Chapter 76 Reconciliation

Chapter 76: Making Up

"Lu Jiming, what you owe me, you'll have to repay with a lifetime," Wei Yan murmured into Lu Jiming's ear.

"And what about you?" Lu Jiming looked down at Wei Yan, feeling a strange sense of calm. "Did you come to get back at me?"

"I came to repay what I owe you," Wei Yan said, his eyes resting on the sleeping A-Luan.

"You don't owe me anything," Lu Jiming replied.

"That's not for you to decide," Wei Yan thought to himself. Was he really as good to Lu Jiming as Lu Jiming believed? Not necessarily.

If he hadn't stubbornly imprisoned Lu Jiming in the inner palace back then, if he had simply maintained a normal monarch-minister relationship with him, how could Lu Jiming have been trapped for a lifetime?

He was the cage from which Lu Jiming could never break free, and his bloodline had gradually pushed Lu Jiming into a corner.

The high positions and generous salaries that came later were merely his attempts at compensation.

Lu Jiming's originally upright and blameless life had ultimately been destroyed by him and the Lu family together.

"Was he like this when he was first born?" Wei Yan asked affectionately, his finger gently pressing against A-Luan's soft cheek.

Lu Jiming shook his head. "Much smaller."

"I'm sorry I missed it."

"It was my fault you missed it. You had no choice," Lu Jiming said calmly.

"His temper is like yours—stubborn, obstinate, refusing to give up until he hits a wall. He was never nice to me," Wei Yan said. After Lu Jiming's death, A-Luan was brought back to the palace.

Wei Yan hadn't raised A-Luan, but he lived with him later on. Yet A-Luan never accepted him.

"He's just as playful and mischievous as you, but he's good at pretending, always looking well-behaved and obedient, making it impossible to get angry at him," Lu Jiming retorted. He even suspected Wei Yan was talking nonsense—A-Luan wasn't at all like how Wei Yan described.

A-Luan was so well-behaved and sensible; it must have been because Wei Yan didn't put in the effort to get along with him that A-Luan treated him that way.

"I can't argue with you. When he grows up, we'll see slowly whether he looks and acts exactly like you, as if carved from the same mold."

To be perfectly honest, if A-Luan had even the slightest resemblance to him, Wei Yan wouldn't have turned a blind eye and let Lu Jiming parade A-Luan under his nose for twenty years.

As soon as Wei Yan finished speaking, the sleeping A-Luan, for some reason, suddenly woke up and began wailing loudly.

Wei Yan: ...

"What did I tell you!" Wei Yan pointed at his son. "He never gives me a good look."

Lu Jiming, looking helpless, called the wet nurse in. She said A-Luan was probably crying because he needed changing and took him to the side room to change his swaddling clothes.

With only Lu Jiming and Wei Yan left in the room, Wei Yan finally had nothing to hold back. He sat down beside Lu Jiming, wrapping his arms around his waist and leaning against him like a child seeking comfort. "Don't be angry anymore. I really didn't mean to hide it from you. I was just too afraid—afraid that if you knew I was like you, you'd give me even less of a chance."

Actually, Lu Jiming had been truly angry when he first found out. But Wei Yan had been gone all day, and all that initial anger had faded. Now, looking at Wei Yan's handsome face, Lu Jiming couldn't bring himself to get angry at him again.

"How old are you, really?" Lu Jiming asked. He suddenly realized that Wei Yan wasn't the nineteen-year-old youth before him but possibly an old man. The thought of him acting like this was too much to dwell on.

Wei Yan straightened up, looking guilty. "Fifty-eight... if you count the two years since coming back, sixty..."

He was seven years younger than Lu Jiming, but now he was older.

Lu Jiming suddenly reached out and touched the jade crown on Wei Yan's head, sighing. "You didn't live to a hundred either..."

Wei Yan's eyes reddened instantly. "It's been a long time. Neither you nor Father lived to this age."

"Not long enough," Lu Jiming said. "Let's see together what the years we didn't live through are like."

"Okay," Wei Yan said, holding Lu Jiming tighter.

Even though he had been back in this era for so long, Wei Yan felt that only now, at this moment, did he truly have Lu Jiming.

If only he had told him everything sooner.

Lu Jiming might have forgiven him long ago, just as he had long stopped hating Lu Jiming.

Love lasts longer than hate.

As the sky grew dark, a servant from the kitchen came in to report that the dumpling fillings were ready and asked if Lu Jiming still wanted to make dumplings.

"Of course," Lu Jiming said. "Where's Zhifei?" Only now did he realize Ning Zhifei was missing.

"Yan Huai took him to watch the fireworks," Wei Yan said. "Those two have always been like that."

Lu Jiming finally asked Wei Yan the question that had been on his mind: "Was Zhifei really willing?"

"Why wouldn't he be?" Wei Yan asked. He didn't think Yan Huai, with his martial skills, could force Ning Zhifei to do anything.

"Then why in the previous life..." Ning Zhifei had served as Yan Huai's guard for so long without any official status. Until Lu Jiming's death, almost no one knew who the young master of the Marquis of Cheng'an's household was born to.

Wei Yan shook his head. Lu Jiming didn't know whether he was unwilling to say or simply didn't know.

The kitchen brought the dumpling wrappers and fillings on a small tray to Lu Jiming's bed. The cook demonstrated one for Lu Jiming, and then Lu Jiming leaned by the window, clumsily making dumplings with Wei Yan.

Both were beginners, with little talent in the kitchen. Their dumplings were misshapen and crooked. In the end, they couldn't boil them and had to steam them instead.

"If only we had called Yin San over to make them," Wei Yan said disdainfully, picking up one of his dumplings with chopsticks.

