could react, Ji Xun smiled and gave a light tug.
Staggering, Chu Zhaohuai was pulled up onto the bed by his captured hand, nearly falling straight into Ji Xun’s arms.
Ji Xun said, “The floor is cold. Come up and explain yourself.”
Chu Zhaohuai wasn’t wearing any shoes. His toes had already been bruised from knocking against the cabinet. He had never secretly done anything bad in his life and now he stumbled over his words as he desperately tried to explain.
“I didn’t. I just wanted to…”
Ji Xun’s eyes held a trace of amusement as he gestured for him to say what he had wanted to do.
Chu Zhaohuai almost blurted out the words “feel your pulse,” but hurriedly stopped himself.
Chu Zhaojiang couldn’t possibly know how to take someone’s pulse. If he said that aloud, Ji Xun would undoubtedly begin to suspect his identity.
Chu Zhaohuai’s heart was thrown into confusion. Under the watchful and hostile gazes of all the hidden guards, he suddenly drew a deep breath and said calmly,
“…I just wanted to get a little closer to the Prince.”
Ji Xun: “…”
All the hidden guards: “…”
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Cressilia
[Translator]
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← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · Substitute BrideChapter 2 · Chu ZhaojiangChapter 3 · Very safeChapter 4 · He is the prince’s manChapter 5 · It was really hard to refuse their kind invitation.Chapter 6 · Thankfully it was just poisoning.Chapter 7 · Haha, I spit on “golden and jade hall”!Chapter 8 · Are you not satisfied with the homecoming gift?Chapter 9 · You must keep your identity hidden.Chapter 10 · I like whole fish banquetChapter 11 · BankruptChapter 12 · Add some funChapter 13 · FightChapter 14 · Three taels of silverChapter 15 · Go back to restChapter 16 · They’re all spendthrifts.Chapter 17 · Enough for branches and leavesChapter 18 · Rumors can kill peopleChapter 19 · I want to get closer to the prince.Chapter 20 · Why not move in and share a room?Chapter 21 · Ha, I’m not stupid.Chapter 22 Part 1 · Liang Fang’s prescriptionChapter 22 Part 2 · Liang Fang’s prescriptionChapter 23 · Be more cautious and vigilantChapter 24 Part 1 · Don’t touch meChapter 24 Part 2 · Don’t touch meChapter 25 Part 1 · Golden NeedleChapter 25 Part 2 · Golden NeedleChapter 26 · To avoid suspicionChapter 27 · Committing numerous evil deedsChapter 28 Part 1 · May I receive the worst possible fortuneChapter 28 Part 2 · May I receive the worst possible fortuneChapter 29 · I really didn’t mean to kill youChapter 30 · Protect the prince!Chapter 31 · The bird that fell into the trapChapter 32 · Embracing someone on the couchChapter 33 · The miracle doctor is going home!Chapter 34 · I shouldn’t have wanted to hurt himChapter 35 · A bout of madnessChapter 36 · NightmareChapter 37 Part 1 · SpecialChapter 37 Part 2 · SpecialChapter 38 · Being hunted downChapter 39 · Cause and Bitter FruitChapter 40 · Is he honest and kind?Chapter 41 · I am flattered and overwhelmed.Chapter 42 · No, I want to buy.Chapter 43 Part 1 · When the city gate catches fireChapter 43 Part 2 · When the city gate catches fireChapter 44 · It’s the face of a notorious thiefChapter 45 · Are you trying to comfort me?Chapter 46 · Thank you, Your Highness!Chapter 47 · Thank you, Your Highness!Chapter 48 · It’s delicious!Chapter 49 · SeducingChapter 50 · By imperial decreeChapter 51 Part 1 · Potent MedicineChapter 51 Part 2 · Potent MedicineChapter 52 · Wasn’t it impotence?Chapter 53 · I’m not busy todayChapter 54 Part 1 · Break his legs directlyChapter 54 Part 2 · Break his legs directlyChapter 55 · I really didn’t mean to mess with youChapter 56 · Don’t play the victim when you’re having a medical episodeChapter 57 · Let’s do it one more time!Chapter 58 Part 1 · I’ve got you!Chapter 58 Part 2 · I’ve got you!Chapter 59 · A doctor’s dutyChapter 60 Part 1 · Are you at peace with yourself?Chapter 60 Part 2 · Are you at peace with yourself?