Don't you know whether she is a bad person or not?
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Su Yingyue embraced Xiao Huaiqing. “Stop. Let’s not blame each other anymore.”
“Huaiqing, let’s live well together. Father will return sooner or later. Until he does, we need only fulfill our respective duties.”
“Lin Yue is merely a princess consort chosen to bring good fortune. We have given her all the dignity due to her position, and no one can find fault with that. That is enough.”
Xiao Huaiqing nodded. For now, this was all they could do.
Yet as the husband and wife held one another, it seemed that something lay between them. The excitement and happiness they had once shared were gone.
In their place remained only silence and oppression, as though neither of them could breathe.
At dusk, a servant came to report that the Fourth Prince had arrived.
Xiao Huaiqing asked in surprise, “What is he here for?”
“He has come to see the princess consort. He says he has brought her a gift.”
Xiao Huaiqing frowned and rose to his feet.
Su Yingyue also looked somewhat nervous. Seeing this, Xiao Huaiqing said, “Be good and have supper prepared. I’ll come back and dine with you shortly.”
Su Yingyue nodded. Though she was still worried, she did not follow him.
She knew that only by playing the part of an obedient wife might she have a chance of winning Xiao Huaiqing’s heart back.
Xiao Huaiqing reached the entrance of the main residence and heard Xiao Huaizheng’s voice from inside.
“Imperial Aunt, I already followed your instructions and misled him. If you refuse to help me now, I’ll be finished.”
Lin Yue replied, “Stop pretending. That act won’t work on me.”
Xiao Huaiqing asked the servant outside to announce him. Seeing that he had finally learned some manners, Lin Yue said indifferently, “Invite the heir inside.”
Xiao Huaiqing entered. Xiao Huaizheng greeted him with a smile. “Cousin.”
Xiao Huaiqing asked in surprise, “What brings you here, Fourth Brother?”
“I’ve come to ask Imperial Aunt for help with something.”
“And in exchange, I’ve given her the only residence under my name.”
Xiao Huaiqing glanced at the property deeds spread across the table and was startled.
What kind of matter required an entire residence as a bargaining chip?
But Lin Yue said, “You offered it willingly. Don’t make yourself sound so pitiful, or I may report you to His Majesty.”
Xiao Huaizheng cried, “Oh, please don’t! I was wrong, all right?”
“Imperial Aunt, just tell me what to do. He has already begun to suspect me.”
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Lin Yue frowned, thinking:
Could Huo Renli truly be so formidable? Even Xiao Huaizheng has come to ask for my help?
But as far as I know, if Xiao Huaizheng had not ultimately been unable to overcome his own conscience, Huo Renli would have amounted to nothing.
Could that man have been pretending to be weak while secretly hiding his strength?
Lin Yue quickly grew cautious. “Since I’ve accepted your payment, I will certainly help you investigate the matter to the end. But as for anything else, I will not interfere.”
Seeing how decisively Lin Yue refused, Xiao Huaizheng did not press her further. Instead, he said, “But this matter began because of Imperial Aunt. Surely you can at least give me a hint?”
“Does that man truly have no weakness?”
Lin Yue thought carefully. In fact, he did.
Xiao Huaizheng has always believed that Huo Renli cares most about him, so naturally he thinks he himself is Huo Renli’s weakness.
But that is all nonsense. Huo Renli only pretends to care about him. In reality, he has always been using him to amass wealth and gather power.
As a eunuch, none of this should be of any use to him. But Huo Renli had already been married when he was castrated. He had a son and a daughter, and had once wanted to bring his daughter into the palace so that Xiao Huaizheng would favor her and father an heir with her. Xiao Huaizheng, however, thought she was too ugly and refused to let him have his way.
Judging by the timing, it should be this very year. His son and daughter ought to have arrived in the capital by now.
As for where they were staying, the original story only mentioned that they had been placed in a secluded residence. In fact, to avoid exposing their identities, Huo Renli had never gone to see them in person.
Having obtained this precise information, Xiao Huaizheng’s expression changed, and he began calculating in his mind.
The gift was merely a pretext. His true purpose had been to obtain information about Huo Renli.
Then he noticed Xiao Huaiqing sitting blankly to one side, looking somewhat ill at ease. He must not have been able to hear Lin Yue’s thoughts; otherwise, how could he look so completely lost in his own world?
If Heaven had truly given him a chance to mend his ways, he had to seize it. He could never repeat his former mistakes.
With that thought, Xiao Huaizheng said to Lin Yue, “What if I ask Cousin to help me? You wouldn’t object, Imperial Aunt?”
Xiao Huaiqing was thoroughly astonished. What did this have to do with him?
Lin Yue replied, “This is a matter between you and him. You should ask him, not me.”
Hearing how unconcerned she sounded, Xiao Huaiqing lowered his head uneasily, looking somewhat dejected.
Xiao Huaizheng immediately saw that there was still tension between Xiao Huaiqing and Lin Yue—and that Lin Yue had no patience for dealing with him.
He quickly said, “Then it’s settled. I’ll ask Cousin for help.”
With that, he wasted no time and led Xiao Huaiqing outside.
Xiao Huaiqing was completely bewildered. Only after they had left did he ask, “Why did you bring me out here?”
Xiao Huaizheng released him and said, “A eunuch under my command has committed an offense. If I handle it badly, I may be implicated. Imperial Aunt was the one who told me about it.”
“If I want to save myself, I have to find out what this old eunuch cares about most and make sure I am cleared of any involvement.”
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“Even Imperial Aunt is helping me. Are you really going to stand by and watch me die, Cousin?”
Xiao Huaiqing was startled. “Why don’t you tell the Emperor?”
Xiao Huaizheng gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Not everyone is as fortunate as you, Cousin, with a father they can rely on.”
“My Imperial Father has five sons, two of whom are born of the primary consort. Someone like me, born of a secondary consort and without a mother to support me, could never expect to receive much attention.”
“Besides, when I fell into the water in the palace a few days ago, Imperial Aunt risked her life to pull me out. Otherwise, I would already be dead.”
Xiao Huaiqing was deeply shaken. “Are you certain she was the one who saved you? When did this happen?”
“She dragged me ashore. Who else could it have been? It was only a few days ago. You went to the palace too, didn’t you?”
“By the way, I heard that you’ve been treating Imperial Aunt badly. Why?”
“She may not be your birth mother, but has she ever harmed you? Why set yourself against her?”
“Besides, you are the heir. If you oppose her, everyone will assume that she is a wicked stepmother. It will damage her reputation terribly.”
Xiao Huaiqing shook his head. “No, I haven’t treated her badly. It was her. She bullied Yingyue.”
Xiao Huaizheng clicked his tongue twice. “But before you married Yingyue, why had no one ever said that Imperial Aunt was such an unreasonable, overbearing woman?”
“You lived with her for three years. If she were a bad person, wouldn’t you know it?”
Xiao Huaiqing fell silent.
Yes, he and Lin Yue had lived together for three years.
They had each gone their own way, and during that time she had always shown concern for him, looked after his daily needs, and treated the servants in the residence with great courtesy.
He had never heard of her mistreating or harming anyone.
But after he married Yingyue, everything changed.
Lin Yue became sharp, combative, and relentless…
She constantly put on the airs of a mother-in-law, though she was not one at all.
He and Yingyue both knew that Lin Yue was jealous and angry, and because of that, they had come to hate her even more.
Everything had happened because of her feelings for him. Now that those feelings were gone, all their conflicts had dissolved in an instant.
Even he felt utterly at a loss.