He had originally expected Kaiyang Hall to be teeming with palace servants—some carrying memorial scrolls, some serving fresh fruit, others kneading legs or pounding shoulders. Instead, there was nothing. Only Xiao Ci stood there, tall and elegant before a bookshelf. His back was to the desk, and the flickering candlelight cast a long, dancing shadow against the shelves.
Hearing the movement, Xiao Ci turned halfway, the candlelight tracing a perfect curve along his jawline.
“It is so late. What has Your Highness come here to do?”
Two sparks of fire gathered in Qin Ziyu’s eyes. The corners of his mouth slowly curled upward as he clearly enunciated two words:
“To sleep.”
The interior of Kaiyang Hall was decorated with extreme simplicity: a few rows of bookshelves, two rows of benches, a desk, and a primary seat of honor.
Xiao Ci sat in the seat of honor. Today, he wore a deep crimson python robe embroidered with gold thread, which made his features appear even more arrogant and strikingly beautiful, almost like a malevolent spirit.
Only the two of them remained in the hall. Qin Ziyu sat in a chair. Being ill, he had no heart for dressing up and wore whatever was most comfortable. By comparison, Xiao Ci looked more like the Crown Prince, while Qin Ziyu looked like a lackey by his side.
The sky had turned completely black, but the hall was brightly lit. Xiao Ci toyed with a short blade in his hand, lazily lifting his eyelids.
“The Crown Prince’s phoenix body is in poor health. Instead of resting properly in the Eastern Palace, you come to my Kaiyang Hall to frighten the young eunuchs. Aren’t you afraid of your words actually coming true?”
Qin Ziyu raised a handkerchief to his lips and coughed lowly a few times. “Naturally, I am afraid.”
“However…” He paused for a moment, suppressing the itch in his throat. “To be able to see you, Lord Xiao, it is worth it no matter how afraid I am.”
Xiao Ci’s gaze was icy. As it fell upon the snow-white handkerchief, he caught a glimpse of bright red flecks, like plum blossoms blooming in the wind and snow. The Prince’s pale lips also seemed to have gained a trace of color.
Qin Ziyu said, “Do not mind it, My Lord. It is an old ailment.”
The toxin has entered the organs; I don’t know how much longer I can last.
“Since it is an old ailment, why hasn’t Your Highness passed away yet?” Xiao Ci asked without evasion—nor did he feel the need for any.
As he spoke, the movements of his hands did not stop. In the flurry of the flipping blade, flashes of light reflected across Qin Ziyu’s face.
Qin Ziyu narrowed his eyes and lowered his head slightly. “Perhaps it is because I wish to look at you a few more times, My Lord.”
Xiao Ci’s gaze suddenly turned ruthless. In the blink of an eye, the blade was pressed against Qin Ziyu’s throat.
“Your Highness’s tongue is somewhat redundant.”
The blade was ice-cold. The blood in his body seemed to freeze in place. Qin Ziyu silently clenched his fists but maintained a smile as he looked directly into Xiao Ci’s face.
“You do not believe me, My Lord?”
He extended his index finger and gently pushed the hilt aside. “You needn’t frighten me. I walked here from the Eastern Palace. If blood is shed here…”
“You would find it difficult to escape the blame as well, wouldn’t you?”
He’s grown smarter. He even dares to threaten me in return.
Xiao Ci thought back to when he was first appointed Director. He had replaced every servant and guard in the Eastern Palace. Qin Ziyu had been so terrified he fell ill and grew progressively worse, looking ready to depart for the Western Paradise. At the time, Xiao Ci felt a bit stifled if the man died before the revenge was complete, it would be too easy on him.
Then, Qin Ziyu had suddenly improved. Perhaps it was a “flash of lucidity” before death, but he had taken a bizarre path by claiming to love him. Truly ridiculous.
He wanted to see how long the Prince could maintain this act.
“Does Your Highness know? A few days ago, the Sixth Prince ran to me to question why I had replaced the servants and guards of the Eastern Palace.” Xiao Ci tilted his head, staring at Qin Ziyu. After a few days, his complexion had improved considerably; his face was no longer gaunt, and it radiated a renewed vitality.
It was truly irritating.
Qin Ziyu shook his head. “I didn’t know.”
“Was it not the Crown Prince who coaxed him?” Xiao Ci asked.
Qin Ziyu: “No.”
“You have always been on good terms with the Imperial Noble Concubine, My Lord. Surely you understand Zizhang’s temperament. How could I possibly coax him?”
Xiao Ci held the hilt of the knife and moved it downward inch by inch. “I understand the Sixth Prince, but…”
“I understand you even more.”
As those words fell, the blade pressed against Qin Ziyu’s lower body. “Your Highness is indeed very clever. You walked all the way from the Eastern Palace and must have encountered many people. It truly is unsuitable for your neck to bleed.”
“Since you have no use for it anyway, why not become a eunuch like me?”
Qin Ziyu’s eyelid twitched, but he barely maintained his expression. “It was indeed useless before, but what if… it becomes useful later?”
“If both you and I are eunuchs, what will we do in the future?”
Xiao Ci’s fingers holding the hilt turned white. His other hand seized Qin Ziyu’s neck and, with a slight application of force, lifted him up.
The sensation of being lifted by the throat was incredibly uncomfortable. Qin Ziyu’s face flushed red, and he nearly bit his own tongue.
The short blade was sharp. It sliced a gash through his outer robe, revealing the moon-white inner garment beneath.
Xiao Ci wasn’t joking. He was serious!
Qin Ziyu panicked. “Careful!”
“With my current constitution, if I die down there, I’ll die up here too!”
The calm was shattered. A spark of brilliance erupted in Xiao Ci’s eyes, and he gave a low laugh.
