Chapter 535 Desire is hard to satisfy
In the morning, in the back hall of Prince Xian’s mansion.

Luo Tianjin, who was worried, had no appetite for the breakfast prepared by the servants. After returning from the hall, he sat at the table and thought silently until the sun was high in the sky. The porridge and vegetables were lukewarm, but he did not eat a single bite.

Xie Xuan stood aside with a complicated expression and eyes full of sorrow.

First, I was saddened by Jiang Yiwei's death. Second, I was worried about Luo Tianjin's health.

"Brother Jin."

Accompanied by a gentle call, Ling Xiaoxiao slowly walked into the back hall holding a bowl of egg custard.

She placed the steaming egg custard in front of Luo Tianjin, sat down beside him, and said softly: "I know you are sad, but you can't not eat. What if you get hungry?"

At the same time, Ling Xiaoxiao scooped out a spoonful of egg custard, carefully brought it to Luo Tianjin's lips, and said softly: "Try it, I made it for you myself."

"Ugh!"

With a sigh, Luo Tianjin took the spoon and put it back into the bowl, saying bitterly, "I appreciate your kindness, Madam. But... Jiang Yiwei's death was unclear, and I haven't found out the truth yet. I feel like there's something stuck in my throat and my chest is blocked. I really have no appetite."

"Life is unpredictable, and unexpected events are inevitable." Ling Xiaoxiao advised, "After all, the dead cannot be resurrected, so please accept my condolences, Brother Jin."

Faced with Ling Xiaoxiao's comfort, Luo Tianjin just nodded silently and smiled bitterly without saying a word.

"What is Brother Jin worried about?" Ling Xiaoxiao's beautiful eyes turned and she asked curiously, "Jiang Yiwei has been in a coma for many days and his life has been hanging by a thread, so I am not surprised by his death. Could it be that... Brother Jin thinks there is something strange about his death?"

Hearing this, Luo Tianjin's expression changed quietly. He suddenly raised his head and looked at Xie Xuan, who looked solemn, then at Ling Xiaoxiao, who looked bewildered. After hesitating for a moment, he laughed at himself and said, "I didn't want to mention this too much in front of Madam, but Madam is born with a pair of discerning eyes. I can't hide anything from you."

Xie Xuan nodded with a smile and complimented, "Madam and the Palace Master are so in tune with each other, it's really enviable."

"In fact, I noticed something strange the moment you walked in yesterday." Ling Xiaoxiao said, "Although it's natural for you to care about Jiang Yiwei, what you said... has a deeper meaning."

"Oh?" Luo Tianjin's heart moved, and he asked with interest, "What did you say?"

"You said, 'Even if Jiang Yiwei is dead, he must be awakened before he dies.' This sentence... clearly has another meaning." Ling Xiaoxiao pondered, "Brother Jin, from what I know about you. In fact, what you really care about is not Jiang Yiwei's life or death, but some secrets that Jiang Yiwei said, right?"

"Ha ha……"

Suddenly, Luo Tianjin burst into laughter and clapped his hands in praise: "Madam is worthy of being the Madam. She guessed my thoughts clearly, just like the worm in my stomach."

"This matter..." Ling Xiaoxiao hesitated, her expression becoming a little unnatural, "Could it be related to her?"

Luo Tianjin was stunned, the smile on his face gradually froze, and hesitantly asked: "Which 'she'?"

"Brother Jin, why do you ask when you already know the answer?" Ling Xiaoxiao glanced at Xie Xuan, who looked embarrassed. She seemed unwilling to discuss private matters between husband and wife in front of outsiders, so she said vaguely, "I know you have seen her in Huashan, and you have had contact with her... How long do you want to keep this secret from me? Do you think I am the kind of woman who does not know right from wrong, cries and makes a fuss, and is unreasonable when she is not satisfied?"

"Of course not!" Luo Tianjin said hurriedly, "Madam is a kind-hearted lady, well-educated and sensible. How could she be the kind of unreasonable and unruly woman?"

"If that's the case, why don't you want to be honest with me?" Ling Xiaoxiao complained with tears in her eyes, "Seeing that you keep things to yourself when you encounter problems, do you know how uncomfortable it makes me? Brother Jin, you and I have slept in the same bed for decades. I don't dare to expect to solve your problems for you, but I hope to listen to your voice and relieve your depression, which is also my responsibility as a wife."

"Madam, what you said makes me extremely ashamed." Seeing Ling Xiaoxiao's tears and her words from the heart, Luo Tianjin couldn't help but be moved. He reached out and gently stroked her face, smiling and said, "I, Luo Tianjin, will die without regrets if I can have you accompany me in this life."

Seeing the two of them being so affectionate, Xie Xuan couldn't help but feel a little redundant, so he coughed twice and took the initiative to ask for permission: "Master, Madam, I will take my leave first..."

"No need!" Luo Tianjin interrupted, "Madam already knows about my relationship with Teng Rou, and Brother Xie knows about it as well, so there's no need for you to avoid us. You can just help us think about it together."

"Yes."

"Jiang Yiwei's death... may be suspicious." Luo Tianjin said straight to the point, "To be honest with you, Madam, I think someone may be behind Jiang Yiwei's death and Li Jia's disappearance."

Ling Xiaoxiao was shocked, frowned slightly, and asked, "Why do you say that, Brother Jin?"

