Before the second half of the sentence could be heard, Qi Chu calmed down immediately. In that split second of distraction, the spear blade in Ye Xiao’s hand grazed his forearm.
Blood splattered everywhere, instantly staining the clothing on his forearm crimson. Qi Chu let out a heavy breath, but did not utter a single sound.
“Your Highness!”
Ye Xiao stopped immediately, panting heavily as he looked with alarm at the wound he had inflicted on the Crown Prince. “Your Highness…”
“General Ye, you have a lot of nerve!”
Yan Feng rushed up before the guards, pushing Ye Xiao aside and shouting.
Ye Xiao knelt down immediately to plead for mercy. “Your Highness, I did not do it on purpose.”
Qi Chu merely glared at him before hurriedly turning to Mo Qing. “What did you say?”
By now, people had crowded around. Mo Qing leaned into Qi Chu’s ear and whispered a few words in a low voice, and Qi Chu’s expression turned grim instantly.
Ye Xiao, thinking it was on account of himself, gripped his clasped hands. “I count this round as your win, Your Highness. I will personally go to the Eastern Palace later to plead for punishment!”
Qi Chu looked at Ye Xiao and the long spear in his hand, then turned and said to Mo Qing, “You go and prepare first.”
After Mo Qing hurriedly retreated, Qi Chu looked at Ye Xiao again, his gaze heavy and dark. “What do you mean by ‘counting it as my win’? General Ye has fine skills, but this Palace is not convinced. If you truly feel regret, five days from now, at the Eastern Palace I’ll be waiting for you. We shall spar again.”
Yan Feng advised, “Your Highness, please cherish your body. General Ye is clumsy and heavy-handed; it is better not to…”
Qi Chu turned coldly toward him. “Do you have an opinion?”
Yan Feng hurriedly changed his tone. “This subject would not dare.”
“If there is nothing else, all of you may withdraw.”
Yan Feng: “Your Highness, your wound you should at least have the imperial physician bandage it.”
“It is of no consequence.” Qi Chu pushed him aside, giving a perfunctory reply, and walked down the stairs. His long sleeves billowed elegantly in the wind, and he vanished like a gust of wind at the end of the road.
Only then did Yan Feng turn back to look at Ye Xiao. Before speaking, he raised his leg and kicked him. “The Crown Prince is young and headstrong, but are you also unaware of the proprieties? If something happens to His Highness, see how you answer for it!”
Ye Xiao scratched the back of his head. “It was the Crown Prince who wanted to spar; what was I supposed to do?”
Yan Feng helplessly glared at the blockhead on his shoulders. “Stubborn. If the Crown Prince had told you to put this thing on your head, would you have done it without hesitation?”
Ye Xiao went silent, his gaze drifting toward the Yang banner flapping violently above. After a long time, he spoke: “I have a feeling something is going to happen.”
Yan Feng’s expression was equally grave. “It is normal to feel that way. The sky in this capital is about to change.”
As Ye Shaoyun stepped out of the Chunlan Pavilion, his first instinct was to look up at the sky. Thick clouds drifted across the azure expanse. He unconsciously squeezed his icy palm, once again realizing the profound sensation of being alive.
Just moments ago, he had nearly failed to walk out of the gates of Chunlan Pavilion.
He hadn’t gone far before a familiar figure came into view. He didn’t intend to look, but the figure walked up to him voluntarily, blocking his path.
“Yun’er, did you have a good time playing?” Qi Chu asked with a smile. The moment the words left his lips, he noticed the person emerging from behind Ye Shaoyun. The smile on his face instantly froze and could no longer be maintained. “Who is he?”
Ye Shaoyun did not respond to Qi Chu’s interrogation, simply pulling the person’s hand gently. “Mo’er, quickly pay your respects to the Crown Prince.”
The person called Mo’er was the very same “Shuang-er” with the scholar’s appearance from the room just now. Upon hearing this, he hurried to offer a bow. “Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
Looking at their clasped hands, the veins on Qi Chu’s forehead began to throb violently. He gritted his teeth and asked again: “Who is this?”
Ye Shaoyun merely raised his eyes briefly and lowered them just as quickly. “This is Mo’er.”
