The imperial study was filled with the thick scent of ambergris. The eunuch standing to the side kept his head bowed, a thin layer of sweat breaking out on his forehead.
The Emperor sat behind the dragon desk, an urgent secret report laid out in front of him.
The Second Prince's voice trembled uncontrollably. He saw the Emperor's complexion worsening by the second, but he still bit the bullet and continued speaking.
"Imperial Father, the national treasury is currently empty, so it is truly unsuitable to wage war." He wiped the sweat from his forehead and whispered, "If we could exchange a princess for peace, there are several imperial sisters in the palace..."
The Emperor sneered coldly and threw the secret report right into the Second Prince's face. "Utterly absurd!"
Terrified, the Second Prince immediately dropped to his knees. "Your son wouldn't dare... Your son is merely afraid of harming the people's livelihood..."
Xiao Yanchen stood quietly to the side. "Imperial Father, your son has already interrogated the three leaders of the Western Regions' diplomatic mission."
"This marriage alliance is fake; their true intention is to test the capital's military strength. Second Brother's strategy is nothing more than inviting wolves into the house. Your son has now locked down the posthouse. What does Imperial Father think?"
The Emperor frowned as he listened to Xiao Yanchen, but his gaze finally softened a bit.
Although he did not like his seventh son, the boy was just like the Empress—ultimately loyal and steadfast.
Looking at the kneeling Second Prince, the Emperor felt extremely irritated.
Sure enough, with a mother like the Noble Consort, how excellent could the prince she raised possibly be?
The Second Prince naturally noticed the Emperor's look, and panic immediately set in his heart.
Without the Noble Consort's support, and with Chief Minister Lin also being suppressed, he was now completely isolated and without help.
After the Second Prince returned to his bedchamber, a eunuch immediately came up to greet him, his eyes full of excitement.
"Second Prince, a secret report came from over there. It says that the Seventh Prince has an intimately close relationship with his study companion, and they even sleep in the same bed."
The Second Prince's eyes widened instantly. He looked at the eunuch beside him and asked anxiously, "What else?!"
The eunuch's face was also full of joy. He lowered his voice: "Your Highness, there are a few lowly maidservants in Ruhui Palace who nominally do rough chores."
He paused and leaned close to the prince's ear. "But their true identity is actually seamstresses who sew menstrual belts."
The Second Prince's eyes turned red, and laughter squeezed through his teeth. Hearing this good news, he laughed so hard he could barely stand straight.
"My good seventh brother. I didn't expect him to play the game of keeping a mistress in a golden house. Then I must go and meet this seventh sister-in-law of mine. It truly must be hard on her."
Xiao Yanchen was still in the imperial study at this time. The Second Prince didn't hesitate for a moment, the smile on his face twisting maliciously.
"Go call the people from the Internal Affairs Department. Tell them to do what they used to do. I want them to verify her body right in front of me."
The eunuch beside him immediately went to summon the Internal Affairs Department.
At this time, Ruhui Palace was very quiet. Several palace maids were hiding in the shade of the trees to cool off.
Bang!
The door was suddenly kicked open, and the guards outside hurriedly stopped the eunuchs from the Internal Affairs Department.
"No one is allowed to step into Ruhui Palace without the Seventh Prince's orders!"
The eunuchs from the Internal Affairs Department squeezed inside miserably. They didn't want to enter either, but the Second Prince had suddenly rushed into the Internal Affairs Department with red eyes, threatening to execute their nine generations if they didn't investigate.
The guards at the door blocked the entrance desperately, their faces full of coldness.
"As expected of Ruhui Palace. Even the guards put on such great airs."
A voice suddenly came from the back of the crowd.
The eunuchs from the Internal Affairs Department quickly moved aside, clearing a path in the middle.
The Second Prince stared fixedly at the guards guarding the door, his eyes full of coldness. "What? Not even the Internal Affairs Department can enter to conduct an inspection? How bold of you all!"
The guards kept their heads down, defending the door to the death. "Forgive us, Second Prince, but the Seventh Prince has given a strict order forbidding anyone from entering Ruhui Palace."
The Second Prince sneered coldly. "Forbidding anyone? Xiao Xizi has committed the crime of deceiving the Emperor. Do you all want to lose your heads?!"
