The long night was pitch-black, and lamps burned as if it were day.

Eunuch Qingxi entered the hall carrying memorials. Seeing Ji Su still reviewing them, he couldn't help but advise in a low voice, "Your Majesty, it's almost dawn. You should rest. You still have the morning court session in a little while..."

Ji Su casually tossed the memorial onto the desk and leaned back against the dragon throne. The dark sandalwood made his figure appear long and graceful. He propped his forehead with one hand and closed his eyes.

Eunuch Qingxi finally breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. It was good enough that he was willing to rest for a while. He didn't persuade the Emperor to rest on the bed; this was the Emperor's old habit. At this hour, he was unwilling to go to bed to rest. He would find a place to nap for a while and go back to catch up on sleep after the morning court session was over.

Eunuch Qingxi said in a low voice, "Shall this old servant give the Emperor a massage? It would be good to relax a bit."

A syllable escaped Ji Su's throat, which was taken as agreement. Eunuch Qingxi hurried to the side to wash his hands before serving. The Emperor was particular about cleanliness, so he dared not touch His Majesty after handling the memorials. Seeing the faint dark circles under Ji Su's eyes, he said cautiously, "Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Hu has gone to check again. He only said that His Little Highness is just tired and will be fine after a few more days of rest."

"The Emperor has been rushing between two places for several days straight. Even a true dragon from the heavens needs time to rest. Please take care of your health..."

Ji Su said faintly, "It seems your nerve has grown."

Eunuch Qingxi swiftly knelt down, his hands not stopping, but merely moving to the legs. While kneading Ji Su's legs, he continued, "This old servant wouldn't dare. It's just that seeing the Emperor so weary makes this old servant's heart ache. Even if the Emperor were to drag this old servant to the execution grounds, this old servant would still say the same."

"Do I need to go to the execution grounds to kill you?" Ji Su retorted lightly.

"Your Majesty is the ruler of the world, and the Imperial Palace is Your Majesty's residence. This old servant is just afraid that this old servant's blood would stain the palace tiles..." Eunuch Qingxi secretly glanced at Ji Su. Seeing his expression unchanged, he boldly continued, "The Emperor reprimanded His Little Highness. Xingbo said His Highness was so remorseful that he only drowsily fell asleep in the middle of the night... He was both angry and heartbroken. His Highness is still young."

Ji Su's expression did not change. He raised a hand slightly, signaling him to say no more.

How could Eunuch Qingxi dare to plead further? However, seeing that the Emperor had softened slightly, he thought to himself that at least the Emperor hadn't completely turned against His Little Highness.

In his opinion, His Little Highness was fine just the way he was. Although he was a bit of a profligate, could the royal family not afford it? His Little Highness was soft-hearted, but being soft-hearted had its advantages. Those rebellious princes were hard-hearted, and the Late Emperor was also as hard as iron. But in a perfectly good family, they'd created a situation where fathers weren't like fathers and brothers weren't like brothers. Was that a good thing?

Currently, His Little Highness couldn't share the Emperor's burdens in the imperial court, but were all the court officials just for show? Did he have to do everything himself?

The Emperor had no son to this day, but it wasn't necessary to choose His Little Highness. The Imperial Clan Prince's Manor had just had a few grandsons born. Picking one to be adopted would still be of the royal bloodline. Let His Little Highness live a happy and carefree life. In the future, when the heir ascended the throne, would he dare to make things difficult for the Imperial Uncle who clearly had no interest in power? Wouldn't he fear being unable to silence the gossip of the world? Whether he liked it or not, as long as His Little Highness did not rebel and usurp the throne, the heir could only support His Little Highness. Wasn't that good?

However, he didn't dare to say these words out loud, merely grumbling inwardly.

