Fake Eunuch: Discovering the Emperor is a Woman!-Chapter 169 - 168 A Good Reverse Bargaining (Third Update)
Chapter 169: Chapter 168 A Good Reverse Bargaining (Third Update)
As the voice of the young Emperor rang out, Fourth Prince was indeed startled, unaware why his nephew would summon him to the Imperial Study Room. Could it possibly be that the other party wanted to take action against him?
Lately, his nephew, the Emperor, had been quite influential.
It could be said that he not only controlled all the military forces within the Capital City but was also showing signs of outward expansion.
Even in the Imperial Camp led by the Sixth Prince, the Emperor’s influence had begun to penetrate.
Moreover, these days, he could say that he had suffered heavy losses.
Not only had he lost the military authority of the Right Martial Guard, but he had also lost the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Rites.
One could say that he now felt as if he had lost an arm.
Moreover, with the recent poisoning incident still fresh, he was genuinely panicked.
Could it be that the Emperor had made some new progress and wanted to eliminate him outright?
If that were indeed the case, he might really be unable to escape his fate.
Because of this, he hesitated for a moment, even contemplating in his heart whether he should go or not.
If he went, he might very well step into danger, but if he did not go, he would be defying the Emperor’s command, and the consequences would be equally severe.
It could be said that then, the Emperor would have a legitimate excuse to directly investigate and deal with him intensely.
However, just as he was torn, the Sixth Prince passed by just in time.
At the same time, a faint voice also rang in Fourth Prince’s ears:
"Don’t worry, Fourth Brother, I am still here."
After saying this, he walked away without looking back, not even glancing at his Fourth Brother.
This thought made Fourth Prince suddenly pause on the spot, and after a long while, a realization dawned on him as he patted his thigh in excitement.
He had been overthinking; just as his Sixth Brother had said earlier, he was there, and the Emperor surely wouldn’t act against him.
It wasn’t to say that his Sixth Brother would help him; the two were inherently incompatible.
If the Emperor hadn’t risen suddenly, the two of them would probably still be engaged in their covert power struggle.
But now, the Sixth Brother’s power was too formidable.
If the Emperor had any sense, he wouldn’t obliterate him with one blow.
After all, he still needed him to counterbalance the Sixth Prince.
Thinking this, he also released the anxiety in his heart.
Following the eunuch’s lead, he headed directly toward the Imperial Study Room.
Additionally, he did not bring a single soldier or even a single guard.
Of course, since he had lost the military authority of the Right Martial Guard, such treatment had naturally disappeared.
Even if he now wanted to bring people along to the Imperial Study Room, it was absolutely impossible.
"Your servant, Prince Yong’an, greets Your Majesty."
Inside the Imperial Study Room, upon seeing Prince Yong’an walking in, the young Emperor put down the scroll he was holding.
He immediately waved his hand and signaled the eunuch to bring a stool for him.
"No need for formalities, Fourth Imperial Uncle, please take a seat.
This is the situation, Fourth Imperial Uncle, I will be straightforward.
I have obtained quite a few pieces of glazed glass from those overseas envoys.
I initially thought to keep them for use within the palace, but given the current situation, Fourth Imperial Uncle must be well aware.
Our great You Country is in need of money right now, so I have decided to sell them."
At this point, the Fourth Prince seemed to have realized something, and immediately stood up, bowed to the young Emperor, and said:
"Your Majesty, rest assured, since Your Majesty has commanded, I will definitely spare my family’s wealth to purchase some."
This fellow clearly misunderstood, thinking that the young Emperor wanted to forcibly impose a few pieces of glazed glass on him, then extract some money from him.
"Ha ha, perhaps the Fourth Imperial Uncle has misunderstood something. What I wanted to talk about with Fourth Imperial Uncle isn’t about buying these glazed glassware.
Rather, I was wondering if Fourth Imperial Uncle happens to own a sizable shop within the East Market?
I see both its location and the building itself are quite suitable for doing business.
Therefore, if Fourth Imperial Uncle is not using that property currently, would you consider transferring it to me?
At that time, I will use that shop to sell the glazed glassware in my hands.
What does Fourth Imperial Uncle think?"
This left the Fourth Prince somewhat stunned; he had never expected the Emperor to discuss this matter with him.
This also greatly relieved him.
It was just about a shop—why didn’t you say so earlier, or simply send someone to inform me?
Why create such a big fuss and scare me terribly.
Immediately, he stood up, bowed again to the young Emperor, and continued with a salute:
"Since Your Majesty requires it, I shall unquestionably hand it over to Your Majesty; there’s no need to talk about a transfer, Your Majesty can just take it and use it."
But the young Emperor waved his hand and said:
"Fourth Imperial Uncle, what are you talking about? Even brothers settle accounts clearly.
Since the shop belongs to Fourth Imperial Uncle, even though I now want to use it, it still needs to be bought with money.
How about this, Fourth Imperial Uncle, you name a price, and I will certainly not bargain."
The Fourth Prince was not foolish; he knew very well that there was more to the young Emperor’s words than meets the eye.
Therefore, he immediately put on a serious face and nodded:
"Since Your Majesty put it that way, I shouldn’t be unyielding.
Well then, even though I initially obtained this shop for free,
after so many years of being exposed to the elements, its value has naturally depreciated.
Let’s calculate with a depreciation of ten thousand taels per year, and over these nearly ten years, that would be one hundred thousand taels.
In this case, I will go back immediately and send both the hundred thousand taels and the property deed of the shop to Your Majesty."
At this moment, Prince Yong’an did not appear as spirited as before.
Had it been in the past, how could the young Emperor dare to talk to him like this?
But now, he clearly had no leverage to openly confront him; he could only set some traps secretly.
That’s why, after hearing the previous words of the young Emperor, he decided to speak those flattering words after careful consideration.
And the young Emperor, knowing well that Prince Yong’an would naturally not be convinced,
originally did not intend on making such statements earlier.
He was simply thinking about getting the deed of the shop into his hands.
After all, if the shop was nominally handed over for his use, the ownership of the shop would still belong to Prince Yong’an.
If spun by someone with ulterior motives, it might end up tainting him with a reputation for competing with the citizens for profit.
But he never expected that Prince Yong’an would play such a move on him.
...End of Chapter...
