Jiang Suizhou slept soundly straight through the night until the next morning. He woke up feeling refreshed, and even his body felt lighter.
Meng Qianshan had risen early to prepare breakfast. Perhaps it was because he’d upset Jiang Suizhou the night before, but today’s table was exceptionally lavish and filled with a spread of Jiang Suizhou’s favorite dishes.
Glancing at Meng Qianshan, Jiang Suizhou noted his particularly awkward and ingratiating smile.
Jiang Suizhou said nothing as he coolly shifted his gaze elsewhere. It was good to scare him a little, to prevent him from acting so presumptuously in the future and causing more trouble.
Thus, it wasn’t until the meal was finished that Jiang Suizhou addressed Meng Qianshan with an icy tone.
“Will Madam Huo’s bandages be changed today?” he asked.
“The doctor will arrive later today, Your Highness,” Meng Qianshan answered, nodding repeatedly. “Please don’t worry.”
Jiang Suizhou hummed an acknowledgment, then paused.
“What’s the date today?” he asked.
“The eighth, Your Highness,” Meng Qianshan replied promptly.
Jiang Suizhou nodded.
“It’s been four days. Send someone to Madam Gu’s courtyard later, and tell them I’ll have dinner there tonight.”
Meng Qianshan was dumbfounded.
Your Highness! How could you say that in front of Madam Huo?!
Meng Qianshan continued to stare blankly until Jiang Suizhou shot him a questioning, sidelong glance that finally prompted an answer.
“Yes,” Meng Qianshan said with a stiff nod, “your servant will make the arrangements…”
Jiang Suizhou frowned at him, confused.
Why was Meng Qianshan staring at him as if he were some heartless scoundrel?
Jiang Suizhou quickly looked over at Huo Wujiu, suddenly concerned. What if he noticed Meng Qianshan’s strange demeanor and misunderstood the situation?
However, Huo Wujiu’s eyes were lowered, and he seemed fully engrossed in his meal, as if he hadn’t heard a thing.
Then again, why would he care? He’d been living quite harmoniously with Jiang Suizhou these past few days. Plus, Jiang Suizhou had never done anything out of line, and surely Huo Wujiu understood that their relationship was very different from his relationship with Gu Changyun and Xu Du.
…Even though his relationship with the concubines was also purely chaste and explicitly platonic.
Feeling at ease about the situation now, Jiang Suizhou rose from the table and headed to the Ministry of Rites to continue slacking off.
Only Meng Qianshan remained, looking at Huo Wujiu with a worried expression.
He finally understood that saying: “The emperor is calm, while the eunuchs are anxious.”
Which head was he doing his thinking with, anyway?!
Just yesterday, His Highness had spoken to him with heartfelt sincerity, professing his deep love for Madam Huo and insisting he could never bring himself to mistreat him. Yet the very next day, he went skipping off to another concubine’s residence! And right in front of Madam Huo, no less!
Meng Qianshan looked anxiously at Madam Huo, who seemed as cold and indifferent as usual.
Still, perhaps he should say something to Madam Huo about this? Although the man looked utterly unaffected, it wouldn’t be right for Meng Qianshan to allow His Highness to leave the impression of being so fickle.
He continued to ponder this as he instructed a maid to deliver His Highness’s order to Madam Gu’s courtyard. When he returned to stand in front of Huo Wujiu, he made the decision to speak with extreme caution.
“Madam Gu was one of His Majesty’s first concubines, as you are well aware, Mistress,” he said, smiling.
Calling him “Mistress” was Meng Qianshan’s way of showing respect to Huo Wujiu. Usually, such terms were only used by the servants in the rear courtyard when addressing their own mistresses. As a high-ranking eunuch attending to the Prince of Jing, Meng Qianshan would typically not lower himself to use it to address any concubine.
Huo Wujiu glanced at Meng Qianshan, only to see that fawning smile still plastered firmly across his face.
“Madam Gu is a bit spoiled,” Meng Qianshan continued comfortingly. “He’ll kick up a fuss if he goes too many days without seeing His Highness, which His Highness finds to be quite a pain. He indulges Madam Gu only because he dislikes the tantrums, not because he particularly favors him.”
Huo Wujiu frowned.
Why was he telling him this? As if he should care where the Prince of Jing went. The eunuch spoke to him as if he were one of the jilted lovers in the rear courtyard.
Meng Qianshan rambled on.
“Besides, Madam Gu isn’t the most reasonable person. His Highness might not be able to protect you from his jealous fits the way he is now, should Madam Gu decide to make trouble for you in the courtyard.”
Annoyed by his incessant chatter, Huo Wujiu was about to tell him to shut up already, but the eunuch’s next words caught him off guard.
“So you see, His Highness is spending the night with him for your sake, really!”
Something about the phrase “spending the night with him” caught in his mind and summoned that scene to flash before his eyes once again.
He remembered the Prince of Jing as he blushed all the way to his ears with embarrassment and anger, his inner robes revealing his supple and slender waist.
And he also remembered the sound of his soft, gentle voice that one early morning, when he confessed his long-held affections toward Huo Wujiu.
All these thoughts conjured an unexpected question in the back of Huo Wujiu’s mind: What would that kind of man look like when he was spending the night with another man?
He froze.
Just what was he thinking?!
The thought struck him so abruptly that when he snapped back to his senses, he felt disoriented and out of sorts. Mild annoyance surged forth to compensate for the mental disarray.
He glared coldly at Meng Qianshan.
That one look was enough to make Meng Qianshan’s throat tighten. He immediately shut his mouth and stared fearfully back at Huo Wujiu.
Though their lines of sight were uneven and Huo Wujiu’s menacing glare came from below him, it was so authoritative that Meng Qianshan felt a fleeting but intense urge to drop to his knees before him.
Huo Wujiu paused.
Why was he picking a fight with a eunuch who had a screw loose?
With that, he withdrew his gaze.
Huo Wujiu was the Prince of Jing’s concubine in name only. To him, it was merely a change of prison. And if the imperial prison couldn’t break his spirit, this place would fare no better. He would not allow anything here to wear him down like that, and he certainly wouldn’t stoop to menacing a eunuch over something so trivial.
Huo Wujiu looked up at Meng Qianshan.
“Get out,” he said.
There was nothing remotely gentle or kind in his tone, and his gaze seemed fiercer than ever.