Stepping into the study, Hakage was already standing at the side.
“ There is a new task for you again.” Kasuga’s sharp sight projected over.
“ Yes.” Hiding the sentiment just now, she was no different from when she first came to Edo Castle.
“ I believe Hakage has explained the situation to you about the task.”
“ You mean… the assassination of Sister Iemitsu by the imperial court?” Jianxue recalled the conversation with Hakage yesterday, and could not help to smile bitterly in her heart.
At that time he even said that she looked much happier, but the next day she looked “ do not come near” again.
“ Yes, because Master Iemitsu did not choose the Principle Husband for a long time, so the imperial court starts to unfold some actions.” Kasuga was still showing stern face, and then raised a cold smile: “ I want you to act, taking this to pin the imperial court’s tendency.”
“… What do you mean?”
“ Tomorrow, highest-ranking ministers, that is people from the top families will come to the Edo Castle. I want you to proclaim to them that ‘ you will choose the Principle Husband soon.’”
“ I understand. Will this be enough for now?” Jianxue looked at Kasuga.
“ Yes, you only have to show them that ‘ the General does consider about the problem of the heir,’ that will be good for now.” Kasuga nodded, making Jianxue slightly relieved.
At least she did not need to appoint the Principle Husband.
“ There are many people in the top families who worked with the imperial court. Presumably, this news will immediately spread.” Kasuga explained: “ In this way, the chief who organized the assassination will either start anxiously or wait and see the situation temporarily. In our case, the occurrence of the former is more advantageous, but the latter is also fine.”
“ Overall, during this period, Hakage will temporarily serve as your guard.” Seeing Jianxue not answering, Kasuga did not say more: “ Ogata told you to eat the medicine just now.”
“ I understand.”
Arriving in the clinic, Ogata carried a bowl of medicine to her as always.
“ What a gloomy look, would you mind telling me?” Ogata said.
She was silent for a while, then she opened her mouth as if she had made up her mind: “ Is there a way that I can recover my strength immediately? It doesn’t have to be permanent, only a few hours will also be okay.”
“ This… yes I have. Why do you ask?”
“ I received a letter for battle. The time is the day of the next full moon. I must go, but I’m not sure if my strength will be recovered at that time.”
“ Sigh… you wait here for a second.” Ogata walked into the storehouse. Fifteen minutes later he took out a delicate small box. There was only a white pill inside: “ This is the most precious medicine I have. The effect should last for four hours, but this medicine is actually self-harming. It means that you will become a normal person without internal strength after that. Are you sure you want it?”
“ Yes, thank you, Mr. Ogata.” Jianxue put that small box into her arms: “ I… may not be able to repay you. I’m sorry.”
“ No, please don’t say that.” Ogata smiled: “ Actually, I have already received Miss Yang’s reward.”
“ Why do you say that? I clearly did nothing.”
“ You make this place better.” Ogata cleaned up the table as if nothing happened: “ However, you don’t have to know anymore.”
“… Really?” She thought for a few seconds but only squeezed out a word.
She lifted up her footsteps, ready to go back to her room, but saw Takatsukasa standing on the stone bridge in the courtyard.
There was no one around now, so she should be able to talk to him.
“ Takatsukasa.”
“ Snow? You… are you okay?” He carefully asked.
“ Ah… I’m fine.” She realized that he meant the matter in the tea room: “ I’m very sorry to let you worry, but everything is fine now.”
“… Really?”
“ Yes.” She seemed to want to prove it and smiled.
Could not tell him that she was going to court death, right?
“ Okay…” He was relieved, but his face did not improve.
“ What happened?” She asked.
“ Should I say yes…” He paused: “ I heard that the guys from top families will come tomorrow.”
“ Yes, Mr. Kasuga told me just now.” She saw the topic changed, so her tone was slightly relaxed: “ Will Takatsukasa meet your family tomorrow?”
“ Who wants to meet those bastards!”