Qi Chu sneered, his brows twitching uncontrollably. “Is this your new favorite?”
Ye Shaoyun did not change his expression. “That is as Your Highness says.”
Qi Chu gripped his palm tightly, his hands trembling. The smile on his face was one that even Mo’er found terrifying, causing him to hurriedly hide behind Ye Shaoyun.
Right in front of Qi Chu, Ye Shaoyun patted Mo’er’s hand in comfort: “Don’t be afraid. The Crown Prince is an enlightened monarch; he will not do anything to you.”
The words were spoken to Mo’er on the surface, but in reality, they were a reminder to someone else.
Qi Chu wanted nothing more than to rush up, tear their hands apart, and kick that obstructive thing away. This was the first time he had seen Ye Shaoyun protect someone other than himself like this. He felt as though his entire body were burning especially his reason, which was nearly consumed by this fire of jealousy.
“The National Preceptor is right. This Palace is an enlightened monarch; I just did not expect that a dignified National Preceptor would also frequent such places.”
Ye Shaoyun deliberately avoided Qi Chu’s gaze and replied lightly: “This poor Daoist is also human. Is there any reason I cannot come to such a place?”
“Hahaha!” Qi Chu laughed unexpectedly, his brilliant eyes becoming misty. “Just a moment ago at the banquet, you spoke like that, and yet in only an hour, you have changed your tune. It seems you truly like him.”
As he said this, he suddenly pressed closer, leaning into the National Preceptor’s ear, his voice dropping low. “However, I see he is so slender can he truly satisfy you?”
Ye Shaoyun finally looked up at him, his sharp gaze meeting the gloom in those eyes. He stepped back half a pace and sighed from his throat: “That is no concern of Your Highness’s.”
“I am deeply concerned, after all, you are the person I respect most.”
Ye Shaoyun snorted coldly; he did not see even a hint of respect on this person’s face. “If Your Highness has no other business, this poor Daoist will be leaving. I shall not disturb Your Highness’s refined interests.”
With that, he prepared to walk right past Qi Chu.
Just as Ye Shaoyun was about to brush past him, Qi Chu suddenly grabbed the wrist of the hand he had been holding Mo’er with. His palm pressed down with force, causing Ye Shaoyun to wince in pain and his grip on the other person’s hand to slowly loosen.
Qi Chu turned sideways, leaning in and saying with gnashing teeth, in a voice only the two of them could hear: “Do you believe that I would kiss you right here, in front of your new favorite?”
Ye Shaoyun’s expression changed instantly. He struggled to break free of the other man’s grasp and glared back sternly: “You wouldn’t dare!”
Qi Chu revealed a satisfied smile, as if making a threat: “Guess whether I dare or not?”
Ye Shaoyun instantly threatened him back: “Do you want to die?”
Qi Chu sneered, glancing at Mo’er, who looked terrified behind him, and replied in a deep voice to Ye Shaoyun: “Actually, I kind of do. National Preceptor, let’s perish together, shall we? You die, and I will commit suicide for you.”
Ye Shaoyun was startled by his words. He had not expected the other party to hate him to the point of wanting him dead—surely not that far?
He knew this place was not suited for conversation, and even less suited for letting Qi Chu go mad, so he could only try to pacify him: “Your Highness, it is getting late…”
Before the words could fall, he suddenly caught sight of the bloodstain on Qi Chu’s other arm. It seemed to have been intentionally bared for him to see. He frowned immediately and pulled the arm over to look closely.
“What is going on? Did you do this yourself?”
“Hisss—” Qi Chu hissed in pain, then sneered: “Has the National Preceptor finally remembered to worry about me? How could it be that I did this to myself?”
How could it not be? Ye Shaoyun thought. He realized he had underestimated the degree of this man’s insanity, but he quickly understood something else and released Qi Chu’s hand. “It is a new wound, not serious. Your Highness, hurry back and let the imperial physician bandage it.”
After saying this, he did not linger, hurriedly boarding the carriage with Mo’er.
Qi Chu watched the figure depart, his deep eyes instantly turning dark and gloomy. He looked down at the wound on his forearm, reached out with his other hand, and pressed his thumb down hard on the wound!