Ji Chenxi blinked lightly, but in the end couldn’t hold back a laugh. He shook his head as he laughed and said with a sigh, “That’s really straightforward.”
Chi Zhuo didn’t speak, which basically counted as admitting it.
No matter whether there were people around or not, they were still inside the imperial palace. Naturally, they didn’t do anything inappropriate. But sometimes, just meeting each other was already enough to make them happy, even if they did nothing at all during that time.
“Actually, you didn’t have to come find me right now. It’s easy to give people something to use against you.”
“But I really wanted to see you.”
That explanation from Chi Zhuo sounded like no explanation at all, but Ji Chenxi still caught the deeper meaning. Of course, the other man knew that coming directly to pick him up wasn’t appropriate, yet he still came—not out of arrogance in his own strength, but simply because he wanted to see him.
“Actually, even if you didn’t come find me today, I would’ve come to find you.”
“Looks like we were thinking the same thing.”
Ji Chenxi let out another soft laugh. “Yeah, we were thinking the same thing.”
The two of them walked together through the quiet night, keeping a distance that was neither too close nor too far, chatting casually. The atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant.
“Something happened recently, something that made me a bit unhappy.”
“What happened?”
Ji Chenxi didn’t really want to tell Chi Zhuo about possibly being stabbed in the back by someone he trusted. But there were too few people he could talk to about this. Maybe the night was just too gentle, because for once, Ji Chenxi took the initiative to show a bit of his vulnerability.
“I have a friend. Of course, this friend isn’t me—I really do have such a friend. We haven’t actually met much in real life. We’ve known each other online for many years, and we mostly keep in touch through the internet. He’s been with me through a lot of important moments in my life, and he’s guided me when I felt lost. I once thought we would be friends forever. From an adult’s point of view, ‘forever friends’ might sound a bit naive and laughable, but at least until half a year ago, I still believed that.”
Chi Zhuo hadn’t interrupted before, just listened quietly. But when he heard the words “naive and laughable,” he still frowned slightly. “That’s not naive and laughable. Who says bonds from youth can’t last forever? Even if they really can’t, that’s his problem.”
Because of talking about this, Ji Chenxi’s mood dipped a little. He shook his head and sighed again. “Brother Chi Zhuo, I think the filter you have on me right now is a bit too strong. Maybe you should tone it down a little.”
“Can’t.”
“Alright, alright. Now I feel like Su Yu should come learn from you about how to please people.”
“Then he probably wouldn’t learn much.”
“Don’t say that,” Ji Chenxi adjusted his mood slightly, making his tone sound like he didn’t care much. “You probably guessed some of it already. I trusted him completely, but he seems to have betrayed that trust. From the beginning, I was indeed in the wrong. I did something he thought was wrong and needed to be corrected immediately. I refused his suggestion and insisted on doing things my own way.”
“Then does this ‘wrong thing’ you did have anything to do with that friend’s own interests?”
“I personally think it doesn’t,” Ji Chenxi said. “After all, it’s my own business. It’s just that he’s a bit of a perfectionist. Maybe I shouldn’t have told him in the first place.”
Chi Zhuo fell silent for a moment after hearing that. It wasn’t clear if he had guessed something. He raised his hand and gently rubbed Ji Chenxi’s head, like a caring elder patting a child, full of endless tolerance and warmth. “Our Highness wouldn’t regret something he already decided on, right? Since it has nothing to do with him, what right does he have to betray you over it? So it’s all his fault. Your Highness doesn’t need to feel unhappy over someone else’s mistake.”
“You…” Ji Chenxi hesitated, then stopped. “Why do I feel like even if this whole thing was completely my fault, you’d still say he just didn’t know what was good for him?”
“Oh, Your Highness is really smart.”
Ji Chenxi laughed. Suddenly, he felt like it was actually pretty good that they were both alphas. No kids. Otherwise, with the way Chi Zhuo was, he’d definitely spoil a kid into a little troublemaker.
“The ‘wrong thing’ Your Highness mentioned… does it refer to being with me?”