She was asking casually, but he suddenly got agitated, making her stare blankly.
Did she ask something she should not ask?
“ Ah… I’m so…”
“ Wu, no.” Seeing her was about to apologize, he speedily stopped her: “… Sorry. I won’t meet them. Those people, I don’t even want to see their faces.”
“ I understand.” She could only nod.
He spoke so hard. He must hate them very much.
“ Oh, this is… it’s very often for you two to be together recently.” Just when the atmosphere was heavy, Eikou’s relaxed voice came.
“… Goodbye, Iemitsu.” He immediately left.
“ I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.” Eikou apologetic said.
“ No.” She almost could not help looking at his leaving figure, and Eikou’s voice made her come back.
“ Do you care about Young Master Takatsukasa?”
“ No, I don’t.”
Eikou ignored her guard flashed by, smiling: “ Young Master Takatsukasa is irritating for his family’s visit.”
Hearing the words, she raised her eyes.
What did the person in front of her know?
“ After all, they were the instigators who sent Young Master Takatsukasa to Ooku and made him the candidate for Principle Husband. For Young Master Takatsukasa, it must be like the existence of a nail in the eye and a thorn in the flesh.” Obviously such a serious topic, but Eikou’s eyes revealed joy: “ When the guards brought the unconscious Young Master Takatsukasa here, I was shocked.”
Coma? Did they… hurt him?
“ They kept their eyes and ears on Young Master Takatsukasa who was trying to escape from Ooku, and oversaw him.” Eikou smiled sarcastically: “ Presumably, Young Master Takatsukasa doesn’t want to be trapped in such a place at all.”
“ Sigh… but even his family can’t change his attitude towards Master Iemitsu.”
“ Yes.” She stayed in place, not aware of Eikou’s departure at all.
Speaking of which, she knew nothing… anything about him.
She only ignorantly absorbed light, but never gave reciprocation.
She did not know him at all.
But… she did not have much time.
Was there a way to let him gain the freedom he wanted?
The next day, Jianxue came to the lobby in the early morning, preparing to meet the people from top families.
“ Master Iemitsu, the people from top families have arrived.” Kasuga opened his cold eyes.
“ Understand, let them in.” She lightly nodded. An Indifferent voice responded.
At the following tea party, Jianxue proclaimed the information that the Principle Husband would be appointed shortly after. Although they talked a lot at first, after Kasuga’s explanations, they seemed to accept this decision.
Watching these guests from top families leaving, she was also secretly relieved.
Not bad, it seemed like nobody noticed her identity.
However, she adverted that there were some old-fashioned men still staying in the lobby.
What happened?
“ General.” Just as she raised alert, one of the men spoke: “ I heard that you are really close to our family member recently.”
Our family? Who were these people?
“… Oh, it’s Young Master Takatsukasa’s guardians.” Kasuga slightly implied.
Takatsukasa’s!
She held back the displeasure in her heart, looking at that man.
“ About just now, you announced that you will elect the Principle Husband, we hope you would appoint Takatsukasa.”
“ But he himself… seems not willing to become Principle Husband.” She replied with a neutral tone.
“ You don’t have to care about his opinion. No matter what he said, since he is born in top families, as the first son of the lineage, he should naturally become General’s Principle Husband, serving General.”
Naturally?
The man’s words reminded her of what Eikou said yesterday.
“ The guards brought the unconscious Young Master Takatsukasa here.”
“ They… kept their eyes on him.”
These people took it for granted.
So they could show that nothing was wrong.
She gasped. There seemed to be something broken in her heart.
“ He is also human. He has his own will.”
“ Ah?”
“ Takatsukasa is not propping at your mercy.”
She regained her consciousness. Blamed words were already blurted out.
She lost control.
That was the second time she wanted to kill people after her mother’s incident.
“ Takatsukasa…”
“ General.” Kasuga’s cautionary cold voice interrupted her, pulling her out of her thoughts.
Oops.