"Because Granny Taohua's reaction today was unusual." Luo Tianjin pondered, "She is the world's number one doctor, how could she make a misdiagnosis? It may not be surprising that Li Jia couldn't tell the severity of Jiang Yiwei's injuries. But how could Granny Taohua not be able to tell Jiang Yiwei's condition? Yesterday afternoon, she told me with confidence that Jiang Yiwei's life was safe and he would wake up in a matter of days. How could such a solemn promise be a lie?"

"But she just said that sudden death without any reason is also a common occurrence for doctors, so..."

"No!" Luo Tianjin shook his head thoughtfully, "If Jiang Yiwei's death was really beyond suspicion, Granny Taohua wouldn't be so vague and say these ambiguous words to evade me."

Xie Xuan pondered and said, "What the Palace Master means is..."

"Grandma Taohua's words just now clearly hinted to me that Jiang Yiwei...actually died a violent death." Luo Tianjin said dimly, "Perhaps, she has found out the real cause of Jiang Yiwei's death, but due to some concerns, she is unwilling to tell me the truth." "This..."

At this moment, Ling Xiaoxiao was full of thoughts and looked inexplicable, as if she couldn't believe it, and seemed uneasy. She hesitated and asked, "What is Brother Jin going to do?"

"No matter what, we must find Li Jia." Luo Tianjin said word by word, "If he's alive, we must find him. If he's dead, we must find his body. I suspect that Li Jia and Jiang Yiwei's death... are closely related."

"Brother Jin, what secrets are hidden in Jiang Yiwei?" Ling Xiaoxiao felt mixed emotions and asked, "Why do you keep thinking about him?"

"Xie Xuan, send someone to find Liu Xunyi."

Luo Tianjin seemed to still be immersed in his own emotions, so he turned a deaf ear to Ling Xiaoxiao's confusion and ordered, "I want him to investigate this matter."

"Yes."

"Brother Jin..."

"Madam!" Before Ling Xiaoxiao could speak again, Luo Tianjin's expression suddenly relaxed and he said softly, "The egg custard is cold, can you heat it up for me?"

"Of course..." Ling Xiaoxiao replied hastily, "I'll go now."

"Mrs. Lao."

After saying that, Ling Xiaoxiao slowly stood up under Luo Tianjin's tender gaze and walked out of the hall absent-mindedly.

"lady!"

"what?"

Being suddenly stopped by Luo Tianjin, Ling Xiaoxiao was startled and asked blankly, "What's the matter?"

"You forgot something." Luo Tianjin pointed at the egg custard on the table and asked with a smile, "Madam, why are you so distracted?"

"I... I was just thinking about what you just said. If there really is someone secretly controlling everything, wouldn't the Xianwang Mansion be in danger?" Ling Xiaoxiao said perfunctorily, "The egg custard is cold. If you heat it up again, the taste will change. I'll steam a bowl for you again."

"it is good."

Looking at Ling Xiaoxiao's hurried back, a strange look flashed across Luo Tianjin's eyes.

"Palace Master, this matter..."

"Jiang Yiwei's death and Li Jia's disappearance must be related to the matter I asked you to investigate." Luo Tianjin interrupted, "I asked Liu Xunyi to investigate because of Madam Kuan's concern. Brother Xie, this matter still needs to be handled by you personally."

"Yes." Xie Xuan bowed and accepted the order, but then hesitated and asked puzzledly, "Why did you hide this matter from Madam?"

"Alas! I don't want Xiaoxiao to know too much about Rou'er. She... has already suffered too much." Luo Tianjin sighed with a guilty look on his face, "I told her about Rou'er and me before, which hurt her a lot. Later, Xuan'er got into trouble and she fell seriously ill. Now she has just recovered a little. I don't want her to become depressed because of these trivial matters again."

Xie Xuan suddenly realized and said admiringly: "The care the mansion master takes for Madam is even greater than that for Xiao Zhirou."

Luo Tianjin seemed to have heard a clue from Xie Xuan's words, and asked with a smile: "Brother Xie, what do you mean by this? Do you think that I can only have Xiao Zhirou as my love, and not Ling Xiaoxiao?"

"I spoke out of turn, I hope the Palace Master will forgive me." Xie Xuan said in fear, "I definitely didn't mean that, it's just..."

"Don't be nervous, I'm just saying it casually, I'm not asking for punishment." Luo Tianjin said with a faint smile, "Brother Xie, if the love between men and women is the most complicated emotion in the world, then the heart of a man... is the most fickle thing in the world. I understand what you mean. In your heart, Xiao Zhirou is the love of my life, and Ling Xiaoxiao is just a stepping stone for my success. The two of them have different values, so their positions in my heart are naturally different, right?"

"I dare not..."

"You're wrong!" Luo Tianjin's expression changed, and he said seriously, "Today, I can tell you clearly. In my heart, there is not only Xiao Zhirou, but also Ling Xiaoxiao. If you ask me, who is more important between the two of them in my heart? I can also tell you that in fact, even I... can't tell which of them is more important. If I say that both are important, I may be suspected of being a playboy, but..."

Having said this, Luo Tianjin's expression suddenly became extremely solemn. Under Xie Xuan's obedient yet curious gaze, he remained silent for a long time before he slowly uttered a sentence as if relieved from a heavy burden: "This is the fact. Xiao Zhirou and Ling Xiaoxiao... I can't let go of either of them."

Both are important, which means that neither is important.

In fact, deep in Luo Tianjin's heart, there is only one person who is truly important from beginning to end, himself.

……

(End of this chapter)