The Seventh Prince, Xie Jingqi, had drunk his fill of wine with the city's dandies. He had originally intended to eat a bowl of wontons and go to bed, but instead, he heard news that the Fifth Prince was lingering at the Ji family's residence.
The Seventh Prince, who had been close to the Fourth Prince since childhood, turned and went directly to the Fourth Prince's mansion.
The candlelight was faint, illuminating the slender, jade-like figure seated behind the study desk.
The closed study door was suddenly pushed open, and the Seventh Prince swaggered in.
Xie Jinglan, who was reading a book intently behind the desk, heard the commotion. He merely glanced over indifferently before returning to his reading.
Xie Jingqi lifted his robes and sat down on the opposite chair, his long legs naturally resting on the desk. "Fourth Brother, guess what I heard in the city just now?"
Xie Jinglan turned a page of his book, his head not lifting nor his eyes opening, as if he hadn't heard a thing.
Xie Jingqi was long accustomed to his Fourth Brother's disinterest in everything. He continued, full of interest, "Xie Jingzhou went to the Ji family to pay respects to the Ji family's men. But if he wanted to pay respects, why did he have to stay at the Ji family's? That useless wastrel from the Ji family is trying every way to divorce, and he, of all people, is eagerly clinging to her. If he's shameless, fine, but he's also dragging down our royal family's reputation."
Since he was young, Xie Jingqi had looked down on Xie Jingzhou.
Especially Xie Jingzhou's concubine, Consort Xi, was nothing good.
When Xie Jingqi was young and playing with Xie Jingzhou in the royal garden, Xie Jingzhou somehow fell into the water. Xie Jingqi kindly went to save him. However, Consort Xi, who rushed over, only took Xie Jingzhou away. Xie Jingzhou simply curled up in Consort Xi's arms and didn't utter a sound.
If Xie Jinglan hadn't happened to pass by, Xie Jingqi feared he would have drowned.
Later, Xie Jingzhou and Consort Xi said who knows what to the Emperor, and Consort Xi actually filed a complaint. She accused him of deliberately pushing Xie Jingzhou into the water. Except for his Fourth Brother, everyone else believed he was not innocent. It was Empress Zhong, who was kind-hearted, who adopted both him and his Fourth Brother, thus allowing him to escape the Emperor's punishment.
In all these years, besides Empress Zhong and his Fourth Brother, Xie Jingqi respected and trusted no one else.
Xie Jinglan, who had been engrossed in his reading, finally looked up. "How did you get this news?"
Xie Jinglan replied as if it were obvious, "Everyone eating supper in the city is talking about it."
Xie Jinglan was silent for a moment, then smiled faintly.
If, as Little Seven said, the city's attention was now focused on the Fifth Prince staying at the Ji family because he had fainted unexpectedly and the Ji family had kindly offered him lodging, then this news could not have come from the Fifth Prince himself.
And if it wasn't from the Fifth Prince, then there was only one other person left.
In Xie Jinglan's mind, a clear, cold figure gradually emerged.
It was about time for the Ji family's men to be buried. Although the Ji family had narrowly escaped disaster at the palace gates today, and the Emperor had exonerated them, the process of drafting and sending the imperial decree to the six ministries for record was tedious and slow. By the time the decree was truly issued, the Ji family's men would likely have already been buried.
The ministers in court were all waiting to see which way the wind would blow. Now that the Ji family's situation was not yet entirely clear, they would naturally not visit the Ji family to pay their respects in advance.
So, regardless of the Fifth Prince's purpose in staying at the Ji family, Ji Zizhao releasing the news at this time was to leverage the Fifth Prince's influence to prompt those ministers who were still waiting to visit the Ji family first to offer sacrifices and incense. This way, the Ji family's men could have a grand funeral.
Xie Jingqi, still furious at how lowly Xie Jingzhou was, was stunned after hearing his Fourth Brother's deductions. "It's just a fabricated piece of news, and Fourth Brother can analyze it so meticulously?"
