That gaze seemed even brighter than the moon, with double pupils reflecting rippling water, making the chilly main hall where it landed appear like a faintly glowing warm jade.
If one felt some dissatisfaction on the imperial court, right now it was as if that matter had never happened, and he had merely come to find someone for a casual chat.
Xi Lingjian’s eyelids twitched violently a few times. “What does the heir mean by this?”
Fu Liao pressed his lips together, glanced around, and seeing that no one else was nearby, took a tentative step forward.
Xi Lingjian furrowed his brows slightly without speaking.
Only then did Fu Liao relax and say, “Today, Your Highness brought me to court to test whether I could be of use to Your Highness, did you not?”
His words were light, resembling a sprite haunting the night, the moment it was detected, it would hide away to begin teasing people.
Xi Lingjian let out a light sneer.
“As for Ji Liandu, you and I are essentially enemies, as for the imperial court, you made a promise to Xu Jingyi. Why would I use you?”
This was practically a direct admission that he liked Ji Liandu. Fu Liao muttered inwardly.
He was not even bothering to put up a front anymore.
“When Your Highness employs people, you likely care nothing for their political stance,” he replied.
This employ did not refer to official promotion, but rather to exploitation.
When exploiting someone, there is naturally no need to care whether they are loyal. Xi Lingjian had always favored this approach of making people sell themselves while still helping him count the money, achieving two goals at once.
And precisely because of this, he was currently able to salvage his life.
Xi Lingjian’s gaze shifted, landing on Fu Liao’s shadow cast slantingly by the moonlight onto the ground.
It stretched out long toward the edge of his desk, quietly merging with his own solitary shadow, out of sight.
It was much like how he held the youth enclosed before him, with silky long hair gently brushing against the gold-threaded gilding of his robes. Viewed from anything other than the front, no one would ever know this person was right there in his embrace.
Xi Lingjian’s gaze darkened.
He stood up, signaling Fu Liao to follow him.
Fu Liao walked a stretch of the path with him.
Aside from the main hall they had just left, everywhere else was pitch black, requiring a long walk before catching sight of a servant carrying a lamp, clearly a deliberate arrangement by Xi Lingjian.
Leaving the light behind, Fu Liao abruptly realized that it was so dark here even human silhouettes were hard to distinguish.
He could not help growing apprehensive, listening intently to the footsteps ahead for fear of losing his way amidst the absolute darkness.
Those footsteps were unexpectedly unhurried, accompanied by a light chuckle drifting from the pitch black: “Is the heir afraid?”
Knowing the man was teasing him once more, Fu Liao replied, “Without light, naturally I am afraid.”
“The heir saw the moon just moments ago.” Xi Lingjian slanted his body slightly. “Do you consider it no light at all?”
Fu Liao spotted a pool of moonlight lingering at the far end of the path.
It illuminated the neatly trimmed foliage, granting him a glimpse of a relaxed corner within the Prince Regent’s residence.
“Not quite.” He paused for a moment before answering earnestly. “It is simply that the bright moon is too distant, and the legends surrounding it are too numerous. One cannot see through its true appearance, hence I dare not approach.”
Hearing this, Xi Lingjian burst into laughter, teasing, “You dare not?”
Fu Liao was momentarily taken aback, then flushed with embarrassment.
“Daring not and choosing not to do something are entirely different matters.” He offered a rare defense for himself.
Once the two of them started conversing, Fu Liao found that this dark stretch of road passed far more quickly.
Xi Lingjian led him to a building that appeared to be his study.
Yin Ruoche stood guard at the door by habit, spotting his master first and offering a salute, only to catch sight of Fu Liao the moment he raised his head.
His eyes widened in brief astonishment, but it lasted only a fraction of a second before he smoothed his expression into one of blind indifference, maintaining his post as the two stepped inside.
“Speak.” Xi Lingjian seated himself naturally in the chair before the desk.
The study was unexpectedly sparse, it lacked any calligraphy scrolls or antique treasures, furnished solely with a long rack of weapons that emitted an ominous, faint chill capable of chilling the heart.
Upon stepping inside, Fu Liao felt an icy draft rush straight toward him.
Just as Fu Liao prepared to speak, he saw Xi Lingjian raise an eyebrow. “Is the heir not going to sit?”
Fu Liao blinked. Aside from the chair Xi Lingjian occupied, the only other seating option was the daybed pushed against the wall.
“That is too far away,” he said. “You would not be able to hear me speak.”
“I did not ask you to sit there.” Xi Lingjian twitched an eyebrow. “Come here.”
Fu Liao blinked, entirely unaware of any other place to sit near Xi Lingjian, and walked forward unsuspectingly.
With nothing beneath his feet, his entire body was scooped up and placed onto the desk by Xi Lingjian.
“Your Highness!”
As Fu Liao moved to shift, Xi Lingjian’s arm had already encircled his waist.
“Speak your piece.” Xi Lingjian’s steady voice came from a slightly lower vantage point, distorted in a way Fu Liao found unfamiliar. “Did I not say we need to practice further?”
Fu Liao froze, hadn’t expected this to be what the man meant.
True to form, Xi Lingjian’s hands merely hovered around the fabric at his waist, smoothing away the disheveled pleats. The warmth of his large palm, radiating through several layers of cloth, still retained a bizarrely piercing quality, as though resting directly against his bare skin.
Fu Liao couldn’t help recalling the day the man had half-pressed and massaged his collarbone.
Naturally, those large hands were also fully capable of intercepting him mid-waist.
An entire rack of weapons was displayed right behind them.
Coughing twice, Fu Liao dragged his focus back to the present.
“I have no special insights,” he said. “I merely realized that Your Highness does not intend for me to die at this juncture.”
