The Script I Received Was Wrong - Chapter 3

Having just recovered from his severe illness, Gu Chengze clamored to celebrate on Xie Yunjin’s behalf.

“I was only unconscious for a few days; is it really necessary to go to Wangxing Pavilion?”

“Think of it as a small compensation since I can’t join you all for the spring outing later this month,” Gu Chengze said, snapping his fan open with a flourish.

“Yunjin, don’t bother saving him money. He just did a huge favor for his brother-in-law a couple of days ago, so his pockets are overflowing,” Li Lixue, the son of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, said with a laugh.

“Go on, get out of here! Stop teasing me,” Gu Chengze retracted his fan and playfully tapped Li Lixue on the head.

The group laughed and joked as they walked toward the largest restaurant in the capital.

Gu Chengze was a regular at Wangxing Pavilion. The moment they stepped inside, a familiar waiter greeted them and led them upstairs. “Young masters, shall it be the usual today?”

“Everything is up to him today,” Gu Chengze said, gesturing toward Xie Yunjin. “Whatever our Young Master Xie desires, bring it out.”

“You’re the one treating, yet you’re making me do the thinking.”

“Since when did you become so lazy? Fine, I’ll do it. Bring a serving of all your signature dishes. Then add Yunjin’s favorites: Peach Blossom Cake, Heyun Seeds, Star Dew…” Gu Chengze rattled off seven or eight dish names in one breath. “Bring a portion of each.”

“I believe your pockets are truly full now,” Xie Yunjin remarked, wide-eyed.

Although the Gu family was prominent, they weren’t the type to indulge the younger generation in reckless spending. Wangxing Pavilion catered exclusively to the high nobility, and every dish cost a small fortune. Usually, when they gathered, they wouldn’t be quite so extravagant.

“What exactly was this favor you did for your brother-in-law?”

“It wasn’t much. He’s smitten with a girl from the Chu family and asked me to help deliver a letter.”

“The Chu family?” Xie Yunjin thought of something and lowered his voice. “It wouldn’t happen to be the Chu daughter that someone intends to betroth to the Third Prince, would it?”

Gu Chengze also lowered his voice. “It’s that Chu family. But don’t worry, I checked—it’s not the one the palace has its eye on. Speaking of which, Xinyue Palace is already picking a primary consort for the Third Prince; why hasn’t there been any word from the Central Palace?”

The Third Prince, who was younger than the Crown Prince, was already nearing an engagement. Logically, the Eastern Palace shouldn’t be so silent.

“His Highness likely has his own ideas,” Xie Yunjin replied, instinctively pushing the thought that this might involve him out of his mind.

“True. Given the current situation, it’s not the best time to appoint a Crown Princess,” Gu Chengze said, giving Xie Yunjin a meaningful look.

The Crown Prince was exceptional. Since he began handling court affairs, his conduct had been flawless. However, the Emperor didn’t seem pleased by this and had promptly granted the Second and Third Princes the authority to intervene in government matters.

Anyone navigating the vanity fair of the court could see it: the Emperor was intentionally suppressing the Crown Prince.

If a Crown Princess were chosen now, the Emperor certainly wouldn’t sit by and let the Prince pick someone who could provide significant support. It would be a miracle if he didn’t sabotage the selection. Rather than inviting a potentially treacherous mistress into the Eastern Palace, it was better to leave the position vacant.

******

After eating and drinking his fill, Xie Yunjin returned to the Marquis of Changning’s estate.

“Heir Apparent, the Marquis asks that you go to the study.” The estate’s head steward had been waiting at the gates for a long time. Upon seeing Xie Yunjin’s carriage, he hurried forward.

“Father is looking for me? Did he say what it’s about?”

“This old servant does not know,” the steward shook his head. “The Marquis seems very anxious. You didn’t return to the estate yesterday, and he flew into quite a rage.”

Xie Yunjin was confused. It wasn’t the first time he had stayed overnight in the palace. Why hadn’t the Marquis ever lost his temper before?

Filled with doubt, Xie Yunjin followed the steward to the study.

“My Lord, the Heir has returned.”

“Let him in alone. Everyone else, dismiss yourselves.”

“Yes.”

Why dismiss all the servants? Is he going to lecture me again?

