Chapter 0105: Emperor Jian’s Subtle Tone, Xie Chengze’s Betrayal
The Crown Prince’s actions naturally put Emperor Jian at ease, so Shen Yuan was placed by the Second Prince’s side to monitor his activities.
At that time, however, the Crown Prince and Shen Yuan had just returned from Yi Province and were locked in a fierce struggle with Yang Qinghui, the Minister of Revenue. When a snow disaster occurred, Yang Qinghui, harboring resentment toward the Crown Prince and Shen Yuan, sent agents to interfere—deliberately diverting disaster relief grain intended for the Crown Prince in Yingzhou to the Second Prince in Liaozhou.
With Yingzhou facing food shortages, the Crown Prince had no choice but to send word to Shen Yuan, urging him to persuade the Second Prince to return the relief grain. The Second Prince refused, leading to a quarrel with Shen Yuan. In the middle of the night, the Second Prince even stormed out of “home” and nearly froze to death outside before Shen Yuan “found” and brought him back. Upon returning, they discovered the relief grain had already been shipped away, sparking another argument and deepening the rift between them.
Recalling this incident, Shen Yuan cast a leisurely glance at Xie Chengze and silently mouthed: Your Highness, care to join me in Liaozhou?
Xie Chengze immediately glared back: Go to hell! I’m not going out there to suffer! You go alone!
Shen Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly, taunting: Is Your Highness afraid?
Xie Chengze wasn’t fooled by such a clumsy provocation and was about to retort when he suddenly felt his jade belt being yanked hard. Turning, he found Xie Jinyu staring intently at his lips, his dark moon-like eyes resembling those of a starved, trapped beast—unnerving to behold.
“What’s wrong?” Xie Chengze, noting his expression, finally remembered something and couldn’t help teasing softly, “Are you jealous?”
Xie Jinyu’s eyes flickered, seemingly taken aback, then grew increasingly profound and shadowy. “Second Brother, you…”
“Shh.” Xie Chengze raised an index finger to his lips, wearing an expression that said he understood everything without further explanation. He then pulled another paper-wrapped pastry from his sleeve. “What Xiao Miao has, my Crown Prince brother shall have too. I just got distracted earlier and forgot to give you yours.”
He pressed the pastry into Xie Jinyu’s hand, then patted his own wide sleeve smugly. “Have this to tide you over. If it’s not enough, I’ve got more here—plenty for you.”
Xie Jinyu: …
The warm, petite pastry in his palm felt like someone’s heart—warm yet confining, keeping others at a distance. Xie Jinyu let out a helpless chuckle, the aggressive aura around him gradually dissipating. Softly, he said, “Thank you, Second Brother.”
Xie Chengze smiled with narrowed eyes and was about to turn back and retort to Shen Yuan when Xie Jinyu suddenly spoke: “Second Brother, could you accompany me to Yingzhou?”
Xie Chengze looked up in surprise. “To Yingzhou?”
Xie Jinyu nodded, gazing at him with hopeful eyes.
“I don’t want to travel,” Xie Chengze shook his head, puzzled why everyone seemed eager to drag him out of the capital. “Jingcheng is better. I want to stay and care for Father.”
Xie Jinyu’s eyes dimmed, but he didn’t insist. Instead, he asked casually, “Then if Shen Shilang invited you to Liaozhou, Second Brother, would you go?”
Xie Chengze was baffled. “No. No one could convince me to go.”
Once it snowed in Liaozhou, the conditions were as harsh as the remote frontiers. Since Shen Yuan was going, why should he follow and suffer? He wasn’t a fool.
Only then did Xie Jinyu smile. “That’s good.”
Having obtained the desired answer, he turned to look at Shen Yuan, who had been watching them all along, the warning in his eyes completely undisguised.
Shen Yuan nodded slightly, his expression so calm it was as if he hadn’t just been secretly exchanging words with Xie Chengze from afar. Stepping out from the ranks of officials, he addressed Emperor Jian, “Your humble servant Shen Yuan is willing to accept the mission to go to Liaozhou, to resolve the disaster and bring peace to the people.”
