Chapter 22#

Kill That Emperor (22)#

Shen Jue, upon hearing Feng Qingbao’s entrance, had hidden deeper under the table, never expecting Murong Xiu to be relentless. Those feet deliberately stepped on his belly not once, but also made Feng Qingbao come closer.

He heard what Murong Xiu said to Feng Qingbao, and his gaze shifted slightly.

Feng Qingbao, upon hearing Murong Xiu’s words, was so terrified he fell straight to his knees, quickly begging for mercy: “This servant wouldn’t dare.”

But the spot where he knelt happened to be exactly where he could see Shen Jue hiding under the table.

Feng Qingbao’s eyes immediately went wide as he stared at Shen Jue in shock. Shen Jue’s appearance at this moment was truly unsightly; not only was his clothing disheveled, but his complexion was also strangely awful. Their eyes met, and it was Shen Jue who first turned his face away.

Feng Qingbao naturally saw where Murong Xiu’s feet were placed. He bit his lower lip and lowered his head as well.

Murong Xiu cast an icy glance at Feng Qingbao and ordered coldly: “Get out.”

Feng Qingbao acknowledged the order and withdrew from the hall. But as he retreated outside, his face was deathly pale, as if he had suffered a great shock. Liang Rong was currently guarding the hall entrance. Seeing Feng Qingbao come out in a daze, he let out a sneer, the mockery in his eyes obvious.

Feng Qingbao was jolted awake by that laugh. He stared at Liang Rong, startled and uncertain, and whispered: “You did that on purpose?”

Liang Rong laughed again. “Feng Qingbao, it’s not that I did it on purpose. The scene you witnessed—who wanted you to see it—can’t you still figure that out?”

Upon hearing this, Feng Qingbao’s mouth fell slightly open, his eyes full of disbelief. He muttered to himself: “How… how could it be?”

He had always thought Shen Jue was merely favored by the Emperor. Could it be that this ‘favor’ was actually this kind of favor?

But… Shen Jue had never mentioned it to him.

Feng Qingbao suddenly remembered the night he had come looking for Shen Jue, finding him soaking wet, pitifully walking along the corridor. So Shen Jue’s life wasn’t as good as he had imagined. Feng Qingbao couldn’t help his eyes reddening. He had even asked Shen Jue to help transfer him back to serve before the Emperor, never knowing how much hardship Shen Jue had endured to make that happen.

Having been in the palace for a long time, Feng Qingbao also knew about some sordid affairs. Some old eunuchs in the palace liked to take advantage of young eunuchs. Feng Qingbao was lucky to have a good master, but the young eunuch who entered the palace with him wasn’t so fortunate. He encountered a black-hearted old eunuch who tormented him in bed all day. Eventually, that young eunuch died of illness. Feng Qingbao went to see him one last time. The young eunuch smiled at him, but as he smiled, he cried. He said his fate was bad.

At that time, the skin exposed on that young eunuch was covered in bruises and purple marks, not to mention what was under his clothes—there were also numerous bloody bite marks.

Feng Qingbao wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes with the back of his hand. He couldn’t bear to stay outside the hall any longer. Ignoring Liang Rong’s presence, he turned and left directly. Though they eunuchs were rootless creatures, they were still men—or at least they had been once. What man would willingly be pinned down by another man?

Outside, Feng Qingbao choked back his tears. Inside the hall, Shen Jue lowered his eyes and furrowed his brows, staring expressionlessly at his own stomach. Murong Xiu glanced at him, then withdrew his feet, saying calmly: “Are you angry?”

“This servant wouldn’t dare,” Shen Jue replied.

“Wouldn’t dare? So you are angry?” Murong Xiu moved his feet in front of Shen Jue. “Help me put on my socks and shoes.”

Shen Jue did as ordered. But just as he finished helping Murong Xiu put on his socks and shoes, Murong Xiu suddenly pulled him out from under the table. Not only that, but one hand firmly gripped his waist. “Don’t be angry. Drink this soup.”

He was referring to the soup Feng Qingbao had brought in earlier.

Shen Jue’s clothes were still slightly open. He pressed his lips together and said in a low voice: “This servant thanks Your Majesty for the gift.” As he spoke, he tried to free himself from Murong Xiu’s hand, but Murong Xiu’s grip only tightened. “Drink it here; no need to go down.” His beautiful eyes drooped slightly as he looked at Shen Jue’s open clothing. “I’ve never helped anyone put on clothes. You drink the soup, and I’ll practice on you.”

Murong Xiu’s possessiveness came so swiftly and strongly that even Shen Jue found it hard to adapt.

Especially when he realized that the things the Regent King had done to Murong Xiu in previous lives were now falling upon him one by one.

From another perspective, Murong Xiu and the Regent King were truly a perfect match—they both thought of the same things.

Murong Xiu was hardly someone who could help others dress. After fumbling for a long time, Shen Jue’s clothes only became more wrinkled, with no improvement whatsoever. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Shen Jue put down the soup spoon and snatched his own belt back from Murong Xiu’s hands. He didn’t say a word to Murong Xiu, only busying himself with tidying his clothes with his head down. Murong Xiu watched the thin, weak young man bowing his head before him, awkwardly pulled at the corners of his mouth, and averted his gaze.

He saw the soup on the table and suddenly said: “I’ve never fed anyone before…”

Murong Xiu didn’t finish his sentence, because Shen Jue suddenly raised his head and stared straight at him.

