The officials discovered that the Emperor, who had previously maintained an ambiguous stance regarding the Deposed Prince’s manner of execution, had suddenly become firmly determined to sentence him to death by a thousand cuts.
No one knew what had caused this change, but the Emperor was now so resolute that he would rather postpone the execution by an additional two months than abandon the punishment of death by slow slicing.
The court hall erupted into endless debate. But the Emperor was no longer the agreeable and accommodating ruler he had been in the first years after ascending the throne. No matter how the ministers quoted classics and precedents, he responded with the same few sentences over and over.
“The Deposed Prince committed countless evils and has wronged the people of the realm. I am the father of all under Heaven, and I must seek justice for my people. The Deposed Prince must suffer death by a thousand cuts! No further persuasion is needed. I will not listen.”
Faced with the Emperor’s belated streak of rebellion, the officials who opposed such a severe punishment could do nothing. In the end, they grudgingly accepted it.
Yun Boyan, having been the first official to advocate death by a thousand cuts, found that after court, both supporters and opponents looked at him strangely.
No wonder a man usually so quiet had taken such a firm stance on the Deposed Prince. Clearly, he had received the Emperor’s hints long ago.
The officials who were friendly with Yun Boyan were heartbroken.
Yun Boyan, you scoundrel. If you already knew what the Emperor wanted, why didn’t you warn us in secret? Aren’t we supposed to be like-minded friends?
For the first time in his life, Yun Boyan truly understood the phrase “unable to defend oneself despite having a hundred mouths.” He had guessed that the Emperor would not allow the Deposed Prince an easy death. But he had never imagined that the Emperor also wanted death by a thousand cuts.
“Minister Yun enjoys exceptional favor in the Emperor’s eyes.” An official known for advocating benevolence walked over and offered a sarcastic salute. “Truly enviable.”
Yun Boyan smiled. “His Majesty loves the people as he loves his own children, and treats all of us equally. Why would Minister Wang say such a thing?”
Minister Wang: “…” What a disgusting mouth. Taking a deep breath, he turned and left.
Meanwhile, the officials supporting Prince Luo were quite satisfied.
The Emperor insisting on death by a thousand cuts for the Deposed Prince was of little concern to them. As long as the Emperor stopped raising the matter of Prince Ruining entering court affairs, they could accept anything else.
The officials supporting Prince Luo secretly rejoiced. They wished for nothing more than His Majesty being distracted by other matters and completely forgetting about Prince Ruining. Sigh. Spring was approaching. It looked like Prince Ruining would survive another year.
“Today, eat whatever you want. I’m paying for everything!” Yun Qiya was in exceptionally high spirits. Standing at the entrance of Ning’an Lane, she surveyed every food stall and shop within sight with an air of dominance, like a victorious general overlooking a battlefield.
“Anything is fine with me.”
Various aromas filled the alley. Ling Yanhuai noticed students wearing Imperial Academy robes weaving through the crowds.
Ning’an Lane was located very close to the Imperial Academy. The academy’s students supported more than half the food businesses in the lane.
“Then come with me.” Yun Qiya beckoned. “We’re going to eat our way through every single stall.”
“You seem… very happy?” Ling Yanhuai noticed her unusual excitement.
“Mhm!” Yun Qiya nodded.
The Deposed Prince was finally going to die by a thousand cuts. Of course she was happy.
“His Majesty is wise and mighty, discerning and fair, his virtue reaching all four seas.” She handed Ling Yanhuai a serving of brown-sugar glutinous rice cakes. “That’s worth celebrating!”
The rice cakes were sweet, sticky, and soft, not particularly to Ling Yanhuai’s taste. He preferred the sesame cakes they had eaten yesterday. Still, he quietly finished everything on his plate.
“Strange—what day is it today? Why aren’t the students of the Imperial Academy in class?” Yun Qiya looked around at the crowded street, puzzled. Normally at this hour the scholars would be at their studies, yet today so many were milling about in the alley.
Thinking of her companion’s dislike for noise, she stopped short: “Too many people. Let’s come back another time.”
“It’s fine.” Ling Yanhuai stepped aside to avoid a few exuberant scholars and waved his nervous attendant away. “Didn’t you say yesterday you wanted to try fried fish cakes?”
“Fish cakes can be had any time.” Yun Qiya, now very mindful of her friend, suggested instead: “There’s a new restaurant in the west of the city. Let’s go there and taste their fresh dishes.”
As they turned to leave, Yun Qiya suddenly caught a familiar name—and then a familiar voice.
“Brother Luoqing has had it rough these past years. Forced to flee after offending the deposed prince, yet still managing to cultivate such fine calligraphy—truly admirable.”
“Yes, yes. To hone such skill amid hardship, what perseverance that must take.”
“Oh, not at all. You gentlemen are learned beyond measure, admired by countless people. Unlike me—I can’t even write the essays our tutors assign properly.”
“How could anyone blame you? To survive the deposed prince’s pursuit all these years is achievement enough.”
Following the voices, Yun Qiya saw several Imperial Academy students gathered at a teahouse. In their midst sat a young man—slender-waisted, long-legged, with jade-like features and an effortless elegance. Though still youthful, he already carried the air of a true scholar. From their words, he seemed resilient, steadfast, and modest.
If that man hadn’t been her own brother, Yun Luoqing, Yun Qiya might have believed it.
Brother and sister’s eyes met across the noisy street, then slid away in tacit agreement—neither intruding on the other.
No wonder her brother wasn’t much good at studying, yet still managed to get along well with all the scholars at the Imperial Academy—turns out the disgraced prince had taken all the blame for him.
