Huo Ling failed to convince his respected and beloved imperial father, but he did not give up.
When he arrived at the Yushu Palace, Huo Ling headed straight for the martial arts training ground specially arranged for Concubine Ye, walking so fast that Xiao Anzi couldn't keep up with him.
He almost collided with a palace maid who was trying to get close to Huo Ling, and in the blink of an eye, Xiao Anzi couldn't see Huo Ling anymore.
Xiao Anzi: "...". Is the prince really as lazy as he used to be? He dared not call out or ask, fearing that he might become a scapegoat.
Feeling like crying inside, but maintaining a cheerful demeanor, Xiao Anzi struck up a conversation with the passing maids, hoping they could lead him to the Crown Prince, who he had never visited at the Yushu Palace training ground.
...
When Huo Ling arrived alone at the training ground, Lady Ye, dressed in red, was wielding a whip.
Under the midday sun, the whip cast heavy shadows.
With each flick of Lady Ye's wrist, there were deadly moves, but Huo Ling only half-understood them, unlike the palace maids, Lu Yi and Lu E, who were clapping and cheering from the side.
"Great! Wonderful! Absolutely amazing!"
"Lady Ye is amazing!!!"
The applause from the two maids greatly satisfied Lady Ye, and she wielded the whip even more forcefully.
Graceful, like a startled swan, and elegant, like a wandering dragon.
Lady Ye, a beauty, though unappreciated by the emperor for her beauty, did not let that stop her from appreciating her own beauty. Even when training or wielding a whip, she dressed exquisitely and regally, with a graceful bearing.
Seeing Lady Ye training, Huo Ling did not interrupt her, but stood quietly to the side. As Lady Ye noticed him and approached, the two maids, eager to please, struck up a conversation.
"Today's outfit of Lady Consort is taking her 'beauty' to new heights. It's hard to judge," he dared not look for too long.
Lu Yi earnestly replied, "Lady Consort has always been beautiful."
Lu E concurred, "Yes."
Huo Ling: ... Are you serious?
As a self-proclaimed connoisseur, Huo Ling simply could not appreciate his mother's ostentatious dress sense of adorning herself with bright colors, embroidery, jewels, and pearls. With no words, he braced himself and looked on.
Just as he stopped speaking, a whip suddenly struck near Huo Ling's feet. He jumped back in shock, "Mother! What are you doing?" If a whip comes out of nowhere, will it not harm the innocent?
"What am I doing?" Lady Ye stood with her hand on her hip, and sneered at Huo Ling, "Xiao Wu, do you have no understanding as to why I'm doing this?" She swung the whip, and the one that had made Huo Ling break out in a cold sweat returned to her wrist.
Huo Ling: ... Alright, he should just be quiet.
As she put away the whip, Lady Ye stood in place, slightly lowered her eyes, and allowed Lu Yi and Lu E to wipe her sweat, straighten her clothes, and, of course, touch up her makeup.
Huo Ling was used to Lady Ye's ways, so as she touched up her makeup, he took a seat and patiently waited for her to finish "busy" work.
During this time, Xiao Anzi also finally arrived at the training ground. However, before he could explain the trials and tribulations of the journey he faced to Huo Ling, he was dismissed by him.
"Alright, go wait outside the Yushu Palace for me. I'll be out soon."
His expression frozen, Xiao Anzi glanced at Lady Ye in the yard and then at Huo Ling, who didn't even look at him, and fell silent. He silently bowed and left the Yushu Palace, led by the maid who had brought him here.
-So, what was the point of him following them?
Meanwhile, the manager of An De, who was still trying to comfort the emperor, "Guess?"
After Lady Ye finished touching up her makeup, she checked herself in the mirror and, satisfied with the result, handed the mirror to Lu Yi, while she elegantly walked over to Huo Ling.
"Speak, what do you want with me?"
He had the patience to wait for her for so long? Her son was indeed improving.
Thinking this, Lady Ye lazily covered her mouth as she yawned. She just wanted to finish dealing with Huo Ling quickly, so she could take a nap.
When Huo Ling was finally acknowledged, he quickly stood up, smiling at Lady Ye to please her, and helped her to sit down. "Lady Consort, what are you saying? Can't I come to see you just because I have nothing else to do?"
"And why were you taking the queen to fish without me? Is there something between us to discuss?"
Huo Ling: ... He couldn't help but mutter under his breath, "Even if I wanted to take her, you can't leave the palace."
"What did you say?" she glared.
"Ah, nothing."
With a dry cough, Huo Ling grinned at Concubine Ye and did not want to continue to experience Concubine Ye's logic. He hurriedly stated his purpose - if he didn't say it, the palace gate would be locked soon.
In short, Huo Ling's request could be summed up in one sentence - "Dear mother, please use your abilities to make me the 'Fifth Prince'."
After understanding what help Huo Ling wanted from her, Concubine Ye blinked lightly, concealing the changing expressions in her eyes. She helplessly smiled and poked Huo Ling's head with her fingers, "You say there's nothing important, so you can't come find me? You say it without any guilt, just listening to it makes me blush for you."
