Chapter 2: CH 2

“His temperament changed…” Zhong Wan softly repeated, brows slightly furrowed. 

Requesting to marry a nine-year-old princess truly didn’t seem like something he would do.

Lin Si thought that he had agreed with what he had said, so started discussing other things.

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They would be entering the city in two hours. Lin Si would have to leave soon, so Zhong Wan didn’t dare to waste their time together. He buried the doubts in his heart and pulled himself together to listen to what Lin Si had to “say.”

Lin Si wrote, “At the beginning of the year, Third Prince became ill again and almost didn’t make it. Third Prince has been in poor health since young. He is already thirty-four this year, yet still has not fathered a child. The doctors at the imperial academy of medicine daren’t say anything explicitly, but…he probably won’t last many more years.” 

Zhong Wan furrowed his brows. Third Prince was about to die too.

Speaking of this, the emperor was quite unfortunate. His two previous sons had died early too. First Prince died at age twelve and Second Prince died at age three. In between them, two princesses had passed as well. After much hardship, he finally managed to conceive Third Prince, but Third Prince was born with a weak constitution, frequently plagued with illness. They had spent so much effort making sure he lived until now, but he was still likely to die soon.

His Majesty was approaching sixty this year, but only three of his sons remained. He had no grandsons either. Aside from Third Prince, the only sons in good health he had were the twenty-two year old Fourth Prince Xuan Jing and the twenty year old Fifth Prince Xuan Qiong.

Lin Si hesitated and decided not to write the next part down. He slowly gestured, “In the early years, a prophet once said that His Majesty’s throne came from unclear origins, not from the Mandate of Heaven. He couldn’t receive the blessings of the Heavens, so sought to change destiny himself. This would most certainly harm his ability to have descendants, which is why most of His Majesty’s children haven’t been able to survive.” 

Zhong Wan responded nonchalantly, “Aren’t a couple of them still alive now? There are already two mature and healthy princes. They’re enough.”

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Lin Si furrowed his brows.

“I understand what you mean,” said Zhong Wan, smiling. “The emperor’s sons have a habit of dying young. You’re worried that he’s going to be unhappy seeing Xuan Rui and Xuan Yu and have other thoughts. The most plausible explanation as to why His Majesty has suddenly called us into the capital is this.”

Lin Si nodded. 

Zhong Wan comforted him by saying, “Which is why, before we came, I already told Xuan Rui an exaggerated version of all these things. He’s been so scared that he hasn’t been able to eat or sleep well for the past few days. The whole trip, he’s been wrought with anxiety and has gotten a whole circle thinner. His eyes look dead and his appearance has become extremely frail. When His Majesty sees him like this, he will definitely be at ease.”

Lin Si couldn’t help smiling.

“So, this trip was necessary,” Zhong Wan calmly said. “It’s useless no matter how hard we try to stay out of the way. The only thing that will really convince him is if he can see them with his own eyes. That would be the sole way he would be willing to let them off the hook.”

Lin Si slightly relaxed. 

Lin Si then started asking about Zhong Wan’s health. When the two of them had gone their separate ways back in the day, Zhong Wan had been so ill he had been unable to leave the bed. Lin Si had been worried about him all this time.

Lin Si took Zhong Wan’s pulse and signed, “I heard Uncle Yan say that even after recovering, you still feel the lingering effects of that sickness from time to time. When the weather turns cold, you most certainly will fall ill again. It’s already winter now, you…”

“It’s a trifling matter. I’m already mostly well.” Zhong Wan waved his hand dismissively. He wasn’t worried about his own body at all. “You just said…”

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Itbcu Qjc tjv xcbkc Te Vtf rlcmf atfs kfgf atlgaffc; atfs tjv yffc mijrrwjafr obg atgff sfjgr, atfc rqfca jiwbra fnfgs wbwfca abufatfg obg tjio j sfjg. Lf xcfk Te Vtf gfijalnfis kfii, rb mbeivc’a lwjulcf atja atlr qfgrbc mbeiv’nf mtjcufv rb wemt.

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Lin Si knew that Zhong Wan wouldn’t want to believe this, so grabbed another piece of paper and started furiously writing: The first year after you guys left, the incident with Prince Ning came to a conclusion and the capital city returned to its original peaceful state. A year later, out of the blue, Young Prince Yu suddenly asked the emperor for an order to remove his title of heir. 

Zhong Wan was speechless. A long pause later, he asked, “Why… why would he do that?”

After giving birth to Yu She, Princess Royal Anguo had no longer been able to conceive. His Majesty had pitied Prince Yu’s scarce number of children and granted him several concubines. Prince Yu had two illegitimate sons. If Yu She lost his title of heir, one of the illegitimate sons would inherit it instead.

