Chapter 0274: Bowing and Scraping Before the Powerful, Ignoring the Affairs of the Common People.

Sheng Shihai reacted swiftly, yet was caught off guard as the other bit his earlobe.

Xie Chengze exerted almost all his strength, but unfortunately, having been utterly exhausted the previous night, he was quickly subdued by the man’s deft finger strike on his acupoint, stiffly collapsing back onto the pillow.

Sheng Shihai raised a hand to cover his bleeding earlobe, glanced at the blood on his fingers, and couldn’t help but laugh in exasperation.

“Dog,” he cursed.

Xie Chengze spat out a mouthful of blood and sneered fiercely, “Wrong, it’s a mad dog.”

Being bitten by a mad dog could lead to rabies.

“It seems Your Highness is quite clever, knowing what that incense was,” Sheng Shihai stood up, looking down at him from above. “If you don’t want to suffer in the future, stay obediently by my side.”

Xie Chengze snorted coldly, said nothing, and turned his gaze away.

Receiving no response, Sheng Shihai shrugged indifferently, unbothered by Xie Chengze’s aloofness. After all, he had plenty of time ahead to indulge his antics.

He turned to leave.

At that moment, Xie Chengze called out to him, “What about Wuhen and Wuji? And Hu Lai?”

Sheng Shihai paused mid-step.

He glanced at Xie Chengze with keen interest. “I thought you didn’t care about them.”

“Don’t worry, they’re alive and well, just temporarily immobilized.” Sheng Shihai waved a hand and left the room.

As someone who valued talent, Sheng Shihai knew that even if Wuhen and Wuji joined forces, they couldn’t kill him. These two only obeyed Xie Chengze. If Xie Chengze were willing to submit, Wuhen and Wuji would naturally become his followers as well.

As for Hu Lai, who lacked any martial skills, he was even less of a concern.

Hearing that all three were safe, Xie Chengze finally relaxed.

A low-ranking official entered with bowed head, untied him, and informed him that he was free to move about within the county office grounds—clearly, they weren’t worried about him escaping.

With Wuhen, Wuji, and Hu Lai in Sheng Shihai’s hands, Sheng Shihai had no fear of him fleeing.

He knew Xie Chengze was a smart man.

Xie Chengze had someone close the window, bathed to wash away his disheveled state, and then rose to leave the room.

He sat in the small courtyard, gazing up at the sky, lost in thought. The redness at the corners of his eyes lingered for a long time, and he remained seated like this the entire day.

It wasn’t until evening when Sheng Shihai sought him out that he snapped out of his reverie. He cast a bland glance at him and sniffled slightly.

Damn it, he’d caught a cold.

“Calmed down?” Sheng Shihai approached carrying a jar of Lan Qiao Feng Yue Wine, poured him a cup, using the same priceless jade cup as before.

Xie Chengze reached out, took the jade cup, tilted his head back, and drained it in one go. Then he asked, “Who made that incense?”

Sheng Shihai took a small sip of wine, smiling faintly. “The county magistrate’s second wife.”

So it was her.

Xie Chengze tightened his grip on the jade cup. “Since when?”

“Eight years ago,” Sheng Shihai did not conceal the truth. “Initially, it only had addictive and health-damaging effects, so it was used solely to control certain disobedient officials. Although a premium version was later developed, prolonged exposure still causes emaciation and chronic weakness.”

“It’s not easy to win over a loyal servant, so I naturally wouldn’t use this incense on them. Besides, the unofficial profits from the Salt and Iron Commission are enough for my extravagance. That’s why this incense has been sitting idle…” Sheng Shihai gazed at Xie Chengze with a mocking smile, his words dripping with malice. “If Your Highness hadn’t conspired with the Crown Prince, leaving me with no standing in the court, why would I have been forced to desperate measures and decided to profit from this incense?”

Xie Chengze curled his lips. “The court will eventually discover the harm of this substance. When that happens, they will inevitably implement anti-drug laws and cut off all your distribution channels.”

Sheng Shihai chuckled, unperturbed. “Unfortunately, I’ve also learned from Your Highness’s experience and discovered a brilliant method to conceal shipments.”

Noticing the slight tremor in Xie Chengze’s pupils, Sheng Shihai deliberately stopped there. “However, it’s better if Your Highness remains unaware.”

After all, everyone knew how much effort the Prince Regent had expended to enable women to attend schools. If he learned that this very effort had revealed how women could be exploited, he would probably be reduced to tears.