Emperor Jian nodded with satisfaction, “Very well. In that case, Crown Prince, you shall go to Yingzhou. Chengze has handled the flood in Yi Province quite excellently. As the Crown Prince, you must not fall behind; this is a good opportunity for you to gain experience.”
“Yes, your son obeys the command,” Xie Jinyu bowed slightly in acknowledgment.
Seeing that the three provinces had all been assigned, Xie Chengze breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, a faint hint of joy surfacing on his face.
With both the Crown Prince and Shen Yuan leaving the capital, the palace would become Xie Chengze’s domain~
Emperor Jian glanced sideways at the secretly snickering Xie Chengze, then turned to Gu Lao and said, “Gu Lao, quickly take people to teach the kang-making technique to the craftsmen in the capital. Have them follow Lin Kai, Shen Yuan, and the Crown Prince to the three provinces and pass on this kang-making method to the local craftsmen. This matter is urgent and must be completed before the heavy snow arrives.”
Gu Lao knelt down, brushing his robes, “This old minister obeys the decree.”
“Hmm… but Gu Lao is, after all, advanced in years and may have limited energy,” Emperor Jian stroked his chin. “How about…”Just as Gu Lao was about to say that he was still vigorous despite his age and that such a small matter was nothing to worry about, he heard Emperor Jian’s tone become subtle and slightly mischievous, ‘How about I introduce the craftsman who invented the kang to you, so he can help you complete this task?””
Xie Chengze: ?
Xie Chengze’s face showed great alarm.
Damn emperor! I helped you out of goodwill, and you’re going to sell me out?
Eunuch Zhao! Quick, talk him out of it! Stop him from saying it!
Xie Chengze frantically signaled with his eyes. Receiving the signal, Eunuch Zhao gave him a “rest assured” look, his face full of paternal affection, yet he didn’t move an inch, making Xie Chengze even more panicked.
He had a bad feeling about this.
Gu Lao’s eyes lit up, overjoyed, “Your Majesty! That would be best indeed! This old minister truly wishes to meet that craftsman.”
No!!! Xie Chengze widened his eyes, desperately signaling to Emperor Jian. Unexpectedly, the smile on Emperor Jian’s face grew even more cunning as he raised his hand and pointed at Xie Chengze, saying, “Chengze, since you were the one who drew the kang blueprints, are you willing to go to the Ministry of Works to assist Gu Lao?”
As soon as these words were spoken, the officials erupted in murmurs, all looking at Xie Chengze in shock.
“What? The kang blueprints were actually drawn by the Second Prince?”
“Since when did the Second Prince learn such craftsmanship?”
“That can’t be right. The Second Prince clearly said that craftsman was handsome and elegant, gentle-tempered, and even wealthy enough to rival a nation…” a Ministry of Works official said in confusion before abruptly falling silent.
Wait, handsome and elegant… while not entirely accurate, the Second Prince was at least stunningly beautiful and had indeed once caused people to throw fruits at his carriage in admiration; gentle-tempered and flawless in social interactions—this hadn’t been noticeable before, but today His Highness was in a rather good mood, not even ordering Gu Lao to be caned, aside from being a bit crazy… it could somewhat be considered gentle-tempered.
As for being wealthy enough to rival a nation, as a prince of Jian’an, the Second Prince’s Cheng Huan Palace not only housed numerous collections but also enjoyed His Majesty’s boundless favor. Well… how could that not be considered another form of being wealthy enough to rival a nation?
Recalling it now, when the Second Prince mentioned that craftsman, he was indeed brimming with pride, practically praising them to the skies. So it turns out the Second Prince was shamelessly boasting about himself—that’s why he went all out!
At this thought, the ministers of the Ministry of Works couldn’t help but cover their smiles with their sleeves, inwardly chuckling: The Second Prince sure knows how to polish his own image, hahaha!
Xie Chengze’s face flushed with embarrassment.
That wretched emperor! If he hadn’t mentioned it to the Ministry of Works earlier, why expose him so mercilessly now?
He had originally planned to use this identity to internally recommend Su Qinghe to the venerable Elder Gu!