The White Moonlight Turns Out to Be a Black-Hearted Lotus - Chapter 26

The sea surged with rolling waves, and the curtain of clouds hung high in the sky.

Pei Xu stood upon the edge of a precipice. On either side were churning tides; if he chose one side and leapt, he could escape this cliff and no longer have to live in such trepidation and agony.

On the jagged rocks of the left coast stood himself, an identical face, speaking coldly to him: “Jump down to this side. Stop hesitating. Bolt your heart shut and trust no one. No one will ever truly love you. As long as you are willing to erase this last vestige of affection, there will be no one left in this world who can harm you in the slightest.”

He had stood wavering on the cliff for too long; he was exhausted, and these words seemed enticingly persuasive.

However, for reasons unknown, he turned his head uncontrollably to look toward the right side of the coast.

Ji Yuanhui stood there quietly. He said nothing, merely opening his arms toward him.

The self on the other side continued to speak, his voice breaking as if interrogating him: “What are you hesitating for? Are you still dreaming the pipe dream that someone treats you with sincerity? You trust him, you are willing to fall toward his side—but if he does not catch you with open arms, you will be crushed to pieces. He can regret it and withdraw his hands at any moment. And you? Do you have any room for regret?”

Within that voice, Pei Xu closed his eyes. The wind howled against his face as he allowed his body to plummet through the gale like a fallen leaf.

His leg gave a sudden kick, and Pei Xu woke with a start.

“What is it…” Ji Yuanhui had not yet opened his eyes, but instinctively began to pat his back lightly, pressing comforting kisses into his hair one after another. “Did you have a nightmare?”

Pei Xu relaxed once more in the familiar scent. He was dazed, his words slurred: “I dreamed that I jumped… toward the right side…”

“Dreaming of jumping from a high place? It means you are still growing taller…” Ji Yuanhui cradled the back of his neck. “Sleep. It’s fine. Even if you jump, I will be there to catch you.”

Pei Xu shifted, clutching his neck tightly, and closed his eyes in peace. “Mhm.”

Perhaps because the Crown Prince had been making frequent moves lately, Zhou Shiming was in no hurry to return to Jiangzhou. Instead, he stayed temporarily at the manor, coming by from time to time to analyze the situation with him.

“The Crown Prince has spent a fortune to acquire another estate on Zhuque Street to house the slender horses and catamites sent from various places,” Zhou Shiming said as he sipped his tea, his tone indifferent. “The Crown Prince’s treasury cannot sustain such frequent extravagance. It is estimated he has embezzled a significant amount from the national treasury.”

“If he wants to move things from the national treasury, doesn’t it have to go through the Ministry of Revenue?” Ji Yuanhui leaned back against his chair. “My eldest brother oversees the Ministry of Revenue; would he agree to this?”

Zhou Shiming shook his head. “I fear he is willing but unable. I heard the First Prince seems to be quite ill this time; he hasn’t clocked in at the Ministry of Revenue for several days in a row.”

“No wonder the Crown Prince tried to extort me just the other day.” Ji Yuanhui tapped his finger on the table, thoughtful. “The national treasury likely has a massive hole gouged out of it. He’s afraid Imperial Father will hold him accountable upon his return, so he’s scrounging for silver everywhere to fill the pit…”

“But how can his plundering keep pace with his spending?” Ji Yuanhui seemed to realize something; his fingers suddenly paused, and he abruptly changed the subject. “Are the Spring Imperial Examinations not in about twenty days?”

“The eighth day of the third month. Twenty-two days left.” After Zhou Shiming spoke, he also realized the implication. “You mean…”

Ji Yuanhui pressed his brow. “He had better not be absurd to that extent.”

After seeing Zhou Shiming off, Ji Yuanhui rose and went to the backyard to find Pei Xu.

When he found Pei Xu, he was by the pond feeding birds. The small birds seemed familiar with him and were not afraid, chirping as they surrounded him.

But as soon as Ji Yuanhui approached, the birds were startled and fluttered away. Only a single crow remained perched on Pei Xu’s shoulder, cawing and croaking at Ji Yuanhui as if in intimidation.

