Wait!

Zhao Yishi suddenly remembered that time with Ji Lingchuan.

Father had severely beaten him several times with the cane. Because of anger, even Father’s features had contorted.

“Ji Lingchuan embezzled so much silver—whose influence was he borrowing, whose courage was he relying on? The Zhang family?”

“I’ve warned you again and again—people shouldn’t be too greedy, hearts shouldn’t be too black. Every one of you treats my words as wind past the ear.”

“Ji Lingchuan’s fate is his own doing. I won’t plead with the Emperor because I have no face to plead with.”

“You’re protecting your mother, protecting your maternal family, protecting your own position as Grand Prince.”

Father’s words were reminding him—

The Ji family was too greedy.

The Zhang family was too greedy.

Your mother was too greedy.

You must find a way to restrain them, otherwise we father and son will both be implicated by them!

Still that question—why not remind him earlier?

Other words he might not listen to, but regarding matters concerning Mother, the Zhang family, the Ji family… he would always keep alert.

Or perhaps…

In Father’s heart, there was also a scale.

On one end was himself, and on the other end?

Who would it be?

Zhao Yishi’s thoughts plummeted.

Only now did he realize one thing—entering the capital recklessly for those few people was an incredibly foolish act.

The Grand Prince title was conferred by the Late Emperor. With the Late Emperor gone, Father was the master of all under heaven, controlling his future destiny.

Thinking of this, Zhao Yishi immediately knew what he must do.

He fell to his knees with a thud. “Father, I was wrong. I beg your forgiveness. From now on, I will listen to all your words, take them all to heart.”

Zhao Yanluo looked down from above at the person on the ground, shaking his head. “Crown Prince, it’s too late. Someone come!”

His personal attending eunuch Sun Jinzhong hurried in. “Your Majesty!”

“The Crown Prince returned to the capital without imperial summons, committing a grave error. Strip him of command of the three guards in his hands. He shall guard the imperial mausoleum for three years.”

“Father!”

Zhao Yishi roared, raising his head in disbelief, his eyes full of terror.

This was stripping away all his military authority!

Zhao Yanluo acted as if he hadn’t heard, wearily waving his hand. “Crown Prince, withdraw. Return to the imperial mausoleum and properly reflect in seclusion.”

Zhao Yishi’s entire body seemed struck by lightning, motionless as a stone sculpture.

All these years of working tirelessly day and night, painstaking efforts, calculating exhaustively to obtain everything—snatched away by such a light, casual sentence.

Was Father acting on impulse, or had this been planned long ago?

Three years.

One thousand and ninety-five days.

What would the Four-Nine City become?

What would the political situation become?

What would the palace become?

What would people’s hearts become?

It wasn’t just his bones seeping cold—even Zhao Yishi’s hair trembled with chill.

He closed his eyes, forcibly suppressing certain things surging up from the bottom of his heart, taking a deep breath.

When he opened his eyes again, they were waveless and calm, dark and deep as a well.

Zhao Yishi prostrated his body to the ground. “Your subject receives the decree. Your subject takes his leave.”

Having said this, he slowly rose from the ground, respectfully bowing to the Emperor once more before finally turning to leave.

He walked each step very slowly, his retreating figure appearing lonely, yet carrying a hint of determination.

No one knew that what he had just forcibly suppressed was now surging up again from the bottom of his heart, so that his well-like eyes were filled with icy coldness.

But Zhao Yanluo felt a moment of disorientation, as if seeing again from many years ago that figure he had gazed at longingly, yet could never catch up to.

How old had he been then—four years old, or five?

Every year at year’s end, Father would return to the capital by imperial decree. He was the eldest son. His younger brother Zhao Yanjin hadn’t been born yet, so Father brought Mother and him back to the capital together.

Everything was good in the capital, except for one thing—those children of the imperial family would all bully him, calling him “cripple.”

At that time, because of his crippled leg, he was always half a beat slower than others at everything, so they gave him the nickname “Northern Turtle.”

On New Year’s Eve, before the family banquet had dispersed, the children grew restless and ran outside the hall to play.

When it grew dark, the attending eunuchs set off fireworks and firecrackers, amusing the young masters.

He also wanted to watch. He eagerly followed outside, first deliberately tripped by someone, then had a handful of ice shavings stuffed down the back of his neck.

He didn’t dare tell his parents, and feared these people, so he could only find a deserted place to hide from these lawless ones.

Walking along, he encountered someone.

It was the current Crown Prince—tall and slender in build, his face gentle as jade. By generation, he should call him “Uncle.”

Among those who bullied him were some from that family too.

