Xiao Biehe followed Xiao Jinshi back into the imperial palace.
Having successfully unsettled his brilliant, omnipotent elder brother, Xiao Jinshi was in a fantastic mood. He deliberately kept his distance from Xiao Biehe, determined to ignore any pleas for help and let his brother stew in his discomfort.
Better yet, let him spend the entire banquet trembling in fear!
Of course, Jinshi was only trying to scare him. Not only had he lost the letter and couldn’t produce it, but he also knew better than to reveal something that would endanger the entire General’s Manor in such a public setting. He understood the gravity of the consequences, even if he enjoyed the petty thrill of the threat.
What Jinshi failed to consider, however, was what might happen if that letter fell into the hands of someone truly malicious.
General Xiao was a strict father who forbade his sons from drinking. Consequently, while other officials had wine, the General’s table held only clear tea. Jinshi deliberately sat as far from Xiao Biehe as possible, with their father and Xiao Qingqu between them. He kept shooting smirking side-glances at Biehe, hoping to catch a flicker of distress, a furrowed brow or a tight lip would have made his day.
But there was nothing. Xiao Biehe remained indifferent, looking as cold and detached as a celestial being untouched by the mortal world.
This irritated Jinshi. Forbidden from making a scene under the Emperor’s watchful eye, he reached under the table and kicked Xiao Biehe’s leg.
Xiao Biehe let out a silent huff and raised his clear, cold eyes toward his brother in confusion.
Finally getting a reaction, Jinshi felt a small sense of triumph. He turned away, pretending to ignore him, and took a sip of his tea.
Oddly, Jinshi smelled a strong scent of medicine again, this time laced with the metallic tang of blood. He frowned and sniffed his own hand; the scent wasn’t coming from him, yet it was very close.
Could Xiao Biehe really be injured? Is there actually someone capable of hurting him?
Jinshi’s frown deepened. He didn’t truly care, yet a strange restlessness surged within him. Seeking another outlet for his agitation, he kicked his brother’s leg again and looked away with a huff.
Xiao Biehe realized Jinshi was simply using him as a punching bag. Once the venting was over, he said nothing.
Jinshi got his way, but he felt even more frustrated. He always acts so noble, as if everyone else is a villain and he’s the only victim!
The invited officials had nearly all arrived when the eunuch at the palace entrance announced in a high-pitched voice: “Madam Jiang, Wife of the General of the State, has arrived! To the General’s seating on the left!”
Xiao Changfeng’s heart skipped a beat. He looked up hurriedly to see Jiang Xu’er entering, supported by her maid, Mo Sang.
To his relief, she seemed calm. Ignoring the stares of the crowd, Xiao Changfeng lifted his robes and ran to her side to lead her in personally.
Twenty years ago, he had been the one to destroy her chance at love. During a palace banquet, both Xiao Changfeng and Jiang Xu’er had been framed and drugged by a traitor. At the time, she was the sheltered daughter of the Minister of Revenue, deeply in love with a young official from the Ministry of Works. They were on the verge of discussing marriage when Xiao Changfeng, in a drug-induced stupor, took her innocence.
In that era, a woman’s lost “purity” was a ruinous matter. To save his daughter from scandal, the Minister of Revenue had no choice but to marry her to Xiao Changfeng. Fortunately, Xiao Changfeng was a man of status and ability. Though he was a rough warrior who knew only blades, he had fallen for her at first sight and sworn to her father that he would treat her well.
But Jiang Xu’er was unwilling. She had tried to end her life, only to discover two months later that she was pregnant. During that time, she was extremely unstable, loathing Xiao Changfeng for ruining her happiness and hating the child she carried.
A weak woman with no way to strike at the General, she turned her pain inward. She used scissors and hairpins to stab at her own stomach; several times, she bled so profusely the child was nearly lost. Eventually, Xiao Changfeng had to station guards around her twenty-four hours a day to prevent her from self-harm. He himself stayed away for months so as not to trigger her hatred.
When she reached her seventh month of pregnancy, news reached her that her former lover—the young official who had sworn himself to her had married someone else only six months after her wedding.
Despite Xiao Changfeng’s efforts to hide the news, it reached her. Jiang Xu’er suffered a total breakdown and experienced a massive hemorrhage. She went into labor three months early.
