RMACAUH Chapter 10
by VolareChapter 10 Chapter 10 I wasn’t full yesterday, let me eat first…
After changing clothes, just as the Empress was about to go to the Emperor to report on leaving the palace, the Emperor’s chief eunuch, Xu Baobao, delivered the imperial token.
“The Emperor heard about the assassination attempt on the Second Prince and knows that the Empress must be worried, so he sent this servant to deliver the token, granting the Empress special permission to leave the palace and visit the Second Prince.”
The Empress had her head maid reward Xu Baobao, “Thank you, Eunuch Xu, for bringing the token, saving me a trip and delaying my time. Please thank the Emperor for me.”
Xu Baobao accepted the generous reward with a respectful expression. “The Empress and the Emperor share a deep and loving bond, so there’s no need to be so formal. If there’s nothing else, this servant will return to report.”
“Eunuch Xu, walk slowly.”
Xu Baobao bowed deeply to Feng Yue, who was sitting inside drinking tea, and happily left with two young eunuchs.
This matter was not to be publicized, and the trip was kept extremely discreet, with only a few imperial guards and four maids accompanying them.
Feng Yue rode his horse in the front with the guards, clearing the way. The estate was more than fifty miles outside the capital, and it would take one and a half hours by carriage.
Empress Chen lifted the curtain and looked at Feng Yue’s pine-like back, a sense of gloom lingering between her brows.
She wondered what had happened between these two children?
Her Yue’er was not a narrow-minded person. Besides, Xiao’er had saved his life when they were young. From that time on, Yue’er regarded this older brother as extremely important. He was a man of great affection, loyalty, and sincerity. Unless Xiao’er had gone too far, Yue’er would not have held those faults in his heart.
But Yue’er had been on the border all these years, and they often exchanged letters. What kind of unresolved knot could there be?
The carriage bumped along the way, finally arriving at Fenghe Estate.
This estate had a good harvest every year, with a serene environment, clear mountains reflected in the water, and green water surrounding it, making it an excellent place for cultivating oneself.
The carriage stopped outside the estate, and the manager called all the workers to the courtyard to welcome the arrival of the Empress and the Guangling Prince.
Seeing the carriage from afar, the manager immediately stepped forward to place the footstool, standing anxiously to the side, waiting.
The Emperor’s countenance was not to be looked upon, and everyone respectfully lowered their heads to pay their respects.
“You may all dispense with the formalities and go about your business.” Empress Chen’s footsteps were hurried, and the swaying of the hairpins on her head made them appear even more radiant.
The manager led the way, and the maid supported her to prevent her from staggering. Feng Yue followed silently behind, helplessly reminding her, “Mother, please walk slower, be careful not to fall.”
These changes had never happened in his previous life. Since he was reborn and made different choices, fate had taken a completely different direction.
One move affects the whole body. In this life, could he achieve a good outcome?
Looking at his mother’s worry because of Feng Xiao’s injury, when he ascended to the supreme position in his previous life, had he treated his mother well for even one day?
Probably not!
If he had truly treated her well, she would not have died of illness just one year after he left.
Feng Xiao, he deserved to die!
At the thought of the past, Feng Yue’s eyes turned bloodshot with hatred. If he could, he really wished he could kill him with one strike!
No, killing him with one strike would not be enough to relieve his hatred. He should learn from his methods of dealing with himself, humiliating and tormenting him, slowly eroding his will, making him wish he could not live or die!
Arriving in front of the bedroom door, Feng Yue stopped, forcefully closed his sore eyes, took a deep breath, calmed the deep-seated hatred in his eyes, and when he opened them again, they were clear, and his face was that of a young man’s innocence.
The window curtains were hooked up, and the man on the couch was struggling to support his thin body, his face as white as paper. Although he looked disheveled, it was still not difficult to see his former elegance.
Seeing Empress Chen, Feng Xiao trembled with excitement, and tears streamed down his face like rain as he cried out in sorrow, “Mother!”
