Not long after the imperial decree was issued, Yin Chu made his way to Yufeng Hall.
The two men sat facing each other indoors and began a game of chess.
In truth, Yin Xun had never met his fourth elder brother alone since growing up, but he had heard of the Crown Prince's reputation: as gentle as jade, upright and proper.
And perhaps just a bit stubborn.
Yin Chu had come here undoubtedly because of Fourth Miss Jiang. He likely felt a sense of guilt in his heart, yet he could not disobey the mother who wanted what was best for him, so he had settled for the next best thing: instead of going to the Jiang Estate, he came here to seek peace of mind.
Yet Yin Xun had to pretend he knew nothing.
"The Crown Prince holds the entire board in his mind; this younger brother is far from a match." Throwing the game with a clumsy move, Yin Xun wrapped himself in an old winter cloak from the previous couple of years, turned his face aside, and pressed a hand to his lips to cough.
Yin Chu's heart had not been in the game to begin with. Hearing him cough, he furrowed his brows. "Just call me Fourth Brother. Has the imperial physician examined the Seventh Brother's health?"
"He has, thank you for your concern, Fourth Brother," Yin Xun answered smoothly. "However, since Fourth Brother came to find me so suddenly, is there something you need to impart?"
At that, Yin Chu's expression grew unnatural. "It is concerning Fourth Miss Jiang."
"I harbor guilt toward her and cannot bear to face her, so I came to find the Seventh Brother to deliver a gift." He tapped the table, and the attendant waiting outside quickly walked in, carrying two boxes, each a good two palms in length.
The gifts were very substantial.
Money, along with three shops in prime locations of Shengdu.
As Ming Li's former fiancé, Yin Chu doing this was clearly contrary to proper decorum.
Yin Xun's expression also darkened slightly.
"This younger brother thanks Fourth Brother on behalf of the Fourth Miss."
The two men had nothing further to discuss. Once the gift was delivered, Yin Chu left the hall.
However, before he had gone far, another formidable figure barged in aggressively.
Unlike Yin Chu, who entered through the front gates, Yin Yuan scaled the wall. Naturally, his purpose was far from being as friendly as Yin Chu's.
Almost the moment they came face-to-face, a punch landed in Yin Xun's abdomen, causing him to double over in agonizing pain.
"Seventh Brother, you've really grown bolder!" Yet Yin Yuan's hand still gripped his shoulder tightly, forcing him to stand straight, allowing his clenched fist to twist heavily against Yin Xun's stomach, nearly crushing his entrails.
Yin Xun almost thought he was going to die right then and there.
Fortunately, Yin Yuan quickly withdrew his strength. With a venomous smile on his face, he looked at him like a poisonous snake. "An ungrateful wretch! Had I known this earlier, I should have let you rot and die in the Cold Palace."
As if in too much pain to utter a sound, Yin Xun clutched his stomach, his limbs convulsing with agony.
At that, Yin Yuan's expression grew even colder. "Truly a piece of trash."
Yet he still lacked the daring to take Yin Xun's life right here in this hall; he had been pulling many petty tricks lately, and if the palace launched an investigation, he himself would suffer quite a bit.
Therefore, he still stepped closer to check on Yin Xun's condition.
Who would have thought that the moment he closed the distance, the person on the ground sprang up suddenly as if he had gone mad. Even though Yin Yuan reacted quickly, he could not entirely avoid being tightly grabbed. He managed only to narrowly dodge a vital spot, letting the hairpin—which should have pierced his throat—drive straight into his spine.
Blood instantly gushed forth.
Yin Yuan violently flung the person away, drew the dagger from his belt, and was overcome with a murderous intent.
At that moment, the sound of conversation drifted in from outside.
"This was sent by Fourth Miss Jiang. Do you need us maids to carry it inside?"
Someone at the door answered cheerfully, "Fourth Miss Jiang? Then many thanks to you, sisters! Please follow me this way!"
Thus, when the group walked in, all they saw was a small pool of blood on the floor and the golden hairpin gripped tightly in Yin Xun's hand.
A Ruo's pupils constricted sharply. Seemingly understanding what had happened, she lunged forward frantically. "Your Highness! Your Highness, what has happened to you?"
