Chapter 189: Winning Over

Su Fengzhang was a little surprised when he walked into the small house. It was certainly not because the Fourth Prince had come to see him specially, but because the house was not far from the Su family. If it were not for today, he probably would not have thought that this place was the Fourth Prince's private property.

Su Fengzhang followed the attendant slowly into the inner courtyard, but in his heart he was guessing what the Fourth Prince was thinking. To put it in a positive light, the Fourth Prince felt that this place was secretive and did not intend to push him to the front for the time being.

But on the worst-case scenario, the Fourth Prince's choice of this place might have some connotations of warning and threat.

Su Fengzhang's expression remained unchanged. No matter which one it was, it was not a bad thing.

The Fourth Prince was sitting at the stone table in the courtyard, drinking tea. When he saw Su Fengzhang come in, he put down his teacup and stood up, acting as if he was being courteous.

His smile was genuine and his attitude was kind. If it weren't for the previous incident, Su Fengzhang would have probably thought that the Fourth Prince was a very kind person. "Master Su is finally here. Please take a seat and try this new tea to see if it suits your taste."

Su Fengzhang politely bowed, then sat down to drink tea. After taking a sip, he said, "Excellent."

The Fourth Prince laughed heartily and said, "Master Su, there's no need to be so reserved. Honestly, we're actually related, aren't we?"

Su Fengzhang's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously looked up at the Fourth Prince, only to see him give him a look that said, "I understand you, and I understand you."

Su Fengzhang sneered in his heart. As expected, their guess was correct. The Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince were able to sit back and watch the Fifth Prince become powerful only because the Emperor had already told them the Fifth Prince's true identity.

I'm afraid that in the minds of these two, no matter how high or how stable the Fifth Prince's position is, her identity is a huge handle. They can pull him down at any time if they want, so they are so relieved.

However, the Fourth Prince's words were interesting. It seemed as if he regarded Su Fengzhang as his own brother-in-law.

Su Fengzhang pretended to change his expression, stood up, bowed, and said, "I dare not."

Perhaps because his expression was too grim, the Fourth Prince quickly said, "Alright, alright, I won't talk about this anymore. How about we sit down and talk about something else?"

The Fourth Prince had a guilty look on his face, but he was extremely happy in his heart. It was true that no man in the world would like to be regarded as someone else's vassal, not to mention the Fifth Prince's fake identity. Su Fengzhang seemed to be close to Prince Cheng, but in fact, there was a deep gap between them.

If this is true, then Su Fengzhang is even more worthy of being won over. Firstly, he has great potential, and secondly, he can be used as a chess piece to restrain the fifth prince.

Thinking of this, the Fourth Prince's face became even more kind: "Master Su, I specially asked you to come here today, but I have a request. I hope Master Su can help me solve my doubts."

Su Fengzhang sat down again and said politely, "I am of low rank and my words are not taken seriously. I don't know how I can help Your Highness."

The Fourth Prince looked up at him and suddenly said, "Lord Su, I wonder what you think of my eldest brother?"

Su Fengzhang just smiled slightly: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is naturally extremely noble."

The Fourth Prince slammed his hammer on the stone table and cursed, "Even if he is the Crown Prince, he cannot whip his subjects at will."

Seeing the resentment and resentment in Su Fengzhang's eyes, the Fourth Prince was extremely satisfied and said tentatively, "Sir Su, I understand the grievances you have suffered, and I feel sorry for you. It's a pity that His Majesty favors the Crown Prince and protects him in everything."

"Whenever the Crown Prince gets into trouble, His Majesty will only help him cover it up, and will only reward his subjects with some gold and silver. After all, who doesn't need that? The most important thing for a scholar is his reputation, isn't that right, Lord Su?"

Su Fengzhang raised his eyebrows slightly and asked directly, "Your Highness, if you don't know what you want to say, just say it. If I can help, I will do my best."

Seeing him like this, the Fourth Prince thought that the two had reached an agreement. Indeed, they had a common enemy, the Crown Prince.

If someone said that Su Fengzhang had no complaints against the Crown Prince, the Fourth Prince would never believe it. As a scholar, and the most popular top scholar at that time, Su Fengzhang must have been proud. When he was whipped in public, he must have hated the Crown Prince in his heart.

Because of this, even though Su Fengzhang was not close to the Xu family, the Fourth Prince still felt that he was someone who could be used.

The Fourth Prince smiled and finally stated his true intention: "Lord Su, I'm sure you're aware of the Ministry of Revenue's outstanding debts. His Majesty asked me to do this, but who would have thought the Crown Prince would be so shameless as to continue to delay repayment."

"The Crown Prince is the Crown Prince after all. He now lives in the Eastern Palace. Even if I am the Fourth Prince, I cannot go directly to the Eastern Palace to collect the debt!"

"I guess the prince saw this coming and deliberately delayed paying me, making it difficult for me to get out of this situation."

The Fourth Prince looked at Su Fengzhang. Every time he saw this Lord Su, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart that he was an outstanding person. No wonder his picky Fifth Brother would take a liking to him. If he were a girl, he would probably also like such a person.

"If Lord Su can find a way to help me resolve this matter, I will be extremely grateful."

