After Being Mistakenly Taken for a Fellow Traveler by Emperor Long Aotian - Chapter 14

Prince Jingchao had left with a sullen face, leaving the Emperor who was still recovering from being sprayed with water. The Emperor had coughed and choked after being taken by surprise.

Meanwhile, Zhou Xun watched the Emperor’s side, and Prince Jingchao stood before him, looking like he didn’t exist.

Seeing his persistent coldness, Prince Jingchao sighed bitterly, “Is all the bond we’ve shared in these two years completely gone?”

“Please, Your Highness, have some dignity,” Zhou Xun finally turned his face towards him and spoke sternly, “Zhou Xun is just a commoner. We’ve never had any bond between us.”

In the eyes of outsiders, he was standing tall and speaking with a sense of righteousness. But Zhou Xun knew that, at this moment, he was merely putting on a facade.

In places unseen by others, his nails dug deeply into his palms. He held onto himself as if that was the force that was holding him upright. Only he knew that, in the face of the oppression from this man who came from the privileged nobility, all his resistance was futile.

It was like the time when Prince Jingchao had him bound to a bed for a month because he had dared to jump into the lake three times in one month. It was meant to “calm him down.”

“Caixu…”

The prince still called him by that name and extended his hand. Zhou Xun avoided his hand by moving backward, steering clear of his touch.

“Why…?” Zhou Xun coldly stared at him. The prince withdrew his hand, looking somewhat dejected. “I really don’t understand, do you hate me that much?”

Zhou Xun did not reply, and the prince continued, “I know that you used to hate me, resenting that I placed you as a substitute for Zhou Cai. I admit I’ve made many mistakes in the past, making your life miserable. But… that’s all in the past, isn’t it?”

“I’ve treated you well over this past year, since last winter. Your food, clothing, and living conditions in the palace have all been excellent. You’ve been unwell, and I’ve never forced you into anything. I’ve been compensating you, and I believed that you had decided to live peacefully with me. Why are you doing this now?” Prince Jingchao’s voice was becoming increasingly frantic. “Why are you acting this way?”

Why were you doing this?

Why did you attempt to assassinate the Emperor?

In a daze, Zhou Xun’s mind wandered back to the snow from that year. He sat on the bed, gazing out of the window at the fresh snowfall.

At that time, he was on the brink of death in this desperate hell. He leaned back on the bed, and everything he could use to end his own life had been taken from the room. He stared at the rope tied around his wrist, while outside the room, the voices of Prince Jingchao and Zhou Cai were growing fainter.

“Because I gave in to him, he accepted you. But in this year, from last winter onward, I believed I had been kind to you. The food, clothing, and amenities at the prince’s residence are all top-notch. You’ve been ill and unwilling to share my bed, and I’ve never forced you. I’ve always made it up to you, and I thought you had decided to live with me. Why are you doing this now?” The prince’s voice became almost pleading, “What is the reason behind your actions?”

What was the reason?

Why did you do this?

Why did you destroy the potential for a bright future that should have been yours, and let him decide your fate with such condescension?

Why had you always been trapped in this tiny world?

Zhou Xun’s voice finally cracked, and he whispered, “I hate him, not because of jealousy, not because he had a place in his heart for you. No.”

He spoke bitterly, “I hate him because I see my own future when I look at him.”

“I see myself always trapped within this confined space. I hate him for easily dismissing it as ‘a minor dalliance,’ causing me to lose the infinite possibilities of my future. Then, he looked down at me with an attitude of benevolence and decided my future, as if he were granting me some kind of favor.”

And now…

Prince Jingchao stood in front of him, reprimanding him with an incredulous look of betrayal in his eyes, as if he were the worst of criminals.

In Prince Jingchao’s eyes, Zhou Xun thought, I have done all of this, the assassination of the Emperor, because I’m simply “unattainable” in his eyes.

At this moment, Zhou Xun suddenly found the man before him somewhat laughable.

Amusing, shallow, and contemptible.

He suddenly realized that he wasn’t as afraid of him anymore.

This man… he wasn’t even aware of the true reason for my “suffering.”