Xie Yunjin felt a knot in his chest. His relationship with the Marquis hadn’t always been this strained. He remembered that when he was very young, the Marquis would hug him, praise him, and play with him like any other father. He didn’t know exactly when it changed.

Now, the Marquis only showed him a kind face when his mother or grandmother was present. When no outsiders were around, he wouldn’t spare him a single pleasant look.

When he was a child and didn’t understand, he would go to his mother and make a fuss. The Marquis had explained that as the only boy in the family and the future successor of the estate, he couldn’t be overly pampered.

Initially, Xie Yunjin believed the Marquis was being strict for his own good. Later, he realized that wasn’t the case at all. No matter how hard he worked, the Marquis was never happy. In fact, whenever he performed exceptionally well, the Marquis seemed even more displeased.

Over time, Xie Yunjin stopped holding out hope. If the Marquis didn’t want him to excel, he would just blend into the crowd. Besides, he didn’t enjoy studying those things anyway. Being an idle, unaccomplished playboy was actually quite relaxing.

Stepping into the study, he expected to see a furious Marquis, but instead, the man was calm.

“A-Jin, sit.”

Xie Yunjin gave him a suspicious look. What is he planning now?

Yet, his body sat down obediently. After all, sitting was more comfortable than standing.

“You didn’t return yesterday; were you staying at the Eastern Palace?” the Marquis asked.

“Mhm.”

“His Highness seems to take very good care of you,” the Marquis said thoughtfully.

As expected, the Marquis’s sudden kindness was tied to the Crown Prince.

Once, their relationship had dropped to freezing point. The Marquis had declared that Xie Yunjin was beyond teaching and refused to petition for his official title as Heir Apparent, no matter how much his mother begged. It wasn’t until Xie Yunjin was chosen as the Crown Prince’s study companion that the situation took a turn.

“Father, I am the Crown Prince’s study companion.”

The interests of the companion and the Prince were intertwined.

“I know that. I’m only coming to you because I have no other choice. In all these years, have you ever seen me ask you for a favor?”

No, because before you were too busy using this connection to secure your own interests, Xie Yunjin thought. Just as he knew, the Marquis knew even better how much room for manipulation this relationship provided.

The Marquis spoke earnestly, “You are not just a study companion, but also the Heir of this estate and its future master. No matter the time, the estate shares your glory and your ruin. If anything happens to the Marquisate, you might not be able to keep your status as the Crown Prince’s companion.”

“Regardless, I am your father. What father doesn’t wish the best for his child?”

Seemingly moved, an expression of emotion appeared on Xie Yunjin’s face. “Father is right. Without the Marquisate, I am nothing.”

“It’s good that you understand,” the Marquis said with a relieved look. “You are my only legitimate son. In the future, everything I own will be left to you.”

“What do you want me to do?” Xie Yunjin didn’t want to continue playing this drama of filial piety and got straight to the point.

“Arrange a private meeting for me with the Crown Prince…”

“No,” Xie Yunjin interrupted without a second thought. “His Highness is very busy lately; he likely won’t have the time.”

Xie Yunjin wasn’t lying. With the Second and Third Princes causing constant trouble in their quest for power, Liang Xuan had been working non-stop. Just yesterday at midnight, Xie Yunjin had seen him still handling official documents.

Over the years, Xie Yunjin had intentionally hidden the depth of his intimacy with the Prince. Since the Marquis wasn’t close to him, he had no idea just how good their relationship actually was, so he didn’t suspect a thing.

The Marquis moved within the court circles; he could see for himself if the Prince was busy or not. If this matter weren’t so difficult to settle, he wouldn’t be humbling himself before Xie Yunjin.

He looked troubled. “Not even for half an hour?”

Xie Yunjin feigned a difficult expression. “Probably not. I cannot dictate the Crown Prince’s schedule.”

“True.” The Marquis had long since experienced the ruthlessness of the imperial family.

“Why don’t you tell me roughly what you need His Highness to do? I’ll see if I can find a moment to ask him,” Xie Yunjin said, his eyes darting around. He was truly curious about what could force the Marquis, who usually couldn’t stand the sight of him, to act so submissively.

“It isn’t a massive matter. If the Crown Prince is willing to help, it could be solved with just a word or two.”

The things the Marquis did could be seen as large or small, depending entirely on whether the people above were willing to let them slide.