“ Mr. Guardian, General seemed not feeling well. Let us talk about this in another day.”
“… Sure.”
The man left the lobby with puzzled eyes.
“ What did you say to him?” Kasuga’s voice echoed in unmanned space.
“…” She was only silent.
She should apologize.
She was rude to the people from top families, and that might cause trouble to the Edo Castle.
She should apologize.
She had to apologize.
“ Why did you say those words?” Kasuga was still investigating. His head faintly smoking black aura.
“ I…”
Memories along with struggles assaulted her.
“ Don’t call me ‘Mr.’, also, don’t use honorifics.”
She had to apologize.
“ Why do you suppress yourself so much? Cry if you want to cry, be angry if you want to!”
She needed to apologize.
“ Even if you feel frustrated, no one will blame you.”
She had to…
“ Snow, don’t leave me.”
She…
She.
She could not.
“ Because, when I think of those people who have been hurting Takatsukasa for a long time, I feel they are unforgivable.” She eventually replied so.
At the same time, on the corridor outside the lobby, Takatsukasa stopped his hand wanting to open the door.
“ Oh, oh.” A voice came from beside him.
“ Wu! Ogata…”
“ It looks like you are worried about Miss Yang, so you come and check on her, but you heard an unexpected conversation, and you feel very happy about that, am I right?” Ogata covered his mouth, laughing secretly.
“ Wu.” He seemed wanting to hide the blush on his face, vigorously grasped his hair: “… Can’t I?”
“ No, I never said that.”
“ Mr. Ogata, you told me before, that I looked like her guardian.” He looked at Ogata: “ But I don’t want to be her guardian, I…”
In the lobby, Kasuga eventually sighed.
“ Whatever, after all, General was speaking for Young Master Takatsukasa, just hope it won’t cause trouble. You may go back to your room.”
“ Yes.” She obediently shut up and walked out of the lobby. What was oncoming was two figures, one was Takatsukasa with a serious face, and… Ogata smiling like an idiot?
“… Guardian, I…”
“ Takatsukasa?” She called.
“ Wu! What…”
“ Then, let me take the leave.”
Takatsukasa panicked when he saw her, and Ogata showed an enigmatic smile and left.
“ Sigh… What do you want?” Someone would pass by at any time, so she asked with Iemitsu’s tone.
“… I…”
Unexpectedly, Takatsukasa did not retort, only looked at her without a word.
He looked very weird. What happened?
When she was thinking about what to say, he suddenly hugged her.
“ Ta… Takatsukasa?”
Why?
“ Takatsukasa, someone will see us here.” She tiptoed, reminded in his ears.
Also, Kasuga was still cleaning in the lobby.
Clearly, she should have immediately left, but she could not push him away at all.
She could not push away the warmth from him.
He was her light.
“ Thank you, Snow.” She heard him whispering so.
“… Um?”
“ What happened just now, I heard it.” He smiled softly.
Besides himself, this was the first time someone spoke for him.
She was his light.
“…” She silent, quietly staying in his arms.
Did she… help him a little bit?
She hesitated for a while, and then softly hugged him back.
“ Wu.” At the moment she touched him, he suddenly let go of her.
“… Um?” His movement made her a little daze.
“ Sorry… you are going back to your room.” He bewildered: “ Bye.”
“… Um.”
He left the words and left.
He was gone…
Looking at his figure away gradually, she showed a shallow smile.
Her heart… was scalding? But she liked it.
In the next few days, the people in Edo Castle obviously felt, that their General’s mood was exceptionally great, even if the ministers made mistakes, she would softly console.
It's just that Jianxue herself seemed not noticing.
She only knew, that in every Daily Summon, she would secretly look at that red figure.
Seeming to feel her gaze, he also quietly raised his look.
He looked at her, hee hee.
“ Huh.” Eikou’s chuckle came from her back, letting her awakened from a happy mood.
Oops.
She seemed not to notice that she was still Iemitsu’s substitute.
