Chapter 128

Chapter 128 The court had argued for a long time without truly settling the matter of disaster relief. On this day, the Fifth Prince, Prince An, hosted a banquet for Prince Jing at Duanjiang Tower. Within the pavilion, beauties sang and danced, zither music drifted languidly, and fragrant incense curled upward. Neither the wind nor the cold outside could dispel the warm, rosy atmosphere within. Prince An had been drinking alone, his round, moon-like cheeks already flushed with color, carrying an air of indignation and discontent. Prince Jing observed him calmly, and only after a long while asked, "I see you look rather like you're drowning your sorrows, Brother." Prince An drained his cup in one gulp, set it down heavily, and let out an abrupt sigh. Seeing that Prince Jing remained silent, Prince An said, "It's not just sorrow—I feel truly wronged." Prince Jing gave a light laugh. "Who could make you feel so wronged, Brother?" Prince An looked up and smiled bitterly. "Sixth Brother, do you know where Imperial Father intends to send Eldest Brother for the disaster relief this time?" No sooner had he asked than he let out another light laugh. "Ah, I suppose that was a foolish question." "You and Eldest Brother share the same mother—you must have learned the news even earlier than I did." Prince Jing's brow furrowed slightly. "The matter of disaster relief is entirely up to Imperial Father's arrangement. How could we presume to discuss it freely?" Prince An scoffed. "That's true enough, but I feel stifled inside. Surely I'm not forbidden from even speaking a word?" Prince Jing raised his cup and took a light sip. Prince An leaned in closer. "It's Jiangnan." The cup in Prince Jing's hand trembled. "Jiangnan?!" Suddenly, Prince Jing let out a light laugh. "Imperial Father truly dotes on Eldest Brother." "Isn't that so?" Prince An complained in a low voice. "Jiangnan has always been prosperous, and this time the disaster there isn't even severe. Sending Eldest Brother to Jiangnan—that's not disaster relief at all. It's clearly letting him..." Use the opportunity to amass wealth and build connections. But those were words Prince An dared not speak aloud. The two men left it at that, drinking in silence. Prince An's birth mother was of humble origins, and even though Prince An himself was tactful and capable, he was still looked down upon by the Emperor. Prince Jing had a Noble Consort as his birth mother, but above him stood a far more dazzling elder brother, Prince Su. Moreover, with no legitimate son in the imperial family, the Princess Consort he had married was even a princess from a neighboring kingdom. Both men were marginal figures whether as princes or as lords. And so, a sense of mutual sympathy had grown between them. Prince Su had been born during Noble Consort Rou's most favored years, receiving the partiality of both the Emperor and Noble Consort Rou. By the time Noble Consort Rou bore Prince Jing, she had already fallen out of favor, and she had hoped to use Prince Jing to regain the Emperor's affection. Alas, imperial favor was like flowing water—once gone, never to return. Naturally, she had transferred some of her resentment and displeasure onto Prince Jing. Especially after the Emperor bestowed a peace-making princess upon Prince Jing in marriage, nearly cutting off any hope Prince Jing had of contending for the succession. From that point on, Noble Consort Rou had completely abandoned her expectations for Prince Jing. Thereafter, Noble Consort Rou devoted herself entirely to relying on her eldest son, dreaming that one day she might live grandly in Shoukang Palace. Prince An looked at Prince Jing, thinking of their similar circumstances—Prince Su could go to the prosperous Jiangnan to "provide disaster relief," while Prince Jing was being sent to the remote and desolate Yunzhou. Suddenly, he felt his own situation wasn't so bad after all. He raised his hand and clapped Prince Jing heavily on the shoulder. "Drink!" Prince Jing silently drained the wine in his cup. When Prince Jing, half-drunk, was helped away by attendants, Prince An raised his hand in a gesture. The singing and dancing dispersed, and the musicians withdrew. Prince An's strategist stepped forward. "Your Highness, now that you've told Prince Jing the news, how did he react?" Prince An let out a light laugh. "He says he doesn't care, but he certainly didn't hold back on the wine." Prince An lounged lazily against his chair. "Clearly, he harbors resentment toward Prince Su as well." "Just resentment?" Prince An glanced at the strategist. "Isn't resentment