Empress Chen, seeing the child she had raised with her own hands now injured like this, could not help but feel heartache. She hurried forward to support him, “Quick, lie down quickly, my child, you have suffered.”
Mother and son met, their tears wetting their clothes. Empress Chen held his hand tightly, choking with sobs, unable to speak.
“Mother, your son almost didn’t see you again. Fortunately, the heavens took pity and allowed your son to escape death and survive this calamity. Being able to see you today fulfills your son’s wish.”
“Don’t talk nonsense!” Empress Chen calmed herself and wiped the tears from her face with a handkerchief. “You will live a long and healthy life, smooth and peaceful.”
“Your son is truly being wronged!”
Using road construction as an excuse to privately mine oil and line his own pockets, he was clearly very daring. Now he said he was being wronged, it was simply ridiculous!
If the First Prince hadn’t set him up, no one would have known even if the oil mine was emptied.
In his previous life, only he and his mother would have believed this man’s nonsense!
Looking at it now, Feng Yue felt that the Emperor had already taken their father-son relationship into account and punished him lightly.
“Put this matter aside for now. Your priority now is to recover from your injuries. Avoid being depressed and sad, understand?” Empress Chen patted the back of his hand, comforting him. “Don’t be impatient. Haste makes waste. When the time comes, your father will naturally let you go back.”
Feng Yue’s heart skipped a beat. There was something hidden in his mother’s words.
Hearing that there was hope of returning, Feng Xiao was no longer so agitated. He turned his face to look at Feng Yue.
“Third Brother… It’s been many years since we last met. You’ve changed so much. If we met on the road, I’m afraid I wouldn’t recognize you. Our brothers have been separated for too long, and we are indeed estranged.”
Feng Yue clenched his fists in his sleeves. Summoning a stiff smile had already exhausted all his good mood in recent days. He walked forward and stared at his good older brother, who was lying weakly on the sickbed and had personally cut off his legs, heavily exhaling from his nostrils.
“Second Brother, may I take a look at your injury?”
Feng Xiao chuckled, “What’s there to see? It’s bloody. Don’t scare Mother.”
“I’m used to seeing it on the border. As the saying goes, long illness makes the doctor. I think I’m no worse than the imperial physicians when it comes to sword wounds.” Feng Yue was indeed not exaggerating with this sentence.
Seeing his persistence, with a bit of his childhood stubbornness, Feng Xiao sighed helplessly, “Mother, please excuse yourself for a while.”
Empress Chen got up and instructed, “Don’t mess with your Second Brother. The imperial physician is treating this injury very well.”
“Mother doesn’t believe me?”
“It’s not that I don’t believe you, it’s that specialization has its own expertise.” Empress Chen smiled dotingly and had the head maid help her to the side room for tea.
Feng Yue had him take off his upper garment so he could examine the injury.
The injury was on the left side of his waist and abdomen. After untying the bandages, Feng Yue carefully looked at the bloodstain that was more than ten centimeters long. The imperial physician had already sutured it. The incision was very smooth, and there was not much bleeding. The attacker had made the cut in one go, and the blade was extremely sharp, like a sabre worn by the guards in the capital.
Previously, Feng Yue had thought that this was a charade he had directed and acted out himself, but now it seemed that this was not the case.
Who would do such a thing?
The First Prince? But now Feng Xiao had already cut off his own wings and posed no threat to him for the time being. What reason would he have to attack?
Since he had already attacked, why not take his life directly? With the skill of that one slash on Feng Xiao, a little deeper would be fatal, and a little shallower would be too light, the control was just right.
“Third Brother, your expression… makes people uneasy.” Seeing him staring at his injury with a solemn and silent expression, those who didn’t know would have thought he was about to die soon.
“Second Brother, don’t worry, the wound is being handled very well. I did something unnecessary.” As he spoke, he skillfully rebandaged him.
