Chapter 186 Risk It All Risk It

The Fourth Prince paced back and forth in the room. According to the palace physician, the wound on his ear had healed long ago, but the lost ear could not be restored.

Because of this, the Fourth Prince was reluctant to go out. You should know that he used to be the one who loved going out and socializing the most. After all, even if he had ears that looked like real ears, they were still fake. A closer look would reveal that the Fourth Prince was a person who cared most about his reputation, so naturally he could not stand the strange looks from others.

However, his anxiety at the moment had nothing to do with his ears. Suddenly, the Fourth Prince stopped and turned to ask the people around him, "Do you think this method is feasible?"

The servant, knowing full well that the Fourth Prince's moods had been erratic lately, was filled with fear and could only cautiously reply, "Your Highness, how could a humble servant know what was going on at court? Waiting for Minister Xu to arrive would surely help you resolve your worries."

The Fourth Prince frowned and glared at him but did not get angry.

The attendant who escaped the disaster breathed a sigh of relief. When he saw Minister Xu, he felt like he had seen a savior and hurriedly welcomed him in.

Minister Xu hadn't come alone; he had brought his eldest son, Xu Yuran, with him. After the two of them entered, the Fourth Prince dismissed his attendants. Minister Xu then asked, "Your Highness, why are you so anxious to deliver this message? Is there something important you want to discuss?"

When the Fourth Prince saw him appear, he immediately walked over and said, "Grandpa, you're here."

From his every move, it was clear that the Fourth Prince was extremely close to Minister Xu, even treating him with respect as his elder. "There is indeed one thing I can't make up my mind about, so I specially invited Grandpa over."

Compared with Minister Xu, the Fourth Prince's attitude towards his uncle Xu Yuran is more interesting.

Minister Xu frowned and asked, "What's the matter? Is it something about His Majesty..."

The Fourth Prince's eyes dimmed and a flash of anger passed through his eyes. If this time in Yunzhou had made him lose face, then the Emperor's attitude after returning to Beijing made the Fourth Prince even more chilled and frightened.

He once thought that he was his father's most beloved prince, and that the position of crown prince would be his sooner or later. Who would have thought that he had been too naive all along, and that their good father only truly loved the crown prince, and he was just a stepping stone.

Minister Xu knew the Fourth Prince's thoughts well enough. He sighed and soothed him, "Fourth Prince, although His Majesty did not punish the Crown Prince this time, the officials at court are all dissatisfied with him after this incident. Even if he still holds the throne, I'm afraid he would be suffering from sleepless nights."

"What's the use? As long as he is the crown prince, he may ascend to the throne!" The fourth prince shouted angrily. He couldn't help but put his hand on his ear. The cold touch made him even more angry.

Minister Xu looked at his ears, his heart aching. The Fourth Prince originally had a bright future, but after this incident, he might lose the chance to be emperor. How could Minister Xu, who had been planning for more than 20 years, be willing to accept this?

The Fourth Prince calmed down after venting his anger. He looked up and said, "Grandfather, I asked you to come here because a counselor in the palace mentioned something. I think there's great potential for action, but I can't make up my mind at the moment."

Minister Xu asked, "Your Highness, please explain in detail."

The Fourth Prince asked him to sit down and then brought up the issue of the Ministry of Revenue owing silver. As soon as he mentioned it, Minister Xu could not help but frown. He was the Minister of Revenue and was naturally very familiar with the Ministry's long-standing problems.

Because of this understanding, Minister Xu became even more worried. He glanced at the Fourth Prince and asked, "Fourth Prince, who proposed this idea? This person has evil intentions and is worthy of death!"

The Fourth Prince's face changed, and he heard Minister Xu continue, "Many people in the court know about the Ministry of Revenue's debt, but why is it that no one dares to mention the empty treasury year after year?"

"In the final analysis, it's because this debt has such widespread implications. Almost every family of the older generation of nobles has debts, with the royal family having the most, and the current Crown Prince having the most."

"To be honest, Your Highness, the Crown Prince is certainly aware of his debt, and it's even intentional. As long as His Majesty doesn't give the order, whoever dares to mention the debt will become the target of public criticism, and it will be a thankless task."

The Fourth Prince sneered and asked, "What if I insist on mentioning it?"

