CH 85

At the end of the year, the tribute teams from various vassal states of Daliang entered the capital one after another.

The carriage stopped outside Huitong Hall. Xie Chaoyuan got off the carriage and looked around. Huitong Hall was located in the bustling area of the capital, not far from the southern market. Especially since it was two days before the New Year, the streets were more lively than ever.

Apart from this, after four years, there seemed to be no major changes here.

When Xie Chaoyuan withdrew his gaze, the Huitong Hall official in charge of reception was hesitating to invite him in, “Khan, please this way.”

Xie Chaoyuan glanced at the official. These officials had been trembling with fear since they received him outside the city. It was as if they had seen a ghost.

It was understandable. Firstly, his reputation as the Khan who was bold and fearless, and who referred to the Emperor of Daliang as his husband, had long been known in Daliang. Secondly…it was natural that these people recognized him. He looked exactly like King Ke who had “died violently” back then.

Xie Chaoyuan found it amusing in his heart, but did not show it. When he entered the hall, he even asked casually, “When can I see His Majesty?”

“You will be able to see him when you pay respects in a few days,” the official who led him in answered cautiously.

“Does it have to be a few more days?” Xie Chaoyuan raised his eyebrows slightly. “Why don’t you go and tell His Majesty for me? Tell him that I want to see him and ask if he is willing to grant me an audience.”

The official was almost tripped by the threshold and awkwardly said, “This…I am not qualified to meet the emperor. Khan, please wait a few more days.”

“Can I go out for a walk during my stay in the capital?” Xie Chaoyuan asked again.

“You can. As long as you don’t leave the capital, you can go wherever you want. If there is any inconvenience, I can also arrange people to accompany you,” the official replied.

Xie Chaoyuan snorted lightly and refused, “That’s not necessary. I know the capital of Daliang very well.”

In the afternoon, he met Xie Huizhen first.

This kid came in disguise and went straight to Huitong Hall to see him.

It had been four years since Xie Huizhen last saw Xie Chaoyuan, and he had grown taller and more handsome. His round face from back then had disappeared, replaced by a handsome young man. Xie Chaoyuan gave him a quick glance, gestured for him to sit, and picked up the teapot.

Xie Huizhen carefully examined Xie Chaoyuan, who was now more imposing and robust than before, and muttered, “Sixth Uncle isn’t even a little polite. He doesn’t even bother standing up when I arrive.”

Xie Chaoyuan was indeed not polite, “First, you came in disguise, and second, even if you were the crown prince, my future status will surely be higher than yours. The one who needs to pay respect is also definitely you.”

Xie Huizhen had no response, as he was completely caught by surprise.

Xie Chaoyuan smiled and said again, “Please have a seat.”

Xie Huizhen sat down in front of him and said, “Father will not seal the pen until tomorrow, rushing to finish his work in the past two days and was afraid that he would not have time to see you, so I came to see you on his behalf.”

“What are you here to see me for?” Xie Chaoyuan raised his eyebrows.

“To see if you have done anything wrong to Father,” Xie Huizhen snorted.

“I heard that Sixth Uncle has been having a good time every day in Xirong with beautiful women throwing themselves at him,” Xie Huizhen said with disbelief.

Xie Chaoyuan shook his head and said, “I don’t know where you heard that from, or if you just made it up. Don’t ruin my reputation with your nonsense, and don’t go talking nonsense in front of His Majesty.”

“Is it really not true?” Xie Huizhen was still skeptical.

“Of course not, am I that kind of person?” Xie Chaoyuan poured tea leisurely and playfully scolded, “You little brat, I remember that you were closer to me back then, right? When you were at your lowest point, wasn’t it me who took care of you all the time? I even gave you a house, and yet you don’t have any old feelings for me, you ungrateful brat.”

“Sixth Uncle has also tricked me before,” Xie Huizhen reminded him, “Is Sixth Uncle suffering from amnesia?”

“You’re something else. Why do you hold grudges like this? You’re also my son from now on, be a good son and call me ‘Dad’ so I can listen.”

Xie Huizhen almost spewed out the tea in his mouth. He already had a father who was only ten years older than him, and now he was going to have a dad even younger than his father? What kind of world is this…

Xie Chaoyuan was amused by his reaction, “Did I say something wrong?”