Su Fengzhang shook his head helplessly: "Your Highness thinks too highly of me. If I had a solution, I should have taken action when I first saw the account book, and would not have put it off until now."

The Fourth Prince frowned upon hearing this, feeling that Su Fengzhang was just making excuses.

After a moment of thought, the Fourth Prince suddenly laughed and said, "Master Su, I heard that the Emperor wanted to grant you a marriage, but kept delaying it, so Master Su still can't get married?"

Su Fengzhang looked up at the Fourth Prince, wondering why he suddenly mentioned this.

Seeing this, the Fourth Prince thought he had spoken to the emperor's heart, and said with a smile, "If you ask me, Father is a bit too unkind. Although you and Fifth Brother... have an extraordinary bond, there is no reason for him to stop you from marrying and having children."

"Since ancient times, there are three types of unfilial behavior, and having no descendants is the worst. Even if Lord Su is not anxious, I'm sure Madam Su will be anxious and angry."

This is true. After Su Fengzhang came back from Yunzhou, Su Zhaoshi would mention his marriage from time to time. It was obvious that she was very worried about it. On the other hand, Su Fengzhang really didn't worry about it.

Even deep down, Su Fengzhang felt vaguely relieved. Rather than marrying a wife he had never met, whose personality he didn't know, and with whom there was a high possibility of a generation gap, he would rather remain single and comfortable.

The Fourth Prince misunderstood Su Fengzhang's silence, thinking that even if Su Fengzhang and Prince Cheng had an affair, they were destined not to be open and aboveboard, and Prince Cheng could never give birth to a child for him. Was Su Fengzhang willing to be without descendants?

If he could use it well, Su Fengzhang would eventually join his side. The Fourth Prince smiled and said, "Speaking of which, Lord Su is not young anymore. It's time for him to get married and have children. How about I lend you a hand?"

Su Fengzhang sneered in his heart, thinking that this Fourth Prince was quite interesting. On the surface, he recognized that he had an unusual relationship with Prince Cheng, but he also wanted to help him get married and have children. This was really interesting.

It's a pity that if he really wanted to get married, there are plenty of ways to do it even with the emperor's words. Why bother cooperating with the Fourth Prince? However, this matter can be used to his advantage.

After a few thoughts flashed through his mind, Su Fengzhang said with deep fear, "Your Highness, there is no need to mention this matter again. This humble official has absolutely no such intention."

Seeing this, the Fourth Prince had indeed misunderstood and believed that Su Fengzhang was being threatened. He actually felt a bit of sympathy for him. "Don't worry, Master Su. Once this prince speaks and His Majesty issues an order, no one can disobey."

Su Fengzhang insisted, "Your Highness, I really don't have such an intention."

The Fourth Prince was secretly surprised, wondering if their love was stronger than gold, and that Su Fengzhang was willing to remain single for the sake of Prince Cheng. That shouldn't be the case. Many men in the world don't want wives, but who wouldn't want children?

Perhaps Prince Cheng holds military power and is using Su Fengzhang's family as a threat?

The Fourth Prince thought more and more that this was the case, and he soothed him, "Master Su, if it's because of my Fifth Brother, this Prince can handle it. Don't worry."

Su Fengzhang stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Highness the Fourth Prince... please let me go."

The Fourth Prince raised his eyebrows and looked at him, wondering what Prince Cheng had done to scare Su Fengzhang. However, thinking about how Prince Cheng had done whatever he wanted over the years, he didn't find it strange.

The Fourth Prince pretended to be regretful and said, "Lord Su, why don't you consider it?"

Su Fengzhang brought up another matter: "Your Highness, I do have a way to collect the debt, but..."

"Just what?" When it came to collecting the money, the Fourth Prince no longer cared about being a matchmaker or pulling the strings.

"But this method is a bit vulgar." Su Fengzhang said.

"Oh, please tell me in detail." The Fourth Prince asked hurriedly.

Su Fengzhang whispered his methods one by one. The Fourth Prince frowned more and more as he listened, and finally he exhaled: "Speaking like this is trampling on the face of the royal family."

Su Fengzhang said, "It's just trampling on the prince's face. What does it have to do with the royal family?"

The Fourth Prince frowned, and Su Fengzhang continued, "Although it was a bit of a tantrum, it was effective. Moreover, even if Crown Prince T finally paid back the money, it would be a huge loss of face, and the news would surely spread widely among the people."

The Fourth Prince's eyes lit up. Wasn't this what he wanted most? However, he still hesitated and said, "If His Majesty becomes furious..."

Su Fengzhang laughed and said, "Why is Your Majesty so angry?"

The Fourth Prince understood immediately. Even if his father was furious, knowing that he was responsible, could he punish him directly or order those people to leave? No, their father was very concerned about his reputation, and he might even have to clean up the mess in the end.

The prince lost more talent than being scolded by the emperor in private.

Knowing that the Fourth Prince was moved, Su Fengzhang sighed softly and said, "Your Highness, I ask for nothing else in this life. I only hope that my mother and my younger siblings can live in peace and security. If in the future... I hope Your Highness will protect me."

The Fourth Prince laughed heartily, patted his shoulder and said, "Don't worry, Lord Su."