Wuzhui pawed at the ground outside the carriage window. Though the whip hurt, it was nothing compared to the sorrow of his master ignoring him.
The procession had already been delayed. If they waited longer, the noon sun would become scorching—uncomfortable for both men and horses.
Just as Li Suichuan was about to signal a Black Armored Guard to remind them, the carriage curtain was lifted from within. The Son of Heaven in black clothes stood tall, his deep black eyes imposing without anger. Everyone watched as the Emperor descended from the carriage, then reached his hand back inside.
Xiahou Yan's eyes brightened bit by bit.
Spring greenery, the entire capital filled with brilliant colors, yet none could compare to half of what appeared before him now.
The young man's brows were drawn like a painting, his eyes moist. Perhaps from the fright just now, his brow tips were knitted in a distressed, impatient manner. Among the stern-faced guards, he was as vivid as a flower bud waiting to bloom. Yet his back was straight and flat, implicitly containing an unyielding gentleman's bearing.
The cavalry guards came to their senses, looking at the sky and ground but not at the person in the Son of Heaven's hands.
Xiahou Yan glanced imperceptibly at Li Suichuan, and saw that this usually arrogant young general wore a complex expression, mixed with a trace of being lost in thought.
Xiahou Yan reined in his horse. The unique red short plumes of the Cangling Guards moved at the side of his crown, carrying a touch more unrestrained charm than the Black Armored Guards' somberness.
"Can you mount a horse?" Shang Cizhou asked.
Rong Mu glanced at him, emphasizing in a low voice: "Bi Jiangxue needs to follow behind. It cannot be a hundred meters from me."
Shang Cizhou narrowed his eyes slightly: "I will instruct someone to watch over it."
Rong Mu said nothing, turning to look at Wuzhui. Wuzhui's eyes were bright and pure, a completely different style from his owner. Even having just been whipped, he had a simple, honest appearance without any scheming.
White boots stepped on the stirrup. Rong Mu had an excellent waist-to-leg ratio. With slight effort, he mounted the tall Wuzhui horse. Before he could sit steady, a figure pressed against him from behind the next moment.
Rong Mu's back pressed against the chest of the person behind him. Their hair silently intertwined in the air. A pair of hands from behind grabbed Wuzhui's reins, soothing the horse's restlessness at carrying a stranger.
"You are the second person, besides me, to ride Wuzhui."
Rong Mu was speechless: "Your Majesty's skill at giving a sweet date after a slap is truly well-used."
Shang Cizhou laughed deeply, his breath passing over the young man's ear: "I fear you are too simple, not believing my words. I had to make it obvious, to teach you not to be so quickly deceived by my appearance. You wear all your thoughts on your face, stupid to death."
Rong Mu's brows furrowed: "You—"
Before he could finish speaking, Shang Cizhou suddenly kicked the stirrups hard. Wuzhui received the command and shot out with the speed of an arrow leaving the bowstring.
Rong Mu: "..."
The strange sensation of their bodies rubbing together, the red and black guards following closely behind—the group raised a cloud of flying willow catkins on the suburban road.
He turned back to see if Bi Jiangxue was following, when he heard the tyrant's words mixed indistinctly in the air: "Don't you like Southern Dai? I'll show you what real Southern Dai people look like."
***
The imperial prison had existed since the founding of Great Shang. Originally inside the imperial city, it was later moved to the distant suburbs by the Taizu Emperor after a prisoner escaped due to negligent guarding and killed capital citizens.
The suburbs were sparsely populated. By the end, Wuzhui couldn't even see willow trees anymore—only bare grassland and gravel. Rong Mu nestled in the Emperor's embrace, hardly needing to coordinate. The robust figure behind him could easily hold him, preventing him from falling.
Shang Cizhou had initially said a sentence or two in his ear, but for some unknown reason, his voice gradually disappeared. Rong Mu didn't know if this tyrant, absorbing the flower at close range, had finally suppressed his intermittent madness. In any case, until dismounting again, the Emperor had returned to a cold demeanor.
When he wasn't acting, this was his truest appearance. Perhaps this was simply an emperor—romantic love was merely a game in his palm; cold indifference was the deepest hue.
"Afraid?" the Emperor asked, lowering his eyes.
Rong Mu glanced at him: "Not too bad. Just didn't expect that Your Majesty's first time taking this servant out to play would be to such a refreshingly unconventional place. Truly memorable."
Shang Cizhou neither confirmed nor denied. His embrace still retained the gentle sensation of being filled just now. This person's entire body carried an exotic fragrance, his skin delicate and tender. Holding him before one's chest made one felt like being dazed by an addiction to a beauty..
This addiction appeared like silk threads—initially unnoticed, but by the time one discovered it, the wind had already wrapped it fully around the body.
Rong Mu...
Rong Mu.
Shang Cizhou's heart surged while his face remained cold. His eyes looked toward the prison official. The prison official kneeling at the gate to welcome the imperial carriage hurriedly opened the prison door.