Xie Huizhen put down his teacup, “Let’s talk about it later.”

Anyway, he wasn’t going to call him that now.

That day, when Xie Huizhen returned to the palace, he went directly to Xie Chaoling to report Xie Chaoyuan’s behavior, exaggerating his lack of seriousness and smooth-talking.

Xie Chaoling laughed heartily upon hearing this and then reminded Xie Huizhen, “Actually, he’s not wrong. According to your status, you should call him father in the future.”

Xie Huizhen was speechless.

Xie Chaoling asked him, “I can see that you really wanted to meet him, otherwise you wouldn’t have disguised yourself and left the palace immediately upon his arrival. He even brought you a gift, right?”

“Mm, he gave me a good horse,” Xie Huizhen admitted.

It wasn’t proper for a foreign envoy to give a gift to the current crown prince privately, but it was different if it was a gift for his cheap son. Xie Huizhen accepted it without hesitation.

“In that case, you can reluctantly call him father,” Xie Chaoling continued to laugh. “You won’t lose anything.”

“Do I really have to call him father from now on?” Xie Huizhen felt awkward no matter how he thought about it.

Xie Chaoling thought about it and said, “Then call him ‘Little Dad’.”

…Alright.

After dismissing Xie Huizhen, Xie Chaoling summoned an official from the Ministry of Rites and asked for the list of tribute items from Xie Chaoyuan.

Usually, the emperor didn’t need to personally review this kind of thing, but the Tekeli Khan was different, and everyone knew that.

The official took the opportunity to say, “The Tekeli Khan was very considerate. He offered three times as many tribute items as others, and they were all good things with no intention of perfunctory gestures.”

After looking at the list in his hand, Xie Chaoling smiled and ordered, “All the things sent by Tekeli Khan should be directly sent to me.”

On the second day of his arrival in the capital, Xie Chaoyuan still hadn’t seen his imperial brother, but he was greeted by Xie Fengjue and Li Congyu.

These two elders didn’t exchange many pleasantries with him. Xie Fengjue got straight to the point and asked about his tribe, and Xie Chaoyuan answered all the questions honestly and earnestly. Xie Fengjue had come to find fault with him, but in the end, he had nothing to say.

“If you stay in the capital for a long time, won’t you have to give up the territory you worked hard to obtain? Will your subordinates still obey the Daliang court without you?” Xie Fengjue reminded him.

“Although I won’t go back, I am still the Tekeli Khan. If someone doesn’t listen to me, I will take care of it. If they all don’t listen to me, I will personally lead the Northwest Army to fight.” Xie Chaoyuan answered decisively.

He was so confident and always spoke in favor of Daliang, so Xie Fengjue didn’t bother him anymore and just reminded him, “In the future, don’t make trouble for His Majesty. The words I said that day still stand. If you become a threat to him one day, I will personally take care of you.”

Xie Chaoyuan smiled indifferently, “Okay, Royal Uncle, don’t worry, that day will never come.”

In contrast, Li Congyu’s tone was a bit gentler. After they finished speaking, he reminded Xie Chaoyuan, “His Majesty has had a hard time these past few years. Since you’ve come back, you should help him more.”

Xie Chaoyuan replied solemnly, “Of course, Uncle-in-law, don’t worry.”

That night, since all the foreign envoys had arrived in the capital, the official in charge of receiving them held a banquet in Huitong Hall.

Xie Chaoyuan, as a special identity from Xirong, attracted attention wherever he went. The Daliang officials were even more surprised when they saw him. Xie Chaoyuan ignored them and ate meat and drank heavily. If someone came to toast him and asked about his background, he just smiled.

“His Majesty knows my background best.”

Ha!

Whether it was the foreign envoys or the Daliang officials present, they had never seen such an arrogant and bold person. But because of his special title given by the emperor, they dared not treat him lightly. The official in charge of the reception was particularly courteous to Xie Chaoyuan, treating him like a VIP.

Xie Chaoyuan also gave face and had a few drinks with him, casually asking about court affairs. The official talked back and forth with him and gradually became more certain that this Khan was the former King Ke.

