“I do not know what reliance you all have today, to press so relentlessly.” Cui Yiyu lightly touched the back of Lin Yuanjin’s hand, signaling her to be at ease. “It is not enough to slander me—you must also slander my Crown Princess.”
“Your son is unfilial, for disturbing Father Emperor’s peace.” Cui Yiyu turned toward the emperor, lifting his robe as he knelt down, performing a great bow. “Your son is willing to use this body to prove the innocence between myself and the Crown Princess, to put an end to rumors.”
The emperor looked at his straight back even as he bowed, letting out a long sigh. Noticing Lin Yuanjin at the side, overwhelmed after being slandered, his eyes could not help but fill with weariness. He waved his hand: “Go then, go.”
Eunuch Li understood, raising his hand to point toward the side hall, respectfully saying: “Your Highnesses, please.”
Lin Yuanjin could only watch helplessly as Cui Yiyu and the Second Prince, together with several imperial physicians including Imperial Physician Sun, walked toward the side hall.
After a while, Eunuch Li had two bowls of deer blood sent inside.
Second by second passed. Lin Yuanjin looked at no one, lowering her eyes as if sitting on pins and needles. When the tea in her hand grew cold, palace maids refilled it with hot tea. Her mind was occupied with someone; she did not know whether a quarter of an hour or half an hour had passed before there was finally movement at the door.
Lin Yuanjin hurriedly looked over, only to see the Second Prince with a strange expression, as if somewhat incredulous, while Cui Yiyu’s face was pale and bright, yet the corners of his eyes were reddened, like flawless jade marred by a blemish. He walked over in haste, yet deliberately avoided her gaze.
“Reporting to Your Majesty, both princes are in good health and without ailment,” the imperial physicians said with certainty.
Imperial Physician Sun collapsed to the ground, his face ashen, as if he had not yet recovered from the shock just now. Only when the emperor ordered someone to seize his arms did he struggle up. In a daze, as if having discovered something, his eyes split with fury as he glared at Cui Yiyu: “You are not the Crown Prince!”
“Your Majesty, please discern clearly—this person is not the Crown Prince!”
Yet the emperor seemed not to hear Imperial Physician Sun’s voice. He waved his hand, allowing the eunuchs to drag him out of the hall. Only when his figure could no longer be seen did the faint echoes of his voice linger.
Physician Deng knelt to plead guilty: “This subject believed the slander of petty men and is willing to accept punishment.”
“Dismissed from office and investigated,” the emperor said concisely, unwilling to speak another word.
Neither the Crown Prince nor the Empress reacted, as if they found Imperial Physician Sun’s words laughable, not even bothering to refute them.
The Second Prince and Prime Minister Pei and the others showed thoughtful expressions, only feeling that the Cui clan was cunning and treacherous; this move had likely been a trap laid by them.
Today’s matter had already caused the emperor’s heart to incline. It would likely be even harder to bring down the Crown Prince in the future.
They likewise did not take Imperial Physician Sun’s words seriously.
The palace was extremely cautious regarding heirs. Moreover, as the Empress’s son, everyone was familiar with the Crown Prince’s appearance and conduct. If the Empress had truly borne twins, hiding one with great effort yet placing him at the center of power would be tantamount to endangering the Crown Prince’s life.
But if he were not an imperial descendant, finding someone so similar to replace him would be even more difficult than ascending to the heavens.
Cui Yiyu sat beside Lin Yuanjin without speaking, his whole body tense, his breathing disordered. His lowered dark lashes trembled slightly, his eye sockets reddened. The exposed section of his jade-like neck showed faintly bulging veins, as if he had just undergone a grueling ordeal, his entire body now pricked with discomfort.
Seeing that he seemed unwell, Lin Yuanjin picked up a teacup and handed it to him, asking with concern: “Your Highness, have some tea?”
Cui Yiyu’s breath faltered, as if he had heard something he should not have heard. His senses, far more acute than others’, made him feel that the surrounding aura was all permeated by the young woman. Suppressing his senses, he turned his head aside with restraint, half-closing his eyes, forcing out a stiff voice: “Crown Princess.”
