Chapter 3093 - 3094: To Be or Not to Be

Chapter 3093: Chapter 3094: To Be or Not to Be

Bai Ruozhu unexpectedly ran into an old classmate. After not seeing each other for years, they sat down and talked about many things, eventually bringing up Hang Shen.

"You probably don’t know, he’s been dead for many years. It’s really a pity," the classmate sighed. After all, he was a childhood friend, and there was some wistfulness when mentioned.

"Dead?" Bai Ruozhu was so shocked that her eyes widened, "How did he die?"

"I have a relative who was a colleague of his dad, otherwise I wouldn’t know about this. It’s said that he had a heart problem and had to undergo surgery, otherwise, he wouldn’t have lived past sixteen. He transferred schools to go to Beijing for surgery, but unfortunately, it failed," the classmate said.

Bai Ruozhu was unable to recover for a long time, the shock in her heart refusing to subside for a while.

So Hang Shen left for surgery. It turned out that he wasn’t ignoring her on purpose; he just couldn’t reach out.

But why was he so foolish to never mention a word of it?

Was it because he didn’t like others to see him weak, or did he not want her to worry?

Past memories surged in like a tide; she could hardly hear the rest of what the classmate was saying. Her mind was filled with the image of that clean and bright-smiling boy and the look on his face when he charged forward to fight for her without hesitation.

His heart wasn’t well, how could he fight for her?

Later, she didn’t go to Hang Shen’s memorial. She didn’t dare to look at his tombstone because that would mean accepting that her classmate was right, that Hang Shen was dead. She preferred to believe he was somewhere out there in the world, living happily, possibly graduated from college, studying abroad, or perhaps already working hard in society, starting a new future.

"Ruozhu?" Jiang Yichun called her again, with a hint of doubt in his eyes.

The prince politely nodded towards the two, gesturing for them to sit down.

"Your Highness invites the two distinguished guests to sit and have some milk tea. I wonder if it suits your taste?" said the maid behind the prince. Her voice was crisp, her accent clear, sounding much more like a standard Zhongyuan accent than a Western Regions dialect.

Bai Ruozhu unintentionally glanced at her more intently. She looked about sixteen or seventeen, with rosy lips, white teeth, and bright, lively eyes. She seemed like a clever girl.

"Thank you, Your Highness, we should certainly adapt to local customs," Bai Ruozhu replied.

The maid made a gesture to the prince that resembled sign language, possibly a set of customary signals they’d become accustomed to using.

Bai Ruozhu took a discreet look at the prince. She finally regained some calm, but upon seeing the prince’s brows and eyes again, she became agitated.

They were exactly the same. Could it be that Hang Shen, after his demise years back, had transmigrated here?

If he truly were Hang Shen, would he recognize her?

They were only fifteen when they parted, and some changes come with growing up. She still looked like her past self, but because of the Space Pool and Hot Spring, she’s preserved herself exceptionally well. The ugly duckling she was at fifteen was no longer there.

I don’t know if the prince realized something or detected her gaze; he looked over at her.

Bai Ruozhu was taken aback and wanted to avert her gaze in panic, but when she met his eyes, she froze.

Those were such clear, immaculate, and pure eyes. How could a child growing up in the Imperial Palace possess eyes unsullied by worldly affairs?

The Hang Shen she remembered did not have such eyes; could it be a mere coincidence, and not that Hang Shen transmigrated?

But if Gao Zhou could transmigrate, and Tang Feng could transmigrate, then perhaps Hang Shen could too.

Her mind was chaotic, and she instinctively took a small sip of the milk tea in her hand.

Hot!

She slightly frowned but endured it for the sake of decorum, holding the scorching tea in her mouth and only swallowing it slowly after a while.

Others wouldn’t notice such details, but Jiang Yichun did. Her frown tugged at his heart.

He scrutinized his wife from the corner of his eye, puzzled by her unusual behavior today. Given Ruozhu’s calm demeanor, this wasn’t typical. Did something about this prince concern her?

The prince and maid both looked at them eagerly, and Bai Ruozhu realized they needed to explain their sudden visit.

She put down the teacup, nodded slightly at the prince, and politely said, "We came here concerning trade with the Western Regions. Encountering such an unforeseen circumstance, we are at a loss. The Palace officials can’t make definitive decisions, so we thought we might ask for Your Highness’s plans."

The prince had been watching her face, which made Bai Ruozhu a little uneasy, though his eyes were so pure, there seemed no ulterior motive.

She quickly realized the prince had been lip-reading. If she spoke too quickly or when looking down, it was hard for him to follow, hence he needed the maid to help explain.

In hindsight, whenever the maid spoke to him, her speech was slower, and her words were enunciated clearly.

Bai Ruozhu silently criticized herself for being distracted and not considering his difficulty. She bowed again, repeated her words, but this time in a softer voice, with slower speech and more discernible mouth movements.

The prince’s eyes widened slightly, seemingly amazed at her cleverness. Once he understood her words, his lips curled into a polite smile.

His smile was sincere, yet having just cried, his eyes were still red, which made him only more endearing.

Bai Ruozhu glimpsed that shadow of the boy once again.

But then the prince shook his head, his eyes reddened again, tears nearly brimming, yet he held them back forcefully.

The sudden death of his father-king was a truth he likely couldn’t yet accept.

He made a gesture to the maid, who promptly bowed to Bai Ruozhu and said, "Madam, His Highness says he does not involve himself in worldly affairs and cannot do much."

Such eyes indeed seemed detached from the world, yet the Royal Family is ruthless. Once the second prince assumes the throne, this palace might not be a place for him.

Knowing they couldn’t delay any longer, Bai Ruozhu looked at the prince and asked, "In fact, there’s another matter I would like to inquire about, is that convenient?"

The prince glanced at the maid nearby and nodded to Bai Ruozhu, indicating that the maid was trustworthy.

"I wish to borrow a treasure from the Royal Family to save a life. It will be returned after use," Bai Ruozhu said in a lowered voice, mindfully slowing her speech.

The prince shook his head and gestured for the maid to bring pen and paper. Unexpectedly, he used a homemade charcoal pencil rather than the popular brush!

Bai Ruozhu’s heart skipped a beat. Only modern people preferred charcoal pencils over brushes. Was he truly transmigrated?

The prince wrote a line on the paper:

I don’t have the key to the treasure vault; my father always carried it. I’m sorry, I can’t help you.

"Doesn’t Your Highness want to ask what treasure it is?" Bai Ruozhu asked, looking at him.

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