A gentleman is like a mirror, reflecting others' flaws.
For a moment, Shen Xihe felt that discussing schemes and intrigues with the man before her was a form of desecration.
"I understand that you, Princess, are constrained by circumstances yet unwilling to simply yield," Xiao Huayong's magnanimity and empathy were deeply moving. "Over these years, you are the first person who still holds hope for me, this Crown Prince in name only. I will spare no effort to maneuver on your behalf in return for your regard."
"Your Highness, are you truly content with this?" Shen Xihe asked solemnly.
"Heaven has not bestowed it upon me, but this is not due to my own lack of ambition." A trace of melancholy tinged Xiao Huayong's words. "I am not destined for longevity. Rather than exhausting myself pursuing illusory things, I prefer to cherish the present and live for today's joys."
"Your Highness believes those predictions?" Shen Xihe pressed further. "Have you considered what you would do if one day you were granted long life?"
"Princess, my refusal to contend does not mean I await death passively." Xiao Huayong spoke with heartfelt sincerity. "Otherwise, how could what you entrusted to me remain safely in my hands until now?"Showing weakness must be done just right—if this young woman knew he had no means of self-preservation, she would surely discard him like a worthless pawn."
This indeed should be the true bearing of a son of the imperial family, Shen Xihe thought with slight satisfaction. "Since it has been entrusted to Your Highness, I shall defer to your judgment."
What a deeply cautious young woman! His sincere confession had failed to move her at all.
Her calm rationality and clarity made him view her with renewed respect.
Xiao Huayong chuckled inwardly while maintaining a gentle exterior. "I shall hand it over to Second Brother. He is upright and would never show favoritism. Those who commit evil deserve severe punishment."
Shen Xihe offered no comment, as if avoiding the topic to maintain distance.
Xiao Huayong coughed several times. Just then, a eunuch knelt at the doorway and reported, "Your Highness, the Third and Sixth Princes have invited you to watch a polo match."
"Princess, would you care to see the capital's polo games?" Xiao Huayong inquired.
Shen Xihe declined with a shake of her head. "Zhaoning does not enjoy such pastimes."
"Neither do I," Xiao Huayong smiled. "Unlike my robust brothers, I have never played polo. Every time I watch from the stands, it grows tedious after a while."
Tianyuan understood immediately and told the eunuch, "Inform the Third and Sixth Princes that the Crown Prince has a guest."
Noticing Shen Xihe about to speak, likely to take her leave, Xiao Huayong preempted her. "Princess, you seem quite interested in plants. I have collected numerous exotic flowers and rare trees—would you care to view them?"
Truth be told, Shen Xihe genuinely wanted to see these rare plants in the Eastern Palace. She intended to inquire about their origins so she could acquire some for her own Princess Manor.
Thus, Shen Xihe followed Xiao Huayong to view the scenery. However, Xiao Huayong did not forget his frail health—after introducing one garden, he appropriately showed signs of exhaustion. Shen Xihe then took her leave. Though reluctant, Xiao Huayong did not press her to stay.
"Your Highness, the Princess has departed." Tianyuan returned only after escorting Shen Xihe out of the palace.
By now, Xiao Huayong had already removed his heavy cloak. He stood beneath a pomegranate tree—it was the fruiting season, and unripe fruits peeked greenly through the branches.
"Your Highness, why did you even deceive the Princess?" Tianyuan wondered aloud. "When we were traveling abroad, you said that honesty is paramount between spouses after hearing about couples causing fatal incidents due to misunderstandings."Your Highness and the Lady Junzhu are not yet husband and wife, so Tianyuan naturally doesn’t think His Highness should bare his heart completely at this point. But he shouldn’t guard against her as he does against those others either. Otherwise, when the Lady Junzhu eventually learns everything, how will His Highness explain it?
"I may be false, but she isn’t genuine either." The two of them—one seemingly understanding and considerate, the other as if confiding from the heart—were both, in fact, acting.
The difference was, he clearly knew she was acting, while she might not realize his intentions were entirely feigned.
"Tianyuan, when a wolf wants to eat a sheep, and the sheep is clever, how do you hunt it?" Xiao Huayong asked, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Tianyuan scratched his head. If a wolf wants to eat a sheep, no matter how clever the sheep is, it still can’t outrun the wolf.
Besides, wolves hunt in packs!
Clearly, Tianyuan couldn’t keep up with his master’s train of thought, and Xiao Huayong didn’t expect him to be particularly sharp: "Disguise yourself as the grass the sheep loves to eat."
The highest form of hunting is to masquerade as the prey’s prey.
Whatever she desired, he would become.
Shen Xihe returned to the manor and also found herself thinking about Xiao Huayong.
He fit her needs perfectly, like a pillow offered just as drowsiness set in.
Not foolish, yet not cunning; gentle and courteous, tolerant yet not without spirit.
A man like this, if he were to fall deeply in love with her, would surely fight for her with all his might in his lifetime.
Even if he couldn’t clear all the obstacles, with him as the vanguard, her own path would be much smoother. She could handle the rest herself.
Everything was going so smoothly.
Yet, precisely because it was too smooth, Shen Xihe disliked the feeling. It felt deceptive, luring one into complacency and dependence, only to send them crashing down in the end.
The result would be—utter destruction.
This Crown Prince—she would have to observe him further. Fortunately, she hadn’t yet reached the age of maturity, so she still had time to take it slow.
For now, she would deal with the matters concerning Kang Manor and Xuanping Marquis Manor.
"Mo Yuan, arrange some matters for me," Shen Xihe instructed, listing out a series of tasks.
As soon as she entered her fragrant chamber, the well-ventilated bedroom carried a faint, sharp scent of borneol.
Shen Xihe remained composed. She lit the incense she had prepared herself and deliberately kept Biyu and the others nearby. She even picked up needlework by the window, engaging in the long-unpracticed craft of embroidery.
Her embroidery skills were decent, though she seldom indulged in it. Since she was putting on a show, she casually fixed a handkerchief onto the embroidery hoop. On a whim, she embroidered a Fairy Ribbon along the corner of the handkerchief.
Outside the courtyard, Hongyu and Ziyu were chatting about their experiences at the Eastern Palace. Shen Xihe focused intently on her needlework, and the lifelike Fairy Ribbon soon took shape on the handkerchief. About a quarter of an hour later, a sound came from the roof beam, and Biyu also began to feel dizzy.
Moyu, alert to the disturbance, swiftly entered with her sword drawn and thrust it toward the roof. Xiao Changying, who had already begun to feel dizzy, dodged Moyu’s blade but tumbled down.
"Stop!" Shen Xihe commanded sharply as Moyu prepared to strike the increasingly weakened Xiao Changying.
She set down her embroidery hoop and handed a scented sachet to Biyu. "Prince Lie, a young lady’s chamber is not a place for just anyone to come and go as they please."
Xiao Changying, leaning on his sword to steady himself, saw Shen Xihe’s figure growing increasingly blurred in his vision. "You…" he began, wanting to ask when she had poisoned him, but before he could finish, he lost consciousness.
"My lady, how shall we deal with him?" Biyu asked, taking a few deep breaths of the cool scent from the sachet to keep from fainting.
"Strip him of his clothes and throw him back at the entrance of the Sixteen Princes’ Residence," Shen Xihe ordered calmly.The Sixteen Princes' Residences were where imperial princes lived after moving out of the imperial palace. These princely mansions were clustered together in one area, making all the princes neighbors.
OpenNovel