After seeing off Lu Jiu'an, both Imperial Physician Sun and Imperial Physician Zuo did not linger for long. However, the Fourth Prince was unwilling to leave Jiuxiao Courtyard and showed no sign of leaving anytime soon.
Xiao Yan patiently listened to him babbling for a while, but his eyes soon showed signs of annoyance.
When the Fourth Prince tried to discuss court matters, Xiao Yan simply lay back with an indifferent expression.
"Matters in the court are decided by the Emperor. The four camps in the outskirts of the capital are not something we castrated men should covet. The Emperor only mentioned it because he was upset after the attack yesterday. If I truly took command of the four camps, that would bring nothing but disaster."
"But..." The Fourth Prince frowned. "Father clearly has his eyes on you, Commander Xiao."
Xiao Yan responded coldly, "So what?"
Seeing that the Fourth Prince didn’t understand, Xiao Yan's voice turned even colder as he said, "There are only four military powers in the capital— the four camps in the outskirts, the palace guards, the patrol camps, and the Black Armored Guards. Among them, the four camps hold the most crucial power, usually in the hands of the imperial dukes. I already have the Black Armored Guards, and if I gain control over the four camps, not only would the court ministers distrust me, even the Emperor would have doubts."
"The Emperor is only angry with the Lu family, and because I saved the Emperor, he might feel a sense of indebtedness. He mentioned it in passing, but that doesn’t necessarily reflect his true intentions. However, if I act ungratefully and covet the power of the four camps, the Emperor’s gratitude will turn into suspicion."
Xiao Yan despised Empress Lu and the Fourth Prince, and he was frustrated with them, but remembering that he still needed to use them as a shield, he endured and explained, albeit with a tone that was less than friendly.
"The Fourth Prince has been in the court for some years now. Can't you see the Emperor’s intentions?"
"All you ever think about is gaining power, but you don’t realize that the Emperor’s heart is fickle. Once the balance in the court is disrupted, the one who gains the most power will become the target of everyone. If you don’t understand this, you should give up your ambition now, or you might not even know how you’ll perish in the future."
The Fourth Prince’s face turned from green to pale. If not for the white cloth covering half of his injured face, his expression would have been even more stiff.
Xiao Yan coughed, "I still have injuries. Does the Fourth Prince have anything else to say?"
The Fourth Prince quickly replied, "No, I just came to visit Commander Xiao."
"Well, now that you’ve visited?"
The Fourth Prince was silent.
He felt both embarrassed and angry, but after a while, he suppressed his emotions. He placed his hand on the four-wheeled carriage and said, "Now that I’ve seen Commander Xiao is well, I can rest assured. Please take good care of your injuries. I’ll take my leave now. I will visit again when I have time."
"No need to visit," Xiao Yan said coldly. "Fourth Prince, you’ve been visiting Ji Yun Alley a lot lately. Why don’t you focus on recovering your leg instead?"
"Although I agreed to cooperate with the Empress, I have no intention of putting a useless cripple on the throne. Besides, you have a deep enmity with the Lu family. If they managed to scheme against you once, they could easily do it again. If they find out you’ve been in close contact with me, they might take extreme measures."
Seeing the Fourth Prince’s pale face, Xiao Yan’s voice grew even colder.
"I crippled Lu Qin to prevent the Lu family from acting rashly for a while and to give the Fourth Prince and the Empress time to establish a foothold in the court. Instead of wasting your time with me, you should focus on how to protect the few ministers you still have and prevent them from thinking you’re really useless."
"As for Ji Yun Alley, you better avoid coming here. We don’t want to give the Emperor any ideas."
The Fourth Prince didn’t expect Xiao Yan to be so blunt and openly express his dislike for him. Although his mother had said that they had already agreed to cooperate, when he met Xiao Yan's emotionless gaze, the Fourth Prince clenched the handle of the carriage tightly.
Tang Ning, standing aside, noticed the Fourth Prince's fingers turning white from the tight grip. Thinking that the Fourth Prince might still be useful, she spoke up, "Brother’s injury is severe. He was already forcing himself to meet guests today. He needs to rest and recuperate. Your Highness, please return now."
With this hint, the Fourth Prince’s expression finally softened, "I’ll take my leave then."
"I’ll escort Your Highness out."
Tang Ning was courteous, as he was still a prince, and she didn’t want to embarrass him too much.
After leaving Jiuxiao Courtyard, although the Fourth Prince was still extremely angry about what Xiao Yan had said, he remembered that he was still in Xiao Yan’s house and only showed a hint of displeasure on his face.
Tang Ning said, "Brother’s mood is not good after his injury. Just now, Lu Erlang came, which upset him further. Your Highness, please don’t take offense."
The Fourth Prince’s face softened slightly as he heard her gentle words, "It’s my fault. If Commander Xiao wasn’t avenging me, he wouldn’t have put himself in harm’s way."
Tang Ning was silent.
Seeing that the Fourth Prince seemed to have convinced himself that last night’s actions were taken to take revenge on the Lu family, she didn’t argue. After sending him to the back courtyard, she spoke, "Since Brother has chosen Your Highness, he naturally cannot allow anyone to harm you."
"Although Brother’s words were harsh just now, he only wants you to recover quickly so that you can return to the court and regain the Emperor’s favor. Right now, the voices in the court for setting up a successor are growing louder, and the Second Prince’s support is higher than yours. If you don’t do something, people might think you’re not interested in that position."
"Moreover, Brother’s status is special. The Emperor favors him because he doesn’t make friends and doesn’t interfere with the succession issue. If you keep visiting him, it will raise suspicions. If the Emperor grows suspicious, it won’t be good for either you or Brother."
The Fourth Prince listened to Tang Ning’s soft words and couldn’t help but feel a tightness in his chest. After Xiao Yan’s cold words of anger, he felt a sense of dread.
"County Princess is right. I’ve been careless. From now on, I will be more cautious and keep my distance from Commander Xiao in public."
Tang Ning smiled gently, "It’s getting late. Brother cannot be left alone, so I won’t send Your Highness further."
The Fourth Prince quickly called out to her, "County Princess."
"Hmm?"
"I received something earlier, and I think only you are worthy of it."
The Fourth Prince took out a square brocade box from his sleeve and opened it to reveal a large pearl lying inside.
The pearl was perfectly round, pure white, and flawless. What was most remarkable was its size—it was as large as a pigeon’s egg, resting gracefully on the red velvet fabric below, looking extremely rare.
"This pearl is something I acquired years ago, but I’ve never found someone worthy of it. When I saw County Princess for the first time, it immediately came to mind that this pearl would be the perfect match for you."
"Treasure for a worthy person. I hope you accept it, County Princess."
Tang Ning looked at the Fourth Prince’s passionate gaze, then at the pearl in his hand.
The next moment, she almost felt nauseous.
Cang Lang, who had been protecting Tang Ning from a distance, nearly drew his sword when he heard the Fourth Prince’s words.
This damn Fourth Prince, he actually wants to steal his Commander’s woman?!
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