Xiao Yanli found his mother's worries quite unnecessary.
But he didn't want to cause discord with his mother over such trivial matters, so he accepted the medicine bottle, stood up, and took his leave.
It was still early, and he needed to go to Shangshufang later to complete the assignments given by the Grand Tutor that morning.
As soon as he stepped out of Phoenix Palace, a young eunuch waiting at the entrance immediately approached and bowed. Xiao Yanli recognized him as a eunuch from the Empress Dowager's side.
"Your Highness, the Empress Dowager says the autumn flavors are growing richer these days. She has acquired some plump crabs and invites you to join her for a meal."
Xiao Yanli looked at the young eunuch, a faint smile on his face, appearing very approachable.
"I understand. I will visit Her Majesty later to pay my respects."
The young eunuch received the reply, bowed, and withdrew.
Beside him, Fu Hai watched as his master's expression darkened, not daring to utter a sound.
Upon arriving at Shangshufang, Xiao Yanli noticed that the palace attendants on duty all looked rather uneasy.
He glanced at his seat—it was just as before, except that the half-finished essay he had left on the desk before leaving at noon was gone.
The attendants remained silent, but the Fifth Prince, Xiao Hanwen, standing nearby, made no effort to conceal his provocative tone. "Elder Brother, don't blame me. While drinking tea at noon, I accidentally spilled some on your desk and had to clear everything away."
Xiao Yanli smiled tolerantly, clearly not taking his petty tricks seriously.
Fu Hai, standing beside him, retrieved a draft from the book basket, spread it out on the desk, placed a paperweight, and began grinding ink for Xiao Yanli.
"It’s just a discarded draft—no harm done if it’s thrown away. However, if Younger Brother continues to act so recklessly, I fear you may not be fit for greater responsibilities in the future."
Xiao Hanwen suffered another setback and snorted, turning his face away.
The Grand Preceptor and Grand Tutor, who had arrived a quarter of an hour earlier, observed the exchange between the two brothers but said nothing. They waited outside for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before entering to begin the lesson.
After the lesson, Xiao Yanli headed toward the Empress Dowager's Yongkang Palace, while Xiao Hanwen was also walking in the same direction.
After walking for a quarter of an hour, Xiao Hanwen glared at him and shouted, "Why are you following me? Go back to your Eastern Palace!"
Fu Hai hurriedly explained, "Fifth Prince, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager invited our prince for dinner tonight, which is why we are taking this route."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Hanwen stared fiercely at Fu Hai, looking as if he wished to have him beaten to death to vent his anger.
Fu Hai shivered and dared not speak further.
Xiao Hanwen shifted his gaze to Xiao Yanli, who stood tall and straight, his hands clasped behind his back, appearing effortlessly composed about everything. This made Xiao Hanwen seethe with hatred.
But all his resentment had to be buried in his heart, for he knew he was not yet strong enough—he lacked the ability to overthrow the Empress!
"Just you wait!"
With these words, he stormed off in anger.
Xiao Yanli watched his retreating figure, lowering his eyelids to conceal the disdain in his eyes.
Then he turned and walked toward the Eastern Palace.
Fu Hai trotted after him. "Master, aren’t we going anymore?"
As soon as he asked, he mentally slapped himself. What a pointless question!
Meanwhile, in Yongkang Palace, the Empress Dowager looked at the brightly dressed young woman before her, feeling extremely satisfied.
It is said that even heroes find it hard to resist a beauty’s charm, and she was confident that the Crown Prince would be captivated by the young woman before her.
But they waited for a long time, only to receive a message from a eunuch of the Eastern Palace.
"Your Majesty, the Fifth Prince encountered the Crown Prince today and, upon learning that you had summoned him for a meal, became resentful. His Highness fears harming the bond between brothers and the affection between grandson and grandmother, and dares not come. He said he will come another day to apologize to you!"
The Empress Dowager's face immediately darkened, and the young girl beside her anxiously twisted her handkerkey, at a loss.
Then, wouldn't all the preparations for tonight go to waste?
"What is Xiao Wu causing trouble for again!" the Empress Dowager grumbled in frustration.
She understood in her heart that this was just the Crown Prince's excuse to shift blame; he likely did not want to come to her Yongkang Palace.
But since the Fifth Prince had provoked the incident first, she could only swallow her anger.
Waving her hand to dismiss the messenger, she said to the young girl beside her, "We will plan this carefully another time. I refuse to believe he won't show up on the day of the palace banquet!"
The young girl comforted the Empress Dowager, "This matter is not urgent. What is important now is that table of delicious crabs. Allow me to serve Your Majesty the meal!"
In the evening, Shen Chao was summoned by Fu Hai. She glanced around the place where she stood.
It was an Imperial Guard duty room, clearly tidied up, with no unpleasant odors.
A charcoal stove in the corner radiated warmth, and water in the pot bubbled noisily.
Shen Chao immediately noticed the Crab Eight Tools laid out on the table. She had never used them herself but had seen them while serving the Empress.
As soon as autumn arrived, subordinates would send many crabs to the Phoenix Palace.
The Empress herself did not care for them, often bestowing them upon various palaces.
As a female official, Shen Chao had tasted them before, but she truly could not acquire a taste for them.
Moreover, the noble ladies and young misses took pride in elegantly using the Crab Eight Tools, making her, a bold eater who used her hands, seem out of place. Thus, she avoided such troublesome things even more.
Shen Chao stood awkwardly in the room, "Eunuch, why have you called me here?"
Fu Hai rubbed his hands together, hopping a couple of times from the cold.
"Naturally, I have something good for you!"
He dragged a bucket from behind the charcoal stove, picked up a few crabs, and tossed them into the boiling water. After stirring the pot a few times with a long-handled ladle, he fished out the three crabs, arranged them on a plate, and placed it on the table.
"Come quickly, eat while they're hot!"
As he spoke, he also took out crab vinegar and shredded ginger from a food box.
Under his eager gaze, Shen Chao took a seat. She knew the crabs before her were "bestowed" by Xiao Yanli.
If she did not eat them, Fu Hai would report everything back in detail.
Crabs were not a rarity in the palace; subordinates always sent them up.
But crabs as large as Shen Chao's face—this was the first time she had seen such a thing. Staring at the hard-shelled creature with its eight legs, she swallowed hard with difficulty.
"Sister Caichun, eat quickly! These are truly good—rich roe and thick meat!" Fu Hai looked at the crabs, his eyes gleaming with delight.
What a pity he couldn't eat them himself. Ah, the master's "favor" toward Caichun was truly extraordinary.
Shen Chao smelled the crab odor in the air, and her stomach churned.
Then, covering her mouth, she rushed out the door. Fu Hai anxiously followed her.
Shen Chao pretended to retch a few times and, before Fu Hai could react, said, "Eunuch, I truly feel unwell. I shall return to the palace now!"
With that, she hurried away.
She had thought Xiao Yanli was present and dared not refuse to come.
Now that she knew he wasn't here, wasn't it easy to fool his little eunuch and get away with it?
But as she stepped out of the duty room, she came face to face with Xiao Yanli, who was approaching with a lantern.
He wore a black cloak, and the palace lantern in his hand flickered in the autumn night.
Shen Chao's steps were nailed to the spot as she saw Xiao Yanli tilt his head slightly and ask her calmly, "Where are you going?"
Shen Chao instinctively took a step back, making an excuse: "This servant came to greet Your Highness."
In the darkness, Shen Chao couldn't see his expression clearly but heard his scoff.
"Liar."