CHAPTER 75: THE EMPEROR’S CHESSBOARD

Sui He held the bracelet that Mingxuan handed her and kept praising it.

"Wow! Prince, this bracelet looks more precious than any bracelet I’ve ever seen.

Did Concubine Hua call you over just to reward you with this? Has she changed her mind and wants you to continue being Prince Rong’s future wife?"

Thinking of what had happened in Tianxin Hall, Yue Mingxuan gave a small smile.

To look kind and generous, Concubine Hua had paid a heavy price today.

"This bracelet really was meant for the future wife of the Prince Rong."

Sui He looked at Yue Mingxuan with surprise and excitement, her face full of disbelief. "Really? That’s wonderful! Prince, you finally have hope again!"

"What are you happy about? I haven’t finished my story..."

Yue Mingxuan picked up a grape and tossed it into his mouth.

"She found some man from who-knows-where and claimed I had an affair with him.

Luckily your prince is smart, otherwise today... hmph. This bracelet is her compensation to calm my nerves."

Hearing this, Sui He quickly put down the bracelet and carefully looked Yue Mingxuan over from head to toe.

Only after confirming that he had not been punished by Concubine Hua did she speak in a depressed tone.

"Why would Concubine Hua do that? The prince already ended the engagement with Prince Rong. You have nothing to do with her anymore."

Yue Mingxuan lay sideways on the couch and answered casually, "I think she was just bored and had nothing better to do..."

"That’s true..."

Sui He didn’t say anything more.

She walked into the inner room and placed the bracelet into the jewelry box that Yue Mingxuan normally used.

Leaning on the couch, Yue Mingxuan thought about everything that had happened in Tianxin Hall today.

None of it was as simple as it looked on the surface.

The sudden appearance of the Imperial Consort and the Emperor was definitely not a coincidence.

As for Rong Tieshan speaking up for him, it was most likely because he couldn’t bear to watch his mother act like that.

Thinking about all this gave Yue Mingxuan a headache.

He had originally wanted to stay far away from the dangerous whirlpool of the Beirong royal family.

Yet now he had been pulled into it again.

Who exactly was the hand behind all of this?

As Yue Mingxuan thought carefully about every detail he had faced, he felt more and more certain that an invisible and powerful hand was quietly pushing everything forward.

No matter whether it was him, the Imperial Consort, Concubine Hua, or Rong Tieshan, they were all just pieces on someone else’s chessboard.

The moment he understood this, a sudden flash of realization struck him.

He had actually forgotten to consider the Emperor of Beirong.

The Emperor had every reason to do something like this.

Yue Mingxuan was nothing more than a stone thrown out as a test to see how the different forces within the court reacted to the question of the throne.

At the very least, anyone who married him now was openly declaring they did not want the throne anymore.

So that was why Concubine Hua had been so desperate to get rid of him.

He was a stumbling block on Rong Tieshan’s path toward the throne.

After understanding this layer of truth, Yue Mingxuan cursed the Emperor of Beirong several times in his heart.

The man had three thousand beauties in his harem and enjoyed a new bride every night.

He let his sons fight each other to the death, yet he used him as a tool to test them.

"What a shameless old man," Yue Mingxuan muttered angrily.

He grabbed a peach and bit into it with force, as if that could ease the anger in his chest.

When he finally finished the peach, his heart slowly calmed down.

Even though he was furious at being used as a chess piece, at least his life was not in danger for the moment.

The Emperor would not allow a useful chess piece to die so soon.

Thinking of that eased some of the heaviness in his chest.

When soldiers come, he would block them; when water comes, he would cover it with earth.

He would take things one step at a time.

Night wind drifted softly.

Rong Qinglei leaned against his window, playing with a brush in his hand.

In front of him sat a wine jar and a few small dishes, yet he only stared blankly out the window.

He recalled that night on the mountain, the moment between life and death and the strange Ger who had appeared before him like a little spirit.

After returning, he had secretly sent his personal guards to investigate that Ger again and again, searching openly and in secret.

They had almost checked every doctor in the city, but that Ger seemed to have vanished from the world.

"Could he be a fairy who fell from the heavens?"

Thinking of that breathtaking moment under the moonlight, Rong Qinglei laughed and shook his head.

When had he become like those young boys who believed in stories of gods and spirits?

In this world, the only person worthy of trust was himself.

With that thought, Rong Qinglei slowly opened his hand.

Moonlight slipped through the lattice window and fell on his palm.

He stared at the moonlight in his hand, his expression dazed, almost lost in thought.

"I did not expect Prince Qing to have such elegant interests."

Just as Rong Qinglei was lost in thought, a sudden voice cut into his mind.

He frowned with annoyance, but still replied calmly, "I do not know which friend has come. I have some simple wine here. Why not join me for a drink?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a man dressed in black appeared in the room out of nowhere.

Even someone with skills as high as Rong Qinglei had not noticed how this person entered.

"Prince Qing has good courage," the man in black said with a smile as he sat on the other side of the window.