He turned his face aside, eyes looking elsewhere, aggrieved, pursing his lips. Hmph, you adults don’t manage them either.

The Crown Prince must have heard his “hmph.” He stopped before him, smiling faintly.

“What are you smiling at?” He was annoyed.

The Crown Prince said nothing, took out a handkerchief to wipe his face, wipe his hands, and even brushed the dirt off his clothes.

“In the future, if someone bullies you, tell me. Uncle will stand up for you.”

For some reason, he suddenly wanted to cry.

Neither Father nor Mother stood up for him, only telling him to be good, not to cause trouble in the capital.

“They all call me Northern Turtle.”

The Crown Prince was startled.

“Yeah, Northern Turtle means a turtle from the north. They despise me for being a cripple, walking slowly.”

As he spoke, tears flowed down his face.

The Crown Prince smiled again.

At this smile, he cried even harder. The people in the capital truly had no conscience, every last one of them!

Just then, the Crown Prince crouched down.

“What’s wrong with being slow? Staying behind others, you can carefully watch how each person walks.”

“Why would I want to watch others walk?”

“You can discern each person’s temperament.”

The Crown Prince’s voice was so gentle, unhurried.

“Look—people who walk fast have impatient temperaments, so they’ll also be hasty in their actions. People who walk hunched over clearly aren’t very confident. People whose shoulders droop down definitely have something on their minds.”

“What about people who walk neither fast nor slow?”

“I don’t know either. How about… in the future, you help Uncle pay attention?”

“What benefit is there? I won’t do things without benefits.”

“There is!”

The Crown Prince smiled: “When you’re grown, Uncle will carve you a seal using the finest jade.”

Uncle’s seal?

Mother had said it was very valuable.

He replied eagerly: “You can’t go back on your word. If you do, you’re a puppy.”

The Crown Prince sighed: “Forget it, I won’t carve a seal—I’ll carve a Northern Turtle instead.”

“You’re bullying me too!”

The Crown Prince laughed heartily, reached out his hand, ruffled his hair, stood up, and without further ado, took his hand.

“Uncle will take you to see the fireworks. How about it?”

Though a small child, he could distinguish between goodwill and malice, yet he still held a grudge about the Crown Prince wanting to carve him a Northern Turtle.

“You, you tell them to set off the biggest ones for me to see, set off many, many.”

“All right.”

“Only, only set them off for me alone to see, not for them.”

“Done.”

He turned his face aside again, eyes looking elsewhere, covering his mouth to secretly smile.

At this moment, an attending eunuch approached.

Crown Prince: “Move several of the largest fireworks, find a deserted place to set them off for the young heir to watch.”

The eunuch looked troubled: “Your Highness, if we move the large ones, later…”

The Crown Prince’s face darkened. The eunuch helplessly stamped his foot, smiling bitterly at him: “Young heir, later when this old servant gets scolded, you must help this old servant say a few good words!”

He snorted: “I won’t!”

The Crown Prince tugged his hand. “Say a few words at least.”

He pouted, thinking: “I’ll listen to Uncle.”

The Crown Prince smiled. “After coaxing you for so long, you little rascal finally willing to address people properly!”

That night, he held a warm, large hand and watched beautiful fireworks in the palace.

After the fireworks ended, Father came to find him.

Uncle handed his hand to Father, gave him a faint smile, then stepped into the night.

Uncle walked neither hastily nor slowly, shoulders slightly drooping, appearing steady yet full of worries.

In the following years, Father only brought Mother back to the capital.

Later, even Father rarely returned to the capital.

He gradually grew up, following his teacher in reading and writing. He not only learned to hide behind others observing how each person walked, but also learned to fathom each person’s thoughts.

Through cold and heat, the years passed.

He never received that valuable seal.

Later came the witchcraft case. Father entered the capital, ascended the throne, he was made Crown Prince… a series of upheavals left him no time to think too much. That person’s appearance gradually blurred.

But strangely, whenever his heart became restless and irritable, he would always remember that person’s words: What’s wrong with being slow?

“Your Majesty.”

Sun Jinzhong entered the hall to report: “His Highness has left the palace and departed for the imperial mausoleum.”

Zhao Yanluo withdrew his thoughts. “Did he encounter anyone on the road?”

“He encountered a young eunuch from the Empress’s side, spoke a few words.”

Zhao Yanluo didn’t ask what was said, only laughing coldly. “The Empress’s heart is still too hasty!”

“Her Majesty deeply loves her son.”

Zhao Yanluo moved his steps back to the bed, slowly lying down.

The instant Sun Jinzhong lowered the bed curtain, he heard the Emperor softly say two words:

“Not necessarily!”

—