Holding the spot on his head where I had flicked him, Ning Xuan glared with watery eyes and puffed cheeks for a long moment before turning away without a word, leaving me nothing but the back of his head.
“Look at you. We haven’t seen each other for one day. Who managed to offend you?” I smiled faintly and received no answer, yet rather than becoming annoyed, my interest only grew. I moved closer and crouched beside him, deliberately asking what I already knew. “Surely it wasn’t me?”
Still no response.
We remained locked in that stalemate for quite some time. Ning Xuan did not move at all. Apparently he still had not heard about the transfer. My mood turned unpredictable. I had abandoned a mountain of political work and had never in my life lowered myself enough to treat someone with this much patience, yet this person refused to appreciate any of it.
I turned and left. Part of me wanted to discover just how far my interest in him had gone, while another part could not tolerate how strongly he was beginning to affect me.
When I returned from the hunt, sure enough, Ning Xuan had learned about the transfer and was carrying tea into the study to serve me. That was right. As long as I wanted something, as long as I remained a prince and still held power in my hands, none of them had the right to defy me. That was the iron law of this world.
Yet the man who had been so cautious and nervous a moment earlier visibly jolted when he saw me. His eyes immediately lit up. Forgetting entirely that he was still carrying the tea tray, he hurried toward me, raised his hand, and copied what I had done that morning by flicking me on the forehead, looking immensely pleased with himself.
“What are you standing here like a pole for? I heard the master went hunting. Aren’t you supposed to be one of his close guards? Why aren’t you following him? Be careful. If you serve him badly, you’ll end up in serious trouble.”
Touching my forehead, which did not actually hurt, I simply stared at him. Such an act could practically be called treasonous disrespect. Even if someone had been ordered to do it, I doubted anyone would dare. Yet this person had done it with complete ease, as naturally as breathing.
“Weren’t you so eloquent before? Why aren’t you saying anything now? Playing mute?”
“Me? A guard? One of his close guards?” I pointed at myself. Fortunately, no one else was nearby. Otherwise, what would have become of my dignity? Then another thought struck me. Could he genuinely not know who I was? Impossible.
“Did I guess wrong?” My silence clearly made him doubt his own conclusion. “At first I thought you were one of the ordinary residence guards. But from what I’ve seen these past few days, you have plenty of opportunities to receive rewards from the prince, you can enter and leave his study freely, and you dress like a martial man. So what exactly is your position?”
If he was sincere, none of it made sense. If he was pretending, then the performance was astonishingly convincing. Either way, there was no harm in continuing the game.
“No, you guessed fairly well. I was only curious how you figured it out.”
Feng Xuanyi closes the distance and again crosses an intimate boundary, leaving Ning Xuan startled by the sudden familiarity.
He lingers over the moment with unmistakable fondness before Ning Xuan fully recovers.
“Y-you! This is the study, Prince Rong’s study! You might not care whether you live or die, but I do!” His previously dazed eyes instantly went red like a rabbit’s, and he practically bristled from head to toe.
“The prince isn’t here right now.” He was standing directly in front of you, but you had no idea.
I picked up the tea he had placed on the desk for “Prince Rong,” took a leisurely sip, and clicked my tongue appreciatively. “Good tea.”
“That belongs to the prince. Don’t blame me for not warning you. If he punishes you later, don’t drag me down with you.”
I had given him more than enough hints, yet somehow he still failed to understand.
“The prince is in the front hall discussing business with Prince Yu. He probably won’t return for a while. It’s fine.”
“Eighth Prince, Prince Yu? Didn’t he just leave on the western campaign with Marquis Dingbei, General Nalan? He’s already back?” Remarkable. Ask him about me and he knew absolutely nothing. Mention Eighth Brother and suddenly he was remarkably well informed.
“You’re quite young and spend all day inside the residence, yet you know a surprising amount.”
“If I were Prince Rong, I definitely wouldn’t help his Eldest Brother, and I wouldn’t side with the Crown Prince either.” He glanced at me disdainfully. The conversation had abruptly jumped to a dangerously sensitive subject. My face still carried a smile, but the amusement in my heart disappeared, replaced by caution and suspicion.
“What would you do?” So we had finally reached the real subject, had we?
“Idiot. The current Crown Prince is neither the eldest nor legitimate-born. He’s merely the son of a favored consort. That’s exactly why the whole court keeps arguing and staging this grand performance about establishing the eldest or establishing the legitimate heir in accordance with proper order. So why can’t the Fifth Prince, Prince Rong, who is also legitimate-born, compete? Besides, His Majesty originally chose the Second Prince, which proves he doesn’t care about birth order. If the people who support legitimate descent can support the Eldest Prince, Prince Yi, then why can’t those same people become support for the Fifth Prince, Prince Rong?”
Every word struck directly at the heart of my own thinking. And precisely because of that, suspicion surged instead of approval. My gaze turned cold before I could stop it, and killing intent rose within me. Someone I could not trust had guessed my thoughts exactly. Such a person absolutely could not be allowed to remain. Even if he was intelligent, even if he had fully captured my interest, if I could not use him, then the mere fact that he existed as an uncontrolled variable was unacceptable.
“Of course, doing it openly would be stupid. If it were me, I’d first pretend not to hear or see anything, act foolish, and make a show of submitting, while secretly advancing my own plans…” He seemed only then to realize he had said far too much to the wrong person. For once, embarrassment and worry appeared on his face. “Hehe. Just pretend I didn’t say anything and you didn’t hear anything. I’ll buy you a meal later. You can eat whatever you want!”
At least he knew enough to judge his audience eventually. There might still be hope for him.
“Master, the bath water is ready.” The voice that answered Ning Xuan was Yi Quan’s respectful report.
“Mm.”
I watched with a faint smile as Ning Xuan’s expression transformed. His eyes widened so much that his jaw nearly dropped. He raised one trembling hand and pointed at me for a long time before finally stammering, “Y-you’re Prince Rong?!”
“Although I would also like to pretend I heard nothing and nothing happened, what you said was far too interesting. I can’t help wanting to ask why, and I’m even more interested in hearing the rest of your thoughts. I wonder whether this prince might have the honor?” I narrowed my eyes dangerously. Whether he stayed or disappeared would depend entirely on what he said next.
“I…”
“What is it? A moment ago you were speaking endlessly as though inspiration would never run dry. Now you’ve suddenly become mute?” Only now realizing the gravity of the situation seemed rather late.
“The open struggle between the Eldest Prince and the Crown Prince is already obvious to everyone. If one person, or several people, chose to step forward now and compete with them, it would certainly be possible, but the situation would only become more chaotic and the outcome harder to predict. No matter who entered the contest now, it would not be a wise move. When two tigers fight, one must be wounded, and it is entirely possible both will be ruined. Watching from the sidelines and taking the fisherman’s profit afterward is the better strategy. Besides, Your Highness is the Eldest Prince’s full younger brother. If you stepped forward now, opposing the Crown Prince would be natural, but you would also be openly declaring yourself against your own elder brother. Seeing full brothers turn against one another would chill many court factions that might otherwise lean toward you, as well as those still wavering and observing. You would only weaken your own strength and make a wedding robe for someone else.”