Chapter 300: Wonderful Palpitations (2)

No wonder he gave her the token to enter and exit the Palace, no wonder her kind and gentle sister could devise such a scheme. His scheming was so deep. Qingfeng mocked herself; she had thought she was truly helping her sister, but in the end, she was nothing more than a chess piece in the hands of Yan Hongtian.

"No wonder she wanted to curse Me as a bloodthirsty, cruel beast." Yan Hongtian kept smiling, a smile that made Qingfeng's heart crawl with unease.

Beast... Her heart contracted violently for some unknown reason. What it felt like to be called a "beast" by one's own birth mother, Qingfeng could not imagine. She did not understand; it was clearly he who had plotted against his own mother to eliminate dissent, so why did she feel a pain of betrayal by a loved one coming from him? Or was there some other reason behind this? Before her mind could figure it out, her mouth had already whispered in reply: "You are not."

Yan Hongtian, who had been sneering with his head bowed the whole time, suddenly looked up. "Then what kind of person am I?"

In the night, she still could not see his expression, but she could feel those black eyes staring tightly at her, sharper than any previous eye contact, as if they wanted to see into her heart. She knew that today might be the best opportunity; whether she wanted to please him or strike at him, she could reach straight into his heart. Qingfeng's mouth moved, but she said nothing, only shaking her head and replying coldly: "I don't know." How many people in this world rack their brains, guessing endlessly and exhausting their efforts, all just to understand the intentions of those in power, yet how many can truly walk into his heart? Once one truly understands, perhaps they are not far from death.

With ten thousand people bowing in submission and the master of the world, he was destined to be lonely in this position, destined to be misunderstood; this was what he deserved to suffer. At this moment, Qingfeng suddenly felt he was both hateful and pitiful. If it were said that in the previous days, she could not kill him because she did not want to endanger the lives of her sisters, then now, she truly did not want to kill him. Living as such a person was not necessarily a great stroke of fortune.

In Jingcheng, high officials and nobles were as numerous as crucian carp crossing a river, and the various grand mansions were too many to count. However, there was one residence that was the most magnificent building in Jingcheng outside of the Imperial Palace itself, and that was the mansion of Imperial Censor and Admonishing Grand Master, Lord Xin Sui. It was not because the rank of Imperial Censor and Admonishing Grand Master was so great, but because the Xin Clan had been assisting the Emperor since the founding of the state by the Yan family. Back then, the founding Emperor of Qiongyue bestowed this land adjacent to the Imperial Palace upon the Xin family, so its prominent status could be imagined. Although the Xin Clan could not compare to those times now, they had, after all, assisted the Imperial family for three generations, and Xin Sui's daughter was still the mother of the nation; the Xin family was still known to everyone within this Imperial City.

The most unique part of the Xin mansion was an independent courtyard built in the very center, a three-story small building. Apart from the first floor used for discussions, the floors above were all filled with books, showing that the ancestors of the Xin family still valued civil governance. The hour of the Rat had long passed, yet the room remained bright. Behind a thick redwood table, a man in his early sixties held a cup of hot tea, sitting upright in the main seat. His eyes hid a sharp edge, his expression was as usual, as if he were carefully savoring the sweetness and mellowness of the tea. Two men stood to the left and right of the desk; one in his thirties, his face showing irritation, and one in his mid-twenties, who appeared much more composed.

Xin Sui was as still as an old monk in meditation. Xin Fucheng finally could not help but ask: "Father, what exactly does the Emperor want to do?" It was not strange that the Emperor summoned Lou Xiyan, Su Ling, and Dan Yulan to the Imperial Study tonight, but what was strange was that Qing Ling actually went too, and in the end, even the Empress Dowager went. No one knew what they talked about, but in the end, Lou Xiyan was released. The Empress Dowager had spent great effort to lock Lou Xiyan in prison, yet today she did not obstruct him; it really did not seem like her style.

