It Turns out that I am Beautiful, Strong and Miserable [Quick Wear] - 63

 

ITOTIABSAM | The Tyrant in the Deep Palace | 63

Since the rainy night, for three consecutive days, the Bright Hall of the tyrant housed a newcomer.

In the eyes of the previous dynasty, this naturally didn't count as a big deal. It was just a eunuch of clean background, without any family support, unable to leave offspring. Being favored a bit was better than the dominance of Attendant Pei. Recently, the Ministry of Rites had taken advantage of the influence of this close attendant to exert undue influence.

However, for the inner palace, the "promotion" of Gu Cong was akin to turning their world upside down. Especially for the palace maids and eunuchs serving Pei Yi, from their initial calm demeanor to their current uneasiness, they could only console themselves: So what if Gu Cong stayed in the Bright Hall for three days? He was still just an unnamed servant.

1101, keen on rational observation, wished it could grow a few more mouths to argue with these people in their dreams: What do you know? Clearly, its host didn't want to confine Gu Cong within the confines of the "imperial palace."

Throughout history, once someone obtained the title of emperor or empress, regardless of gender, even if they were never mentioned again for the rest of their lives, how many of them could leave the palace once they had entered?

"Your Majesty? Are you going to send me away again today?" Gradually understanding the little emperor's bottom line, Gu Cong asked as he changed the tea for him. "What reason are you seeking today?"

Leaning against the bed, the young man with disheveled hair, holding a book in hand, didn't even lift his eyes. "The tea is too hot."

Gu Cong immediately replied, "This tea was sent by Li Gonggong."

Xie Ye rubbed his forehead.

He seemed to have figured it out. The deference and humility he displayed on their first meeting were all just an illusion created by this person to make a good impression during their first audience. The real Gu Cong remained largely unchanged from the previous two worlds.

If anything, he was even more unpredictable.

As expected, someone bold and daring approached again. "Your Majesty, are you in pain again?"

He was now dressed in the highest-quality gold embroidered blue robe, just like Li Dezhong's. It made him look even more dignified, and the bruises on his neck had faded away after being treated with high-quality ointments several times.

Offering himself as a solution, he volunteered eagerly, "Yesterday, I practiced for a long time with my own head and found the acupuncture points. Your Majesty, would you like to try?"

In the plot setting, the "strange illness" could only be resolved by Pei Yi, who had the protagonist's halo. Despite knowing that the other person's efforts would be in vain, Xie Ye still pursed his lips and gave a faint acknowledgment.

Words were one thing, actions another. Seeing that the little emperor still showed no intention of cooperating, Gu Cong had no choice but to step forward himself. He carefully found the right position and gently shifted the other person, making himself a new pillar for support.

His fingers occasionally roamed, drawing circles around various acupoints. He didn't particularly enjoy human contact, but he was quite accepting of the little emperor's proximity.

- Of course, if the little emperor insisted on being close, he couldn't refuse.

However, upon closer examination, apart from the one time at the beginning when he was asked to undress, the other party seemed to have never forced him to do anything, only looking a bit fierce.

As for the matter of being driven away, it was only mentioned verbally and there hadn't been any real action.

Honestly, Gu Cong was indeed scared when the little emperor tightly grasped him. That was the instinctual fear of death that all living beings possessed, something unavoidable.

However, after calming down, he realized that the little emperor was even more afraid than himself. In his dreams, he was scared to the point of tears, and upon waking up, he was filled with fear, hastily keeping his distance.

Although his tone was extremely harsh and he deliberately tried to scare people.

"What are you thinking about again?" With eyes on the back of his head, Xie Ye raised an eyebrow, flipping over a page of the book. "What about Li Dezhong?"

Gu Cong replied, "He's still kneeling after delivering the tea."

Seeing himself walk out of the Brightness Hall alive seemed to shock the little emperor. Later on, the little emperor exempted Li Degong from serving him personally and even changed his clothes for him. All in all, Li Dezhong had been kneeling outside the hall for two days now, and his knees were probably about to break.

However, Xie Ye still felt it wasn't enough.

Half of the injuries on Gu Cong's neck were caused by this old fox's scheming. While Gu Cong circled around him every day, unaware of how to apply eye drops in front of him or seeking justice for himself, then he would be the one to seek justice from him.

After all, was he not a ruthless tyrant without reason?

Everyone promoted to serve by the little emperor's side was an expert in observing and interpreting signals. While they might not have reacted immediately, upon reflection, they could guess what had happened.

If Li Dezhong wanted to use a trick to placate the emperor, no one would stop him. However, for attendant Pei, if he continued to act aloof, with the royal family's lack of sentimentality, he might be completely forgotten, and it would be even harder for him to rise again.

Kneeling straight under the sun, Li Dezhong was sweating profusely.

Gu Cong's matter indeed made him anxious, but in recent months, every rainy night, the emperor had to have Pei Yi by his side to sleep peacefully. Why did he make a mistake only last night? What kind of magic did Gu Cong possess?

Even with his neck being choked to a purplish hue, he could still smile and approach the emperor as if nothing had happened. This young man's scheming was truly deep, not at all like a newcomer meeting the emperor for the first time.

With swollen and painful knees, dry mouth, and dizziness, Li Dezhong finally waited until the sun went down before he was summoned into the hall.

In these past few days, the emperor hadn't been feeling well and hadn't attended court. The only one who could serve him up close was Gu Cong, whose status had risen rapidly. In just three days, Gu Cong was already wearing the same clothes as him.

Although they were both rootless eunuchs, this man was tall and imposing, with amber eyes that made him stand out in the crowd, completely different from other young eunuchs who had once tried to climb into bed.

