Chapter 170

As Tan Lingyue spoke, her emotions surged to the point that tears welled up in her eyes again. Looking at Xue Jin'an with deep sorrow, she said, "Teacher, I understand everything!"

No wonder the teacher didn't take the high-ranking official position offered by the Ministry of Revenue; no wonder such a brilliant teacher only made a brief appearance in the capital before becoming a legend; no wonder that even though the teacher didn't deliberately hide his identity, those in the court who praised the "Perfect Young Master" never considered this possibility; no wonder that even though Nine Plus One was clearly the teacher's business, he rarely came... So that's how it all is!

What a dark officialdom, what chilling those in power!

— Xue Jin'an seemed to be able to read these lines in Tan Lingyue's eyes.

Xue Jin'an: "...I understand everything now."

Xue Jin'an called out to the instigator in his heart: Teacher Xiao X, what do you think?

Teacher Xiao X: "I'll watch it lying down."

Teacher Xiao X: "I really am the best AI."

Teacher X: "Look, this is the world I conquered for you!"

Teacher X: "Praise Long Aotian!"

...

Teacher Xiao X's words popped up like bullet comments, flooding Xue Jin'an's screen.

Xue Jin'an silently blocked it and scheduled a virus scan for it in the security software, commenting: "There are thousands of ways to surf the internet, but green is the most important. If you don't follow the rules, you'll get two lines of bugs in your code."

Tan Lingyue was still looking at him with a "you've suffered" expression, and Xue Jin'an's language module seemed to malfunction for a moment, not knowing how to explain.

He can't very well expose Teacher X, can he? They'll definitely demand evidence from him then, but Teacher X doesn't have a physical form yet. Is he supposed to write code by hand to prove it? Besides, even if he did write it, there are no computers in this era. Others wouldn't understand it. There's a greater than 70% chance they'd think he was just scribbling nonsense, and the remaining 30% would think he'd fabricated a language system to deceive people.

It wasn't that Xue Jin'an didn't want to explain; it was just that he assumed that being Teacher Xiao X was more cost-effective.

Strictly speaking, this equation is completely true. Teacher Xiao X was originally a piece of code that was separated from Xue Jin'an. However, Xue Jin'an processed it again and gave it the authority to grow autonomously. That's why Teacher Xiao X showed a completely different personality from Xue Jin'an.

However, since Teacher Xiao X still uses Xue Jin'an's database, its thinking, behavior, abilities, etc. are essentially inherited from Xue Jin'an. There is too much data overlap, so the assumption that they are the same life form holds true.

So why did Teacher X evolve into what she is now? There must be something wrong with the data on the Emperor's feeding. Xue Jin'an came to this conclusion in his mind, but ultimately did not deny it.

He was simply trying to correct Tan Lingyue's mistaken belief that he was being held hostage by the emperor, so he chose to start by addressing his identity: "Have you forgotten that I have another identity?"

He was a prince, and since he was not yet old enough to leave the palace and establish his own residence, he could only live in the palace. It was unnecessary for him not to come to Jiutianyi often. He didn't go to the Ministry of Revenue because he didn't want to. The court officials hadn't found out about him because no one really took his existence seriously...

Tan Lingyue shook her head and said seriously, "Teacher, you don't need to make excuses for him. I can see it with my own eyes."

Tan Lingyue may have subconsciously overlooked the fact that Xue Jin'an was a prince before, but after learning that the Ten-Perfect Prince was reviewing the emperor's memorials, he carefully investigated and remembered Xue Jin'an's princely status. He also confirmed that the emperor had not mentioned the Seventh Prince at all in all this time. When he deliberately asked, the emperor said that the Seventh Prince was a promising military general and that he should be placed in the Imperial Guard for proper training so that he could one day go to the battlefield to expand the territory and become a great general.

All the ministers smiled and praised His Majesty's wisdom, saying that parents who love their children plan far ahead for them, but Tan Lingyue only felt a chill.

He saw no affection the emperor had for the Seventh Prince; all he saw was disgusting and despicable scheming, only torment—making a man, a descendant of the God of Literature, hone his body, strengthen his bones, conceal his abilities, embezzle his credit, erase his existence, and make the world forget how brilliant and compassionate his teacher truly was.

As Tan Lingyue thought about these things, a chill ran through him, causing a metallic taste to rise in his throat and his eyes to turn red.

“Teacher, please rest assured, perhaps I am still weak and unable to do anything now, but I will not be weak forever.” Tan Lingyue said solemnly, “My four elder brothers, our family children and disciples… we will all stand on your side.”

As Tan Lingyue spoke, as if afraid that Xue Jin'an would think they were useless, she quickly lowered her voice and said, "Teacher, it won't be long. Soon a group will grow up, and our numbers will increase quickly. Don't be discouraged."

All four of them were focused on their official careers, but Liu Gu was different. He became a teacher and had already trained his first batch of students to take the exams. They would all become his help and support, at his beck and call.

Xue Jin'an swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue because of this sentence.

