The curve of Yi Zhixie's lips widened, his smile growing even more radiant. "Naturally, it's because I want to teach a disobedient person a lesson."
Sima Zhu swallowed. "I didn't..."
Yi Zhixie's mouth opened, cutting off Sima Zhu's words, and continued, "Disobey?"
Upon hearing this, Sima Zhu nodded vehemently.
Yi Zhixie reached out and gently patted his head. "Be good. Just don't have any improper thoughts, otherwise, I won't be so easy to talk to."
Sima Zhu nodded repeatedly.
It wasn't until Yi Zhixie walked back and sat down that Sima Zhu truly felt relieved.
He was truly afraid.
He had only just learned the details of the morning from a young eunuch who followed Jiang Yubao, and in such a short time, things had turned out like this.
Yi Zhixie paid no mind to what Sima Zhu was thinking. At this moment, he was impatient.
"Your Majesty, where is the person?"
Yi Zhixie's voice seemed to be squeezed from between his teeth, yet his expression was calm, as if he hadn't been the one speaking with gritted teeth just moments ago.
Sima Zhu swallowed, stuttering, "I have already sent people to bring him back. He should be here soon."
Yi Zhixie looked at Sima Zhu for a long time after hearing this, then nodded, indicating he had understood.
Sima Zhu thought he could finally relax, but unexpectedly, Yi Zhixie was still in front of him, his face mere inches from his own, no more than ten centimeters away.
Sima Zhu gazed at Yi Zhixie blankly, never realizing before that the Grand Tutor was such a great beauty.
Sensing the shift in Sima Zhu's gaze, a flash of killing intent flickered in Yi Zhixie's eyes.
If it weren't for the fact that killing Sima Zhu would make Sima Han's enthronement illegitimate, he wouldn't mind practicing his skills and letting Sima Zhu know what the consequences of harboring such thoughts would be.
For a moment, Sima Zhu felt that Yi Zhixie was a bit different, but when he looked closely, Yi Zhixie had already turned and walked back to his original seat.
Watching Yi Zhixie sit on the wooden chair, one arm resting on the armrest, his wrist casually supporting his delicate chin.
He sat there quietly, his eyelids lowered, obscuring his peach blossom eyes, yet exuding an air of mystery.
This kind of Yi Zhixie made Sima Zhu's heart throb with desire.
Before, it was entirely because of the Empress Dowager that he had found Yi Zhixie extremely disagreeable.
But this close contact had made him realize that Yi Zhixie was, in every aspect, no less than that little beauty Shen Xiaoyan.
Thinking of this, Sima Zhu's heart bloomed with joy.
This year was truly a good year, with two peerless beauties appearing before him so unexpectedly.
If he didn't accept them, wouldn't he be letting down the heavens' favor?
The Hall of Diligent Governance was exceptionally quiet. There had never been many people to begin with, and now with Yi Zhixie silent, Sima Zhu lost in his own fantasies, and Sima Hao staring at Yi Zhixie in shock, the room was eerily silent.
This silence lasted until Wang Lin's arrival.
Wang Lin, head bowed, his body slightly hunched, quickly walked in.
He first paid his respects to Sima Zhu, Sima Hao, and Yi Zhixie, then stood and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty, the person has been brought. He is waiting outside."
Sima Zhu smiled upon hearing this. "Quickly bring him in."
Wang Lin bowed and retreated, only to re-enter a moment later.
This time, three people followed behind him.
The two on the sides were guards, and the one in the middle was a ragged old man.
The old man's hair was messy, covering his face, making it impossible to see what he looked like.
Sima Zhu frowned upon seeing this. "Brush the hair away from his face. I can't see anything."
"Yes."
Wang Lin agreed, turned, walked to the old man, and brushed the hair away from his face, gradually revealing the old man's visage.
Yi Zhixie had also been watching Wang Lin's actions intently. Now, seeing the old man's face revealed, he quickly looked closely.
He had only met the old man once, so he couldn't quite remember what he looked like.
Just as Yi Zhixie was carefully identifying him, the old man cried out joyfully.
"It's you, young man! Don't you recognize this old man? You still owe me fifteen pots of Golden Osmanthus wine! That wine is truly delicious, though a bit strong. I drank two pots in one go and got drunk. Who knew that after waking up from a drunken nap, I'd see you again? This can't be a dream, can it? No, dreams can't be this real! I felt someone hitting and kicking me just now..."
As the old man babbled on, Wang Lin immediately signaled the two guards to cover the old man's mouth, preventing him from speaking further.
Before Wang Lin could even report, the old man had already broken free from the guards' grasp.
"I say, young man, why aren't you speaking? We're acquaintances, aren't we? You even know my little disciple, and you seem to have a good relationship with him. Why do you see me being bullied and not say a word to help?"
The old man's scolding sounded entirely reasonable.
But he failed to notice that because of his words, Yi Zhixie's face had turned somewhat unpleasant.
To actually speak up for Shen Xiaoyan.
Yi Zhixie clenched his fists, truly wanting to go up and beat this person to vent his anger.
But thinking of Shen Xiaoyan lying at home, unconscious, Yi Zhixie had to suppress this thought for now.
When Shen Xiaoyan woke up, there would be plenty of time to deal with him.
With this thought, Yi Zhixie stood up and approached the befuddled old man. "Come with me."
After speaking, Yi Zhixie looked back at Sima Zhu. "Your Majesty, I bid farewell."
