As Qi Xiao expected, the next day, the Emperor summoned Bairen.

Unlike the day he met Qi Xiao, the Emperor didn't make a big fuss when seeing Bairen. He simply had Fu Hailu stop Bairen as he was leaving the Academy.

"No need for formalities, have a seat," the Emperor smiled. "Yesterday, the Xue family presented some yellow tea. I remember you love tea, so I had them save some for you. Fu Hailu..."

Fu Hailu came forward with a small tray, on which were placed two small porcelain jars with gold-painted and colorfully decorated necks, sealed tightly with beeswax, clearly of superior quality. Bairen stood up and bowed respectfully, "Thank you for the reward, Your Majesty."

The Emperor smiled gently, "If you like it, that's all that matters. Get up, Fu Hailu, brew some of this tea and let Bairen have a taste."

Fu Hailu bowed and smiled, "Knowing the prince was coming, the tea brewed today is the yellow bud."

As Fu Hailu spoke, he turned around to take the tea cup from the young eunuch behind him and personally presented it to Bairen. Who knew, as he walked up to Bairen, his hand suddenly shook, and the tea cup looked like it was about to spill onto Bairen's sleeve.

Bairen's eyes darkened and he immediately dodged to the side. With a "clank", the cup shattered and tea spilled.

The Emperor frowned and gave Fu Hailu a dissatisfied look. Fu Hailu felt uneasy and kept apologizing. Bairen said lightly, "It's alright, the freshly brewed tea was too hot, the eunuch couldn't hold it steady, it happens."

Fu Hailu kowtowed repeatedly, "This servant was clumsy, this servant deserves to die, this servant deserves to die."

The Emperor waved his hand, "Enough, hurry and bring another cup of tea."

Only then did Fu Hailu get up and hastily brought another cup of tea to present to Bairen. Bairen took it steadily, took a sip and said with lowered eyes, "Thank you for the tea, Your Majesty. Huoshan yellow bud, it truly lives up to its reputation."

The Emperor was a bit impatient that his plan had not succeeded, but his face showed no change as he smiled, "Unfortunately, the weather in Tianshui was not good this year. Although the tea soup color is bright when brewed with snow water, it still lacks a bit of sweetness."

Bairen lowered his head, "Yes, fortunately the flaws do not obscure the virtues, the tea is excellent, and the brewing technique is also correct, it is already rare."

In front of outsiders, Bairen always maintained this polite yet very distant demeanor. The Emperor felt like he was punching cotton, growing more impatient. He signaled to Fu Hailu with his eyes. Fu Hailu understood and led the people in the hall to withdraw.

"Speaking of this tea... I heard that the Crown Prince often invites you to his residence to brew tea for him, is this true?" The Emperor shook his head and smiled, "This Crown Prince of mine... I've spoiled him since he was young, so he's inevitably a bit unruly. Although he's not an outsider, it's not good to always trouble you with these things."

Bairen's face twitched, as if someone had poked at his innermost thoughts, and a trace of disgust flashed in his eyes. He then turned his head to the side, pretending to savor the tea. When he raised his head again, he still had that nonchalant look as always. The Emperor laughed inwardly, sure enough, he had guessed correctly.

Bairen put down the tea cup and said softly, "Your Majesty speaks too highly, it's a trivial matter, not worth mentioning as troubling."

The Emperor sighed, "There's no need to cover for him, a father knows his son best, I'm most clear about the Crown Prince's temperament. He lacks leniency and is domineering. Growing up with him, it's inevitable to suffer his temper. You're different from others, a dignified prince. If he bullies others, I won't interfere, but if he makes you suffer grievances, I will definitely give you justice."

The Emperor was confident that Bairen was a smart person. He had already said this much, he didn't believe Bairen couldn't understand.

Bairen's face showed a hint of hesitation, after a while he said dejectedly, "Thank you for Your Majesty's concern. The Crown Prince treats this official very politely and has never let this official suffer any grievances."

The Emperor thought that Bairen was just afraid of Qi Xiao's threats and didn't dare say more, so he gently comforted, "You don't need to fear him. With me here, no one can bully you. Just like when Hua'er hurt you before, I was the first to punish him for you. My children... they're not bad at heart, it's just that they all have explosive tempers, they need to be frequently disciplined."

Bairen's lips moved, but in the end he didn't say anything and softly said, "Your Majesty thinks too much."

The Emperor smiled, "That's good then. Xiao'er is not like Hua'er after all, he knows restraint. Since it's like this, I'm relieved... Right, what books have you read recently? Because of Roujia's matter, you haven't gone to the Academy for many days. The Grand Tutor also hasn't sent me your homework. Have you been busy with preparing for the grand wedding and neglected your studies?"

The Emperor changed the topic and no longer mentioned the previous matter. He started to quiz Bairen on his studies. After asking for a while, he praised him again and had someone send him out properly.

"Your Majesty." After sending Bairen away, Fu Hailu came in to apologize, "Just now it was all this servant's clumsiness, unable to... it's all this servant's fault."

The Emperor shook his head, "No matter... Bairen had no intention of telling in the first place. Even if you had succeeded just now and let Bairen reveal those marks, he would have found an excuse to gloss it over."