Xie Jinglan smiled faintly. "Fabrications, whether true or false, inevitably lead to complications. This eldest daughter of the Ji family always makes a striking debut with every move she makes. The Ji family, with her at its helm, would never release news without purpose."
Xie Jingqi, who had been full of anger, felt a sense of relief after hearing this. After all, no matter what, he was happy that Xie Jingzhou was being used as a pawn.
However, before he could even finish his smug smile, he saw Xie Jinglan call Huo Niancong, who was waiting outside the door, inside.
"The Fifth Prince staying at the Ji family will surely be inconvenient. You will now accompany the Seventh Prince to the Fifth Prince's mansion and have some clothes and essentials prepared for the Fifth Prince."
Xie Jingqi's smile vanished.
Xie Jingqi exploded.
"Why must I go?"
Xie Jinglan seemed about to say something, but before he could utter a word, his throat itched, and uncontrollable coughing fit erupted from his mouth.
When the Fourth Prince was five years old, there was a fire in the palace. The young Fourth Prince was trapped inside. Although he survived afterward, his heart and lungs were injured, and his health had been poor ever since.
Xie Jingqi was most afraid of his Fourth Brother's sickly appearance. He quickly got up and said, "Fourth Brother, don't get agitated. I'll go, I'll go, alright?"
Reluctantly, Xie Jingqi left with Huo Niancong.
Tangdai entered the room shortly after, intending to offer a handkerchief. He saw that his Highness, who had just been coughing incessantly, had already regained his normal complexion.
"The Seventh Prince already dislikes the Fifth Prince. Why does Your Highness have to force him like this?"
Xie Jinglan lowered his head and looked at the book in his hand, appearing entirely unashamed of his feigned illness. "Little Seven's nature is like this. If he is not pushed, how will he progress?"
Tangdai: "..."
Your Highness, you truly have the Seventh Prince completely under your thumb.
The princes of Yulin lived on Lion Street, and their mansions were close to each other.
Although Xie Jingqi followed his Fourth Brother's instructions, he had little patience and a bad temper with the servants at the Fifth Prince's mansion.
Completely unwilling to spend another second at the Fifth Prince's mansion, Xie Jingqi practically charged through the gates. He went in like a whirlwind, doing all the work himself. In just a moment, he had turned the courtyard where the Fifth Prince resided upside down.
The servants at the Fifth Prince's mansion were stunned when they saw the Seventh Prince carrying bundles of items out. If Huo Niancong hadn't explained carefully, they would have reported him to the authorities.
By the time Ji Zizhao learned of this, the Seventh Prince had already stepped across the threshold of the Ji family's residence.
Ji Zixiu, who was about to go to her elder sister to inquire about the final riddle, saw a rather good-looking but somewhat rough-acting young man piling a heap of things into her family's entrance.
"Who are you, daring to trespass on my Ji family?" Ji Zixiu had been unconscious from her elder sister's medicinal pill on the day of the incident at the Ji family, so she had never seen the Seventh Prince before.
"What do you care who I am? These are clothes and essentials for Xie Jingzhou. Just take them, Ji family. Why ask so many questions..." Xie Jingqi looked at this little girl who was even more arrogant than him. He just wanted to finish the task and leave. Before he could finish speaking, he saw flames erupt from the little girl's eyes.
In a flash, she whipped out a whip.
Seeing the whip, as thick as a finger, coming towards him, Xie Jingqi was fortunate to react in time. Otherwise, his face would have been thoroughly whipped.
Holding the whip, Xie Jingqi was still somewhat stunned. "Is your Ji family crazy!"
The eldest daughter of the Ji family had directly confronted the palace gates despite the Emperor's authority. Now, this girl, who he didn't know which daughter of the Ji family she was, was whipping a prince.
What kind of mysterious household was this?