Sima Zhu really wanted to keep Yi Zhixie for a meal, so he could understand what Yi Zhixie liked to eat.
However, looking at Yi Zhixie's increasingly impatient expression, he might explode at any moment. It was truly unnecessary to speak up now.
Therefore, Sima Zhu generously waved his hand. "You may go."
Upon hearing this, Yi Zhixie didn't hesitate. He grabbed the befuddled old man by his robe and walked out. As he passed Sima Hao, he deliberately paused.
"Empress Dowager, from now on, take care of yourself."
This simple sentence infuriated Sima Hao to no end.
Was this how a subject should speak to him?
Who gave him such authority?
But by the time he wanted to reprimand Yi Zhixie, Yi Zhixie had already vanished.
Outside, the murmurs of the palace maids could be heard.
"He's so handsome! With his looks and family background, there must be no one more handsome than him in this world."
As soon as this sentence was uttered, laughter erupted from outside.
Some young palace maids giggled and discussed Yi Zhixie's identity.
Sima Zhu and Sima Hao in the room listened quietly, and for a moment, the two of them were in perfect unspoken agreement.
Meanwhile, Yi Zhixie, dragging the befuddled old man, reached the palace gate. Without him needing to say anything, a carriage was waiting there.
He took the befuddled old man and directly jumped into the carriage, instructing, "Return as fast as possible."
The coachman agreed, cracked his whip, and the carriage sped off.
Inside the carriage, the befuddled old man looked at Yi Zhixie's taut face, not understanding why he was like this. He figured he would know eventually, so he didn't ask, leaning back against the wooden stool and falling silent.
Yi Zhixie saw the befuddled old man close his eyes, his brows furrowed. Was this old man truly unaware, or was he pretending?
Because Yi Zhixie had requested speed, the coachman drove exceptionally fast. In just over half an hour, they arrived in front of the Four Seas House.
Alighting from the carriage, Yi Zhixie casually took out a piece of silver from his sleeve and gave it to the coachman.
Although this was a carriage arranged by the palace, and the coachman was a young eunuch, it was still his duty.
However, since he was doing work for him, Yi Zhixie certainly wouldn't mistreat him.
After giving the silver to the young eunuch, Yi Zhixie pulled the befuddled old man into the gate.
The young eunuch, receiving such a large sum for the first time, grinned widely, his eyes disappearing in his laughter.
Huo Si happened to be coming out to close the door and saw the young eunuch still standing there foolishly. He kindly said, "Quickly put it away and go back. If others see it, be careful of being targeted."
The young eunuch's expression immediately became alert. After hiding the money, he looked at Huo Si gratefully, whispered a thank you, and quickly drove the carriage away.
If he returned late, he would certainly be punished.
Watching the young eunuch drive away quickly, Huo Si sighed, shook his head, and closed the door.
He was also a pitiable child, looking about the same age as Shunzi, yet he had entered the palace to become a young eunuch.
In that deep palace, even a blade of grass had eighteen twists and turns, let alone those who were truly astute.
The suffering endured by the young eunuchs in the palace was beyond imagination.
However, it was all fate.
Everyone had their own destiny. He was merely a servant, powerless to sigh over such things, and could only offer a reminder when he saw it.
What happened at the gate was naturally unknown to anyone else.
Yi Zhixie, dragging the befuddled old man, walked quickly, directly into the backyard, and headed towards the Shian Courtyard.
Upon entering the gate of the Shian Courtyard, Yi Zhixie finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Now, he wasn't afraid of the old man suddenly running away.
He had merely stopped for a moment when the befuddled old man plopped down on the ground, patting the floor incessantly. "You young man, how can you be so disrespectful to elders? I'm this old, and you don't even wait for me, but you even dragged me all the way here. Do you know that my old bones are about to fall apart?"
Hearing the befuddled old man's scolding, Yi Zhixie let out a chuckle.
It seemed this old man truly had no idea what was going on.
Did he still think that Yi Zhixie had brought him back to treat him to wine?
Before Yi Zhixie could answer, a shadow suddenly rushed out from the main room.
Because of the speed, it was impossible to see who it was or what they looked like. By the time everything became clear, this person had already reached them.
Of course, "this person" referred to the befuddled old man.
He had seen clearly, but he didn't recognize the person.
As for Yi Zhixie, without even looking, he knew it had to be Zheng Wei. Besides him, no one else would react so excitedly upon hearing the befuddled old man's voice.
Yi Zhixie reached out and pulled the befuddled old man up from the ground. Before the old man could stand steady, he said, "Tell me, what's so strange about the bracelet you gave? Why is Mimi still in a daze and hasn't woken up?"
The old man, having finally stood up, heard Zheng Wei's urgent question and replied blankly, "Who is Mimi?"
Yi Zhixie, seeing that Zheng Wei was on the verge of an outburst, kindly reminded him, "It's your disciple."
The old man then realized. He remembered that his little disciple was called Shen Xiaoyan, wasn't he?
Why was he called Mimi?
Looking at the man on the verge of exploding before him, the befuddled old man instantly understood. This must be a courtesy name that the man in front of him had given to Shen Xiaoyan.
"Um, may I ask, what exactly happened to my little disciple?"
Upon hearing the befuddled old man's question, Zheng Wei's gaze instantly became incredibly sharp. As he looked at the old man, even Yi Zhixie felt that if his gaze could turn into a sharp sword, it would definitely cleave the old man into countless pieces.