Rong Tang thought for a long time about how Su Huaijing would achieve his goal.
The original novel unfolds from the perspective of the male protagonist. The readers only know that at the end of the story, the plot collapses all the way, deviating from the outline and direction set by the author, and the villain who should have been defeated sits firmly on the throne.
In the first life, Rong Tang died early and did not witness it with his own eyes. However, in the second life, he experienced it day by day and saw with his own eyes how Su Huaijing marched step by step, eroded most of the power in the court, and finally forced the emperor to abdicate, causing Emperor Renshou to personally affix the imperial seal on the edict of succession.
But at that time, they belonged to two different camps, so Rong Tang could not know exactly his plans and actions at every step. He had some guesses about the general direction, but he couldn't help but be curious and wanted to see from the first-person perspective how Su Huaijing's plan was going to unfold.
But when the time really came for the villain to be honest with him and speak without reservation, Rong Tang would rather guess on his own and never took the initiative to walk behind Su Huaijing to take a look at the secret letters that he had no intention of hiding, or to listen to the deployments that he and his subordinates had not yet implemented.
Su Huaijing was helpless and asked him: "Since Tangtang is curious, why don't you just come and see it?"
Rong Tang shook his head and said calmly, "It takes a lot of brainpower."
No matter how close two people are to each other and how compatible their souls are, it is impossible for them to always be united and have no disagreements on everything.
Instead of reading Su Huaijing's plan, Rong Tang subconsciously thinking and judging, and then disagreeing with him, it would be better to ignore it completely.
If he plays a blind game of chess with Su Huaijing in this way, every unexpected move made by the opponent may surprise him, and every perfectly fitting path will be surprising enough.
As for those options that Su Huaijing might not be able to make up his mind about…
Anyway, if he has any troubles, he will take the initiative to communicate with Rong Tang. There is no need for Young Master Rong to take the trouble to look for him and make him worry. He feels that he is very Buddhist now.
Mu Jingxu's vacation was approved smoothly. Emperor Renshou even ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to personally deliver many rare jewels and precious medicinal materials to his house, and urged him to take good care of his health.
Compared with the fainting of a diligent and dedicated Shaoqing of the Dali Temple in the court, what shocked everyone in the court even more was the mouthful of blood that Emperor Renshou spit out on the dragon throne.
People in the court and the country were in a panic. Ministers whose children were concubines in the palace tried every means to send letters to the palace, hoping to get a relatively definite answer to calm their uncertain hearts.
Under the imperial system, the emperor's physical health largely determined the direction of a country, and they had no way of staying out of it.
When Rong Tang heard that Mu Jingxu had successfully asked for leave, he felt relieved and thought about this matter instead. He asked Su Huaijing, "Did you do this too?"
Su Huaijing was peeling a pomelo for him at the time, and asked with a smile: "What is Tangtang talking about?"
The grapefruits were naturally also sent to the capital by Sheng Chengming from his fiefdom. They were big and sweet, could be stored longer than other fruits, and tasted better than those in the capital.
Rong Tang looked at a small bowl of pomelo flesh that had been peeled so clean that not even a single strand of flesh could be seen, and then glanced at Su Huaijing's fair and white hands that should have been used to hold a pen or a sword, or to control the life and death of others. After thinking for a moment, he decided to forgive his deliberate question and replied, "The blood that Emperor Renshou spat out when he attended court."
Su Huaijing chuckled, peeled the last piece of pomelo flesh and put it in the bowl, while washing his hands slowly, he said: "People who are depressed can't sleep all day. If they are suddenly stimulated and get angry, vomiting blood is a way of self-help."
Rong Tang frowned. Somehow, he felt that there was something else behind his words. He looked at him suspiciously and saw that Su Huaijing had already washed his hands and was wiping them with a clean towel. His phoenix eyes fell slightly, and he glanced at him with a smile and said in a light voice: "Just like the blood you spat out at the flower-picking party, brother Tangtang."
Rong Tang: “…”
He admitted his mistake decisively, feeling extremely guilty. He turned his hand that was about to put the grapefruit flesh into his mouth in the air and said expressionlessly: "Ah—"
Su Huaijing was amused: "Tangtang, what is this? Are you trying to bribe me or are you trying to trick me?"
Rong Tang quickly stuffed it into his mouth and said unhappily, "Shut up."
The sweet fruity aroma spread in his mouth. Su Huaijing lowered his eyes and smiled, and stopped teasing Rong Tang.
The autumn weather is clear and the clouds are drifting across the sky.
Mu Jingxu and his companions decided to go south after mid-August. Ke Hongxue resigned from his teaching position at the Imperial College and planned to go to the south of the Yangtze River with his fellow students and grandfather after the Mid-Autumn Festival.
After Wang Xiuyu transferred all her dowry and assets from Ningxuan Palace, she picked a day to go back and ask for a divorce from Rong Mingyu.
King Ning Xuan was furious and not only disagreed, but also wanted to order the princess to be sent back to her own courtyard to reflect on her mistakes. The eldest princess appeared at the right time, solemnly sat in the main seat, dismissed all the servants, closed the door and let the two of them talk in front of her.
That night, no one in Ningxuan Palace slept peacefully. The next day, Wang Xiuyu took the divorce letter to the government for notarization.
The people of Dayu were open-minded, and it was common for ordinary people to have disagreements and part ways amicably. However, among the princes and dukes, every dynasty had its own problems: they were tired of each other and had grudges against each other, and it was rare for them to part ways amicably.
There are too many conflicts of interest and power relations involved behind the scenes, and no one dares to leave easily.
As a result, rumors spread throughout the capital, and the emperor and empress even summoned the two of them to the palace for a talk to ask what was going on.
