Imperial Husband Chapter 128

Chapter 128

Soon after Batu was taken away, Li Jin pushed open the secret room's door and entered.

This room was specifically designed by Ying Yuan as a hidden chamber. Unless the person inside made a sound, it was difficult for anyone outside to detect. Therefore, having hidden inside for so long, aside from Ying Yuan who already knew, no one else had noticed Li Jin's presence.

The moment he saw Li Jin, Ying Yuan transformed into an eager young wolf, anxiously asking, "A-Jin, was what I said earlier acceptable?"

"Very well done."

Li Jin chuckled lightly.

He was evidently very satisfied with Ying Yuan's every word and action just now.

"That's good." Receiving Li Jin's praise, Ying Yuan's heart immediately swelled with an irrepressible joy. He couldn't help but ask instinctively, "By the way, A-Jin, it's quite late now. Would you like to stay overnight at my residence?"

"Would that... be inconvenient?"

Li Jin did not agree immediately.

"Of course not." Ying Yuan shook his head vigorously. "Actually, ever since we returned from Zhuzhou, it's been a long time since we last slept together."

When Ying Yuan mentioned "sleeping together," he was referring to their time in Zhuzhou. Due to urgent military affairs and the demanding supervision of gunpowder production, they were often so exhausted that they had no choice but to rest right on the ground. On several occasions, Ying Yuan was so tired that he simply collapsed and fell asleep right beside Li Jin.

Li Jin did not find this unpleasant; on the contrary, he would instinctively hold Ying Yuan close. Over time, this became a habit.

It could be said, aside from the first six months in Zhuzhou, they had slept together for the remaining two and a half years.

Precisely because of this, ever since returning to the capital, both Li Jin and Ying Yuan felt unaccustomed each time they went to sleep, as if something were missing.

"Alright, I'll write a letter back to the Prince's mansion first." Because the ambitious Wei Rong was still in the mansion, Li Jin always prioritized caution to avoid giving her any leverage for further unreasonable trouble.

"A-Jin, you can write it here. I've already prepared paper and brush."

Having said this, Ying Yuan eagerly pulled Li Jin over to the desk.

The paper and brush on the desk were already prepared just as Ying Yuan had said, and the ink had been freshly ground not long ago.

It was clear, Ying Yuan had already harbored this intention earlier; otherwise, he wouldn't have prepared so thoroughly.

"Alright."

Li Jin smiled without further comment, picked up the brush, and began writing.

As soon as Li Jin finished writing, Ying Yuan volunteered to help pack the letter and instructed a servant to deliver it promptly to the Prince of Dingbei's mansion.

"A-Jin, the breeze tonight is quite pleasant. Why don't we sleep in the pavilion?" Influenced by those three years in Zhuzhou, Ying Yuan wasn't particularly demanding about beds when sleeping; any place that allowed rest would do.

"Alright."

Li Jin thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.

Shortly after, Ying Yuan led Li Jin to the pavilion he had prepared for sleeping.

To sleep here, Ying Yuan had cleared the area in advance, not allowing any guards to come near.

A thin layer of gauze also hung around the pavilion. As a gentle breeze blew, the bed inside, large enough for two, came into view for both of them. A quilt was considerately placed on the nearby table to prevent them from catching a chill.

Ying Yuan pointed inside and said with a confident smile, "A-Jin, look at this bed. I specifically had it made. With both of us on it, we definitely won't fall off."

"You're so thoughtful, A-Yuan."

As Li Jin said this, a faint, strange feeling flickered in his heart.

For some reason, Li Jin always felt that their way of interacting wasn't quite like that of ordinary friends. When he pondered it deeper, he dismissed it as overthinking.

"A-Jin, come up quickly."

Ying Yuan was the first to run over and beckon Li Jin to come.

"Hmm."

Li Jin nodded and quickly followed.

"A-Jin, now that I think of it, the last time we slept like this was two months ago." Vaguely, Ying Yuan remembered not long ago when he had also slept with Li Jin like this, and his heart couldn't help but skip a beat.

Li Jin ruffled Ying Yuan's hair hard, finding it amusing. "Aren't we sleeping together now too?"

"Uh... that's true... A-Jin, I like sleeping with you."

The moment he lay down, Ying Yuan instinctively nodded in agreement.

Seeing Ying Yuan's endearing, slightly dazed look, Li Jin smiled softly. "Alright, time to sleep. There's much to do tomorrow. If we sleep too late, you definitely won't be able to get up."

"Ah, then I'll sleep now."

Ying Yuan instinctively grabbed Li Jin's arm.

"You need to close your eyes to sleep."

"Okay..."

Perhaps the warmth radiating from the person lying behind him was too comforting and soothing; Ying Yuan could no longer resist, closed his eyes, and instinctively curled up within Li Jin’s embrace.

Li Jin seemed accustomed to this; he simply smiled helplessly and did not resist Ying Yuan's closeness.

A gentle breeze slowly drifted by, lightly lifting the gauze surrounding the pavilion, allowing a glimpse of the two sleeping closely inside. To an outsider, they would surely be mistaken for lovers.

Time swiftly passed by a month.

Ying Yuan and Ying Zihui's collaboration was carried out covertly. Even secretly transporting Batu to the Prince of Jin's mansion went unnoticed by anyone.

However, Ying Zihui's inexplicable replacement of the servants in his own mansion aroused suspicion among the other princes.

