Chapter 460: Willing to Be Your Pawn
I have complained before, resented the unfairness of fate. But all these past grievances and resentments suddenly dissipated the moment I met you.
My eyes no longer held hatred or complaints, only yearning and desire for you.
You are the one who makes me forget all unhappiness and pain, filling my heart with tenderness and gratitude.
Shen Xihe suddenly regretted her earlier unconscious sigh. At that moment, she had only thought of his childhood experiences and couldn't help but speak out, which again made him beam with delight and become glib.
With an almost imperceptible sigh, Shen Xihe changed the subject: "There's something I've never been able to understand."
"Oh?" Xiao Huayong became interested, his silver-glowing eyes shifting. "Is there something in this world that even Youyou can't figure out?"
Ignoring his playful tone, Shen Xihe said seriously: "I'm neither Zhuge Liang reincarnated nor a prophet. How could I possibly calculate everything?"
"Youyou is right. Just ask away - I've been looking forward to being able to solve your doubts." Xiao Huayong's tone was ingratiating.
"Why did you arrange for two Hidden Guards?" Shen Xihe could understand every move Xiao Huayong made, except why he sent two Hidden Guards to rescue Yu Sangzi and Gu Qingshu.
To expose His Majesty's private army through their testimony? But they couldn't openly say it. Without evidence, was it just to give the ministers something to speculate about? Was it worth such great effort?
Shen Xihe also didn't believe Xiao Huayong did it purely to push Gu Qingshu and Yu Sangzi into the spotlight. With his vision and breadth of mind, why would he pay attention to two insignificant young ladies who only cared about romance and poetry?
By now, Shen Xihe somewhat understood why Xiao Huayong was drawn to her. It had nothing to do with beauty. For a man like Xiao Huayong, what would move him must be a woman whose intelligence, methods, and vision matched his own.
But he was destined to walk the path of an emperor. How could there be women in this world who would focus on the emperor's path? Even Yu Sangning, who desperately wanted wealth and honor, still thought like an ordinary woman, scheming only for a good marriage and using men to elevate herself. Such women were countless. Having experienced prosperity and hardship, having seen the world, he naturally wouldn't be attracted to such women.
Therefore, Xiao Huayong's move seemed particularly abrupt in the entire chess game, which was why Shen Xihe couldn't figure it out.
After listening, Xiao Huayong chuckled softly, looking at Shen Xihe as if she were a lost darling. His smiling eyes were full of tender affection and doting warmth: "My Youyou, you're really unable to see the forest for the trees."
"Please enlighten me, Your Highness." Shen Xihe wasn't annoyed. She truly hadn't thought of the key point.
Xiao Huayong's gaze grew increasingly tender. He liked her, though her personality wasn't particularly likable. She lacked the vivacity and charm of ordinary women, the gentleness and fragility. She wasn't the type of woman who easily aroused men's protective instincts or affection.
Most of the time, she even surpassed countless men. Such a Shen Xihe was destined to make countless men hesitate. Thus, despite her peerless beauty, no one had expressed admiration for her since she came to the capital. It wasn't because everyone knew she was destined to marry into the royal family, but because few men were willing to marry such a wife.
Her wisdom and breadth of mind, her vision and methods - all would make countless men feel inferior in her presence.But he loved her, feeling that in this world, only she was worthy of him, and only he was worthy of her. Only by being with her day and night could one discover the virtues she possessed that even great scholars and those revered as sages lacked.
For instance, she never avoided her shortcomings, never felt ashamed of what she didn’t know or understand, and never hesitated to seek guidance from those beneath her—this was exemplified perfectly in her.
"Youyou thinks that after all the effort I’ve expended, my goal was merely to pit Jiachen Crown Prince against Your Majesty? That I was only breaking the game, right?" Xiao Huayong asked softly.
"I have never said that Your Highness is a game-breaker. At all times, Your Highness is never passive; you are always the one holding the chess pieces," Shen Xihe replied.
Someone like Xiao Huayong would never be reduced to a pawn. He would not be used by others. No matter how unfavorable the situation, regardless of who initiated the challenge, the conclusion would always be determined by him.
Raising his hand, he showed the Five-Colored Thread Shen Xihe had woven, which he had wrapped around a black chess piece. He waved his wrist before her: "If Youyou is the one holding the pieces, I am willing to become a pawn, to be driven by you, to be invincible for you, as long as you keep me forever in your palm and never cast me aside."
Shen Xihe assumed a speechless expression and quietly watched Xiao Huayong.
Xiao Huayong loved to tease her, but when it was time to be serious, he would answer earnestly. Clearing his throat twice, he straightened his posture: "No, no, Youyou has forgotten. Even before coming to the retreat palace, I said that Your Majesty harbors suspicions about me and would inevitably test me..."
Pausing, Xiao Huayong’s eyes curved slightly, his gaze drifting toward Shen Xihe as he smiled with a hint of triumphant mischief: "From the moment I captured Xun Wang but gained nothing, I began planning a scheme—one to ensnare Your Majesty."
Xun Wang—the name instantly sparked clarity in Shen Xihe. She suddenly understood, then felt both astonished and apprehensive: "Your Highness intentionally provoked Your Majesty’s suspicions to force him into taking action against you. Starting with dealing with Xiao Changtai, you left traces step by step. Because the more Your Majesty perceives you as unfathomable and ambiguous, the more cautious he becomes.
Last year, too many incidents occurred, giving Your Majesty a sense of lurking dangers around him. If he believes everything is Your Highness’s doing, he wouldn’t dare to use the people close to him lightly, as he cannot be sure which places are free from your eyes and ears."
Since he wouldn’t dare to use these people, he would have to deploy the Invincible Army—first, for secrecy, and second, to test whether the blade he had nurtured for so many years was sharp enough.
Your Majesty probably never imagined that, from start to finish, Xiao Huayong’s true target was the Invincible Army.
As he spoke, his eyes shifted back, settling on a point with a gaze as sharp as an eagle’s: "I captured Your Majesty’s men."
The bodies dragged back matched the count, but Your Majesty hadn’t seen every one of them and couldn’t possibly remember every face. He had captured eleven people. Given Your Majesty’s cautious nature, he would inevitably summon the one who trained them to verify.
To prevent Your Majesty from bringing people to identify them at this time and to make him hesitate, it was necessary to let the court officials know that Your Majesty was raising a private army—and using state funds to do so—so that the ministers would keep a close watch on him.After three to five days, regardless of whether Your Majesty had secretly disposed of the body, the corpse would have already decomposed beyond recognition during this transitional period between summer and autumn.
This was precisely the purpose behind the Hidden Guard's rescue operation.
(End of Chapter)
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