Lu Bohuan looked at his stubborn appearance and suddenly sneered.
Before Qin Yuanxi could figure out what he had done, his wrist was grabbed by Lu Bohuan. Prince Lu twisted his arm, and his other hand began to glide across Qin Yuanxi’s face. His fingers were a bit rough, and they carried a slight chill, causing the hairs on Qin Yuanxi’s arm to stand on end in an instant.
When these hands had caressed him before, Qin Yuanxi had felt nothing but pleasure, almost wanting to make a sound of satisfaction. But now, those hands were on his face, just a little lower and they’d reach his neck. Prince Lu only needed to move slightly downwards to choke him with a single hand!
“L-Lu Bohuan, you dare to be so audacious!” When Qin Yuanxi uttered these words, his confidence was lacking, and he couldn’t even bear to meet Prince Lu’s frosty gaze; it was terrifying.
Firstly, he was well aware that he wasn’t the real Emperor Qin Yuanxi, and even the genuine Emperor Qin Yuanxi couldn’t withstand Prince Lu’s intimidating presence, let alone him.
Secondly, he knew that Lu Bohuan had suspicions about his identity, maybe even certainty, just like he was well aware of the hidden side of Prince Lu that nobody else knew, something he didn’t want to face but was nonetheless a reality.
As the situation seemed to spiral out of control, Qin Yuanxi couldn’t afford to hesitate any longer. Prince Lu was unlikely to release him now. Qin Yuanxi closed his eyes, gathered his courage, and sternly said, “Zhao Tuo! What do you think you’re doing? Giving you an inch, and you’ll take a mile, won’t you? Let go of me!”
Instead of letting go, Prince Lu directly grabbed Qin Yuanxi’s throat this time, his tone icy. “What happened outside the palace?”
“You, cough, you let go!”
Prince Lu asked coldly, “Who are you really?”
With his breath cut off and struggling to breathe, tears welled up in Qin Yuanxi’s eyes. He stammered, “If you want to know who I am, ask Zhao Tuo. He knows more than you. If you kill me, you’ll never find out who I am, and you’ll never know what happened outside the palace!”
Cough, cough.
It was unclear which of Qin Yuanxi’s words struck a chord, or perhaps which words he failed to say correctly. In any case, he narrowly escaped Prince Lu’s grasp. Qin Yuanxi was too preoccupied with catching his breath to notice when Prince Lu disappeared. When he finally regained his composure, the inner chamber was empty, and Qin Yuanxi breathed a sigh of relief.
But then, he quickly realized something was wrong.
Silence, an eerie silence that was too profound. So quiet that even the sound of a falling pin could be heard.
Qin Yuanxi’s expression froze, and he rushed outside, only to find the doors to the bedchamber tightly shut. He pounded on them forcefully. “Lu Bohuan, you bastard! Who gave you the right to imprison me?”
“Lu Bohuan, you’ve gone too far, you’re outrageous, and you’ve imprisoned the emperor. Lu Bohuan, you’re finished, you’re doomed!”
“Lu Bohuan!!!”
Unfortunately, there was no response to his words. Qin Yuanxi hammered on the door vigorously until his hand swelled, but he received no reply. In an instant, he felt a drop in his spirits, slid down to the ground, leaning against the sturdy back wall, his chest aching with anger.
After a while, Qin Yuanxi rubbed his stomach, feeling a bit hungry. Making such a ruckus had consumed a lot of his energy. Moreover, his current situation was unique, perhaps due to psychological factors. He was now eating for two, and how could he neglect his nutrition? The little one inside him needed nourishment to grow, and he couldn’t ignore that.
“Your dad is a jerk; he’s trying to starve us, it’s infuriating! Baby, when you grow up, you mustn’t be obedient to him. We’ll starve that jerk too!”
Regarding the child, Qin Yuanxi had to accept the situation. He was in a strange place, carrying a child in his belly. It was impossible not to feel uneasy. But then, the child was innocent. Although Lu Bohuan had many flaws, Zhao Tuo was still a good person. When they were together, even though Zhao Tuo was a bit clumsy, he had never shown the slightest neglect. He had cherished Qin Yuanxi deeply.
“Your dad, the Grand General’s a good man. He wouldn’t want to starve you.” Qin Yuanxi muttered to himself, “If it’s that Regent, he can go to hell!”
As the sky gradually darkened, Qin Yuanxi heard some commotion outside, as if the door was being opened. Then, palace maids entered one by one, each carrying a tray. It seemed that Prince Lu Bohuan had no intention of starving him; they were bringing him food. Qin Yuanxi had a basic understanding of his current situation.
Lu Bohuan had him under house arrest, and all he could do was adjust his state of mind and wait for his next move.
