The Imperial Palace
It was late at night, and the lights were bright. A cold wind blew past, causing everyone to feel a chill down their spines.
The Imperial Guards were dressed in armor, with thick coats underneath. Their entire bodies looked bloated, and their faces were red from the cold. They had swords strapped to their waists as they stood guard in front of the palace.
Lanterns were hung from the eaves, illuminating the entire place.
The Imperial Study was brightly lit, and there were furnaces placed everywhere. The furnaces were burning brightly, and the sounds of coughing could be heard.
"Cough cough" The Emperor covered his mouth as he coughed uncontrollably. A red robed eunuch patted the Emperor's back, trying to soothe his breathing.
After some time, the Emperor felt better, "You seem to be getting better at soothing his breathing."
The red robed eunuch sighed, "Your Majesty, don't look at the memorials anymore. You've been working too hard. Take care of yourself."
"Ji Bei Hou had followed me everywhere, and had always been loyal. When I told him to go east, he didn't dare to go west. Now, I've only stripped him of his military power, and not his title. How dare he rebel?" The Emperor clenched his fists tightly, his face was ashen as he coughed uncontrollably.
The red robed eunuch handed the medicine over, "Your Majesty, please rest for a while and take some medicine."
The Emperor's face was haggard, and he sighed, "These memorials are making me anxious."
As he spoke, he raised his head and drank a mouthful of medicine. The medicine was bitter, and he frowned. However, he didn't put it down, and drank it all. He then frowned and wiped his mouth clean with a towel.
The red robed eunuch heard the sound of the Emperor putting down the bowl, and looked over. The Emperor's face was flushed red, and his complexion was pale.
The eunuch couldn't help but think of the Emperor's heroic demeanor, and his eyes welled up with tears. He leaned to the side and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes.
"Trash!" The Emperor picked up the memorials and threw them on the table. "Pa!" The eunuch beside him trembled.
"It's been a few months, and we still haven't taken him down. Damn it." The Emperor cursed. At this point, a eunuch ran over and kowtowed.
"What's the matter?"
"Your Majesty, this is the urgent military memorials that were just handed over."
The Emperor was about to explode in anger when he heard this, "Hand it over."
The red robed eunuch handed it over to the Emperor.
"Oh?" The Emperor glanced at it, but didn't seem to see it clearly. He moved closer to take another look. Without saying a word, his body tilted and he passed out.
"Emperor!" The eunuchs were scared stiff, and their faces were ashen. After a while, the red-robed eunuch came back to his senses, and his face was ashen. He quickly ordered, "Quick, call the imperial physician!"
Crown Prince Mansion
It had been a month, and the weather was still very cold. The Crown Prince held the little imperial grandson in his arms and coaxed him in a low voice.
"Haha." The little imperial grandson was held in the Crown Prince's arms and laughed.
At this point, there was a knock on the door. A eunuch shouted, "Your Highness, someone from the palace has come. It's an urgent matter."
"What is it?" The Crown Prince stood up and walked out, only to see the eunuch Hu Wuyi walking in. His face was ashen. Without even looking at the Crown Prince, he said, "All of you, leave!"
The Crown Prince shuddered and ordered his attendants to leave. Only then did Hu Wuyi whisper, "Your Highness, His Majesty was just reading through the memorials. When he saw the memorials about Count Pingyuan's death in battle, he was so angry that he fainted. Your Highness, please enter the palace immediately."
"What? Is Father unconscious? " The Crown Prince frowned. Just as he was about to speak, he realized that something wasn't right. He immediately shut his mouth and said, "Quick, prepare the carriage to enter the palace."
In the middle of the night, the Crown Prince's carriage headed towards the Imperial Palace. The Crown Prince's residence wasn't too far away from the Imperial Palace. Within an hour, they had arrived at the entrance of the palace. Several eunuchs and several other eunuchs were waiting anxiously. The moment the Crown Prince alighted from the carriage, he asked, "Where is the Emperor now?"
"In the Yun Wen Palace." The eunuch replied. "The Ministers of the Imperial Cabinet have all arrived."