“Your Majesty, let this servant handle these matters himself.” There was no expression on Shen Jue’s face.

Looking at the other’s face, Murong Xiu inexplicably felt in the wrong, so he dared not say anything more, only staring at Shen Jue. Shen Jue quickly finished the soup and was about to take the bowl away. Murong Xiu initially wanted to call Liang Rong in to take it, but when met with Shen Jue’s gaze, he again found himself unable to say anything.

Shen Jue carried the red lacquered food box out of the hall. Liang Rong was still guarding the door. Seeing him come out, he let out a sarcastic laugh. “Oh, Eunuch Shen has finally come out.”

“Head Eunuch Liang, have you seen Feng Qingbao?” Shen Jue ignored Liang Rong’s taunt and asked another question instead.

Hearing that Shen Jue was looking for Feng Qingbao, Liang Rong’s expression became even more indescribable as he looked Shen Jue up and down. Aside from having fair skin, he really couldn’t see any merits—not good-looking, not tall enough, and as for his backside… it was hidden by his clothes so he couldn’t tell if it was firm. But the worst part was that he was so two-faced. He really didn’t understand how the Emperor could have taken a liking to such a shameless seducer.

His scrutinizing gaze was too blatant. Shen Jue couldn’t help but frown and reminded him: “Head Eunuch?”

Liang Rong gave a light cough. “Feng Qingbao? He went that way. He seemed to be crying. Did His Majesty punish him?”

Hearing this, Shen Jue shoved the food box in his hands into Liang Rong’s. “I’ll trouble Head Eunuch Liang with this.” Having said that, he turned and left to look for Feng Qingbao.

Liang Rong looked at the food box in his hands, gnashing his teeth in anger. This seducer was getting more and more outrageous. But he wouldn’t be smug for long. Liang Rong let out another sinister smile. Going against the Regent King was an invitation to death.

…

When Shen Jue found Feng Qingbao, Feng Qingbao was sitting dazedly under the covered walkway. He stared at a patch of frozen pond water ahead, his eyes vacant, not knowing what he was thinking. He didn’t even notice Shen Jue approaching.

“Feng Qingbao,” Shen Jue called out to him.

Feng Qingbao shuddered all over and turned his head toward Shen Jue. When he realized the person approaching was Shen Jue, he quickly stood up. “You… why are you here?”

Shen Jue hesitated for a moment before saying: “Don’t tell anyone about what happened earlier.”

Feng Qingbao let out an “ah.” Not knowing what he was thinking of, his eyes began to redden again. “Don’t worry, I won’t say anything.”

Looking at Feng Qingbao like this, Shen Jue sighed. “Never mind. Let’s not get too close from now on. I’m afraid I’ll implicate you.”

“I’m not afraid!” Feng Qingbao said urgently. “I’m not afraid of being implicated, just don’t distance yourself from me.”

He forced an ugly smile. “Shen Jue, we said we’d leave the palace together.”

Hearing Feng Qingbao say this, Shen Jue smiled sincerely for the first time. But there was no trace of mirth in his eyes, only desolation. “Mm.”

There would be no leaving the palace.

This was only a mirror, something false. Including the Feng Qingbao before him—they were not real mortals, only people within the mirror who had trapped themselves here.

If he were soft-hearted, this cycle would continue forever.

So, he was destined to betray.

From that day on, Shen Jue began to deliberately distance himself from Feng Qingbao. Feng Qingbao came looking for Shen Jue several times, but Shen Jue always used the excuse of being busy and left quickly. After many times, Feng Qingbao understood that Shen Jue was avoiding him.

Soon, it was the night of New Year’s Eve.

On New Year’s Eve, the palace held a banquet, inviting all ministers to celebrate the new year together.

Murong Xiu sat upright in the high seat. These past few days, Shen Jue’s distancing from Feng Qingbao had not escaped his notice, which pleased him greatly. There weren’t too many things troubling him in court either. Since Shi Jian’an had formally broken ties with the Regent King that day, he had become Murong Xiu’s capable assistant. Many of the officials selected through the imperial examinations also satisfied him. With You Congxuan’s case as a precedent, those who wanted to curry favor with the Regent King were temporarily holding back.

Thus, Murong Xiu drank quite a bit of wine tonight. Drunk, he had to leave early, ordering the Chancellor to preside over the proceedings.

Shen Jue helped Murong Xiu back to his bedchamber. After finally getting him settled to sleep, Liang Rong suddenly appeared before him and handed him a jade pendant.

Shen Jue found this jade pendant familiar. Though he didn’t take it, he gave it a few extra looks.

Afraid of waking Murong Xiu, Liang Rong deliberately lowered his voice: “If you want to see the last of this jade pendant’s owner, follow me.”

Hearing Liang Rong’s words, Shen Jue finally remembered whose pendant this was.

Feng Qingbao’s.

Feng Qingbao had once shown him this pendant, saying it was the only thing his family had left him. He had deliberately drilled a hole in it and wore it around his neck every day.

The jade’s quality was not good, but Feng Qingbao treasured it like a precious gem. When he showed it to Shen Jue, he wouldn’t even let Shen Jue touch it, saying he was afraid it would fall and break. And now this pendant appeared in Liang Rong’s hands.

Shen Jue looked at Liang Rong, a chill in his eyes. “Where is he?”

The only person who could order Liang Rong around was the Regent King. The Regent King wanted to see him tonight. Perhaps this was the final step of his net closing in.