Chapter 58: The Crown Prince, Ex-Husband of the Transmigrated Woman (6)

“Shen’er, is there really no wish you want to make for yourself?”

“Look at all these lanterns you’ve prepared. Wouldn’t it be a shame if you didn’t make a wish?”

Xie Hui’s words successfully made Xie Shen pause, his little hand gripping the brush. The weather was cold, and though the river hadn’t frozen over, the chilly wind had reddened Xie Shen’s hands.

“Mm, I do have one.”

After placing the lantern inscribed with Father Emperor’s Eternal Peace into the water, Xie Shen picked up a new one.

It was already difficult to write on a lantern, even more so using a brush. Xie Shen, who still occasionally wrote crooked characters even on a desk, struggled even more here.

At first, he squatted down to write, but after several attempts, he grew impatient and simply plopped down onto the snowy ground.

Seeing that he was dressed warmly, Xie Hui let him be.

As Xie Shen worked on his new wish, Xie Hui squatted beside him, curious about what this little one would wish for himself.

When he wrote Father Emperor’s Eternal Peace, the characters were just a bit ugly. But now that it was his own wish, he couldn’t even form the first character properly.

After struggling for a long time, he had turned a pink lantern completely black with ink. Frustrated, he tossed it aside and grabbed a new one.

“Father Emperor, why am I not called Yi Yi?”

“Do you want to write ‘Shen’er’? Father will help you.”

Xie Hui guided his small hand, holding the lantern steady with the other as he wrote Shen’er on it. Then, he let go so the boy could continue on his own.

Xie Shen originally wanted to protest that if he didn’t write it himself, the wish wouldn’t come true.

But after thinking it over carefully, he figured that since Father Emperor was guiding his hand, it probably still counted.

[Shen’er will accompany Father Emperor for a long, long life.]

After finishing, Xie Hui glanced at it and realized it was almost identical to the previous wish. He ruffled the boy’s hair, but Xie Shen tilted his head to dodge.

“Father Emperor, don’t be naughty!”

Scolded in his soft, childish voice, Xie Hui withdrew his hand and clasped it behind his back.

After writing one more lantern, Xie Shen abandoned the next one halfway through, finding his name too hard to write. Pouting in dissatisfaction, he went back to the simpler wish—Father Emperor’s Long Life.

What Xie Hui had once said to help the boy accept his presence had been taken completely to heart.

As the lanterns dwindled, Xie Hui noticed that not a single one contained a wish for Xie Shen himself.

Nearly every lantern carried some variation of Father Emperor’s peace, longevity, and health, taking up all available space.

When only one lantern remained, Xie Shen reached for it—only to find it missing. Curious, he turned his head and saw that his father was holding it.

Xie Hui picked up a brush and wrote his own wish on this final lantern.

[May my son live a life free of worries, year after year.]

Seeing the boy’s eyes narrow in happiness, Xie Hui held his hand and walked with him to the river, releasing the lanterns one by one.

The lanterns, with their flickering candle flames, floated further and further away with the current, glowing brightly in the dark night.

Xie Shen stood by the river, watching until they disappeared from sight. Then, he turned around and reached for his father’s hand, ready to return to their chambers.

As soon as he turned, his father held out a mask in front of him. The colors and patterns were unfamiliar but fascinating to Xie Shen.

“See if it fits?”

Xie Shen took the mask and put it on. Though he couldn’t see himself, he felt delighted just by imagining it. As they walked back, even though he held his father’s hand, he bounced with excitement the entire way.

That night, he refused to part with the mask, even hugging it in his sleep.

When Xie Hui went to check if he was properly covered, the attending nanny immediately knelt and pleaded, “Your Majesty, please forgive me! The little prince is truly fond of this mask…”

“It’s fine.”

Xie Hui gently took the mask from the boy’s arms and placed it on the bedside cabinet, so he could see it the moment he woke up.

According to the original plan, the crown prince had his own palace. But Xie Hui felt that living together would help them bond, so he had a side hall of the imperial quarters prepared instead.

Even though it was only a side hall, it was still part of the emperor’s residence and far from humble.

More importantly, when Xie Shen heard that Father Emperor wanted him to stay close, he ran over that very day, grinning from ear to ear.

After checking on the child, Xie Hui returned to his own chambers—only a few steps away.

After bathing and changing into nightwear, he sat on a soft couch with a book.

Just then, a eunuch burst in, his robes dusted with snow. He knelt before Xie Hui and whispered, “Your Majesty, Noble Consort Song requests an audience.”

At this hour, Xie Hui had no interest in seeing anyone. The only exception was that little brat.

Frowning, he turned a page of his book and answered coldly, “Not seeing her.”

At that moment, the system in his mind suddenly blared an alarm.

[Host! An anomaly has occurred in this world! Noble Consort Song has been reborn!]

[Compensation for the host has been issued: Mind-Reading, limited to ten years.]

As soon as the system finished speaking, Xie Hui realized he could hear the inner thoughts of the woman outside. The moment he processed her words, he felt a wave of disgust.

“I was blind in my past life, not realizing who truly loved me. Thankfully, I have been given another chance. This time, I will cherish that silent, devoted man.”

Xie Hui slammed his book onto the table.

The eunuch, already trembling with fear, wished he could press his face flat against the floor. Cold sweat dripped from his forehead as he cursed himself a thousand times over for accepting Noble Consort Song’s bribe.

