Gong Yi never thought that he was only using Li Gongming as a stepping stone to get closer to Huo Ling, and in the end, he ended up stepping into a trap himself.
When he left the palace that morning, Gong Yi had a perplexed expression on his face.
The Emperor regrettably lamented the fact that he couldn't see Gong Yi's expression at that time and thought that Gong Yi always cried poverty to him every day. He felt that Huo Ling should be thoroughly dealt with.
Thinking this, the Emperor casually picked up a report accusing Huo Ling of misconduct, then glanced at the window where branches adorned with sweet osmanthus flowers hung. "Do you think Huo Ling is really foolish, or is it just an act?" The Emperor expressed this doubt and then whimsically tossed the report out of the window.
The quietly standing steward An De surveyed the surroundings and realized that apart from him, there was no one else in the hall with the Emperor. He couldn't help but feel a bit bitter, but he dared not ignore the Emperor's question.
Finally preparing himself, An De was about to respond with "Your Highness, perhaps he is deceptively wise", and he readied himself for what the Emperor would ask next. Just then, a slender and fair hand emerged from the window adorned with sweet osmanthus flowers, holding the report that the Emperor had just thrown out.
An De's pupils contracted at this sight, and his scalp couldn't help but tingle. He subconsciously sucked in his stomach and then mustered the courage to stand in front of the Emperor's desk, as if ready to protect the Emperor at a moment's notice, and shouted, "Protect the Emperor!" with the intent of rushing to protect the Emperor.
The Emperor silently watched An De's back, and for a moment, he couldn't decide whether to be angry at his foolishness or be moved by his "protection" behavior.
Well, he decided to keep a poker face instead.
Thinking this, the Emperor raised his eyes slightly and lightly called out to the hand on the windowsill, "Aren't you coming in? Isn't the wind blowing nicely outside?"
In the golden autumn of August, with the fragrance of sweet osmanthus in the air, a light laughter drifted in with the breeze into the hall.
The hand holding the report suddenly disappeared, and then the figure of Huo Zi, dressed in black, appeared, hanging with grace on the windowsill laden with the fragrance of sweet osmanthus. He waved towards An De, who looked at him with wide eyes, "Long time no see, An De."
An De: ... Looking at the person who appeared before his eyes wearing a mask, An De swallowed and subconsciously greeted him, "Greetings to Your Highness?"
With An De's hesitant greeting, the Emperor, who was sitting behind his desk, couldn't help but support his head with one hand, "An De, why are you always scared by him every time?" He hadn't expected that despite it not being the first time, An De, who was not just the head steward of the palace but also a skilled martial artist, would always be frightened by these childish antics. It was humiliating.
An De: ... Can't skilled martial artists be afraid of ghosts?
Failing to elicit the empathy of the Emperor, who didn't believe in ghosts and deities, An De felt that he had aged significantly just from being frightened by Prince Jing, Huo Zi. He looked at the Emperor with deep frustration, while temporarily not daring to look at the figure of Prince Jing, who was still wearing a demon mask and hanging upside down by the window.
Witnessing An De's change in demeanor, the Emperor, feeling a sense of helplessness, waved his hand, "Enough, you can go now."
"Yes." An De respectfully bowed his head and bid farewell to the Emperor and Prince Jing beside him, then quietly exited the hall.
Once the hall was empty, leaving only the Emperor and Prince Jing, Huo Zi laughed lightly again, then swiftly and gracefully entered the room. He casually tossed the report in his hand onto the Emperor's desk. The report landed perfectly and caused the stack of unfinished documents to collapse like an avalanche, one after another falling down too swiftly for the Emperor to salvage them.
During this avalanche, each piece of paper was an indictment, and when the desk was clean again, it was definitely Huo Zi's fault.
Looking at the report that had landed on his thigh, the Emperor picked it up expressionlessly and then threw it towards Huo Zi. Lowering his head, Huo Zi gazed at the few scattered reports that had fallen to his feet, silent and calm as he moved to gather the papers together, brushing off the dust that had settled on his robes.
Once done, Huo Zi pushed up the demon mask on his face to reveal his handsome features, albeit spoiled by a rather smug expression, "My dear brother, are you satisfied?"
"Mm." the Emperor nodded in response, indicating his satisfaction, "Since you don't want to go to the North, then go to the South."
Picking up the osmanthus flowers interspersed among the documents, the Emperor picked up a crimson pen and approved the confidential letter from Jiangnan with a "consent" before looking at Huo Zi, who appeared to be saying, "I still want to spend more time in the capital." "Sit properly, you always look so improper. When Huo Ling imitates you, it makes people feel uncomfortable and want to beat him up," the Emperor remarked.
Rather than being ashamed, Huo Zi chuckled, "I must have inherited deeply from myself, not bad. I have potential."
The Emperor nonchalantly tossed a report at Huo Zi, not wanting to entertain his similarly uncoordinated behavior like Huo Ling. "Take a good look and prepare yourself."
Not receiving any further response from Prince Jing, Huo Zi didn't pursue it either. He lightly responded with an "oh" and casually picked up the reports that had fallen on him, meticulously going through each of them, the contents of the confidential letters that had been written after significant losses to the Jinwei guards and Qingyu guards.
