Sickly Jade - Chapter 15

Qi Chu rolled away without hesitation. Passing by the door, he shot a glance at Qing Yi. Qing Yi understood and exchanged a look with Mu Yun.

Mu Yun walked up to the door and knocked cautiously. “Master, do you require water?”

From inside came Ye Shaoyun’s slightly hoarse voice, “Yes.”

That previous shout had broken his voice; it sounded like a snap-stringed zither. Ye Shaoyun lay prone on the edge of the bed, taking deep, calming breaths to steady his rhythm.

That lunatic Qi Chu had actually just said he wanted to marry him as a consort it was madness, beyond madness. It seemed he had to do something.

Having resigned from his post, the National Preceptor no longer had the standing to involve himself in the Crown Prince’s marriage, but he was too lazy to concoct any excuses about national peace and prosperity. He simply took up his pen and wrote letters to several censorate officials he was well-acquainted with, asking them to remonstrate with the Emperor.

A few censors, hearing it was to remonstrate against the Crown Prince, politely declined. The current Crown Prince was no longer the prince who allowed himself to be bullied; the Emperor was critically ill, and the Crown Prince held great power. Courtiers feared his influence, and few dared to offer opinions.

Another group secretly pledged their loyalty to the First Prince.

In the afternoon, Xiao Yun returned.

“What did you find?”

Xiao Yun: “As you guessed, the Third Prince is indeed restless. He is bribing officials in private and gathering warlocks, intending to cause trouble at tomorrow’s ceremony. I have copied a letter; the details are all within.”

Ye Shaoyun took it and read it, his brows instantly knitting together. This Third Prince… I should have guessed it earlier. None of the royal children are easy to deal with.

The Third Prince had united prestigious Daoist masters who were in reality nothing more than charlatan warlocks from various regions, and was bribing court officials to prevent them from remonstrating. Tomorrow, at the Beacon Tower, they intended to accuse the Crown Prince of being devoid of virtue, of maiming his own siblings, and of causing heaven’s wrath, resulting in the floods in Jiangnan.

It was all nonsense. Throughout the ages, how many cruel strikes had been dealt to seize the throne? The Third Prince himself was in the midst of a power struggle; he was simply making himself look righteous first.

It seemed tomorrow would be chaos. He wondered if that fool Qi Chu had made preparations and if he was aware of all this. The child had grown up and was handling many things without consulting him.

“Are you worried about the Crown Prince?”

Ye Shaoyun looked out the window irritably. “Don’t ask foolish questions.”

His intimacy with Qi Chu was known to all; if anything happened to Qi Chu or if he were deposed, he would surely be implicated. There was no room for carelessness.

“Then shall we notify His Highness?” Xiao Yun asked.

Ye Shaoyun leaned back on the couch, blinking lazily. “He likely already knows.”

And he probably knew earlier than he did. His handling style was far too decisive it was “kill.” That comment he’d made the other day about “killing them all” referred precisely to these people.

A meticulous plan, yet Qi Chu hadn’t revealed a word to him. Was he losing trust in him?

Xiao Yun asked again: “Then, Master, should we do anything?”

Ye Shaoyun pondered for a moment and shook his head. “No need to do anything. Just wait to attend the banquet tomorrow.”

Under his tutelage for so many years, it was time to see the results. He wanted to see just how capable Qi Chu had become.

“Indeed. You are the National Preceptor. No matter what these people say, as long as you speak, His Majesty will naturally not believe them.”

Ye Shaoyun: “I fear they have already devised ways to deal with me.”

Xiao Yun: “That shouldn’t be the case, should it? News of your resignation and return to your hometown is already known to the officials. You haven’t been out much these days; perhaps they already think you have left the capital. Otherwise, how would they dare to move against His Highness?”

Ye Shaoyun: “I hope so. Prepare the clothes I shall wear tomorrow.”

“May I suggest the Phoenix-Bird Golden Winged Robes the Emperor personally gifted? You are still the National Preceptor, after all, and may wear them.”

“That is too ostentatious.” Ye Shaoyun shook his head and chuckled lightly. “I am not going to support the Crown Prince; I am going to watch a play. There is no need to steal the spotlight.”