Before the Spring Examination, having poor families’ daughters transport answers to the Yi Province water conservancy exam questions was precisely to test the feasibility of secret shipments.

Sheng Shihai cheerfully drained his cup and advised Xie Chengze, “I heard the Crown Prince went so far as to set the palace ablaze to imprison you, erasing your existence. If you follow him, you’ll only become a caged bird.”

“But if you follow me, at the very least, you will be free.”

Sheng Shihai raised his empty cup toward Xie Chengze, his smile deepening. “I believe Your Highness will come to understand.”

The young man’s principles were too rigid—how could he lower his head to serve the powerful while ignoring the affairs of the common people?

And he would permit him to care.

…

Xie Chengze spent three days at the county office.

During these three days, he wandered around the premises and confirmed that the incense indeed originated from the county magistrate’s wife.

Moreover, only she and the wife of the Jizhou prefect held the secret recipe for the incense.

He also learned that the Jizhou prefect was indeed Sheng Shihai’s man, and from the minor officials, he picked up a juicy piece of gossip.

It was said that the original prefect’s wife should have been Zhu Xiaobiao’s birth mother. This woman was exceptionally talented, and her family intended to marry her to the Jizhou prefect. To win over the newly arrived magistrate of Zhuolu County, they planned to marry the beautiful daughter of a concubine from the second branch to him.

But somehow, the concubine’s daughter from the second branch managed to secretly form a liaison with the Jizhou prefect. After the affair was exposed, the families could only swap the marriages: the concubine’s daughter married the prefect, while the legitimate daughter married the lowly county magistrate.

After Zhu’s mother died, the magistrate’s subsequent wife was also personally introduced by that concubine’s daughter.

Xie Chengze listened to the gossip with great relish. The minor officials, finding him approachable and devoid of royal airs, shared numerous tidbits about the household until night fell. Then, Xie Chengze began yawning frequently, tears streaming uncontrollably from his eyes.

Beads of sweat seeped from his body, and waves of nausea churned in his abdomen. He couldn’t suppress his shivering and hurriedly rushed toward his room. With each step, the muscles in his face and limbs twitched uncontrollably. His entire body felt swollen, prickly, and sore, as if a sickly person had run five kilometers without stopping—it was sheer agony.

By the time he stumbled back to his room, he had no strength left and collapsed beside the bed, clawing incessantly at his skin. A void of emptiness and anxiety surged within him.

It hurts so much…

This is unbearable…

He curled up on the floor, afraid of biting through his own tongue, so he opened his mouth and gnawed on the bed board. Uncontrollable physiological tears overflowed from his eye sockets, his knuckles clenched so tightly they turned pale blue, leaving conspicuous red marks on his arms.

Hearing the noise, Sheng Shihai quickly entered the room and saw the young man with a pale face, nearly biting through the bed board. He promptly placed the incense into the burner and was about to take out the fire starter when he suddenly felt a dark figure pounce on him.

The other’s lunge was utterly powerless. With a resigned expression, Sheng Shihai grabbed the clothes on his shoulder and said, “Be good, the scent will ease your pain.”

Xie Chengze bit his arm through the robe, his crimson eyes glaring fiercely at him.

Every time Sheng Shihai moved, the young man thrashed, trying to prevent him from lighting the fire starter.

Eventually, Sheng Shihai’s patience ran out. He put away the fire starter, kicked the young man to the ground, and coldly looked down at him. “Since you’re willing to endure the pain, then endure it.”

He wanted to see how long he could last!

As the man turned to leave, he suddenly felt the hem of his robe being tugged. A faint, satisfied smile appeared on his face as he glanced down at the disheveled young man. “Ready to beg for mercy?”

Xie Chengze looked up, enduring the pain as he stared fixedly at him, his voice hoarse. “Sheng Shihai, why have you been lingering at the county office for so long? What are you waiting for?”

Sheng Shihai was taken aback, clearly not expecting this question, and his expression darkened slightly.

“Your Highness need not know.” Sheng Shihai pulled back the hem of his robe. “If you can no longer endure, call the servant at the door. I will come immediately.”

With that, he strode away.

Watching Sheng Shihai’s retreating figure, Xie Chengze slowly curled up, digging his fingertips fiercely into the ground. On his usually gentle and approachable face, a cold, resentful, and ruthless smile emerged.

Sheng Shihai, I’m waiting for my finishing move. What are you waiting for?