Today, that former lover had risen to become the Minister of Works, while her father had long since retired. Xiao Changfeng watched his wife’s face and saw her looking vacantly at the Ministry of Works’ seating. The young man of her past was now middle-aged, sitting with his wife, son, daughter, and as rumors said over a dozen concubines.
Under the eyes of the court, the Emperor, and the Crown Prince, Jiang Xu’er’s composure finally snapped. Xiao Changfeng’s heart pounded harder than it ever had on a battlefield. He tried to soothe her, stroking her back gently.
But his fears came true.
This was Jiang Xu’er’s first real outing in twenty years. Her bottled-up emotions burst like a dam. She shoved Xiao Changfeng away, pulled out her golden peacock hairpin, and let her long hair fall loose. She walked step by step toward the Minister of Works, suddenly pointing the sharp end of the pin at his throat.
The Minister turned pale with fright; his wife shrieked and pulled their children away. The hall fell into a silence so absolute it felt as if time had stopped.
“Zhao-lang,” she whispered. Minister Zhao was his surname. Tears streamed down her face as she laughed and cried simultaneously. “You said you would marry no one but me, yet you turned and took another. You betrayed me. I want you to divorce that woman now, send away every concubine in your manor, and leave the capital with me to a place where no one can find us. Will you?”
Minister Zhao shook his head, retreating in terror. “Madam, we both have families and children now. Please… stop this obsession.”
“Hahahaha!” Jiang Xu’er threw her head back and laughed, dropping the hairpin. Then, as her face returned to its usual height, it was replaced by her customary gentle smile. Her expression was serene as she picked up the pin and expertly coiled her hair back into place. She walked to the center of the hall and bowed in every direction. “Forgive me, Your Majesty, Your Highness. Forgive me, lords. This servant has been unseemly.”
The hall remained silent.
In the court, rivalries were common. When one man is favored by the Emperor, others naturally feel envy. While many hadn’t truly believed the treason rumors two months ago, they now saw an opportunity. The Young General had returned with twenty thousand troops exactly as the rumors predicted and now the General’s wife had caused a scene before the throne.
The officials stayed quiet, but they were secretly delighted. They had their leverage. Even if they couldn’t ruin the Xiao family, making the Emperor suspicious enough to distance himself from them would be a victory.
Someone stood up. “Even for the General’s Manor, the laws of Liang must be upheld. One cannot commit an offense and go unpunished. Otherwise, where is the credibility of the law? Where is Your Majesty’s dignity?”
The Emperor, Mu Hongmiao, maintained a benevolent smile, though there was a subtle shift in his expression as he glanced at the Crown Prince.
To destroy a popular general, one must first elevate him to the highest peaks of glory. Eventually, those who once admired him will grow resentful, wondering why he deserves such status. Then, one simply waits for or creates an unforgivable mistake. Once that happens, no one will plead for the “genius” anymore.
Xiao Biehe was indeed a genius. But if a genius cannot be controlled, he must be snuffed out before he grows too strong.
Mu Hongmiao could never forget the prophecy from twenty years ago: A Divine Talent, a gift from the heavens, shall be born. Whoever gains his aid shall unite the nations and stabilize the world.
At the time, Mu Hongmiao had just clawed his way to the throne. He was skeptical until the day he saw a golden light fill the horizon the very day the General’s wife gave birth prematurely.
He had sent his eldest son, Mu Yunfei, to visit the General’s Manor to see if this “genius” existed. To his disappointment, all he found was a sickly, ignored premature baby.
But after the age of four, Xiao Biehe’s talent began to shine. By seven, he was writing beautiful prose and had taught himself martial arts. When Xiao Changfeng took the boy to the border, Mu Hongmiao sent Mu Yunfei along for two years to keep watch.
To his horror, his son fell in love with Xiao Biehe. Upon returning to the capital, the Crown Prince spoke of nothing but how brilliant and God-like Biehe was. Finally, five years ago, the eighteen-year-old Mu Yunfei knelt before the Emperor’s desk and declared his intent to marry Xiao Biehe as his Crown Princess.
Furious, Mu Hongmiao nearly stripped him of his title. But Mu Yunfei wouldn’t budge.
Mu Hongmiao had asked him then: “You want to marry him, but does he feel the same? Aren’t you afraid you won’t even be able to remain friends?”
The eighteen-year-old Mu Yunfei had replied darkly: “I am the Crown Prince; he is but a minister. If he is unwilling, I will break his legs and lock his hands in iron chains. He will have no choice but to stay in my Eastern Palace!”