Chapter 104: His Highness Has Many Sorrows, But He Never Tells Me About Them

Li Rong walked out of the imperial study, immediately raised her hand to wipe away her tears, and composed herself.

She got into the carriage and calmed her emotions. By the time she returned home, Pei Wenxuan had just finished a game of chess with himself and was putting away the pieces.

Li Rong entered the room just as Pei Wenxuan looked up and saw her tear-streaked face. His movements paused briefly, then he smiled subtly and said, “Why do you look like a tabby cat after just one trip to the palace?”

“You still have the mood to care about my tabby cat face?”

Li Rong scoffed, “Shouldn’t you be more concerned about your own career?”

“My career isn’t that important,” Pei Wenxuan replied, though his gaze lingered on her face. After a moment, he sighed and gently beckoned her, “Your Highness, come here.”

Li Rong looked puzzled but walked over. Pei Wenxuan pulled her to sit down, wrung out a cloth, and then bent down to gently wipe her face.

He was very close to her, his movements soft and slow, as if wiping away her tears was the most important thing at that moment.

Li Rong let him wipe her face, her posture softening involuntarily, like a cat being soothed. In a low voice, she asked, “Aren’t you going to ask what I said at the palace?”

“The position of Assistant Minister of Personnel—if we lose it, we lose it,” Pei Wenxuan said casually. “I’ll figure something out for the role of Performance Evaluation Officer.”

“I secured the position for you.”

Li Rong suddenly said. Pei Wenxuan paused, looked up, and saw her staring seriously at him. “I told my father that you were being mistreated, that our life was difficult. So I had someone transfer you to the Performance Evaluation Office. Someone had moved you to the Assistant Minister role to sabotage us, and I asked him to stand up for me.”

She smiled. “I even accused Hua Le of something. I said she claimed Father was suspicious of me, which is why he married me to you and didn’t even give you a sixth-rank official title. That made me a laughingstock in her eyes, and people gossip behind my back about marrying you.”

“Now Father will definitely investigate the transfer. Since we didn’t do it, and he insists on finding out, it’ll probably lead back to Consort Rou. Then he’ll panic. To prove he doesn’t doubt me, he’ll have to keep you in the Assistant Minister position.”

Pei Wenxuan listened without reacting, just looking into her eyes silently.

Li Rong nudged him with her elbow. “Why are you staring at me? Say something.”

“I’m just curious,” Pei Wenxuan said as he finished wiping her face, set the cloth aside, and picked up a comb to fix her hair. While combing, he asked, “Your Highness has rarely cried in front of me, but in front of His Majesty, you cried so easily. Why?”

“Fake crying is easy. Real crying—what’s the point?” Li Rong sighed. “Besides, being seen crying is embarrassing.”

No matter how dramatic fake crying is, it’s still fake.

When someone cries from the heart, even if it’s just a single tear, it can pierce right into another’s heart.

“By the way, why are you asking this?” Li Rong suddenly remembered and asked, “Do you think what I said was appropriate? Will Father overthink it?”

“He won’t.”

Pei Wenxuan finished combing her hair, set the comb aside, adjusted her crooked hairpin, and said, “Your Highness doesn’t need to worry too much. His Majesty will listen.”

“Why are you so confident?” Li Rong asked curiously. Pei Wenxuan smiled but didn’t elaborate. After a moment, he said, “But what we should worry about now is whether His Majesty can find out who placed me in the Ministry of Personnel.”

Li Rong understood what he meant.

Given Consort Rou’s caution, if she wanted to insert someone into a position, she would do it flawlessly. Even with an investigation, it would be hard to trace it back to her.

If no evidence could be found linking Consort Rou to the Ministry’s manipulation, it would be difficult to make Emperor Li Ming believe Li Rong’s claims.

Li Rong thought for a moment. Seeing her trying to come up with a solution, Pei Wenxuan reminded her, “If there’s no evidence, we can create suspicion.”

“Suspicion?”

“Hua Le once wore a magnolia hairpin from the Xie family. That already made His Majesty suspicious of their ties to noble families. Now you’re saying Consort Rou colluded with them to frame me. Even without evidence, given His Majesty’s nature, he’ll likely start to doubt. So why not add fuel to the fire and give him more reasons to suspect?”

“With suspicion,” Pei Wenxuan poured himself tea from a purple clay teapot, “His Majesty will still want to protect Consort Rou. But by doing so, he’ll feel guilty toward you. Then everything will go smoothly.”

“Alright.”

Li Rong nodded. “I’ll discuss this with Ah Ya.”

Pei Wenxuan responded. Li Rong noticed he seemed a bit down and asked with concern, “You look unhappy. What’s wrong?”

“Not really.”

Pei Wenxuan smiled. “Your Highness is being overly sensitive.”

“Pei Wenxuan,” Li Rong leaned closer and stared at him, “I’ve already won your position back for you. Why aren’t you happy?”

“Of course I’m happy that Your Highness stood up for me.”

Pei Wenxuan sighed and spoke honestly, “It’s just… even though your tears were fake, everything you said was true. That makes me feel a bit sad.”

“What did I say?”

Li Rong looked confused. Pei Wenxuan continued, “Your Highness, I don’t know if I’m right.”

As he spoke, he knelt on one knee before her, took her hand, and lowered his gaze. “When someone cries—real or fake—it’s always because there’s something heartbreaking behind it.”

“Your Highness has many sorrows, but you never share them with me.”

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