EMPRESS LIU

~FIVE~

Liu Changsheng went to the daily market again today. Today too he is walking aimlessly as he always does. But today he has an ulterior motive. He finally walked up to the front of the restaurant run by Hua Feng, Fu Lian Canting. Making it look like an unintended coincidence Liu Changsheng enters the restaurant and sits at one of the corner tables.

Hua Lao Bai saw Liu Changsheng sitting at the far end of the restaurant at a window facing seat but didn't say anything. Being the good restaurant owner he is, he sent a wait staff to the table and observes what the troublemaker young master does.

Just a month back they had a conflict over some very silly staff in this very restaurant. To be honest it was the young master Liu who made it worse. They were on good terms before, but now they aren't even on speaking terms.

Hua Lao Bai saw Liu Changsheng saying something to the ears of his waiter and then hands him a silver. His face didn't show anything at all. If you ask him Hua Feng would say he's well versed in the art of reading people. But this Liu Changsheng right now he sees isn't showing anything on his face. Even he's very good at concealing his eyes.

Hua Feng realised that the Liu Changsheng he knows isn't the one that was sitting in his restaurant today.

The waiter came and informed him that the customer requested the presence of the Lao Bai and ordered rose wine.

Liu Changsheng was looking outside absentmindedly playing with the tassel of his blue fan. There was a peony tree standing at the inner courtyard of the inn next to the restaurant. The inn is also owned by Hua Lao Bai.

Peony had quite a great significance in Liu Changsheng's heart. His love, his confession to the fourth prince, everything revolved around peony blossoms. In his courtyard in the imperial palace he had a peony. That tree was his solace throughout his life in the palace. At times he would spend sleepless nights sitting under it playing the xiao.

"Gong Zi looks lost in thought. My apologies for interrupting." Hua Feng places a tray of traditional rose wine in ceramic pot and two cups.

"Hua Lao Bai." Liu Changsheng gives a smile to the owner of the restaurant.

"My staff says young master requested my presence. May I ask, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Hua Feng says with a calculating look in his face.

"First of all, I wanted to apologize to Hua Lao Bai because of the silly conflict I created between us. If possible, please forgive this ignorant person and I hope we can walk beyond that."

Liu Changsheng was just a sixteen years old boy and Hua Feng was a twenty-one years old man. So Hua Feng always thought of him as a younger brother. But after the incident between them he thought nothing about the third young master other than childish and a nuisance. But the way he apologized make Hua Feng realised there's more to this young master than meets the eye.

The smile that was calculating changed into a genuine one.

"Can I call you Hua Xiong then?"

"Of course, Liu Xiong."

That night after dinner while walking around by the riverbank a smirk was plastered on Liu Changsheng's face. He thought he did his part in saving his only friend's life. Now he just have to wait and let time work its magic.

He started playing with the xiao in his hand, spinning it around with his fingers. He was thinking about what happened around this time in his past life. Back then his father was an influential man but just because he was a merchant and Liu Changsheng became the Xiang Wangfei the old merchant had to face some backlash.

It was around the springtime when the emperor's messenger came to offer a marriage union for the fourth prince with the youngest son of the Liu household. Liu Changsheng was around seventeen. The imperial edict was for Liu Changsheng to turn eighteen and after that the marriage would be held.

All his time up until the time of the imperial messenger's arrival Liu Changsheng spent it impressing the fourth prince and trying to make him fall in love. But he didn't know the Xiang Wang was such a fox that after gaining a concubine he would just look away from Liu Changsheng. Not only that he didn't even say anything when Liu Changsheng was taken advantage of by the third marquis Luo Guang. Instead the prince accused him of seducing another man. He cried all night to ask permission to be let into the bedroom but in vein. Left outside all night he spent his night under the peony tree.

A slight inaudible sound was heard from behind Liu Changsheng which alerted him. He kept walking as if giving off the idea that he didn't hear anything. And the sound was heard after a few minutes too.

Liu Gong Zi knew someone was there. Someone was watching him. He just didn't want to imagine what might their intentions be. After he reached the end of the Liu household territory he saw Mu Ling standing alert right at the boundary of the riverside courtyard. Giving him a signal that he can handle it Liu Changsheng stands at the side of the river admiring the beauty of the night glow reflecting on the river.

And at the right time a dagger hidden in his fan flew out to the sound of a slight footstep at the bush a li away. But instantly what he saw made his heart go cold. He knew he won't be spared for injuring a prince.

"Gong Zi is good at the art of hidden weapons I see." The Prince standing a bit away from Liu Changsheng said while wiping the blood from his jawline. The small dagger grazed a part of skin in the jawline of the prince. The fourth prince produced a very small thin dagger in his hand to third young master Liu. "I believe this is yours, Liu Gong Zi. The day I saved you from the bandits i wouldn't have believed the beauty can handle a weapon like this too."

Liu Changsheng just looks at him with an unreadable expression. He didn't want to be punished. He wasn't trying to get the Xiang Wang's attention either. Then why is the fourth prince suddenly interested in him? Why is he following an insignificant youngest son of a mere merchant?

So he kneels.

Here goes a new chapter guys! I hope you like it! It's a random one! And in this life finally Liu Changsheng met the fourth prince face to face! What do you think he would do?

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