Fu Hailu didn't understand and frowned, "The prince has a cold personality and doesn't like to make friends, why is he different towards the Crown Prince? He's already... already become the Crown Prince's male pet, yet he's still unwilling to say it, this..."

The Emperor smiled slyly, "He's not unwilling to say it, he doesn't dare say it."

Fu Hailu was puzzled, "What does Your Majesty mean..."

"Didn't you see just now, when I mentioned Qi Xiao, there was hate in Bairen's eyes. A dignified prince, being kneaded like this by Qi Xiao, who wouldn't hate it? I was also careless before and didn't see it. This marriage between Roujia and He Zichen is clearly a deal between Qi Xiao and Bairen."

Only then did Fu Hailu understand and said in a daze, "So it was... the Crown Prince is using the princess to threaten the prince?"

The Emperor nodded, "Roujia marrying into the He family is equivalent to falling into Qi Xiao's hands. That He Zichen was single-handedly promoted by Qi Xiao. Qi Xiao can raise him up high and also make him fall hard. Roujia's future fate is all grasped in Qi Xiao's hands. How would Bairen dare to offend him."

Fu Hailu was a bit anxious, "If the prince holds the princess in regard, or holds his own reputation in regard, and just grits his teeth and refuses to say anything, then... then how will Your Majesty punish the Crown Prince's crimes?"

The Emperor smiled, "No rush... no need for me to act. Do you still remember the matter in the side hall back then? Hua'er merely ridiculed him with a few words and Bairen made such a big fuss, wishing that I would have Hua'er executed before he'd be satisfied. It's been a year and he still treats Hua'er coldly. Such a resentful person, how could he tolerate Qi Xiao riding on his head for a lifetime?"

The Emperor leaned leisurely on the armrest, confidently saying: "Judging from Bairen's expression just now, I knew he would make a move sooner or later. It's better for him to act than for me to openly condemn Qi Xiao. Just wait and see... There are only a thousand days for a thief, but not a thousand days to guard against one. As long as Qi Xiao shows a slight flaw in the future that Bairen can grasp, Bairen will definitely strike back with a vengeance to avenge today's grievance. As for me, I just need to sit back and reap the benefits."

Fu Hailu thought for a moment and said, "What if the King of Lingnan finds out? I'm afraid he will blame the Imperial City for deliberately undermining their heir. They always make a fuss over any excuse. If they find out..."

The Emperor smiled faintly, "That's why I summoned Bairen today. I did ask him if the Crown Prince had bullied him. He said there was no issue, even if he suffered a loss, it can't be blamed on me. I was willing to stand up for him, but he wouldn't let me help and even covered for Qi Xiao. Who can be blamed for that?"

Fu Hailu suddenly realized and hurriedly flattered, "Your Majesty truly has a brilliant plan. This way, you've not only silenced everyone, but also used the heir and Lingnan to kill the Crown Prince. It's absolutely ingenious."

The Emperor chuckled, "What's so ingenious about it? It's just leveraging forces, that's all. Poor Bairen... such a good child, but unfortunately entangled with Qi Xiao. What a pity..."

That night, in the Crown Prince's Manor, the "pitiful" Bairen nestled in Qi Xiao's arms, smiling as he recounted everything that happened in Qianqing Palace during the day to Qi Xiao.

Bairen laughed slyly, "I deliberately pretended to hate you, while also appearing afraid of being found out. The Emperor's eyes lit up, truly thinking he had seen through my feelings. He kept trying to lure me to tell him, and I played along, acting as if I wanted to speak but hesitated. The Emperor actually believed it all."

Qi Xiao leaned on the square pillow of the arhat bed, listening to Bairen with a smile. Upon hearing this, he gently rubbed Bairen's head and laughed, "Silly thing, he doesn't really want you to tattle. Didn't I tell you the other day that it wouldn't benefit him much if it came out now? He wants to turn this small sore into a big hidden illness, so he can uproot me completely in the future..."

Bairen frowned, "What do you mean uproot... Don't speak so ominously."

Qi Xiao quickly apologized, "Yes, yes, alright. Now that we know what the Emperor is really thinking, it's not easy to deal with. If he wants to drag it out, then we'll drag it out too. It's better if neither side mentions it. Let's not talk about this anymore. The day after tomorrow is Roujia's wedding day. How are the preparations going?"

Bairen nodded, "Everything that needs to be prepared is ready. Fortunately, we have Princess Dunsu overseeing everything from start to finish, otherwise I really wouldn't be able to manage it all."

Qi Xiao smiled faintly, "You're new to major events like weddings and funerals, so naturally you're not familiar. In the future, when it's time to hold Roujia's child's one-month celebration and hundred-day ceremony, you'll gradually get the hang of it."

Qi Xiao's words struck a chord with Bairen, who smiled, "That's right. In a year or two, I'll be an uncle."

Qi Xiao raised an eyebrow, "You like children?"

Bairen nodded, "I've seen my younger aunt bring my younger cousin before. Little children are really fun when they're young, a soft little bundle, so adorable."

Qi Xiao smiled, rolled over and pressed down on Bairen, lowering his voice, "Since you like them... give your husband one yourself..."