Transmigrated as My Best Friend's Ex

62. Secrets of The Royal Family

Translator: Guy Gone Bad

“Qinghao… Qinghao…”

Li Qinghao opened his eyes and saw the concerned look on Keqi’s face. He looked around and found that he was still in the bedroom of the king. “What’s wrong?”

“The doctor said you had fainted with excitement just now.”

When a man got over-excited, his heart would race uncontrollably and his breathing would speed up, and then he would faint. Han Mingxu was a student of medicine, so he immediately realized what happened to him. But to be exact, his coma was caused by indignation rather than excitement.

“Mingxu… Mingxu…” A faint voice came from the direction of the bed.

Li Qinghao’s heart skipped a beat, and he was about to respond when Keqi strode to the bedside and said, “Grandpa, you are awake! That’s great!”

‘What… what am I doing? Why did I extend my hand?’ Li Qinghao thought to himself. He looked down at his own hand. Suddenly, he sensed that someone was gazing at him a sharp, penetrating look. It was Mr. Ao. Li Qinghao raised his head and stared back. The suspicious look in Mr. Ao’s eyes made Li Qinghao’s heart flutter.

He got a bad feeling.

“Grandpa, I brought my Chinese friend to see you.” Keqi held the king’s hand and waved at Li Qinghao. “Qinghao, come here. Didn’t you say you wanted to see the king of Leiluo Kingdom?”

Li Qinghao was called to the king’s bedside. With the help of Keqi, the king shook hands with Li Qinghao. The old man’s hand was skinny. Perhaps it was because he was wrapped in a thick quilt that his hand was warm.

The old man was weak, but his eyes flashed shrewdly.

Li Qinghao and the king looked at each other. The king was shocked by the uncanny familiarity of Li Qinghao’s eyes which were brimming with mixed emotions as if he had thousands of words to say. The king suddenly thought back to the day when his son knelt before him and said, “Leiluo Kingdom can develop well even without me. You can groom another heir for the throne. But without me, my wife will lose everything and my son will become an orphan.”

At that time, his son’s eyes filled with mixed emotions, bright and clear, shining with determination.

“You… You… ” The king got excited. He struggled, trying to sit up. “You are… You…” His chest heaved, and he trembled violently. Suddenly, his eyes were rolled back, and the king closed his eyes forever.

“Dad… Dad… ” The sound of heels clacking on the floor echoed in the silent, empty corridor. “Dad…” Princess Frise got a call from Keqi early this morning and learned that the king was at death’s door. After hanging up, she immediately rushed back to Leiluo Kingdom. Mr. Ao only told Keqi that the king had pesticide poisoning, so no one knew it before today except for Keqi. Even the king’s daughter Princess Frise knew nothing about the matter.

Leiluo Kingdom was a strong centralist country where women usually took a back seat. That was why the king insisted on getting his lost grandson back and why Princess Frise wanted to take the throne. She was not satisfied with the existing succession system.

“You… He…” Princess Frise, who had just come into the room, was surprised to see Li Qinghao.

“Auntie, Grandpa passed away.” Keqi’s voice was full of sadness.

“What?… How did he die so suddenly?” Frise murmured. Strong feelings of loss and grief welled up in her.

Li Qinghao frowned. In his mind he kept reliving the moment before the king’s death. That old man looked fixedly at him and moved his lips as if trying to say something to him. Keqi asked Mr. Ao to send Li Qinghao back to the palace belonging to the crown prince. The old king died so suddenly that Keqi had to start at once to arrange the old king’s funeral.

“Sir.” Mr. Ao whisked Li Qinghao across the corridor. He didn’t take the direct route to the palace of the crown prince, but made a detour. Li Qinghao was smart. He knew that Mr. Ao wanted to talk privately to him.

Li Qinghao raised his eyebrows and looked at Mr. Ao without saying a word.

