Chapter 655 - 648_1
"Sorry, it was rude of me," Lin Yue said, lowering her gaze in apology. "At first sight of the big boss here, I felt a sense of familiarity, as if he resembles someone from my past, and I was so astonished that I momentarily lost my composure. Moreover, with his handsome and elegant demeanor, he looks more like a gentleman from a noble family, making it hard to associate him with the title ’big boss.’ It truly took me by surprise. I hope you won’t take offense to it."
"Look like someone you once knew, our big boss? Impossible! With the noble character and appearance of our big boss, it’s rare to find anyone comparable. If someone could even have a smidgen of our big boss’s charm, they’d already be considered outstanding. How could there be a second person like him in this world? You must be joking, right? Anyway, I don’t believe it. Tell me, where is this person from, and what do they do? If they really look like our big boss, I must meet them," Chang Dabao said skeptically, his face full of disbelief and suspicion.
No matter how skeptical Chang Dabao was, Lin Yue wouldn’t disclose the Emperor. "Just an old acquaintance. Indeed, it’s difficult for anyone to match our big boss’s elegance. The other person only bears a slight resemblance in appearance, with quite a different temperament and image altogether."
"I knew it. It’s impossible to find a second person like our big boss. Lin Madam, it seems that I won’t have a chance to meet that old friend of yours," Chang Dabao said mockingly, clearly implying, ’You’re just making excuses for being smitten,’ which left Lin Yue, wary of her own concerns, speechless and itching to give him a slap.
The big boss himself, although unhappy at being stared at so boldly by Lin Yue, found her to his liking, and so, despite his displeasure, he didn’t show it; otherwise, he would have had Chang Dabao throw her out right away.
Once he realized that Lin Yue’s gaze was one of shock rather than obsession, Huangfu Yi’s expression became somewhat playful. He was certain that Lin Yue had met that certain someone in the Capital City, thus her surprise upon seeing him—after all, his face bore a striking resemblance to that person, and naturally, he would know. Standing face to face with him was like looking in a mirror, for they were identical twins born of the same mother.
However, although they were twins, their fates diverged vastly. Due to the palace taboos and the circumstances back then, Huangfu Jing, as the elder brother born first, stayed in the palace, growing up alongside their mother; whereas Huangfu Yi, born mere moments later, was sent out of the palace and raised in a temple under the care of a wise monk.
Though the secret was kept from the public, Huangfu Jing and Huangfu Yi, the brothers, were always aware of each other’s existence. The Empress Dowager didn’t hide this from them, and as they grew up, she gradually shared her dilemmas and unwilling compromises with them, even arranging private meetings for the two.