Chapter 468 Crisis

Years of planning, ultimately leading to a high probability of failure and escape, would be unpleasant for anyone. Especially since the Lingnan Prince's Mansion had been plotting this "great undertaking" for generations. Even now, the Lingnan Prince himself was in a daze. Were his ancestors right or wrong in insisting on rebellion?

The King of Lingnan's eyes were as deep as an icy pool. His clenched fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly, his back stiff, and he sat there in silence.

The prime minister was not in much better condition either. His gaunt face was covered with a layer of ashen gray, and most of the scheming in his eyes had faded, leaving only an unconcealable weariness and bitterness.

Seeing the two so dejected, Zhu Junning pursed her lips into a straight line. She was naturally not feeling well either, but unlike the Prime Minister and the Prince of Lingnan, she hadn't spent decades of effort on this, so she wasn't overwhelmed by the dark cloud of "possible failure and escape."

Having sorted out her thoughts, she said, "Uncle, Father, the most important thing now is to do the task at hand well. If we can make the Emperor suspicious of the Duke of Chu and help the Crown Prince ascend the throne smoothly, why would we need to take the path of fleeing?"

Her words were like a bucket of cold water, waking the two who were lost in despair. The Prince of Lingnan and the Prime Minister exchanged a glance, and when they looked at Zhu Junning again, their gazes softened.

The Prime Minister picked up the cold tea on the table and took a sip. The icy, slightly astringent tea slid down his throat, clearing his muddled mind somewhat. After a moment's thought, he said slowly, "If Yan Fengxi can be used by us, the best time for us to make our move will be when the Emperor becomes suspicious of the Duke of Chu."

"And what about the preparations for the inner palace, Uncle?" the Prince of Lingnan pressed.

The Prime Minister put down his teacup, his fingertips gently stroking the rim: "This time, we can't let Consort Su make a move. The Emperor has long been wary of her and the Marquis of Qingshan's mansion. If we let her take action, the probability of failure is too high."

The Prince of Lingnan was full of surprise: "Uncle actually has other people in the harem?"

The Prime Minister did not answer directly, but instead turned to look at Zhu Junning: "If Yan Fengxi is willing to cooperate with us, the next time the Empress summons the officials and their families to transcribe scriptures for the Empress Dowager to pray for blessings, Madam Yan and Yan Fengxi will both be there."

Zhu Junning nodded, then a question arose in his mind: "Could it be that Her Majesty the Empress is one of our people?"

The Prime Minister paused for a moment, glanced at her, and said with a hint of advice in his tone, "The Empress is firmly in her position, and the Marquis of Chengen is in charge of the military camp in the suburbs of the capital. No matter which prince ascends the throne, she and the Marquis of Chengen's mansion will not be affected. With such a secure situation, the Empress has no need to get involved in our mess."

These words made Zhu Junning's cheeks flush instantly, but she still straightened her back and tried to remain calm. The Prime Minister did not dwell on the matter, but simply dipped his fingertip in some tea and wrote the number "three" on the table.

The Prince of Lingnan's eyes widened suddenly, his mouth agape as he watched the number "three" gradually disappear from the table before he came to his senses. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice tightened slightly: "How...how did Uncle manage to win him over?"

The Prime Minister leaned back, his posture relaxed as he said, “Everything comes down to profit. It’s obvious to everyone that His Majesty has no intention of having the Crown Prince succeed him. Of the remaining princes, only this one and Prince An have a good chance. Prince An has most likely already joined forces with the Duke of Chu, so this one naturally wants to win me over as an ally.”

The Prince of Lingnan paused for a moment, then continued, "They felt that the Crown Prince and the Marquis of Qingshan were not to be feared, and since you, Uncle, gave them hope that things would 'succeed,' they were willing to cooperate?"

The Prime Minister nodded: "The key is that they also hope that His Majesty will pass away soon. Only in this way can they take advantage of the fact that the power of Prince An and the Duke of Chu has not been fully consolidated and seize what they want."

