Chapter 037: Defying Fate

The old Taoist, shelling sunflower seeds amid his busyness, wrinkled his face into a ball as he pleaded for mercy, “Your Highness, I only resorted to trickery and deception to scrape by. You are a nobleman; why make things difficult for a humble commoner like me?”

But Xiao Yue had no patience for his evasions and said directly, “You once declared to my mother, the Empress Dowager, that my fate was an aberration defying the heavens. Was that not so?”

“Your Highness…” The old Taoist hesitated, guilt flickering across his face, about to deny it when Xiao Yue cut him off, continuing, “What exactly does ‘defying the heavens’ mean? I have pondered these words for years, but only recently have I realized my previous understanding may have been mistaken. Since you were the originator of this claim, you shall read my palm once more. I have sought you out in the capital for this very answer. As long as you speak the truth, all our past grievances can be wiped clean.”

The old Taoist knew well that now that Xiao Yue had gone to such lengths to find him, escape would not come easily. He was well aware that his careless words had offended this living plague profoundly. Now, hearing Xiao Yue’s offer, his eyes lit up, “Truly?”

“Truly,” Xiao Yue replied, presenting his palm once more.

The Taoist stopped eating his seeds, perched on the stool, and gripped Xiao Yue’s hand, scrutinizing the lines for a while before finally pulling a long face, “Your Highness! I admit my tongue can be sharp and my words blunt, but what I told the Empress Dowager was the truth. Your fate is indeed extraordinary, unconstrained by the will of heaven. It wasn’t my intention to sow discord between you and your mother, nor is the Empress Dowager to blame for favoring one over the other. Think about it: back then, His Majesty and the former Prince of Xin vied for power for years, both suffering greatly. When Prince Xin was finally defeated, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager was left with no choice but to send you away from the capital—because the royal family of Great Yin could not endure further fratricidal strife. To her, you and His Majesty were both as precious as the back and palm of her hand. Your Highness, you have yet to become a parent, so naturally—well, Your Highness, if I may, you’re not young anymore, yet I haven’t heard any news of you taking a consort?”

From a solemn discussion of fate to meddling in personal affairs, he was now prying into his marriage and whether he had children.

The topic had gone so far astray that Xiao Yue’s expression darkened further, and he let out a cold laugh.

He was intimidating enough when silent, but that icy laugh made him even more so.

The fortune-teller shivered, nearly toppling from his stool, and quickly steadied himself, forcing a laugh. “Your Highness, you didn’t come all the way back to the capital just to see me, did you? Or is there—”

“So, your so-called defiance of fate means that one day I will replace Xiao Zhi and take his place?” Xiao Yue interjected, picking up the thread of his words.

The fortune-teller rubbed his hands together nervously. “What wouldn’t you be capable of, Your Highness… You could kill me right now and it wouldn’t matter a whit!”

Xiao Yue glared, “So you refuse to speak plainly?”

The fortune-teller was on the verge of tears, slipping off his stool and prostrating himself at Xiao Yue’s feet. “Your Highness, you are destined for greatness, while I am but an insignificant wretch. If I speak the truth, you dislike it; if I lie, you see through me at once. Is it not impossible to please you?”

Xiao Yue understood that this man, wary because of his own reputation for being marked by fate, would only respond with evasions and jokes.

He rose and paced to the window, pushing it open a crack. The corner of the stage below was just visible, with the soprano’s high-pitched arias sounding absurd and ridiculous.

“I’ll not conceal it from you. A little over a month ago, I hovered on the brink of death. When I awoke from grave injury, I found myself with memories of the next ten years. You could call it a fleeting dream, but I know—it was no dream.” Xiao Yue slowly raised his hands, the tangled lines of his palm stark in the sunlight, his voice edged with cold and bitter irony. “You say my fate defies the heavens, but what do you mean by ‘heavens’—the Son of Heaven, or Heaven itself?”

The fortune-teller looked up in astonishment, shifting on his knees to stare at Xiao Yue’s back.

But Xiao Yue did not glance at him, only continued, “If I wished to seize the throne, a single massacre would suffice. But standing here now, I can already foresee the outcome a decade hence. Imperial power is already within easy reach; if I act now, I could reveal the ending to everyone ahead of time.”

Xiao Zhi would die. Xiao Yun would die. His mother—the Empress Dowager—would die. Even the many minor figures entangled in these affairs would perish.

All the predestined secondary characters would be swept aside, and he could ascend to center stage ahead of schedule, becoming the sole protagonist.

But is this truly the meaning of living again?

To glimpse fate, to know destiny, only to turn the hardships of a past life into a smooth road and walk it anew?

The old Taoist listened, thunderstruck, his mind erupting with one shock after another. At last, after opening and closing his mouth a few times, he plopped down on the floor, muttering, “So… this is what it means?”

Was it because Xiao Yue was born into the royal family that he’d leapt to his own mistaken conclusion from the start?

He’d assumed that a fate defying the heavens meant innate rebellion, but in truth, Xiao Yue had confounded destiny itself—by living twice?

Inside the room, Xiao Yue and the old charlatan lingered for a long time.

Wu Tan, having descended from the third-floor box to relieve herself, was returning and, at the bend of the staircase, happened to glance up and found the figure leaning against the farthest pillar in the corridor oddly familiar. She stopped and looked again, then recognized him as Xiao Yue’s bodyguard.

Well! Was this fellow haunting her still?

Her eyes sparkled with mischief and she immediately changed direction, hurrying over.

Thunderclap, seeing her approach, felt a headache coming on.

“Um—” As Wu Tan reached him, seeing that he stood with eyes fixed demurely on the floor, she deliberately leaned in from below, tilting her head to catch his gaze in a friendly manner. “Is your prince here watching the opera as well?”

“Uh…” Thunderclap’s face was stiff as wood; he truly did not know how to deal with her—

If he ignored her, she was being so friendly; if he drove her away, his master clearly had designs on the Wu family…

Wu Tan, unconcerned with propriety, pointed at the tightly closed door behind him. “Could you… announce me? Last time, Prince Sheng lent me an umbrella—I’d like to thank him.”

Thunderclap didn’t believe her for a moment. “Well…” You want to thank my prince? Just now, you ran off faster than a rabbit, pretending not to know him, and now you show up to offer thanks?

“Oh! If His Highness is entertaining guests, never mind then.” The scene below was a romantic drama—would Xiao Yue even enjoy such a play? Seeing his discomfort, Wu Tan seemed to take the hint and, being considerate, did not press him further but lowered her head to rummage through her pouch.

Thunderclap thought there was no way this little troublemaker was going to tip him, and was watching her closely when, all at once, the door behind him was flung open from within.

Xiao Yue stood in the doorway, his face dark as thunder.

— End of chapter —

Rolling around just to prove I’m here~

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