Chapter 0017: The Unfilial Prodigal Zhu Xiaobiao, The Master Performer Zhu Xiaobiao
Xie Chengze wagged his index finger and said seriously, “Lord Shen, you mustn’t jest. That ten thousand taels of mine isn’t in my possession.”
“Where do you suppose they are now?” Xie Chengze put on a troubled expression, as if genuinely worried. “Not in Yi Province, not in Zhuolu County, not in Cheng Huan Palace… Ah, could it be…”
Not to be outdone, he leaned closer to Shen Yuan’s face. Shen Yuan slowly narrowed his eyes but didn’t retreat. Their breaths mingled in a mix of ambiguity and confrontation.
Until Xie Chengze’s insidious voice drifted softly, “Could it be… in the Ministry of Revenue?”
Shen Yuan’s eyes flickered.
“What exactly are you trying to do?” Shen Yuan stared intently at Xie Chengze, for the first time unable to see through his mortal enemy’s thoughts.
“Ah, Shen Lang, Shen Lang, I’m not that vicious and ruthless Second Prince. There’s no need for such hostility toward me.” Xie Chengze chuckled lightly and patted his shoulder. “The night is cold. Best retire early.”
With that, he slipped like a slick little loach, bending to duck under Shen Yuan’s arms, and headed toward his own room.
Xie Chengze was almost certain that this Shen Yuan before him was definitely not the talented scholar Shen Yuan from the book.
To be precise, this Shen Yuan was likely the reborn Powerful Minister Shen Yuan.
Only that Powerful Minister would harbor such hatred for “Xie Chengze,” showing killing intent at their first meeting, and even confidently anticipating that he would go to the county treasury in Zhuolu County to retrieve the ten thousand taels he had previously donated, deliberately hiding in the rafters to witness it all.
But he wasn’t “Xie Chengze.” If Shen Yuan wanted to kill him for vengeance, he, Xie Chengze, would never sit idly by and wait for death.
…
Shen Yuan stayed awake all night, sitting at the tea table, repeatedly pondering Xie Chengze’s words.
Until the next day, when the sky was just beginning to lighten, Shen Yuan heard a commotion outside his door. He rose and went out to see over a dozen Yamen Runners bustling back and forth, loading some wooden chests onto a carriage.
Zhu Xiaobiao, dressed in golden robes, stood in the center of the courtyard, waving his arms and shouting commands, “Move faster! Did none of you eat? These are silver donations my father compassionately gave for the disaster-stricken people of Yi Province! Not a single mishap is allowed!”
Xie Zimiao joined in the excitement, imitating Zhu Xiaobiao’s swagger with hands on hips. “Move faster! Otherwise, I won’t let you have lunch!”
Shen Yuan glanced around and noticed Magistrate Zhu wasn’t present.
With such a racket, how could Magistrate Zhu still be asleep?
Shen Yuan raised an eyebrow. The chests being moved now were several times more than those in the treasury yesterday. By the looks of it, Zhu Xiaobiao must have taken out all the embezzled savings his father had accumulated over the years.
It seemed that even between father and son, when faced with mortal danger, they wouldn’t hesitate to betray each other.
This Zhu Xiaobiao shared a similarly ruthless nature with Xie Chengze, yet he wasn’t entirely wicked—he showed compassion for suffering beauties. Shen Yuan wondered how Zhu Xiaobiao would feel if Xie Chengze ordered those beautiful concubines executed.
And could he seize this opportunity to recruit Zhu Xiaobiao as his own covert agent?
While lost in thought, he saw Xie Chengze emerge from his room, yawning and wearing a thoroughly satisfied expression that clearly indicated a good night’s sleep.
“Still not finished moving?” Xie Chengze rubbed his eyes, his drowsiness quickly transforming into sharp clarity.
“Your Highness, it’ll be done immediately,” Zhu Xiaobiao hurried forward to respond.
“Still not finished…” Xie Chengze chuckled softly, casting him a casual glance before suddenly kicking Zhu Xiaobiao in the abdomen. His expression instantly turned ferocious. “Worthless! Can’t even move such trivial things? What use are you?”
His mood shift was so abrupt that everyone was caught off guard, stopping to watch the scene.
Xie Zimiao, who had been swaggering moments earlier, immediately shrank back and fell silent. Shen Yuan frowned as he looked over, only to see the kicked Zhu Xiaobiao “fly” backward several meters in an exaggerated motion before tumbling to the ground and rolling several times, wailing pitifully, “Spare me, Your Highness! Spare me! It’s all my fault! I’ll never dare again!”
Shen Yuan: ?
What kind of act is this now?
Shen Yuan didn’t believe for a moment that Xie Chengze—who had no martial arts foundation—could kick the nearly two-hundred-pound Zhu Xiaobiao so far with those slender legs.