Outside was clearly bright sunshine, yet a chill emanated from within. Bi Jiangxue loved sunlight and wouldn't have a good feeling in such a cold place.
Inside seemed to admit no light—pitch black, mixed with faint, unpleasant bloody smells.
Rong Mu's brows furrowed slightly, but he couldn't resist the temptation Shang Cizhou offered.
The three Southern Dai people imprisoned had only come to Great Shang to search for the flower. They had committed no capital crimes. But their misfortune was being noticed by the Emperor.
Shang Cizhou was unpredictable and unfathomable in his methods. He might take their lives for any reason whatsoever.
This was what Rong Mu least wanted to see.
At the very least, he must let these Southern Dai people know that Bi Jiangxue was still safely in Great Shang...
Li Suichuan held a torch, walking familiarly at the very front. Shang Cizhou entered this place as if entering a royal courtyard, his brows and eyes deep, showing no trace of emotion.
Rong Mu took a final glance at the carriage stopped outside the prison, then walked with Xiahou Yan at the very back.
Xiahou Yan finally had the opportunity to approach this legendary favored attendant. Only the occasion was wrong, and he couldn't say much. He could only observe secretly by firelight.
Rong Mu was not unaware of the person beside him stealing glances. In the past, he might have warned with a look, but now he had completely let himself go. Since Shang Cizhou, the king of jealousy, didn't care, and he was born this beautiful, how many people's gazes could he resist?
He treated it all as if they were appreciating flowers.
Here, almost every cell held prisoners. These people didn't know who walked outside, but seeing those in brocade clothes and proper hats, they knew someone important had come.
For a time, the sounds of struggling and begging for mercy were endless. The jailers worried about disturbing the noble person, only whipping down fiercely after Shang Cizhou had passed.
Violence, blood, despair—this was the darkest place in the entire Great Shang dynasty.
Even if Rong Mu tried his best to ignore it, he couldn't resist conditioned reflexes. He involuntarily trembled slightly. Plants inherently revered life; such an environment was no less thanliving hell for him.
Only a deviant like Shang Cizhou could stroll leisurely here.
A low voice suddenly came from beside him: "Is Young Master Rong afraid?"
Only then did Rong Mu turn his eyes to Xiahou Yan: "Who wouldn't be afraid coming here?"
Xiahou Yan smiled slightly, a faint dimple appearing at the side of his face. Paired with the red plumes, he had the bearing of a well-groomed aristocratic young master.
"This humble one is Xiahou Yan. Seeing Young Master Rong's appearance like snow, I presume you are someone who enjoys elegance. Following His Majesty here must be difficult for you."
Rong Mu frowned. What was this person babbling about? Just as he grew impatient, Xiahou Yan suddenly said quickly in a low voice: "Be careful of Li Suichuan. He is investigating you."
What?
A chill suddenly rose behind Rong Mu's back.
...Li Suichuan was investigating him? Why was Li Suichuan investigating him? Who made him do this?
Thinking of something, Rong Mu suddenly stopped walking. Coincidentally, the person at the very front had also reached the end. Li Suichuan lowered his eyes and opened the innermost prison door.
Inside was a rotten wooden crossbeam, and at first glance, several people hung from it—at a height that barely allowed their toes to touch the ground.
Whip marks covered the white prison clothes. Their hair was disheveled; it was unclear whether they lived or died.
Li Suichuan, accustomed to such sights, splashed ice water on their faces, which finally gave them some movement—but only enough to gasp for breath.
Shang Cizhou turned back, smiled at Rong Mu, and beckoned: "Come look. Do you recognize these Southern Dai people?"
Rong Mu's pupils contracted. After two seconds, he stepped forward and forced himself to look around.
...Wrong.
If Shang Cizhou wanted him to identify Southern Dai spies, why would they be beaten to the point of being unrecognizable?
This dog Emperor, setting another trap to test him!
Rong Mu secretly drew a deep breath. If Bi Jiangxue had a function to close off its fragrance, he truly wanted to cut off this tyrant's spiritual food for two days, to cure him of this crooked wind and evil aura!
"If Your Majesty only knows how to use these things to mock this servant, then this servant will leave first." Rong Mu said, glancing at Shang Cizhou, his eyes showing coldness and strangeness for the first time.
Li Suichuan was slightly stunned, feeling the air around him grow several degrees colder.
But in the next instant, Shang Cizhou stepped aside with a pleased expression, revealing several men tied up behind him.
"My people are clever. I rarely beat people, and when I do, I only beat Western Yue barbarians. Southern Dai people are elegant. How could I bear to harm them? Don't you like Southern Dai? I specially gave you this opportunity. Come see what Southern Dai people look like... Let you understand more."
Rong Mu had revealed to Shang Cizhou his desire to travel to Southern Dai. He didn't know when this tyrant had remembered it, but this way of understanding—who knew how much imperial testing was mixed within.
Xiahou Yan's warning still echoed in his ears. Who had the ability to command Li Suichuan to work? Rong Mu understood as clearly as a mirror in his heart.