The young man standing opposite him gave a low laugh and said: "Think about why the Emperor gave the Qing Sisters to Lou Xiyan and Su Ling instead of others, think about why, given their temperaments, they would accept such gifts, and think about why the Emperor has favored more than just Qingfeng, yet only she is carrying the Dragon Seed?"

The Qing Sisters? Xin Fucheng was startled and urged: "The Emperor wants to use the three Qing sisters to link the Lou family and the Su family together, becoming a combined force for the Emperor in the imperial court!"

Xin Sui gently blew the tea leaves from the rim of his cup and sighed: "The Western Empress Dowager is too impatient; I fear the Yang family is finished." Three years ago it was because of Prince Hao, and today it was for the Zhaoyang Princess. Women's perspectives are always burdened by their children, making it hard to accomplish great things.

Xin Fucheng nodded and cursed: "Speaking of which, Prince Hao is also an impatient master. If we had known the temperaments of this mother and son earlier, our family should not have gotten mixed up with them back then. The Golden was already transported away by them, yet they still couldn't succeed, and now it has even been recovered by the Emperor." And it almost dragged their family into the water.

Xin Yiheng sneered. His second brother was truly foolish. Father gave support to the Empress Dowager and Prince Hao in secret on one hand, and on the other, helped the Emperor through Ning'er. In the end, no matter who won, the Xin family would stand in an invincible position. There were few people who knew the truth back then, and now, except for the Empress Dowager, they were all dead; it was impossible to implicate the Xin family. What Xin Yiheng was worried about was another matter. After pondering for a moment, Xin Yiheng said in a low voice: "Father, the Yang family is no longer a threat. Next, the Emperor will surely want to weaken the power of our Xin Clan. How shall we respond?"

Xin Sui sipped his fragrant tea and replied calmly: "The Xin family has been prosperous for three generations with deep roots; otherwise, the Emperor would not be so wary. It is not so easy to eliminate the Xin family. Yan Hongtian is not a hot-headed person; he will not act rashly. Furthermore, he certainly did not expect that the Qing sisters would be so capable, infatuating Lou Xiyan and Su Ling to such an extent that they reserved the position of legal wife for them." Calling the Emperor by his name directly—in the entire court, besides Xin Sui, there was no second person who dared, even if it was only in private.

Xin Yiheng's eyes lit up, as if he had grasped something, and he laughed: "One is the Prime Minister, the other is the Great General; the Emperor must also be afraid that the two of them will unite to oppose imperial power! So now, the Emperor favoring Qingfeng so much is also to use her to win over the Qing sisters and keep Lou Xiyan and Su Ling in check."

Giving an approving look at this youngest son, Xin Sui replied with some arrogance: "The Yang family is already done for. There must always be forces in the court to keep each other in check; he will not move against the Xin family for the time being."

Seeing his father and younger brother singing in harmony, Xin Fucheng, unwilling to be left out, urged: "Father, even so, we cannot let our guard down, and we must not let Qingfeng give birth to this child. Otherwise, if the position of Crown Prince falls to another, I fear our Xin family will never have a chance to rise again."

"There is plenty of time." That child won't be born immediately, and even if born, it won't grow up immediately. Why the rush?

"How is Ning'er?"

Sensing the old man was a bit angry, Xin Fucheng replied cautiously: "She is still angry, but with Shui Xin watching her, there shouldn't be any trouble."

Xin Sui's expression cleared slightly, and he replied coldly: "Hmm, tell her to be patient."

"Yes." Xin Fucheng complained bitterly in his heart. Ning'er entered the Palace at fourteen and was made Empress at eighteen. With the Xin family as her backing, Yan Hongtian did not restrict her, and she had been spoiled. How could she not listen to him? He was truly afraid she would cause some trouble.

Xin Sui put down his teacup and picked up a book from the side to flip through. The two brothers retreated from the study knowingly. Just as they reached the courtyard gate, Xin Yiheng bowed slightly to Xin Fucheng and strode away. Staring at that high-spirited back, Xin Fucheng's eyes were full of resentment; Xin Yiheng, relying on Father's favor, was increasingly looking down on everyone.