On the other side, Ji Weiqiu, who resided in Ganquan Villa, was sleeping soundly. He wasn't in a hurry to go out. The sutras his brother told him to copy could be done later. Didn't Imperial Physician Hu say he needed to recuperate for at least a month or two? Even if he finished copying and the curfew was lifted, he would just be recuperating in a different place. What was the hurry? He was a patient now. In the whole wide world, besides the dead being the most important, the next most important were the sick. He should eat when it's time to eat and sleep when it's time to sleep!

Xingbo saw that Ji Weiqiu was fast asleep, so he lit some sleep-aiding incense in the censer and then tiptoed out. He had come to Ganquan Villa for two reasons: one was to serve His Highness, and the other was to take over Ganquan Villa.

Ganquan Villa was no simple place. The connections behind the servants were intricate and complex; pulling one string would affect everything. Moreover, supporting this luxurious villa cost an unknown amount of silver each year, with layers of exploitation from stewards and servants in between. The Emperor was the ruler of the world and didn't care about these things, but His Highness could not afford to.

Even though the Emperor had given the word that all future expenses for Ganquan Villa would still come from the royal private treasury, it was ultimately His Highness's property and could not be left to run itself. For now, with the Emperor doting on His Highness and the Empress Dowager present, it was naturally fine. But who could say what the future held? So, he had to be serious about it.

Xingbo glanced at Ji Weiqiu's figure through the screen—it was easy for His Highness to make the request, but he was the one who had to suffer.

He was busy until broad daylight before he managed to sort out the relationships among the servants in the villa. He decided not to make any changes for now, but to first understand the situation here. He ate a little, then heard His Highness grunt from inside and knew he was about to wake up. He called for someone to fetch water, and after lifting the curtain and entering, he saw His Highness with sleepy eyes. He wrung out a cloth and wiped His Highness's face, hands, and feet, and only then did His Highness fully awaken.

Ji Weiqiu was a little embarrassed at first, but then felt at ease thinking he was a patient. Xingbo smiled and said, "Your Highness, for breakfast, there is shredded chicken and rice congee, crystal shrimp dumplings, and three-shred tiger-skin rolls. Would you like some?"

Ji Weiqiu nodded repeatedly, even getting out of bed much faster. While still putting on his cloak, his eyes darted around and he said, "Let's eat at the Sea of Fragrant Snow!"

The Sea of Fragrant Snow was a small building in the villa, surrounded by white plum trees. Ganquan Villa was influenced by geothermal veins from the hot springs, causing the climate in some areas to be exceptionally strange. Therefore, though it was just early autumn, the plum blossoms in the Sea of Fragrant Snow had already bloomed.

Xingbo said with a smile, "The fragrance at the Sea of Fragrant Snow is crisp and clear, which is indeed nice. However, the plum blossoms aren't in full bloom at this time. Your Highness, why don't we go to the Cloud Mooring Realm instead? It's near the geothermal vein, and the rising mist is truly a beautiful sight to behold."

Ji Weiqiu casually agreed with a 'good'. Just as he was about to walk out, Xingbo raised a hand, gesturing for him to lean on him for support. He felt it was unnecessary, but then he remembered almost drowning yesterday, nearly costing dozens of lives. If anything else went wrong today, never mind the others, Xingbo would definitely die. He couldn't bear to lose Xingbo!

Thinking of this, he didn't dare to be careless and obediently reached out his hand for support as he walked out.

The servants had heard about yesterday's incident and were just thinking about how to persuade Ji Weiqiu not to go to the chilly Sea of Fragrant Snow. Seeing that Xingbo had changed Ji Weiqiu's mind with just a few words, they heaved a sigh of relief.

Last night, Ji Weiqiu had been so drowsy from soaking in the hot spring that he had actually overcome his appetite. Today, he woke up howling with hunger. When he heard Xingbo say there was meat to eat, he wished he could fly there directly. Fortunately, the Cloud Mooring Realm was not far, and they arrived quickly. When Ji Weiqiu got there, he couldn't help but give Xingbo an appreciative look. This place was indeed nice; the temperature was a bit higher than elsewhere. He sat in a flower hall open on all four sides and didn't feel cold even after taking off his cloak.

