Reunion in the palace

The East Palace.

Calming incense burned in the bedchamber, making anyone who breathed it drowsy. Xiao Hanye propped his chin on one hand, his eyes half-lidded, an icy indifference seeping from him.

Wu Dequan knew he had been in a foul mood lately and dared not disturb him. He poured a cup of ginseng tea and gently set it beside his hand.

Half a year ago, the crown prince had been ordered to quell a rebellion in Jingzhou. Who could have foreseen that assassins would attack him on his triumphant return to the capital? Lin Zhao, the commander of his shadow guards, had risked his life to protect his master, only to be struck by an arrow and fall off a cliff. Two months had passed without any sign of him, alive or dead. Men had been sent to search, but no good news had come.

Lin Zhao had entered the palace at six and become commander of the East Palace's shadow guards at fifteen through his exceptional martial prowess. Loyal and efficient, he was the sharpest blade in the crown prince's hand-and the person he trusted most.

Now his fate was unknown, and the crown prince slept poorly every night because of it. Wu Dequan wanted to offer some comfort, but whenever the words reached his lips, that brooding expression forced him to swallow them.

Wu Dequan sighed soundlessly. From the corner of his eye, he noticed a young eunuch peering through the doorway and gesturing to him.

Wu Dequan approached with light footsteps. "What is it?"

The young eunuch lowered his voice. "His Majesty sent word that His Highness is to attend a banquet at Purple Dawn Hall before the hour of the Dog."

Wu Dequan was taken aback.

Today isn't any special occasion. Why hold a banquet all of a sudden?

The young eunuch had just bribed the messenger with a bag of chestnuts and picked up a little inside information. "Apparently, the young master at the Chancellor's Residence has recovered. His Majesty is holding the banquet so he can make an appearance and get acquainted with the princes and officials."

Two months earlier, the chancellor had returned from an inspection tour of the South of the Yangtze with a young man. Word was that he had rescued him in the mountains and gone to great lengths to snatch him back from death's door.

Unfortunately, he had lost his memory.

The chancellor had no choice but to bring him home.

The chancellor's wife was Princess Changping, the reigning emperor's beloved youngest sister. Ever since her son had tragically died at the age of two, she had spent years mired in melancholy.

The pitiable yet sweet, well-behaved young man her husband brought home stirred her maternal affection. After discussing it with the chancellor, she decided to adopt him as their son and name him Shen Tingjue.

The princess treated him as her own and showered him with affection. Emperor Chenghuan extended his love for his sister to the boy, sending every fine treasure he acquired to the Chancellor's Residence and letting Shen Tingjue choose first from the allotted tribute gifts.

The story spread far and wide. Over meals and afterward, people spoke of Shen Tingjue's good fortune with both envy and jealousy.

The evening banquet was held in Purple Dawn Hall, its red pillars and golden beams brilliantly lit.

The princess first took Shen Tingjue to the Palace of Benevolent Peace to pay his respects to the empress dowager. With a kindly expression, the empress dowager held his hand and studied him for a long while. The more she looked, the more she liked him, smiling from ear to ear and refusing to let go.

What a beautiful young gentleman. He's even prettier than my grandsons.

Such a shame he's so thin.

The empress dowager took off all six thumb rings she wore and pressed them into Shen Tingjue's hands with lavish generosity. "Keep them all safe. I have plenty of fine treasures."

Emperor Chenghuan knew his mother was showing off again. Naturally unwilling to be outdone, he raised a hand and signaled for a eunuch to present the gifts he had prepared.

Sandalwood smoke curled through the hall, mingling with the fragrance of tea. They chatted about family matters for a while. When it was almost time for the banquet, the empress dowager waved them off. "All right, off you go. Little Jue, whenever you have time, you must come to the palace and keep me company."

Shen Tingjue's lashes tilted slightly upward as he nodded obediently. Then he bowed and took his leave, heading to Purple Dawn Hall with Emperor Chenghuan and the princess.

The instant he appeared, every eye turned toward him.

Dressed in a blue-green robe with a jade belt, the young gentleman possessed an unrivaled elegance. His luminous eyes brimmed with smiles, and he resembled an exquisitely carved piece of jade whose radiance dazzled all around him.

Everyone stared, admiring him for a good long while. No wonder. Who wouldn't love someone so charming?

He was now the cherished darling of the chancellor and the princess, and Emperor Chenghuan had personally held a banquet in his honor. With such imperial favor, his prospects were boundless.

The courtiers were experts at currying favor with the powerful. They raised their cups to toast him, flattering words flowing effortlessly from their lips. Shen Tingjue instinctively disliked such occasions. A polite smile lingered on his lips as he lowered his eyes, longing to get up and leave.

Boring.

At this hour, I should be curled up under the covers, listening to the old steward read me romantic tales.

The second prince, Xiao Chongrui, picked up his cup and approached Shen Tingjue with a smile, intending to strike up a friendly conversation. Before he could, Shen Tingjue suddenly stood, saluted Emperor Chenghuan at the head of the hall, and said he needed to relieve himself.

The old steward had taught him that a bathroom excuse worked anywhere, every time.

Emperor Chenghuan smiled and summoned a eunuch to show Shen Tingjue the way.

