Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne-Chapter 127 - 116: What is Unusual about Yangzhou?

"Rumor has it in the palace that it was the Empress who sent someone to assassinate the Crown Prince, so that the Seventh Prince could become the Crown Prince," Tong Xi reported to Zhao Yao, "Even though the Empress ordered severe punishment for the spreaders of this rumor, it hasn’t stopped spreading."

Zhao Yao was taken aback upon hearing this: "What about the capital?"

"It’s spreading in the capital as well," Tong Xi said, pausing for a moment before whispering very softly to Zhao Yao, "Now the people in the capital are all talking about it, saying the Empress is vicious and such."

Zhao Yao narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression thoughtful. Could this be the handiwork of his eighth brother, trying to divert attention?

"Your Highness, do you think it was the work of Noble Princess Consort Rong and Prince Dai?"

"It’s very possible." It can’t be ruled out that it’s the work of Noble Princess Consort Rong and Prince Dai.

"I’ve heard that the Empress was so angry she cried and ran to the Imperial Study to ask the Emperor to clear her name." Tong Xi, having just returned last night, had gathered a lot of information. "Unexpectedly, the Emperor really helped the Empress, issuing a decree to severely punish the spreaders of the rumor. Only then did the rumors cease, but I still think many people believe it was the Empress."

"It wasn’t the Empress or the Seventh Brother; they’re not that foolish." Zhao Yao dropped the matter and instructed Tong Xi, "Go back and take good care of Lai Qian and the others for me."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Zhao Yao walked into the classroom. The Seventh and Ninth Princes were arguing so intensely that spittle was flying. The Third and Fifth Princes, not involved, sat off to the side watching the Seventh and Ninth Princes argue as if watching monkeys.

The Seventh and Ninth Princes didn’t stop their argument just because Zhao Yao arrived. Perhaps because they had been punished for fighting previously, no matter how fiercely they argued, they didn’t dare to actually fight again.

It wasn’t until the teacher arrived that the Seventh and Ninth Princes stopped arguing.

The teacher pretended not to know that the Seventh and Ninth Princes had been arguing and continued with the content from the last lesson.

Zhao Yao pretended to listen attentively while also thinking about the situation in Yangzhou.

He wondered what kind of news Lai Qian and the others would bring back.

During the lesson, the Seventh and Ninth Princes didn’t forget to glare at each other.

Zhao Yao thought if looks could kill, the Seventh and Ninth Princes would have long since killed each other.

With the absence of the Fourth and Eighth Princes, Zhao Yao found that the class had become even more boring, making him drowsy.

Except for Mr. Xiao, the other teachers gave such rigid lectures, practically reading from the textbook.

The last class in the morning was Mr. Xiao’s, and Zhao Yao perked up a bit.

At noon, school was dismissed on time.

Just as Zhao Yao was about to leave, Mr. Xiao called out to him, giving him two books on arithmetic.

"Sir, what are these?"

"These are books I read when I was young; you can take a look," Mr. Xiao said warmly, "If there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask me."

"Sir, do you also like arithmetic?"

"I wouldn’t say I like it."

"Then don’t you think it’s a fringe skill?"

"At most, it’s miscellaneous reading, not a fringe skill," Mr. Xiao said, "There’s nothing wrong with you liking it, but don’t get too absorbed."

"Thank you, sir; I’ll be careful," Zhao Yao added, "Rest assured, I won’t get too absorbed."

"That’s good."

"Sir, I’ll take my leave now."

"Take care."

Zhao Yao didn’t rush back to Kunde Hall to find Lai Qian and the others; instead, he first went to Lanyuan Pavilion to find the Fourth Prince. He gave the Fourth Prince the sketches he had drawn before.

The Fourth Prince was utterly astonished when he saw the sketches Zhao Yao gave him, "Tenth Brother, this..." The sketches were incredibly lifelike, and it was a style of drawing he had never seen before. "What kind of drawing is this?"

"I don’t know."

"You don’t know?" The Fourth Prince was shocked, "Didn’t you draw this?"

"I did draw it, but I just drew it casually. If you ask me what kind of drawing it is, I really don’t know," Zhao Yao thought for a moment and said, "If I had to say, let’s call it ’realistic drawing.’"

Fourth Prince: "..."

"Calling it realistic drawing fits quite well." The Fourth Prince touched the drawing and noticed his fingers got smudged with black ash, exclaiming, "Tenth Brother, did you draw with charcoal?"

"Yes, I used charcoal as a pencil; I call it a ’charcoal pencil,’" Zhao Yao said in a tone brimming with pride, "Fourth Brother, isn’t it amazing?"

The Fourth Prince exclaimed, "It’s incredible."

"So, do you like this picture, Fourth Brother?"

"I do, I really like it," The usually expressionless Fourth Prince smiled with joy, "Tenth Brother, thank you!"

"You’re welcome, Fourth Brother," Zhao Yao waved to the Fourth Prince, "Fourth Brother, I have to go back for lunch, so I won’t keep you company."

