The Devil of Scarlet Rain

Chapter 40 - Locked in the Golden Cage (Part 1)

Yin He strode into the main hall and saw a lady sitting on a divan by the window. She was dressed in a plain off-white silk dress and wore a few simple pearl ornaments on her hair. Seemingly in her late forties, the crinkles on her eyes were visible, yet despite the sight of aging and simple dressing, it did not diminish her beauty. Instead, her simplicity brought out her alluring natural features. This woman was clearly a great beauty in her younger days.

In her hand held a thin needle threaded with bright yellow yarn, as she worked nimby with her slender fingers around the embroidery hoop. She was extremely focused in her task that she did not hear Yin He coming in. The other person halted at the doorway and watched her silently. There was an unusual solemn expression on his face.

The lady let out a few coughs, and a palace maid quickly served a cup of warm water to her. Yin He quickly wiped his serious expression off when the maid turned around and caught sight of him. Initially, she wanted to greet him, but she paused when she saw him gesturing at her to keep quiet. Realizing what he intended to do, the maid revealed a small smile and nodded tactfully before retreating a few steps away. Yin He tiptoed over and stopped right behind the lady who was still unaware of his arrival. The was a mischievous smile on his face as he bent down and whispered gently into her ears.

"What are you embroidering with such deep concentration?" His voice was as deep and soothing as the autumn lake.

The lady gasped in surprise as she dropped the embroidery hoop on the floor with a thud. Whirling around abruptly, she saw a dashing lad beaming at her gleefully. The pair of eyes had shaped into a beautiful crescent moon shape, and the pupils glistened brightly back at her. It took her a few second to fully recover from her shock, and her brows immediately knitted tightly together. She pursed her lips in displeasure.

Glaring at Yin He, she chastised, "Brat, you are already so old yet still so mischievous! You almost scared your mother out of her wits!"

Yin He burst into a hearty laughter as he strode over and picked up the embroidery hoop from the floor. Then he casually sat down next to her.

"Mother, you need to be more alert next time." He gave her an extremely innocent look before continuing, "What if it is some bad people who sneaked up on you instead?"

Yin He did not greet his mother, Lady Fang as per the royal etiquette, but instead addressed her as how a commoner would call his own mother. This was because Lady Fang did not have any royal tittle granted to her by the late emperor, even though her son, Yin He was a royal prince granted with the highest honour rank in the royal court.

Lady Fang did not come from any noble family or affluent clan from the Empire. In fact, she was just a commoner who roamed in the pugilist world. Rumours had it that she met the late emperor many years ago when he was still a young prince. They fell in love and had Yin He. Unfortunately, he left shortly when Yin He was barely a year-old baby to return to the capital of Yin.

It was many years later after the late Emperor had ascended to the throne that he came back to look for Lady Fang and Yin He. When he finally found the pair of mother and son, the late Emperor wanted to grant a noble tittle to Lady Fang and brought her back to the Imperial Palace. However, Lady Fang refused adamantly. Hence, in the end, the late Emperor was only able to bring the young Yin He back to the capital city to claim his rightful place as part of the royal family, while Lady Fang decisively remained to live in seclusion away from the Yin capital city. Yin He was almost thirteen years old when he was brought back to the capital city. It was many years later that Lady Fang moved back to the capital city to be with him.

There was an occasion when the current Emperor, Yin Long had suggested to grant Lady Fang a royal tittle in appreciation for Yin He's contribution, because Yin He had extended his support to him during the fierce fight for the throne. Before ascending to the throne, the current Emperor, Yin Long was not a favoured prince, but with the help of Yin He, he managed to turn the tide over against the formidable crown prince. This was also the main reason why Yin He held a lot of power in the royal court today. As for the idea of granting royal tittle to Lady Fang, it was rejected firmly by both mother and son. Considering that the late Emperor had also respected her wish to remain as a commoner, the current Emperor did not force his will on her. Eventually this topic had never been brought up again, and everyone in the Imperial Palace only greeted her as Lady Fang.

"Why would anyone want to kidnap me, you foolish child!" Lady Fang chided in exasperation.

"Why not? My mother is so pretty!" Yin He teased playfully as he leaned back on the divan. Lady Fang could only shake her head at him in disapproval.

"Keep those sweet words of yours for the young ladies. Don't waste it on your mother. If you would just put your heart to it, then I would have been a grandmother now." Lady Fang grumbled. Yin He pretended not to hear her words as he turned to look attentively at the embroidery hoop in his hand and commented, "Mother, your workmanship has really improved!"

Seeing the other was trying to avoid the topic, Lady Fang ignored his half-hearted comment. She turned to the palace maid who had walked over to her side and instructed her to quickly bring up some of Yin He's favourite tea and pastries. The maid curtsied and left to prepare.

Turning her attention back to Yin He, she snatched the hoop back from him grumpily. Giving him a glance from the corner of her eyes, she remarked, "You seem to be in a good mood today."

Hearing her words, Yin He looked at her with slight surprise and asked, "Was it that obvious?"

"I am your Mother. I could tell from your face."

She tilted her head at him and asked, "Could it be that... you have met a girl that caught your interest?"

At the thought of it, Lady Fang could not hide the hopefulness in her voice. Her eyes glistened brightly as she peered at Yin He with anticipation. Seeing his mother's palpable excitement, Yin He let out a soft chuckle, as he shook his head helplessly.

"Mother, don't think too much. It is just that I won a bet with Zhong Yu."

"A bet? What did you guys bet on?"

There was a momentarily pause as Yin He recalled something, and the corner of his lips gradually lifted. After much anticipation, he finally said, "A bet on whether an injured little fox that I picked up will survive or not."

Lady Fang gaped, "Little fox?"

"Yes. An extremely fierce little fox that I picked up during hunting. I saw that it was quite pitiful, so decided to help it." Yin He lazily said as he picked up a pastry that was just been served up and took a small bite out of it.

Lady Fang pressed her lips together and looked at Yin He quietly. Somehow, she felt that her son was simply making up a story to entertain her. Seeing her brooding expression, Yin He let out a soft chuckle, and swiftly changed the subject.

"Mother, did you finish all the supplements I sent? I will ask Bai Qin to send another batch to you tomorrow."

Still sulking, Lady Fang shook her head and muttered under her breath, "You should stop sending all those expensive herbs to me. My storeroom can hardly keep anything nowadays."

Yin He slapped his folding fan on his forehead and vexed, "Those are to be consumed. Why are you even keeping them in the storeroom?"

Lady Fang subconsciously lifted her hand to cover her mouth when she realized the slip of her tongue. When she avoided his eyes and lowered her head, Yin He immediately turned his attention to the palace maid standing by her side. He asked sternly, "Bai Shu, is mother taking the supplements I sent over?"

The young maid called Bai Shu had a very bright pair of eyes, and a sweet docile face. When she heard Yin He's question, she replied promptly, "Previously the Empress had also sent over a lot of expensive herbs, so the batch of supplements from my lord is still being kept in the storeroom."

Yin He's face turned dark and his gaze narrowed dangerously as he repeated after the servant.

"The Empress?"