Xiao Chongrui watched Shen Tingjue's retreating back, feeling thoroughly snubbed. Gritting his teeth, he discreetly tightened his grip on his cup and returned to his seat. The moment he sat down, a familiar mocking laugh came from beside him.

Xiao Chongrui turned his head, his gaze fierce.

Still smiling, the fourth prince raised his cup and clinked it against his, looking eminently punchable.

Xiao Chongrui's sleeve bulged.

His fist clenched.

Luminous moonlight fell across the pond, where the wind stirred little ripples.

Shen Tingjue had really only wanted to get some fresh air and clear his head. Those people had come to toast him one after another without end. If he had not fled, who knew how much longer he would have had to entertain them?

The eunuch followed with a palace lantern. Seeing him sit on a rock beside the pond to enjoy the breeze, he hesitated for a long while before speaking cautiously. "Young master, the night wind is cold. You've only just recovered from a serious illness. Please don't catch a chill."

Shen Tingjue picked up a pebble and tossed it into the pond, sending ripples across the water. He waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. I'm hard to kill."

The eunuch said, "..."

Well, aren't you impressive.

Just then, footsteps sounded from the other end of the path, accompanied by a voice. "Your Highness, we're already so late, and we haven't brought a greeting gift. That seems rather improper. Shall I go back and prepare something modest?"

Your Highness?

Shen Tingjue paused in the middle of throwing another pebble.

While at the Chancellor's Residence, his father had explained the political situation at court to him.

On the surface, there were four factions: one supported the crown prince, one the second prince, and another the fourth prince. The last remained neutral.

On the way to the palace, his father had repeatedly warned him to be wary of the princes-especially that damned crown prince.

Twenty-three years earlier, the Imperial Astronomical Bureau had reported an anomaly involving the Big Dipper and the Purple Star. At the same time, the empress had given birth to the emperor's eldest son. The bureau calculated his destiny: in Purple Star Astrology, the Martial and Seven Killings stars occupied the Rooster Palace, indicating solitude, ill fortune for those close to him, and a fate seated in a fiercely unyielding palace of the metal element.

The story spread throughout the capital: the eldest prince's fate was cursed by ominous stars.

The people of the Xiao Kingdom deeply believed in spirits and the supernatural. Such an inauspicious fate would surely affect his chances of becoming crown prince. Yet a month later, the head of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau bowed before the emperor and confessed that the imperial noble consort had ordered him to falsify the prince's destiny.

Emperor Chenghuan flew into a rage and had him executed for spreading pernicious falsehoods to deceive the public. The imperial noble consort was spared because she was pregnant and banished to the Cold Palace instead. It was said that every night, she would scream like a madwoman that she had been wronged.

When the eldest prince turned one, he was named crown prince and formally became master of the East Palace. Restless by nature, he began wreaking havoc everywhere at five or six, clambering onto roofs and tearing off tiles. His incorrigible behavior gave the emperor gray hairs.

Even as he grew older, he remained lawless and utterly heedless of discipline. Memorials accusing him piled up like mountains in the Imperial Study. Yet he was also extraordinarily gifted in both civil and military affairs, leaving people torn between love and hatred.

In the autumn of the twelfth year of Chenghuan's reign, Western Xia invaded. The crown prince volunteered to lead the campaign, though he was only fifteen. Within a year, he had amassed countless military achievements and single-handedly founded the Black Tiger Camp, notorious for its cold-blooded bloodlust. He led them on devastating campaigns year after year, harboring a clear ambition to conquer the other kingdoms and unite the realm.

In short: wilful, unpredictable, and fond of war. Not someone to provoke.

Shen Tingjue licked his lips. For some reason, deep down, he was particularly interested in this crown prince.

He stood and turned to look.

The footsteps drew closer, and two men emerged from the shadowy foliage.

Moonlight fell upon them, bringing their figures into sharp relief.

The man in front had sharply defined brows and eyes as cold and clear as autumn waters. That gaze stripped his naturally alluring peach-blossom eyes of all softness, leaving only an imperious chill. He wore a bright yellow robe embroidered with pythons, its gold and silver threads gleaming with regal splendor.

Shen Tingjue blinked instinctively, his breath catching. For an instant, his mind went blank. The pebble in his palm fell with a clack and rolled into the shadows.

Within the few memories he possessed, one event and one person had remained lodged in his mind, haunting his thoughts by day and his dreams by night.

Startled by the falling pebble, Wu Dequan raised his lantern and looked over warily. "Who's there?"

The eunuch hurriedly bowed. "This servant greets Your Highness."

Then he mustered his courage and tugged at Shen Tingjue's sleeve, urging him to kneel as well lest the crown prince charge him with grave disrespect.

Shen Tingjue ignored him. His eyes remained fixed on the face that had appeared countless times in his dreams, his gaze burning too fiercely to overlook.

Xiao Hanye frowned and cast a cold glance his way, only to see him abruptly lift his sleeve to cover his face. Whether it was from shyness or something else, he could not tell.

Xiao Hanye said, "..."

The corner of Wu Dequan's mouth twitched. He stepped forward and snapped, "How dare you! Who are you, and why aren't you kneeling before the crown prince?"

He even dares to hide his face. Such insolence!