The crown prince patted him on the shoulder in satisfaction, but at the thought of Wan Min's deadly glares, the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
Lord Wang and Lord Zhu exchanged a helpless look. Seeing this, they had no choice but to take their leave first.
Chu Junyi curled his lips in satisfaction. Watching the backs of the two men walking away, a hint of determination flashed in his eyes. Well, he would uproot them sooner or later.
Then he came to his senses and bowed to the crown prince to express his gratitude.
"Don't mention it. You helped me solve the urgent problem of the disaster - relief funds. It's only natural for me to help you out."
"By the way, the queen mother will host a banquet in the main palace today and has invited you and Princess Yuanyang. I think Yuanyang should be on her way, so you don't need to leave the palace. Stay and discuss something with me." After saying that, the crown prince took a step forward.
Chu Junyi straightened up and watched the back of the crown prince walking away. Thinking of his haggard look and sunken eye - sockets, he guessed that the matter the crown prince wanted to discuss would be extremely thorny.
If even the crown prince couldn't solve it, it might even be life - threatening.
Chu Junyi took a deep breath. His eyebrows twitched wildly under the great pressure. But having come this far, retreat would only invite more assassinations from political enemies. So he could only move forward step by step. The higher he climbed, the less dangerous it would be, and the closer he would be to Yue'er.
He collected his thoughts and caught up with the crown prince.
...
The carriage rumbled along the street. Li Xinyue swayed with the jolting of the carriage and almost fell asleep. To kill time, she casually picked up a storybook and started to read, but her mind was still on the banquet.
The crown prince was back. The matter of the disaster - relief funds had successfully tied Chu Junyi to the crown prince's ship.
With the crown prince's protection, she felt much more at ease.
Although the crown prince relied on the Lin family, he was going to be the emperor of the country after all.
Viewing the situation from that position, things would look different.
She was sure that like the emperor, the crown prince was determined to promote the poor - born scholars and break the monopoly of the aristocratic families. So Chu Junyi would be reused under the crown prince and might even be promoted.
The higher he rose and the more stable he stood, the safer he would be.
Thinking of this, Li Xinyue lowered her head and patiently flipped through a few pages of the storybook.
The first page of the story read:
"Does the son - in - law admit his mistake?"
"Your Highness, the son - in - law has been hanging on the city wall for three days and three nights and has been dried into a human jerky!"
Li Xinyue was stunned.
Before she turned the pages, she wondered if they could write something good.
After turning the pages, she was sure that they could really write something interesting.
Moreover, there were not just one but seventeen or eighteen books. The title pages clearly marked the title, price, and brief introduction of each book.
Apart from "Three Lives and Three Worlds in Ten Miles and Eight Townships" that she was reading, there were also "The Arrogant Princess Falls in Love with Me", "The Arrogant Son - in - Law Falls in Love with Me", "The Legend of the Divine Doctor Son - in - Law", "The Evil Girl Chases Her Husband: The Peerless Son - in - Law", and oh, "The Warm Bed and the Beautiful Merman".
Li Xinyue was silent for a while. Logically, she should be angry, but the words "human jerky" somehow tickled her funny bone.
So she was torn between being angry and laughing.
Finally, with this confused state of mind, she silently turned the pages.
"Your Highness, for your sake, I didn't hesitate to break off my engagement with Princess Shiliu and turn against my entire family! Now that you've got what you want, you're going to kill my whole family, exterminate my clan, and even sacrifice our child!
You're so cruel!" The son - in - law jumped onto the city tower heart - broken and leaped off.
"No! I have my reasons. Please listen to me!" The princess lay on the city wall, crying heart - rendingly.
An arrow shot out, and the princess died.
Then the reincarnation entered the next life...
Li Xinyue closed the storybook, took a deep breath, and tried hard to hold back the urge to laugh. Finally, she couldn't help it and burst out laughing in the carriage.
Although the plots of the first and second lives were overly exaggerated, it had to be said that it was quite interesting. Especially Princess Shiliu, who was the fourteenth princess. Everyone who knew understood who she was referring to.
In order to find out the ending of Princess Shiliu, she excitedly turned the pages.
The carriage jolted slightly, making the hairpin on her head sway gently, but her hand flipped the pages faster and faster.
From time to time, shouts, cries of peddlers, and even discussions about the princess, the son - in - law, and the Wei family's case drifted in from outside the carriage. But Li Xinyue was completely immersed in the world of the storybook and was not disturbed.
The autumn wind blew, and the willow leaves fluttered. Under a palace wall somewhere.
The crown prince stopped and briefly told Chu Junyi about the major matter that had been weighing on his mind for months.
"This disaster - relief effort in the north has made me see many unknown and dark sides. Why couldn't the disaster situation be resolved for months? Because there was also man - made disaster behind it.
And this man - made disaster is the most difficult to eradicate because it involves the power and interest struggles of various parties."
"The Yamen such as the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court of Judicature have been completely manipulated by some high - ranking officials. Some cases cannot reach the emperor's ears, and some Yamen are inactive or act arbitrarily.
Therefore, I want to establish a supervision institute, create new rules and regulations, and expand its power.
I want to use the supervision institute to monitor high - ranking officials. Lord Chu, dare you fight side by side with me?" The crown prince solemnly grasped Chu Junyi's shoulder. A glint of light suddenly flashed in his cloudy and haggard eyes. The gentle breeze blew, and his blood boiled.
He was sure that only Chu Junyi could solve this matter. Only Chu Junyi was upright and unafraid of life and death.
Chu Junyi looked at the hand on his shoulder, snorted with laughter, covered his lips with a fist and coughed lightly, then looked meaningfully at the crown prince.
The crown prince looked back at him in confusion.
Chu Junyi looked at the charming autumn scenery of the palace, the flowers, the red walls, and the yellow tiles. None of these had anything to do with him or Yuanyang. So why should he risk his life for them?
But thinking of Yuanyang, he still compromised.
"I only have one request!"
"Just say it!"
"Treat Yuanyang well!" The crown prince was stunned.
Chu Junyi lifted his robe and knelt down. There was not a hint of joking in his words. "As long as Your Highness guarantees that as long as Your Highness is on the throne, Princess Yuanyang will enjoy wealth and honor. I will spare no effort and be willing to die for Your Highness!"
The road ahead was dangerous, and life and death were uncertain.
He could only try his best to draw Yue'er to the crown prince's side.
In this way, if anything happened to him in the future, there would be an elder brother to take care of her.
He would not retreat. He had said that he would rise high and chase after the bright moon.
The bright moon should stay in the sky and not fall into the mortal world for him.
Moreover, he was born in the mud and grew up in filth. It would not be a good destination for her to fall into the mortal world with him.
The crown prince's heart trembled. He was not indifferent to Yuanyang, his younger sister. It was just that sometimes he felt a bit awkward around her and didn't know how to get along with her. He couldn't beat her up like he did with Rong'er, who was born of the same mother.
Alas!
Coming back to his senses, he asked, "Did Rong'er bully Yuanyang again?"
Just then, a fierce quarrel came from afar. It was Rong'er he had just mentioned.
The crown prince's eyebrows sank. He quickened his steps and rushed towards the palace gate.
Chu Junyi's heart tightened. He got up and followed closely behind.