Translated by Eve

　　Edited by Wuxian

　　Zhao Xihe was made dejected by Sui Yuan's response without a doubt. If it weren't for the location being too inappropriate at the moment, he would seriously want to press his lover, who always ruined the mood, down onto the desk and execute him on the spot. Of course, this was just an excuse that Zhao Xihe made up for himself. The true reason was that Sui Yuan had resisted him desperately.

　　When he thought about how his Creator could be watching him through Zhao Xihe's eyes while they did the deed, Sui Yuan felt his whole body become unwell. Although 5237 made a strong suggestion that he might as well smash apart the broken pot, Sui Yuan was not brazen enough—he didn't want to show his Creator any kind of unbearable situation where he would appear to lose all self-control.

　　……Although it's like what 5237 said, that it's something it can bear to see. It has probably already seen everything. QAQ

　　Zhao Xihe's expression was gloomy as he sat down on his chair. He stared at Sui Yuan who had hid in a corner of the room, itching to be farther away from him —the farther, the better— and was re-arranging his clothes that had been pulled into a mess with red ears. The low atmosphere of an approaching storm emitting from his body even scared the guards standing at the entrance of the Imperial study into s.h.i.+vers.

　　Zhao Xihe finally realized a grave issue at this moment. Is it possible that he had to be vegetarian until his family's beloved truly accepted himself? This was simply unbearable!

　　Before, although Sui Yuan was not quite one who was addicted to his desires, he had never rejected it. If Zhao Xihe wanted it, he would typically yield after making a show of resistance. Even if he was bullied into tears and end up vowing that he would no longer 'play' with Zhao Xihe, he was still unrepenting during their next time. Zhao Xihe, who had gotten used to Sui Yuan's indulgence, was unable to imagine the ascetic life he would have to lead from now on.

　　At present, Sui Yuan's refusal came from his heart. If Zhao Xihe wanted to force him, he'd have to prepare to have a genuine falling out with him. Of course, Zhao Xihe was not one to force others—he had quite a moral character. If you asked him to endure for a period of time, there was room for discussion. But if you asked him to endure for a whole world…hehe.

　　Sui Yuan was so beautiful and swaying right before him. Zhao Xihe truly did not know how long he could endure….

　　The consequence of a man's desire being left unfulfilled was that other people would end up out of luck. Zhao Xihe was unwilling to do anything to Sui Yuan but towards other people, he was not as affable.

　　After Sui Yuan got a hold of himself and fled out of the Imperial Study without any delay, the next person to knock against the muzzle of the gun was Situ Gui, worried and thus claimed to have matters to report.

　　The pitiful Situ Gui did not dare to renege his words, saying he actually did not have any matters to discuss just as he approached the front lines. If his 'Emperor Father's' mood was good, he may be lenient and let him off. However, if his mood was bad, this would be the crime of deceiving one's lord. Even if he isn't punished, he'd leave a bad impression upon his 'Emperor Father'. This would be extremely terrible for a prince who was striving for the Emperor's position.

　　Situ Gui who had no choice but to meet with the Emperor: "………………"

　　——Save me! Emperor Father's complexion is really ugly. QAQ

　　"You…don't have anything to report?" After all, Situ Gui had accompanied him here. Although Sui Yuan wanted to immediately get far away from Zhao Xihe, that beast, he still couldn't help but wait for his good brother who had dug a hole for himself. When he saw Situ Gui look aggrieved as if he had lost his parents, wobbling as he walked out looking frightened out of his mind, he immediately approached him, face full of concern.

　　Situ Gui seized Sui Yuan's shoulders, "Brother! What offense did you commit?! Did you not see how dark Emperor Father's face was~ I've never seen him so angry before!"

　　Sui Yuan coughed dryly and tried his best to make a helpless expression, "I really don't know ah! Emperor Father ordered me to cultivate my moral character and forbade me from going to those messy places anymore. I am also baffled, ne!"

　　Situ Gui furrowed his brows, sighing in puzzlement while shaking his head, "Emperor Father's way of thinking is getting increasingly enigmatic and impossible to predict…."

　　Sui Yuan："………………"

　　——Hehe, actually, what you want to say is that he is moody and that his menopause came early, ba?

　　Fortunately, aside from being scolded and being drowned in a torrent of abuse for some baffling reason, Situ Gui was not hurt seriously nor punished. As a prince who had a very strict Emperor Father, his ability to resist pressure was quite good. In other words, he was shameless. As long as his little actions in private were not exposed, to be scolded by his Emperor Father behind closed doors was nothing. Basically, Situ Gui did not care about it at all. Thus, baffled, he directly threw this matter to the back of his head, too lazy to think about it any further.

　　In order to prevent the girls in his beloved's rear court from causing a scene, Zhao Xihe reacted in a swift and decisive manner. As soon as Sui Yuan left the palace, he immediately pa.s.sed on a decree: Having been scolded, the undignified and unladylike women in Xu Tu's harem were to speak and act with caution, properly abiding by the texts 'Commandments for Women' and 'Principles for Women'.

　　The pitiful women, who were delicate like flowers and precious as jade from Prince Xu's harem, were all scolded stupid. Before they had recovered from the attack that caused them to lose favor, another bolt from the blue sky came for them, making them completely incapable of holding on anymore!

　　The Emperor's admonishment was no small matter. It was a stain that remained for the rest of their lives. Not only did it affect themselves, it also influenced the reputation of their families and the future marriages of their sisters. The only thing to rejoice about was that the Emperor's decree did not mention anyone by name. Thus, it would be difficult for any one of them to be held accountable. In this way, they were able to barely comfort themselves. Only, while they had pa.s.sed the days trembling in fear in the past, now, they had to be even more cautious, as if walking on thin ice.

　　Prince Xu Tu's rear court was enshrouded in a gloomy and depressed atmosphere. No one knew where this unexpected calamity had come from. However, the way of Heaven was difficult to fathom. They could only force themselves to accept it. Meanwhile, the Emperor's baffling action brought forth a spirited discussion amongst the people of the Capital but also scared them witless. Some people believed that Xu Tu, being too domineering and loose, had offended the Emperor and was thus spurned by him. Others believed that there was more to the story and that the Emperor's actions held another deeper meaning—as for what that deeper meaning was, that depended on who you asked.