A whirlwind of turbulent thoughts battered Nan Rongxian’s mind, leaving him with only one lingering question: How could Nan Rongchen possibly fancy anyone else? Nan Rongchen was cold-hearted and detached, with room in his mind for nothing outside of his grand ambitions; it was impossible for him to anchor his heart to a single soul.
Nan Rongchen, however, had no time to entertain his brother’s internal crisis. He unfastened the bamboo-jointed Kunlun jade pendant from his belt and tossed it to the prison guard who had just moments ago summoned the sheer audacity to bypass the Grand Court Judge and remove Pei Zhuo’s shackles. “A reward for you. The inner dungeons are damp and freezing. Escort Grand Secretary Pei out immediately and find a proper guest chamber for him to rest and recover.”
The guard’s transition from sheer panic to breathless disbelief took barely a second. He caught the jade pendant in his palms and dropped to his knees to kowtow in deep gratitude, realizing this shift was turning out to be entirely worth it.
Seeing that Pei Zhuo offered no resistance and allowed two guards to support him by the arms as they departed, Nan Rongchen turned back toward Nan Rongxian without the slightest regard for the fact that his royal brother’s face was darkening by the second. “The charge of offending the heavenly majesty against Prince Su is hereby waived.”
As long as the man remained useful, what did it matter if he was touched in the head?
“It would be a pity to let the Xue Xuan case end right here. When you have a moment, Royal Brother, go and have a chat with Wang Wen. I shall be waiting in the Hall of Diligent Administration to see precisely how this conspiracy was woven.”
Other matters were up for debate, but if this task was handed to Nan Rongxian, he would undoubtedly manage to rip a substantial chunk of flesh right out of the Pure Stream faction within the Secretariat.
Nan Rongxian had barely registered those last two sentences. It was only after Pei Zhuo’s retreating figure vanished behind the layered wooden bars of the cells that he finally found a suitable pretext. His gaze grew profound and piercing as he spoke, desperately seeking validation straight from Nan Rongchen himself. “Ah-Chen, not a word of today’s farce will leak out. In the future, you must never again claim to like men just to smuggle someone out.”
And what was that nonsense about the inner dungeons being damp and freezing? This theatrical performance had been dragged out to an utterly absurd degree.
Once again, he was fretting over a perceived humiliation to national dignity. Then again, Nan Rongxian abhorred cut-sleeves just as fiercely as he abhorred eunuchs. Nan Rongchen stepped closer into his space. “Royal Brother worries too much. I simply happen to like beauties.”
At the sound of the word beauty, Nan Rongxian found himself involuntarily gazing at the fair jade face before him, adorned with its vermilion-touched lips, now barely an inch from his own. Only then did he notice a tiny obsidian mole on the tip of Nan Rongchen’s nose, a detail that sparked a sudden, vexing itch in his heart, tempting him to reach out and touch it. In the end, he could only flick his sleeve in futile frustration, the dark fabric brushing against Nan Rongchen’s robes before parting ways entirely.
Noticing that Nan Rongxian actually frowned and stepped half a step to the side, most likely out of pure revulsion, Nan Rongchen tossed him a perfunctory line to secure his cooperation. “Beauties are temporarily less useful than Royal Brother, however. I leave Wang Wen in your capable hands; otherwise, I wouldn’t even be able to protect Xue Xuan.”
Once Nan Rongchen led Xue Xuan away, Nan Rongxian finally coaxed his scattered wits back into his body. His fierce gaze swept over the remaining guards still kneeling on the stone floor. “Blame only your own bad luck and incompetence for failing to dissuade His Majesty in time. Be obedient, and this Prince will make sure your families are well taken care of.”
Prince Su’s elite guards stepped forward to drag the trembling guards away. It took no imagination to realize where they were headed: execution.
The last surviving guard, clutching at straws like a dying man grasping at medicine, wept in a low, frantic wail, “Your Highness! His Majesty is absolutely no cut-sleeve! It was all that Pei Zhuo intentionally leading His Majesty astray. His Majesty just said so himself, he is far closer with Your Highness!”
“Even if His Majesty truly favored men, he could only ever fancy you!”
“This slave will never breathe a single word of this to a soul!”
Nan Rongxian waved his hand to signal the guards to release the man, then condescendingly squatted down right in front of the wretched guard. “Is that tongue of yours entirely unwanted?”
The guard’s soul was practically scared out of his body, leaving him to blurt out whatever nonsense his survival instincts conjured. “The entire capital knows that His Majesty and Your Highness grew up together from childhood, sharing a profound and steadfast bond!”
Even as the words left his mouth, he realized he had spoken out of turn, yet he watched in terror as this living Yama suddenly wore a hint of amusement. “Recount every single word and action of His Majesty inside this prison. Miss a single detail, and you will pay with a finger.”
Passing through several rows of dreary cells, they finally welcomed back the sunlight as the heavy prison gates slammed shut behind them, cutting the world cleanly into two realms of dusk and dawn.
