Chapter 15: Li Chuan

“They always held onto a bit of hope for their parents deep down in their hearts.”

Li Chuan was still young, and he wasn’t as tall as Pei Wenxuan, but he had practiced the sword since he was a child, so his strength wasn’t trivial either. He landed just one hit and caught Pei Wenxuan off guard, causing him to fall right down on the spot.

He saw Pei Wenxuan fall down, but Li Chuan still had not vented all of his anger. Li Chuan lunged forward to kick and beat him again. Su Rongqing hurried forward to stop Li Chuan and said with urgency: “Your Highness, please do not be angry! Please calm down for a moment. This is a court official, Your Highness must not do this!”

“You let go! Gu must beat this wretched dog to death! Let go! Bring the sword! Gu must kill him! You bastard, you absolutely disgraceful thing…”

Li Chuan was firmly held back by Su Rongqing and his guards, but he continued to punch and kick in midair. After being suddenly beaten, Pei Wenxuan slowly came to his senses. He took in a breath of cold air and hastily said: “Your Highness, please listen to this official’s explanation…”

“Gu is going to kill him! Let go of Gu! Let go…”

“Chuan’er.”

Li Rong finally reacted. When she saw Pei Wenxuan being beaten by Li Chuan’s own hands, Li Chuan baring his fangs and claws, she felt quite pleased. As expected of her own little brother, even the way he scolded “dog” was the same. Although she was secretly delighted, she kept a calm expression on her face. She cleared her throat and said: “You are the Crown Prince, you should be more composed.”

Li Chuan’s movements froze upon hearing Li Rong’s words. Su Rongqing and the others tentatively let go of Li Chuan. Li Chuan’s hands seemed to be clenched into fists as he aggressively glared at Pei Wenxuan.

Someone helped Pei Wenxuan up. He maintained a calm expression and bowed to Li Chuan, prepared to explain when he heard Li Chuan interrupt: “Gu does not want to hear your explanation, if you have something to say, then say it to my Father Emperor and Mother Empress!”

Pei Wenxuan choked on his words, then he could only say: “Yes.”

“Return to the Palace!”

Li Chuan shouted. He turned his head and led the others away. Pei Wenxuan thought for a moment, then walked over to Li Rong and said: “Princess…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Li Chuan suddenly turned back and stood in front of Li Rong, blocking him and vigilantly said: “You dog, stay away from my jie!”1

Pei Wenxuan: “……”

Having said that, Li Chuan pulled Li Rong away and aggressively went straight to his maroon horse, then he helped Li Rong onto the horse and said, “Jie, you ride my horse.”

[1] jie — short for jiejie (older sister), affectionate and informal reference along the lines of “(older) sis.”

Li Rong smiled as she took the reins and softly said: “Okay.”

Li Rong rode Li Chuan’s horse, so Li Chuan requisitioned Su Rongqing’s horse. Hence Su Rongqing and Pei Wenxuan followed behind Li Rong and Li Chuan with the rest of the servants.

Li Rong and Li Chuan rode side by side, both riding at a fairly brisk pace to increase the distance between them and the people behind them. Li Chuan spoke to Li Rong in a low voice. After asking a few questions about Li Rong’s situation, he asked about what happened last night: “Did you see anyone clearly last night?”

“I saw them.” Then, she became aware of a problem, “You weren’t able to arrest anyone?”

“Where could I even find them to arrest them?”

Li Chuan said angrily: “They ran away so quickly! They were all gone in the blink of an eye.”

“No traces left behind?”

“No.”

“Oh,” Li Rong wasn’t particularly surprised. It was highly unlikely that the Yang family would do such things without careful consideration. They must have made preparations beforehand, so she simply nodded and said, “Is that so? What a pity.”

“You tell me,” Li Chuan asked out of curiosity, “What exactly is Yang Quan trying to do?”

“Can’t you tell?” Li Rong softly chuckled, “It’s because he wants to marry me. As long as he marries me, wouldn’t his fate be tied to my precious little brother?”

“Why do they want to be tied to me?” Li Chuan frowned, “Nowadays, everyone knows that Father Emperor doesn’t like me and looks for opportunities to depose me day after day. If not for the fact that he can’t arbitrarily depose the Crown Prince, he probably would have already sent out the edict. Now they want to ally themselves with me, is there something wrong with the heads of the Yang family?”

“Is there really something wrong with the heads of the Yang family though?”

Li Rong had to remind Li Chuan: “They are actually very smart. While Father Emperor may not like you, Father Emperor hates them even more. Do you remember what they wanted as a reward for meritorious service a few years ago? Father Emperor was forced to reward the border station with 300,000 silver taels. With Father Emperor’s temperament, how could he let this matter pass? The Yang family lost a battle a few days ago, and most of the main branch family died on the battlefield. They have overstepped the bounds up until now, only to realize that Father Emperor wants to dispose of them. So, can you think of why they would want to come around and hug your thighs?”2

[2] Hug (someone’s) thighs — taking advantage of another person’s skills or authority.