Do not attend to him. Do not touch him.
Even now, stay a little farther away from him.
Lin Yuanjin paused. As her gaze met the young man’s dark pupils, she suddenly caught the heavy self-loathing and unfamiliarity within, along with a few traces of desire that were suppressed extremely well, only appearing for an instant when their eyes met.
It was as if something that should not exist had disturbed his lifeless thoughts.
Lin Yuanjin had never encountered such things before and could not understand much of it. She only thought that something provoking or coercive had happened again inside the chamber, and obediently withdrew her hand.
The banquet had long lost its intended meaning. After a few perfunctory courtesies, the emperor announced its end, bringing the awkward situation of the night to a close before turning and leaving.
Lin Yuanjin followed Cui Yiyu back to the residence. Along the way, neither spoke; it was as if an icy chasm lay between them, utterly distant.
As soon as they alighted from the carriage, Cui Yiyu hurried away, paying no heed to anyone. In the blink of an eye, he entered the Crown Prince’s residence, quickly disappearing from sight.
Having just returned, even with hidden watchers lying in wait nearby, he still had to first report to the Crown Prince.
Lin Yuanjin stood by the carriage, staring blankly at the young man’s figure as he disappeared alone into the darkness. A deep unease rose within her, and it was only when Nanny Zhang called out to her from the side that she came back to her senses.
As for Cui Yiyu, just as he arrived at Jingqing Courtyard, he saw the Crown Prince with a ruddy complexion and a refreshed bearing. As soon as he saw Cui Yiyu enter, he smiled and said: “I have already heard of the banquet. You did well.”
“Thank you for Your Highness’s praise,” Cui Yiyu lowered his eyes and head, speaking calmly.
“My health has already greatly improved. I have an appointment with the Crown Princess in the morning; later, I will go and complete the rites of consummation.” The Crown Prince smiled, his narrow eyes glancing at Cui Yiyu kneeling on the ground, as if casually saying, “You will remain outside the window and keep watch at ease, in case others harbor ill intentions.”
The cold night wind passed through the window frame, brushing over the body, freezing one’s fingertips stiff.
“As you command.” Cui Yiyu replied evenly, as if long accustomed to it, strictly obeying his master’s orders.
His face was as refined as jade, his lowered eyes lifeless and without ripple. Even his breathing was steady and calm, like a cold jade statue, unmoved by the outside world.
The Crown Prince smiled, left Jingqing Courtyard, and summoned someone to deliver a message to his Crown Princess.
On the other side.
Lin Yuanjin had just returned to her room and barely sat down before the chair had even warmed, when she saw Nanny Zhang enter with a beaming smile, calling the maids to help her bathe and dress.
“Why is the Crown Princess still dawdling?” Nanny Zhang stood behind Lin Yuanjin, speaking with pointed meaning. “His Highness the Crown Prince has drunk deer blood raw, full of youthful vigor. Tonight he will certainly need release, and has already sent word.”
Perhaps because she had suffered before, this time Lin Yuanjin’s monthly bleeding came quickly and left quickly as well, ending in merely three or four days.
Lin Yuanjin looked at Nanny Zhang’s smiling face through the mirror, suddenly recalling the reward mentioned by the Crown Prince that morning. Her whole body turned cold, as if she could not breathe, even losing the strength to stand.
Her reflection in the mirror was pale, as if she had not yet recovered from a serious illness.
Who it was that drank the deer blood raw, who it was that would come to favor her tonight—Lin Yuanjin could not possibly not know.
She was the Crown Princess; she should smile. But the more Lin Yuanjin tried to lift the corners of her lips, to act as she usually did, the more fear filled her heart.
Her intense resistance made her stomach churn. She desperately wanted to do something, yet reason pinned her firmly in place, leaving her embarrassed yet unable to act, as if she were a fish on the chopping board, about to be cut into pieces.
The young man’s voice echoed in her ears, again and again reminding her, urging her that she was the Crown Princess.
Lin Yuanjin clenched her hands, forcing her lips to curve upward, but in the end, they fell.