Only after breakfast was served did he exclaim that he had been deceived.

The dishes Xingbo mentioned were indeed all there, but the marinated beef was sliced thinner than a cicada's wing, and there were only three slices in total. There were also three shrimp dumplings, each the size of a thumb. To put it bluntly, Ji Weiqiu could finish them in one bite. In addition, there were a few other meat dishes, all in small portions, the main point being to just let him have a taste.

Ji Weiqiu was fuming but couldn't vent his anger. Xingbo amiably ladled a bowl of shredded chicken congee for him and placed all the meat slices into it. Ji Weiqiu took it with a mournful look and tasted a spoonful. Unexpectedly, the meat slices melted the moment they touched his tongue, leaving only a mouthful of fresh fragrance and the rich aroma of rice that rushed straight to his head. Ji Weiqiu couldn't resist taking several more bites. With something in his stomach, he finally slowed down.

My god, who could understand! He hadn't eaten a proper meal in five... six days! He said, "Xingbo."

Xingbo stopped serving the food. "Your Highness?"

Ji Weiqiu said, "Next time I fall unconscious, remember to force-feed me this congee, not that rice water... Even if I weren't sick, I'd starve until I was!"

Xingbo found it amusing, but he couldn't tell Ji Weiqiu about the danger he had been in at the time. He only said, "Your Highness, don't curse yourself."

Ji Weiqiu pouted and didn't speak. After finishing breakfast, Ji Weiqiu followed Xingbo for a stroll in the garden before returning to his chambers to rest. After three or five days of this, Xingbo finally couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, the Diamond Sutra that the Emperor instructed you to copy..."

At this moment, Ji Weiqiu was leaning on a rattan couch, basking in the sun. A half-open fan covered most of his face. Upon hearing this, his lips moved, pushing the fan open a little. He said in a leisurely manner, "What's the hurry? Your Highness is still recuperating! Besides, my heart is troubled, and my gloominess won't dissipate. I'm not in the mood."

Xingbo thought to himself that only His Highness would dare to speak like this. He was just about to say that he could secretly start copying it first, and His Highness could just copy it a few times for show, when a cold voice suddenly said, "Your heart is troubled, and your gloominess won't dissipate?"

Ji Weiqiu shot up. Seeing his brother standing not far away, he decided to strike first with an accusation, "Imperial Elder Brother, the servants here are so thoughtless! They didn't even announce your arrival!"

Although it seemed like he was accusing the servants, he was actually blaming his brother for acting like a thief.

Ji Su said with a half-smile, "Then have them beaten to death."

Ji Weiqiu really wanted to raise his hands above his head to surrender, but it was no use; Ji Su wouldn't understand. He simply ignored the topic, lifted the thin quilt, got off the couch, and properly bowed to his brother. "Your humble subject greets Imperial Elder Brother."

Ji Su walked past him and sat down on the rattan couch. He said slowly, "I reprimanded you, and now your heart is troubled and full of gloom? Are you unconvinced?"

Ji Weiqiu had just been reprimanded by him before, so he didn't dare to provoke him. He didn't dare to stand up on his own. Upon hearing the question, he honestly said, "I dare not deceive Imperial Elder Brother. I am indeed a little unconvinced."

"In what way are you unconvinced?"

Ji Weiqiu said resentfully, "How could your humble subject possibly resemble the Late Emperor?"

Ji Su's gaze sharpened abruptly. He stared fixedly at Ji Weiqiu, trying to see something in his face. Ji Weiqiu also raised his head to look at him. This ordeal had indeed drained his vitality. Ji Weiqiu's face was pale, glowing like cold jade in the sunlight, yet his eyes were blazing like a raging fire.

Ji Su thought to himself: '...He truly doesn't resemble the Late Emperor.'