Chen Tingfeng ignored his words. He just sat there, coldly watching the lively scene of singing and dancing in the palace hall.
Although Xie Yan said so, he only had two cups of the wine in the pot and then left it on the table without touching it again. He was a sensible man. Getting drunk on such an occasion would do him no good.
He bent his legs and leaned on the low table in front of him. Glancing at the dancing girls twirling their red sleeves on the stage, he popped a peanut into his mouth as if bored: "It's the same every year. It's incredibly boring."
While they found it boring, the emperor above didn't think so.
It had been a long time since they last saw the emperor. He seemed to have gained some weight.
A faint look of mockery flashed across Chen Tingfeng's eyes. Well, it made sense. He took tonic pills every day. And because he loved to have fun but felt inadequate, he had recently increased the dosage. How could he not gain weight?
Looking at his complexion, it was much rosier than before, as if he were in his prime.
"I'm going out for some fresh air," Chen Tingfeng suddenly said.
"Hey—" Xie Yan watched him get up and walk out. After thinking for a moment, he still followed him out uneasily. "Wait for me."
The singing and dancing were in full swing at the banquet. The absence of the two of them didn't attract any attention at all. Only Xie Guang glanced in their direction casually after finishing his drink.
After walking out of the palace, Chen Tingfeng stopped under the corridor. Yuanbao put a cloak on him, but the cold wind still managed to sneak into his sleeves.
Once out of that warm and stuffy place that made his head spin, he immediately felt sober. He couldn't help pinching the bridge of his nose, showing a bit of weariness.
When Xie Yan caught up with him, he saw him in this state. He walked over and stood beside him, looking at the falling snow with him. "Didn't you sleep well these days? Why are you so tired?"
The figure of the person he both loved and hated involuntarily appeared in Chen Tingfeng's mind. After a long while, he let out a soft sigh. "For someone... You and she clearly sorted things out, but why is she still so aloof and hard to get close to?"
Xie Yan looked at him, with confusion almost spilling out of his eyes. "No, wait. First tell me whether that person is male or female!"
"... Does it matter?" he asked.
"Of course it matters!" Xie Yan widened his eyes. "Aloof and hard to get close to? Wait, don't tell me you've secretly fallen in love with someone?"
Chen Tingfeng gave him a disdainful look. "Do I need to hide this kind of thing from you?"
"Ha," Xie Yan leaned lazily against the pillar, sizing him up and down. "So you're really lovesick? I never thought, Chen Shaochuan, that you'd end up like this."
He laughed at the other man wantonly for a while. Seeing that Chen Tingfeng ignored him and just stared at the wind and snow, still keeping everything inside like always, he couldn't help but let out a soft sigh. "Being aloof and hard to get close to means things haven't been completely sorted out. You've always been so smart. Can't you even see this?"
It wasn't that he couldn't see it. He saw it but didn't dare to ask.
Chen Tingfeng took a deep breath. Fu Zhen had very high defenses. If he hadn't resorted to all kinds of means and forced her on the day they pledged their love, she might not have told him the reason.
But later, as they grew closer, he was indulged in this tenderness and actually forgot that she wasn't a weak and innocent little rabbit. She was a sly fox with many tricks up her sleeve.
The same trick wouldn't work a second time.
If she didn't want to say something, no matter how much he pressed her, she still wouldn't say.
She still didn't fully trust him.
Why? Was it because of that mastermind?
Chen Tingfeng's eyebrows were knitted tightly. Snowflakes were blown up by the strong wind and landed on his eyebrows, making him look like a man carved out of ice and snow, cold and terrifying.
He suddenly asked, "Has Xie Guang been up to anything recently?"
When it came to business, Xie Yan's previous lazy look gradually faded away. He slowly frowned. "No movement."
Since the marriage of the second princess was settled, he and the queen seemed to have fallen into silence. Apart from trying to win over the ministers on a daily basis, they hadn't caused any waves at all.
Their quietness was strange.
"Have you kept an eye on Zhang Zheng's sworn brother?" Chen Tingfeng thought for a moment and suddenly asked.
Hearing this, Xie Yan immediately remembered what had happened in the Cold Palace. At that time, there was a maid who was placed in the Palace Maid Office and was under the supervision of Zhang Zheng's sworn brother, Zheng Dening. He didn't know how things were with her now.
Xie Yan frowned. "I actually forgot about this."
Zhang Zheng was one of his men, and Zheng Dening was Zhang Zheng's close sworn brother. He was relieved to hand the person over to him.
Moreover, the matter that day ended abruptly. The emperor didn't want to investigate deeply. Restricted by the emperor, he had no choice but to let it go. Naturally, the maid wasn't important anymore.
"When I handed the maid over to Zheng Dening, there were people who wanted to secretly get rid of her," Chen Tingfeng said indifferently. "They were the queen's people."
"She won't let such a handle stay in our hands."
"But Zheng Dening is one of us..." Xie Yan hesitated.
Chen Tingfeng looked at him. The increasingly strong wind and snow howled towards them, making his eyebrows look a bit cold and heartless. "Even our own people can be turned."
"He's just a eunuch. If he can defect to you today, who knows if he won't defect to someone else tomorrow?"
Xie Yan took a deep breath and pressed his lips tightly. He naturally knew that Chen Tingfeng was right and he had no way to refute. But now that this disgusting but common thing had been pointed out by Chen Tingfeng, he still felt a bit uncomfortable. "I understand. I'll send someone to investigate."
The bell rang in the palace, and the sound of music gradually weakened, indicating that the banquet was coming to an end.
At the moment when they passed by each other, Chen Tingfeng made a fist and punched Xie Yan on the shoulder. "The situation is about to change."
Xie Yan's expression suddenly changed.
After the banquet ended, Chen Xuan was surrounded by the old duke and Lord Zhang as they walked out. Lord Zhang was a heavy drinker, so he was a bit drunk now. Chen Xuan supported him and mocked, "You're such an old man. You still keep drinking. Be careful you'll end up with one foot in the coffin and can't get out."
Lord Zhang grunted twice and shakily pointed at him with his finger. "Kid Chen... If I go to the underworld, you'll see how I'll complain to your father!"
Seeing that he could hardly walk steadily, the old duke helplessly grabbed his other arm and pulled down his outstretched finger. "Come on, be more obedient. It's snowing so heavily outside. Be careful you'll slip and fall headfirst into the snowdrift later."
Chen Xuan mocked, "I'll definitely spread the news widely. He's been living such a quiet life. Creating some jokes will make life more interesting."
Lord Zhang gave him a disdainful look. "Whose life is quieter than yours?"
The old duke also agreed with this. He snorted softly. "I'm still struggling in the officialdom as an old man, but you, a young man who hasn't even reached middle age, have actually withdrawn from the court and pushed your son in. You'll only make people laugh at you!"
Chen Xuan said proudly, "I have a son. Don't you? If you have the guts, you should also abdicate and let your son take your place!"