Xue Xuan trailed silently behind Nan Rongchen the entire way, uttering not a single word. He was undoubtedly turning over in his mind how best to admonish a foolish ruler, and none of it was likely to be flattering.
Scurrying forward eagerly just to be berated was not something a sane person would do, so Nan Rongchen dismissed him before Xue Xuan could even open his mouth.
The crimson glass bead in his palm grew warm once again. Nan Rongchen lifted his gaze, and sure enough, he spotted Xie Chen standing quietly beneath the covered walkway.
As their eyes met, Xie Chen naturally stepped forward on his own accord.
Having presumably cast an illusory spell, his eyes were now a pair of ordinary brown irises indistinguishable from anyone else’s, even down to the subtle details of the whites of his eyes.
He had also changed back into the pretentious astrological robes he wore that day in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. As he walked, the constellations embroidered across his shoulders seemed to ripple like a flowing silver river, blurring the line between reality and the daytime glare.
To possess such an immaculate appearance meant he had likely already pledged his loyalty to a prominent master within the court.
The man even put on a theatrical bow. “Greetings, Your Majesty.”
Nan Rongchen rolled the crimson bead between his fingertips. “Long time no see, Master Xie. Did you choose Prince Su or the Empress Dowager?”
Xie Chen straightened up unbidden, answering with candid ease, “Currently Prince Su, though who’s to say what tomorrow brings.”
Even as he replied, his mind was lingering elsewhere. Beneath the dark, dragon-patterned sleeves, a vivid streak of scarlet was faintly visible along the wrist.
One could tell at a glance that someone else had caused it. If Nan Rongchen had inflicted the wound himself, the blood would never have merely pooled into a faint trace beneath that flawless skin, leaving an itch of irritation gnawing at his teeth.
Rather than standing by while others left their marks on Nan Rongchen, he should simply do it himself.
He curled three fingers inward, pulling wisps of red thread from his palm, aiming straight for that slender wrist. But right before contact, he reined in his reason and abruptly halted. The soul-binding pact was ruthlessly demanding. From the very first moment he touched his pact-master, Nan Rongchen, he had lost all control over his urge to draw closer. Sleeping in the same bed was not enough, rendering him unconscious and caging him in his arms was not enough, as he longed to swallow him whole, body and soul.
Yet he was, after all, a divine shaman. He needed to preserve a shred of dignity and avoid frightening this ungrateful little ingrate of a monarch, forcing himself to maintain a civilized human facade.
If Nan Rongchen continued to let others paw at him so casually, however, he couldn’t guarantee he would manage to keep from biting.
Nan Rongchen remained entirely oblivious to these dark currents. Both the Empress Dowager and Prince Xiang had long since treated the Master of Fate as an abandoned pawn, likely tolerating his existence solely out of fear of the three-day deadline, fully intending to replace him with someone else to control the Directorate of Astrology.
Without a shamanic prophecy, after all, how could they thoroughly cement his reputation as a foolish tyrant?
In his past life, the Master of Fate had sealed his fate as a tyrant with a single slip of divination. In this life, a few casual words of his had triggered suspicion instead, casting him as part of the Empress Dowager and Nan Rongchengyu’s faction. How amusing.
Previously, Nan Rongchen had merely acted on a whim, using the Master of Fate as bait to draw aggro, leaving his survival entirely up to fate.
As for the seat of the Directorate of Astrology, let the Master of Fate and the divine shaman he served fight over it.
Xie Chen, however, had another use right now. “Since you came all the way to the Grand Ministry of Punishments to see me, you might as well make it worth the trip. Heal someone else for me.”
Hearing this, Xie Chen curved his eyes into crescents. “Will Your Majesty offer a reward if I cure them?”
Nan Rongchen possessed barely a couple of jade trinkets of decent quality to his name, and he had already casually given those away as rewards. “Didn’t the divine shaman promise to help me achieve my grand ambitions? Pei Zhuo is part of my grand ambition as well. It’s your duty to begin with. Where do you find the shamelessness to ask for a reward?”
Xie Chen was well aware of who Pei Zhuo was. Qi Yan, Helian Yi, and now Pei Zhuo, each and every one of them harbored deep resentment toward Nan Rongchen.
He couldn’t fathom how Nan Rongchen failed to see it. Instead of staying out of the tiger’s den, he was actively welcoming the tigers into his own courtyard. “Your Majesty, playing with tigers requires a sense of measure, otherwise you’ll end up feeding the beast with your own flesh.”
Nan Rongchen adopted an expression of docile compliance. “Since the divine shaman has spoken, I shall simply banish them all from the palace.”
The divine shaman was passable enough as a healing immortal, but his schemes for manipulating human hearts within the imperial court were far too clumsy. The moment an opportunity arose, he grew utterly desperate to help Helian Yi break free.
It was a pity Helian Yi might not even wish to leave the palace just yet. He continued, feigning complete innocence, “Unfortunately, none of them are willing to leave. What can I possibly do?”
