CHAPTER 69: UNEXPECTED SUMMONS

Most of the Emberveil Herb had been uprooted or buried beneath the mud.

Looking at the ruin before him, Yue Mingxuan sighed deeply in regret.

But there was nothing he could do.

Yue Mingxuan had finally begun to understand the truth of nature’s cruelty when disaster struck, all living things were equal before it.

By the time he returned to his residence, the sky had already turned completely dark.

The moment he stepped through the door, Sui He came in after him in burry.

"Your Highness! Where were you last night? I was worried sick!" Sui He’s voice was trembling with concern.

"I was trapped in the back mountain because of a landslide," Yue Mingxuan admitted honestly, though he felt a little awkward under Sui He’s anxious stare. "I had to spend the night in a cave."

At his words, Sui He’s face went pale.

She immediately ran her eyes up and down his body, checking every inch of him to make sure he wasn’t hurt.

Only after confirming he was safe did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Your Highness, I’ve told you so many times not to wander into the back mountain," she scolded, her tone half-angry and half-relieved. "You never listen! It’s a blessing from the heavens that you came back alive this time."

Listening to her fuss over him, Yue Mingxuan suddenly felt a warm sense of comfort spreading through his chest.

In this unfamiliar time and place, having someone truly care for him made his heart soften.

"I understand, I understand. I won’t do it again," he said with a small smile and sticking out his tongue playfully before removing his outer robe and sitting down on the chaise lounge. "Sui He, is there anything to eat? I’m starving."

Sui He gave him a helpless look and went into the bedroom.

She returned with a clean set of clothes and handed them to him. "Please change first, Your Highness. I’ll prepare your meal right away."

Before long, she returned carrying a tray with a few light side dishes and a bowl of salted chicken and corn porridge.

"No meat?" Yue Mingxuan frowned at the all-vegetarian spread, his expression filled with disappointment.

Sui He carefully arranged the dishes on the small table beside the lounge, her voice laced with gentle reproach. "Your Highness hasn’t eaten for an entire day and night. You should start with something light to settle your stomach. Eating too much too fast will hurt your health."

Hearing her say that, Yue Mingxuan didn’t argue further.

He accepted the chopsticks she handed him and began eating eagerly.

After being trapped in a cave for a full day and night, he was so hungry that even the plain vegetables tasted delicious.

By the time he finished, the plates were completely empty.

Rubbing his now full stomach, Yue Mingxuan leaned lazily against the chaise and sighed in satisfaction. "Ah... it’s true. A full belly really makes everything feel better."

Seeing his unrefined posture, Sui He couldn’t help but smile. Though her young master lacked the graceful airs of the pampered nobles who like to wore fancy clothes, he possessed a natural, unpretentious charm that was far more genuine.

Prince arong doesn’t want His Highness? she thought silently. Then it’s truly his loss.

Just then, the door creaked open and a palace eunuch in plain robes entered. His expression was sharp and his tone cold.

"Prince Yue, Her Ladyship Concubine Hua summons you to the Tianxin Hall."

When his gaze swept over Yue Mingxuan’s casual posture and the dirt still smudging his face, aclear disdain flickered across his features.

Concubine Hua? What does she want with me now? Yue Mingxuan thought, his heart filling with suspicion.

He wanted to refuse, but he knew very well that with his current standing, saying no would only invite trouble and possibly death.

It seemed that even if this was a dragon’s den, he had no choice but to enter.

"Very well," Yue Mingxuan said calmly. "I will come once I’ve washed and dressed properly."

The eunuch shot him an impatient look, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Then please hurry, Fifth Prince. Her Ladyship don’t like to be kept waiting."

"I know," Yue Mingxuan said flatly, waving his hand with clear irritation.

This palace was full of people who flattered the powerful and trampled on the weak.

The eunuch’s contemptuous attitude didn’t bother him in the slightest, he had seen plenty of that kind before.

But what did catch his attention was the flicker of anxiety in the eunuch’s eyes.

That unease made him pause and think.

He walked into the inner chamber and under Sui He’s careful service, he quickly changed into clean clothes.

After washing the dirt and fading makeup from his face with warm water, he sat down heavily in front of the dressing mirror, lost in thought.

A faint feeling of dread stirred in his chest.

Concubine Hua... that woman had once been a lowly palace maid, yet she had climbed her way up to the rank of royal concubine.

She was known to be cunning, cruel, and ruthless.

Over the years, countless women in the harem had fallen because of her, at least twenty or thirty by rough count.

If she had suddenly decided to summon him, there was no way it was for something good.

"What do you think she wants from me?" Yue Mingxuan asked absentmindedly while tapping his fingers against the edge of the vanity.

"Maybe... maybe it’s because Prince Rong wants to reconcile with you," Sui He suggested hesitantly while applying layer after layer of thick makeup on his face, following the usual routine. "Perhaps he asked Concubine Hua to speak with you on his behalf."

Her words made Yue Mingxuan laugh bitterly. Reconcile? That was impossible.

Even if such a thing could happen, he, Yue Mingxuan would never take someone like Rong Tieshan as his fiancé again.

Before he could say more, the eunuch’s impatient voice came from outside the door: "Prince Yue, are you ready yet?"

"Almost done," Sui He replied.