Chapter 98 Cloud Nine: The Heir of Huaiyang
As the exchange between Chu Huaicai and Situ was going on, Feng Luodi repeatedly tried to wriggle free from Situ"s embrace but no avail. She felt a clear sense of danger emanating from Situ when Chu Xiaoxiao called her a “lowly peasant”.
Chu Xiaoxiao sensed it as well and she s.h.i.+vered involuntarily. Chu Huaicai quickly pulled her closer to him and smiled at Situ. “My little sister can be a little insensitive and careless; I"ll give her a good lecture when we get back.”
“Are you agreeing with her words, Heir of Huaiyang?” A storm was brewing in the eyes of Situ.
Chu Huaicai stiffened considerably. He turned to Feng Luodi. “How may I address you, young miss? Please allow me to apologize on behalf of my sister. I hope that you"ll not press the issue anymore.”
Chu Xiaoxiao pulled his sleeve, upset at his apology. “Brother, why are you apologizing to her! I didn"t do anything wrong back there!”
Feng Luodi rolled her eyes inwardly at Chu Xiaoxiao"s lack of awareness. “I was never the one making things hard for our…Commandery Princess here; she was the one constantly creating trouble for us. Your words are meaningless and fake; I have no need for your apology.”
Situ"s face relaxed a little upon hearing her words. Now that"s the Feng Luodi I know.
Anger flashed in Chu Huaicai"s eyes, but he quickly hid it.
“How dare you speak to my brother like that!” Chu Xiaoxiao stepped forward with her hand raised, poised to strike Feng Luodi.
Before she could bring her hand down, her knees buckled and she knelt on the floor in front of Feng Luodi.
“Xiaoxiao!” Chu Huaicai quickly helped her to her feet. “Are you alright? What happened?”
“I…don"t know.” Chu Xiaoxiao looked around, confused. “My legs suddenly gave way.”
“Would you like to have your legs give way as well, Heir of Huaiyang?” Situ spoke up.
Chu Huaicai"s face changed multiple times and he took a deep breath. “I thank you for your magnanimity, Duke of Anping.” He stopped Chu Xiaoxiao who was about to lash out at Situ.
Situ glanced at Feng Luodi, whose attention was already diverted elsewhere. He turned back to Chu Huaicai. “I think it"s best if the both of you refrain from patronizing this restaurant in the future so that such a lack of hospitality will not befall you again.”
The owner of the restaurant breathed a sigh of relief; Situ had effectively protected them from any retribution the Heir and his sister might dish out in the future.
Chu Huaicai"s face darkened even more, but he swallowed his pride and bowed at Situ. “We understand.” He turned and walked into the crowd, dragging his sister with him.
Situ shot a glance at the crowd of onlookers, who dispersed as quickly as they"d gathered.
“Let"s go.” Situ started walking towards Moonglade, Feng Luodi following behind him.
As they turned a corner, Feng Luodi looked at Situ. “Thank you for what you did back there.”
“Nothing new.” Situ did not look at her.
Feng Luodi mumbled under her breath. “I could"ve handled the situation on my own back there.”
“And get whipped a few times?” Situ chided.
Feng Luodi shot a glance at Situ. “That was but a mere hiccup.”
“Why are you out alone on the streets? Where are your handmaidens?”
Feng Luodi took a deep breath. “I didn"t know you had so much free time on your hands, such that you could care about such trivial matters.”
“Nothing is ever trivial when it comes to you,” Situ said matter-of-factly.
Feng Luodi"s expression froze, but she quickly changed the topic. “What is the Heir of Huaiyang doing in the capital?”
“He"s here to inherit his father"s t.i.tle,” Situ explained calmly. “The Commandery Prince of Huaiyang is old and will like for his son to inherit his t.i.tle as quickly as possible.”
“What a good life he has, huh?” Feng Luodi sighed. “He gets the t.i.tle of a Commandery Prince without even doing anything! Meanwhile, others can try for decades without even getting a position in court.”
“Jealous?” Situ raised an eyebrow. “You won"t get to experience that in your lifetime, but your children can still have the chance.”
Feng Luodi looked away from him, speechless. I should"ve just kept quiet…
“You don"t look very good, elder brother.” Chu Xiaoxiao asked gingerly. “Was it because of that Duke of Anping? I"ll get revenge for you!”
Chu Huaicai shot her a cold look. Chu Xiaoxiao took a step back, frightened. “Brother?”
Chu Huaicai hid his feelings again and smiled at Chu Xiaoxiao. “Weren"t you going to meet Princess Shangrong in the palace? You"ll be late if you don"t go now.”
“Oh, right! She"ll definitely be mad if I"m late!” Chu Xiaoxiao exclaimed, immediately forgetting about her brother"s sudden change of att.i.tude.