There was collusion between officials and merchants in Yuzhou. Through an introduction, the Marquis had placed a significant amount of high-interest “usury” loans there.

Initially, the Emperor had given the Yuzhou case to the Third Prince to handle. Unexpectedly, it wasn’t long before people from the Third Prince’s own faction were found to be involved. The Emperor was so furious he transferred the case to the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince hadn’t been in the court for long, but his methods were incredibly seasoned. Only a few days after taking the case, there was already significant progress.

If the investigation continued at this speed, it was only a matter of time before it reached the Marquis. Fortunately, the Marquis wasn’t deeply involved; he had only started the usury loans last year. Compared to other officials, the amount wasn’t that large.

However, the Emperor was incensed this time and had vowed to severely punish all involved officials. The Marquis had been planning for years to get a promotion this year. If this came to light, forget a promotion. It would be hard to even keep his current position.

******

Xie Yunjin sent a servant to dig for specific details. He wouldn’t take the Marquis’s word at face value, nor would he rashly approach Liang Xuan about it.

Surprisingly, before he could ask, Liang Xuan brought it up himself.

Liang Xuan knew about the stiff relationship between Xie Yunjin and the Marquis. He wouldn’t take the initiative to mediate between them. Besides, while investigating Yuzhou, he had uncovered some other things. He would decide whether to tell Xie Yunjin once he had more definitive results.

“A-Jin, what do you think about the Marquis of Changning’s situation?”

Xie Yunjin’s movements as he ground ink paused. He lowered his eyes. “Did he beg you?”

“He’s been trying to start a conversation, but I haven’t given a response yet.” If Xie Yunjin wanted to repair the father-son bond, Liang Xuan was willing to help.

“Regardless of status, one should be responsible for their own actions. Your Highness doesn’t need to specifically let him off the hook for my sake.”

As for whether the Marquisate would be dragged down, Xie Yunjin had stayed up late reading the laws of Great Liang. If it was only what the Marquis had confessed, the estate wouldn’t suffer too much.

“My father…” Xie Yunjin bit his lip. “Besides the usury loans, has he done anything else?”

“He isn’t deeply involved in anything else,” Liang Xuan said, knowing what he was thinking. “Even if he is convicted, it won’t be heavy. If he makes up for the money in advance, it could be even lighter.”

Xie Yunjin put down the ink stick, unable to fathom it. “The estate isn’t short on money. Why would he do such things?”

“Perhaps he felt that since nothing had gone wrong for years, he wouldn’t be so unlucky,” Liang Xuan shook his head. “Your father is actually quite cautious. The people in Yuzhou have been in contact with him for quite a while, yet he only reached out last year. Luckily, he didn’t dive too deep.”

Otherwise, saving the Marquisate wouldn’t have been so easy. Liang Xuan didn’t care about the estate itself, but A-Jin was the Heir Apparent; if anything happened to the house, A-Jin would be the first to suffer.

It seemed he needed to give the Marquis a warning. At least until A-Jin grew up, the estate couldn’t be dragged into things it shouldn’t touch because of the Marquis.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to the Marquisate.” Liang Xuan raised his hand, smoothing the frown between Xie Yunjin’s brows.

In private, Liang Xuan didn’t use the formal “Gu” (We/The Lonely One) in front of Xie Yunjin. Using it now meant he was making a promise as the Heir Apparent.

Xie Yunjin shook his head in disagreement. He looked around; the vast study held only the two of them, so there was no need to worry about their words being leaked.

To be safe, Xie Yunjin still lowered his voice. “Your Highness, you will sit on that throne one day. You can’t be so biased. People will say… they’ll call you…”

“Call me what?”

Seeing Liang Xuan’s unconcerned look, Xie Yunjin got a bit anxious and gestured wildly. “That!”

Liang Xuan suppressed a smile. “What is ‘that’?”

“A fainted king! A tyrant!” Having said it, Xie Yunjin looked around once more to ensure there wasn’t a third person. “Your behavior just now is truly not that of a wise ruler. If the Grand Tutor finds out, he will surely punish you.”

“Then…” As if afraid of being overheard, Liang Xuan leaned into Xie Yunjin’s ear, drawing out his voice. “Will A-Jin help me keep the secret?”

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