Chapter 116
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Three days later, although the early morning court had not resumed, it was heard that some confidential state affairs had been personally reviewed by the Emperor. The rumors in the court gradually subsided.
There had been a rumor earlier that made Han Jiao panic — the Emperor’s favorite alchemist was no longer in the palace.
Some said that the Emperor had been bedridden for half a month this time because he consumed a pill made by that alchemist.
Even more shocking rumors claimed that the alchemist had been secretly executed, and the Emperor’s condition was very severe.
Han Jiao suspected that the big boss’ recent unusual mood might be related to the Emperor’s serious illness, but this wasn’t what worried him the most.
What troubled him was a strange coincidence — in the novel, the Emperor also fell ill for a long time before and after the Crown Prince’s designation, and didn’t attend court.
The novel didn’t mention various random rumors. Instead, it was certain that the Emperor suffered from chronic poisoning due to consuming elixirs.
But why did this poison strike so many years in advance?
The event of designating the Crown Prince and the Emperor falling ill occurred at the same time, leaving Han Jiao in an indescribable state of dread.
Would he, in the end, believe that he had changed the fates of those people, only to be forcibly pulled back into their respective paths?
Prince Yan would face severe suppression and ultimately abandon all his principles and beliefs, dedicating himself to revenge.
Xie Xiu would lose Senior Minister Li and then suffer an unexpected poisoning death.
As for Xie Duo…
Han Jiao didn’t dare to think further.
Perhaps it was all just a coincidence. The Emperor had really just fallen ill, and he would recover quickly.
Currently, there were no other signs closely resembling the original plot.
Prince Yan remained as steadfast and resolute as when they first met.
Healed from his wounds, Xie Xiu had returned to his childhood interests. He would show up uninvited, follow Prince Yan, and passionately explain his new ideas until Sixth Brother found some usefulness in an idea. Only then would Xie Xiu return to his palace to work on a new invention.
Despite Prince Yan’s impatient words towards his naive younger brother, he couldn’t hide the smiles at the corners of his mouth. So, he paid little attention to the fact that his other younger brother had been a bit irritable lately.
As for the big boss, Han Jiao never expected him to suddenly become very busy, handling many tasks personally, as if the Ninth Prince who used to skip classes to play cuju had grown up overnight and effortlessly shouldered all the responsibilities the Emperor had thrown his way.
Xie Duo’s efficiency and sharp judgment quickly earned praise from the entire court.
However, during what seemed like a peaceful period of regency, hidden dangers lurked.
At the moment of power transition, countless eyes were probing the seventeen-year-old Crown Prince, trying to figure out which side he would choose as his main support.
The Crown Prince invited Prince Yan into the palace to help with state affairs, and they jointly endorsed the memorials. The appointments and removals of officials were all authorized by Prince Yan.
This left court officials unable to discern Xie Duo’s true intentions. Some suspected that Prince Yan was actually endorsing the memorials according to the Crown Prince’s wishes. So, officials privately scrutinized recent promotions and demotions and found that the new lord seemed to be deliberately suppressing the Second Prince’s faction.
Immediately, the astute supporters of the Second Prince sprang into action, accusing the henchmen of the Second Prince. They wanted to disassociate themselves from the Second Prince as quickly as possible and pledge their loyalty to the new lord.
Even though they were switching sides for their future, they couldn’t be too ruthless in their approach. If they made a mistake in their judgment, it would be like signing their own death warrant. In that case, the Second Prince, unharmed and vengeful, would come after them.
So, the first official to step forward found a minor offense and accused a small figure in the Second Prince’s faction.
The entire court was guessing whether Prince Yan’s future endorsements would align with their predictions.
What they absolutely didn’t expect was that the Crown Prince himself would step up to confront the situation.
A relatively mild accusation, but the Crown Prince delivered a stern rebuke and demanded a thorough investigation. If anyone had inside information to report, they could send it directly to him without going through the usual channels.
What had originally been a ripple caused by a scheming official turned into a massive wave, all stirred up by the Crown Prince.
Soon, within the Second Prince’s faction, infighting began, with reports of mutual accusations to clear their names piling up more than half a person’s height in just seven days.
Everyone thought the Crown Prince was ready to take action against the Second Prince’s faction, but instead, he unexpectedly didn’t make a move and even promoted several officials from the Second Prince’s faction.