She speedily showed a stern face, apace passing the Yuling corridor.
What she did not know was, that after she left, he was still looking in the direction she left.
Passing through the Yuling corridor, she quietly sighed in her heart.
Did she do something wrong again…
“ Hey, Iemitsu.” Takatsukasa walked towards her.
“… What do you want?” Although it seemed not helping, she still responded with Iemitsu’s tone.
“ Nothing, it’s just that you look like you have something to say.”
“ No.”
“ You are fascinated by Young Master Takatsukasa, General.” Eikou smiled and debunked her, but his words made her heart surprised.
Fascinated?
“ You are overthinking.” She almost said with gritted teeth. A vigilant aura was about to erupt.
She would cause trouble to Takatsukasa.
“ Isn’t it a good thing to have a good relationship?” Eikou still asked calmly.
“…” He was only silent.
Takatsukasa?
She thought he would contradict Eikou, but he did not even say anything to refute, only moved away from his look.
“ Okay.”
In normal times, he definitely would deny that.
She pursed her mouth.
“ Huh, by now, you don’t have to hide it anymore?” After Takatsukasa left, Eikou looked at her, expressively said.
“ Um?”
“ Recently, rumors of the close relationship between General and Master Takatsukasa have spread throughout Edo Castle.”
So…
Indeed, in others’ point of view, would definitely think that Takatsukasa and Iemitsu’s relationship was getting better.
Without knowing why, there seemed to be something, making her feel uncomfortable.
Why would she feel sad?
Was it because… that she knew he did not want others to think this way?
However, he did not deny it just now.
Did that mean, he did not care anymore… that others thought he and Iemitsu were getting closer?
Thinking about this, like her heart was pricked by needles, painful that she could not breathe.
“ General, what’s wrong?”
“…No, nothing.”
What could she say… she was just a dying person.
At night, Eikou came to Kasuga’s room.
“ Presumably Master Kasuga had already heard the rumors of General and Young Master Takatsukasa.” Eikou said.
“ Um, I heard it.”
“ The two get along well. It’s really a good thing. In this way, the Principle Husband can be decided soon, and the government can also sit back and relax.”
“ Yes.” Kasuga was still that cold appearance.
“ Then, I’ll take the leave.” Eikou seemed to inquire and gazed at Kasuga for a while, and then left the room.
Kasuga who stayed in the room thoughtfully squinted.
Her heart still remained lingering pricking, Jianxue still followed the arrangement and went to the Bath Palace.
The rumors of Iemitsu and Takatsukasa being close, when did it start?
Was that someone who saw Takatsukasa hug her at that time?
She walked into the Bath Palace. Natsu still sat inside as always.
Did the person in front of her also know those rumors?
She unintentionally took a look at Natsu. He slightly smiled.
“ I don’t want to wait anymore, Jianxue Yang.”
Um?
Natsu stood up, walking closer to her: “ If you don’t appoint me in tomorrow’s Daily Summon, I will debunk your identity.”
She slightly observed him. His eyes did not seem to joke.
Natsu was particularly law-abiding these days. She almost forgot about this.
“… Um.” She only nodded.
However, she could understand his sudden decision.
It certainly was still because of that rumor.
“ Make a deal with me?” Seeing Jianxue did not waver, Natsu spoke again.
“ What do you want?”
“ You only have to appoint me in tomorrow’s Daily Summon, then I won’t expose you.” He only rearranged his words.
“ What does it have to do with me? You expose me, then Mr. Kasuga should be the most troublesome?”
“ Are you not afraid of being sentenced?”
“ There must be a mess in the city by then. I can just run away.”
He was silent for a while. Just as she thought he would give up, his words made her breath stagnation.
“ You like Takatsukasa, right?”
“… So what?”
“ If you appoint me, then Takatsukasa won’t need to become Iemitsu’s Principle Husband. If you truly care about Takatsukasa, shouldn’t you do this?”
“…” His words made her pupils shrink.