Early morning
The sky was getting brighter as Pei Zi Yun and the Canton Princess walked along the streets.
A thick layer of frost fell from the trees on the street, and their breath turned into a cloud of white mist. The young Canton Princess wore mink earmuffs on her ears, making her look pretty and lively. Her face was bashful, but also full of joy.
She felt that this was the happiest time she had ever had. For three whole months, she was able to spend time with Pei Zi Yun, and even had fun with him.
The streets were bustling with people. Some porters were hawking tofu, while some women were carrying baskets and haggling with the vendors.
"Candied fruits, big and sweet candied fruits!" A man was wearing a pair of thick gloves, and was holding a stick in his hand. There were dozens of candied fruits on the stick.
"I'll take two." The Canton Princess stepped forward and said.
The man took the money and took two skewers from the stick and handed them over. The Canton Princess received one skewer and handed it over to Pei Zi Yun. The two of them walked along the green stone streets. The Canton Princess looked at the candied fruits for some time before feeling bored. She then took a bite of the candied fruits and looked at Pei Zi Yun, "Let's go and read some books."
Not far away was a bookstore. The Canton Princess walked in and shouted, "Boss, did Wine Is Not Empty release a new book?"
The boss raised his head and saw that it was her. He didn't think much of it, since she was a regular customer. He then handed a book to her, "Wine Is Not Empty is indeed impressive. It's only been a few days, and you've already released a new book."
Pei Zi Yun couldn't help but smile as he looked at the shelves filled with books. There were also all sorts of stationery and brushes. Pei Zi Yun asked, "How are the sales of Wine Is Not Empty's books?"
The boss laughed, "They're selling very well. The most important thing is that he's constantly releasing new books. Most people write one book in a lifetime, while he releases one book every half a year. Even if you search the entire capital city, you might not be able to find someone as hardworking as him!"
Pei Zi Yun laughed to himself. Was this considered hardworking?
But then he thought about it. In ancient times, a book with hundreds of thousands of words would take an entire lifetime to write. With this comparison, he was indeed hardworking. As he flipped through the other books, the boss was still talking, "The poems in this book are very profound. Some people can't even compare to a High Scholar. But why did he write such a vulgar book?"
"Vulgar books aren't good to read?" Pei Zi Yun laughed.
"It's good to read, and it's even turned into a story. The storyteller and the stage are all changed. But this can't be exchanged for a High Scholar's title!" The boss said regretfully.
Pei Zi Yun nodded his head and didn't speak further. At this point, there were many scholars in the shop. One of them sighed, "Ai, the world is in chaos."
"What chaos? It's just a rebellion by Ji Bei Hou. As long as the imperial court sends out their troops, they would be wiped out in the blink of an eye. I'm not worried at all." Another scholar said.
"Hm, the imperial court has sent out troops, but they haven't been able to wipe them out. I'm afraid that Ji Bei Hou will become a chronic disease." A scholar said as he held a book in his hands.
"What's the point of discussing these matters of the nation. Why don't we study hard and earn a High Scholar's title before we can do anything." The scholar picked up the book and handed it over to the boss, "Boss, I want this book."
The boss smiled as he took the book from the scholar and said, "There's a script for a play in this book. The few Elementary Scholars can go and take a look."
"Boss, which theater is the script for the play?" The Canton Princess asked.
Hearing the Canton Princess's words, the boss paused. The status of a woman in the Xu Dynasty wasn't considered low. However, there were many people in the theater, and proper women wouldn't go there. If they really wanted to listen to the play, they would have to call the troupe over. He then laughed, "The play is at Sheng Ye Theater. There's a performance tomorrow."
"I'll go and watch it tomorrow." The Canton Princess said as she looked at Pei Zi Yun. Pei Zi Yun knew that she wanted him to bring her along, and thus pretended not to hear anything.
There were many things that the Grand Princess could pretend not to know. However, bringing the Canton Princess to such a place wasn't a good idea. In this day and age, many theaters were like brothels.
"System!"
