Steward Cai paused again. Or rather, to have the Young Master unable not to protect her. Lost in thought, the night outside grew somewhat noisy, the night wind carrying faint sounds of women’s laughter.
Steward Cai frowned. “Which courtyard is that? Making such a racket in the middle of the night?”
Du Qi remained with eyes half-closed, only moving his ears. “Who else but our Young Master Yanlai?”
Besides Miss Chu, there was also this Xie Yanlai who made the Young Master unable not to protect him. Steward Cai furrowed his brow—
Unlike other members of the Xie family who weren’t allowed to enter the palace, he followed the Third Young Master in and out and had personally witnessed how warmly the young Emperor treated Xie Yanlai.
The young Emperor had smiled broadly several times upon seeing Xie Yanlai, tilting his head up to call him uncle.
Who could have imagined the Xie family would gain another person the Emperor called uncle?
Of course he also knew why. At that critical moment, with Xie Yanlai defending the Imperial Palace appearing before the child’s eyes, for a child who had suddenly lost his parents like a bird separated from its flock, he was a lifeline, a towering tree. The child had latched onto him from that moment.
Miss Chu was the same.
Fate and destiny—these two unremarkable people had soared to the heavens in one leap.
And that Deng Yi too, who happened upon the Late Emperor going mad and trusting no one, tossing the burden of the entire nation onto this palace gate officer.
Steward Cai exhaled a long breath, his eyes growing cold and hard.
A person’s life isn’t built on luck alone. Let’s see how long these few people’s good fortune lasts.
Because of the national mourning, the nightly revelry of the Xie family’s deep mansion young masters was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the usually quiet area where Xie Yanlai resided was occasionally lively.
Xie Yanlai strode outward, surrounded by maids.
Someone held up tea. “Young Master Yanlai, have another sip of tea.”
Someone offered a piece of fruit. “Young Master Yanlai, have a bite of pear.”
Someone held up a brocade belt. “Young Master, change to this one instead—it’s newly made.”
Xie Yanlai refused nothing. He drank a sip of tea, held the pear in his hand eating it as he walked, and at the same time didn’t forget to extend both arms to let the maids change his belt—
Add to that the maids carrying lanterns all around, bustling and lively like a ball of flame, blocking the winding path through the Xie estate.
The young masters approaching from the opposite side of the path looked very displeased.
“Xie Yanlai,” the leader Xie Xiao called out. “In the middle of the night you—”
Before he could finish, Xie Yanlai looked at him and rebuked sharply, “How dare you! Is that any way to speak to me!”
Xie Xiao’s expression grew even uglier, his remaining words cut off.
But Xie Yanlai didn’t let him off, saying coldly, “Say it again properly!”
Xie Xiao’s face turned iron-blue as he squeezed out words from between his teeth: “Ninth Uncle.”
Xie Yanlai smiled faintly. “Good, my nephew.” As he spoke, his hand loosened and the half-eaten pear dropped, landing on his shoe. He looked down and frowned. “My shoe is dirty. Xie Xiao, wipe it for your uncle.”
Xie Xiao leaped up in fury. “Xie Yanlai, just because you’re riding high now doesn’t mean you can bully people—”
He didn’t finish leaping. Xie Yanlai kicked out, and the rest of his words became a shriek as Xie Xiao tumbled to the ground.
The young masters beside him were caught off guard, nearly getting struck themselves. Amid the chaos, they all shouted, “Xie Yanlai, what are you doing!”
Xie Yanlai walked toward them one step, two steps, a smile on his face, his form leisurely, but somehow the young men felt a piercing cold light—
This fellow had fought his way out of the Imperial Palace that night of chaos, his hands stained with who knows how much blood, probably more than even Xie Yanfang.
He had killed many people. Now he was Commander of the Imperial Palace Guards, with all the troops in the capital under his command—
Xie Yanlai lifted his foot to step on Xie Xiao, bending down with curved lips and phoenix eyes smiling. “What nonsense are you talking about? Even when I wasn’t riding high, I bullied people.”
With that, he twisted his foot, grinding it on Xie Xiao’s clothes, wiping his shoe clean, then withdrew his foot and stepped over him, striding away.
“Now that I’m riding high, of course I’ll bully people even more viciously!”
The maids passed by these young masters, continuing their chirping voices as they surrounded Xie Yanlai.
The young masters helped Xie Xiao up. Xie Xiao cursed in a string: “That scoundrel, that bastard, that rogue, that wretch—let’s see how long he stays pleased with himself!”
……
……
At the main gate, whether night watchmen or household guards, all bowed and stepped aside upon seeing Xie Yanlai, not daring to ask a single question.
The gatekeeper ran to open the door and lead out a horse. Seven or eight attendants gathered to wait upon him, while outside the gate twenty or thirty soldiers already stood at attention.
The maids watched Xie Yanlai mount his horse, reluctant to part. “Young Master, you can’t even rest this late at night.”
Xie Yanlai laughed heartily. “Rest? While I’m riding high, of course I’ll show off my power to the fullest!” With that, he cracked his whip and rode into the night streets.
Attendants and soldiers holding torches followed close behind, rolling like thunder. The entire street trembled, the tremors spreading through half the city—
Households sleeping deeply in the night were all awakened. Houses filled with commotion, some frightened, some angry, but when they glimpsed the identity of the person racing through the streets, they immediately fell quiet again.
“Ninth Young Master Xie.”
“Xie Yanfang’s younger brother.”
“That Xie Yanlai.”
“Now that the Yang and Zhao clans are gone, his family has the Emperor’s only uncle.”