“Then they should have a better attitude,” Li Chuan immediately said, “But coming to kidnap you head on, there is really something wrong with their heads!”

“I’m afraid they don’t actually want to kidnap me.” Li Rong replied in an unhurried manner, “They only want to scare me, and then proceed to have the hero save the beauty. Who would have imagined that I was this clever, so they could only destroy my reputation and force me to marry Yang Quan. If I marry him, how could I not be subjected to him? If I end up having a child, can you still turn a blind eye to me?”

“How despicable!” Li Chuan immediately condemned them. Li Rong nodded and agreed, “Indeed, how despicable! Even a wretched dog is better than that.”

“Yes,” Li Chuan nodded, “Even that Pei Wenxuan is better.”

As he spoke, Li Chuan remembered something and turned to look at Li Rong, tentatively asking, “About that, jie…”

“Hm?”

“Pei Wenxuan…” Li Chuan pursed his lips and managed to say with some difficulty, “Did he…”

“Mm?”

“Were you…bullied?”

“You mean…” Li Rong cautiously asked upon seeing the complicated expression on Li Chuan’s face. Li Chuan found it somewhat embarrassing, but he still continued, “Did he…kiss you?”

Li Rong: “……”

And here she thought it was a different kind of “bullying.”

She coughed lightly and proceeded to say: “Well, Pei Wenxuan can also be considered a talented individual. He wouldn’t do this kind of thing. You should treat him a little better, and perhaps you can use him in the future?”

Not that she wanted to put in a good word for Pei Wenxuan, but Pei Wenxuan was indeed a sharp blade for Li Chuan, so she didn’t want there to be any conflict between the two of them. However, Li Chuan did not change his attitude after hearing this. Instead, he lowered his head and said nothing as if disappointed.

Li Rong couldn’t help but ask: “What’s the matter?”

“Ai, Mother Empress said that as a woman, once jie gets married, it will be like spilled water. You haven’t gotten married yet, but you’re already speaking up for other men.”

“Of course,” Li Rong said as soon as she heard Li Chuan say this, “If you feel that dog is an eyesore and want to beat it to death, I will fully support you!”

“That’s more like it,” Li Chuan raised his eyebrows and leaned over to whisper, “A-jie, you have to promise me one thing.”

“Say it.” Li Rong was quite pleased to see Li Chuan’s expression of trying to curry favor. Li Chuan laughed, flashing some cute canine teeth, “In the future, even if you marry someone, I must be the most important man in your heart!”

Li Rong burst out into laughter as soon as she heard this. When Li Chuan saw her laughing at him, he was a little unhappy, but he felt that it would be too childish if he actually expressed his dissatisfaction, so he kept a straight face and said nothing. Li Rong saw that he was upset and quickly said: “Alright, alright, rest assured,” Li Rong comforted him, “You will be the most important man in my heart, okay?”

Li Chuan sighed and pretended to put on airs: “Gu also knows that you are just comforting me, but Gu is also very satisfied with this.”

Li Rong couldn’t stop laughing when Li Chuan put on an act.

Pei Wenxuan and Su Rongqing were walking in the back. Seeing Li Rong constantly laughing up ahead in the distance, Su Rongqing softly said: “The Crown Prince and the Princess have such a strong emotional bond for siblings. Such sentiments are hard to come by between family members in prominent clans like ours.”

“They grew up together since childhood,” Pei Wenxuan spoke indifferently, “The Princess is someone who puts importance on sentimental ties.”

“Pei gongzi seems to have quite an understanding of the Princess,” Su Rongqing nodded and seemed to remember something, “However, does Pei gongzi know that Consort Ning visited Ming Le Palace and Wei Yang Palace one after another last night?”

Consort Ning was an Imperial Consort3 who came from the Yang family while Ming Le Palace and Wei Yang Palace were the respective residences of Consort Rou and the Empress.

Consort Rou was currently in favor. Her son Li Cheng was only ten years old, but he was very clever and won the Emperor’s affections. He had been conferred the title of a first rank Imperial Prince4 at a young age and could be considered the youngest Imperial Prince since the founding of the dynasty.

[3] Imperial Consort — a high-ranking position one rank below Empress; highest position that someone who is not of noble birth can obtain.

[4] First Rank Imperial Prince (qinwang) — a hereditary title given to princes once they reach adulthood, along with land and regional control; usually a single-character title.

Last night, someone from the Yang family visited the two palaces in succession. Although they may not know what had been done, it must have something to do with Li Rong.

Su Rongqing brought this up as a reminder. Pei Wenxuan pondered over it for a moment, then he asked: “Does His Highness know about this?”

“I have already notified His Highness.” Su Rongqing nodded and said, “I just thought that Pei gongzi should know this as well.”