In reality, after their family left the capital, they used a set of prepared household records to pose as wealthy merchants and hide from disaster in other regions. Wherever they went, their mother would hire the most renowned local tutors for her and her brother. Unfortunately, even famous teachers produced poor pupils: her learning was mediocre, and her brother’s studies were an utter mess.
The only skill they could barely show off was their handwriting, which was decent enough to fool quite a few people.
Seeing her brother about to be pitied as a resilient yet fragile little cabbage, Yun Qiya quickened her pace to leave, lest her presence interfere with his performance.
“That young lady is truly as beautiful as a celestial fairy…” murmured a student seated beside Yun Luoqing, staring blankly at Yun Qiya’s departing figure as though his soul had flown away.
Hearing this, Yun Luoqing instinctively turned his head to follow the student’s gaze.
His sister?! He hadn’t looked closely before, but now he realized the man walking beside her seemed familiar. On the night of the Lantern Festival, wasn’t that same man at his sister’s side? Compared to that night, the man was dressed even more splendidly now, and the sickly air about him had lessened somewhat.
“Brother Yun,” said the student opposite him, eyes usually buried in books now burning with intensity, “do you know that young lady?”
“What young lady?” Yun Luoqing turned back with a blank look. “Isn’t that an old woman? What are you talking about?”
Only then did the student notice that in the direction the girl had gone, an elderly woman was stooping to pick up trash from the street.
Realizing how improper it was to have stared so intently at a maiden, the student flushed red and shook his head. “N-no, nothing at all.”
Fortunately, Brother Yun didn’t expose his earlier lapse in manners. Brother Yun really is such a good person.
After sampling the new dishes at the restaurant, Yun Qiya glanced at the sky. “It’s getting late. I should head home. Tomorrow I won’t be able to come find you, so don’t wait for me.”
Ling Yanhuai didn’t ask why. He only looked at her with those beautiful eyes, like a stray cat whose food had all been taken away.
“My aunt’s nephew has been married for eight years and finally has a child. Tomorrow the Song family is holding a full‑month banquet for the baby, and I need to accompany my aunt to offer congratulations.”
Eight years of marriage before a child—when his own father and mother had him, were they just as overjoyed as the Song family now?
Ling Yanhuai lowered his head. “All right. Then I’ll wait for you the day after tomorrow.”
“Take a rest tomorrow too. Seeing that ugly face of the Deposed Prince every day is enough to ruin your mood.” Ever since learning the Deposed Prince would eventually be executed by a thousand cuts, Yun Qiya’s enthusiasm for tormenting him daily had waned.
Ling Yanhuai realized he could always read her thoughts with ease. Silence was his habit, so when Yun Qiya worried he might catch a cold, he obediently climbed into the carriage.
Before she had even left, he lifted the curtain a crack and saw Princess Rongshan’s carriage stop right in front of Yun Qiya.
“Yun Qiya, who was that man?!”
Ling Yanhuai quickly dropped the curtain, sealing the gap tight. The driver hurried the carriage away.
Once she was sure her companion’s carriage had gone, Yun Qiya smiled at Lu Mingzhu’s sudden arrival. “Sister Mingzhu～”
“Don’t call me sister yet.” Lu Mingzhu kept her eyes fixed on the retreating carriage, lacking even the courage to meet Yun Qiya’s gaze. With one look, she could tell—that was no proper gentleman.
“The better‑looking a man is, the more deceitful he’ll be.” Lu Mingzhu said sourly. “Be careful not to be tricked by some so‑called good brother or good cousin.”
“What brothers or cousins? None of them could ever compare to Sister Mingzhu.” Yun Qiya shamelessly climbed into the carriage. “You’re my true good sister.”
Lu Mingzhu curled her lips. “Fine then. As your good sister, I’ll kindly see you home.”
Ling Yanhuai hadn’t even returned to his own residence before the Empress’s attendants summoned him into the palace.
“Your Highness, the Empress has chosen a consort for Prince Luo. She asks that you enter the palace to give your counsel.”
Counsel? Ling Yanhuai had no interest in such matters, but his mother seemed to believe his involvement might bridge the distance between him and Prince Luo. He felt neither willing nor unwilling—if one trip could ease her mind, there was no harm in it.
The eunuch, knowing the First Prince’s temperament, began to elaborate when he stayed silent.
“Miss Cui is accomplished in many arts. Her grandfather was once His Majesty’s tutor; her father now serves as Prefect of Linzhou. The family is noble and refined.” He added, “Her Ladyship is very fond of Miss Cui.”
Ling Yanhuai nodded, still without a word. Whoever Prince Luo married was none of his concern.
In the Empress’s palace, however, Prince Luo was far from satisfied with his bride‑to‑be.
“Old Master Cui speaks nothing but pedantic phrases. I’ve met his granddaughter—she walks as if measured by a ruler, her temperament no different from a block of wood…”
“If you weren’t a prince, with your rotten character you wouldn’t deserve such a fine girl even in your dreams,” the Empress cut him off sharply. “And you still think you get to choose?”
After arguing in vain, Prince Luo changed tack. “If Your Majesty insists I marry Miss Cui as my princess consort, so be it. But I wish to take another young lady as a secondary consort. I beg Mother to grant me this favor.”
The Empress frowned, displeased, rubbing her aching temples. “Which family’s daughter?”
“The legitimate granddaughter of Marquis Chengping’s household.”
The Empress’s head buzzed with fury. “To make the Marquis’s young lady your concubine? You’ve gone mad!”
“Her father holds no office or title. Why shouldn’t I take her as a secondary consort?”
“You’re unworthy. Shameless.”
The Empress froze—who had just spoken the words in her heart aloud?
She and Prince Luo turned toward the doorway and met Ling Yanhuai’s clear, cold eyes.
And then the Empress smiled. Her son had actually scolded someone! What joy!