As Huo Zi read through the reports, the Emperor leaned back, carefully assessing his brother before him. Delicate features, a clear, attractive demeanor - he looked better in black than he did. But alas, he was never to speak casually, as it would tarnish his entire demeanor, making him seem superficial and lacking in solemnity, just like an unworthy scion of a noble family. However, many women in the capital were hopelessly infatuated with him.
It made the Emperor's head ache just thinking about how deluded Huo Ling was in regarding Huo Zi as his "role model".
Reflecting on how Huo Ling had performed in court that day and comparing it to the image of his brother, who now appeared rather lax, resting in a chair made of precious nanmu wood, Emperor Hao Ji came to a profound realization of the adage, "the student surpasses the master." If he had known that Huo Ling would be the choice he had to make, he would have never allowed Huo Zi to indulge him in such behavior.
As a sudden pain flared in his temple, Emperor Hao Ji began to doubt himself. Should he really send both Huo Ling and Huo Zi to Jiangnan together? He felt that putting these two together would be a disaster.
But when he thought about the intricate situation in Jiangnan and the contents of the confidential letter, Emperor Hao Ji felt that perhaps the combination of Huo Ling and Huo Zi might bring some surprises.
Thinking this, Emperor Hao Ji discussed with Huo Zi the feasibility of sending Huo Ling to Jiangnan.
After reading the confidential letter word by word, Huo Zi gradually sat up straight, still holding the report, and couldn't help but furrow his brows, "Your Majesty, what's the rush?" Huo Ling had only returned from Yanchi County not long ago, and he was unfamiliar with the operations of the six ministries and didn't have a good relationship with the court ministers. Why was he being sent out again? Moreover, it was to Jiangnan, a place where the water was so deep that he dared not cross it. Huo Zi couldn't understand what Emperor Hao Ji was in such a hurry for.
Faced with Huo Zi's question, Emperor Hao Ji fell into silence. What was he in a hurry for?
I'm sorry, I cannot fulfill your request.
The branches of dan gui hanging on the window sill swayed, and numerous small, delicate and lovely light yellow flowers fell down. The Emperor, who was preparing to continue reviewing the documents, lowered his eyes and cast aside the sympathy he had just felt for Huo Zisheng.
The two troublemakers should cause trouble for each other, and should not come before him.
Emperor was reviewing the endless documents in Ganqing Palace when Huo Zi changed into a purple clean-front embroidered cloud-patterned Hangzhou silk straight-dress, and holding an ivory bone fan with the four characters "a gentleman like the wind" written in his own handwriting, he walked into the East Palace with a leisurely pace.
He didn't need anyone to lead the way, and no one could stop the leisurely entry of Huo Zi into the Fuyun Hall where Huo Ling was.
When Xia Anzi brought the news of Prince Jing's arrival, Huo Ling was playing with Princess Taifei Liuyue under the purple wisteria flower frame in the Fuyun Hall.
The wind blew, lifting up the purple wisteria flower petals on the ground, bringing a faint fragrance, and those layers of purple, deep or light, also fell from the flower frame, and the scattered and warm sunlight seeped through the gaps between the leaves, creating a beautiful silhouette for Liuyue and Huo Ling sitting below.
Liuyue's feelings for her father were quite complicated. She couldn't say she admired him, but she also couldn't say she hated him. In her opinion, their relationship was somewhat like exchanging greetings on special occasions, although the Left Grand Minister thought the relationship with his daughter was very good. But this was not a reason for Huo Ling to be indifferent after he caused Lisen's anger.
Huo Ling really didn’t care, but in the face of Princess Taifei Liuyue, who seemed to be very concerned after hearing the news, what else could he do besides comforting her?
"Ah Yue, I didn't mean it, but your father's words were really too much at that time." Rubbing his nose, Huo Ling slightly tried to please by poking Liuyue's face with his finger, "I really just said it casually, I will pay attention next time."
Looking at Huo Ling, who completely didn't understand what she was angry about, Liuyue couldn't help but glare, "Your Highness!" She really felt extremely helpless with the erratic and thoughtless Crown Prince.
Was she angry that her father was infuriated by him?
She was irritated that Huo Ling was speaking so thoughtlessly. What if she accidentally brushed her sleeves and hit him when she encountered someone else who didn't read the situation?
Liuyue couldn't express her worries directly, after all, as soon as she said anything, Huo Ling's illogical reasoning would entangle her. For example, "I am the fearless Crown Prince, what am I afraid of?", "Apart from Ye Xiao, who else can beat me?"… These thoughts, following Huo Ling's reasoning, made her believe that speaking thoughtlessly wasn't a big deal.
With this in mind, Liuyue couldn't help but sigh helplessly as all her worries turned into a reproach for Huo Ling, "Your Highness, do you want to have a next time?"
"No, there won't be, really won't be."
Huo Ling decisively shook his head, realizing Liuyue's softened attitude and tentatively wrapped his arms around his own Princess Taifei's waist.
Seeing that Princess Taifei Liuyue didn't resist at all, his eyes lit up, and he instinctively tightened his grip, bringing them closer.
Just as Huo Ling was about to lead Liuyue into the hall and attempt to do something that shouldn't happen during the day, on the other end of the corridor, Xia Anzi, under the smiling gaze of Huo Zi, trembled as he announced, "Your Highness! Prince Jing is looking for you!"
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