H! GVCP Chapter 23

Chapter 23: The First Step to Realizing the Truth

When someone who used to be pleasant, and would even coax you, suddenly changes their face, most people cannot accept it; only a few take it well.

Unfortunately, Zhong Ruoyan was not among that small group that took it well.

Her eyes welled with tears, looking as if she might cry at any second.

A face like a hibiscus, the tears of a beauty, no matter who looked upon her, their heart would surely soften by three degrees.

Even more unfortunately, Yu Lingzhao’s heart was not soft; it was quite hard.

"If you cry again, there won't be a Fourth Prince here to protect you." 

Yu Lingzhao crossed her arms over her chest, watching her with composure, a smile perpetually hanging on the corners of her mouth.

Zhong Ruoyan was caught off guard by these words. She explained in a frantic rush, "No, I'm not... the Fourth Prince and I are completely innocent. Zhaozhao, how can you... how can you slander me like this?"

"Don't use such ugly words, how is this slander?" Yu Lingzhao’s smile deepened. 

She leaned in slightly toward Zhong Ruoyan and whispered, "I am... helping you recognize the situation."

Zhong Ruoyan snapped her gaze toward Yu Lingzhao, seeing the smile on her face that seemed to suggest she had already seen right through her.

Yu Lingzhao ignored Zhong Ruoyan’s reaction and merely whispered in her ear: "I imagine that if Consort Xian is planning for her son, she probably wouldn't choose a woman who is also entangled with the Fourth Prince?"

Having said that, she paid no further mind to Zhong Ruoyan’s reaction. She boarded the carriage and ordered the driver to depart. 

The people from the Jingling Marquis Mansion had already long since moved aside.

Only after the carriage of the Prince of Zhennan’s Mansion had driven away did Zhong Ruoyan recover her senses, her heart beating like a drum: She saw through me! 

Her second thought was that her position as the Fifth Prince’s Consort did not seem as secure as she had imagined!

Yu Lingzhao didn't give the encounter with Zhong Ruoyan a second thought. Beside her, Yu Xunyang remained silent, seemingly lost in thought.

However, after the siblings returned to the Prince’s Mansion, they made a tacit decision to go to the outer study to discuss matters. 

Yu Xunyang first mentioned Yu Lingzhao’s bold actions before Emperor Jianyuan today, he had nearly been scared to death.

That was Emperor Jianyuan—the Son of Heaven, the man who held the power of life and death over everyone in the world.

Yu Lingzhao smiled. "The current Son of Heaven is not a bloodthirsty man; he cares deeply about his reputation."

Otherwise, he would have moved against the Prince of Zhennan’s Mansion long ago instead of dragging it out until today.

Yu Xunyang finally voiced the oddness he had been feeling lately. "Zhaozhao, your actions recently are very different. They aren't like what we discussed before leaving home."

Indeed, before the young siblings came to the capital, they had conducted some rehearsals.

Yu Lingzhao looked steadily at Yu Xunyang, a faint light in her eyes.

Yu Xunyang met her gaze without flinching.

"Third Brother, what are you worried about?"

Yu Lingzhao had actually anticipated that Yu Xunyang would eventually ask; she had thought about it the moment she decided to seek out Shangguan Bai.

She just hadn't expected Yu Xunyang to be so indulgent toward her. If it hadn't been for the shock he received in front of Emperor Jianyuan, he might have endured it a bit longer.

Yu Xunyang pursed his thin lips, a visible anxiety playing across his broad features.

Regarding his sister’s question, it wasn't that he had nothing to say, but rather that he had too much to say.

Yu Lingzhao was in no hurry. She walked over to the desk and sat down, even finding the mind to set out a cup for her brother and pour him some tea.

Seeing his sister looking so unbothered, Yu Xunyang—who was a straightforward person, truly became anxious. 

His words came out in a continuous stream:

"Who is Shangguan Bai? Why is Zhaozhao being so special toward him?"

