The Pearl on the Emperor’s Crown

Chapter 18 – Drunk

Zhu Yi couldn’t tell what he getting at, so she said, “What exactly are you trying to ask, Your Highness?”

“Princess, can you trust me as much as you trusted your two former guard officials?” Xie Ying asked outright.

Zhu Yi blinked at Xie Ying, a little surprised that he would compare himself to her former guards.

“This official is also very loyal to you, Your Highness,” Xie Ying said slowly.

“Loyalty doesn’t depend on words,” Zhu Yi said. “My former guards always listened to me. Let me down first and I’ll believe you.” She couldn’t get used to this embarrassing and shameful position, and she was determined to persuade him to let her go.

Xie Ying realised that Zhu Yi could be really quite quick-witted sometimes.

He suddenly heard the feather-light footsteps outside the door that only a martial arts practitioner with light body kung fu would have. The corners of his lips twitched imperceptibly, and he tipped his waist towards Zhu Yi.

“Xie Ying!” His action caused Zhu Yi to yelp with fury and annoyance, but she somehow still appeared both charming and adorable. The door panel naturally shook with their movements.

Zhu Yi glared at Xie Ying. “We’ll be found out if we’re by the door like this.” 

What would they find? So it was okay as long as they weren’t by the door? Zhu Yi’s remark was unintentional, but it was really easy to make people misunderstand if they were listening outside.

“And I have something to tell you,” Zhu Yi said.

When he heard the person outside the door left, Xie Ying put Zhu Yi down. “Say what you want, Princess. I’ll listen.”

Please support the translator by reading this on sunkissed translations. Don’t support sites stealing my hard work. 

As soon as Zhu Yi left his confinement, she immediately sat on the chair and took a deep breath. “Your Highness, I know you want to ask me about my meeting with Rong Xiao,” she said. “But I would like to say that I won’t interfere in your Xie family’s affairs. As for my personal matters, I hope you won’t ask about them either, alright?”

Xie Ying was silent for so long that it made Zhu Yi feel somewhat guilty.

“What do you mean by personal matters?” He asked. “Your Highness even has objections about me going to Jade Island for a cup of tea, yet I had to witness you and Rong Xiao staying alone together in a private room. Princess, what do you want me to believe?”

“Rong Xiao is a good friend of mine,” Zhu Yi explained. “I just wanted to ask him to do something for me today.”

“Your Highness has gone this far just to seek out Rong Xiao,” Xie Ying said. “In other words, even though this official and Highness are so close, in your heart, this official is still not as reliable as Rong Xiao, is that it?”

In Zhu Yi’s heart, Xie Ying was naturally not as reliable as Rong Xiao.

Zhu Yi wasn’t stupid. Although she was uncontrollably attracted to Xie Ying, she knew that Xie Ying was in no way under anyone’s control. Moreover, Xie Ying’s situation was more complex than that of Rong Xiao, and there were too many temptations around him and too many aspects that needed to be weighed. In contrast, Rong Xiao was very simple. 

Besides, she wasn’t sure how sincere Xie Ying was towards her, whereas Rong Xiao had really done his best to help her for the past two years.

“I didn’t compare the two of you,” Zhu Yi said, not wanting to upset him.

“How about you compare us now?” Xie Ying smiled. 

Zhu Yi pondered deeply for a moment before saying, “Xie Ying, can we not talk about this?”

“Very well. Take a nap, Your Highness.” Xie Ying stopped questioning her and he turned around and left immediately.

Zhu Yi breathed a sigh of relief, but Xie Ying’s decisiveness in leaving without hesitation made her feel as if she was being tethered by a thin thread, constantly being pulled.

Please support the translator by reading this on sunkissed translations. Don’t support sites stealing my hard work. 

Wen Yan walked towards Xie Ying and said, “Your Highness, Third Young Master Rong came to find the princess earlier, but he quickly left once he arrived at the door.”

“Go and look after the princess.” Xie Ying ordered.

Shen Xing Liu handed Xie Ying a letter sealed with fire lacquer. After Xie Ying finished reading it, Shen Xing Liu asked, “Is the princess really investigating the death of her biological father, General Pei? Wasn’t General Pei accidentally assassinated during a battle with the enemy?”

“It’s not that simple,” Xie Ying stated. The war to quell the chaos in the southwest that Pei Qing Rang was involved in was also related to the trilateral game of the Imperial Court, Yong Prefecture, and the Burmese King. There was a problem with the transportation of grain and provisions in the rear, and people around Pei Qing Rang were bribed.

“Does Your Highness mean that General Pei was really murdered by someone?”

Xie Ying nodded. “Back then, I heard that the initial news that came back to the capital was that Pei Qing Rang was killed by an arrow, but that was later changed, saying that he fell off a cliff. There were no remains found at the cliff, so the only thing that was returned to the capital was the burial shroud. The cause of death is unknown, and the princess will inevitably be unable to let go.”

Shen Xing Liu sighed. “Everyone said that General Pei was a rare breed, and he had never been defeated before this battle. It’s truly unfortunate. But even if the princess finds out the truth, what can a young lass with no army and power possibly do? If the princess conducts an investigation into the matter, the people who killed General Pei back then might…” Shen Xing Liu trailed off. He glanced at Xie Ying and hesitated, before finishing with, “…might possibly end up murdering her as well.”

