Chapter 674: Idle Gossip (Part 2)

Long Ting Sheng was frightened out of his wits, crying out, "You're talking nonsense, when have you ever said that to me……"

Empress Jian shouted sharply, "Someone, drag this lowly wretch out and beat him to death on the spot!"

Ji Feihua smiled, "Your Majesty the Empress, wanting to silence witnesses is a bit overhasty."

Empress Jian trembled, "Beloved Minister Ji, this little girl is full of tricks, deceitful and cunning; her words cannot be trusted at all!"

Ji Feihua said, "True or false, the Zajia will discern for themselves. Someone! Properly protect the princess and the Crown Prince's safety; without my order, no one may enter or leave Xining Palace at will." His gaze fell on Qiqi's pale little face, and he softly said, "You're so young, yet you've hidden from the adults and done many things you shouldn't have."

Qiqi burst into tears, "I know I was wrong; from now on I won't pass any more messages for him."

Ji Feihua said to Mu Rongzhan, "Commander Mu, you personally protect the Yongyang Princess. When I finish my business here, we'll bring the little princess together to Lingxiao Palace to visit the Retired Emperor."

Hu Xiaotian returned to Qichen Palace, intending to rest, but Xi Yan summoned him again.

Entering the chamber, he saw the lights glowing; Xi Yan sat at the table, with four small dishes and a pot of fine wine arrayed before her.

Hu Xiaotian felt quite surprised, "Your Highness the Princess, who are you waiting for?"

Xi Yan let out a faint sigh, "Apart from you, who else in the world is worth my waiting?"

Hu Xiaotian felt honored and startled, "Hearing the Princess say this, even if I were to die right now, it would be worth it."

Xi Yan smiled, "You're not that easy to kill; if you died, who knows how many would follow you in death for love."

Hu Xiaotian laughed, "Would you?"

Xi Yan said, "No!"

Hu Xiaotian sighed, "Hypocrisy, not a word of truth!"

Xi Yan beamed, "How about tonight's banquet? The Grand Princess's fame spreads far; didn't she keep you to share a beautiful night?"

Hu Xiaotian gave a wry smile, "Please, can you stop teasing me all the time? I'm a eunuch."

Xi Yan said, "If you like being a eunuch so much, stay here; when I become the Crown Princess Consort, you'll remain by my side to serve me and my future husband."

Hu Xiaotian chuckled, Xi Yan laughed too, but Hu Xiaotian suddenly straightened his face: "No way at all!"

Xi Yan asked, "Are you angry? Jealous? Feeling bitter?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "You think I have all that leisure and sentiment to indulge in this sour jealousy?"

Xi Yan whispered, "Although you won't admit it, I can see that you like me!"

You blind fool! Do you think I've never seen a woman?

Xi Yan cooed, "Although you've seen many women, there is no other woman in the world as gentle, virtuous, and understanding as I am right before you."

Hu Xiaotian sighed, "I'll admit you have a high opinion of yourself, but your clever schemes probably mean you're unaware of what's happening outside."

Xi Yan blinked her eyes twice; looking at Hu Xiaotian's appearance, she seemed half-believing, half-doubting.

Hu Xiaotian picked up the wine jug, filled a cup for himself, drained it in one gulp, then grabbed his chopsticks and took a bite of the dish: "This dish is a bit salty!"

Xi Yan said, "Come on, tell me, what exactly happened?"

Hu Xiaotian drawled, "Forget it; with such lovely scenery, we two might as well drink a little and flirt—it would be more relaxed."

Xi Yan raised her chopsticks and tapped Hu Xiaotian's forehead: "Stop stalling, big-headed ghost, speak up! Don't refuse a toast or you'll be forced to drink."

Hu Xiaotian slowly lowered his wine cup, "Since the Princess arrived in Yongdu, she has always stayed in this small area, living in comfort. Unfortunately, she cannot see the outside world, so naturally she doesn't realize that the situation has undergone a tremendous upheaval." The more anxious Xi Yan became to know, the more Hu Xiaotian dragged out the pace.

Xi Yan naturally understood his intention, giving him a flirtatious glance: "Xiaotian, just say it, okay? Don't make everyone anxious."

Hu Xiaotian pursed his lips at the empty cup before him, signaling Xi Yan to refill it.

Xi Yan bit her cherry lips; really, whoever is smug gets to be smug, so she could only help him fill this cup of wine.

Hu Xiaotian pursed his lips again.

Xi Yan snapped, "What's wrong with you? A decent person wouldn't do this; you insist on acting like a pig!"

Hu Xiaotian smirked, "How can you eat a tiger without pretending to be a pig? Feed me!"

Xi Yan gritted her teeth, her phoenix eyes wide open, her expression seeming to want to devour him in one bite.

Hu Xiaotian closed his eyes and opened his mouth wide, looking like a fledgling waiting to be fed.

Xi Yan sighed, lifted the wine cup and slowly brought it to Hu Xiaotian's lips, then suddenly tipped the cup, pouring the wine straight into his mouth; Hu Xiaotian choked, coughed several times before catching his breath, covering his mouth and said, "You're vicious—are you trying to murder your husband?"

Xi Yan's smile blossomed like a flower as she slipped a slice of beef into Hu Xiaotian's mouth.