At this point, he looked at the Prince of Lingnan with a heavy gaze: "If the Crown Prince is truly incompetent, then in the end we will have no choice but to support this one."

These words made the Prince of Lingnan frown. The Prime Minister, seeing this, added a touch of sternness to his tone: "Does Your Highness still care about that 'father-son relationship' with the Crown Prince?"

The Prince of Lingnan immediately shook his head: "Uncle, you flatter me. In fact, even I am not sure if the Crown Prince is my heir, so why would I care about such things? What I am worried about is that this one is much more difficult to control than the Crown Prince."

The Prime Minister's expression softened somewhat: "This faction is indeed stronger than the Crown Prince's and the Earl of Qingshan's families, and they are difficult to control. But you forgot, after the deed is done, we still need to settle accounts with the Duke of Chu's faction. At that time, this person and other forces will inevitably fight to the death, and we can reap the benefits."

The King of Lingnan still frowned: "But what if this man turns around and joins forces with the Duke of Chu?"

The prime minister's face instantly turned sinister and gloomy, his tone cold and hard: "Then let's fight to the death."

The King of Lingnan remained silent for a long time before finally nodding: "Do as my uncle says."

“That’s right.” The Prime Minister tapped his fingertips lightly on the armrest of his chair, his tone carrying the coldness of someone with experience. “Since ancient times, when has the succession of the throne not been accompanied by bloodshed? If we succeed, we can seize power, settle accounts with the Duke of Chu’s lineage, and fulfill the wishes of your ancestors for generations.”

Even if we are defeated, we have already prepared an escape route to Lanzhou. We won't end up like Pu Tonghe, with our entire family executed.

He glanced at the King of Lingnan, his gaze growing increasingly somber: "Now is not the time to hesitate. We must either climb over the corpses of others to rise above them, or we must make plans to extricate ourselves as soon as possible. This game can only be played to the bitter end."

The conversation with the Prime Minister did not ease the King of Lingnan's mind in the slightest. After returning to the palace with Zhu Junning, he sat in his study for a long time before saying to Zhu Junning, "Yan Fengxi is going to be married off to a place outside the capital, and she's been going to jewelry stores and fabric shops almost every day to buy things. Go out tomorrow and see if you can 'bump into' her."

"Yes." Zhu Junning immediately replied respectfully.

The Prince of Lingnan waved for her to leave, then sat stiffly alone in the chair, motionless and listless...

Inside the Duke of Chu's mansion, Jiang Yu stood by the window, deep in thought. She was processing everything that had happened recently. Ever since returning from the palace, she had felt uneasy, as if some major crisis was about to unfold.

After going through the whole story, she finally realized that the root of her unease was the way Zhu Junning looked at her in the palace...

Jiang Yu frowned and walked back to the tea table to sit down. She picked up the kettle, which was bubbling with white steam, from the stove and poured hot water into the celadon teapot. Watching the tea leaves slowly unfurl in the hot water, her thoughts didn't stop.

Xie Ning'an had said that Zhu Junning admired Prince Rui. That day in the palace, when Prince Rui rushed to the Imperial Study, Zhu Junning would undoubtedly have paid him extra attention. So, could Zhu Junning have guessed from their interaction that there was something more between her and Prince Rui?

Yes or no?

Jiang Yu's fingertips hovered over the rim of the teacup, the last glimmer of hope in her heart quickly suppressed. She never took a gamble she wasn't sure of, especially one like this where losing would mean utter ruin.

Although Zhu Junning wasn't exceptionally intelligent, she was certainly not stupid. If she had truly gleaned the truth about her relationship with Prince Rui from the few clues in the palace, given the ruthlessness of the Prince of Lingnan's faction, they would definitely make a big deal out of it.

Jiang Yu gripped the teacup tightly, gazing down at the steaming tea. After a long silence, she gently placed the cup on the tea table. Then she rose and went behind the desk, taking out stacks of documents and carefully examining each one…