Xi Yu had also dreamed of this scene several times through the original host’s memories, but what the original host had failed to see clearly, he finally witnessed.
The look Fuying gave him was not one of lingering resentment, but of a plea for help.
Even after realizing that it was the original host who had pushed him into the water, Fuying still cast that desperate gaze toward him, offering his absolute trust and gambling on Xi Yu’s conscience and character.
Sure enough, watching Fuying struggle frantically in the water, Xi Yu could no longer turn a blind eye. Without even taking off his shoes, he leaped into the pool and pulled Fuying to safety.
Clasping the soaked Fuying in his arms, Xi Yu glanced at Ye Weifeng hiding behind the bushes. It was this very look that made Ye Weifeng feel as though he were losing him in that exact fraction of a second.
The intensity of that glance scorched Ye Weifeng with a searing discomfort. He thought that Xi Yu’s principles had ultimately triumphed over his own position in Xi Yu’s heart, and that it was his own overconfidence that had driven Xi Yu toward Fuying.
Xi Yu had not wandered away of his own accord; he was the one who had let him slip away.
Clasping Fuying to find an imperial physician, Xi Yu realized he had committed a grave mistake the moment he laid eyes on that pale, weakened face.
He did not even dare to listen closely to the physician’s verdict on Fuying. Moving in a daze, he departed from Fuying’s quarters, keenly aware that he owed Fuying a lifelong debt.
Incessant high fever, cognitive regression akin to that of a child.
Xi Yu heard the piercing cries of Fuying’s birth mother and the heavy sighs of the former emperor, yet he never awaited any disciplinary punishment or reprimand from the imperial court.
This was because Ye Weifeng’s methods were too shrewd, because the sole witness was the victim Fuying himself, and because no one dared to suspect the pristine and luminous Lord Xi.
From then on, Xi Yu and Ye Weifeng became accomplices, not marching forward in unison, but sharing in the same corrupt wrongdoing.
Yet even so, Xi Yu still could not stop loving him.
He loved Ye Weifeng!
And thus, he willingly compromised his own principles to become the villain.
The two individuals within the palace changed expressions in unison, both recalling this past event with a shared ache.
“It is because of him again!” Ye Weifeng clenched his fists, contemplating how to deal with Fuying. Back then, he had preserved this fool simply to maintain a facade of a benevolent elder brother and a respectful younger brother.
Only now did it dawn on him that Fuying was far too deeply entangled with Xi Yu, and he should never have left him alive.
Xi Yu reacted faster than him. “What does this have to do with Fuying?”
Clutching at Xi Yu’s weakness, Ye Weifeng sneered, “You are already this anxious just from a mere mention of him. What is the matter? Are you afraid of what I might do to him?”
Taking a sip of tea, Xi Yu adopted a posture of complete indifference. “And what does that have to do with me?”
Narrowing his eyes, Ye Weifeng observed him closely. “Is that so? Seeing Xi Yu remain so composed makes me rather curious to test it out. I wonder what you look like when your emotions fluctuate? Who on earth is capable of stirring your feelings like that?”
“Someone come, summon the Ninth Prince Fuying to the palace,” Ye Weifeng ordered the attendants.
While Xi Yu maintained an utterly calm expression on the outside, his palms were slick with nervous sweat.
Silently conversing with the system in his mind, he complained, “Do not ever send me to an ancient world again. One misstep and people genuinely die here. Can our next destination be somewhere more civilized?”
The system pondered quietly before replying, “Rest assured, Host. The next world will certainly satisfy you, or at least spare you from all this bloodshed and killing.”
Xi Yu only felt bone-weary.
Barely the time it took to burn an incense stick passed before Fuying was summoned into the palace, dropping to his knees before Ye Weifeng.
Perhaps the terror inspired by Ye Weifeng was etched deep into his bones, for the moment Fuying faced him, his entire body trembled uncontrollably.
Xi Yu spotted it instantly, yet he forced himself to restrain the hand he desperately wanted to extend, solely because Ye Weifeng’s unblinking gaze was fixed entirely on him, searching for any scrap of evidence that Xi Yu cared about Fuying.
Xi Yu could not let him notice anything; the timing was not yet right, and he remained powerless to protect Fuying.
“Ninth Brother, have you been well lately?” Ye Weifeng called out to Fuying, a dangerous smile playing on his lips.
Fuying nodded submissively. “This younger brother is doing well.”
Yet the next second, Ye Weifeng’s expression shifted drastically. The playful smirk vanished entirely, replaced by a terrifying grimace.
“No doubt your days at the Xi residence have been pleasant enough. After all, Xi Yu would hardly mistreat you, judging by how visibly rounded you have become,” Ye Weifeng remarked with a sinister tone.
In truth, he had not seen Fuying in ages, let alone paid attention to his physique, viewing him merely as an insignificant ant. He was merely using the remark to taunt him.
Yet he happened to catch the slow-witted Fuying off guard, who understood none of the subtext in Ye Weifeng’s words and simply nodded with sincere earnestness.
“Big Brother Xi Yu… treats me very well.”
Ye Weifeng violently tightened his grip on the dragon throne’s armrest. “Is that so?”