He watched as Xie Chengze, face contorted with rage, drew a long blade from a Yamen Runner’s waist and swung it toward Zhu Xiaobiao. “Useless trash! Watch me slaughter you!”
The Yamen Runners scrambled back in terror, fearing for their lives, while the convoy’s attendants and guards didn’t dare intervene. For a moment, no one ventured to plead for Zhu Xiaobiao.
Zhu Xiaobiao clutched his stomach, scrambling awkwardly on the ground as he continuously cried for help. Xie Chengze pursued him, swinging the blade faster and faster. Just as it seemed about to strike Zhu Xiaobiao, several chamber doors suddenly burst open, and a handful of beauties rushed out, throwing themselves protectively over Zhu Xiaobiao!
Though trembling with fear, they desperately shielded him, their voices hoarse as they begged, “Your Highness, spare him! Please let Lord Zhu go!”
“Insolent commoners dare block my path?” Xie Chengze snarled, his blade whistling through the air. “Step aside! Or I’ll kill you all!”
“How can Your Highness slaughter the innocent so wantonly!” A strikingly handsome young man rushed forward, spreading his arms to block the way as he met Xie Chengze’s gaze fearlessly. “His Majesty cherishes the people as his own children and advocates for officials to protect them! How can Your Highness abuse power to kill the innocent and still set an example for the realm?”
“I’ve no patience for your nonsense!” Xie Chengze swung his blade with fierce momentum. “If you don’t move, I’ll start with you!”
“Then start with me! I wonder if Your Highness can bear the crime of murdering an innocent commoner!” The handsome youth stubbornly lifted his chin, arms and lips trembling slightly, yet his body remained firmly in place as if ready to sacrifice his life.
“Jing Ze, move aside!” Zhu Xiaobiao pushed away the concubines shielding him and shouted at the youth. “All of you, leave! Why throw your lives away for me?”
“You saved our lives once, Lord! Our lives have been yours since then!”Jing Ze growled in a low voice.” “We won’t stand by and watch you in danger!”
Eyes squeezed shut, he roared at Xie Chengze, “If Your Highness wishes to kill him, you’ll have to step over my corpse first!”
“Excellent! Truly excellent!” Xie Chengze laughed in anger. With a grand wave of his hand, he commanded, “Guards! Bind these people and load them onto the carriage! They’re all rare beauties—what a waste if they die. This prince will take them to Yi Province and ‘care’ for them properly along the journey!”
As soon as he finished speaking, the attending guards snapped to attention and swiftly dragged everyone into the carriage.
“Let me go! Let me go!” Jing Ze struggled fiercely, shouting in rage, “You corrupt official! You’re unworthy of being a prince! If you have any guts, kill me now!”
Jing Ze would rather die than suffer such humiliation a second time!
Xie Chengze picked at his ear, pretending not to hear.
Shen Yuan observed everything and roughly understood what Xie Chengze intended to do.
In their previous life, after the assassination attempt, Xie Chengze had been frightened and enraged. Upon learning the truth, he directly executed Jing Ze and the others without clearly seeing the others’ faces. Moreover, with so many years having passed, Xie Chengze had likely forgotten exactly who had been loyal to Zhu Xiaobiao back then.
That was why he had deceived Zhu Xiaobiao last night, staging a fake scene to trick those willing to seek revenge for Zhu Xiaobiao into revealing themselves.
Turning the very people who had attempted to assassinate him in his previous life into his own personal death guards—this was precisely the kind of malicious amusement Xie Chengze reveled in.
He was still the same man: somewhat smarter, somewhat more cunning, but his fundamentally vicious nature remained unchanged.
Shen Yuan felt a pang of disappointment, though he didn’t quite understand why. Perhaps it was because, for a fleeting moment, that bright-eyed, clear-gazed youth had reminded him of the young boy from his childhood who had shared sweet tangerines with him.
In his previous life, when Shen Yuan left Jingcheng, he had carried that memory with him, unable to forget. But in the end, he couldn’t overcome the reality that the person had changed. By the time he came to his senses, the two had already embarked on completely different paths, with no possibility of reconciliation.
After the beautiful concubines were gagged and bound in the carriage, Zhu Xiaobiao nimbly scrambled to his feet, all traces of his earlier fear and panic gone.
The chests placed on the ground were all loaded onto the carriage. Xie Chengze stepped aboard, his previous ferocious demeanor entirely vanished.
He said calmly, “Let’s depart for Yi Province.”
After the carriage left the county office, it wasn’t until the sun was high in the sky that Magistrate Zhu and his wife, who had been drugged with sleeping potion, slowly awoke.
By then, the Second Prince’s convoy had long since departed with the treasures Magistrate Zhu had embezzled over ten years, leaving behind only a weeping, cursing Magistrate Zhu and his wife—who wore a complicated expression—staring in distress at the completely empty treasury.