When Xiao Yuanqing stepped out of the main hall, this was precisely the scene that greeted him: Nan Rongchen leaning against a vermilion pillar, casually examining the crimson glass bead between two fingers while gazing idly at the afternoon sun.
Following his line of sight, one could catch a glimpse of a white-clad figure gliding away with footsteps as light as clouds.
Xiao Yuanqing walked forward at a measured pace, stopping right in the nick of time to block Nan Rongchen’s line of sight. “Lingsheng, once matters here are concluded, you should return to the palace to rest as soon as possible.”
Nan Rongchen reluctantly stowed the glass bead away in his sleeve, asking a question he already knew the answer to, not out of any hidden motive, but purely to disrupt this nauseating display of manufactured affection. “I assumed this case had nothing to do with Teacher. I wonder why Teacher insisted on wading into these muddy waters?”
Xiao Yuanqing was already knee-deep in the mud.
Prompted by the jade pendant found in the brocade box, Xiao Yuanqing had developed certain suspicions regarding Nan Rongchen’s recent abnormal demeanor. Furthermore, since Nan Rongchen continued to voice his suspicions directly just as he had in the past, Xiao Yuanqing seized the opportunity to probe. “Since Your Majesty wishes to use this case to purge the Secretariat and the Censorate, naturally I must assist.”
Nan Rongchen let out a dry laugh. If things had followed their normal trajectory in his past life, the memorial submitted by the Censorate would have simply read that the Magistrate of Jingzhao handled the case with absolute impartiality, while Xue Xuan, acting under Prince Su’s orders, obstructed justice at every turn, tortured Lin Ke into a false confession, and compelled him to implicate the Imperial Guard out of treasonous intent.
And that crucial pivot, which was Wang Wen colluding with the Secretariat to intercept Xue Xuan’s memorial, was undoubtedly tied to Xiao Yuanqing’s subtle guidance.
Now, the memorial that should have been intercepted in the Secretariat had landed right in his hands, yet Xiao Yuanqing was immediately washing himself clean of the affair. Truly, he was a magnificent imperial tutor.
According to the system, Xiao Yuanqing had his own plotline to pursue by coming to the Grand Ministry of Punishments.
Since Xiao Yuanqing intended to use candor to win back his trust, he would gladly give him ample opportunity. “With Teacher here, I am naturally at ease. May I ask what person Teacher came to the Grand Ministry of Punishments to see?”
Xiao Yuanqing reached out to gently brush a fallen, prematurely withered leaf from Nan Rongchen’s shoulder. “Your Majesty’s old injuries have yet to heal, and preoccupied as you are with state affairs, it is inconvenient for you to visit me. I simply couldn’t set my mind at ease.”
Had such words been spoken in his past life, Nan Rongchen would have desperately transcribed them and framed them on a wall, treating the rare scraps of warmth from a distant, aloof man as precious beyond measure.
This time, however, he smoothly played along, casually reverting to the intimate self-reference he reserved solely for private moments with Xiao Yuanqing. “I have indeed been neglecting Teacher these past few days. From now on, your Teacher may enter and leave the Zichen Palace as you always have.”
He then smoothly glossed over his cold treatment of Xiao Yuanqing back at the Directorate of Astrology, standing logic entirely on its head. “I knew Teacher and I have shared a boat through storms for years, knowing each other’s hearts so well that you would naturally grasp my intentions that day at the Directorate. Sure enough, Teacher turned a blind eye to Wang Wen colluding with the Secretariat, otherwise I would never have secured this opportunity.”
Back then, he had merely tossed out a casual sarcasm, tasking Xiao Yuanqing with cleaning up the Censorate’s financial mess, never expecting it to yield an unexpected bonus.
Since he intended to dismantle the Secretariat, he had never planned to keep Zhou Yanzhi in the dark, and Xiao Yuanqing made for a perfectly serviceable messenger boy.
He truly wished to avoid any further entanglements with a man like Xiao Yuanqing, yet he couldn’t afford to give him the cold shoulder entirely, otherwise how would he sabotage Xiao Yuanqing’s plot to pour his heart out to him, and how else was he supposed to farm aggro?
In the meantime, however, Xiao Yuanqing could hardly afford to remain idle. “This year marks the first time scholars from Southern Liang are participating in our court’s spring examinations. After much thought, I can think of no one more suited than Teacher to oversee the matter.”
Xiao Yuanqing stood shoulder to shoulder with him, a posture that technically violated court etiquette, though it mattered little against the half-month of relentless pestering Nan Rongchen had subjected him to years ago. “I shall naturally do my utmost.”
Yet Nan Rongchen did not linger to discuss poetry or philosophy as he used to. Moments later, he stepped away from the corridor with brisk, decisive strides, heading straight toward Pei Zhuo, whose verdant robes radiated a fierce, pine-like chill.
He was the beauty Nan Rongchen had insisted on dragging out of the inner dungeons and into the palace.