Chi Zhuo hadn’t wanted to ask, but after only a second of hesitation, he still decided to say it out loud.
“I already said, it’s something he thinks is wrong,” Ji Chenxi emphasized.
Chi Zhuo let out a low laugh. His hand had just left Ji Chenxi’s head, and now he already wanted to put it back again. “Your Highness, there’s something I originally planned to tell you after everything settled, but telling you now isn’t bad either.”
“Hm?” Ji Chenxi made a small sound of confusion.
“Before, I mentioned that the person behind Lan Ruoxi had some connection to the people behind the earlier human experiments. Now it’s basically confirmed that they come from the same force. That force has infiltrated quite a few places. Judging from their recent actions, they’re probably planning to interfere in your succession struggle.”
Back when it came to the human experiments, Ji Chenxi had focused all his attention on the observation records, and didn’t pay much attention to the power behind the lab afterward. He hadn’t expected their reach to be this wide.
“This force has been around for a long time?”
“I’m not sure when they first appeared, but when my people dealt with them seven years ago, they already showed signs of being a well-established force. They have three leaders in total, and right now, all three should be on the Imperial Star. Bai Han has already started investigating. Based on what we’ve found, they might be planning another big move soon.”
From their previous two moves—using Lan Ruoxi as a pawn and bombing Ji Anze—the next move would definitely also be related to their fight for the throne.
So if they wanted to interfere in the succession struggle, when would be the best time to make a move?
Ji Chenxi’s eyes turned slightly cold.
The ball.
The three-day ball after the princess’s birthday was the time when the palace was most crowded and chaotic. If they were going to act, it would definitely be during those days.
“If they choose these three days of the ball, when do you think is the best time?”
“The last day.”
Because by the last day, the security checks wouldn’t be as strict as the first two days.
Ji Chenxi nodded in agreement. “But how would they act on the last day? It’s not like they can just bring in large-scale bombs.”
“No matter how relaxed the checks are, they won’t be able to bring in large weapons. But the real concern is if they seize control of the palace’s internal heavy weapons.”
Ji Chenxi sucked in a light breath, feeling a bit troubled.
“Your Highness doesn’t need to worry too much. I’ll be attending the next two days. Just stay within my sight as much as possible. Even if you move alone, be careful.”
Ji Chenxi casually brushed his hair back, pushing the loose strands off his forehead again. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Let me see what kind of game they want to play.”
Ji Chenxi’s departure was noticed first by Ji Zhiqing, aside from Lu Churan who was by his side.
She took a light sip of the champagne in her glass, staring thoughtfully in the direction Ji Chenxi had left.
Beside her stood a male omega with delicate features. This omega wasn’t the traditionally handsome type. He was too thin, to the point that his cheekbones stood out a bit. There were even a few faint freckles on his face, but those features, which should have been somewhat cute, didn’t quite match his overall look.
“You’re looking at Ji Chenxi?”
The male omega’s voice pulled Ji Zhiqing back to her senses. She gave a soft “Mm.” “I can’t not pay attention to him.”
Ji Zhiqing was ambitious, and also arrogant. She didn’t think much of Ji Anze. He was just smart, and even his current power mostly came from his maternal family. But Ji Chenxi was different. Even though he lost his mother at a young age, he still held an absolute advantage among the three of them.
“Honestly, compared to you, I like Ji Chenxi’s face more. He’s very good-looking. No omega would want to refuse him.”
Facing such words from the omega she was about to get engaged to, Ji Zhiqing only smiled. “But in the end, you still chose me.”
“As expected. No matter how good his face is, there’s no real possibility between him and me. And we’ve at least grown up together.”
“Then thank you for your favor.”
“To be honest, I’m a bit curious why my mother chose you. Compared to the First Prince and the Third Prince, your chances aren’t that great.”
“Probably because I’m a bit smarter than my elder brother, and just happen to be older than my younger brother.”
“But His Majesty favors the Third Prince!”
This time, Ji Zhiqing only smiled without saying anything.
When the one in power already has a preferred successor, wolves like them, full of ambition, only have two choices—kill the one the ruler favors, or kill the ruler.
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
