Chapter Twenty: The Crown Prince's Invitation

  "Juan'er come, smile one, smile one and this handkerchief is yours, come on, smile, smile..."

  On the fifth day of the new year, the hustle and bustle of the New Year's celebrations had passed, and it was not yet time for official duties. There was no need to visit relatives or worry about official business, making it the perfect time to relax. With the heavy snowfall and cold weather, Li Xian was happy to stay in the palace, spending his days teasing Shangguan Wan'er for entertainment. Just then, Li Xian pulled out a handkerchief with embroidered flowers and started teasing again. Unfortunately, Shangguan Wan'er didn't seem to be buying it, and no matter how much Li Xian talked, she just leaned against the brocade cushion, not even cracking a smile or showing any expression, simply staring at Li Xian as he performed like a monkey, making him look particularly uninteresting. However, this made the surrounding maids laugh so hard they were rolling on the ground.

  What's so funny? This is called cultivating feelings, don't you understand? Education has to start from childhood, we're just practicing, know what I mean? After teasing for a long time and not seeing any reaction from Shangguan Wan'er, he was ridiculed by the maids again. Li Xian's face was already somewhat embarrassed. He comforted himself, looked gloomy, and surrendered. He casually threw the handkerchief onto the couch, pretending to be angry, but before he could even get into position, Shangguan Wan'er, who had not moved at all, stretched out her small hand and took the handkerchief. Not only that, but she also smiled triumphantly with her lovely face.

  What the heck, who's teasing whom here, this little thing is so annoying! As soon as Shangguan Wan'er made her move, all the maids who were already giggling burst into laughter, leaving Li Xian with a black line on his forehead, his eyes wide open, and he couldn't help but stare at the smug little thing, completely speechless.

  "Your Highness."

  Just as everyone was laughing and having a great time, Gao Miao suddenly appeared at the door, saw the lively scene in the room, and was taken aback for a moment. He didn't dare to linger, quickly walked a few steps, came up behind Li Xian, and called out softly.

  "Huh?"

  Although Li Xian's face was puffed up with anger, he was actually quite pleased with Shangguan Wan'er's cleverness in his heart. He couldn't really be angry, and just as he was about to burst out laughing, he suddenly heard Gao Min summoning him, so he had to forcibly suppress his smile, turned around, looked at Gao Min, and hummed a puzzled sound.

  "Your Highness, someone has arrived from the East Palace. They say that the Crown Prince requests Your Highness to enter the palace for a meeting." Gao Miao slightly bowed his head and reported in a low voice.

  "Huh? Entering the palace to discuss something? Didn't we just gather a few days ago? What's the sudden need for discussion now? Li Xian was taken aback by these words, and his mind immediately began to wonder what Li Hong's intentions were in inviting him at this time. After hesitating for a moment, he slowly spoke up: "Is there anything else you'd like to instruct me on?"

  Gao Miao shook his head and said: "As for the emperor's words, the messenger delivered the message and left immediately, not even willing to stay for a moment."

  "Hmm, isn't this just a clear indication that I won't be given the opportunity to refuse? What's the point of being mysterious? Li Xian used to be very close to the Crown Prince, but since the case of the imperial prison and the law court, Li Xian has deliberately distanced himself from Li Hong. It's not that he had any dissatisfaction with Li Hong himself, in fact, whether in his past life or this one, Li Xian has always deeply admired Li Hong as an older brother. The problem is that matters of the imperial family are fundamentally unrelated to emotions, only related to interests. As long as Li Xian still wants to quietly gather his forces, he must form an alliance with Li Xian, and hide behind Li Xian's back to secretly develop his strength. This is Li Xian's established policy, and it won't change in the slightest."

  "Hmm, prepare the carriage. Also, send someone, Lin Hu will do, to the Wang Fu and inform them that I, the king, have been invited by the crown prince to enter the palace for a conversation today." Li Xian furrowed his brow in thought for a moment before speaking carefully.

  "Yes, I'll go and take care of it."

  After nearly a month of daily interactions, Gao Miao had already gotten used to Li Xian's changes. Although he couldn't guess the intention behind Li Xian's arrangements at this time, he didn't ask any unnecessary questions either. He hastily agreed and went off to make the necessary arrangements without mentioning it again.

  "Your Highness." Yan Hong, who had been quietly waiting on the side, heard that Li Xian was going to enter the East Palace and didn't dare to be slow. She took a fur coat and walked to Li Xian's side, quickly changing his clothes with nimble hands and feet. She then whispered a reminder: "It's cold outside, Your Highness should go and return early, don't drink too much."

  "Alright, I understand. Please ask Yanhong to send Wanyu to Lin's wife, I won't be back for lunch." Li Xian still showed great respect towards Yanhong, who was like an older sister to him, and didn't get angry at her words of advice. He smiled, nodded his head, gave a brief order, and then strode out of the room, heading towards the front courtyard...

  "The slave greets Your Highness."

  Outside the Chunhua Gate of the Eastern Palace, Li Xian had just poked his head out of the carriage window. Before he could order someone to go to the palace gate to present their card, Chen Dajiu, the eunuch in charge of the Eastern Palace, led several young eunuchs to greet him, and they paid their respects one after another.