Hu Xiaotian mumbled, "You want to choke me to death……"

Xi Yan cooed, "Don't forget my background."

I know, it's a brothel!

Xi Yan pursed her cherry lips, "You actually despise me."

Hu Xiaotian said, "No, you should be the kind who rises from the mire unstained, selling art but not your body."

Xi Yan raised her willow brows, "You're the one selling yourself!"

Hu Xiaotian said, "I say you can't tell good from bad about this person at all."

Xi Yan said, "I mean……" She then picked up another slice of beef and sent it over; Hu Xiaotian opened his mouth wide, but the beef, upon reaching his lips, suddenly turned into a large spider brandishing its fangs and claws. Startled, Hu Xiaotian hastily shut his mouth, leaned back, losing his balance and plopping down on the ground.

Xi Yan looked at his sorry state and couldn't help but giggle.

Hu Xiaotian clumsily crawled up from the ground, rubbing his buttocks, "Is this fun? If you disgust me any more, I'll get angry with you!"

Xi Yan snorted, "You really have no sense of romance at all; playing around with you makes you angry—how boring."

Hu Xiaotian reseated himself, picked up his chopsticks, recalled the hairy big spider just now, lost his appetite, put down his chopsticks, and said, "I say you're a nice young lady, why do you always play with those poisonous bugs—aren't they disgusting?"

Xi Yan said, "Poisonous bugs may be poisonous, but they can't poison a human heart; in my eyes they're far more lovable and loyal than some people." As she spoke, a golden little snake appeared between her fingers, raising its head and flicking its tongue at Hu Xiaotian, poised to strike.

Hu Xiaotian sighed, "This meal can't be eaten."

Xi Yan said, "Even if you don't eat, you've already consumed it; I'm not afraid to tell you the truth—just now you ate nothing but poisonous insects and drank nothing but poisonous wine."

Ugh…… you treacherous, poisonous woman!

Xi Yan smiled bewitchingly, "I've never claimed to be kind and pure; what, you don't like me? In your heart you still favor that pitifully gentle Long Xi Yue a bit more."

Hu Xiaotian nodded, "So what? Which man in the world doesn't like a gentle, kind girl?"

Xi Yan's smile on her pretty face suddenly withdrew, her beautiful eyes bursting with icy killing intent: "One day I will cut off her head and send it to you!"

Hu Xiaotian drew a sharp breath; this demoness's temperament is fickle and vicious—she might really do such a thing. Long Xi Yue, having only learned a couple of self-defense moves, naturally can't compare to her. Hu Xiaotian said: "Grudges have a source, debts have a debtor; you haven't offended me, so take your anger out on me."

Xi Yan said: "Hating someone doesn't necessarily mean killing them; it means killing the person they love most, so they suffer the greatest punishment."

"You're so vicious!"

Xi Yan sweetly smiled: "For a demoness from the Wuxian Sect, that's practically praise."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Actually, the person I love most is you."

Xi Yan said: "If that day ever comes, I'll kill myself."

"Why?"

Xi Yan smiled enchantingly: "Make you suffer!"

Hu Xiaotian felt his scalp go numb; after holding it in for a while, he finally said: "Pervert!"

Xi Yan picked up the wine jug and filled Hu Xiaotian's empty cup: "Speak up! Don't keep it bottled up."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I say you're no fun; couldn't you let a man feel a bit more superior?"

Xi Yan said: "You're not a man, you're a eunuch; go look with a lantern— which eunuch feels superior in front of a princess?"

"Uh..."

Xi Yan said: "Speak! What exactly happened?"

Hu Xiaotian recounted everything he had seen that night at the Eldest Princess's Residence from start to finish; after listening, Xi Yan frowned slightly, her beautiful eyes fixed on the candle on the table, deep in thought.

Hu Xiaotian lifted the cup before him to his lips, still uneasy; he set it down again, checked once more that there were no poisonous insects in the cup, then drank it all, and this time he didn't dare let Xi Yan serve him the dish.

Xi Yan said: "Heihu and Da Yong have always been opposed; this time they actually sent the Fourth Prince over— I wonder what scheme they're hatching."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Do you even need to ask? They came to form an alliance."

Xi Yan said: "For nearly a century Heihu has repeatedly invaded southward, harassing Da Yong's borders, burning, killing, looting— committing every evil— hasn't the Da Yong Emperor always claimed he wanted to launch a northern expedition? So why is he suddenly flirting with the Heihu people?"

Hu Xiaotian thought: Don't look at how clever this demoness is— after all, she's a woman, so in politics she's an idiot; isn't that obvious? He set his cup on the table and said softly: "Wanyan Chixiong's visit this time should be to ally with Da Yong; if the two sides reach peace, Da Yong will have no rear worries in the short term— what do you think the Da Yong Emperor is trying to do?"

Xi Yan said: "Could he be trying to take the opportunity to destroy Dakang?"

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "The lice on a bald man's head are as plain as day; it's really been hard to enlighten you for half a day."

Xi Yan said: "But Dakang and Da Yong are about to be joined by marriage."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Politically, a marriage alliance is worthless— just a decoration for a deaf man's ears, meant to fool women and children— and you actually believe that?"

Xi Yan glared at him fiercely but said nothing in rebuttal.

Please cast your recommendation votes so the Medical Union can make next week's recommendation list— even just for a day! (To be continued~^~)