Chapter 327: Secretly Growing Feelings (1)

Qingfeng coughed lightly and looked up quietly, sure enough colliding with Yan Hongtian's deep, dark eyes. Qingfeng deliberated for a moment and decided to deny it to the end. "This consort is terrified. Falsely conveying the imperial will is a capital offense; Emperor, please do not frighten me."

She was terrified? Who was glaring at him just a moment ago? Yan Hongtian huffed lightly. "Is that so?"

His voice was even deeper, but his dark eyes faintly revealed a smile. It seemed Yan Hongtian wasn't truly trying to make things difficult for her. Qingfeng breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "Of course not. Letting the prince stay by my side for a year was something you promised me at the villa. As for the fortune-telling, it was merely to make the Empress Dowager and the Empress more accepting, so as not to make things difficult for you. Since everything was done under your decree, how could it be falsely conveying the imperial will?"

She had acted on her own, made up a story, and now it had turned into her acting for his sake? Yan Hongtian felt a mix of amusement and frustration. "You used to be sharp-tongued, and now you've learned to be evasive and manipulative. Good, very good!"

Qingfeng shrugged. "The Emperor taught me well." If he hadn't ignored her all evening, she wouldn't have needed to make up a story.

"I think if the child follows you, he probably won't learn anything good." Crafty, eccentric, and with a stubborn, bad temper.

Qingfeng continued to reply, unafraid of death: "The Emperor is too kind."

She had clearly decided that no matter what he said, she would take it as a compliment. Yan Hongtian laughed. Qingfeng leaned against the bed, her two feet dangling in front of it, a faint, triumphant smile on her face. The two of them, one sitting on the bed and one on the lounge chair, talked about meaningless things, yet it made him want to keep talking. Unfortunately, stacks of memorials in the Imperial Study were waiting for his review. It was getting late, so Yan Hongtian stood up and said, "Rest early."

They had just been talking quite happily, and now, seeing him turn to leave, Qingfeng blurted out, "Are you leaving just after arriving?" She had thought he would stay tonight, which was why she had Shen Yao take the child away earlier. So... he had no intention of staying.

The disappointment in Qingfeng's words made Yan Hongtian pause. Rarely, he explained, "State affairs are busy lately, and there are still some official documents to process. You've had a tiring day, so rest well." Qiongyue's territory was vast, and state affairs were always numerous. What had been giving him the biggest headache recently was the pirates. Unfortunately, Qiongyue's navy had never been strong, and sending Su Ling this time was entirely based on the hope of his combat experience and world-renowned reputation. If he let the pirates continue to ravage like this, Qiongyue's prestige would be swept away, and he was suffering from a massive headache.

"Did you... come specifically for this?" It was past the Hai hour, and he still had to process state affairs. Qingfeng thought of what Xiao Yu had said that day—that he often worked until after the Zi hour before he could rest. Being an Emperor was indeed not easy. Qingfeng suddenly felt that whether it was the Empress Dowager, the Empress, or herself, they were always bothering him with harem trifles. No wonder he was annoyed.

Yan Hongtian arched his brows slightly, his deep voice full of mockery. "Wasn't it you who sent someone to invite me over?" That little girl named Ruyi had stood outside the Imperial Study for a full hour.

"Me?" Qingfeng's face flushed red first. Thinking of him arriving hand-in-hand with the Empress, Qingfeng felt blocked in her heart again, and her words were full of sourness. "Wasn't it the Empress who invited you? This consort doesn't have such great face!"

After saying this, looking at the smile that suddenly lifted the corners of Yan Hongtian's mouth, Qingfeng's face felt slightly hot. Was she... was she jealous? She had never been like this before.

Qingfeng wanted to defend herself, but it seemed like whatever she said would be wrong, so she simply didn't say anything and didn't look at Yan Hongtian's mocking eyes.

Watching the woman who was usually eloquent now unable to speak, Yan Hongtian laughed heartily and left Qingfeng Hall in a good mood. Of course, he was only focused on teasing Qingfeng and naturally didn't notice that in the past, if consorts were jealous like this, he would mostly feel impatience and disgust, yet today he felt great joy, and he even had a smile on his face on the way back to his palace.

The person with the greatest emotional fluctuation tonight was likely Xin Yuening. On the way to Qingfeng Hall, she was full of joy, waiting for Qingfeng to fall into the trap, but now she was seething with hatred. Xin Yuening walked quickly, her hand gripping Shui Xin's wrist tightly; the greater the anger in her heart, the harder she gripped. Shui Xin frowned and said loudly, "You all withdraw."

The several eunuchs and maids accompanying them had long sensed that the Empress was in a terrible mood after leaving Qingfeng Hall, and they had been walking on eggshells the whole way. Now, hearing Shui Xin's words, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Glancing at the Empress and seeing she didn't object, they hurriedly bowed and walked away quickly.

As the footsteps faded, Xin Yuening could no longer suppress her anger. She turned abruptly, glared at Shui Xin, and raged, "Why did you stop me just now?!"

Shui Xin lowered her head, her expression unreadable, her voice as calm as ever. "Regarding the little prince's life, the Empress Dowager would absolutely agree to Qingfeng's request, and it is clear the Emperor agreed as well. Your opposition would have been useless."

Recalling the Empress Dowager's worry and protection, and Yan Hongtian's indulgence and shielding, Xin Yuening could no longer control the jealousy and hatred in her heart. "Why does she get to have all the good things!"