Mr. Ao realized that Li Qinghao must have read his mind. He couldn’t help but admire Li Qinghao’s calmness. “Who the hell are you? Why are you trying to approach His Highness?”

His purpose?

Li Qinghao looked at Mr. Ao with a smile and said, “There is a television series in China. Although I haven’t watched it, I know its contents. The TV series tells the story of a rich man thinking that every woman, who tries to approach his son, has an ulterior motive. Do you know the ending of the TV series?”

“What do you mean?”

“Some couples share life and death. Although I don’t believe it and maybe neither do you, Han Mingxu’s parents are a good example, aren’t they?”

“Please don’t insult the former crown prince and his woman.”

“His woman? She gave birth to the heir of Leiluo Kingdom, but in your view, she’s just the former crown prince’s woman. Keqi is the future king of Leiluo Kingdom. Shouldn’t you respectfully call his mother Her Highness?” Li Qinghao looked at Mr. Ao compellingly and walked towards him step by step.

“You… You… Who are you? What the hell do you want?” How could he know so many secrets about about the royal family of Leiluo Kingdom? “You’re a spy, right? Why are you deliberately approaching our crown prince?”

“I just want justice for that poor woman. Do you think that I will run away with your crown prince? Just like what she and your former crown prince did many years ago?” That poor woman was his mother.

“I didn’t mean that…”

“You are wrong.” Li Qinghao interrupted Mr. Ao. He took a deep breath and continued, “Maybe I will induce Keqi to elope with me.” His voice was full of loneliness. The expression on his face changed from aggressiveness to softness. Mr. Ao studied his face carefully, but it betrayed nothing.

This man was not at all mediocre.

“I won’t let you hurt His Highness.”

“Really?” Li Qinghao glanced at him and said ironically, “I guess you once said to your former crown prince that you wouldn’t let anyone hurt him, right?”

“How did you know that?”

“But in the end, you hurt him deeply in the name of love. And now you have to accept Keqi as the heir of Leiluo Kingdom. From your point of view, that woman is unworthy of your former crown prince, but she gave birth to Keqi. You think that Keqi has an impeccable royal pedigree, right? But in fact, he also has plebeian blood in his veins.”

“But in the end, you hurt him deeply in the name of love. And now you have to accept Keqi as the heir of Leiluo Kingdom. From your point of view, that woman is unworthy of your former crown prince, but she gave birth to Keqi. You think that Keqi has an impeccable royal pedigree, right? But in fact, he also has plebeian blood in his veins.”

In a stern tone, he accused Mr. Ao of wounding that poor couple. Mr. Ao didn’t expect Li Qinghao to have a good sense of justice. If Keqi hadn’t told Mr. Ao that Li Qinghao was just his schoolmate, Mr. Ao would even think that Li Qinghao was the real crown prince who was taking up the cudgels against the injustice done to him and his parents.

He was more like a human being compared with Prince Keqi… Mr. Ao suddenly felt a chill. A sneaking suspicion flashed through his mind.

Mr. Ao lapsed into silence. After a while, he sighed, “That’s the custom and law of Leiluo Kingdom. The royal blood shouldn’t be blemished by the plebeian blood. Otherwise, God will not bless Leiluo Kingdom. Although His Highness knew it was wrong to act like that, he was really happy at that time… I should be responsible for the tragedy, because that year the old king imprisoned His Highness and Miss. Han… but I released them without permission.”

What?!

Li Qinghao opened his eyes wide and said, “You released them?”

“At that time Miss Han was two months pregnant.  I will never forget that moment when His Highness returned to Leiluo Kingdom with Miss Han. He said with a happy smile, ‘This is the woman I’m going to marry.'”

It was a solemn pledge of love.

Mr. Ao leaned against the wall. Suddenly, he looked ten years older. The words of the former crown prince echoed in his ears. He gazed blankly into the distance and his face showed a deep sadness.

The things were still there, but men were no more the same ones.

“What happened later?” Li Qinghao pretended to be calm, but his trembling voice gave him away.