“Ah!”
“Where did this evil wind come from, that it could make our esteemed Eldest Heir leave that opulent royal city and come to my humble courtyard outside the city?”
“How rare.”
Chen Yu, standing beside Liya, heard the barbed sarcasm and a smile flickered in his eyes, thinking how fitting it was for his persona.
Courtesy?
It seemed unlikely to be found in this son of the immensely powerful Chief Financial Officer.
Although Liya claimed the Eldest Heir was troublesome to deal with, his actions suggested he didn't think much of the Eldest Heir either. The fact that their meeting was held in a side hall was a testament to this.
If the Eldest Heir were truly as difficult as Liya claimed, their meeting place should have been the main hall.
As the door opened, the Eldest Heir, who had been waiting in the side hall, greeted them with a smile and clasped hands. He acted as if he hadn't heard Liya's taunting words from outside.
“Liya, long time no see.”
“It has indeed been a while.” Liya paid little attention to the Eldest Heir, walking directly to the table, pouring himself a cup of tea, pulling out a chair for Chen Yu and pouring him tea as well. He then spoke his mind, “Ever since our Eldest Heir was enfeoffed as the City Lord of Yong'an City, I, a mere nobody, haven't had the资格 to meet with you. Ah, no, it should be said that you are so busy with state affairs that you have no time to see idlers like me.”
Liya raised his teacup with a smile, gestured towards the Eldest Heir, and then downed the fragrant tea in his cup.
During this time, Chen Yu also quietly sipped his tea.
Although this beverage was called tea, to Chen Yu, it wasn't quite tea. The definition of tea in the caves was slightly different from outside the caves.
The 'tea' here was mostly sweet.
Steeped in the pot, it was somewhat like sweet water.
It wasn't like the tea outside the caves, which had a slight bitterness and offered a different kind of flavor.
The Eldest Heir, his face beaming with smiles, was put in an awkward position by Liya's words. For a long while, he could only offer a dry laugh, unsure of how to respond.
“Where is Tar?”
It was Liya who finally broke the stalemate, looking around.
“I thought he would come with you to demand an explanation. It’s truly rare that he didn't. Has he really been scared into not daring to see me?”
Liya was clearly doing this intentionally, just to annoy the Eldest Heir.
Unexpectedly, upon hearing Tar's name, the Eldest Heir's expression drastically changed. The smile in his eyes vanished, replaced by an icy sternness. He snorted,
“Let’s not mention that scoundrel.”
“Oh, so there’s a story there.” Liya’s face immediately showed a curious smile as he sipped the sweet tea. His targeting of the Eldest Heir seemed to lessen. He nudged a nearby chair with his foot and gestured with his chin, “Sit, tell me, how did that boy suddenly become a scoundrel? It’s been less than two hours, and I’m very interested in hearing about the love-hate entanglement between you and Tar.”
Others might not know, but Liya was very well-informed about the royal family’s affairs.
Ever since he was fostered with the Queen, Tar had lived his life with extreme caution. While not exactly living like a dog wagging its tail beside the Eldest Heir, he was certainly someone who followed the Eldest Heir’s lead. As long as it was the Eldest Heir's command, Tar would never dare to disobey.
Now, the Eldest Heir referring to Tar as a scoundrel indicated a rift between the two.
This was quite interesting.
The Eldest Heir was no longer as glorious as he once was. If we were to speak of ten years ago, the Eldest Heir was absolutely at the peak of his glory. At the age of twenty, he was enfeoffed as the lord of a major city around the royal city, with the entire city entrusted to his management. At that time, many in the royal family flocked to the Eldest Heir’s side.
It was precisely because of his excessive glory that the Eldest Heir disdained Liya, the son of the Chief Financial Officer.
Liya's earlier taunts were also a form of revenge for those past slights.
However, in recent years, the Eldest Heir had not been as dominant as before. Since the Queen had fallen out of favor, the Eldest Heir had lost his former prestige. Although the position of the lord of the main city still belonged to him, the personnel within the city were no longer under his control. Furthermore, he had been too arrogant back then and had offended many people. After the Queen was abandoned by the King, countless people wanted to step on the Eldest Heir.
The only one still willing to work for him was that Tar.
Even if Tar were useless, the Eldest Heir would not abandon him. The only possibility was that Tar had fallen out with the Eldest Heir.
Tar, who had not dared to breathe loudly for so many years, dared to disrespect the Eldest Heir.
There was something fishy going on.
“My dear brother Liya, please stop teasing me.” The Eldest Heir shook his head with a bitter smile and said, “There's no love-hate entanglement. It’s just like a dog you’ve raised for a long time, and one day, someone else feeds it better, so it wags its tail and goes to its new owner. It’s that simple.”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk, is that true?”
Liya looked at Chen Yu with disbelief and chuckled.
“Sir, the dog he’s talking about is Tar. You’ve seen that fellow; he’s quite simple-minded, but he’s always lived a life of subservience in the royal family. Suddenly, he’s straightened up and found a good father. See, I’m not lying to you, the royal family is in a mess.”
The Eldest Heir listened to Liya’s words silently, occasionally glancing at Chen Yu.
After about half a minute—
The Eldest Heir, holding his teacup, suddenly stood up and apologized, bowing to Liya.
“My dear brother Liya, I apologize to you here.”
“Oh, what are you doing?” Liya quickly put down his teacup, feigning shock, “How can I, a mere commoner, accept an apology from you, the Eldest Heir? Please don’t, I’m afraid that one day I might wake up to find the royal guards storming my manor, arresting me at the South Gate, and beheading me.”
“My dear brother, I have sincerely come to beg for your forgiveness.”
The Eldest Heir said with great apology, “Actually, when I sent Tar down to the city, it wasn’t to offend you. I never had that intention from the beginning. After he returned, I reprimanded him immediately and asked him to apologize to both of you, but that boy… he refused no matter what, and directly pledged allegiance to the Seventh Prince. It’s laughable, but Tar had actually been secretly communicating with the Seventh Prince for a long time and had intentions of betraying me.”
“Even so, it shouldn’t require the Eldest Heir to personally come and apologize.”
Liya gently placed his hand on the Eldest Heir’s shoulder and then slowly walked to his side.
“Brother, I know what kind of person you are. Among the princes, you are the most kind and virtuous. I know all this. After all, Tar is of low birth, and he certainly commits low deeds. How could we possibly blame you for his actions?”
“That my dear brother can be so understanding, I…”
“Ah, don’t rush, I haven’t finished speaking.” Liya suddenly changed his tone, “Although we won’t hold it against you, Tar’s actions have indeed made both myself and Sir very displeased. Even though the Eldest Heir himself has come to visit and given us due respect, we are still not entirely comfortable.”
“Then what does my dear brother mean?”
“How about the Eldest Heir does a favor for me? If it can be done well, I can guarantee that today’s matter will never reach my father’s ears. You know… my father dotes on me the most.”