Hearing this, Pei Wenxuan brought his eyes up to look at Su Rongqing. Su Rongqing looked back at Pei Wenxuan with a smile that did not reach his eyes.

“Su gongzi is lending me a hand, but what is it that you want?”

Pei Wenxuan said solemnly. Su Rongqing did not reply. He walked through the forest at a relaxed pace with a folding fan in hand. After a while, he calmly said: “If the Princess has to choose between Yang Quan and Pei gongzi, I would want to bet on Pei gongzi.”

Su Rongqing turned to look at Pei Wenxuan with some seriousness in his handsome eyes as he spoke: “I wonder, how much of it has Pei gongzi grasped with certainty?”

Pei Wenxuan stared at Su Rongqing in silence when he heard those words. He did not let the slightest expression on Su Rongqing’s face slip by, but Su Rongqing was still smiling as usual, and there was no emotion in his eyes.

The two remained silent for a while before Pei Wenxuan saluted Su Rongqing: “This humble Pei thanks gongzi and will keep this in mind, but the Princess’s marriage should be decided by the Princess. This humble one is only an eighth-rank minor official and does not dare to have any other thoughts.”

“Pei gongzi is right,” Su Rongqing nodded and casually said, “We are just chatting, no need to be too concerned.”

The group talked amongst themselves as they walked out of the forest and saw a long procession of people waiting on the main road. The carriage unique to the Eastern Palace was surrounded by the Eastern Palace guards in the front and rear. The black Eastern Palace flag was flying high in the air and looked quite majestic.

Li Chuan and Li Rong climbed onto the Crown Prince’s carriage while Su Rongqing and Pei Wenxuan each rode on horseback in front.

After boarding the carriage, the attendants proceeded to serve tea and cakes. Then, Li Chuan sent everyone else out, and the carriage slowly set off. At this moment, Li Chuan raised his head and said, “There is something I have to tell you.”

“What did the Yang family do last night?”

Li Rong randomly found a place to lean against and lazily asked. Li Chuan was stunned for a moment, then he laughed: “A-jie is so smart.”

Having said that, Li Chuan’s expression turned solemn: “Last night, Consort Ning paid Mother Empress a visit and went to Ming Le Palace afterwards. Mother Empress’s face looked very ugly when she left. She didn’t tell me what Consort Ning had said, but I suspect that the Yang family may have come to propose marriage.”

Li Rong nodded. Li Chuan was lost in his thoughts for a moment, then he sighed, lamenting: “The Yang family is too anxious.”

It’s because Father Emperor put too much pressure.”

Li Rong calmly said: “I heard that a few days ago, Father Emperor deducted a third of the Yang family’s military supplies and budget.”

“Father Emperor should not have done so,” Li Chuan shook his head, “Even if he wanted to eliminate the Yang family, he should have advanced step by step, slowly get them under control then demote them to commoners. Such extreme measures might cause the Yang family to revolt.”

Li Rong subconsciously rubbed the rosary on her wrist as she listened to Li Chuan.

Li Chuan noticed that Li Rong had not said anything in a while and couldn’t help but say: “A-jie, do you think I’m mistaken?”

“Not at all,” Li Rong smiled. She turned to look at Li Chuan and gently said, “It’s just that Chuan’er’s benevolence is probably the reason why Father Emperor is dissatisfied with you.”

“Let him be dissatisfied,” Speaking of Li Ming, Li Chuan expressed a bit of disgust and said, “He can depose me if he’s capable.”

“Saying such silly things,” Li Rong laughed helplessly, but she didn’t tell Li Chuan outright that their Father Emperor might seriously think so.

After all, 16 year old Li Chuan had hope for Li Ming, just like Li Rong when she was younger.

Despite knowing that the power struggle in the Palace was ruthless, they always held onto a bit of hope for their parents deep down in their hearts. They dared to go against their parents because they still had hope. Saying “he can depose me if he’s capable,” yet in his heart, he had always thought of this person as his father.

It was because they still had hope that the moment the sword mercilessly fell down, they will lose themselves in despair.

Li Chuan was almost deposed in his previous life.

Without Pei Wenxuan and her to desperately turn the tide, the grass on Li Chuan’s grave would have grown as tall as a person.

However, Li Rong did not say it outright because she knew that at this moment, no matter how eloquently Li Chuan spoke when it came to political affairs, he was still only a 16 year old boy. If she actually told him everything, Li Chuan might feel that she was cold-blooded and had a fickle heart.

She didn’t want her and Li Chuan to end up like they had in the previous life. Although there are blood ties between siblings, there were too many walls between them.

She looked at Li Chuan and lightly tapped the small golden fan against the palm of her hand. Li Chuan turned to look at her as he ate longans: “Jie, what are you going to say in a bit when you see Mother Empress in the Palace?”

“Say what?”

Li Rong turned her head to look at Li Chuan. Li Chuan hastily let go of his longan and said: “Well, about your marriage, who are you going to marry?”