He pondered that everything was almost over. After he ascended the throne, some stubborn ministers in the court would inevitably be purged, and vacant positions would be filled layer by layer. Since those students were taught by Liu Gu, it would be safer to use them, and they could fill the vacant positions at the lowest level.

Just then, Tan Lingyue assured him, "I am not as capable as my other brothers, but I will try my best. I have some connections with Chief Minister Jiang, and I am also born into a prominent family. I will help you to maneuver and test the waters."

"I won't keep you waiting long," Tan Lingyue said again.

"I understand." Xue Jin'an looked away.

He thought: Forget it, the emperor isn't important. Let him take the blame. I'm going to die sooner or later anyway. Dying innocent or dying with a grudge makes no difference.

While Xue Jin'an was happily waiting for the student he had picked up along the way to form his civil service team, the rivalry between the Second Prince and the First Prince had entered a heated phase.

Although the Eldest Princess was consciously consolidating the power belonging to the Second Prince, she did not use this opportunity to attack him. On the contrary, her cooperation with Consort Min became even closer. Consort Min was well aware that now that those forces were in the Eldest Princess's hands, she would never let go. What needed to be done now was not internal strife, but closer cooperation between the two sides to eliminate other external enemies first, and then divide the spoils internally.

Consort Min and the eldest princess were very much in sync on this point. By joining forces, they were able to undermine the eldest prince's foundation with almost no effort.

The inside story of the fifty-year peace treaty signed years ago has been fully exposed. Lin Ruofu was forced to step down in disgrace on charges of colluding with the southern border, falsely reporting achievements, confusing the royal bloodline, and deceiving the emperor. The Empress Dowager personally ordered that he be severely punished. In the end, Lin Ruofu and his cronies were beheaded and their heads displayed to the public, and their clansmen within three generations were exiled three thousand miles away.

At the same time, the Empress Dowager was very fair and impartial, and had no intention of hiding anything. In court, she sternly rebuked the late emperor for his meddling in this matter as the mother of the late emperor, and made the current emperor listen to the admonition as a son on behalf of his father.

The Empress Dowager's actions were not without the intention of admonishing the Emperor; this was her last lesson for him. Apart from that, there were some minor benefits: the Emperor's "filial piety" was now public knowledge.

Unfortunately, the emperor did not heed the Empress Dowager's words. On the contrary, he was displeased because the Empress Dowager had reprimanded him in front of many ministers.

It was precisely because of the Empress Dowager's righteous act of putting family members aside that the late Emperor and Lin Ruofu shared the responsibility. However, since the late Emperor was already dead, it was not appropriate to exhume his body and whip it, so it seemed as if only Lin Ruofu was unlucky.

With the late emperor taking responsibility, Lin Ruofu's crime was somewhat lighter. Although Consort De was deposed and imprisoned in Qing'an Palace, the eldest prince did not receive any substantial punishment.

The Second Prince was quite disappointed that all that was discovered was that Consort De's identity was unusual. Although the First Prince's bloodline was mixed with Southern Frontier blood, he was still the Emperor's child. Consort De was imprisoned, but the First Prince, as a member of the royal family, did not receive any punishment.

"He got off too easy." The Second Prince felt unsatisfied.

The eldest princess said in a calm tone, "Perhaps if he had a choice, he might as well just die."

The eldest prince lost everything overnight. Although he was not deposed, everything he had worked for had gone down the drain. His Southern Frontier bloodline had been confirmed, and he would never be able to turn things around.

Almost everyone thought so; they were pessimistic about the Crown Prince's future. Little did they know that the Crown Prince would only stay in his residence for three days before requesting an audience with the Emperor late at night. He presented the Emperor with an account book that clearly recorded the Ministry of Revenue's deficits over the years, detailing who handled each transaction.

The moment Teacher X saw the ledger, she realized this was a big show. Ignoring the fact that it was past Xue Jin'an's bedtime, the trembling pop-up actually woke Xue Jin'an up.

Xue Jin'an was just thinking about how to blacklist a string of code when Teacher Xiao X had already opened a live stream for him, so he only needed to watch the excitement.

"Wow, I didn't expect the Crown Prince to have such a hidden trick up his sleeve. It's a real killer weapon." At least that's how the Ministry of Revenue sees it.

Teacher X couldn't wait to share her opinion: "It seems like the Ministry of Revenue is about to undergo a major upheaval."

Xue Jin'an didn't speak; he sat up and watched quietly.

Even through the screen, you could tell how tense and cold the atmosphere was in Qian Yuan Palace.

The emperor closed the account book, squinted at the eldest prince, and said coldly, "Do you know what you're doing?"

"Father has been worried for many years about the lack of surplus funds in the Ministry of Revenue. Your son is willing to share your burden." The eldest prince was not intimidated. He still had a smile on his face, but his face had become much thinner, which made his smile more cold and stern.

