Three days later, Mu Xueshi and the Third Prince returned to the Imperial Palace. Upon arriving, the two of them went directly back to Qinyi Courtyard. The Third Prince neither sent advance notice nor dispatched anyone to report to the Emperor. It was only after the Third Prince had already returned for over an hour that the Emperor finally learned he was safe and unharmed.
“Hmph. I worried about him for so long, yet after returning he still hasn’t come to Taihe Hall to pay his respects. He truly doesn’t place me, his imperial father, in his eyes at all.”
The Emperor’s face was dark with displeasure, and his breathing had become somewhat heavy. Everyone inside and outside Taihe Hall knew the Emperor was angry, and none of them even dared breathe too loudly.
“Your Majesty, perhaps His Highness feared Your Majesty would worry upon seeing how travel-worn he looked, so he first returned to his residence to tidy himself up a little. In a while, he will surely come to report his safety to you.”
As the eunuch spoke, he secretly shot a glance toward a guard by the doorway. When the Emperor looked his way, the eunuch quickly withdrew his gaze.
“Don’t waste your effort. I know him too well. No matter how many people you send to summon him, he can still ignore them all the same.”
The guard at the door had just lifted one leg to leave when he awkwardly lowered it again.
The eunuch was also extremely troubled. Carefully, he said to the Emperor, “Your Majesty, perhaps His Highness also harbors resentment in his heart. After all, Young Master Xue was taken away by Emperor Hao Lin, and His Highness has always blamed Your Majesty for that. Furthermore, when His Highness risked his life going to Lubei to demand the person back, Your Majesty also did not send a single soldier to support him…”
“Insolence!”
The Emperor roared furiously, startling the eunuch into immediately dropping to his knees.
“Get up. I’m not talking about you—I’m talking about that unfilial son. Must an emperor discuss every decision with his son now? Since when has a father ever had to look at his son’s expression before acting?”
In his agitation, even crude expressions slipped from the Emperor’s mouth.
“Of course not. This servant deserves death. I should not have spoken recklessly just now. Perhaps His Highness does not think that way at all. Your Majesty must not take this servant’s words seriously.”
At this point, the eunuch did not dare rise anymore. Cold sweat streamed down the back of his neck. If the Third Prince were to learn what he had just said, several lives would not be enough to save him.
“Your Majesty, Commandant Liang requests an audience.” A shrill voice drifted in from outside.
After a long while, the Emperor finally let out a deep sigh and ordered Commandant Liang to enter the hall.
“This humble subject greets Your Majesty.”
Commandant Liang’s complexion glowed brightly, and his eyes shone with vigor, clearly indicating he had good news to report.
Judging by his expression alone, the Emperor had already guessed most of it.
“Your Majesty, word has come from Lubei. Emperor Hao Lin has already dispatched three hundred craftsmen to the border region to construct the secret tunnel. In addition, there are several thousand miscellaneous soldiers, civilians, and prisoners working there as laborers. Since the Lubei craftsmen already have experience, they claim the tunnel can be completed in less than half a year. This humble subject believes Yunxi likely need not expend any further effort on this matter.”
The Emperor’s expression improved somewhat, and even his tone became far calmer than before.
“If our people hadn’t come up with this method, Lubei would probably still be plundering grain everywhere. They already picked up an enormous advantage, yet they still dared make demands?! Without that alliance agreement, I would never have given Yunxi’s water to Lubei for free. Nor would they ever be allowed to set foot in Yunxi again.”
“Yes, Your Majesty is wise.” Commandant Liang nodded repeatedly. “Then according to Your Majesty’s wishes, the court need not send troops there?”
“Why wouldn’t we send them?” The Emperor raised a brow and looked at Commandant Liang. “There are several thousand people from Lubei gathered there. What if some among them harbor ulterior motives? Wouldn’t that simply lead to more trouble?”
“Deputy General Mo and tens of thousands of soldiers are already stationed there. Surely no accidents will occur.” Commandant Liang looked completely sincere.
The Emperor snorted coldly. “The soldiers under Deputy General Mo are all elite warriors. They may be capable of killing enemies on the battlefield, but their minds are not particularly flexible. We need to send a few sharp-eyed people there to constantly monitor every movement of those individuals.”
Everything that had happened in recent days still left lingering fear in the Emperor’s heart. First there had been foreign threats, then traitors within the court, and finally collusion between internal and external enemies. That series of crises had kept the Emperor’s nerves stretched taut until now. Even though peace had returned beneath heaven, he still could not sleep soundly, always fearing that tragedy might strike again someday.
Commandant Liang personally felt such measures were unnecessary, but in order to completely dispel the Emperor’s worries, he silently accepted the Emperor’s decision.
“Had I known the internal threat had already been eliminated, I would never have allowed Emperor Hao Lin to escape Yunxi. Sigh… who would have thought Third Son would secretly resolve the matter himself? Even now, I still cannot understand why he never informed me from beginning to end.”
The Emperor revealed a helpless expression. In terms of intelligence and capability, there was likely no one in the entire court who could compare to the Third Prince. Yet his domineering and overbearing nature truly made him difficult to endure.
“His Highness worries for the nation and shares Your Majesty’s burdens. That is a good thing! As for why the Third Prince did not have time to report to Your Majesty, I imagine it was because the situation was too urgent for him to withdraw himself. Otherwise, he would not have left Young Master Xue waiting in Taihe Hall.”