Mentioning Yin Yuxie reminded Lu Jiming of something. He asked, "So the person secretly following Yin San before was also sent by you?" Back then, to save Yin Yuxie, Lu Jiming had Ning Jia follow him. Ning Jia said she noticed someone of unknown identity also tailing Yin Yuxie.

"Yes, I had Xiao Shi follow him. Since I've been reborn, I couldn't just watch him die," Wei Yan said. "You always say you're cold and heartless, but as soon as you came back, even when you didn't know what to do, you still thought of saving Yin San."

Lu Jiming smiled. He had his own motives for saving Yin San—he wanted to see if the future could really be changed. He wasn't as pure-hearted as Wei Yan.

Seeing Lu Jiming didn't respond, Wei Yan didn't press further. Instead, he said, "Let's not talk about Yin San. You still haven't told me what A-Luan's name really means."

Now that he had reconciled with Lu Jiming, Wei Yan finally had the time to ponder what Lu Jiming had said earlier. He really wanted to know what hidden meaning lay in A-Luan's name that he didn't know about.

"You'll know when you see the goldenrain tree this autumn."

Wei Yan thought to himself, it's not like he had never seen a goldenrain tree before. If he couldn't figure it out back then, how could he possibly see it this year? That didn't make sense.

But Lu Jiming insisted on not saying, only telling Wei Yan to wait until autumn.

Wei Yan closed his eyes and thought. The goldenrain tree, autumn... Suddenly, an idea struck him. He felt he had figured something out and smiled at Lu Jiming.

After finishing the dumplings together, it was inconvenient to travel at night, so they stayed at the Lu residence. Wei Yan had to go to the imperial tombs in the outskirts of the capital early the next morning to pay respects to his ancestors.

Mentioning paying respects to ancestors reminded Lu Jiming of the one in Cide Palace. Yesterday had been too chaotic, and he didn't know what had happened afterward. So, Lu Jiming asked Wei Yan about it.

Wei Yan gritted his teeth. "Dead, deader than dead." The Empress Dowager had torn apart the last shred of decency between him and his father. Wei Yan was utterly disappointed in him, and whatever little affection remained was gone.

"Can it be kept secret?" Lu Jiming asked.

"Relax, if I can't keep this a secret, then I might as well have wasted two lifetimes on the throne for nothing," Wei Yan said. "The Empress Dowager originally claimed to be critically ill to lure you to Cide Palace. Now everyone in the palace knows she's critically ill, so I don't need to do anything... Since the New Year hasn't passed yet, we won't announce the death until after the Lantern Festival."

After finishing the matter about the Empress Dowager, Wei Yan asked Lu Jiming, "What about your father..."

Lu Jiming nodded. He had cut ties with the Lu family, and after his second uncle came to the capital only to meet such a fate, the entire Lu family probably wanted to steer clear of him. That's why no one had come to inform him of his father's death in this life.

"Don't be sad," Wei Yan comforted him.

Lu Yuanye was different from the Empress Dowager. Wei Yan had little affection for the Empress Dowager, but Lu Jiming was truly raised by Lu Yuanye. Lu Yuanye's death was bound to sadden Lu Jiming somewhat.

"I got my crying done in my last life. There's nothing to be sad about now," Lu Jiming said.

You can't spend your whole life clinging to the pain caused by parents after turning forty. Lu Jiming had let go of many things. He felt no hatred or love for Lu Yuanye. Knowing he was dead stirred something inside him, but that was all—nothing more.

The next day, Wei Yan went to the imperial mausoleum to pay respects to their ancestors, while Lu Jiming took A-Luan and Ning Zhifei back to the palace. Ning Zhifei didn't ask why Lu Jiming had left the palace the day before or why he was returning today. He simply followed him obediently.

Lu Jiming asked where Yan Huai had taken him yesterday. Ning Zhifei mentioned a city tower where the two of them sat and watched fireworks for half the night. It got too late, so they spent the night with the guards at the base of the tower.

Lu Jiming didn't press further. Ning Zhifei was still young, and nothing significant would happen with Yan Huai for now, so it wasn't worth worrying about.

Still, he was afraid Ning Zhifei might get hurt, unsure whether Ning Zhifei had been willing in his previous life. But at Ning Zhifei's age, asking about his feelings for Yan Huai felt odd and unnecessary, so Lu Jiming said nothing more.

Until the Lantern Festival, Wei Yan was busy with various celebrations and rituals, while Lu Jiming rested peacefully in the palace. His body had been well cared for in this life, leaving no lingering issues. By the day of the Lantern Festival, Lu Jiming was already full of energy.

Wei Yan finished everything on his schedule early, setting aside an entire day to celebrate Lu Jiming's birthday.

The plan was well thought out. Since Lu Jiming couldn't leave the palace, they would gather friends and family in the heated pavilion behind the imperial garden. Yin Yuxie would cook, Huan Zixiao would paint fans for everyone, and Wei Xuan had even prepared a troupe of performers.

They had just taken their seats when Cui Chi approached Wei Yan, whispering that Chen Yiqing had somehow heard the news of the Empress Dowager's critical condition and likely demise. Last night, while the guards weren't looking, he had hurled himself against a wall. Fortunately, he was discovered in time and survived, but he was still causing trouble, demanding to see the Empress Dowager.

"Let him be," Wei Yan said unhappily. He had nothing to say to Chen Yiqing. Since the Empress Dowager was already dead, he couldn't possibly let him see the corpse.

Lu Jiming narrowed his eyes and smiled. "Why don't I go see him... The Empress Dowager targeted me so many times for his sake, and I haven't met this person since I came back."