After the wrong flirtation, I became the villain's favorite

It was nearly dusk, and the setting sun was as red as blood, dyeing half of Guangwu Mountain red.

Smoke from cooking fires rose from the hillside, and a big yellow dog led the way. The villagers finished their day's work and headed home with their hoes on their shoulders. They had simple smiles on their faces and greeted each other, as if they had no worries or troubles.

There are lush forests and bamboos on the mountain, gurgling water, and the sound of the bell from the ancient temple, melodious and solemn, echoing in the mountains. The sound is deafening, as if it can wash away all the troubles of the world.

The young emperor's face was shrouded in the sunset, half light and half dark. He stood quietly on the top of the mountain, looking out at the village below. There was smoke curling up, and the place was peaceful and tranquil. An inexplicable throbbing surged in his heart.

He turned and looked at the temple behind him. The temple was filled with smoke and monks were chanting piously.

He walked into the temple and came to the main hall, where he saw a man in a monk's robe sitting on a cushion with his eyes closed in meditation.

The man was Xiao Xuan. His face was calm and serene, as if he had transcended the hustle and bustle of the world.

The young emperor walked silently to his side, staring at him quietly, with mixed feelings in his heart.

He thought of the past, how they had fought side by side and conquered the world together. However, who could have imagined that they would be in such a position now?

There is a faint scent of sandalwood and the sound of chanting in the hall.

Although the person in front of me is still that familiar figure, there is an unbridgeable distance between us.

He once knew this man so well, but now he found that he knew nothing about him.

As the eldest son of the emperor, what does Xiao Xuan want in his life?

He once thought that what he was seeking was the throne, and later he thought that what he was seeking was stability in the north and peace in the world.

Later, no one knew what Xie Tan was seeking, as he became a monk when the throne was within his grasp.

Xiao Xuan was not like this when he left the palace...

Now, he has become a monk wearing robes and holding Buddhist beads.

His eyes revealed a kind of otherworldly calmness and loneliness.

"Master Jingxuan?" Xie Tan whispered the name, as if trying to find some familiar traces from this strange name.

However, this title only made him feel more confused and lost.

The situation was complicated at the time, and Xiao Xuan's life was almost hanging by a thread. He had a narrow escape, and before he could recover, he became disillusioned with the world, and quietly became a monk, hiding his identity and following the ancient Buddha.

I have wanted to see him since I ascended the throne.

Now that he saw Xiao Xuan in person, Xie Tan couldn't help but feel a little sad.

How could the eldest prince, who was once full of vigor and vitality and had a noble and handsome appearance, become the thin and hunchbacked monk in front of him... He seemed to have aged in an instant.

"Amitabha, what can I do for you?" Xiao Xuan spoke slowly.

The voice was still that familiar one, calm and gentle, with a sense of reliability and solidity.

But Xie Tan knew that he was no longer the Xiao Xuan he used to be.

"...I'm sorry." Xie Tan said softly.

"The past is too painful to recall. Now I am in this deep mountain meditating and seeking enlightenment. This is the best fate for us. You don't need to worry about me anymore."

"Why?" Xie Tan asked.

After a long while, Xiao Xuan stopped the Buddhist beads in his hand and said, "I am cultivating their afterlife for them."

Are they... the Crown Princess and his favorite concubine?

"Even if others don't understand, you will definitely understand." Xiao Xuan said again.

Xie Tan had heard of Xiao Xuan's favorite concubine, Wang Wan, the daughter of the former Prime Minister, who had a miserable end.

The Crown Princess' sacrifice in this political struggle now ensured the safety of the entire Eastern Palace.

Xiao Xuan is so deeply in love, but to whom his love and guilt are directed, I am afraid he himself cannot explain it clearly.

When Xiao Xuan closed his eyes, he could see a woman who was thin and helpless, with a frighteningly pale face. She stared at him with a frown, resentful and sad, and asked him again and again: "Who do you love?"

But if you look closely, that face is sometimes Wanniang and sometimes his first wife.

Wanniang’s death made him lose all his life, and he couldn’t save her.

Regret, torment, helplessness.

Su Rou...what she did in the end was a standard choice for a Crown Princess.

As for Su Rou, he respected her, loved her, and felt guilty towards her.

Xiao Xuan was tortured by this dilemma and felt like he was living a life worse than death. He had no choice but to become a monk, hoping to find the answer in the tiny Buddhist teachings.

Xie Tan bowed and squatted in front of Xiao Xuan, "Your son is very good. I will return the throne to him when he comes of age."

"You trust me?"

Xiao Xuan finally raised his eyes and looked at the young emperor in front of him. "A child who falls into the water, has a high fever, or falls from a height has countless possibilities for death."

There are so many people trying to guess the emperor's intentions. As long as the emperor wants, he doesn't need to do it himself, and his subordinates will use countless unexpected methods to take a child's life.

"But he is alive and well." Xiao Xuan said seriously, "Thank you very much."

Hearing Xiao Xuan's words, Xie Tan's hands that were pressing on the altar suddenly relaxed, and the intricate Buddhist carvings left deep marks on his palms.

He believes in him, he believes in him!

Xie Tan seemed to be able to see the glorious years when they had walked side by side in the past from Xiao Xuan’s calm and weary face.

His brother...

Xiao Xuan looked up at the young emperor in front of him. What a similar face.

How had he never noticed it before?

On the day when his sixth brother Xiao Shen forced the emperor to abdicate, his father was poisoned. Xiao Xuan always remembered what his father said when Chen Liang rushed out of the secret passage with the emperor's personal guards.

Protect Xiao Tan.

In terms of relationship, my father would never say such a thing, as he has never met Xiao Tan.

Why on earth?

Later, he was seriously injured and fell into a secret passage. He vaguely saw what his father was saying to Chen Liang before his death.

Later, Chen Liang supported Xie Tan to become emperor.

The moonlight just rose, shining through the tall and dense trees of the ancient temple, making the ground mottled.

There are cicadas chirping and birds singing in my ears, and when I look up I see gods and Buddhas in the sky.

Xiao Xuan did not have any dark thoughts in his mind. After Xie Tan ascended the throne, he did a good job in governing the country.

Before this, several generations of Da Zhao emperors ruled the country with benevolence, which was a bit lukewarm.

As soon as Xie Tan ascended the throne, he was a rare iron-fisted person who eradicated many long-standing problems. For example, he abandoned the malpractice of accepting officials by inheriting the influence of ancestors, emphasized selecting people based on their knowledge and appointing officials based on their talents, broke the monopoly of aristocratic families, and promoted children from poor families.

There is nothing wrong in handing over the country to the rightful person.

Xiao Xuan took off the Bodhi bracelet on his wrist and handed it to Xie Tan, "Wear it."

He looked serious when he spoke, but the ease in his eyes did not escape Xie Tan's eyes.

Xie Tan looked at Xiao Xuan in confusion, with complicated emotions in his heart.

The monk kneeling on the cushion closed his eyes again, like a lifeless wooden sculpture.