  "Sorry to trouble you, Mr. Chen, I'm late, and I've kept you waiting for a long time." Li Xian's face lit up with a smile as he greeted the eunuch who had come out to welcome him, but his heart skipped a beat at the sight of Chen Daoyong, the head eunuch of the Eastern Palace.

  "I dare not, I dare not, His Highness the Crown Prince is already waiting at Donglin Pavilion, please follow me, old slave."

  Chen Dajun obviously didn't intend to exchange pleasantries with Li Xian, he just smiled slightly, turned his body a little, made a gesture, and then, without caring whether Li Xian followed or not, led several small eunuchs in a leisurely manner towards the palace gate.

  What a rude and arrogant eunuch! Li Xian had not infrequently come to the Eastern Palace in the past, but he had rarely had any dealings with Chen Daoyong. However, he had often heard about his arrogant behavior and knew the reason why he was being treated coldly this time - Crown Prince Li Hong was still unmarried and had no concubines, so the entire Eastern Palace was under Chen Daoyong's control. His high position and great power were not to be underestimated, and in recent years, the Crown Prince had often taken charge of state affairs, with officials constantly coming and going from the Eastern Palace, all of whom had to bribe Chen Daoyong, otherwise they would suffer. Over time, this had fostered Chen Daoyong's arrogant nature. Furthermore, Chen Daoyong also had another identity - he was one of the eunuchs who had served Empress Wu Zetian and had been sent to the Eastern Palace with a mission to monitor the Crown Prince. Therefore, although he was arrogant, no one dared to control him. At this time, his haughty behavior was simply because he had been ordered by the Crown Prince to wait at the palace gate for Li Xian, and he felt displeased. It wasn't that he had any grudge against Li Xian; in fact, even though Li Xian was a prince, Chen Daoyong didn't think much of him, considering him a low-key and incompetent imperial son.

  Old eunuch dog, walk and see! Li Xian not only knew some secrets of Chen Dazong, but also knew that in his previous life, Chen Dazong was the murderer who poisoned Li Hong with a cup of poisonous wine. Of course, Chen Dazong himself did not end well, being secretly killed by Wu Zetian's men, but he lived for less than a day more than Li Hong. As for someone like Chen Dazong, Li Xian would not bother to deal with him, but if he could be used once, Li Xian would not hesitate. So, despite being displeased with Chen Dazong's rudeness, Li Xian did not make a move and followed behind Chen Dazong, smiling and walking slowly into the Chunhua Gate, heading silently towards the Donglin Pavilion...

  Dong Lin Ge, a small pavilion on the edge of the rear garden in the East Palace, is located in the harem of the East Palace. Although Li Hong had not yet married, the harem was largely nominal, but the rules were still in place. Not to mention ordinary courtiers, even his own brothers could not enter without an invitation. Li Xian had come to the East Palace countless times before and after, but this was his first time at Dong Lin Ge. Of course, in his previous life when he himself was the crown prince, he often came to Dong Lin Ge to relax and was very familiar with the surrounding scenery. As he walked along the way, all the memories buried deep in his heart suddenly welled up, and under the mixed flavors of sour, sweet, bitter, and savory, there was a unique aftertaste in his mind.

  "My younger brother has met with the Crown Prince."

  Li Xian followed Chen Dayong to the second floor of Donglin Pavilion, and as soon as he entered, he saw Li Hong standing with his back to the stairs, wearing a bright yellow robe, seemingly lost in thought, completely unaware of the arrival of those behind him. Li Xian hesitated for a moment before quickly walking forward, bowing and calling out in a low voice.

  "Seventh brother, come over here." Li Hong didn't turn his head back, he just raised his hand and gave a calm instruction.

  "Yes, I obey." Li Xian was actually unclear about the meaning of Li Hong's move, but since Li Xian had already spoken up, he couldn't very well refuse. After a brief hesitation, he nodded in agreement and walked to Li Hong's side, following his gaze to see that not far below, a group of young eunuchs were busily trimming a medium-sized evergreen tree in the garden, their sawing sounds being somewhat ear-piercing.

  Pruning, in winter? What a ridiculous thing to do! Oh dear, it's really hard for you! Although Li Xian didn't study horticulture, he knew when it was suitable to prune trees - only in spring and autumn. Pruning in the middle of winter is almost equivalent to destroying the tree. Even if the pruned tree doesn't die next spring, it will definitely not grow well. This might be unknown to Li Hong, but the eunuchs responsible for taking care of the back garden would certainly understand this principle. The fact that such a foolish thing could happen was actually just a metaphor - it was done specifically to perform in front of Li Xian, and the intention behind it was obvious. However, understanding it was one thing, and knowing how to respond was another. Even though Li Xian had experience with people, he couldn't think of a perfect excuse on the spot, so before Li Hong could speak up, he quickly racked his brains.

  Li Xian apparently couldn't take the lead in speaking at this time, and Li Hong seemed to have no intention of saying more. The two brothers stood side by side like two silent statues, but the atmosphere in the pavilion became somewhat eerie...