“I"ll go in with you; there"s something I"ll need to discuss with the Emperor about.”
“That"s great, brother!”
Before long, Chu Huaicai was standing in front of the Emperor in the Imperial Study. The Heir of Huaiyang bowed respectfully.
“Long live your Majesty!”
“Rise.” The emperor smiled. “It"s been a long time since I"ve met your father, seeing as how you"ve been attending the Autumnal Meets on his behalf for the past few years. I"ve almost forgotten how he looked like.”
“Father is too sick to come, but he always reminds me to pa.s.s on his greetings to you.”
“Send my regards to him as well.” The Emperor waved a hand in the air. “The preparations for your ceremony is still underway. Spend the next few days exploring Chang"an if you will; we have everything you"d want or need in the city.”
“Thank you for your concern, your Majesty.” Chu Huaicai bowed and took a moment to steady himself. “There is something else that I"ll like to seek your approval in, your Majesty.”
“Oh? What"s that?” The Emperor smiled. “It must be something really difficult, for the Heir of Huaiyang will seek my help.”
“I have harbored feelings for Princess Shangrong for a long while now, spending my days and nights thinking of her. If you may, your Majesty, I"ll like to ask for her hand in marriage. I promise to treat her right and devote to her all of my love.”
The Emperor was stunned for a second, but he quickly recovered and laughed heartily. “I never knew that you had feelings for my daughter, Heir of Huaiyang. I"m glad to hear that, but I"m afraid that she"ll be upset if I was to arrange a marriage for her without her consent. Why don"t you spend some time with her now that you"re in Chang"an? If things go well and she agrees to the marriage, I"ll be glad to host the marriage between the two of you.”
“I thank you sincerely, your Majesty.” Chu Huaicai"s joy was written all over his face.
“It"s best if you could spend time with her outside of the palace, seeing as how it is unsuitable for concubines and princesses to meet with men in the palace. She"s been cooped up in the palace for a while now, why don"t you bring her out for a few days?”
“I thank you for your understanding, your Majesty.” Chu Huaicai felt that the Emperor had all but agreed to his courts.h.i.+p.
“Alright. You may leave to visit Shang"er today.” The Emperor waved him away. “I"ll need to rest.”
“I wish you good health, your Majesty. I shall take my leave.” Chu Huaicai left the Imperial Study in high spirits.
The Emperor was silent for a long while after he left, his hands playing with a teacup absentmindedly. Suddenly, he looked at the attendant waiting on him.
“Who do you think suits Shang"er better: the Duke of Anping, or the future King of Huaiyang?”
The attendant quickly bowed and replied. “Your Majesty, seeing as how fond you are of Princess Shangrong, you might not like it for her to be too far away from you after her marriage.”
“You"re a witty one, aren"t you?” The Emperor chuckled and answered his own question. “The Duke of Anping is much better than Chu Huaicai. He is a decorated veteran who"d earned his t.i.tle, while Chu Huaicai is only a n.o.bility by the merit of his father. Moreover, Shang"er had expressed her feelings for the Duke of Anping to me, or I would not have even considered marrying her off.”
“If that is the case, why did you allow the Heir of Huaiyang to interact with the princess?”
The Emperor shot him a glance. “You don"t understand it, do you? Chu Huaicai came to the capital with the clear intention of marrying Shang"er, and it will strain the relations.h.i.+p between the King of Huaiyang and I if I was to reject him immediately. After all, the King of Huaiyang had helped me greatly when he was younger.”
“Wise words, your Majesty.” The attendant bowed his head.
The Emperor narrowed his eyes. “Shang"er had been requesting to be let out of the palace for the past few days, but I know that all she wants is to meet the Duke of Anping. She sends a message to him every time he enters the palace, but he never acknowledged any of it. How is it possible for him to not understand her feelings for him?”
“Your Majesty, perhaps the Duke was speaking the truth when he said that he"d already had someone in his heart?” The attendant suggested gingerly.
“Hmph!” The Emperor sneered. “Even if that is the truth, that woman can only be his concubine. There"s n.o.body else in the world more suitable to be his wife than my daughter.”
“Yes, your Majesty. Everyone knows that Princess Shangrong is your favourite daughter, and it"ll be his honour if the Duke marries her. He is the only one who has yet to realize that fact.”
“Yet to realize?” The Emperor sneered again. “How dare he defy my will to wed the two of them? How dare he ignore the messages from a princess? He thinks too highly of himself; perhaps he"s becoming unsatisfied with the fact that his surname is merely Situ.”
“Yes, your Majesty.” The attendant did not dare to raise his head, feeling the wrath beneath the Emperor"s words.