Not long after, news reached the court that His Majesty was slightly unwell, and the affairs of the court would be temporarily handled by the Regent.
But for such news, the courtiers were not surprised. The real power in the court was Prince Lu Bohuan, and the emperor on the throne was just a figurehead. He would come to the morning court every day to remind the officials of his presence. Now that he was ill, it was only right for him to rest. Whether he was there or not, it didn’t have much impact on the governance of the country.
On Lu Bohuan’s side, things were not looking good.
He was one hundred percent sure that the person in the palace was not Emperor Qin Yuanxi. In other words, after that day when Emperor Qin Yuanxi left the palace, he never returned, and there was no news of him!
Lu Bohuan had sent several waves of people to search every possible lead, leaving no stone unturned. The most suspicious place was the burned-down Wazi Town. According to his subordinates’ reports, on that day, Emperor Qin Yuanxi, most likely the real one, had been kidnapped to Wazi Town. After that, the person who returned was the one in the palace now. So what had happened in between? Could the real Emperor Qin Yuanxi just disappear into thin air?
Clutching the jade pendant in his hand, Lu Bohuan couldn’t figure it out.
What puzzled him even more was how Zhao Tuo could possibly pawn his cherished jade pendant for a bowl of dumplings!
He and Zhao Tuo were essentially the same person; Lu Bohuan had never denied that. Zhao Tuo had appeared only a few times before this and had never caused trouble. Lu Bohuan knew he had a sense of propriety. Zhao Tuo should have understood that trading the jade pendant for a bowl of dumplings was beyond reason.
Not to mention, the military token is still missing!
The more Lu Bohuan thought about it, the darker his expression became. The whole situation seemed to involve only Zhao Tuo, but he knew nothing about it. What had Zhao Tuo been through? What had he participated in? What had he done? Lu Bohuan knew nothing.
He clenched his fist, and the jade pendant in his hand pressed into the palm, causing a dull ache.
When Yan Shaoning was summoned to the Moonlight Pavilion, he initially thought it was about the news of the Emperor’s pregnancy.
This was a royal secret, and Yan Shaoning was somewhat connected to the martial world. Royal affairs were always mysterious to people like him, but now, this mystery had taken on another level of secrecy. If even the respected Emperor could become pregnant, it hinted at some explosive news. With a curious heart, Yan Shaoning had speculated about how the child came to be.
Unfortunately, no one discussed it with him. The day the imperial physician was summoned, they all suddenly fell silent. Even the records of the visit vanished completely, as if that day had never existed. No one confirmed the Emperor’s pregnancy, and everything seemed like Yan Shaoning’s own imagination.
Of course, Yan Shaoning knew it wasn’t. What’s more, he knew that all of this was orchestrated by Prince Lu. Given the current situation, if Prince Lu wanted to discreetly remove the child from the Emperor’s womb, Yan Shaoning felt extremely uneasy. He wasn’t a skilled doctor, and so far, he hadn’t figured out a way. Thinking about how he might fail in this task, Yan Shaoning felt he would meet not the Regent, but the King of Hell.
“What? Summon Zhao Tuo?”
Yan Shaoning was greatly surprised. Lu Bohuan and Zhao Tuo had always coexisted peacefully, minding their own business. Lu Bohuan even created a fake identity for Zhao Tuo to ensure he felt more at ease, ordering that his former subordinates address him with their previous titles when he wore military armor. It seemed like a gesture of goodwill, but it had a deeper meaning.
But even though arrangements were made, Lu Bohuan accepting Zhao Tuo didn’t mean Zhao Tuo accepted him. Based on what Yan Shaoning knew, it might be quite the opposite. Zhao Tuo had no friendly attitude towards the Regent, and Yan Shaoning had one more unanswered question: Did Zhao Tuo know of Lu Bohuan’s existence, and could he accept it?
As a physician, Yan Shaoning preferred Lu Bohuan to remain stable. Zhao Tuo was a non-existent figure, and the more Lu Bohuan was stable, the less Zhao Tuo appeared. However, the current situation didn’t seem normal at all, with Zhao Tuo’s frequent appearances, and now, Lu Bohuan was actively calling him out.
Yan Shaoning couldn’t agree with this.
“He’s the only one who knows what happened,” Lu Bohuan said, touching his forehead. “I need to find out what’s going on.”
“But,” Yan Shaoning expressed his concern, “What if he doesn’t cooperate?”
“He won’t,” Lu Bohuan replied confidently. “We are essentially the same person. You find a way to summon him, and I will leave a letter explaining the situation. He will tell me what he knows.”
The author has something to say:
Zhao Tuo: Dare to bully my wife and child, Lu Bohuan, you’re in big trouble!
Hello, everyone ヾ(^∇^). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)