BDSMST -Chapter 187 Gu Xuan’s Little “Spy”

The atmosphere at home returned to its usual calm after the Second Prince’s envoy departed.

Gu Yan no longer stayed constantly on edge. Jiang Suisui’s clever handling had eased half of his worry. The other half, however, was entirely focused on the upcoming remote “treatment” and closely monitoring the political situation in the capital.

Adults have their battlefields; children have theirs too.

Gu Xuan had recently been troubled.

His third-generation mechanical bird had hit a bottleneck in its agility during flight turns. Sister Bai Ling’er had been busy following Zhang Heng at the shipyard, calculating the load-bearing and flexibility of new batches of timber, leaving little time to help him with his research.

What puzzled him even more was the unusual atmosphere at home.

Though young, he was sharp and perceptive. He could sense a tense energy between his parents a few days ago. Only after the white-powdered Chief Eunuch Liu from the capital had left did that tension gradually dissipate.

He had also overheard a conversation between House Steward Wang and Uncle Li.

“…That Second Prince truly doesn’t give up his scheming…”

“Madam’s move was brilliant. He’s left speechless and still has to put on a smile…”

“The capital is just a whirlpool that eats people alive…”

Second Prince? Capital?

Gu Xuan was not unfamiliar with these words. He knew that Emperor Uncle had several sons. The Crown Prince was the eldest, and the Second Prince was apparently called Prince Zhao. He had been to the capital before and didn’t like it. There were high walls everywhere—nowhere near as free as Woniu Village, where he could run across the hills and fields.

He decided that the person called the Second Prince must be a bad man—he had upset his mother.

A seed of curiosity was planted in the little boy’s heart.

That day, he was staring blankly in the courtyard at his mechanical bird, whose wings weren’t very agile yet, when he happened to see Aunt Cai Yue change into ordinary peasant clothing, preparing to leave quietly.

He knew Aunt Cai Yue; she worked for the Crown Princess in the capital and was always mysterious in her comings and goings.

He ran over and tugged at her skirt.

“Aunt Cai Yue, are you going back to the capital?”

Startled, Cai Yue relaxed when she saw it was Gu Xuan. She crouched down and patted his head with a smile. “Yes, Young Master Xuan. Auntie is going back to handle some matters.”

“Is the capital fun?” Gu Xuan asked innocently, blinking his big eyes.

“The capital…” Cai Yue thought for a moment. “It’s very big and bustling, but there are many rules. It’s not as free as our village.”

“Is my Crown Prince brother well?” Gu Xuan asked again, naturally referring to the Crown Prince.

Cai Yue’s smile stiffened slightly, but she quickly returned it to normal. “His Highness is fine. Thank you for your concern, Young Master Xuan.”

It was this brief stiffness that Gu Xuan noticed.

He suspected Aunt Cai Yue was lying. His Crown Prince brother was not well. And the one making him unwell was very likely that bad Second Prince.