Chapter 179: Heir Apparent Leaves the Capital

"Is there any way to cure it?" Xiao Jingyuan opened his eyes and asked weakly.

Mu Yu directly answered, "Powerless."

Someone whose whole body is poison yet can still live well—Mu Yu has only ever seen one such person in her life; to say she is powerless is less accurate than to say she dare not treat him.

Judging by her shallow medical skill, Xiao Jingyuan has achieved a certain subtle balance with the toxins in his body, i. e., "symbiosis."

If he rashly intervenes medically and accidentally disrupts this balance, Xiao Jingyuan will surely die.

Mu Yu really dare not do it; her words may have been harsh, but the fact is exactly so.

Compared to extinction of the lineage, life is obviously more important! As long as the green hills remain, why worry about no firewood?

But if she knew what difficult decision Xiao Jingyuan made in his heart because of her words, she would never say it even if beaten to death.

In a moment, Xiao Jingyuan suppressed all his emotions, still saying: "Don't let her know."

Mu Yu nodded, promising to keep her mouth shut.

Xiao Jingyuan glanced at the small half-bowl of blood left on the table, a deep self-loathing flickering in his eyes; he said nothing more, straightened his clothes, and left the Excellent Hands Hall silently.

That night, Xiao Jingyuan made many secret arrangements and also secretly entered the palace once.

Before dawn, he returned to Prince Yan's Manor, their residence.

The name of their residence remained unchanged, still Tranquil Mystery Residence.

Inside burned a lone lamp, casting a faint light, quiet and gentle.

After the chill on his body dissipated somewhat, Xiao Jingyuan stepped forward, reached out, and lifted the curtain.

Outside the window, the high-hanging moon poured its clear radiance inward. Inside the curtains, Shen Shuangning lay on her side, her long hair spread across the pillow, her sleeping face tranquil, the air filled with a faint fragrance of magnolia.

As if afraid to disturb this tranquility, Xiao Jingyuan lay beside her gently, extended his arm, and carefully drew her into his embrace.

He lowered his head to look at the tranquil sleeping face in his arms, then slowly raised his hand; his palm held a piece of profound black tiger talisman, the warm candlelight reflecting a deep, unfathomable chill in his eyes.

Shen Shuangning seemed to sense the familiar scent, in her dream she lightly rubbed against his chest, found a comfortable position, and continued to sleep peacefully.

Xiao Jingyuan's heart suddenly softened; he almost unconsciously concealed the cold harshness in his phoenix eyes, lowered his head, and lightly kissed her forehead.

The sky was still dark.

Beside her, Xiao Jingyuan usually could sleep more soundly, but this time he did not sleep well.

Outside the window, the sky gradually brightened, and birdsong rose and fell.

Early in the morning after waking, Shen Shuangning helped him dress, then they shared breakfast, as if returning to the time in her previous life when she saw him off to war.

Xiao Jingyuan felt somewhat reluctant; if he could, he would not want to go anywhere, only wishing to stay by her side, seeing her every day would be enough.

"Ningning, you promised to give me the sachet, right?" Xiao Jingyuan asked.

Shen Shuangning heard this, her expression somewhat embarrassed.

Seeing this, Xiao Jingyuan slightly pursed his lips, his tone a bit aggrieved: "A month has passed, and I still haven't seen the sachet; could you have forgotten?"

Xiao Jingyuan still remembered that when Shen Shuangning previously sent Xie Lin off to war, she had given him a small sachet; since Xie Lin had one, he wanted one too.

"Not forgotten." Shen Shuangning muttered, "Do I seem like someone who breaks promises?" Having said that, she turned to go to her dressing table and fetched a sachet.

This little item she had embroidered for a whole month.

Originally, Xiao Jingyuan insisted on having a pair of mandarin ducks embroidered, which put her in a difficult spot.

She usually embroidered flowers and plants, which was fine, but she had never embroidered mandarin ducks; over this month she undid and redid the stitches repeatedly before it could barely be seen.

She had originally wanted to embroider a new one to replace it, but his question forced her to bring it out reluctantly.

"It's a bit ugly, you're not allowed to dislike it......"

Before her words finished, Xiao Jingyuan snatched it away, looked it over repeatedly two or three times, his brows and eyes suffused with a smile, then without another word he tied it around his waist.

"Don't!" Shen Shuangning hurriedly reached out to undo it, "If people see this, they'll laugh at us!"

Xiao Jingyuan gently pressed her hand, pulling her into his embrace, domineeringly saying: "Whoever dares to mock, I'll pull out his tongue."

Shen Shuangning still wanted to say something, but Xiao Jingyuan changed the subject.

"All right, no more teasing. Let's talk business." He supported her shoulder to let her sit properly, then turned and took out a zitan wood box.

After opening it, he dumped out the account books, property deeds, and shop contracts all at once; a thick stack of papers piled up like a small hill, leaving Shen Shuangning stunned.

"I am going to Quanzhou on this trip, afraid I cannot divert attention to handle affairs in the capital; this is all my wealth, both in the capital and beyond, and I trouble Ningning to help manage a bit of it."

This was almost like handing over his foundation and soft spot to her.

Shen Shuangning raised her head to look at Xiao Jingyuan, her eyes full of surprise, yet the corner of her mouth held a teasing smile: "You're giving me all this, aren't you afraid I'll run off with the money?"

