Chapter 55: The Will of Heaven and the Heart of Man

Sighing, Ling Moxuan spoke with a sharp and probing tone, "I can see right through it now. Does he still share some kind of friendship with that Feng Yueyang? Otherwise, why would he plead for him before His Imperial Father back then?"

At this, seeing that Ling Yuzhao still showed no reaction, Prince Xuan's tone carried a subtle provocation.

"Speaking of Gu Zirui, Imperial Elder Brother, does your cousin hold some kind of misunderstanding toward me? I wouldn't usually say this, but those people from Qingzhou who appeared this time—regardless of their motive, judging purely by the outcome, they were clearly sent to sow discord between us brothers! Imperial Elder Brother, you must not let them influence you! Did those few people say anything to you in private?"

Upon hearing this final sentence, Ling Yuzhao finally deigned to glance over, staring straight into Ling Moxuan's face as he asked, "What? Are you that eager to know what they said to me in private?"

Prince Xuan was indeed very eager to know.

Primarily, he wanted to test whether Ling Yuzhao had discovered something in advance; otherwise, how could a plan he had plotted for so long suddenly be ruined?

Unless Ling Yuzhao had received word beforehand.

If not, what could be the reason?

Could it really be that Ling Yuzhao had simply escaped by pure luck?

Even if that were true, Prince Xuan refused to believe it. They were both of the same ilk—why should Ling Yuzhao manage to evade his calculations time and time again?

Thinking of how several of his attempts had failed to trap Ling Yuzhao, a dark and wicked fury smoldered within Ling Moxuan's chest.

Rather than believing in Ling Yuzhao's good fortune, Ling Moxuan preferred to accept that something had gone wrong among his own people.

One was the will of heaven; the other was human nature.

He could only change human nature...

It was a pity that Dong Yufeng and the others were already dead—dead so suddenly and so cleanly that he didn't even have the chance to interrogate them in private.

Ling Yuzhao acutely sensed that Ling Moxuan's mood had suddenly turned somewhat irritable.

Although Ling Moxuan said nothing, the flash of ruthlessness in the depths of his eyes did not escape Ling Yuzhao's notice.

Ling Yuzhao let out a soft chuckle, "Imperial Younger Brother is still..."

"Your Highness Prince Xuan!"

Just as Ling Yuzhao began to speak, he was abruptly interrupted by a female voice.

The voice was very familiar. Both men turned their heads to look, reacting quite differently.

Upon recognizing the newcomer, Ling Moxuan's expression darkened slightly, clearly displeased. He had yet to probe anything useful out of Ling Yuzhao—why had this idiot Ji Shulan shown up again?

Ling Yuzhao's gaze swept across Ji Shulan's face before shifting back to Ling Moxuan's. He broke into a direct laugh and mocked,

"It seems the Second Young Lady of the Ji family is truly deeply devoted to my younger brother. She feels miserable the moment she is out of his sight. Since that is the case, the two of you should have a proper chat."

Ling Yuzhao walked away with complete self-awareness, not even waiting for Ji Shulan to make the request.

Watching Ling Yuzhao's retreating back, Ji Shulan breathed a sigh of relief.

The memories of her past life were too profound; seeing Ling Yuzhao always made her shudder. But what could she do? Prince Xuan happened to be standing right next to him, and what she had to say had to be spoken to Prince Xuan. Thus, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and come over.

"What is the matter?"

Ling Moxuan was displeased, and the impatience in his tone was already impossible to conceal.

However, with so many people around, he could not simply flick his sleeves and walk away. He could only maintain a facade of decorum and ask with forced patience.

Yet in his heart, he harbored no expectations.

This woman was an absolute fool. What else could she possibly want when she came looking for him besides causing trouble and acting infatuated?

Ji Shulan, however, acted as though she failed to notice Ling Moxuan's impatience.

