There were over a thousand guards with blue-level Yuan Power or above in the palace. Even if each of them only extended a single finger, they could instantly extinguish the fire. But they couldn’t use their Yuan Power. Instead, they had to act like ordinary people, running around shouting, “Fire! Fire!”
What use was shouting about a fire without doing anything?
Luo Jiaoyang, bearing the title of Head Guard, watched with twitching lips as their Emperor rubbed ashes on his face while sitting in the beast carriage.
“I feel obliged to remind you,” he said, “that fire in the palace is from Nanny Xun roasting sweet potatoes. Mingyi will know if she inquires even slightly.”
“She won’t inquire,” Ji Bozai gestured, smearing ash under his eyes to look just the right amount of disheveled yet beautifully vulnerable. “She’d be glad to have no connection with this palace.”
“Yet you still rush over there,” Luo Jiaoyang muttered.
The muttering was too loud; Ji Bozai heard it. Luo Jiaoyang felt awkward and quickly added, “Ordinary women are easy to obtain, but Miss Ming isn’t one to bow her head easily. Your Majesty is doing the right thing.”
Ji Bozai looked at the black ash on his fingertips and said quietly, “I used to think that way too. She’s different from ordinary women, hard to make her submit, so I had to use every means to keep her.”
“But later I realized I was wrong.”
“I wanted to keep her because she was in my heart from the start. I used the wrong methods, which only pushed her further away.”
“This time I won’t use any tactics. If she wants a sincere heart, I’ll give her a sincere heart.”
Luo Jiaoyang stared at him in astonishment.
They had fought side by side for so long, but he had never seen Ji Bozai with such an expression, as if he had reached a dead end yet still clung to a glimmer of hope.
It hadn’t been this difficult even when they were conquering Zhu Yue City.
Chu He once said that Ji Bozai harbored great resentment in his heart, living on hatred. Upon ascending the throne, he had eliminated countless enemies, including not sparing the Lord of Mu Xing City, earning him the title of the human King Yama.
But now, looking at him, Luo Jiaoyang felt he was just a helpless young man.
“You already have the whole world. Finding someone similar to Miss Ming shouldn’t be difficult,” he couldn’t help but suggest.
“I thought about that too.”
When he first ascended the throne, someone had painstakingly found a woman who was 80% similar to Mingyi, even deliberately imitating her personality.
But it wasn’t the same.
She wasn’t Mingyi. With Mingyi, he could think of doing something, and she would know with just a glance or a gesture, understanding his thoughts. Others would only wait for his instructions.
He had once been annoyed that he couldn’t hide any secrets from Mingyi, which was what an emperor feared most. But when she truly became disinterested in him, he felt that even the imperial throne lost its meaning, becoming too lonely.
They had worked in perfect harmony in Mu Xing City, guarded each other’s backs on the battlefield of Zhu Yue City, raised the same shield amidst a sky full of attacks, and served as each other’s crutches when injured.
They had watched together the Milky Way in Mu Xing City, the sea of flowers in Huahua City, the June frost in Cangxue City, the silver sun in Zhu Yue City, and the golden crow breaking through clouds in Chaoyang City.
Ji Bozai had always thought his life was interesting, but looking back carefully, the interesting parts were all when she was present.
Before, he thought sweet words were love, then he thought giving gold and jewels was love. Now he realized that any emotion that could be concretized into a specific thing or action wasn’t love.
Love was too vast, vast enough to encompass a person’s entire life. Only at the end of life could one conclude.
As the beast carriage rumbled into the inner courtyard of the city lord’s residence, Luo Jiaoyang still seemed confused. He looked deeply at Ji Bozai and asked, “When will Your Majesty return?”
“Soon,” he lifted the carriage curtain, squinting at the buildings outside. “When I can return, you’ll have an Empress.”
Luo Jiaoyang blinked, looking at the confident man before him, feeling as if the invincible Ji Bozai from the battlefield had returned.
However, in the next moment, he saw their Emperor weakly collapse to the side, supporting himself on Bu Xiu’s hand, coughing incessantly as he met Mingyi, who was hurrying over.
Luo Jiaoyang: “…”
“Your Majesty?” Mingyi had just woken up, still wearing an outer robe. She frowned at his state, “It’s the middle of the night, what happened?”
Ji Bozai wiped the ash from his face, wearily saying, “Someone attempted assassination. There are traitors in my palace, and the palace chambers were set on fire, cough cough cough—”
Mingyi tensed, quickly having someone support him as they walked back. “An assassination attempt so soon after establishing the laws? It seems there are still many in the six cities dissatisfied with unification.”
“I’ve ordered Chu He and Fan Yao to investigate further, but for now, I’m afraid I’ll have to trouble the City Lord.”
“It’s no trouble. Many of these great halls were built with Your Majesty’s gold anyway. It’s just…” Mingyi looked a bit troubled, “The newly built halls are all in the rear palace. Given Your Majesty’s status, staying in the rear palace might be…?”
“It’s fine,” Ji Bozai glanced at her. “The City Lord’s rear palace is lively with many people.”
Mingyi felt he might be mocking her, but looking carefully at his eyes, they seemed clear.
She pressed her lips together and led him to the newly renovated Qingming Hall.
Of all the newly built palaces, this one was the largest and most comfortable. Originally, Mingyi had planned to live here herself, but since he had come, she would let him stay for a while.
The advantage of this palace was its proximity to Zhou Zihong’s Yiqi Pavilion; the disadvantage was also its proximity to Zhou Zihong’s Yiqi Pavilion.
Mingyi said softly to Bu Xiu, “I’ll be in the nearby Yiqi Pavilion. You can come find me if anything happens.”
Bu Xiu glanced in the direction of Yiqi Pavilion and sighed, “Won’t the young miss stay with His Majesty for a while? After all, he’s had a shock tonight.”
Mingyi’s lip twitched as she looked at Bu Xiu. “Would your master be shocked?”
How could he say that with a straight face? He wasn’t some fragile person.
Bu Xiu shook his head. “Since ancient times, the strongest people are the hardest to sympathize with. But this servant thinks that well-behaved children should be given more candy. The young miss should understand this feeling, right?”
…It sounded reasonable at first, but thinking carefully, Mingyi still felt it unnecessary.
“Zhou Zihong is afraid of the dark,” she said. “I need to go back.”
With that, not waiting for Bu Xiu to speak again, she turned and walked away.
Bu Xiu watched her retreating figure, scratching his head in resignation. As he turned around, he was startled by Ji Bozai behind him.
“You… why are you out here?”
“Probably because I’m not afraid of the dark,” he said calmly, watching Mingyi’s retreating figure. “Did I ever treat her like this before?”
Bu Xiu smiled foolishly, “This servant has a poor memory.”
Lanterns were lit in the great hall. Ji Bozai sat down on the threshold, gently wiping the ash from his face. His face was backlit, shrouded in darkness. “Her memory seems good. How come she doesn’t remember that I can’t sleep in unfamiliar places?”