Huo Ling chuckled and rubbed the back of his head, "Mother, I really don't want to be the Crown Prince."
The next moment, Huo Ling's face drooped, revealing an expression of "life is not worth living." "Make me the Crown Prince? I really want to die."
Before Huo Ling could finish his complaint, Concubine Ye slapped his shoulder, "You, what's with all this talk about living or dying? It's not auspicious!"
Staggering from the slap, Huo Ling gritted his teeth, changed his wording, "I want to live! I want to live!" So why should he be made the Crown Prince? Was Da Zhou really about to perish?
"So, mother, please help me."
Seeing Huo Ling's sincere desire not to be the Crown Prince, Concubine Ye's expression became a bit hard to explain. "The way you say it, it sounds even more pitiful."
Huo Ling: "Um..."
"Don't 'um,' you are not a child anymore."
"Oh."
Watching as he wiped his face with his sleeve and suddenly cried like a desperate puppy, suppressing the burgeoning sense of amusement in her heart, Concubine Ye struggled to show a sympathetic expression as she patted Huo Ling's head and comforted him softly.
"My son, I also sympathize with you, but I really can't do anything." Even though she did not understand why Huo Ling would think to ask her for help in such matters, Concubine Ye maintained a smile on her face. "Your Mother's position as a royal concubine was bestowed by the Duke of Dingguo's estate. You also know that I have no say in front of the Emperor. Instead of finding me, why don't you ask for help from your grandfather and cousin?"
"At the very least, you have your father-in-law."
"I don't want to be beaten up by my cousin."
Based on his understanding of his cousin Ye Xiao over the years, Huo Ling was sure that when he sought him out, his cousin would definitely beat him up first, then ask why he didn't want to be the Crown Prince, and only then consider whether to help him. Moreover, his grandfather would not stop his cousin, because his grandfather had been wanting to get a chance to beat him up for a long time.
His cousin didn't even care about the face of the former Crown Prince Huo Li, let alone him. He just liked to beat him up - especially him, with no reason.
As for his father-in-law, who had offended everyone in the court including the Emperor, how could he help him with anything?
After thinking it over, he could only try his luck with Concubine Ye, after all...
"Aren't you close with the Empress?"
"...If it's the kind of relationship where not being together for a day would make the Emperor feel something is missing, then my relationship with the Empress is indeed good. But," Concubine Ye looked at Huo Ling with a meaningful expression, "My son, you're too late."
"Huh?"
"The day the Emperor signed the decree making you the Crown Prince and stamped it with the royal seal, the Empress went to the Temple of Heaven with the things she wanted to take, and the people she wanted to take, to pray." Tapping her fingernail, Concubine Ye did not know how she felt when she saw the Empress with white hair that night.
"I feel she won't be coming back." Patting Huo Ling's shoulder - this time she lightened her grip, Concubine Ye summarized, "So you'll have to figure it out yourself."
Even though Concubine Ye managed to maintain a difficult and sympathetic look, the evident hint of schadenfreude still made Huo Ling keenly and tangibly feel it.
"Are you really my mother?"
--- He didn't ruin her "Concubine Dream," so why treat him like this? Was he really her own child?
"If you're not my child, could you have lived for this long?"
--- He'd have been dealt with along with the Emperor long ago, okay?
In the exchange of gazes, Concubine Ye and Huo Ling, carrying suspicious expressions, reached a consensus.
Huo Ling: "You really can't be relied on."
Concubine Ye: "I just enjoy a bit of schadenfreude."
Frustrated by his failed attempts, Huo Ling dropped his face, looking at Concubine Ye confidently and even with a hint of disdain for her being disturbed during her nap. Smelling the scent of chili on his sleeve, Huo Ling began to consider the feasibility of crying at her feet to change her mind.
Unfortunately, Concubine Ye seemed to sense Huo Ling's intention. Before he could act, she had already picked up the whip coiled around her wrist.
Feeling the threat from his affectionate mother, Huo Ling, who knew the times, chose to give up. After a conversation about their "mother-son relationship," with an unwavering smile, he was escorted by his mother to the gate of the Jade Groom Palace.
Seeing Huo Ling off at the palace gate, facing the little servant from the Qianqing Palace, Concubine Ye waved her hand at Huo Ling with a smile, "Come play again when you have the time."
Huo Ling: "Oh."
As he turned to walk away, Concubine Ye suddenly thought of something and called out to Huo Ling, "Little Five."
"Uh?"
Huo Ling reflexively turned around and met Concubine Ye's extremely bright smile.
The sunlight scattered on Concubine Ye's face, blurring her features, making it impossible for Huo Ling to see her expression, only the glittering hairpin on her head.
But without seeing her expression clearly, Huo Ling still knew that she was gloating.
Because he heard his mother's "instructions."
"After becoming the Crown Prince, remember to study well in the study."