"Ah!"

She had not been sleeping soundly to begin with, and suddenly being lifted into the air, Qingfeng let out a low cry before she was fully awake. Her terrified eyes met a pair of smiling black eyes, and Qingfeng was stunned for a moment; Yan Hongtian had already carried her to the bed.

Qingfeng's chaotic mind gradually cleared, and she remembered last night. After she said "I don't know," she saw disappointment in Yan Hongtian's eyes. At that moment, she actually felt quite happy. Yan Hongtian did not pay attention to her anymore and fell asleep leaning against the edge of the bed. She had originally wanted him to sleep on the floor for the night, but fearing he would throw a tantrum when he sobered up in the morning, she could only call Gao Jin to move him onto the bed. She, of course, could not sleep on the same bed as someone reeking of alcohol, so in the end, she had to sleep on the lounge chair.

"If my beloved Consort looks at Me like that early in the morning, I fear I will have no heart for the morning court."

The teasing tone, the smile that did not reach his eyes, the slightly narrowed, upturned black eyes—the person before her was indeed the same domineering, violent, and somewhat evil Yan Hongtian as before, with no trace of the desolate and decadent look from last night.

"Your Majesty? It is time for the morning court." The voice of a Eunuch came from outside the room. Yan Hongtian let her go and said: "Come in."

Just like every other morning, the Eunuch helped him put on his clothes, shoes, and socks, and straightened his robes and crown. He did not look back once and strode away.

Qingfeng was a bit dazed. If she hadn't just been sleeping on the lounge chair, and if she hadn't been able to smell the faint scent of alcohol when Yan Hongtian picked her up, she would have thought everything last night was just a dream. As soon as Yan Hongtian left, Fuling immediately ran in. Seeing Qingfeng lying on the bed, she asked anxiously: "Mistress, are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Qingfeng slowly sat up straight; having slept on the lounge chair all night, her waist was indeed a bit sore.

Seeing her complexion was not very good, Fuling took her pulse. Confirming that Qingfeng was fine, Fuling felt relieved, helped her sit down, and assisted her with washing.

A few rays of morning light shone through the half-open window lattice, and the Autumn Begonia flower buds were shy and charming under the caress of the morning sun. Qingfeng looked at the Gongnu carefully pruning the branches in the flower bed and asked softly: "That is Lanzhi, isn't it?"

Fuling looked up and said: "Yes."

"She has changed a lot. Go and investigate why." She could not let another Xia Yin be by her side. Keeping her by her side now was because she felt she still had some use.

"Lanzhi was born into a merchant family, and her family background was considered well-off. Her mother passed away when giving birth to her younger brother. Half a year later, her father remarried a vicious woman. Within two years, her father also died. The stepmother treated them worse and worse. The stepmother had three children of her own and considered them a burden, wanting to sell them into the Palace. Lanzhi could not bear to see her brother suffer the pain of castration at such a young age, so she agreed with the stepmother that she would enter the Palace as a servant and give her monthly wages to the stepmother. Lanzhi is clever and knows how to please the matrons, and she has gained some favor from the young mistresses, so she has some silver and can give a few taels to her family every month. Who would have thought that the stepmother took her silver but did not treat her brother well? Three months ago, her brother fell seriously ill, but the stepmother would not hire a doctor for him, and he almost died. Later, she brought her brother out and hired an old woman to look after him. It's just that her brother is naturally weak, and it's feared he cannot be cured, so he can only be maintained." She had also discovered that Lanzhi was very different from before and had already sent people to investigate a few days ago. She did not expect her background to be so pitiful. "So that's how it is." Qingfeng suddenly beckoned to Fuling. Fuling lowered her head, and Qingfeng whispered a few words to her. After listening, Fuling was a bit puzzled but then understood, nodding gently.

(End of chapter)