If he lost his life over a few measly coins, it truly wouldn’t be worth it.

“Did you all treat my words as mere wind in your ears?” Xie Hui’s voice was icy. “I said no concubine is allowed to step foot in the front palace. If you cannot remember that, then have your ears cut off.”

Normally, when attendants made minor mistakes, Xie Hui would only reprimand them verbally.

But on this matter, he had zero tolerance.

After all, the original emperor had few heirs. He had personally stated that Xie Shen was made crown prince because he was the only child in good health.

The imperial consorts spent their days peacefully in the harem. While they did not have to engage in scheming and fighting for favor, those with a calm mindset could still find their lives quite comfortable. However, there were always some who overthought things—who dreamed of the immense wealth and status that would come if the future emperor were born from their womb.

“Your Majesty, this servant knows his mistake! Please, spare my life! I will never dare to do it again!”

Xie Hui looked at the eunuch, who was kowtowing so hard that blood seeped from his forehead, his gaze cold. With a mere lift of his hand, the guards entered and dragged the eunuch away.

Outside, Noble Lady Song was still kneeling. Xie Hui could clearly hear her inner thoughts, from which he pieced together the general truth of the situation.

In his past life, though Noble Lady Song had died, her soul had continued to linger in the world.

She had watched, wide-eyed, as the emperor never took another consort nor favored any palace maids. Instead, he supported her son in ascending the throne and even passed away on her birthday.

Only after death did she realize that the emperor, beneath his silent and seemingly indifferent nature, had hidden deep feelings.

Having been reborn, she no longer wished to care about her maternal family. She only wanted to live for herself, to make up for what she owed the emperor and her child in her past life.

Inside the spatial realm, the client shuddered in disgust, goosebumps breaking out all over his skin.

“Has she lost her mind?”

Xie Hui, too, was nearly overwhelmed by the absurdity of her thought process. If not for the Client’s own expression of sheer disgust in the spatial realm, he might have considered abandoning the mission and punishing this world instead.

“Which of my deceased consorts have I ever treated poorly? They’re already dead—letting them have a dignified farewell is a mistake now? Moreover, she was the Crown Prince’s birth mother. My willingness to grant her some respect was for the Crown Prince’s sake, not hers!”

Inside the spatial realm, the Client nearly jumped in fury, listing off all the consorts he had taken into the palace. Almost every one of them, upon their passing, had incense burned for them on their death anniversaries.

He had shed tears on occasion, but only because he lamented the fleeting nature of life.

As for not taking new consorts or favoring palace maids, it was simply because he had no interest in such things. His mind was filled with matters of governance—the countless citizens starving to death, the displaced refugees. How could he indulge in the pleasures of women?

As for supporting her son’s ascension to the throne, the Client found that accusation even more ridiculous. That was simply his only healthy son.

The princesses were all raised by their birth mothers, as was customary. He had considered breaking precedent, following in the footsteps of the former Martial Emperor by raising them differently. But one after another, they grew up into delicate and sheltered noblewomen, without a trace of the Martial Emperor’s dominance.

When he had been forced to choose consorts at the empress dowager’s command, he had selected women from humble backgrounds. Seeing how poorly they had lived in their families—wearing shabby clothes and outdated jewelry—he had asked for their opinions before bringing them into the palace.

Once an heir was secured, he saw no reason to waste more time on such matters.

Who would have thought that Noble Lady Song would fill in the gaps of her imagination so wildly?

“How could I possibly have feelings for her? If I truly liked her, would she have remained a mere Noble Lady?”

Xie Hui lay back down on his large bed, pulling the blanket over himself. As he closed his eyes, he could still hear the Client ranting in his mind.

“If I had known she would misunderstand me like this, I would have held on for a few more days, even if I had to do so with my last breath.”

“There are so many consorts and noble ladies in the palace. How could I possibly remember all their birthdates?”

“Dying on her birthday—what terrible luck. If I had known, I wouldn’t have died then.”

The Client, seeing the missioner fall asleep, turned to the system, which hovered nearby like a pair of wide, blinking eyes, and continued to grumble.

The next morning, Xie Shen woke up early. As he lifted his head, he saw the mask placed beside his bed and reached out to pick it up.

Meanwhile, the palace matron was preparing breakfast for the Crown Prince. At this time, only two attendants remained by the Crown Prince’s side. A young eunuch, whose face seemed unfamiliar, entered, knelt beside the Crown Prince, and whispered:

“Your Highness, Noble Lady Song wishes to see you. She has something important to tell you.”

Xie Shen’s hand, which had been rubbing against the mask, paused slightly. He then ordered the eunuch to help him dress properly, ensuring that his cloak was neatly worn before instructing the eunuch to lead the way.

Since the Crown Prince was the one taking the initiative to visit his birth mother—and the emperor had not issued any prohibition—the palace staff dared not intervene.

However, a slightly more perceptive palace maid, seeing this, quietly slipped away to report to the emperor.

It was now common knowledge in the palace that the Crown Prince was the emperor’s most cherished treasure. If anything happened to the Crown Prince, those serving him would undoubtedly suffer dire consequences.

Upon hearing that Xie Shen was going to see his birth mother, even the young apprentice of the grand chamberlain hurried after him.