Of course, it was only suspicion.

After all, since Ying Zihui returned to the capital and was enfeoffed as the Prince of Jin, he had barely stepped out of his mansion. Thus, even if the other princes noticed the changes in the Prince of Jin's mansion, they couldn't fathom what Ying Zihui was actually planning.

...

One day, while holding the two invitations in his hand, Ying Yuan couldn’t help but frown deeply.

"A-Jin, maybe I should go alone. Given Ying Ziqi’s character, his sudden invitation is probably not for any good purpose."

Not long ago, Ying Ziqi had ordered his servants to distribute invitations far and wide, gathering everyone for a gathering at his Prince Xian's mansion.

As the Seventh Prince and the Heir of the Prince of Dingbei, Ying Yuan and Li Jin were naturally among the invited.

Li Jin shook his head.

"No. If even you say Ying Ziqi is troublesome, it’s better that we go together. At worst, we’ll face soldiers with generals and water with earthworks—we’ll deal with whatever comes."

He was well aware that Ying Ziqi harbored ill intentions. But this time, even knowing that, they couldn't decline, lest they give Ying Ziqi material to slander them.

Ying Ziqi's trick wasn't ordinary; it always struck with precision. Li Jin had to be extra cautious.

"A-Jin, I don't want anything to happen to you."

Ying Yuan looked at Li Jin, his gaze still filled with reluctance.

Li Jin said helplessly, "A-Yuan, you should know I'm not as fragile as you imagine."

"Of course I know that." Ying Yuan did not evade, staring directly into Li Jin's eyes. "But I still want to protect you, A-Jin, and not let you come to harm."

"You, when did you become so eloquent?"

Seeing this, Li Jin couldn't help but vigorously ruffle Ying Yuan's hair again, not stopping until it was thoroughly tousled.

Ying Yuan still wanted to say something. "A-Jin..."

"Enough." Li Jin raised a finger, gently pressing it against Ying Yuan's lips, and smiled. "I'll be fine. Besides, we've always stood side by side until now. Asking me to hide behind you for protection now wouldn't be very loyal of me, would it?"

"This..."

Ying Yuan felt conflicted.

Normally, Ying Yuan wouldn't insist on stopping Li Jin when he knew he shouldn't. But Ying Ziqi had left too strong an impression on him over these three years, making Ying Yuan regard Ying Ziqi as his greatest enemy.

Although the fact that saltpeter could be used to make gunpowder had been kept secret from the majority, Ying Ziqi had still managed to pick up clues from certain traces and often sent people to covertly investigate the matter.

This caused Ying Yuan, who wasn't very guarded initially, to suffer a major setback.

Fortunately, with Li Jin by his side, Ying Yuan didn't actually suffer tangible losses from that setback.

Ying Ziqi was also a patient man. After one failure, he sent people again to probe, each time using different methods. There was even a period when Ying Yuan couldn't return to his own room, fearing the specific process of making gunpowder from saltpeter might be seen by Ying Ziqi's spies.

Over time, Ying Yuan could only stay in the same room with Li Jin.

This served a dual purpose: it made their work more convenient while also guarding against Ying Ziqi's unpredictable and covert surveillance.

"A-Yuan, trust me on this."

Li Jin patted Ying Yuan's shoulder, settling the matter decisively.

"Alright."

Seeing Li Jin's insistence, Ying Yuan could no longer object and agreed.

However, an indescribable unease began to spread in Ying Yuan's heart.

...

Prince Xian's Mansion.

"You have finally arrived."

Upon seeing Li Jin and Ying Yuan arriving together, Ying Ziqi promptly went over to greet them warmly.

"Third Imperial Brother."

"Your Highness, the Third Prince."

Li Jin and Ying Yuan simultaneously greeted Ying Ziqi, then instructed the servants who had accompanied them to present the gifts they had brought for him.

To prevent Ying Ziqi from causing trouble, Li Jin didn't bring Ping'an this time.

"Excellent, truly excellent." Looking at the gifts, Ying Ziqi repeatedly expressed his approval. "Truly, your presence alone would have been more than enough—there was no need for such formality."

Ying Ziqi spoke these courteous words while gesturing to the servants beside him to take away the gifts from both of them.

"It was only appropriate," Ying Yuan replied with a smile. "Speaking of which, ever since returning to the capital, I have been busy with affairs at the Prince of Qin's mansion and have not had the chance to visit you, Third Imperial Brother. I hope you haven't taken offense."

Ying Ziqi responded with understanding, "Of course not. You have just returned, so it is only natural to have many matters to attend to."

"Hah." Ying Zijun walked over, letting out a cold laugh. "Seventh Imperial Brother, it's not that you didn't have time—you simply didn't want to come. After all, as a prince, no matter how many tasks you have, there will always be people lining up to help you."

Clearly, Ying Zijun still bore a grudge over Li Jin's earlier refusal to accept his recruitment and was deliberately causing trouble.

Ying Yuan shook his head dismissively. "Fifth Imperial Brother, you are mistaken. I truly had important matters to handle, but they were assigned by Father Emperor, and I cannot discuss them openly."

"Nonsense!" Ying Zijun outright dismissed Ying Yuan's explanation. "Among all the princes, Father Emperor favors you the least. How could he possibly entrust you with any significant tasks? Seventh Imperial Brother, even if you want to make up an excuse, there should be a limit. Otherwise... you’ll only end up making a fool of yourself."