Minister Xu frowned and said, "Your Highness, raising this matter will indeed help to enrich the national treasury, but firstly, you will offend the royal family and nobles, and secondly, it will not help you at all."

The Fourth Prince said, "I don't think so."

"The treasury is empty, so the relief for Yunzhou has been delayed. No one in the court has mentioned this, but the people have long been talking about it. It's just that Your Majesty wants to be deaf, so the civil and military officials have to be dumb."

"If I propose to repay the loan in the court and use it to provide relief to the soldiers, I will firstly be grateful to the Zhenbei Army and secondly gain the support of the people. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?"

Upon hearing this, Minister Xu knew that the Fourth Prince had already considered this matter before he arrived, and had even decided to do so. He frowned and said, "That being said, the Zhenbei Army is far away in Yunzhou, and General Meng Kun hasn't returned to the capital for years. What use is there in having the people support them?"

"Comparatively, the nobles of the royal family are right beside the emperor, so their words carry more weight."

After all, the position of crown prince was decided by the emperor. Everyone said that the prince was intolerant and harsh to his subordinates, and even did such a vicious thing this time, but His Majesty did not cover it up. Instead, he let him reflect on his mistakes at home.

The Fourth Prince sneered, "Royal family? Nobles? One of them looks down on me for being born out of wedlock, the other looks down on my mother's birth. How have they ever taken me seriously all these years?"

"Grandpa, even if I don't offend them, they will never support me. Don't you know that?" The reason why the Xu family tried so hard to win over civil officials was because the Xu family started from too low a point and had a natural conflict with the nobles.

In comparison, the eldest son who was born and was canonized as the crown prince long ago is the orthodox one supported by most of the noble clan members. This is the help that the fourth prince has been asking for.

Upon hearing this, Minister Xu fell silent. The Crown Prince was immoral and had little respect for civil officials. Therefore, except for the royalists such as Grand Tutor Zhang, most of the civil officials in the court did not have a good impression of him.

But in the hearts of the royal family and nobles, the prince is still the best candidate to inherit the throne. They are even worried that once the fourth prince comes to power, he will vigorously promote people from the Xu family.

Minister Xu followed this thought and couldn't help but waver in his heart, but he still expressed his concerns: "Even if I ignore them, I'm afraid His Majesty won't agree."

The Fourth Prince sneered, "When the time comes, at the Grand Court, simply raise this matter in the name of national justice. Don't let any word leak out beforehand. Once you bring it up, Father will have to agree, whether he agrees or not."

"This..." Minister Xu, who was also familiar with the emperor's thoughts, couldn't help but frown upon hearing this. "I'm afraid that after this incident, His Majesty will harbor a grudge against you, the Fourth Prince."

"Isn't it still available now?" The Fourth Prince sneered after hearing this.

"Since the Emperor is so determined to secure the Crown Prince position for my good elder brother, I'm determined to make it difficult for him." The Fourth Prince sneered. "When the time comes, I, a prince, will understand the righteousness of justice and serve the country and the people, but the Crown Prince will delay returning the throne. I wonder how his dignity as the Crown Prince will be affected. The Emperor was able to secure his position once, but can he do it every time?"

Upon hearing this, Minister Xu's eyes flickered, and he also revealed a smile: "If this matter is made public, everyone in the world will know that the Fourth Prince is a man of great righteousness. If the Crown Prince returns it, it will be his duty as the crown prince. If he doesn't, he will only be cursed by the world."

Minister Xu sighed and said, "If I were not the Minister of Revenue, I would not have made such a big fuss about the military supplies issue. Otherwise, this would be the moment when the Crown Prince would be brought down."

The prince's move of military supplies seemed reckless, but in fact he had deep motives, because the Ministry of Revenue was the territory of Minister Xu. When there was a problem with the military supplies, Minister Xu did not dare to make a big fuss even though he knew that it was the prince's men who tampered with it.

It was because after the incident got out of hand, he, the Minister of Revenue, would also have to bear the responsibility, and he couldn't fall just yet! Thinking of this, Minister Xu couldn't help but glance at his son who had followed him without saying a word, feeling extremely disappointed.

If the Xu family had no one else available except him, he wouldn't have to be so restricted.

The Fourth Prince obviously knew the stakes involved and sneered, "The Crown Prince is just seeing this coming, so he dares to act so recklessly!"