Feng Xiao still had the tolerant and gentle appearance of an older brother. Looking at him, his eyes were full of longing and care for his younger brother, “You must have suffered a lot on the border these years, right?”
“It’s okay, it’s not as bitter as you think. After all, my maternal grandfather is there, and he teaches me many things hand in hand, guiding me forward step by step. This is already extremely fortunate.”
“How is his health?”
“Strong and healthy.”
“Since I can remember, my maternal grandfather has been in Qingyang City. Once in a while, during the New Year’s Day palace banquet, I saw him once, but now my memory is blurred.”
Feng Yue smiled perfunctorily, “He’s probably afraid he won’t recognize you either.”
“That day, I knew you had returned after winning the battle, so I prepared a table full of your favorite foods, thinking you would come over, but…”
Feng Yue’s anger was burning, but he still had to maintain his composure on the surface, and said calmly, “I also wanted to accompany Second Brother, but after all, I’ve grown up, and I can’t act willfully. How could I be absent from the palace banquet that my father held for me?”
Feng Xiao’s expression froze for a moment, then he smiled, “Right, right, I was inconsiderate, only thinking about the brotherhood between you and me, but not thinking about the dangers involved.”
“In that case, Second Brother is truly a man of character, making me seem opportunistic and mundane.”
Whether he was truly sincere or deliberately sowing discord between him and the Emperor, only he himself probably knew best.
Hearing these words, Feng Xiao only felt a bit strange, but he couldn’t find the reason for the strangeness.
In the end, he just assumed that he had been on the border for many years and was used to speaking bluntly, and his words had become less refined.
“How many days will you and Mother be staying at the estate?”
“About two days before returning to the palace,” Feng Yue forcibly suppressed the discomfort in his heart and suddenly stood up, “I’m going out for some air. Second Brother, please rest well.”
“I…” Just as Feng Xiao was about to say something, he saw his third brother quickly push open the door and walk far away.
Feng Xiao’s eyes darkened, and he felt very unhappy in his heart. He had been humble enough all these years. He didn’t know where he had offended him. Although this third brother was attentive on the surface, in reality, he had never truly regarded him as his older brother, right?
*
The young men of the self-combed hall usually did some needlework to earn some silver to support themselves. Wei Xiaofeng, who had never even held a needle, could only be sent to the backyard to do laundry.
After washing clothes all day, Wei Xiaofeng’s hands were all puffed up, the flesh of his fingertips wrinkled together. The autumn water was stinging and cold, and his purple and red fingertips hurt even with a slight touch.
Someone in the hall shouted that it was time to eat. Wei Xiaofeng hurriedly dropped the work in his hands, jumped up, and ran with the young men in the backyard.
He hadn’t run two steps before he was stopped by the manager, “Wash these clothes and sheets before you go.”
Wei Xiaofeng’s pair of phoenix eyes were full of innocence, and he said pitifully, “If I wash them all, there won’t be any food left. I wasn’t full yesterday, let me eat first.”
He wanted to get past the manager, eager to rush to the dining hall, but he was pushed by the manager. Wei Xiaofeng staggered two steps and fell to the ground, his eyes turning red.
“Did you think coming here meant you could eat your fill? You want to eat after doing this little bit of work? From the first day the self-combed hall was established until now, there’s no such rule!”
Seeing the manager holding a whip, Wei Xiaofeng was unconvinced in his heart, but a wise man knows better than to fight when the odds are against him. He could only reluctantly get up and crouch back beside the well, scooping water and rubbing the dirty clothes in the basin.
In the middle of the night, Wei Xiaofeng placed a lamp beside the well and weakly washed the dirty clothes that hadn’t been touched much. His stomach was so hungry that his intestines seemed to be twisting together.
“When will this bitter life end?” He rubbed his numb legs. Suddenly, there was a rustling sound from the weeds in the corner of the wall. The dark night was deserted, and his senses were infinitely magnified. Even this little movement made him very flustered.