"Today in front of His Majesty, you were too bold. Weren't you afraid His Majesty would be enraged and punish you?"

"Just now, when confronting the Fourth Prince, you weren't intimidated in the least, you weren't afraid of him at all."

"Zhaozhao, you seem to be plotting something very big."

As Yu Lingzhao listened to her brother’s words, she counted them off; he had pretty much hit most of the points.

She raised an eyebrow and curled the corners of her mouth. "Don't be in a rush, Third Brother. Sit down first, I have a few questions for you."

Yu Xunyang was both anxious and angry, yet his sister was acting as if nothing was wrong and inviting him to tea. 

After he sat down, he picked up the teacup and drained it in one gulp.

He set the cup down with a sharp thud, clearly furious with himself.

Yu Lingzhao, unruffled, refilled Yu Xunyang's cup. Despite the tea still being a bit hot, Yu Xunyang downed it again in one go.

Facing the now-empty cup once more, Yu Lingzhao raised an eyebrow and continued to unhurriedly fill her brother's cup to the seven-tenths mark.

Yu Xunyang looked at the refilled cup before him. For the third time, he finished it in a single gulp.

By the fourth time Yu Lingzhao poured the tea, Yu Xunyang finally calmed down and did not impulsively empty the cup again.

He wasn't stupid; if he kept drinking, his sister would surely keep pouring.

"First: why do you think Emperor Jianyuan wanted me to enter the capital?" Yu Lingzhao set down the teapot and finally posed the question.

Her third brother had an impulsive nature. He could endure things he didn't care about, but the moment it concerned something he valued, he grew agitated.

Such a habit was not good; if someone grasped this weakness, he would surely suffer for it in the future.

Suffering a setback in the South was one thing, there were still Father, Mother, and his two other elder brothers looking out for him.

But suffering a setback in the capital might mean falling into some sort of serial scheme.

Hadn't Chu Yulan utilized this very habit of his?

Having finally heard his sister speak, Yu Xunyang said without thinking, "To choose a husband for you."

Yu Lingzhao lowered her eyes. 

This was the second habit of her third brother that made him easy to catch: he always spoke without engaging his brain.

It was fine. 

Though the child was impulsive, he could still be taught.

"Before we left, Father instructed you to think more deeply when things happen. Why don't you think about it, Third Brother, why must I enter the capital just to choose a husband? Wouldn't a direct imperial marriage decree be easier? I wouldn't even have the right to object."

Yu Lingzhao slowly guided Yu Xunyang, observing his every move.

It was as if Yu Lingzhao had touched upon a sore spot. He had a realization and was about to speak when he saw his sister staring at him with a burning gaze.

The words he was about to blurt out were swallowed back down; he decided to think a bit more.

Yu Lingzhao saw Yu Xunyang's hesitation and smiled with satisfaction.

See? 

Teaching an elder brother wasn't that difficult. He had already learned to filter out some useless nonsense.

"Is it because His Majesty wanted to see your character and appearance for himself before choosing a husband?"

There was a sort of clear-eyed stupidity in Yu Xunyang's gaze.

Yu Lingzhao's smile suddenly stiffened. Well, she had celebrated too early.

It's fine. No rush. Take it slow, there's still time... 

Yu Lingzhao thought to herself.

"If it were just to see my character and appearance, it wouldn't be hard to send a eunuch to the South to take a look." 

Yu Lingzhao switched angles to guide him: "Why must it be me coming to the capital? Now that I am in the capital, what benefit does Emperor Jianyuan get?"

"Benefit?" For the first time, Yu Xunyang considered what benefit Emperor Jianyuan would gain from his sister's perspective if she entered the capital.

Yu Xunyang thought it over and over, his expression changing repeatedly. Amidst his sister’s smiling face, he spat out two words he hardly dared to believe.

"Hos... tage."

>>H! GVCP Chapter 24