Lin Si shook his head. Signed, “Don’t know.”

Zhong Wan laughed dryly. “Let’s first not discuss whether or not His Majesty would beat him to death. What about the princess? She didn’t die from anger because of him? How did she punish him?” 

Lin Si wrote, “I don’t know what Princess said. His Majesty was furious and placed Young Prince Yu under house arrest in the palace. They only let him leave after two months of discipline.”

Zhong Wan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “He grew up in the palace. What kind of house arrest is that.”

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Lin Si continued to write, “After this, Young Prince Yu then volunteered to go to Beijiang.”

Zhong Wan: “…” 

Zhong Wan sighed in awe. “Amazing. Is he trying to stage a coup for his dad?”

When the previous emperor had founded their state, he had made six people with different surnames from him Princes of the First Rank. These days, only Prince Yu’s estate remained. Not only did the Yu family manage to survive, they even managed to maintain a strong influence in the court. But as a Prince of the First Rank with a different surname, many topics were sensitive. Prince Yu clearly understood the relationship between an emperor and his subordinate, so always tried to stay away from military affairs. Who knew that Yu She would break this interdiction.

Lin Si wrote, “That day, Prince Yu brought his seal with him into the palace and kneeled in front of the main hall for two hours. Nobody could persuade him to stand. In the end, it was His Majesty himself who personally helped him up.”

Zhong Wan muttered, “First offending the princess, then touching Prince Yu’s forbidden lamella. Does he think he has too long to live…?” 

Li Si continued to write, “He does think he has too long to live.”

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Zhong Wan smiled in exasperation.

“A year later, Princess Royal Anguo inadvertently discovered that Young Prince Yu was consuming cold-food powder…” wrote Lin Si.

“What?!” The smile disappeared from Zhong Wan’s face. “He ate what?” 

Lin Si drew a circle around the three words “cold-food powder.”

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“He…” Zhong Wan gritted his teeth. “Why didn’t he directly eat arsenic? What happened after?”

Lin Si wrote, “The princess was furious. She kept Young Prince Yu under house arrest for the entirety of half a year. Prince Yu asked for an order from the emperor to examine all the pharmacies in the capital and all the Daoist temples in the suburbs. They beat several treacherous merchants secretly selling this drug to death. He only stopped after Young Prince Yu fully recovered half a year later.

Lin Si thought about it, then kept writing, “Another year passed, and Young Prince Yu…” 

There wasn’t enough time for him to finish writing everything.

Zhong Wan silently observed, eyebrows furrowing more and more tightly together.

Just a while ago, he had thought it strange how Yu She had come up with the idea of marrying the nine-year old Princess Huiyang. But now, this occurrence didn’t seem so out of character anymore.

‘He…” muttered Zhong Wan. “What happened to him in these years? What unhappy event could have caused him to seek death so resolutely?” 

Yu She was the sole child of Princess Royal Anguo. He had been conceived in the year the previous emperor had passed. That year, Princess Royal Anguo had become overly stricken with grief during the period of national mourning and almost lost her child. Later on, she had gone to stay at the previous emperor’s tomb to pay her respects, not even managing to return to the capital in time for her delivery date. She had given birth to Yu She at the side estate by the royal mausoleum. Afterwards, she had likely harmed her body and hadn’t been able to conceive another child since.

He was the princess’s only son, so naturally was treated like a precious treasure. The empress dowager and emperor both adored this child greatly. Yu She’s name had even been given by His Majesty. When he turned one, he had been bestowed the title of prince’s heir. At age two, he was invited into the palace. From daily meals to accommodations, he was tended to exactly like a royal prince would have been.

He was like a royal prince, but not quite. The royal princes still had to fight each other openly and secretly for the title of crown prince. As the only blood-born son, Yu She had been guaranteed the title of prince’s heir since birth. He was destined for a life filled with both riches and power. He didn’t need to worry about anything.

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What could cause him to be so unhappy that he would treat himself in this way? 

In Zhong Wan’s memories, Yu Ziyou had an excellent character.

Compared to others, Yu She was only slightly more antisocial. He didn’t like interacting with others, and almost seemed to have a permanent worried furrow between his brows. Unlike the older, more experienced, and harsher Prince Yu, Yu She did things openly. He knew exactly what those of noble character should do and should avoid, otherwise… Zhong Wan wouldn’t have been able to survive until now.