“Ha.” Xiao Yun was slightly confused. “Are you truly not going to care about the Crown Prince?”

Ye Shaoyun snorted coldly. “He has such great ability; he no longer needs my care. If something truly goes wrong, let him experience the consequences himself first.”

The Emperor was already wary of him. Since he remained in the capital, he had to temporarily avoid their sharp edges, uncover their secrets, and take one step at a time.

Later that evening, Mu Yun came to report that the Crown Prince had sent Mo Qing over with a heap of supplements, dozens of stalks of ginseng among them, stacking them in his manor like radishes.

Mo Qing: “His Highness says you should stew one stalk every day. They are nothing rare; the Eastern Palace has piles of them. They were all gifted by His Majesty, and His Highness never consumes such supplements.”

Ye Shaoyun: “…”

He seemed to understand what madness Qi Chu was indulging in. Could it be he was jealous? He had originally thought he was only suspicious of Ye Xiao’s disloyalty; he hadn’t wanted to think in that direction, nor did he want to, but now it looked more and more like it… Ye Xiao gave him one stalk, so Qi Chu sent crates of them. It was like they were competing. He feared they might actually get into a fight with Ye Xiao tomorrow.

Ginseng was indeed good, but it was incredibly bitter. He did not like bitter things.

Waking up the next day, he still felt exhausted all over. Ye Shaoyun had Mu Yun boil a bowl with honey and ginseng to help sustain his spirit.

Pinching his nose, he gulped it down. Even with the honey, the bitterness remained sharp.

“Let’s go.”

The banquet at the Beacon Tower was organized entirely by Qi Chu, with the Ministry of Rites assisting. The Emperor did not know that Ye Shaoyun would be there, and looked slightly surprised when he saw him.

Ye Shaoyun naturally had to pay his respects to the Emperor first.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor, whose body was not yet sixty, had caught a draft on the Beacon Tower and was coughing incessantly. “Is the National Preceptor not returning to your hometown? Why are you here today?”

Ye Shaoyun: It’s because your son won’t let me leave.

He maintained a respectful smile on his face. “Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I have some lingering affairs in the capital that are not yet settled and require a few more days.”

The Emperor nodded. “In that case, let us watch the ceremony together. Today’s rites were all orchestrated by the Crown Prince. National Preceptor, you have raised a good son for me.”

Exchanging pleasantries, Ye Shaoyun responded with empty formalities, “It is my honor to share the burden for Your Majesty.”

Seeing the two chatting, Qi Kun came running over.

“Greetings, Imperial Father, National Preceptor.”

“Prince.”

Qi Kun scanned him with his lively eyes. “The National Preceptor looks quite well today. What medicine did you eat yesterday?”

The Emperor coughed lightly. “You don’t even care about your Imperial Father first.”

The Emperor realized that ever since Ye Shaoyun appeared, neither of his sons circled around him anymore.

Qi Kun was the only “jester” of the royal family. The Emperor enjoyed teasing him because he had no interest in court disputes, making him seem like a real son.

Qi Kun then hurriedly turned to pay respects to his Imperial Father. “My son is naturally concerned for you. Look, I’ve brought you some pills I searched for some days ago; they can ease your cough. May you live a long and healthy life.”

Saying this, he had his servant present a wooden box to the Emperor’s personal eunuch.

“Kun’er is very thoughtful.”

After dealing with the Emperor, Qi Kun hurriedly dragged Ye Shaoyun away to admire the flowers, running straight into Ye Xiao.

Qi Kun looked at the spear in Ye Xiao’s hand, his eyes widening slightly. “Is this not your spear?”

Ye Shaoyun: “I gifted it to General Ye.”

“So that’s it. It’s been a long time, General Ye. You look even more robust than before.”

Ye Xiao: “Greetings, Prince Ning’an.”

The three chatted idly for a while. Qi Kun suddenly caught sight of Qi Chu not far away in the crowd and began openly discussing the Crown Prince. “The Crown Prince brother is increasingly distant from us lately. He holds great power and has become cold and aloof. The last time he saw me, he gave me quite a look.”