Langhua: The Codependence of a Prince and His General

Contemplation

"We came looking for a helper, but we ended up leaving with a burden," Hua Yuheng said drily once they were back in the safety of Xuanyuan Lang's study.

"Ah Heng!" Xuanyuan Lang's voice was unusually stern. He frowned. "What's wrong with you today? You said I was nervous, but it looks like you're the one who's on edge."

Hua Yuheng opened his mouth to retort. After a brief pause, all that came out was a sigh.

"...Sorry. You're right, I was being too tense."

Xuanyuan Lang watched him closely. He knew that Hua Yuheng's earlier experiences with the palace were less than fun, and he could tell that his friend had not completely shaken off that trauma. Even when they attended classes together, Hua Yuheng was never fully his usual, relaxed self, no matter how much he pretended to be. The way he loosened up whenever they left the palace gates never escaped Xuanyuan Lang's notice.

Even so, he had volunteered to be Xuanyuan Lang's reader-companion.

Suddenly, Xuanyuan Lang felt guilty for snapping at him. He put a hand on Hua Yuheng's arm and tried to sound nonchalant. "I take it you're not very fond of my Sixth Brother?"

"It's not that." Hua Yuheng clicked his tongue. Out of a habit, he tried to run his fingers down his hair like he always did when he was thinking or frustrated, but all he found was the neat crown on his head. Without thinking, he undid his crown and redid his hair into a ponytail. "That feels better."

"Remember to do it up again before you leave," Xuanyuan Lang reminded him. He thought the ponytail suited Hua Yuheng better too, but he was not going to say it. Ah Heng would only grow cocky.

"Yeah, yeah. Where were we again?"

"Dinner will be ready in a quarter of an hour."

"Ooh, what's for— Hey, don't try and distract me!" Hua Yuheng tried to sound angry, but he could not help a smile when he saw Xuanyuan Lang's suppressed laughter. "Sheesh, aren't you being too laidback about this?"

"I don't see why I shouldn't be. Besides, are you sure you should be spending your time on this? The exam's in two weeks, isn't it?"

"That's the thing." Hua Yuheng hesitated, but then he made up his mind. "You've heard the rumors, right? About His Majesty choosing a Crown Prince after the exam."

Xuanyuan Lang nodded. He had been in the court sessions during which the officials had continually pressured the Emperor to make his decision. Emperor Zhong was pushing on sixty now, and he waved away their nagging by saying he wanted to focus on the exam for now. However, rumors around the capital implied that he was seriously thinking about it this time.

"It's a crucial time," Hua Yuheng said with a grimace. "Your Sixth Brother is nice and all, but he's far too innocent. If you bring him out now, he'll only drag you down."

What does it matter? I'm not in the running for Crown Prince, anyway... was what Xuanyuan Lang wanted to say, but he refrained. That was the one thing he and Hua Yuheng could never fully agree on. Yes, even after so many years, he was still running away from it.

In a sense, he could understand why Father kept putting off the decision, too.

Even so...

"I don't want to disappoint Sixth Brother, Ah Heng."

Hua Yuheng was right, of course. As Xuanyuan Rui was now, he would be of no help whatsoever. Even though Xuanyuan Lang was younger, he would probably have to clean up after Xuanyuan Rui's messes for a while. But...

"I want to reach out to him. Like how you reached out to me."

Xuanyuan Lang put his wolf-tassel ornament on the table between them. The silk handkerchief was becoming worse for the wear, so he had kept that away again, but he carried this black jade ornament with him everywhere he went.