Warm breath plumed against the back of his neck as the sash binding his waist was untied, causing the outermost layer of his robes to slip slightly.
Fu Liao’s body stiffened involuntarily.
“Continue.” The deep voice carried a hint of banter. “I am learning how to help someone dress, does the heir have objections?”
Hearing Xi Lingjian phrase it thus, Fu Liao felt something was amiss, though he couldn’t quite pinpoint what.
Besides, the objective for which he had come here had not yet been achieved.
“Earlier, Your Highness remarked that I do not understand my own situation,” he continued. “At the time I did not grasp your meaning, but now I have figured it out.”
“The Leisure Banquet required manpower, and Your Highness must have known very early on that Xu Jingyi’s target was me.” Fu Liao exhaled softly. “As the frail son of a martial family amidst an era that heavily esteems martial prowess over literature, coupled with the persona I projected of minding this shortcoming, the Xu faction naturally assumed my heart burned with resentment.”
“Such a background destined me to be selected as a pawn in their power struggle.”
Fu Liao felt the loosened sash being retied around him, movements slow, yet devoid of any misstep.
“Your Highness intentionally refrained from interfering, allowing Xu Jingyi to approach me. The moment I agreed to Xu Jingyi’s overtures, I paradoxically became Your Highness’s tool to keep the Xu faction in check.”
“Yet I arbitrarily exposed Lü Chen’s true nature, disrupting Your Highness’s plans,” he offered a wry smile. “Furthermore, by abandoning the pursuit of Ji Liandu, I knew Your Highness would find it exceedingly bizarre, hence I wished to use this opportunity to test the waters once, while simultaneously warning Xu Jingyi that Your Highness could dismantle his laid plans at any moment.”
“Thus, whether it was the duel that day or the imperial court today, Your Highness never intended for me to die.” Saying this, Fu Liao’s tone unconsciously lightened. “Because Your Highness required a signal to make Xu Jingyi believe his scheme had succeeded, and that signal was me.”
As for whether he would suffer physical torment, that was naturally a separate matter. Like having his eyes gouged out or receiving court beatings.
Fu Liao couldn’t help feeling that his luck had been decent overall.
Xi Lingjian slowly loosened the sash he had just tied. Hesitating for a moment, Fu Liao asked, “Your Highness appears to have already mastered this, why waste the effort?”
Moreover, making Ji Liandu lower his guard couldn’t be resolved simply through a few sessions of tenderly dressing and undressing him morning and night.
“What test would I be running?” Xi Lingjian ignored his question.
Knowing the man was deflecting, Fu Liao had no choice but to push on. “Was Your Highness testing whether I could get close to the Emperor?”
Pondering as he spoke, entirely oblivious to the clear rise and fall of his chest transmitting directly into Xi Lingjian’s hands, he continued, “The Emperor has Chief Eunuch Mi at his side, and holds grievances toward Your Highness. Even as Prince Regent, planting your own men must be exceedingly difficult.”
At this, he paused.
“I actually find something rather odd,” he said. “Why does Your Highness believe I am capable of approaching the Emperor?”
The original owner had never laid eyes on the Emperor, and he himself possessed scant understanding, with their prior exchanges barely touching upon the sovereign.
Xi Lingjian cast a subtle, inscrutable look at him.
“Since the heir is so clever, why not guess?”
Seeing Fu Liao knit his brows in a frown, he looked genuinely troubled by a problem that could exhaust a martial artist and leave a scholar speechless, an impossible conundrum deliberately posed to stump him.
The pressure of Xi Lingjian’s hand tightened slightly, the friction of the fabric drawing a faint rustle from his waist.
Fu Liao let out a tiny Mmph, resembling a startled young beast.
His gaze flickered back and forth, lacking the courage to meet the other’s eyes, yet perversely deciding this spot served as a safe nest, never once crossing his mind to flee.
He was acutely aware that the man was exploiting him, that his motives had been deciphered down to the last detail, as if his machinations over this period had been silently swept away by the night wind, carried to the morning breeze, and deposited right onto his frail frame.
Only one thing remained unreadable: whether he and Ji Liandu were merely acting.
His gaze darkened: “What exactly is your objective?”
The icy glare directed at the back of his neck made Fu Liao shiver violently, like a condemned criminal bound to a pillory facing interrogation.
Fu Liao drew a deep breath.
Xi Lingjian had actually begun consulting him!
This represented a major step forward toward his goal, naturally, he had to keep going.
“I have already stated it,” Fu Liao said with forced patience. “I truly only wish for you and Ji Liandu to live well together.”
A flush crept up his neck, whether born of mortification at such a blunt declaration or anxiety that Xi Lingjian remained unconvinced.
“Over the past few days, Your Highness should have witnessed that I harbor no ambition for power, nor have I sought personal gain from this.” Fu Liao maintained an open expression. “That is my sole objective.”
Xi Lingjian loosened his grip on the fabric he had been worrying away at for so long.
The nameless fury surged up into his chest, tightening his veins into angry knots.
He dared to negotiate with him, willing to risk his own skin.
How much further would he go for Ji Liandu?
While Fu Liao sat squarely in place, his body suddenly listed sideways. Before the cool draft stirred by his cascading hair had even faded, he was intercepted by a warm embrace.
The sight that filled his vision was Xi Lingjian’s deep, fathomless gaze, resembling an endless black hole pulling him inward until he was completely submerged.
The distance between their noses closed abruptly, heavy respiration pressing against Fu Liao’s face.
The arms locked around his waist tightened, rendering the youth in his arms completely immobile.
Thin lips pressed against the sharp line of his jaw, parting and closing.
Xi Lingjian’s voice wrapped around him like an avenging ghost, dropping a few low whispers into his ear before threatening to consume him entirely.
“Heir, do you suppose Ji Liandu would appreciate it if I did this?”