"The result is the same; why bother arguing with her now?" Shui Xin's low voice remained gentle, but a trace of impatience appeared in the depths of her eyes.

"But..." Xin Yuening looked left and right, and after confirming no one was around, she whispered urgently into Shui Xin's ear, "In this way, isn't it... even harder to take action? That child stays by Qingfeng's side almost every moment, and the Emperor has even sent the Imperial Guard to stand watch in Qingfeng Hall. It is difficult for anyone to get close to the child. How can we get rid of him without anyone knowing?!"

Shui Xin smiled coldly. "Where the child is makes no difference to me." A few guards were nothing; she didn't take them to heart at all. What she found interesting was Yan Hongtian's attitude. He was actually quite attentive to this child. How very interesting. The old man was likely unable to sit still anymore, right? If that child died, would this Emperor, who had been biding his time for years, fly into a rage, or continue to play the fool? Tsk tsk tsk... just thinking about it made her feel excited.

"But..." Xin Yuening always felt that things wouldn't go so smoothly this time and wanted to say more, but Shui Xin suddenly looked up. In those seemingly gentle bright eyes, a bloodthirsty and excited light flickered. "Don't you think... it would be more interesting to let the child die in her palace, die in her hands, and watch him take his last breath with her own eyes?"

Interesting... Xin Yuening didn't know how to describe what she was feeling. The smile on Shui Xin's lips was like cold snow water, seeping into her skin bit by bit. Xin Yuening felt goosebumps all over, and she immediately released her grip on Shui Xin's wrist. Although she refused to admit it, facing Shui Xin like this made her feel... afraid.

Winter was deepening, and the night wind was becoming increasingly biting. Perhaps because the cold wind was too strong, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. The moonlight fell without obstruction, and the silvery-white moonlight seemed to plate everything in a cold light, making it look even colder. Ming Ze crossed his arms over his chest, leaning against the high wall by the hall door, staring at the blindingly white moon on the horizon, his mind completely blank.

It shouldn't have been his turn to be on duty tonight, but the guard who was supposed to be on duty had a wife who suddenly fainted, so he let him go home. Anyway, he was a lone man with no one to worry about, so being on duty was no different from being at home. Perhaps when on duty, because of his responsibilities, there were people he needed to protect, so his heart wouldn't feel so empty.

"You haven't eaten anything all night. Eat a little."

Ming Ze had long heard the hesitant footsteps stopping and starting behind him. He guessed that Fuling might have something to say to him, but he hadn't expected her to actually come, and even hand him a square food box. Ming Ze's brows furrowed slightly, and he replied coldly, "I am on duty."

Fuling's slightly flushed face stiffened, and her hand holding the food box tightened. After a long while, she replied softly, "It's the middle of the night; no one will know."

This time, Ming Ze couldn't even be bothered to reply; he simply turned away.

Staring at that indifferent back, Fuling felt annoyed. How could this person be so ungrateful? If it weren't for the fact that he had helped her before, and if it weren't for seeing that he hadn't eaten anything since he started his shift this afternoon, she wouldn't have gone to find pastries for him in the middle of the night. To avoid gossip, she had even dismissed the eunuchs and maids on night watch to take the shift herself. And yet, not only did she not get a "thank you," but he even gave her the cold shoulder. The more she thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. Fuling, who was usually good-tempered, rarely lost her temper. She walked up to Ming Ze and threw all the pastries in her hand into Ming Ze's arms, not caring whether he caught them or not, and said coldly, "Eat or don't, it's up to you!"

Clearly, Ming Ze hadn't expected Fuling to do this. After being stunned for a moment, he hurriedly caught the food box that had started to fall. Ming Ze caught it clumsily, causing something he had been keeping in his bosom to fall out, hitting the ground with a crisp, clear sound.

Fuling bent down to pick it up and only then saw that it was an oval-shaped pendant, slightly larger than a thumb, with delicate jade quality. Unlike ordinary ornaments, it was decorated extremely simply, tied only with a common red string.

Catching the food box, Ming Ze realized what had fallen out of his bosom. Seeing Fuling examining the jade pendant, Ming Ze's heart tightened, and he barked, "Give it back to me!"

His deep voice, besides its usual coldness, was tinged with urgency. Fuling was slightly stunned. It was just a jade pendant; why be so nervous? Could it be... a gift from a lover?

Fuling's hand, which had already been extended, somehow pulled back. As she rubbed it, Fuling felt that the back of the jade pendant was uneven. Turning it over to look at the back, she saw two characters engraved on it. Although the moonlight was bright, the characters carved on the jade pendant were too small, and Fuling only managed to see one character, "Qi." Suddenly, her hand felt light; the jade pendant was already back in Ming Ze's hand.

She saw him hurriedly stuff the jade pendant back into his bosom, as if afraid others would see it. When he looked up again, the anger in his eyes left Fuling speechless for a moment.

Was this pendant really that important?

The two stood facing each other in silence, one side suppressing anger, the other deeply confused. At this moment, a baby's cry came from inside the room, breaking the stalemate. Fuling came back to her senses, stopped looking at Ming Ze, turned, and hurriedly walked into the room.

Through the screen, Fuling vaguely saw the mistress rise and pick up the child. She took the candle stand and walked into the inner chamber, saying softly, "Is the little prince awake? This servant will go call Shen Yao."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 328 =====