Mu Xueshi’s disappearance from Taihe Hall originally had not been considered a major matter, and the Emperor had not permitted the news to spread. However, ever since the story of Mu Xueshi revealing his true appearance spread throughout the capital, everything related to him had become a topic people discussed endlessly.
The Emperor carefully considered Commandant Liang’s words and found them somewhat reasonable. In this matter, he himself could not escape responsibility either. If not for Mu Xueshi’s ingenious idea back then, Yunxi would have found it difficult to survive the crisis. And if he himself had shown just a little more patience, he would not have helplessly pushed Mu Xueshi into the tiger’s mouth and missed the perfect opportunity for revenge.
“Sigh… you may withdraw for now. I’ll summon you again if needed.” The Emperor waved Commandant Liang away.
Not long after Commandant Liang left, the Emperor also departed Taihe Hall. Turning to the eunuch beside him, he ordered, “Prepare the sedan chair. We’re going to Qinyi Courtyard.”
At that very moment, Mu Xueshi and the Third Prince were in the middle of a heated argument.
Ever since getting off the carriage, Mu Xueshi had been muttering nonstop as he walked. Later, after entering the room and greeting Qingya and Qingzhu, he resumed chattering endlessly. Even while eating, he never stopped talking. The more they discussed, the more incompatible their opinions became. The Third Prince showed little outward reaction, but Mu Xueshi had become so anxious he nearly jumped to his feet.
“I want to pursue my dreams! Keeping me restrained like this is suffocating me. I’ve already made up my mind. If you stop me, I’ll be ruined.” Mu Xueshi spoke passionately and indignantly.
Meanwhile, the Third Prince remained completely unmoved, leisurely sipping tea while watching Mu Xueshi lose his mind all by himself.
The reason was that after returning to the courtyard, Mu Xueshi suddenly remembered watching Qingyun practice swordsmanship at Yue Lingchai’s place. Now he insisted on going there himself to train martial arts and learn real skills. Naturally, the Third Prince would never allow him to go. Being imprisoned for half a year was barely tolerable. But if Yue Lingchai discovered Mu Xueshi was not truly real and ended up scattering his soul entirely, no one would even know where to look for him afterward.
“Your heart is too cruel. On the surface you say you’re protecting me, but in reality you’re harming me.”
“…”
“Just let me go. Only half a year. After half a year, you won’t have to watch me constantly anymore. If you stop me now, you’ll spend the rest of your life worrying. This is called thinking long-term.”
“…”
“What kind of attitude is that? I used to think you were very farsighted. Why have you suddenly become so narrow-minded?”
“…”
“So are you letting me go or not? I’m asking you one last time.”
Mu Xueshi glared with wide eyes, his teeth grinding audibly, looking utterly determined not to give up until he achieved his goal.
Finally, the Third Prince slowly spoke. “I never said you couldn’t go. If you wish to leave, you may do so right now.”
Mu Xueshi finally heard the answer he had long been waiting for, yet somehow shrank back instead. Scratching his head, he edged closer to the Third Prince and asked quietly,
“You mean that?”
“Of course.”
“You won’t regret it?”
“As long as you don’t regret it.”
Hearing that sentence, Mu Xueshi became increasingly uncertain. He sized the Third Prince up carefully before saying, “Why do I feel like something’s off with you?”
“What’s off?” the Third Prince asked.
Mu Xueshi bit his lip, his soft cheesecake-like face filled with confusion.
“You should be stopping me. No matter what I say, you should absolutely refuse to give in until I’m finally the one who admits defeat.”
The Third Prince chuckled softly. “If you already knew the result would end that way, why waste the effort? Since you want to go so badly, I won’t force you anymore, nor make you waste more words. You may leave this place now. From this point onward, any hardship or suffering you encounter will have nothing to do with me. We won’t meet again until half a year has passed. Lu Fei, Lu Fan, see the guest out.”
“What?! You’re treating me like a guest already? How can you do that to me?!” Mu Xueshi became so anxious his face turned red.
Lu Fei and Lu Fan exchanged troubled looks. Yet after meeting the Third Prince’s gaze, they had no choice but to walk toward Mu Xueshi and reluctantly drag him outside. Afraid he might stumble or hurt himself, they ended up lifting both his feet off the ground and practically carrying him out.
Not long afterward, sounds of pounding at the door and Mu Xueshi’s frantic shouting echoed from outside.
“Let me back in! I’m not going anymore!”
Later, the knocking gradually softened until only Mu Xueshi’s quiet muttering remained. Eventually even the muttering disappeared, and only then did the Third Prince rise and walk toward the door.
When he opened it, Mu Xueshi was squatting beneath a large locust tree not far away, his head hanging low. All traces of his earlier imposing attitude had vanished, making him look pitiful beyond words.
The Third Prince could not help smiling. With indulgent affection in his eyes, he walked toward Mu Xueshi.
Yet after only a few steps, he caught sight of the Emperor in the distance. Instantly, the warmth in the Third Prince’s eyes vanished. His footsteps slowly stopped as he watched the Emperor approach one step at a time.
Mu Xueshi also noticed the Emperor and hurriedly stood up, running back to the Third Prince’s side. He first bowed respectfully to the Emperor, but while doing so, he did not forget to seize hold of the Third Prince as well—just in case the man locked him outside again.
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