Poor Charles Johnson had been raised as the crown prince since childhood, with his master teaching him etiquette and rules every day. This was the first time he had been teased by a woman like this, and his face flushed bright red. Meanwhile, Henry Johnson paid him no mind and said with a grin, “I saw Lady Han Guo enter the palace today. Didn’t she ask for you, Rose Brooks, to serve her?”

“I’ll be going over in a bit. Who knew you little rascal would show up so early!” Mrs. Brooks flicked Henry Johnson on the head, and when she saw Charles Johnson standing there dumbfounded, she felt even more affection for him. She reached out and gently patted his right cheek. “By the way, is he also newly assigned to serve His Highness the Prince of Lu? He’s really handsome—if he were born into a humble family, he’d be a real treasure. It’s such a pity for him to become a palace attendant!”

Chapter Five: Pressed into Service

The place Henry Johnson frequented didn’t have an official name. The people living there were all palace maids with particular skills, which was why they could accompany the court to the Eastern Capital. For example, Mrs. Brooks was skilled at massage; others were good at telling jokes, making snacks, or performing tricks… In short, their skills weren’t necessarily outstanding, but they were kept on hand just in case, and their treatment was better than that of ordinary palace maids.

Ever since meeting Mrs. Brooks here, Henry Johnson loved to come by whenever he had free time, especially enjoying Mrs. Brooks’s unique head massage technique. As the Prince of Lu, he didn’t have to work as hard as the crown prince, but he still had to study. He had a photographic memory, but in front of his overbearing mother, he had to hide his abilities. So every day, he spent two hours reading aloud from classics he could already recite backwards and forwards—not exactly a fun activity.

At this moment, watching Mrs. Brooks perform acupressure on Charles Johnson, he lazily leaned against the doorframe with his eyes closed, resting. His stepmother, Lady Han Guo, had last entered the palace just two days ago, and now she was back again. It seemed his father, the emperor, couldn’t resist another secret tryst. Sigh—people say a wife can’t compare to a concubine, and a concubine can’t compare to an affair. Back in the day, Li Zhi could sneak off to Gan Ye Temple for secret rendezvous with his mother, and now he was having an affair with his wife’s elder sister, Lady Han Guo. Come to think of it, Tang emperors all seemed to have a penchant for affairs and forbidden love.

“So comfortable!”

Hearing Charles Johnson’s moan, which seemed to come from deep within, Henry Johnson couldn’t help but smile, thinking to himself that maybe he should find a way to bring Mrs. Brooks over to his own quarters. Some imperial physicians could do this kind of massage, of course, but compared to a pleasing young woman, even the best technique sometimes fell short.

“Rose… Rose Brooks, your hands are amazing.” Charles Johnson finally stood up, sincerely praising her, and nodded at his younger brother, with no trace of his earlier embarrassment. Mrs. Brooks was also delighted by this suddenly-appearing fifth prince. While enjoying the compliment, she squatted down to tidy Charles Johnson’s clothes, and took the opportunity to steal a few more touches on his face, making the young crown prince blush all over again.

Henry Johnson coughed, breaking the slightly ambiguous atmosphere, and couldn’t help but mutter to himself about older women loving younger men. Seeing Mrs. Brooks start to tidy herself up to go serve Lady Han Guo, he was struck by an idea. He took a silver ring from his belt and carefully fastened it to Mrs. Brooks’s sash. Her slender waist had not a trace of excess flesh, and the feel was exquisite—truly a rare delight.

“Such a valuable thing—are you really giving it to me?”

Although that silver ring was the least expensive thing Henry Johnson could find, to Mrs. Brooks it was a finely crafted treasure. Overjoyed, she took an embroidered handkerchief she’d made herself and gave it to him. Charles Johnson, seeing this, wanted to give something too, but after searching for a long time, he still couldn’t find anything. Just as he was about to fetch his jade pendant, a commotion suddenly erupted outside.

“Mrs. Brooks, Mrs. Brooks!”

As soon as the words fell, a middle-aged palace attendant burst in. Seeing only three people in the room, he barked, “You two, hurry up and escort Mrs. Brooks over—don’t keep Lady Han Guo waiting!”

“But they’re not…”

“Enough talk, don’t I know? Lady Han Guo doesn’t recognize them anyway—just blend in, it’ll be fine. I’m short-handed over there!”

“Well… as you command, sir.”

The dumbfounded Henry Johnson and Charles Johnson still didn’t understand what was happening before Mrs. Brooks hurriedly pulled them out of the room. After they’d walked several dozen steps from the courtyard, she finally stopped and solemnly instructed, “Master Feng has always looked out for us. There’s nothing I can do today—I can’t go alone, so you two will have to put up with it and come with me. Since you’re with His Highness the Prince of Lu, be careful—whatever you do, don’t let anyone recognize you!”

Even without her warning, Henry Johnson knew they’d have to be extra careful. Besides Lady Han Guo, their father might also be there. If their father found out his two sons had stumbled upon his affair, who knew what he’d do in a fit of rage? He never believed in Li Zhi’s supposed benevolence, just as he didn’t believe Empress Wu lacked ambition for power.

Having never experienced anything like this, Charles Johnson was nervous to death. Seeing his brother’s calm demeanor, Henry Johnson had to comfort him, repeatedly assuring him that no one would recognize them. Only then did Charles Johnson’s color improve a little, though he was still pale with anxiety. At this point, Henry Johnson couldn’t help but wonder what he’d do if he couldn’t hold out later.