“Why did you try to assassinate? Why do this?” Zhou Xun addressed him word by word. This was the longest speech he had given since reuniting with Prince Jingchao. “Because in your eyes, I would go mad for the sake of your ‘love.’ I hate you because you can easily destroy everything about me, decide my entire life. But do you know what I hate you for the most?”

Prince Jingchao was stunned, and he said dazedly, “What?”

“It’s that you can easily ‘compensate’ for my life. You think you can do it so easily.” Zhou Xun continued, “In your eyes, I’m just an ant, easily manipulated by you. Faced with your compensation, I should be endlessly grateful. But…”

“I don’t care,” Zhou Xun said, “Just as you don’t care about my life, I don’t care about your ‘compensation.’ The so-called luxury and compensation you offer can be easily provided by you, while the life I could have is something you would never be willing to compensate for. For you to use your feather to compensate for another person’s Mount Tai, isn’t that laughable?”

Prince Jingchao was puzzled; he had never expected Zhou Xun to have such thoughts.

On the other side, the Emperor, having finally stopped coughing, stood against the wall, staring blankly in their direction.

“Your Majesty,” a eunuch worriedly inquired, “Are you alright?”

The Emperor waved his hand dismissively.

Eunuch: ?

“Come here,” the Emperor whispered, “I have a geography question for you.”

The eunuch replied respectfully, “Your servant will answer any question to the best of my ability!”

The Emperor asked, “What is the poorest and most desolate place in Jingchao?”

The eunuch: ?

The Emperor followed up, “What is the region with the highest death rate in Jingchao?”

The eunuch: ?

“Can people be transported to Siberia to work as laborers for oil extraction with current transportation capabilities?”

The eunuch: ??

“Your Majesty, this…” The eunuch hesitated.

The Emperor chuckled and focused his gaze on Prince Jingchao, “It’s just a casual question, no need to worry.”

Eunuch: …

“So, you hate me this much,” Prince Jingchao murmured to himself, “but do you realize that by doing this, you’re dragging down the entire Zhou family? Are you willing to sacrifice even your own family?”

“Family?” Zhou Xun sneered, “Have you forgotten that I was already cast out of the Zhou family long ago? My mother was discarded and sent to a temple by the Zhou family… I have nothing to do with the Zhou family anymore!”

“That’s just something my uncle said in anger!” Prince Jingchao pleaded, “Even if Uncle Zhou… what about Zhou Cai? Zhou Cai has never mistreated you and has always worried about you… Do you know that assassinating the Emperor is a capital crime of exterminating nine generations?”

“Exterminating nine generations?”

Zhou Xun suddenly pronounced the phrase “exterminate nine generations” in a very peculiar tone. Prince Jingchao thought he had touched a nerve and said, “Don’t you know…”

“I want the extermination of nine generations,” Zhou Xun laughed.

He looked genuinely beautiful when he smiled, like a touch of fresh snow falling on a plum blossom. “That’s what I call true cleanliness.”

“You!”

Prince Jingchao was furious. “Are you insane?”

Seemingly provoked by Zhou Xun, he raised his hand and was about to step forward. Zhou Xun took a step back subconsciously, and in the process, he slipped…

And then fell into someone’s arms.

Zhou Xun: ??

He thought he was about to be beaten. When they went to Zhou Manor for the Spring Festival, he openly humiliated Zhou Cai in front of everyone, and Prince Jingchao gave him a similar look and beat him when they returned.

But now…

“Are you alright?” the Emperor’s voice was robust as he held Zhou Xun close. He then turned a cold gaze towards Prince Jingchao. “Who gave you the courage to hit someone right under my nose?!”

Prince Jingchao hesitated, looking at his own hand. “My younger brother did not…”

The Emperor said sternly, “I saw you hitting someone with my own eyes!”

“He fell first…” Prince Jingchao tried to explain.

The Emperor stated firmly, “This path was perfectly fine; Zhou Xun walked on it without slipping before. Why did you make him fall? It must be your fault.”

Prince Jingchao argued, “My younger brother didn’t even touch him…”

“Your palm wind hit him!” the Emperor replied.

Prince Jingchao insisted, “I didn’t…”

“I don’t want you to think,” the Emperor’s anger flared, “I want you to obey what I say.”

Zhou Xun:…