The setting sun stained a vast swath of the sky blood-red. Against that glaring crimson, Prince Yu, Feng Xuanzhen, who had finally fought his way free of the day’s affairs after an entire afternoon and hurried to the palace upon hearing the news, had only just stepped through the first gate of the outer city when, whether from imagination or something else, he felt a heavy, oppressive gloom rush straight at him. It took him a long moment to recover.
Perhaps he had simply never noticed before, or perhaps he had already formed a conclusion in his heart, but Feng Xuanzhen could not shake the feeling that something in the palace was strange. The attendants passing to and fro were as respectful as ever, yet there was an extra layer of trembling caution in their manner. He casually stopped one passing attendant to ask what had happened. The man first froze in disbelief, then, after recognizing Feng Xuanzhen, actually looked at him with a trace of sympathy.
Following the attendant’s pointing finger, Feng Xuanzhen’s gaze landed directly on the Imperial Study, and he frowned instinctively. At this hour, even if Imperial Brother had not yet finished dinner, he should at least have gone to one of the consorts’ palaces or returned to his own sleeping quarters to rest. Given Imperial Brother’s usual efficiency, working day and night like this was truly unusual.
Full of questions, Feng Xuanzhen stepped through the gate in the outermost wall surrounding the Imperial Study. It was like dropping a stone into a dead-still lake. The stone itself was small and had no intention of drawing attention, yet its arrival sent the entire lake into an uproar. When Feng Xuanzhen saw the sudden gleam in Mo Yan’s eyes, as though the man had just caught hold of his last lifeline, he found it almost dazzling.
Watching Mo Yan hurry toward him, Feng Xuanzhen’s unease deepened. Even Mo Yan, who had followed Imperial Brother everywhere for so many years and was almost never separated from him, had been driven outside the hall and forbidden to remain at his side. Feng Xuanzhen had not imagined the obvious relief that had flashed across Mo Yan’s face a moment ago.
“Your Highness is here.” Mo Yan used nearly all his strength to suppress the excessive excitement in his voice, yet the first syllable still came out unexpectedly high and almost shrill. He did his best to sound natural, as though nothing were wrong. “This servant greets Your Highness.”
“Is Imperial Brother inside?” Feng Xuanzhen did not pursue the oddities, deliberately ignoring them.
“Yes.”
“Is he alone?”
“Yes.”
Feng Xuanzhen frowned instinctively. “Is Imperial Brother in a bad mood?”
The scene at Fengyi Palace that noon had been far too explosive for anyone present not to have felt the emperor’s towering rage, even if they knew nothing of the causes behind it. It was not that Mo Yan wanted to conceal anything or deliberately make things difficult for Prince Yu. It was simply that the emperor had said nothing and had shown no desire for anyone else to comment. Who with a functioning will to live would dare gossip casually about the private affairs of the imperial household? More importantly, the matter involved the empress. That was unquestionably the emperor’s weak spot, and anyone who touched it was courting death.
Mo Yan hesitated for a moment. He wanted to warn him but could not, and in the end could only stammer, “This servant does not know.”
Knowing there had to be more to it, Feng Xuanzhen did not press him. He was just about to head straight inside when Mo Yan called him back.
Mo Yan’s entire face seemed to crumple together. “Your Highness should be careful when you go in.” That was the furthest warning he dared give on his own authority. “His Majesty hasn’t eaten anything since noon, and he barely touched breakfast. Dinner is still being kept warm in the Imperial Kitchen. If possible, please help this servant. His Majesty’s health comes first. Please persuade him to eat something.”
Feng Xuanzhen had watched Mo Yan’s caution, quick wits, and unwavering loyalty since childhood, just as everyone had seen how differently Imperial Brother trusted and treated him. Now even Mo Yan was this hesitant and frightened. Instead of making Feng Xuanzhen more confused, it gave him the beginning of an answer.
He pushed open the door. The underfloor heating and braziers inside were performing their duties with alarming enthusiasm, and the wave of heat that struck him nearly stole his breath. Frowning, he looked toward Imperial Brother on the dragon throne. Feng Xuanyi was leaning back against it with his face tilted upward, one forearm raised so that the back of his hand covered his eyes, while his other arm hung limply at his side. The desolate sorrow around him, faintly mixed with anger, felt inexplicably familiar to Feng Xuanzhen.
“Imperial Brother…” he called tentatively. His voice echoed through the silent hall and struck the decorative goldwork and porcelain with a dull reverberation. Feng Xuanyi’s brows were drawn so tightly that three deep lines formed between them, yet he acted as though no one had entered uninvited and as though he had not heard the sound that shattered the silence.
“Between you and Imperial Sister-in-law…” The words came out, but Feng Xuanzhen could not find an appropriate way to finish them. He could hardly say they had fallen out, because even as an outsider he did not feel the two of them had ever truly reconciled. After struggling for a long while, he simply trailed off.
Feng Xuanyi still said nothing. He remained exactly as he had been when Feng Xuanzhen entered, utterly motionless, like an eerily lifelike statue.
Only after so long that Feng Xuanzhen’s legs had begun to feel numb did Feng Xuanyi suddenly speak. His posture did not change, and his voice was hoarse. “Eighth Brother, I have a child…”
The birth of an imperial heir should have been cause for celebration throughout the realm, yet Feng Xuanzhen could hear not the slightest trace of joy in Feng Xuanyi’s voice. He assumed this must be the problem. A sovereign inevitably had duties he could not escape, in court and in the harem alike. Imperial Brother loved Imperial Sister-in-law and had even done many shocking things for him, but with their relationship still far from repaired, having Imperial Sister-in-law discover that one of the emperor’s consorts was pregnant would indeed leave Imperial Brother in an impossible position.
Feeling he understood, Feng Xuanzhen secretly breathed a sigh of relief and tried to comfort him. “Imperial Brother, as emperor, continuing the imperial line is one of your duties. Imperial Sister-in-law is the empress and should understand your position. Without imperial heirs, how can there be a crown prince? Without a crown prince, how can the dynasty endure for generations? Forgive this younger brother for speaking disrespectfully, but compared with Father Emperor, you have far too few children. As empress, he ought to consider the greater good…”
“It is mine and his. Our child…” Feng Xuanyi interrupted him, but the words instead left Feng Xuanzhen staring in stunned silence, completely unsure how to react.
His mind went blank for an instant. Only when he remembered that Nalan Xuan was a descendant of the Changyu Clan did he finally recover, yet that only made Imperial Brother’s reaction harder to understand. Given Feng Xuanyi’s feelings, having a child with the person he loved most should have made him ecstatic. Why, then, was he so crushed and subdued, his voice hoarse and hesitant?
Feng Xuanyi finally moved. He lowered the hand covering his eyes and slowly straightened. To Feng Xuanzhen, every motion seemed drawn out as though in slow motion, turning a wait of only a few seconds into something unbearable.
Feng Xuanyi opened his eyes. They should have been sharply black and white, yet they were completely bloodshot. There was scarcely any white left to see.
“Unfortunately, our child… is already gone…” A smile uglier than weeping spread across Feng Xuanyi’s face. Feng Xuanzhen almost thought he was seeing things. After everything Imperial Brother had endured over all these years, after swallowing so much humiliation, how could he possibly break down now?!
“What?” It was not that Feng Xuanzhen had failed to hear him. He simply could not comprehend what the sentence meant.