spoiled brat

Chapter 165, Section 164: Useless (Part 4)

Like waking up from drowning, Li Qingwen's vision was blurred by a layer of water mist, making it impossible to see clearly.

He rubbed his eyes, his vision still blurry. The surroundings were quiet, and the air was filled with the faint scent of ambergris, as if he were in a palace.

A ding sound came from somewhere, and memories of the time before I fainted flooded my mind.

He was saved by Yi Xing.

"woke up?"

He Wang walked forward with his arms crossed, looking down at Li Qingwen, who was curled up under the doorpost. He was dirty, with untreated wounds all over his body, and the cloth casually wrapped around his head was stained red with blood. He was nowhere near as handsome as he used to be.
"...Greetings, Guard He."

Li Qingwen, barely able to support his frail body, kowtowed towards the inner palace, his voice weak and feeble, "...This humble official...this commoner thanks Your Highness for saving me."

Through the gilded cloud-patterned screen, several tinkling bells rang out from the inner hall, clear and melodious, like ice striking jade.

Although he couldn't see the interior, Li Qingwen thought of a gambling game used by wealthy and powerful families, similar to horse racing, but more elegant—

Take a large piece of sandalwood and have craftsmen carve out streets and alleys, then add intricate pavilions and towers to create a realistic market scene.

The wooden plate slopes from north to south. The wealthy young men throw jade beads into the plate, and whoever's bead passes through the south gate successfully wins a big prize.

This is a game that's more fun with lots of people. Yixing didn't need anyone else to accompany him. He looked down at a red jade bead on the plate and pressed it down with his finger just as it was about to roll out of the south gate.

As it stopped, the other jade beads passed over it and tinkled as they fell into the silver pot outside the south gate.

"Don't thank me." Yi Xing played with the red jade bead, her slender and delicate hand adorned with a touch of scarlet, making her fair skin stand out. "It's because you're lucky."

Li Qingwen didn't understand, and He Wang laughed, pointing to the palace clock beside him and saying:

“If you had woken up a quarter of an hour later, you would have been thrown out.”

Despite the pain, Li Qingwen kowtowed again to the screen: "...This humble subject thanks Your Highness for your protection."

The words "commoner" are emphasized; how could one not understand the meaning behind them?
He strode out lazily, looking down at the defeated dog kneeling at his feet, and used the top of his boot to lift Li Qingwen's face:

"It's been months since I last saw you, how come you look so pitiful?"

Li Qingwen was forced to raise his head, but his expression showed no sign of humiliation. He knew this was an opportunity; if he seized it, he could turn the tide, even achieve victory, and reach new heights.

"...This humble citizen has done something wrong."

"Oh?"

He Wang then handed over a silk scroll, which concisely explained the matter of Li and Wu's secret exchange.

"Minister Jiang is very good at managing the household."

Yi Xing glanced at the official seal of the Ministry of Personnel on the silk scroll and scoffed, "Matters involving the inner court can be suppressed so easily, and the dismissal of the second-ranked scholar is not even bothered to inform me."

With that, he casually tossed the silk scroll into the incense burner.

Li Qingwen watched as it turned to ashes, and his dead heart began to beat again. A glimmer of hope appeared, and the path turned around!

Before he could even open his mouth, Yi Xing casually asked, "Where did these injuries come from?"

Li Qingwen hung his head, silently clutching his wet and stained robe. The phlegm spat by the servant of the Jiang family still seemed to be stuck to his face.

Shame, humiliation, anger...

These emotions flashed through Li Qingwen's mind, but vanished in an instant.

He's been running like a wild dog for so many years, what hasn't he been through? What's this little bit of trouble compared to that?

Li Qingwen was covered in filth, but his expression remained calm: "This humble citizen has brought this upon himself."

"Really?" He Wangcai didn't believe it. "If you have a grievance, you can tell His Highness. Did Minister Jiang kick you out of the manor and secretly order his servants to beat you half to death?" "Guard He is joking."

Li Qingwen said indifferently, "I acted carelessly and was exposed. Minister Jiang did not want to make a big fuss, so he suppressed the matter and ordered me to request to be dismissed. I shamelessly went to ask for it, so it was only right that he kicked me out of the manor..."

He Wang suspected that Li Qingwen had been beaten senseless. He had clearly been rejected by Minister Jiang and had been rescued by Yi Xing. Wouldn't it have been better to take this opportunity to switch allegiances? Why was he still defending his former master?

But then Li Qingwen changed the subject:
"It's no wonder that the servants in my household took advantage of my misfortune. I can only blame myself for being so reckless at the time, and in a fit of anger, I fought back, which resulted in a severe beating and almost cost me my life."

His tone was completely flat and unusually calm.

He didn't look like a pitiful creature who had just escaped death, but rather like a gambler who had bet his entire fortune.

When you have nothing left, calmly watch the dealer cut off his own hand.

He Wang's eyelids twitched, and he heard Yi Xing's casual voice in his ear:
"He Wang, help him sit down and talk."

"...Thank you for the seat, Your Highness."

He thought to himself, "That's impressive!"

Li Qingwen had thoroughly understood Yi Xing's temperament, or perhaps they were simply kindred spirits—

Emotionless, unscrupulous, and extremely calm, like a snake slithering through a dense forest, capable of handling any situation with ease. Even if temporarily frustrated, they can immediately adjust their posture.

Years ago, when He Wang first saw Yi Xing, he was certain that this exceptionally intelligent yet utterly inhuman monster would become a disaster for many people in the future.

Many people advised He Wang to choose another wise ruler, but He Wang scoffed and remained silent.

Fear? Distance? Cowardly behavior.

Ambitious people should seize upon the harbinger of disaster and use its momentum to rise to the top.

He Wang helped Li Qingwen sit down, then stepped behind Yi Xing and silently observed Yi Xing's profile.

Sure enough, his eyes were unfathomable, clearly indicating that he had become interested.

"Lord Li, what are your plans for the future?"

The chair was a fine sandalwood chair, so firm and hard that it hurt Li Qingwen all over, but he had to gather his thoughts and calmly answer Yi Xing:
"I want to go and beg the Minister for forgiveness."

He Wang didn't understand what was being said, and frowned, saying, "He clearly despises you, so why are you still begging him? His Highness is here, why are you so oblivious—"

Yi Xing glanced sideways at him, and He Wang was silenced.

"Bring Wu Xiang here," Yi Xing ordered.

He dared not ask any more questions and could only do as instructed.

Before long, Wu Xiang moved into the inner hall with trepidation, not daring to glance to his left or right, and knelt down in front of Yi Xing with a thud: "Your Highness, may you live a thousand years and be well."

Yi Xing hated eunuchs the most, his eyes filled with disgust as he pointed to the side: "Do you recognize him?"

Wu Xiang then noticed a disheveled person sitting on the sandalwood chair beside him, his clothes filthy and blood seeping from his forehead.

One knelt and one sat, Wu Xiang looked up in shock: "Surname...surname Li...Lord Li?"

Li Qingwen withdrew his lowered gaze and said to Yi Xing, "I recognize him."

"You two colluded to embezzle state funds; one is reduced to a pathetic state, while the other remains unscathed..."

Yi Xing curled his fingers and tapped the table lightly: "Wu Xiang, do you think this is fair?"

"This servant..." Wu Xiang knelt down in horror, kowtowing repeatedly, "This servant is guilty! This servant is guilty! This servant should not have said in front of Minister Jiang that it was all done by Lord Li alone! Letting the blame fall entirely on Lord Li's shoulders!"