The Great Zhou Dynasty held water as its virtue and favored the color black. Since a crow’s feathers reflect black light under the sun, they were not viewed as inauspicious.

“Xiao Wu…” Pei Xu curled his index finger and tapped its beak.

The crow stopped shouting at Ji Yuanhui. It hopped from Pei Xu’s shoulder to his arm and then flapped its wings to fly away.

Pei Xu brushed the crumbs of birdseed from his hands and pulled out a silk cloth to wipe them. “Has Cousin left?”

“He’s gone, off to attend to his business.” Ji Yuanhui found it a bit strange. “In the past, I could invite him eight hundred times, and he’d hardly accept once, yet lately he’s been coming quite frequently… Many things he could clearly finish in one visit, yet he insists on splitting them over several trips.”

Pei Xu blinked slowly and said directly, “He has an ulterior motive.”

Ji Yuanhui smiled. “Seeking what?”

“Seeking a person.” Pei Xu looked down at the carp surfacing in the pond to scramble for food. “He seems to be waiting for someone. Someone he saw here with Your Highness, likely not long ago.”

“Does Your Highness not believe me? That is how I used to wait for Your Highness.” Pei Xu smiled slightly. “When I was your study companion, I would note down every pavilion or path in the Academy where I had encountered Your Highness, and I would walk them repeatedly. There would always be a time or two where I’d run into you.”

Pei Xu’s attention to such details had always been meticulous, and he was very fond of empathizing through his own experiences.

Ji Yuanhui recalled the people he had seen lately and quickly formed a vague guess. He looked at Pei Xu. “Rongrong has already untangled it?”

“It is not hard to guess.” Pei Xu drew a flute from his waist. “This is the item inside the box delivered by the person wearing the veiled hat that Your Highness mentioned.”

Ji Yuanhui took it to examine and saw the character “Xuan” carved into the end.

“That person is likely my senior brother, Xuan Cunli.” Pei Xu looked at the flute. “This is an object that never left his side in the past.”

“Back when we were at the academy, he was on good terms with the First Prince. After the Xuan clan met with disaster, his whereabouts became unknown. Thinking on it now, he was likely saved by the First Prince.” Pei Xu’s mood was not high, speaking matter-of-factly. “He was once close to the First Prince, and Cousin served as the First Prince’s companion; they must know each other. Cousin either wants to see him, or wants to see the First Prince through him.”

Ji Yuanhui placed the flute back into his hand. “Which possibility does Rongrong think is greater?”

“The latter.” Pei Xu hung the flute back at his waist. “Cousin’s guess is correct. He will definitely come again, and he will come on behalf of the First Prince to discuss cooperation with Your Highness.”

Ji Yuanhui joined two fingers to smooth out the frown on Pei Xu’s brow. “You are about to see an old acquaintance; why the long face?”

“He didn’t send me this flute sooner or later, but chose to send it right after my marriage to Your Highness, when everyone is spreading rumors of our harmony.” Pei Xu’s expression was cold. “And he is now a man of the First Prince’s manor. What is his intention? Knowing I am valued by Your Highness, is he coming to speak to me of old times and friendship so that I might help him from the side?”

Pei Xu’s mind was sensitive. Ji Yuanhui felt it might be because his junior brother, Duan Xi, had set a bad precedent, causing Pei Xu to view all old acquaintances from the past with suspicion now.

Clearly, when this person was mentioned before, Pei Xu would still sigh in his heart, thinking it would be good if his senior brother were still around.

Ji Yuanhui feigned ignorance. “Was your relationship with this senior brother not good in the past?”

“Because we were close in the past, I am even more afraid that even he will come to exploit me.” Pei Xu’s emotions were somewhat low. “I am a bit afraid—afraid that when I look back, my old friends have all become hideous and unrecognizable, with not a single one retaining a shred of sincerity. If I am not mistaken, he will come to the door tomorrow.”

Ji Yuanhui asked, puzzled, “Why tomorrow?”