It was puzzling because they had initially talked about conducting a thorough investigation and strict punishment, but it ended up being rewards.
The Crown Prince’s move of luring without striking was meant to imply a chance to make amends.
In almost a single night, the Second Prince’s faction rushed to pledge their allegiance to the Crown Prince, willingly delivering their reports to the Crown Prince, which became permanent leverage.
Xie Duo’s ruthless move, like pulling the rug out from under them, didn’t push the Second Prince’s faction into a corner. Instead, it transferred their power to his hands without a single soldier being moved.
Some individuals at court suspected that the Crown Prince was, in fact, being influenced by Prince Yan. This suspicion arose because the Second Prince’s faction had long maintained a covert alliance with Prince Duan’s faction. Now that Prince Duan’s faction was firmly endorsing the Crown Prince, his first move with a drawn sword was directed against members of Prince Duan’s faction. This situation had caused the unfairly afflicted Second Prince’s faction to direct their blame towards Prince Yan’s faction.
After all, no one believed that the young prince who was obsessed with cuju could possess such cunning tactics.
Even Prince Yan himself believed that his youngest brother’s actions were a way to vent his anger.
Prince Yan felt a bit uneasy in his heart. He didn’t want his younger brother to offend his other siblings for his sake. So, he found a reason and, in the middle of the third lunar month, invited all his brothers to his mansion for a feast.
Unfortunately, the Second Prince declined without giving face, citing illness. The Fourth and Fifth Princes naturally didn’t dare to accept the invitation either. Only the Eldest Prince, mustering his courage, came to hobnob with the Crown Prince.
Han Jiao also received an invitation and arrived early in the evening at Prince Yan’s residence.
The Third Prince and Xie Xiu had also arrived and were chatting with Prince Yan in the garden.
Han Jiao approached, greeted everyone, and then asked Prince Yan, “Has the Crown Prince not arrived yet?”
Prince Yan turned to look outside the courtyard and nodded. “He should be here soon.”
Xie Xiu’s face showed a hint of curiosity. “Why is everyone asking whether Ninth Brother is here or not? The Eighth and Tenth Princes aren’t here, but no one’s asking about them.”
Han Jiao immediately used a smile to signal Xie Xiu — Don’t focus on the wrong thing.
Prince Yan quickly deflected, “Who asked about the Ninth Prince? Didn’t Eldest Brother just ask casually? Maybe Ninth Brother had some matters to discuss with Master Han and he asked out of curiosity.”
Xie Xiu didn’t quite understand the awkward situation of others and thought for a moment before honestly pointing to a group of songstresses in the distance who were adjusting their instruments. “I just heard them whispering, ‘Who’s the Crown Prince?’ ‘Has the Crown Prince arrived yet?’ ‘Will the Crown Prince come today?’ Nobody mentioned Old Eighth or Old Tenth.” He lowered his head in disappointment and mumbled, “Nobody mentioned me either.”
Prince Yan: “……”
Han Jiao: “……”
In this cruel reality, you mustn’t tell Old Eighth and Old Tenth about this, Your Highness!
The Third Prince couldn’t help but burst into laughter, shaking his head in resignation. “Those are all young ladies. In the eyes of young and beautiful girls, they can only see handsome young men. How could they notice you?”
Xie Xiu was taken aback by the revelation and turned to the Third Prince. “They can’t see me?”
“Hahahahaha…” The Third Prince, noticing that Old Seventh had regained his sense of humor and was still as naive as in his childhood, laughed and said, “That’s right, they can’t see you, they can only hear your voice.”
Xie Xiu, realizing that the Third Prince’s expression was suspicious, immediately turned to Han Jiao with questioning eyes, wanting to confirm if this was true.
Han Jiao smiled. “Your Highness, rest assured, if they can only see handsome men, they’ll naturally see you as well.”
“Why?”
“Because you are very handsome.”
“Am I more handsome than my Ninth Brother?”
Han Jiao thought for a moment and replied very diplomatically, “Handsome comes in many forms, and everyone has different tastes.”
Xie Xiu felt that he didn’t get a straightforward answer. “So, Master Han, who do you think is more handsome, me or my Ninth Brother?”
“Of course, it’s your Ninth Brother,” Xie Duo’s voice came confidently from behind Han Jiao.
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