Lin Si saw that Zhong Wan became temporarily lost in his own thoughts, so picked up the brush and started writing, “Young Prince Yu seems to have become someone else altogether in these past few years. His actions have become unpredictable, his temperament sinister. Last year, he entered the Dali Temple. His deeds have struck fear into many hearts. Once, I failed to successfully complete my mission and was caught by him. He almost directly killed me.”

Zhong Wan’s heart dropped. 

Lin Si worried that Zhong Wan would stress, so hurriedly added, “Don’t worry. I told Fourth Prince ahead of time, so he transferred my case to the Ministry of Justice. They treated it as a minor misdemeanor and released me after a short investigation.”

Fourth Prince Xuan Jing. Lin Si had been hiding on his estate all these years.

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Lin Si wrote on the paper, strokes heavy, “Young Prince Yu does not care for his old relationships.”

Zhong Wan inhaled deeply, then nodded. 

Zhong Wan leaned against the carriage’s window and became silent for a period of time. He still couldn’t understand. He lowly said, “Then five years ago, why did he…”

Lin Si looked at Zhong Wan, confused. He didn’t understand.

Zhong Wan slowly relayed, “Four years ago, the prefecture magistrate of Qian An, Shen Fu, reported to court in the capital. Under my name, he went to Prince Yu’s estate in search for financial help. Ziyou… he really helped take care of everything.”

Lin Si recalled this even and wrote, “It was very strange. Maybe at the time Young Prince Yu hadn’t been so crazy yet?” 

They had finally used up all the paper. Lin Si signed, “Speaking of this, it was this event that confirmed the stories about you and Young Prince Yu.”

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Zhong Wan’s mind was filled with thoughts. He lifted his gaze and asked, “Ah?”

Lin Si signalled, “Because of this, everyone in the capital believed that the rumors regarding you two were true. Everyone truly thinks that Young Prince Yu is infatuated with you, which is why he accommodates everything you do.”

Zhong Wan was silent for a moment. He asked, “Say that again?” 

Lin Si was mute, so couldn’t say anything. He could only make the gestures again: “Because of this, everyone in the capital believed that the rumors regarding you two were true. Everyone truly thinks that Young Prince Yu is infatuated with you, which is why he accommodates everything you do.”

Lin Si thought that Zhong Wan couldn’t understand his gestures, so was just about to find a blank space on the paper to write it down on, when he was stopped by a smiling Zhong Wan.

“I taught you all the sign language you know. How could I not understand?” The corners of Zhong Wan’s eyes crinkled into slight crescents. He held back his laughter as he said, “I just wanted to hear you ‘say’ it again.”

Lin Si didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. But after thinking about it in more detail, he started feeling apprehensive in his heart again. 

On the other hand, Zhong Wan’s expression was normal.

Lin Si pondered a bit, and gestured, “When the rumors first started in the capital, they truly caught the attention of many. At the time, everyone was discussing them. I heard that after Young Prince Yu first learned of the gossip, he became so angry that he got sick for a period of time.”

Zhong Wan coughed. He picked up his teacup to take a sip.

Lin Si signed again, “According to Fourth Prince, one day, in the spur of the moment, His Majesty specifically asked Young Prince Yu whether or not the rumors were true.” 

Zhong Wan choked.

Lin Si helpfully patted Zhong Wan’s back before adding on, “That day, Young Prince Yu walked out of the palace, expression extremely foul. After he had returned to his own estate, he didn’t eat and didn’t speak. Princess Royal thought that he had argued with the emperor again, so specially called him to the princess estate to ask him about it later that night. She probably also asked about the rumors, because after leaving the princess estate, Young Prince Yu’s face was dark… Really, really dark. Terrifyingly dark. It’s a good thing that he’s naturally good-looking, or it would’ve been truly horrifying.”

Zhong Wan’s stomach hurt from trying to hold in his laughter.

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Lin Si signed, “Of course, only His Majesty and the princess could ask him in person. After everyone saw his attitude regarding the issue, they didn’t dare to bring your name up in front of him at all. But later…” 

Lin Si swallowed and continued, “There were simply too many people gossiping. It’s uncertain if there were so many rumors that he became numb, or if he realized most already believed the rumors, but Young Prince Yu’s gave up and stopped trying to explain anything… He was practically forced to admit it was true.”

Lin Si thought about it and signalled, “Perhaps he heard the story too many times, so started believing it himself. Nobody is bold enough to speak of this publicly in the capital, but the customs of Jiangnan are much less strict. People have written songs and plays about it there. One year, Young Prince Yu took a trip to the area while undercover, and spent an entire evening listening to opera about you two on a pleasure barge in Suzhou. He even left a hefty tip upon leaving.”

Zhong Wan’s expression was indescribable. After this, he really didn’t dare to meet Yu She again.

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