enough? You don't expect him to murder his own brother, do you?!" Though spoken as a jest, the words carried a note of warning. Matters of the imperial house could be discussed with his strategist, but he would never permit the man to entertain improper thoughts. The strategist lowered his voice. "Your Highness, I happened to learn of something that might turn Prince Jing and Prince Su into mortal enemies." "If the two brothers could stage a falling-out before Prince Su departs for Jiangnan, perhaps it could make His Majesty change his mind." Prince An's eyes darkened. "Speak!" The strategist said, "Does Your Highness know that recently, a Concubine Consort in Prince Jing's household gave birth, but was schemed against and nearly died in childbirth—a tragedy of both mother and child?!" Prince An's expression remained blank. "I did not know." As a prince, how idle would he have to be to take notice of a Concubine Consort giving birth in his younger brother's household? The strategist continued, "Prince Jing has recently gained three sons. One was born prematurely at less than eight months, another was weak in the womb from birth, and recently inhaled charcoal fumes that damaged his lungs..." Prince An raised an eyebrow. "You mean to say, someone doesn't want Old Six to have a healthy son?" But in his heart, he thought how ruthless that was. Prince Jing already had no legitimate son. If he couldn't even have a healthy son, how could he possibly contend with the rest of them? This wasn't just about preventing Prince Jing from competing for that position—it was clearly about cutting off Prince Jing's bloodline entirely! As Prince An pondered this, his eyes suddenly brightened. "You mean to say, this has something to do with Prince Su's household?!" The strategist nodded and lowered his voice to whisper at length into Prince An's ear. After a moment, he said, "If Your Highness can find a way to deliver this information to Prince Jing's desk, I fear those two brothers will become sworn enemies for good." Prince An clapped his hands and laughed heartily. "Excellent! Excellent!" "It's your keen perception that found the clue in such fine details!" Prince An's delight was something Prince Jing knew nothing about. He sat half-drunk in the carriage, eyes slightly lowered, neither fully drunk nor fully awake, neither asleep nor awake. "Eldest Brother is going to Jiangnan to relieve the famine?" Prince An assumed it was because the Emperor favored Prince Su that he had been given such a fine assignment. But he failed to see the danger hidden behind this fine assignment. The current Emperor was suspicious and ruthless by nature—the Jiangnan famine relief was nothing more than a test. If Prince Su truly took the opportunity to form a faction for his own gain, what awaited him upon his return to the capital would likely be the Emperor's merciless blade. It was precisely because Prince Su knew this clearly that he had repeatedly declined, trying to seek a sliver of a chance to survive. Prince Jing knew full well that the collapse of the Zichen Hall bore the handiwork of his own eldest brother. In a little while longer, the Eighth Brother would likely meet misfortune as well. The Emperor was not old and blind—the moment he found even a trace of evidence, the capital would surely be swept up in a storm of blood and violence! Caught in the middle of it all, Prince Jing would inevitably be implicated! He pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "Change course. To Prince Su's residence." Chuyi said in astonishment, "Your Highness, we're already at the doorstep of our own residence..." Prince Jing suddenly opened his eyes and said in a flat tone, "Did you not hear what I said?" Those excessively dark eyes fell upon Chuyi, frightening him into a cold sweat. Earlier, Chuyi had worried that his prince was muddle-headed from drink. Now he knew that not only was the prince not drunk, he was perfectly clear-headed! By the next day, the news that Prince Jing had paid a nighttime visit to Prince Su's residence, gotten into a fierce argument with Prince Su, and stormed off in a huff had spread throughout the entire capital. When Chuyi heard this news, everyone else merely listened for the entertainment. Later, word spread from somewhere that the reason Prince Jing and Prince Su had quarreled so fiercely was that Princess Consort Su had plotted to harm Prince Jing's pregnant Concubine Consort. The eldest sister-in-law plotting against her pregnant sister-in-law—and a matter of the imperial family at that! The more one savored it, the more interesting it became!