Only then did Yin Xun exhaust his remaining strength and faint.
·
When Ming Li received the news sent from the palace, she finally lowered the treasured sword she had been toying with, and her mood lifted by a few notches. She sighed softly, "Timorous as a mouse, timid as a vole... I truly never knew any cowardice quite like this, yet he isn't even afraid of playing himself to death."
The Divine Stone thus replied, "That is only because you are here, little master."
"However, you cannot keep guarding the Highness forever; you still need to attain enlightenment. The Orthodox God said one can enter the realm of the ruthless through the realm of the emotional. You can find some matters to experience true human affection... But little master, was it really the ruthless path you cultivated in the past?"
"Perhaps so." She did not remember.
As for other matters.
Ming Li thought for a moment, dredged up something interesting from her memories, and actually nodded.
And so, barely after regaining consciousness, Yin Xun heard A Ruo buzzing endlessly by his side like a nagging motherly figure: "This Fourth Miss Jiang is truly not someone worth entrusting one's life to! She hasn't even crossed the threshold yet, and she's already running amok outside! His Highness has such a gentle and yielding temperament—what is to become of him once he goes to the Chancellor's Estate?!"
The pain in his abdomen had already vanished without a trace. Watching A Ruo sitting in the outer room and muttering incessantly, he ultimately thought of that person and asked, "How is Fourth Miss Jiang?"
A Ruo's voice cut off, and her tone shifted instantly.
"Ahem, the medicine is almost ready. Your Highness, please wait a moment, I'll go get your medicine." With that, A Ruo scurried away.
Leaving Yin Xun to look out the window, he still felt a lingering sense of urgency akin to surviving a catastrophe.
He had been far too impatient.
His sole thought had been to make this person the second soul beneath his hairpin after she entered the Imperial Garden.
If Fourth Miss Jiang hadn't happened to send someone to deliver items, he probably would have died right there.
Therefore, when A Ruo re-entered the room, Yin Xun's first reaction was not to question her about the root of the matter, but rather to ask about yesterday: "What did Fourth Miss Jiang send someone to deliver?"
"It's... pastries, but by today they've already gone bad, and I was just planning to throw them out." A Ruo was already in a huff, and thinking of the pastries that had spoiled overnight made her even more indignant. "I reckon this Fourth Miss Jiang deliberately sent those things just to bully His Highness!"
"Sending so many all at once, and ones that spoil so easily! There's no telling if she's just waiting to find fault with His Highness!" A gift from a fiancée could never be casually thrown away, after all.
Yin Xun's expression darkened slightly. With an unchanged expression, he downed the bowl of bitter medicine and finally spoke, "Since throwing them away looks poorly, bring them over so I can have a taste."
His countenance was warm and genial; at a single glance, he appeared fragile, emaciated, and embittered—resembling the sort of doormat that anyone could trample upon, utterly devoid of worldly craft, pitiful and endearing.
"How can you do that? Eating them will upset your stomach!" A Ruo naturally refused outright.
The young man, however, merely sighed and explained the reasoning behind it: "My marriage to Fourth Miss Jiang is already marrying above my station; naturally, I cannot provoke her displeasure in other matters... Besides, it's not as though I've never eaten spoiled things in the past."
As long as he didn't die.
Anything else was fine.
"But..."
"A Ruo." His voice carried a trace of steadfastness.
A Ruo was never one to stand firm against him anyway. Called upon in such a manner, she dawdled and eventually brought the items over.
Indeed, a great many pastries had been sent. The outer layers were delicate and petite, while the interiors were rich and sweet, yet none of them were of the sort that could be stored long-term. The portion placed right at the top was already crumbling at the slightest pinch, having sat out for a full day.
He brushed his fingertips against them, picked up a softer tray, and examined it for a moment.
From the outside, it was impossible to tell good from bad, and compared to the withered branches and rotten leaves he had eaten for over a decade in the past, these were far easier to swallow.
Yet, soft as they were, they carried a strange, sour taste.
After eating two pieces, he wiped his hands with a damp cloth and lay back down.
He simply cared too much about what kind of attitude that Fourth Miss Jiang truly held toward him—