“ It’s tomorrow.” Natsu raised a triumphant smile: “ You only have to call my name.”
All was quiet at dead of night. Jianxue lied in her bed, recalling what Natsu said.
“ If you appoint me, then Takatsukasa won’t need to become Iemitsu’s Principle Husband.”
“ If you truly care about Takatsukasa, shouldn’t you do this?”
She was merely a substitute.
How could she replace Iemitsu’s mind without authorization and appoint the Principle Husband?
But…
Takatsukasa should not want to be Iemitsu’s Principle Husband.
She…
The sky already lit up fish-belly white unconsciously.
What should she do?
“ The — General — Arrived — ” In the already familiar announcement, she stepped into the Yuling corridor.
Should she betray Iemitsu? Or should she abandon Takatsukasa and leave?
What should she do?
She bit her lips. Her steps were closer to Natsu.
Just as she paused in front of Natsu, he spoke.
“ General.” He lowered his volume.
That cold voice winded her like a nightmare.
Takatsukasa beside Natsu then wonderingly raised his head.
She glanced at him.
Takatsukasa…
This was for his good… right?
“… Natsu.”
“ Yes.”
“ I appoint you…”
“ Wait!” Her words have not finished, Takatsukasa interrupted and stood up.
“ Young Master Takatsukasa, you are in front of the General now.”
Ignoring Eikou’s warning, Takatsukasa held her hand. The people around suddenly sounded arguments.
“ Enough… you… come with me!”
“ Ta… Takatsukasa…”
No, the people would misunderstand.
Clearly, her reason continuously warned her, but that warmth was stinging her again, making her could not get rid of his hand, and being taken away from the corridor.
“… Really incorrigible fool.” In the noise, Natsu only sighed.
He hold her hand without a word, coming to that unmanned courtyard.
“ Takatsukasa…” Her fingers slightly trembled. Hearing the word, he let go of her and turned around.
“ Snow, what did you plan to do.” This was her first time to hear his serious and oppressive voice.
“ I…” She looked at his faintly irritated eyebrows.
She could not tell any lie.
“… Appoint Mr. Natsu as the Principle Husband.”
“ Why?” He uncontrollably catch her shoulder.
“ I…”
“ Why!” His strength got greater and greater, catching her in pain: “ If you appoint him, what will happen to you tonight, you should know clearly! Why…”
“ I…”
She did this for Takatsukasa…
She was about to speak but immediately stopped.
No.
She did not do it for this reason.
Noticing her desire she was unwilling to face, she looked frail like her weakness being grasped by others.
The reason she thought… the reason she wanted to appoint someone other than him as the Principle Husband,
Was because that she wanted to possess his light.
She envied, towards Iemitsu who could stay with him.
Because she wanted to have that warmth.
She wanted to lock him by her side forever, even after her death.
“ Snow?” She completely not noticed that he already let go of her shoulder, and his anxiety also changed to worry: “ Did I hurt you? I’m sorry.”
“…” Unfortunately, her thoughts were not here.
She unexpectedly, arbitrarily thought, that this was for his good.
Without knowing that she only wanted to continuously ask for his fondness.
She and those wayward people who used him as props have no difference.
Thinking of this, she could no longer control her tears from sliding.
“ I’m… sorry…”
Of course, he would hate her.
Aware of this, she suddenly felt scared.
She was so afraid of being hated by him.
“ I’m sorry…”
“ Enough.” He softly sighed and hugged her entirely in his arms.
His hug was still that gentle, making her not born a trace of refusal in her heart.
“… I’m sorry.” Even she did not know to whom she was apologizing.
“ Didn’t I say enough.” He smiled wryly, even softening his voice: “ It’s okay, it’s okay, um?”
His words made her rise that unrealistic pipe-dream again.
However, even if it was a low-quality lie, she could not ask him not to treat her this gently.
Clearly, she was just a dying person.
[ To Be Continued ]
Jianxue
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