Xiao Jingyuan smiled and said: "If she runs, I'll catch her back."

Shen Shuangning was about to speak when she saw him pull out a yellowed map from a pile of account books, with several locations circled in cinnabar.

The man's tone suddenly turned serious: "Next year there will be a great drought; I have already ordered the grain stores to purchase an additional 300,000 dan of grain and fodder in advance, and have also planted many potatoes in some places, but it is still far from enough. Other matters you need not handle personally; the accounts office and stewards will keep watch, you only need to keep a close eye on the grain and fodder......"

Grain and fodder?

Shen Shuangning was very perceptive; she raised her head and looked at him: "Stockpiling grain and fodder—is it in preparation for war?"

Ordinary drought preparations would not reach such a scale; this more closely resembles preparations for military conflict.

Xiao Jingyuan did not directly answer, he pursed his lips and said: "In a famine year, unrest easily arises; stockpiling more grain and fodder is always better safe than sorry."

Shen Shuangning faintly sensed the danger in his words, and no longer asked further, she replied seriously: "All right, I understand."

"Be careful not to leak the news."

Shen Shuangning gave a slight nod, perhaps thinking of next year's calamity, and sighed: "May the world be at peace."

Just as they were speaking, someone came from outside to urge them on.

"Heir Apparent, Prince Rui's people have come to ask if you're recovered."

Xiao Jingyuan acknowledged, gave Shen Shuangning a few more instructions, then prepared to depart.

He turned to leave, but before stepping out the door he stopped again, unable to resist; he strode back to her, pulled her into his arms, and lowered his head for a deep kiss.

Only when Shen Shuangning could barely catch her breath did he release her, their foreheads touching, as if promising her: "The peaceful world you desire, I will strive to win for you."

Before the Yan Prince's Mansion, the Black Armor Guard stood in formation, solemn and awe-inspiring.

"Take good care of the consort," Xiao Jingyuan left Qingyun with Shen Shuangning and said to him.

Qingyun nodded firmly.

Xiao Jingyuan swung onto his horse, his dark cloak unfurling in the wind, snapping loudly.

He reined in the reins, turned his head to look at the person standing at the gate, his gaze lingering on Shen Shuangning's face for a long while, as if he wanted to imprint her appearance in his heart.

For some reason, Shen Shuangning always felt his gaze was like a farewell; she suddenly felt uneasy, and as Xiao Jingyuan was about to muster the troops and depart, she raised her voice to call out to him.

"Young Master!"

Xiao Jingyuan turned his head at the sound, his gaze gentle.

Shen Shuangning looked at him, not knowing what to say for a moment, so she urged: "The road ahead is long; you must take care. I will wait for your return."

Xiao Jingyuan's lips curled into a smile; he gently replied "good," then without hesitation, he cracked his whip and shouted, "Go!"

The fine steed neighed loudly, lifted its hooves, and galloped forward.

The Black Armor Guard followed closely; their formation like a black dragon, they soon turned the corner, leaving only the fading sound of hooves echoing in the alleys.

Only after the hoofbeats had completely vanished in the wind did Shen Shuangning exchange a few words with the princess consort, then head back, with Qingyun trailing behind.

"The Young Master has left the capital; I don't know when he'll return. The duties of the Embroidered Uniform Guard are many—who is now in charge?" she asked.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard oversees prisons and supervises officials; it is a pivotal agency in the capital. After Xiao Jingyuan's departure, someone must take over this post.

Qingyun said: "Replying to the Young Master's consort, the emperor has issued an edict temporarily assigning Vice Minister of Justice Gu Fengchun, Minister Gu, to act as head of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Moreover, Mister Su is overseeing things there, and several thousand-household commanders are the Young Master's trusted aides. You need not worry, the Young Master has already made all arrangements."

It's this Gu Fengchun again.

Shen Shuangning frowned. "Isn't this person promoted by Pei Zhi? How could Xiao Jingyuan just let him join the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

However, the imperial decree has been issued; presumably Xiao Jingyuan has no choice. Besides, Qingyun said Xiao Jingyuan has already made arrangements, so the affairs of the Embroidered Uniform Guard are none of her concern.

Thinking thus, Shen Shuangning steadied herself and then instructed Qingyun: "Send someone to ask Mister Su if he's free; since he's familiar with the Young Master's affairs, I'll say I have some matters I'd like to consult him about in person."

Xiao Jingyuan hastily left a stack of ledgers and land deeds, densely recording dozens of properties; looking at them gave her a headache, so it was perfect to invite Su Chen over to help her sort them out.

Qingyun answered and withdrew.

Shen Shuangning sat at the table flipping through the ledgers, page after page, seeing the income and expenditure figures that often ran into tens of thousands of taels, she grew increasingly alarmed.

These are properties outside the Yan Prince's Mansion, belonging solely to Xiao Jingyuan; in her previous life she had no idea he was this wealthy—saying he could rival a nation's riches is no exaggeration!

Immediately afterward, realizing something, she slammed the ledger onto the table and muttered angrily: "Well done, Xiao Jingyuan, hiding a mountain of gold and silver in your private stash!"

Xiao Jingyuan, already out beyond the city, sneezed suddenly without warning.

He didn't think much of it, merely attributing it to having vomited blood the previous night, leaving his body a bit weak; he just didn't want anyone to notice.