Xie Ying lowered his gaze. “This matter will be handed over to Sheng Qing to investigate,” he decided.

As expected, the prince still wanted to intervene. Shen Xing Liu was silent for a moment, before replying, “Yes, Your Highness.”

Shen Xing Liu’s perception of Zhu Yi was complicated. For the sake of his master, he actually didn’t want the prince to marry Princess Xi Zhen. Marrying her wouldn’t benefit the prince but instead would add more constraints for him. On the other hand, whenever the prince was with Princess Xi Zhen, he smiled a lot more. From this aspect, Shen Xing Liu hoped that the prince could have the princess.

Please support the translator by reading this on sunkissed translations. Don’t support sites stealing my hard work. 

Zhu Yi slept until dusk and would have continued to sleep if Xie Ying hadn’t asked Wen Yan to wake her up.

Only Zhu Yi and Wen Yan were present at dinner. 

“Where is the prince?” Zhu Yi asked, looking around.

“The prince has an appointment tonight,” Wen Yan replied. Seeing that Zhu Yi still looking at her expectantly, Wen Yan added, “Shen Xing Liu mentioned that he will be with the crown prince and the prince who made trouble in the Luminous Building last time. They are all men.”

Zhu Yi blushed, she hadn’t asked whether it was a man or a woman. After a moment, she asked, “Imperial elder brother has also returned to the capital?”

“Yes,” Wen Yan confirmed.

Zhu Yi nodded. There were some matters in the capital that needed to be handled by the crown prince on behalf of the emperor, and he often ran from one end to the other. She lowered her head and continued eating her dinner again.

Zhu Yi then wanted to go for a stroll to take her mind off things.

 “Princess, the prince said that you must not go far, so please just walk around nearby,” Wen Yan requested.

Zhu Yi naturally agreed; she wouldn’t make things difficult for Wen Yan if she didn’t have to.

Zhu Yi bought candied haws and nibbled on them as she walked. There was a familiar figure sitting by the window of the tavern opposite. She called out twice, but her voice was drowned by the crowd. Zhu Yi went into the tavern and patted the other person on the shoulder.

“Rong Xiao!”

The young man looked up woodenly. When he saw the person in front of him, his sluggish eyes quickly lit up. “Princess.” Rong Xiao immediately looked behind her. When he  saw only Wen Yan, he smiled. “Are you out shopping?”

“Mm.” Zhu Yi noticed that he was in a trance earlier, and he was obviously drinking away his sorrows. She assumed that something happened with his family again, so she sat down in front of him. “I’ll have two drinks with you. It’s no fun to drink alone.”

Rong Xiao watched Zhu Yi pour some wine for herself, but he didn’t stop her. Wen Yan frowned disapprovingly.

Although Rong Xiao admired Zhu Yi in the past, he always scrupulously maintained the boundaries between that of a monarch and a official, and simply regarded Zhu Yi as a fairy in a dream. He never dared to have half-hearted thoughts about her, for fear of blaspheming her. Because of this, Zhu Yi was able to get along with him for two years and have extraordinary trust in him.

But Zhu Yi’s soft and delicate voice from that afternoon lingered in his mind. He could no longer be magnanimous with Zhu Yi anymore. Now, when he looked at her face, he would imagine her expression when she made that soft and enchanting voice, not knowing how touching it would be.

Rong Xiao knew that he should retreat. Since Zhu Yi allowed Xie Ying to touch her, it showed that her heart had been captured by Xie Ying. He hated Xie Ying for climbing the most sacred flower in his heart, and he was also saddened by Zhu Yi’s lack of self-respect.

But his feelings for her didn’t fade. Therefore, when Zhu Yi choked on her wine and coughed, Rong Xiao still felt distressed. “Serve this young lady another jar of pomegranate flower wine,” he said to the shopkeeper.

“Why didn’t you say anything, huh?” Zhu Yi grumbled. “If you drink such strong wine, I’ll have to order a carriage to bring you back.”

“That’s unlikely,” Rong Xiao said, chuckling lightly. “You have no idea how good my capacity for liquor is.”

But by the time they parted ways, Rong Xiao was still drunk. He had drunk too much before Zhu Yi arrived and now his stamina was all used up. Zhu Yi wanted to take him back herself, but her own eyes were dizzy and her legs were trembling, so she used her last bit of wits to ask Wen Yan to find a carriage for Rong Xiao. She herself sat dumbly at the table with one hand propping her chin up.

After Wen Yan threw Rong Xiao into the carriage and paid the driver, she turned back into the tavern and her heart suddenly went cold.

Zhu Yi, who was supposed to be sitting at the table, was gone.

Knowing how much the prince valued the princess, Wen Yan was so horrified that her whole body trembled. She pulled the waiter who was sweeping the floor next to her by the collar. “Where is the girl who was sitting at this table just now?” She demanded.

Zhu Yi was so drunk that there was no way she could walk on her own.

“I-I don’t know,” the little waiter said, panicking. “I just came out of the kitchen.”

Wen Yan immediately rushed out of the tavern again, but everywhere she looked, there were people coming and going, but they were all unfamiliar faces, and there was no sign of Zhu Yi.