“So the Crown Prince does know how to fear.”
“Why don’t we change locations?”
Qin Ziyu’s world spun as Xiao Ci casually hoisted him onto his shoulder and strode outside.
They exited through the back door, timed perfectly with the guards’ shift change. Xiao Ci avoided the traveling eunuchs and maids along the way and brought Qin Ziyu to a remote, desolate palace.
The palace gates were heavy, the buildings were dilapidated, and the surroundings were filled with eerie, ancient trees. It looked nothing like a royal residence.
Qin Ziyu was tossed to the ground. He grabbed a nearby tree branch to steady himself and calm his racing heart.
Xiao Ci noticed a red mark on the Prince’s palm from where he had hit the ground and scoffed inwardly: Truly delicate.
“Does Your Highness know what place this is?”
Qin Ziyu followed his gaze and stood up straight. “I do not know.”
The pitch-black palace doors looked like a man-eating void, as if approaching them would result in being sucked in forever.
Xiao Ci said, “Your Highness truly is a nobleman with a short memory.”
Qin Ziyu remained silent and did not respond.
Xiao Ci continued, “It was right here, years ago, that Your Highness personally pushed me inside.”
Qin Ziyu: “…”
“I remember there was a fire here.”
In the novel, there wasn’t much description of the original host, but there was plenty regarding the antagonist. When Xiao Ci was still a child, after being subjected to the “palace punishment” (castration), the Yiran Hall suddenly caught fire. Everyone was busy fighting the fire and ignored Xiao Ci; he nearly lost his life then.
Later, Yiran Hall was renovated, but the original host never returned.
It was only right that Xiao Ci hated him. Qin Ziyu also felt the original host had gone too far treating a child in such a manner.
“After the fire, everyone felt this place was cursed. The furnishings inside are the same as before, but no one has ever used them. Does Your Highness wish to go in and have a look?”
Qin Ziyu: “…”
If I say no, will you let me leave?
Xiao Ci had brought him here specifically while avoiding the patrols. Even if he died here, no one would know who the killer was.
If a witness said they saw the Prince walk from the Eastern Palace to Kaiyang Hall but never come out?
Xiao Ci could simply counter: Are you certain? Were you staring at the hall the entire time? If the Prince left midway, this is slander. What is the penalty for slandering the Director of the Western Depot?
As for Qing’an, he could simply be killed as well.
Qin Ziyu believed Xiao Ci had the guts and the capability to do it.
The heavy wooden doors creaked open. Qin Ziyu followed behind Xiao Ci into the hall, intentionally falling a few steps behind so he would have time to react if Xiao Ci made a move.
The interior was too dark, smelling of dust and old wood. Xiao Ci pulled a fire-starter from his robe and lit a palace lantern in the corner.
Though unused, it was clean; someone likely came to sweep it often.
The outer room looked normal enough, similar to any other palace building. Turning left into the inner chamber, they faced an iron bed. It was rectangular, with chains fixed at all four corners to bind hands and feet and prevent the person from moving.
“Does Your Highness know what this official was thinking when I lay on this bed?” Xiao Ci turned his head, eyeing that calm face.
That face flickered between light and shadow in the candlelight. The snow-white, lustrous, yet pale cheeks reflected hints of dim yellow. Because he had been carried on a shoulder, his outer robe was wrinkled. A bead of sweat from his forehead slowly traveled past the small beauty mark at the corner of his eye to his ear, finally stopping at his chin.
His breathing was shallow and labored, yet he was incredibly quiet. His eyes were as bright as stars.
Then, Xiao Ci heard a clear, cool voice.
“You were thinking of… me.”
Xiao Ci frowned. “What did you say?”
Qin Ziyu repeated, “You were thinking of me. Amidst the panic and fear, you hoped that I would push the door open to stop them and take you away.”
Xiao Ci strode to Qin Ziyu’s face, his gaze cold and heavy. “That is merely Your Highness’s delusion.”
The two stared at each other, both equally calm. The candlelight flickered across their faces. Xiao Ci’s gaze fell upon the tear-mark mole, and his Adam’s apple moved.
“Your Highness, if you please.”
Qin Ziyu exhaled very carefully. “What?”
“Lie down and see how it feels.” Xiao Ci grabbed Qin Ziyu by the neck and threw him onto the iron bed.
Qin Ziyu’s back hit the metal. The cold seeped through his clothes into his skin, making him shiver. He struggled to escape.
“What are you doing? Let me down!”
Xiao Ci sneered, his movements never stopping. He grabbed one of Qin Ziyu’s arms and bound it with a chain. Soon, Qin Ziyu was firmly tied to the iron bed, his legs spread and unable to move.
“Have you finally stopped pretending?”
All those claims of “love” were lies. The Crown Prince had always been a smooth-talker, using deceptive tricks with ease.
“I am not pretending. Untie me first; being bound like this is very uncomfortable.” Qin Ziyu forced himself to calm down. “Do whatever you wish, but untie me first, alright?”
He softened his voice as much as possible. At this moment, he absolutely could not provoke Xiao Ci.
Xiao Ci tore open the outer robe he had previously sliced with the knife. “Do not be afraid. It will be over very soon.”
“Soon, Your Highness will be just like me—unable to urinate while standing.”
Qin Ziyu closed his eyes and struggled to lift his head. He watched as Xiao Ci produced the short blade and sliced open his clothes, layer by layer, until the innermost undergarments were revealed.
Just as Xiao Ci’s hand reached for Qin Ziyu’s undergarments to tear them away, he suddenly felt something inside twitch and jump.
Qin Ziyu: “…”
Xiao Ci: “…”
“Crown Prince!”
Qin Ziyu turned his face away. “You see… I truly did not lie.”