A Plum Blossom appeared in front of his eyes as it grew bigger and became a translucent information interface. It carried a faint sense of light as it floated in front of his eyes.
"Yin Master: Fifth level (32.5%)"
"Yin Master – Materialization, Transcendence, Night Roaming, Removal of Records, Longevity. At the fifth level, the Night Roaming Stage, the fame gained from reading novels has decreased."
"The last time I plotted against the Prefectural Magistrate, my name had spread throughout Ying Prefecture and gained a lot of fame as well. Perhaps it's no longer useful to the commoners. I should consider the officials." Pei Zi Yun thought to himself.
This was easy to understand. The commoners were like grass. Be it plays or novels, fame was superficial. However, the officials were much more practical.
Just as Pei Zi Yun was deep in thought, an ox-cart stopped not too far away. The curtains of the ox-cart were lifted, and a few words were spoken. An official then rushed into the shop, looking for Pei Zi Yun and the Canton Princess.
The official stepped forward and whispered, "Dao Master Pei, the Grand Princess has summoned you. She's just outside the street."
Pei Zi Yun frowned as the Canton Princess stood up, "Shopkeeper, help me wrap up the book."
"Alright, it'll be ready soon." The shopkeeper quickly wrapped up the book and handed it to Pei Zi Yun as the both of them walked out. The official then said, "Canton Princess, the Princess has instructed you to go to the back of the ox-cart."
The Canton Princess looked at him obediently before walking to the back of the ox-cart. Pei Zi Yun paused before boarding the ox-cart. He then saw the Grand Princess sitting by the window. She was dressed in a red robe, and had a golden hairpin in her hair. The hairpin was adorned with jewels, and her eyes were bright. She looked like a young married woman, but at this point, she had a cold expression on her face. When she saw Pei Zi Yun enter, the first thing she said was, "Ping Yuan Bo has died in battle."
Pei Zi Yun frowned and sat down without speaking for a long time. He then exhaled and asked, "Grand Princess, what's the situation like now?"
"Ping Yuan Bo has died in battle, and more than half of Ying Prefecture has fallen."
"When the Emperor heard this, he vomited blood. The Crown Prince is now in charge of the country, and this happened last night."
"Ai, I didn't expect things to turn out this way." Pei Zi Yun's expression was unreadable as he said this.
"I know that you've given the Crown Prince an idea, but he didn't accept it. The Crown Prince must be regretting it now, and wanted me to persuade you to come out of seclusion." The Grand Princess looked at Pei Zi Yun and said.
"You're exaggerating. I'm just a little smart, and don't have many ideas." Pei Zi Yun shook his head.
"You're still feeling resentful."
Pei Zi Yun looked out the window and spoke in a heavy tone, "That's not it. Fighting a war is different from strategizing. Everything changes in an instant, and there's nothing that can't be defeated."
"I'm a Daoist, and shouldn't interfere in the affairs of the country. If I were a scholar, I might still have some leeway. Victory and defeat are common in battles. But now that I've come up with a strategy, I have to take responsibility for it. I can't take responsibility for it. I'm afraid the Imperial Court won't be able to take responsibility for it. If I fail again, Ying Prefecture will have a new ruler, and Ji Bei Hou will rise to power. When that happens, how will the Crown Prince see me? How will the Imperial Court see me? "
"The Crown Prince cannot be defeated, and neither can I."
Hearing these words, the Grand Princess was about to say something, but she stopped herself. These words were very true. Daoists were heretics in the Imperial Court. Even if there was nothing going on, there would be a lot of people who would try to persuade him to kill him. But if there was a problem, there would be a lot of people who would try to kill him. Even the Crown Prince would not be able to protect him.
After some time, the Grand Princess then said, "I can tell the Crown Prince about this. However, the Crown Prince is in need of manpower now. The Crown Prince doesn't trust the people in the Imperial Court, and yet he only trusts you. That's a very good relationship."
"You've received orders from the Governor to attack the pirates. The Crown Prince intends to follow this example and quell the chaos in Ying Prefecture."
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