“If he wants to use me to open a connection with Your Highness, he will inevitably need to talk to me and reminisce about the past. I am to take my post at the Ministry of Justice the day after tomorrow. If he comes to the manor after tomorrow, he might not necessarily be able to see me.” Pei Xu said softly, “If we cannot even meet, how can he reminisce?”

“If it makes you sad, just don’t see him.”

Pei Xu didn’t make a sound. Ji Yuanhui knew that from the moment he hesitated, he had already made up his mind to see him. So, he followed the thought: “Actually, there is no harm in meeting. Seeing him once is better than having a knot in your heart and brooding over it all day.”

“If he comes tomorrow and doesn’t mention official business but seeks me first, Your Highness, just say I am not in the manor.” Pei Xu looked down. “If he only mentions me after finishing the official business… then I shall see him.”

To talk of friendship before business, versus reminiscing after business is concluded, the nature of these two is indeed different.

“Alright.” Ji Yuanhui nodded, his heart filled with concern for Pei Xu’s health.

Calculating every step and overthinking everything—how could he not fall ill?

For Pei Xu, this was likely an instinctive reaction. Seeing a small detail allowed him to deduce the entire sequence of events, and he would then subconsciously think of all possible follow-ups, even devising numerous countermeasures. With his mind spinning without a moment’s rest, how could his body bear the burden?

And he was so clever; he could see through many things with a single thought. Yet, some things are better left blurred than seen clearly.

Those who are skilled in plotting often do not last long; many die young.

Ji Yuanhui noticed that Pei Xu would frequently fall into a strange state, trapping himself in some emotion and not returning for a long time.

He knew this was definitely not a good thing. So, seeing Pei Xu’s gaze turn hollow as he thought of something, he suddenly reached out to touch his cheek, interrupting him.

Pei Xu’s mind returned, and he looked at him blankly. “Your Highness, what is it?”

“I just felt it was a bit strange.” Ji Yuanhui spoke in a joking tone, leading him back. “Your expression just now looked as if only an empty shell remained by my side, and your soul was about to ascend to immortality and become a deity in the next moment.”

Pei Xu was unaware of these things himself and only took it as Ji Yuanhui teasing him to make him smile. “Then has it come back now?”

“Mhm, it’s back now.” Ji Yuanhui interlaced their fingers, gripping tightly. “You mustn’t leave me behind and go off alone.”

The weather these past few days has been much warmer than before. The wind blew softly, carrying the fragrance of early spring flowers across their faces.

Pei Xu temporarily pulled himself away from his thoughts. Today, the sunlight was warm, the flowers were blooming beautifully, and the person walking in front of him, holding his hand and talking, was very gentle.

Ji Yuanhui suddenly turned back, smiling at him. “The sunlight has been so good these days, and the flowers are lush. When Rongrong first came into this world, it must have been during such beautiful scenery.”

A person cannot have memories of their own infancy. Pei Xu had never thought about whether there was anything special about being born in early spring. He was momentarily stunned, not knowing how to answer.

This day might not have been special originally—flowers and sunlight exist in all four seasons—but for someone who loved him, this day became different because of him.

Ji Yuanhui mused, “‘The warm sun colors the beautiful scenery, a light mist low over the fragrant trees’… Is that how your name came to be?”

“Perhaps.” Pei Xu’s expression relaxed as he recalled something. “The character Xu (warmth/sunlight) was chosen by my mother. Xu is the warm sun, the light of dawn. She hoped I could be like the sun… No one dislikes the sun.”

Pei Xu looked toward him with expectation. “Your Highness, if we have a child in the future, let his childhood name be Sheng’er.”

Ji Yuanhui listened to the sound of the character and ran it through his mind, quickly understanding which character Pei Xu meant. A smile spread uncontrollably from the corners of his mouth. “As in Ru Ri Zhi Sheng (Like the rising sun)?”

Perhaps happy that Ji Yuanhui understood his meaning immediately, the melancholy that always lingered between Pei Xu’s brows dissipated, and he gave a gentle “Mhm.”

Ji Yuanhui nodded. “I have noted it down.”