Inspecting Fuying, he shifted his gaze to Xi Yu, who remained entirely impassive, making it impossible to read his true emotions.
Abruptly standing up, Ye Weifeng strode toward Fuying with a towering presence, looking down at him before pulling him to his feet and forcibly dragging him toward the imperial garden not far from the grand hall.
Fists clenched in panic, terrified that Ye Weifeng might do something irreversible to Fuying, Xi Yu hurried along behind them.
“Ninth Brother, do you still remember this place?” Ye Weifeng chuckled softly, pointing toward the garden pond.
The laughter carried a heavy scent of contempt and disdain, grating uncomfortably on the ears.
Triggered by Ye Weifeng’s almost hypnotic prodding, the harrowing memories of drowning washed back over Fuying, leaving him gasping for air just as he had in his childhood.
“Save me! Save me!” Those desperate cries replayed endlessly inside his mind.
Watching him intently, Ye Weifeng silently relished the terror etched across the other’s face.
“Have you forgotten how you ended up in the water back then?” Ye Weifeng gripped Fuying’s crown tighter, applying enough pressure to cause real pain.
Xi Yu’s expression darkened, but he forced himself to repeat over and over that the timing was wrong, managing to forcefully hold back his urge to step forward.
“Did you really think you just slipped by accident?” Ye Weifeng whispered close to Fuying’s ear before letting out a light chuckle, delivering a deeply cruel verdict.
“It was never an accident, Ninth Brother. The Big Brother Xi Yu you hold so dear is the one who pushed you in. And why did he do it? Because I told him to, and so he obeyed.”
The look of utter reliance Fuying directed toward Xi Yu filled Ye Weifeng with a mixture of hatred and jealousy. Regardless of whether Xi Yu returned those feelings, he would never tolerate anyone harboring improper thoughts toward Xi Yu.
Flaring up with malice, Ye Weifeng yanked fiercely at Fuying’s hair crown. “It was me. The only person he cares about is me. As for you, he looks at you the way one looks at a pitiful stray dog. He is kind, so he took care of you, this pathetic dog. But for a dog to shamelessly desire anything more is sheer delusion and a capital offense.”
Brought to the verge of physiological tears by the ordeal, Fuying did not cry aloud, though his eye rims grew damp. “Fifth Brother!”
Fuying called out timidly, sounding both bewildered and pleading.
Yet he remained unaware that this fragile display was precisely what Ye Weifeng despised most.
Whenever he put on such a vulnerable look, their imperial father would gift him all the best tribute items that Ye Weifeng himself fancied.
Whenever he adopted that pitiful posture, Xi Yu, who usually followed his every command without question, would soften toward him, develop sympathy, and consequently create a rift between them.
A petty creature like Fuying habitually used this appearance as a weapon to extort what he wanted.
Ye Weifeng would never allow him to succeed again.
Casting a glance back at Xi Yu, Ye Weifeng made up his mind, thrusting Fuying forcefully into the pond.
The same three people, the exact same pond as years ago, with only one detail altered: the person doing the pushing was no longer a manipulated Xi Yu, but Ye Weifeng himself.
And Fuying, after years of being tormented by nightmares, saw history repeat itself as he was cast back into those waters.
Yet this time, he was no longer the defenseless child of the past; instinctively, he grabbed onto Ye Weifeng and dragged him down into the depths alongside him.
With a heavy splash, both individuals plunged into the water. When Ye Weifeng had dragged Fuying to the garden, he had issued strict commands barring anyone from approaching, leaving Xi Yu as the sole person standing on the bank.
Fuying was no longer as frail and small as he had been in childhood. He had grown much taller over the years and had even taught himself how to swim.
Even so, the deep-seated terror of that pond was so deeply ingrained in his bones that as panic set in, every swimming technique he had learned vanished from his mind. He could only thrash desperately to keep water from flooding his lungs.
Ye Weifeng fared no better. When he shoved Fuying in, he had never anticipated that Fuying would grip his garments and pull him down with him.
Only now did he realize that this pond, which appeared shallow from above, could prove so agonizing for someone fallen inside, especially given the biting chill of the water.
Having never learned to swim or expected to fall in, panic gripped him for a fleeting second.
Yet that panic vanished instantly as he remembered that Xi Yu was right there on the bank!
Of course, Xi Yu! Xi Yu would certainly come to save him. No matter the situation, Xi Yu had always chosen him from beginning to end.
No matter how reluctant Xi Yu might be, a single word from him was all it took for Xi Yu to fulfill it.
No matter how demanding the request, Xi Yu would risk his life to accomplish it for him.
Let alone when his own life was on the line; Xi Yu had always valued him far above his own existence.
His panic subsiding, Ye Weifeng settled his mind and looked up toward Xi Yu on the bank.
With both of them fallen into the water, if only one could be saved, Xi Yu would undoubtedly choose him.
Seemingly recalling this as well, Fuying struggled amidst the thrashing water and looked toward Xi Yu too.
Would this time be an exception, or would he continue to be the one Xi Yu never chose? Knowing full well that hope was foolish, he still could not help wanting to know where he truly ranked against Ye Weifeng in Xi Yu’s heart.
Which of them truly mattered more?