Film and Television: The Villain's Life Begins with Joy of Life

As the last rays of sunlight faded, it was in the Imperial Study.

Eunuch Hou instructed the palace servants to light the imperial candles.

The orange-red flames, like solidified amber, burned silently and quietly, without a trace of smoke, coating the room's furnishings with a warm, gentle hue.

After the palace servants who lit the candles left, Emperor Qing put down the secret letter in his hand.

He folded the secret letter, placed it under the paperweight, and looked up at the figure kneeling before the imperial desk.

"Gong Dian, do you think the third brother did it on purpose, or was it an accident?"

Gong Dian lowered his head even further.

He knew, of course, that Emperor Qing was referring to the time when Zhou Cheng pushed the crown prince.

Whether it was intentional or accidental, it's not something he can comment on.

In a sense, as a witness, seeing that scene was already a sin.

How could he dare to make any rash comments at this moment?

"Your Majesty, I do not know," he said loudly.

Emperor Qing chuckled softly and shook his head slightly. The laughter was very soft, revealing neither joy nor anger. Soon, the smile on his face also disappeared.

He tapped his knuckles on the imperial desk, once, once...

After a while, he spoke, seemingly to Gong Dian, yet also to himself.

"Whether it was intentional or accidental, such behavior should never happen in the royal family, especially between these brothers. This third son, after being confined for three days, showed no remorse whatsoever; on the contrary, he became even more unruly. It seems I have been too lenient, allowing him to grow increasingly arrogant!"

The further he spoke, the sterner Emperor Qing's tone became, until finally it turned icy cold.

Gong Dian kept his head down, not daring to breathe, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He still didn't dare to move an inch.

As Emperor Qing's personal bodyguard, having served him for many years, he knew that Emperor Qing wouldn't say these things to him without reason.

Since Emperor Qing spoke to him, it meant he wanted to send a signal to the outside world through him.

As for what the signal was, Emperor Qing's words were already quite clear!

"Alright, you may leave now."

Seeing that Gong Dian seemed to understand his meaning, Emperor Qing waved his hand.

Gong Dian kowtowed and bowed, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon. Yet his movements remained respectful and steady. He stood up, backed away to the door, and then turned and pushed the door open, leaving no room for error.

The door closed softly, isolating the inside from the outside.

Emperor Qing leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. The candlelight cast a shadow on his face, a play of light and dark.

"It's a pity about this palace ceremony..." Emperor Qing sighed softly.

Gong Dian and Ye Zhong were fellow disciples of Ye Liuyun, and their fates were intertwined.

Logically speaking, since the Ye family and Zhou Cheng are united by marriage, Gong Dian should naturally stand on Zhou Cheng's side.

However, he did not detect any bias in Gong Dian's report, and other secret letters also proved this point.

Gong Dian was absolutely loyal to him. This comforted him.

However, he had already decided to weaken the Ye family's influence in the capital and relocate Ye Zhong to Dingzhou. To do this legitimately, he needed to work on Gong Dian.

"Without Ye Zhong and Gong Dian, the Crown Prince and the Third Prince are now in a more balanced position in court. Next step..."

Emperor Qing was pondering something, his hand pressed against his brow, when footsteps sounded, and Eunuch Hou approached quickly, bowing low.

"What's wrong?" Emperor Qing raised his eyelids slightly.

Eunuch Hou whispered, "Your Majesty, the Princess just sent a message saying that she has suddenly caught a cold. The illness came on quickly, and she is weak and powerless. She cannot go to high places or be exposed to cold winds. I'm afraid she will have to miss the chrysanthemum appreciation event at the Hanging Temple tomorrow."

"Suddenly caught a cold? What a coincidence?"

Emperor Qing frowned, his gaze becoming deep and unfathomable.

Li Yunrui has always favored viewing chrysanthemums at the Hanging Temple.

Over the years, Li Yunrui has never missed a single one.

He announced the chrysanthemum appreciation event a few days in advance, and tomorrow is the main day. Li Yunrui suddenly caught a cold today, which made him quite suspicious.

Thinking of Li Yunrui, Emperor Qing suddenly remembered something.

He then realized that Li Yunrui had been unusually quiet lately.

Several months ago, when Ye Liuyun intercepted Fan Xian on his way to Northern Qi, he knew that it was Li Yunrui who was behind it.

At that time, he sent someone to deliver an oral message to reprimand her.

Given Li Yunrui's personality, being reprimanded by him would indeed make him behave for a while.

But now that Fan Xian has returned to the capital, the Second Prince is under his confinement, while Li Yunrui remains completely silent...

This is extremely unusual.

His younger sister always thought herself clever and that she had calculated everything perfectly, but in reality, she was incredibly stupid and easily manipulated by others.

He found her constant antics annoying, but when she actually quieted down, he felt uneasy, fearing that she might be brewing something big without making a sound.

During this period, his attention was focused on his sons, and he really neglected her.

After thinking about this, Emperor Qing pondered for a moment and said to Eunuch Hou:

"Send a royal physician to Guangxin Palace to see what's wrong. Tell the Princess that I understand. Since she is unwell, she should rest well. She doesn't need to go to the chrysanthemum appreciation gathering tomorrow if she doesn't want to."

Eunuch Hou accepted the order and immediately began making arrangements.

Emperor Qing withdrew his gaze.

Whether Li Yunrui attends tomorrow's conference or not will have no impact, since he hasn't arranged any scenes for her anyway.

The only thing he cares about now is whether Li Yunrui is really sick or faking it.

If that's true, then so be it.

If it's fake, then what's the point?

He merely glanced at Li Yunrui's unusual behavior in his mind before returning to the Hanging Temple.

He didn't think Li Yunrui could cause any more trouble.

In his view, being able to persuade Ye Liuyun was already the limit of Li Yunrui's ability.

With him in Kyoto, Li Yunrui is even less likely to cause any trouble.

Now, only the game at the Hanging Temple makes him look forward to it.

Compared to previous years, this year's chrysanthemum appreciation event has left considerable loopholes in its defenses.

He wondered how many people would come to play this game of chess with him tomorrow.

......

The next day.

The morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting golden patches of light across the warm tent.

Tiny dust particles floated slowly within the beam of light, like countless tiny sprites dancing.

In early winter and late autumn, even though Kyoto is located in the south with a mild climate, the temperature still drops daily.

Just a few days ago, the curtains in the inner courtyard of Prince Cheng's mansion were replaced with multi-layered warm curtains instead of the thin gauze curtains, making the inside as warm as spring.

Zhou Cheng lay on his side, propping his head up with one hand, looking at Shen Wan'er who was still fast asleep.

Her eyelashes were long and slightly curled, fluttering gently with her breath like two small fans.

Her lips pursed and relaxed at times, as if she were still lost in last night's dream.

With Zhan Yuanyuan's encouragement, he still managed to win over Shen Wan'er.

Perhaps Zhan Yuanyuan did a good job with his ideological work, or perhaps he was completely heartbroken by Yan Bingyun, or perhaps he desperately needed a sense of security while living under someone else's roof.

Anyway, when he wanted her, she only offered a few symbolic resistances before letting him do as he pleased.

Shen Wan'er has delicate features and her eyes and brows are full of gentleness. She is a typical gentle woman. In terms of beauty alone, she is no less than other women.

Zhou Cheng's gaze fell on her.