Rather than pitying Shang Cizhou, he should pity himself. This madman was terribly mad. If he could make Shang Cizhou kill a few fewer people, it would already count as great merit.
Rong Mu endured the discomfort in his chest, silently walking forward a few steps. He saw several young men in green and white clothes kneeling bound on the ground, only their heads able to move.
These people hadn't seen him at first, only staring at Shang Cizhou with hatred. Only when Rong Mu slowly emerged from behind Shang Cizhou did their gazes shift one after another to the young man.
He was completely incompatible with such filth and foulness—to the point that when people saw him, their first instinct was to close their eyes, before they could see the young man's peerless aura of emerging from mud unsoiled.
Li Suichuan watched the Southern Dai people's reactions closely. He saw their expressions shift from anger to blankness, then to shock, finally forcing their necks red.
Several men who had ignored the Emperor gradually knocked their heads to the ground, speaking respectfully in words only Southern Dai people would understand.
These people had been deliberately starved for days, already dizzy and seeing stars, driven only by instinct. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been so foolish as to lose composure on the spot.
Perhaps they thought Rong Mu had come to save them.
Shang Cizhou observed Rong Mu with great interest. Such a scene was already sufficient to prove certain things. Even if Rong Mu didn't speak, he could guess eight or nine tenths.
Shang Cizhou had never failed at recognizing people, but this time, he saw nothing he wanted to see on Rong Mu's face.
Several people present had complicated thoughts and varied expressions. Ultimately, it was Shang Cizhou who slowly opened his mouth: "Rong Mu, seeing them, do you have nothing to say? Weren't you most fond of Southern Dai's customs and people?"
Rong Mu finally understood—when there was no danger, being by the tyrant's side was the most dangerous thing.
He looked somewhat pity at the several people tied up, then said: "If they only came to see Bi Jiangxue, these people should not deserve death. It was Your Majesty who took others' things first."
As expected, he was soft-hearted.。
Shang Cizhou raised his brows: "I'm asking you. Could it be you don't understand what they're saying?"
Since the carriage ride earlier, Rong Mu had been enduring this dog Emperor's habit of not speaking properly. Until now, it was unbearable in his heart.
His delicate brows furrowed, and he looked directly at Shang Cizhou:
"If Your Majesty still suspects this servant of disloyalty, simply imprison and interrogate this servant here as well. Don't give me these identification language puzzles. I only understand official language, not Southern Dai dialect!"
The several people kneeling on the ground clearly understood these words too. One person raised his head in shock, looking at the young man whose eyes were completely strange toward them.
His face also gradually showed confusion, as if questioning whether he had recognized the wrong person.
Rong Mu's heart was complex. These people were suffering an undeserved disaster because of him. If he could let them see Bi Jiangxue, then properly negotiate with the Emperor, they might be able to return safely to report their mission. Otherwise, they would sooner or later be worn down in this Great Shang imperial prison.
He looked no more at Shang Cizhou, walking forward a few steps and bending down to examine them carefully. Seeing that they had no serious wounds, he silently breathed a sigh of relief.
The Buddhist lotus was merciful—even he was deeply affected.
Everyone, including the Emperor, watched Rong Mu's movements. Just as the young man was about to rise, the man who had raised his head first suddenly bit down on Rong Mu's sleeve.
Li Suichuan was about to act when the long knife at his waist was drawn out with a "shua" sound.
They saw the Son of Heaven's expression turn icy at some unknown time, pressing the blade against the Southern Dai spy's neck. The speed and fierceness of his strike had already drawn fresh blood.
Everyone instantly fell silent as cicadas in winter.
Xiahou Yan watched the Emperor with a complex expression.
Even if he were blind, he could see something from this scene.
So His Majesty was not entirely indifferent to this Attendant Rong, but cared yet didn't understand his own feelings... Only at critical moments would this buried sentiment emerge—such as the startled horse earlier, and this very moment now.
Xiahou Yan lowered his head slightly.
This was truly... extremely interesting.
Rong Mu grew dizzy at the sight of the long blade. This posture was all too familiar. When he first met Shang Cizhou, it was this same pose of being pointed at to be killed.
He hurriedly turned back, protecting the several Southern Dai people behind him.
"Your Majesty, he was only dazed. He meant no malice!"
He only bit the sleeve. It wasn't like a piece of flesh was bitten off.
Shang Cizhou's face was indifferent, the veins on his knuckles bulging. The blade tip had already gathered a string of blood beads, dripping onto the prison's dark red ground.
As the situation stood in stalemate, the wounded man suddenly murmured a sentence in Great Shang official speech: "It is Bi Jiangxue's scent... It is nearby."
...He had almost forgotten that Southern Dai people were all lotus fanboys!
Rong Mu swallowed his throat quickly. Just as he was about to speak, the Southern Dai spy behind him suddenly leaped up and shouted: "Tyrant! Return my king's belonging!"
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