Xu Yuran caught his father's eye and immediately misunderstood his meaning. He said, "Fourth Prince, wouldn't it be a good idea for you to bring this up yourself? Otherwise, if you push a chess piece, then Fourth Prince can just go with the flow. Wouldn't that be a win-win situation?"

As soon as Xu Yuran opened his mouth, Minister Xu glared at him and shouted, "Think before you speak!"

"Your Highness, this move is extremely risky, but if it's done well, it will only win the hearts and minds of the people. If you let anyone else speak up, wouldn't Your Highness be blamed and gain nothing?"

Xu Yuran felt aggrieved after being scolded, and dared not speak.

Minister Xu was even more disappointed when he saw this. He frowned and said, "Forget it. Next time, let Zifeng go out with me."

Compared to Xu Yuran, his grandson Xu Zifeng is actually more talented.

The Fourth Prince was also very dissatisfied with his uncle, but since he was his biological uncle after all, he still spoke to smooth things over: "Father still feels a little guilty towards Mother and me. Even though he knows that my actions were directed at the Crown Prince, he can't bear to blame me. If it were anyone else, they would probably be dragged away the moment they opened their mouths."

At this point, the Fourth Prince laughed at himself and said, "Father's softness of heart is sometimes a good thing."

It’s a pity that their father is soft-hearted towards him and even softer towards the crown prince. He is only hard-hearted towards those who are insignificant.

Minister Xu nodded and asked, "Fourth Prince, you haven't mentioned who offered this? While it's useful, it's too risky. This person's mind is unpredictable."

The Fourth Prince laughed and said, "Grandfather, you're overthinking it. This was the idea of ​​Lord Ding, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue."

"What, it's him?" Minister Xu couldn't help but frown. Lord Ding was his subordinate. Minister Xu supported Lord Ding to take the position because he knew that this person was easy to control and could help him completely control the Ministry of Revenue. But Lord Ding was definitely not a quick-witted and thoughtful person.

The Fourth Prince continued, "Actually, Lord Ding didn't mean that at first. Su Fengzhang went to the Ministry of Revenue and looked through the account books for half a month before finding these things. But he was timid and didn't take any action even after getting the account books."

"Lord Ding and the clerk in my palace are good friends. They talked about this matter while drinking. They came up with this risky idea, but they didn't dare to say it at first. They thought about it for several days before they dared to mention it to me."

"It's risky, but if it can destroy the Crown Prince's reputation and make him lose face, then that's a good idea. At this point, why should I be cautious?" The Fourth Prince touched his ear again.

Minister Xu couldn't help but frown, feeling that this matter was too coincidental, especially the shadow of Su Fengzhang that flashed by in it.

At this time, Xu Yuran said again, "Fourth Prince, Father, since it was Su Fengzhang who discovered the account book, why don't you propose this method? If His Majesty gets furious, we can push Su Fengzhang out to vent his anger."

After hearing this, the Fourth Prince couldn't help but take another look at his uncle, thinking to himself that his grandfather was such a smart man, how could he have given birth to such a barbecued pork.

Minister Xu shouted angrily, "Just shut up! Su Fengzhang and Prince Cheng are close friends. Pushing him out for no reason would be a huge offense to Prince Cheng."

"Your Majesty is currently doting on Prince Cheng. If Prince Cheng pleads for him, Su Fengzhang might not be in any danger, but he will definitely resent the Fourth Prince because of this. Wouldn't that further antagonize Prince Cheng and Your Majesty?"

Xu Yuran asked curiously, "Su Fengzhang is just Prince Cheng's favorite male lover, who used his beauty to gain power. How could Prince Cheng really offend His Majesty for him?"

Minister Xu was too lazy to explain to him and scolded him, "Shut up, there's no need to mention this matter again."

The Fourth Prince and Minister Xu exchanged a look that was filled with other meanings. It was not scary to offend the royal family and nobles, but what was scary was to offend Prince Cheng, who now held a large army and was on good terms with the He family.

Knowing Prince Cheng's background, the Fourth Prince naturally had no time to win him over, let alone deal with his people. He even secretly planned to win over Su Fengzhang in order to make Prince Cheng completely side with him. How could he bear to use him like this?