Glancing around to the left and right, she lowered her voice and pleaded, "Your Highness Prince Xuan, I have something important to tell you. There are too many eyes and ears here; shall we go somewhere else?"

A vein throbbed faintly on Ling Moxuan's forehead. After a surge of turbulent emotions, he agreed.

"Let's go."

Right on cue, he also wanted to find an opportunity to put her in her place.

This woman simply had no sense of propriety whatsoever!

...

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, everything has been inspected. There are no issues."

Gu Zirui walked over from afar. Seeing that his cousin was not sitting in his seat but standing to the side admiring the scenery, he came over to report.

Before he had even finished his sentence, the corner of his eye caught a delicate figure, and he raised an eyebrow.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, the Eldest Young Lady of the Ji family is approaching."

Hearing this, Ling Yuzhao followed Gu Zirui's line of sight and indeed spotted Ji Hua leading two maidservants toward him. This woman really was...

In full public view, and she wasn't even afraid of people gossiping.

Ling Yuzhao knew that Ji Hua was not one to be bound by conventional rules, but to come looking for him so openly—did this woman truly not care about rumors?

There were quite a few people present today.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, Lord Gu."

Amidst his thoughts, Ji Hua had already arrived before them and offered a proper, formal bow.

A smile hung on the corner of Gu Zirui's lips. "Eldest Young Lady Ji."

Looking at the silent Ling Yuzhao, Ji Hua cut straight to the point, "Before Your Highness takes the field later, you had best change your horse."

Both men instantly grew solemn.

Recalling Ji Hua's warning at the lakeside banquet previously, Ling Yuzhao understood something and asked in a cold voice,

"What? Is someone trying to harm me again?"

Without batting an eye, Ji Hua cast a subtle glance at Ling Moxuan, who was talking with Ji Shulan not far away, and smiled.

"Since Your Highness already knows in your heart, there is no need for this maiden to say more. It is simply so."

Ling Yuzhao did not reply, instead looking toward Gu Zirui beside him.

Gu Zirui nodded and responded earnestly, "Many thanks to Eldest Young Lady Ji for the warning, but this subordinate already inspected the horses Your Highness might ride earlier, and none of them have any problems."

Ji Hua did not take it to heart. Sweeping her gaze across the stables not far away, she said with absolute certainty,

"If someone wishes to harm Your Highness, naturally they would not make it so obvious. In any case, it is best to change horses—ideally to a mount that no one expects Your Highness to ride."

Her words were disjointed and lacked context, causing both Ling Yuzhao and Gu Zirui to frown.

Just as the two men wanted to press further and ask why, as well as where Ji Hua had obtained such intelligence, a somewhat stern voice rang out.

"Hua'er! What are you doing here?"

Ji Wenbin walked over with a dark expression.

With crisp efficiency and a respectful demeanor, Ji Wenbin addressed Ling Yuzhao, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, Hua'er hasn't been disturbing you, has she? I shall take her away right now; this humble subject has a few words he wishes to say to her."

With Ji Wenbin putting it this way, Ling Yuzhao naturally could not refuse and could only nod.

"Lord Ji, please go ahead. Eldest Young Lady Ji has not disturbed us; we were merely chatting casually."

Ji Wenbin twitched the corner of his mouth in a forced smile, shot Ji Hua a meaningful look, and turned to leave.

Helpless, Ji Hua added one final emphasis before departing.

"If Your Highness does not wish to go through the trouble, then later, regardless of who asks you to take the field, you must refuse. As long as you stay far away from the horses today, you will naturally remain safe and sound."

With that, she curtsied and hurried off after Ji Wenbin.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, what should we do?"

Ji Hua had spoken with such conviction that Gu Zirui found himself at a loss and couldn't help asking.

It would have been one thing if Ji Hua had said nothing, but since she had spoken, it was indeed better to investigate.

Ling Yuzhao glanced at him. "Since she went out of her way to come and warn us, just do as she says."