He said, “As the ancients said, ‘A kind person is bullied, and a good horse is ridden.’ Father Emperor has been too benevolent, to the point that some people have become ungrateful and greedy, and have even stopped wanting to be human and only want to be accomplices. Now it is time for Father Emperor to take action and shake up these villains.”

"Your subject is willing to relieve your father's worries and difficulties, even if it means dying nine times."

The emperor looked at him for a long time, then suddenly clapped his hands and laughed, saying, "Excellent!"

The next day, the eldest prince attended court again after a three-day hiatus, and began to impeach Minister Feng and the Ministry of Revenue, causing an uproar among the court officials.

Minister of Revenue Feng Yinshou's expression darkened, but he remained standing there without losing his composure.

The amounts in the ledgers were indeed accurate, so the families were raided, some were beheaded, some were exiled, and some were demoted. Even Feng Yinshou could not escape blame—after all, he was the highest-ranking official in the Ministry of Revenue, and whatever happened in the Ministry of Revenue was his responsibility, even if the accounting problems existed before he took office, even if the emperor knew about the Ministry of Revenue's embezzlement, misappropriation of national treasury funds, and lending of official silver to officials. Knowing all this actually had little to do with Feng Yinshou.

Feng Yinshou knew from the moment he took up the position of Minister of Revenue that this day would come sooner or later.

Feng Yinshou was demoted three ranks in a row. Although he was still in the capital and in the Ministry of Revenue, his power had already waned. He decided to take advantage of his suspension to reflect and think things through.

The Ministry of Revenue became the Crown Prince's personal fiefdom, and his subordinates quickly filled the vacancies. The Crown Prince himself entered the fray, becoming a tool in the Emperor's hands, and staged a remarkable comeback.

The courtiers were once again impressed by the eldest prince's abilities, and in their flattery, they seemed to have completely forgotten about the spoiled second prince.

After the morning court session, the eldest prince invited the officials to a banquet in front of the second prince, and also sent invitations to all the princes and princesses.

The banquet was never a pleasant one, and Xue Jin'an hadn't originally planned to go. However, when Xi Yun secretly came to his door, the Princess gave orders for Xi Yun to find out Xue Jin'an's whereabouts, seemingly indicating that she wanted to meet him.

“His Highness is in Zhaoyang Palace. Instead of coming to see him, she insists on finding out his whereabouts outside the palace…” Lingzhi reacted quickly. “Is the Eldest Princess wary of Consort Min and doesn’t want Consort Min to know that His Highness has been in contact with her?”

Xue Jin'an nodded slightly, confirming her guess. "Ever since the Eldest Princess stepped into the limelight, she has rarely entered the palace. Even when she does enter, she always goes during the time when Consort Min is taking her afternoon nap."

Therefore, the Eldest Princess either failed to meet Consort Min and returned empty-handed, or she only exchanged a few words with her before leaving. The Eldest Princess deliberately avoided Consort Min. Her previous behavior could perhaps be explained by the fact that she did not want to clash with her mother, but her current act of directly seeking out Xi Yun clearly showed that she was on guard.

There was indeed a rift between the eldest princess and Consort Min, and this rift seemed to be deepening.

"Your Highness, what do you think?" Xi Yun awaited Xue Jin'an's instructions.

Xue Jin'an didn't think for long before saying, "Tell her I'm not in the palace."

Xi Yun was somewhat surprised by this answer and asked hesitantly, "Does Your Highness not want to see her?"

Xue Jin'an shook his head again, leaving Xi Yun completely bewildered.

In fact, Xue Jin'an's statement that he was not there was not a refusal to see the Princess. On the contrary, Xue Jin'an subjectively agreed to meet her. The reason he said this was that he was trying to find out how much information the Princess knew about him.

Xue Jin'an climbed over the palace wall alone that night to go to Jiu Tian Yi. When he woke up, the shopkeeper came to report that the Princess's residence had sent someone to deliver a visiting card.

"As expected, the Princess knew you were here, Master." Cui Zui, who had come here first thing this morning after learning that Xue Jin'an would be coming to Jiu Tian Yi yesterday, said with a solemn expression, "Master, the visitor is not friendly."

"Don't worry, it's not aimed at me." Xue Jin'an rubbed his fingers, his tone calm and even. "The Princess is about to enter the fray."

The eldest princess spent a fortune to book the entire Jiu Tian Yi venue, but she didn't arrive until the afternoon. Upon seeing Xue Jin'an, she went straight to the point and asked, "Does the seventh prince plan to attend the eldest prince's banquet?"

"I'm not going." Xue Jin'an's mind remained unchanged; she didn't want to attend a banquet that was destined to be turbulent and difficult to digest.

"Seventh Prince, you should go. It will be very interesting." The eldest princess said meaningfully, "Consider today's private screening fee as a deposit for inviting Seventh Prince to see a play."

Xue Jin'an asked directly, "Who is the main character?"

“Naturally, it’s the eldest prince and…” The princess’s gentle, smiling voice carried a strange chill as it reached her ears. She slowly and tenderly uttered another name, “Feng Shi.”