"What's wrong with Luor?" Jing Renyi's expression changed in a flash. His cheerful face was instantly replaced by panic, and casting aside all notions of status, he stepped forward and turned his kneeling son toward him.
"This?! Who did this to your eyes??"
When he saw his son's bruised and blackened eye sockets, Jing Renyi was instantly consumed by rage, his ox-like eyes bulging as wide as bronze bells.
Jing Luoluo shrank back, terrified. Good grief! His shoulders were about to be crushed.
"Renyi, let go of him first. With strength like that, you're going to break the child." Emperor Hengwu's gaze flickered as he noticed the pain on Jing Luoluo's face as the boy knelt on the floor, and he hurriedly spoke up to stop him.
Jing Renyi snapped out of it and hastily relaxed his grip, though his hands didn't leave his son. He looked the boy up and down carefully, and only after confirming there were no other injuries did he allow the imperial physician to step forward and examine him.
Yet his face remained dark and gloomy. His own son had grown this tall, and he hadn't laid a single finger on him, yet now someone had beaten him to a pulp.
"Your Majesty, this old subject implores you to seek justice for Luor. You know very well what kind of temperament this child has; he may usually be a bit mischievous, but he would never do anything wicked or unconscionful."
"This old subject is still counting on Luor to take the imperial examinations. Now that his eye has been beaten like this, who knows if he'll ever recover? Isn't this destroying a future top scholar's prospects in vain?"
His words were earnest and sincere, and his aged face wore a bitter smile that tugged at everyone's heartstrings.
Emperor Hengwu looked down at the subject kneeling at his feet. His expression betrayed neither joy nor anger, and no one dared to even draw a full breath.
Everyone privately guessed how Emperor Hengwu would handle this. Anyone with eyes could see that Jing Luoluo's injury was inextricably linked to Prince An's heir. The problem was that on one side was his own nephew, and on the other was the sole remaining seedling of a founding general's family—a boy who had grown up right before Your Majesty's eyes. What a tricky situation!
"Luor, tell us. What on earth happened?" After a long silence, Emperor Hengwu finally spoke. He needed to hear the whole story before making a decision.
Jing Luoluo took a deep breath and raised his face to look at the man standing tall above him. The man wore a bright yellow dragon robe, his hair bound up in a high topknot, his gaze sharp and his presence overwhelmingly powerful.
With just a single glance, Jing Luoluo immediately lowered his head again and muttered, "I... I just got beaten by Zhao Huaiyuan!"
Having said that, he fell silent and refused to utter another word.
Left none the wiser, the crowd looked at one another, completely baffled.
"Luor, tell me what this is all about. I will get justice for you!"
The Empress crouched down and gently stroked his head. After all, this was a child who had grown up by her side; it would be a lie to say she didn't care for him.
Jing Luoluo knew very well that this matter couldn't be divulged so easily. In the original novel, the fact that Tan Yujiao was able to dispose of Zhao Huaiyuan so early on was thanks in no small part to Prince An's favoring of his concubine over his wife.
Besides, that son of hers was no simple character.
If he guessed correctly, the brat was eighty percent likely to be a transmigrator, though he didn't know at what point the kid had transmigrated.
He frowned in distress, and in the end, only shook his head slightly and whispered, "Luor thanks the Empress, but... this matter is truly too difficult to speak of."
Seeing that she couldn't extract anything from him, the Empress was about to speak again when Prince An impatiently kicked out at Zhao Huaiyuan.
"You little brat! Why on earth did you hit Jing Lu for no reason?!"
That unreserved kick sent Zhao Huaiyuan flying backward, his forehead striking the bluestone floor with a heavy thud, and blood instantly welled up.
Everyone was so startled by the scene that they gasped aloud: "Quick! Someone have the imperial physician stop the bleeding for Huaiyuan!"
The Empress was standing closest and immediately called the imperial physician—who hadn't yet had time to withdraw—over to them. After a flurry of frantic activity, the bleeding was successfully stemmed.
Yet Zhao Huaiyuan was pale from blood loss, and he sat limply on the ground, completely devoid of his usual high-spirited demeanor.
Emperor Hengwu cast an annoyed glance at his younger brother. Although Prince An shared the same mother, he truly lacked any brains. How could he beat his son like this without distinguishing between right and wrong?
Knowing he was in the wrong, Prince An looked somewhat sheepish and awkward as he said, "This subject... this subject only acted out of anxiety. It's not like it's a big deal anyway."
A trace of anger smoldered on the Empress's face. What the Emperor found inconvenient to say, she could naturally handle: "Wangqiu, Huaiyuan is your legitimate son after all, and he is Your Majesty's officially appointed Prince An Heir. Before the matter has even been sorted out, you act like this. Aren't you afraid of chilling the child's heart?"
Prince An shifted his feet awkwardly, still taking a reckless, care-free attitude. "This brat has been like this since he was small. Who in the capital doesn't know he's a hopeless good-for-nothing? If I didn't discipline him strictly, sooner or later he'd ruin the title of Heir anyway."
"You!" The Empress was so angered by Prince An's words that her chest tightened. Hearing his own father's words, Zhao Huaiyuan—who was sitting in her arms—shed silent tears.
Finally, as if driven to the peak of fury, he roared, "That's right! I am a hopeless good-for-nothing! You've never liked me anyway, why don't you just give this Heir title to your younger son earlier?!"
Seeing that the boy still dared to talk back, Prince An instantly felt the urge to strike him again, but only restrained himself when he saw the boy still leaning against the Empress.
"Look at that! I barely said two words to him, and he dares to talk back to his own father!" Prince An's gaze was full of contempt, as if the person before him wasn't his own flesh and blood, but some inconsequential stray cat or dog.
This act thoroughly shattered Zhao Huaiyuan's young and fragile heart. He stopped his tears, crawled up, and knelt before Emperor Hengwu, saying resentfully, "Your Majesty! Don't you want to know why Little Jing and I fought?"
Emperor Hengwu raised an eyebrow slightly. "What? Are you willing to talk now?"
Disregarding the bandage on his head, Zhao Huaiyuan gave a heavy, resounding kowtow and continued, "Little Jing did it to save my life! He had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure, and the reason—the reason was to blow this matter wide open!"
Emperor Hengwu's gaze held a faint glimmer of understanding as he motioned for him to continue. The rest of the company wore looks of astonishment, turning their gazes toward Jing Luoluo.
Seeing this, Jing Luoluo hurriedly scrambled to Zhao Huaiyuan's side, and the two of them prostrated themselves flat on the ground together. Good grief, if he dared to scheme against the Emperor, he'd better make sure his neck was stretched and ready.
"This... what on earth is going on here? The two of you, kneel properly and tell the truth!"
The Empress's expression was equally displeased. These two kids had actually schemed against all of them?
Jing Renyi hurriedly scurried over to his son's side and knelt down properly. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Luor is still young, he absolutely harbors no malicious intentions, Your Majesty!"
"Jing Renyi, shut your mouth. I want to hear these two brats explain."
"Your Majesty, calm your anger!"
Imperial majesty washed over them like a wave. The Empress took the lead and knelt down, while the palace maids and eunuchs behind her dropped to their knees in a flurry, and no one dared to breathe a word.
"Jing Lu, I want to hear it from your own mouth!"
Huh? He didn't even call him Luor anymore; was he really angry?
Sigh, why did this blockhead Zhao Huaiyuan suddenly blow his own cover? To be stuck with a teammate like this—unbelievable!!! Jing Luoluo muttered and cursed inwardly!