Seeing that the Second Prince was about to die of anger, the people from the Internal Affairs Department symbolically pushed the guards, but couldn't move them.
At this moment, Ji Zhaoxi was hiding darkly in the gap of the window, staring out.
The palace maid next to her glanced at her.
Seeing that these guards simply refused to step aside, the Second Prince angrily drew his sword. "Fine! Let's see if you'll move or not!"
Just as the sword was about to pierce the guard at the door.
Crack!
A hand tightly gripped the Second Prince's wrist, and the sound of breaking bones suddenly echoed in the air.
"Ahhh!"
A miserable scream pierced the clouds. Before the surrounding people could even react, the Second Prince's hand was violently twisted and broken. He fell to the ground from the intense pain.
"Who did Second Brother just say he wanted to verify?" Xiao Yanchen looked at him gently, his tone very light.
The Second Prince on the ground clutched his hand desperately, trembling incessantly from the pain. The eunuch beside him quickly stepped in front to protect the Second Prince.
"The Internal Affairs Department has plenty of manpower. Breaking a few pairs of hands won't matter much. But if Second Brother's hands are also restless..."
The eunuchs from the Internal Affairs Department nearby quickly shrank their hands behind their backs.
Xiao Yanchen chuckled lightly. "I wouldn't mind twisting off Second Brother's hands, along with Second Brother's head."
"Xiao Yanchen, I'm going to tell Imperial Father! That Xiao Xizi is a woman! You've kept a woman by your side since childhood, doing those filthy things every day!"
The Second Prince fell into a fit of madness, his voice extremely shrill.
Xiao Yanchen's expression grew colder and colder. He grabbed the Second Prince from the ground and violently slammed him backward, pinning him tightly against the red wall behind them.
With a muffled thud, the Second Prince felt as if his internal organs had been shaken out of shape. His face instantly turned pale, his eyes began to lose focus, and his voice came to an abrupt halt.
The eunuchs beside them knelt on the ground shivering, terrified that they would be next.
It wasn't until they saw Xiao Yanchen enter Ruhui Palace that the eunuchs outside finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Hiding in the corner and observing seriously, Ji Zhaoxi looked through the gap with a dumbfounded expression.
Why was the doorway blocked? She couldn't see anything.
Just then, she was suddenly pulled into a warm embrace. The palace maid beside her quickly lowered her head and retreated.
Xiao Yanchen buried his face in Ji Zhaoxi's arms, rubbing against her incessantly. His eyes were red. "Xixi, I was scared to death just now. I thought I was going to lose you."
Ji Zhaoxi looked at him in silence.
She had just heard the Second Prince's screams. It couldn't possibly have been those eunuchs beating the Second Prince, could it?
Xiao Yanchen carried Ji Zhaoxi to the soft couch, his eyes wet. "Xixi, can you comfort me a little? My hand hurts so much."
His hands restlessly wrapped around her waist, wishing he could melt himself into her body. Seeing that Ji Zhaoxi didn't speak, his voice grew even more aggrieved.
"Bad Xixi. You bullied me when we were little, and you still bully me now that we're grown. How can you be so bad..."
Ji Zhaoxi's ears were incredibly red. She covered his mouth and glared at him, her eyes full of misty moisture.
"Stop talking nonsense! When have I ever bullied you!"
She told him not to wash the clothes, but he insisted on doing it anyway.
Xiao Yanchen pressed against Ji Zhaoxi's neck, feeling the rhythm of her pulse. His lips inadvertently brushed against her skin as he buried his head and acted spoiled.
"Then can Xixi give me a kiss?"
He tilted his head up slightly, not blinking an eye, looking incredibly well-behaved.
Ji Zhaoxi was flushed and red-eared from his rubbing. She avoided his gaze, her eyes landing on the scar on his brow bone.
She slowly leaned down. They were so close that her scent completely filled his senses, leaving Xiao Yanchen momentarily dazed. Her lips, carrying a faint coolness, pressed gently against the scar on his brow bone.
Feeling the soft touch on his brow, Xiao Yanchen stared at her in a trance.
Ji Zhaoxi turned her head away awkwardly. "Is that enough?"
Xiao Yanchen buried his face deeply into her embrace, giving a muffled hum of agreement.