Although King Ke died a violent death, rumors about his true identity as not the late emperor’s biological son had already been circulating at that time. Now that he has reappeared with a new identity that is shocking to the world, it explains the emperor’s abnormal behavior in recent years.

It is well known that the princes and nobles of the Xie family all have some sort of perverse preferences, as evidenced by the insane Prince who was driven mad by his personal bodyguard and King Ding who remained unmarried for ten years.

So although the emperor’s behavior may be unconventional, it was not really surprising.

As for the fact that they were once brothers, well, now they were not, so who dares to gossip about it anymore?

It was obvious to Xie Chaoyuan that the people around him were looking at him with increasingly passionate eyes and speaking more kindly to him.

After three rounds of drinking, the banquet was in full swing, and Xie Chaoyuan was still drinking with the Temple official when someone came in to report that someone outside wanted to see the Khan.

The drunken official frowned and said, “Who would come to the Huitong Hall to see the Khan in the middle of the night? Is the Khan someone that anyone can just see whenever they want?”

The messenger came in and whispered, “Sir, the person who came didn’t say who they were, but from what I saw, they looked like someone from the palace…”

The official’s eyes widened in shock. At this time of night, the palace gates were closed, so who could bring the Khan into the palace? The noble person in the palace, could it be…

Next to him, Xie Chaoyuan chuckled lowly, and the official turned to him. Xie Chaoyuan had put down his cup and said, “I’m sorry, I will have to leave now.”

Wang Jin was waiting outside in the carriage for fifteen minutes when he saw Xie Chaoyuan come out. He got out of the carriage immediately and greeted him respectfully.

Xie Chaoyuan looked him up and down and sneered, “Wang Gonggong, you’ve really changed a lot since the last time I saw you.”

Yes, Wang Jin had followed Xie Chaoling back from Xirong and had become his personal eunuch. Now he was one of the chief eunuchs in the imperial palace, with a slightly lower position than Liao Zhi, the former head eunuch of the Eastern Palace. It was said that even if the sky fell, he wouldn’t be affected.

“Thanks to the Khan’s blessings,” Wang Jin said respectfully.

He was not wrong. Without Xie Chaoyuan, he wouldn’t be where he was today.

Xie Chaoyuan ignored him and boarded the carriage.

The road to the palace was familiar to Xie Chaoyuan even with his eyes closed. Once he sat in the carriage, he closed his eyes.

The wheels of the carriage rattled, and the wind occasionally rustled, drumming in his ears.

The carriage stopped again, and Wang Jin whispered to him, “Your Highness, we have arrived.”

The carriage stopped outside the Emperor’s sleeping palace. Xie Chaoyuan got off the carriage and looked up at the magnificent palace.

After staring at it for a while, he asked, “Why aren’t the lights on?”

Wang Jin’s voice was even lower: “His Majesty sleeps lightly at night and dislikes bright light. The servants are not allowed to light the lamps.”

“Is there anyone to attend to His Majesty at night?” Xie Chaoyuan asked again.

“The servants take turns to guard His Majesty at night,” Wang Jin replied obediently. “Only us eunuchs serve in the Emperor’s sleeping palace.”

Xie Chaoyuan looked deeply into his eyes and walked forward.

He passed several doors before reaching the back hall where Xie Chaoling rested at night.

“Your Highness, please go in,” Wang Jin said, leading the others to step back. The door behind them closed, and the dark hall was filled with moonlight shining through the window paper, casting mottled shadows on the ground.

Xie Chaoyuan stood still, his four years of war and expedition training making him more sensitive to his surroundings. He quickly adapted to the darkness and discerned Xie Chaoling’s slight breathing, who was standing behind him by the door.

Neither of them spoke, and they stood in a stalemate.

After a while, Xie Chaoyuan chuckled softly, “Your Majesty, it’s not very proper to summon me to the palace late at night, is it?”

Then he felt a pair of hands wrap around his waist and gently caress his chest from behind. The long-lost voice echoed in his ear, “My beloved is even taller and stronger than before.”

Xie Chaoyuan held back the hands that were becoming more and more restless, and replied hoarsely, “Your Majesty is more frivolous than before.”

He turned around and hugged Xie Chaoling tightly.