Hobbling into the hall with his injured leg, Li Dezhong never expected that one day he would use the phrase "vixen" to describe a man.

Bowing his head and kneeling again, he respectfully greeted, "Your Majesty."

Li Dezhong was naturally adaptable, able to serve consecutively before two emperors. In the original story, he even survived until the end, although he didn't continue to be favored by the new emperor—Xi Junyu. He was sent out of the palace to live out his remaining years in comfort, which was considered not too bad.

However, Xie Ye couldn't stand to see him so comfortable.

Playing with the hanging sleeve of Gu Cong's robe, he asked slowly, "Do you realize your mistake?"

Suffering from chronic headaches, the young Emperor didn't like tying up his hair. He always loosely tied it with a ribbon or let it hang behind him. At this moment, having just finished his meal and rinsed his mouth, he lazily reclined on the soft couch. His lips were moist, and there was a slight flush on his pale face, making him look harmless.

Knowing the temperament of the other party well, Li Dezhong didn't dare to be negligent in the slightest. With a thud, he knocked his head again and said, "This servant knows his mistake."

"This servant shouldn't have forgotten Your Majesty's taboos, presuming to guess Your Sacred Heart, and causing Gu, the palace attendant, to be injured." Without waiting for Xie Ye to speak, he controlled his volume and continued to express his sincerity and regret, his expression resembling the remorseful demeanor he had shown on the day when it was him, waiting outside the hall, who had nearly strangled Gu Cong to death, not Xie Ye.

Gu Cong, who was looking from the sidelines, felt that his moral conduct were not enough.

But no matter how good the acting was, for Xie Ye, who had played the role of a leading actor countless times before awakening, it was child's play. Deliberately waiting for a few seconds, he smiled and asked, "Anything else?"

Anything else...?

A cold and sinister gaze descended upon him from above, enveloping him inch by inch. For a moment, Li Dezhong almost thought that his deal with Prince An had been exposed, but then he thought it was impossible.

With various factions vying to manipulate the puppet, who couldn't even maintain basic rationality, how could they understand the intricacies of the harem of the former dynasty?

However, the next moment, as he looked up to explain, Li Dezhong met the eyes of the "puppet."

The forced smile froze on his face.

Grimly, those eyes, filled with bloodshot veins like a spider's web, stared at him and said, "It must be tough staying by my side, isn't it?"

The tone was light and airy, but it failed to convey any sense of gentleness. Instead, it felt like being crawled over by poison, making one shiver involuntarily, with goosebumps forming layer by layer. "Even if you serve meticulously and flawlessly, your head could be on the line at any moment."

Rapidly, cold sweat broke out on Li Dezhong's back.

True emotions never showed on the surface. He couldn't understand how the other party knew what he was thinking. While Prince An seemed like the best option to seek refuge amidst the impending collapse, the current situation made Li Dezhong realize that his fate still firmly rested in the hands of the young emperor.

When the sovereign wants the servant dead, the servant must die.

There were "benefits" to having a tyrant as well. Criticisms and advice were all nonsense. The tyrant feared neither courtiers nor the murmurs of the people. What use was it to have served the former emperor? As long as the sovereign wished it, he could order one's death on the spot.

Perhaps it was better to take matters into his own hands.

Plop.

A bead of sweat the size of a bean dripped into his eye and onto the floor. Li Dezhong dared not wipe it away. Pledging loyalty or betraying Prince An were both bad choices. Just when he thought his luck was running out today, the young emperor on the soft couch suddenly chuckled.

"Look how scared Eunuch Li is. I just mentioned casually, did Eunuch Li think I would take up the sword and chop off your head?" With a wave of his hand, Xie Ye said, "Gu Cong, why don't you go and help Eunuch Li  up?"

As the one responsible for his daily life, Li Dezhong certainly knew that the ceremonial swords in the Imperial Study of Xie Ye were specially sharpened.

Not daring to actually use Gu Cong's help, he staggered to his feet and said, embarrassed, "Your Majesty jests."

"But I do like your name, and that’s no joke," Xie Ye said, changing the subject. "Eunuch Li, you must guard it well." With a flick of his sleeve, he added, "You've knelt enough for tonight, go rest."

"Gu Cong, convey my decree to fetch the best medicine from the Imperial Hospital."

1101, who had been on edge the whole time, said, [I thought you would eradicate the problem entirely." Or make Li Dezhong realign himself and swear loyalty again, or something.]

[What loyalty can there be from a grasshopper?] Xie Ye said with a sneer, watching the two figures leave calmly. "As long as he knows I'm not to be trifled with."

Distant waters cannot quench immediate thirst. Even if Prince An is the protagonist, he can't intervene in the palace now. Before, Li Dezhong dared to make moves openly or covertly, relying on the fact that the young emperor was too preoccupied with pain and favored Pei Yi.

Now, unless he has the courage to pack up and leave overnight, Li Dezhong will understand what he should and shouldn't do, staying by Xie Ye's side day and night.

1101: "Sorry to interrupt, but it doesn't understand palace intrigue."

"I've watched hundreds of episodes of TV dramas for nothing."

"But when it comes to Gu Cong, I do understand: 'So, what's the purpose of deliberately sending him away?'"

【Things that easily cause trauma, it's not good for him to witness. He'll have nightmares.】

Finally willing to step down for a moment, Xie Ye walked on soft shoes and called out, "Bring the carriage to Jingxue Pavilion."

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Author's note:

Gu Cong: (Alert) Jingxue Pavilion?

1101: Yeah, that's right, where Pei Yi lives.