When the rumor was spreading wildly, Rong Tang was copying Buddhist scriptures and reading storybooks in the small courtyard in Yong'an Lane, and saw the golden lotus on the Buddha statue blooming day by day.
Unexpectedly, Rong Tang was amused when he saw their cautious appearance, and asked with a smile: "My parents are getting divorced, what does it have to do with me, and what does it have to do with you? Why are you so worried?"
Shuangfu had a tangled expression: "Master..."
Rong Tang said gently, "Okay, I'm fine. Instead of worrying every day, I should think about how to transport the treasures left in the palace if the palace doesn't let me in."
Upon hearing this, Shuangfu and Shuangshou suddenly became cautious and went straight to Ningxuan Palace without saying a word. When it was already dark, they drove a few carts all the way to Yong'an Lane.
The aunties who were chatting at the corner of the alley after dinner saw this, their eyes widened in surprise and dropped the melon seeds in their hands.
Shuangshou couldn't help but roll his Adam's apple when he saw this, and in a trance he felt like he was lifting basket after basket of red eggs.
When everything was settled, Prince Ningxuan and his wife officially divorced, but Rong Tang's title of Crown Prince was still retained. In addition to the dowry that Wang Xiuyu had moved away in advance, Emperor Renshou also ordered Rong Mingyu to go to the silver shop every month to save money for Wang Xiuyu to cover her expenses for the rest of her life.
When Rong Tang heard this, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows and said, "He is quite honest."
Su Huaijing smiled and said, "My mother's family is Wang, the father-in-law of the current emperor. Even if the empress's concubine's sister met a bad person and was wronged and came to him for help, he would have to be extra lenient to her. What's more, my mother and the empress are sisters from the same mother."
Rong Tang curled his lips, not wanting to hear about Sheng Xuyan. He responded lazily, then curled up on the beauty couch in the study and fell asleep.
Su Huaijing smiled. He had no way to deal with him. He naturally slowed down his movements and worked peacefully listening to the chirping of birds outside the window and the breathing of Rong Tang in his light sleep.
This winter is expected to come early, and it may be a cold winter. Charcoal will have to be purchased in the summer and must be used around September, otherwise Rong Tang’s body may not be able to withstand it.
After Su Huaijing finished his official business, he was distracted by the fact that the sky outside was gradually getting darker and candles and incense were burning on the table. He put down his brush and looked up at Rong Tang who was sleeping on his side on the couch.
At a certain moment, Su Huaijing had a delusion that time could be frozen.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, winter is almost here. After leaving court tomorrow, he will go to Shudao Pavilion first and order Xingfeng to process half of each of the cattle and sheep sent this year and send them to Yong'an Lane to help Tangtang replenish his body.
After Emperor Renshou vomited blood, he stopped holding court for three days. After that, everything returned to normal, with officials attending court every day to discuss state affairs.
Only the officials most trusted by the emperor could see that the emperor was actually wasting his time and his complexion was getting worse day by day.
Su Huaijing and Rong Tang lived their lives as usual. Because Wang Xiuyu went to the south of the Yangtze River, they were too lazy to even go back to Ningxuan Palace. They only went to the villa in the suburbs of Beijing to visit their grandmother from time to time. They lived a very comfortable life.
After court that day, Su Huaijing walked down the steps in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony towards the Censorate. He heard footsteps behind him, light and clean, with almost no trace of heavy, turbid air.
He frowned silently, without saying a word or looking back, until the man came up to him and called out, "Master Su, please stay." Su Huaijing stopped and pretended to have just seen the person coming, and said politely, "Hello, Fifth Prince."
Sheng Chengli looked at him, his body slightly bowed, and his head lowered in humility. He didn't know what he was thinking. He paused for a moment and replied, "Master Su, there is no need to be so polite."
Su Huaijing stood up and said, "Your Highness walked so lightly that I didn't even hear any noise along the way. If it weren't for the imperial physician's diagnosis, who would have believed that you had ever been lame?"
"I'm lucky to have met a good doctor." Sheng Chengli ignored the sarcasm in his words and said lightly, extending his arm and pointing, indicating that they could talk while walking.
It was not long after dawn on the palace wall, and the north wind was about to blow into the capital. Sheng Chengli asked casually, "Did Lord Su have any hand in Lord Mu's trip south?"
Su Huaijing asked back, "Your Highness, do you think there is something fishy about Mu Shaoqing's trip south?"
Sheng Chengli smiled softly, "It's not strange at all. It's just that Lord Mu is my teacher. He just invited me to work with him in the Dali Temple, and then he became seriously ill. This also caused my father to be suspicious of me. It's just too much of a coincidence. I just want to ask about the inside story."
Su Huaijing: "Mr. Mu and I are just colleagues. Even if Your Highness really thinks there is something going on, you are asking the wrong person. Besides—"
He changed the subject and said with a smile, "Since you are a teacher, you have the intention to teach. The teacher is seriously ill, but Your Highness does not think about whether the illness is serious or not, but instead worries about whether there is any hidden reason. Have you neglected the duty of being a student?"
He raised his eyes to look at Sheng Chengli, his phoenix eyes were clean and clear, as if he had no calculation or targeting from beginning to end, just calmly said the heart-piercing words.
Sheng Chengli looked at him for a long time, then lowered his head and smiled softly: "The student wants to treat the teacher with respect, but the teacher is unwilling to teach him everything and treat him with the love of a son. What should I do?"
Su Huaijing repeated softly: "With your love for me?"
He laughed and looked at Sheng Chengli with an ambiguous expression: "Your Highness, as the heir to the throne, and now on the verge of the throne, I treat you like a son and you repay me with love as a father. It is reasonable. But I don't know whether you want to serve your father or kill him with this love you give him."
(End of this chapter)