"Aren’t you having lunch at Lanyuan Pavilion?"

"I haven’t been back for a few days; my mother and second mother miss me, so I need to go back to have lunch with them."

"Then go ahead."

"Goodbye, Fourth Brother." As Zhao Yao was leaving, he also greeted Lin Xueyi and a group of ministers.

After Zhao Yao left, Lin Xueyi and the others stared curiously at the painting in the Fourth Prince’s hands.

As Zhao Yao left Lanyuan Pavilion, he didn’t forget to take a pot of orchids with him. This scene was coincidentally witnessed by Prime Minister He, who, while stroking his beard, accidentally pulled out a beard hair in his anger.

Zhao Yao also saw Prime Minister He and stuck out his tongue at him, then brazenly ran off with the orchids.

Prime Minister He was both angry and amused, helpless, and had a hint of indulgence he himself hadn’t noticed.

Tong Xi asked, "Your Highness, why did you take another pot of orchids?"

"I haven’t eaten orchids for a few days, and I’m a little craving," Zhao Yao said, looking at the orchids in Tong Xi’s arms, "I want to eat orchid-stuffed buns."

Tong Xi laughed and said, "Stir-fried with egg, it must be delicious."

"Exactly," Zhao Yao finished speaking and remembered Prime Minister He’s angry look just now, he couldn’t help but laugh, "Why hasn’t Prime Minister He gotten used to me taking his orchids?"

Tong Xi said with a mix of emotions, "Your Highness, no one would get used to such things." If Prime Minister He were truly angry about His Highness taking his orchids, he could have taken away all the orchids or deliberately displayed wilted and unkempt orchids, but Prime Minister He had never done this. Each day, the orchids displayed in the garden were always well-maintained, though they were of ordinary varieties.

"Well, making Prime Minister He angry every day does him good," Zhao Yao shamelessly said, "It’s for the sake of his health."

Tong Xi’s mouth twitched slightly as he said, "Your Highness, how is making Prime Minister He angry every day for his own good? Aren’t you afraid of making him ill?" At this moment, Tong Xi felt great sympathy for Prime Minister He in his heart.

"There’s a saying that a Prime Minister’s belly can hold a ship; surely, Prime Minister He has a generous spirit," Zhao Yao said with great confidence, "Making Prime Minister He angry ensures his blood circulates well, which is good for his health."

Tong Xi had long since gotten used to Zhao Yao’s "nonsense," so he didn’t argue with him.

Zhao Yao hopped back to Kunde Hall, where Lai Cai and Lai Qian eagerly came out to greet him.

"Lai Qian, Lai Xi, how was your rest?"

[Rested well,] said Lai Xi, [Yao Yao, you guessed right; there is indeed something unusual in Yangzhou.]

Zhao Yao felt a chill run down his spine at these words and quickly asked, "What kind of unusual activity?"

Lai Qian hurriedly replied, [There is someone named Dong Jin in Yangzhou; he is the leader of the rebels.]

"Dong Jin?" Zhao Yao exclaimed. He knew of Dong Jin, a former general of the previous dynasty, now a rebel leader. It’s said he was violent, ruthless, and commanded a group of staunchly loyal soldiers. Most of these soldiers were brave and skilled in battle, and among them, his adopted son was exceedingly fierce, strong enough to easily lift a large tripod.

[He is a man with a face full of flesh and a burly figure,] Lai Xi said with disdain and fear when mentioning Dong Jin.

"How can Dong Jin be in Yangzhou? Don’t Xie Shi and the others know?" Dong Jin was one of the rebel generals and a major wanted criminal.

Lai Xi, being smarter than Lai Qian, said, [Xie Shi doesn’t know Dong Jin is in Yangzhou. On the surface, the rebel leader in Yangzhou is someone named Chen Qinglan, who is one of Dong Jin’s subordinates.]

"Chen Qinglan?" Zhao Yao had never heard of this name.

[He deliberately incites rebellion, playing a cat-and-mouse game with that Xie Shi,] Lai Xi, the smartest magpie, said.

"What is Dong Jin’s purpose in Yangzhou, to take over the whole region?"

[Yes, they want to occupy all of Yangzhou,] Lai Xi continued, [My friends say Yangzhou has rich supplies of grain and treasures, which is why Dong Jin wants to seize Yangzhou.]

Lai Qian quickly added, [And something about weapons.]

"Weapons?" Zhao Yao suddenly thought of something and asked in surprise, "Is someone privately manufacturing weapons in Yangzhou?"

Lai Xi replied, [No, it seems they have an iron mine that can be used to forge weapons.]

"Yangzhou has an iron mine?"

Lai Xi added, [Oh, and they want to transport the iron ore to Shu to give it to someone named Han Zhong.]

"What?" Zhao Yao nearly shouted but managed to keep his voice down, "Dong Jin and Han Zhong are colluding!" He immediately reconsidered; both Dong Jin and Han Zhong were rebels from the previous dynasty, so their collusion was normal, and he was making too big a fuss over it.

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