Chapter 53 The Prince Xian would never agree to the princess marrying…
Looking at her bewildered expression, Shen Guitang felt an inexplicable urge to move her hands hanging by her sides. However, the thought that she had been lured back by him and had no feelings for him made his heart ache as if it had been pricked by needles.
“If the Second Prince’s face is truly ruined, he will lose his right to seize the throne. How could this not frighten him? And given his vengeful nature, the Third Prince, as the instigator, will surely suffer his revenge.”
Wait a minute… This sentence contains so much information that it took Hengbo a while to process it before he understood. So the Second Prince thought that the assassination that night was the Third Prince’s doing? And was this something Wen Jie did on purpose?
Only in this way can she, the assassin, be perfectly concealed.
Seeing the doubt on Hengbo's face, Shen Guitang couldn't help but ask, "Wasn't this something you and Wen Jie planned together?" He had assumed that it was their idea when he saw Hengbo and Wen Jie going back together, but now it seemed that was not the case.
Hengbo shook her head. In fact, she hadn't expected Wen Jie to be there that time, and she hadn't thought about it much afterwards. Now it seemed that she might have gotten the information from him that day.
Seeing this, Shen Guitang breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that the two hadn't had much contact since returning to the capital. "In any case, this is not a bad thing for us."
But the Second Prince was really disfigured? She remembered that she hadn't gone that far when she attacked him.
"Oh?" Shen Guitang was also somewhat surprised. "According to the information I received, the person who stabbed the Second Prince used an unknown, insidious weapon, and it was coated with a filthy poison."
Hengbo tried to recall for a moment, then solemnly clarified: I did not do this. I only had a kitchen knife with me at the time!
Besides, she actually used the knife as a sword to unleash the "Four-Point Strike" technique, and it was the sword energy that truly slashed the Second Prince's face. Even if she had applied medicine to the knife, it wouldn't have made any difference.
Looking at her serious little face, Shen Guitang suppressed a smile: "Then it must be that the Second Prince has made too many enemies. How could it have anything to do with the Princess?"
Seeing that she was unusually interested in this matter, Shen Guitang patiently explained it to her bit by bit: "The Second Prince's mother, Consort Hui, who is temporarily in charge of the six palaces, secretly contacted Yan Wan, the wife of Zhao Lian, the former head of the Ministry of Works, wanting to exchange Zhao Lian's life for evidence of Yan Zong's collusion with Zhao Lian."
Hengbo frowned, not believing that Yan Wan would agree to Consort Hui's request.
Regardless of whether she was willing to betray her own family, she wouldn't seek help from the Second Prince's people to save her husband; that would be tantamount to asking a tiger for its skin.
“Indeed.” Shen Guitang hadn’t expected that Hengbo, who seemed so simple and carefree, actually had such a keen understanding of people’s hearts.
“Yan Wan naturally refused Consort Hui, but,” he smiled slyly, “Consort Hui is unaware of this.”
Hengbo was now somewhat confused. How could Consort Hui not know she had been rejected? Unless…
Unless there's a third party involved who's sabotaging things!
Shen Guitang gave Hengbo an encouraging look, signaling her to continue guessing.
Yokobo: ...Although it was a bit inappropriate, she inexplicably recalled the look in her grandfather's eyes when he was teaching his grandson to walk.
Hengbo shook her head vigorously, trying to shake off the terrible associations in her mind. And perhaps it was in doing so that she also got rid of the water in her brain, that a sudden flash of inspiration struck her:
Shen Guitang's men gained Yan Wan's trust, and then the men disguised as Yan Wan handed over the evidence they had obtained from her to Consort Hui.
In this way, he could drag both the second and third princes into the mess, while he himself would remain hidden and unknown.
As for why I'm so sure the third party is Shen Guitang's person? Look at how happy this guy is, who else could it be but him?
There's just one thing Hengbo doesn't understand: why would Yan Wan betray her own family?
“Young Princess, many parents and children in this world are not as wonderful as we imagine. Sometimes blood ties do not make us relatives, but rather shackles that bind us and cages with thorns. And the most terrifying thing is that these harms are even justified.”
"She could have endured it, and she endured it for many years, but then she met someone who treated her kindly. And for him, she was willing to go through fire and water." Shen Guitang sighed, unsure whether he was talking about Yan Wan or himself.
Hengbo was somewhat stunned.
Perhaps sensing that the topic was getting a bit heavy, Shen Guitang smiled and said, "Yan Zong has only himself to blame. He was always on guard against his son-in-law having any ulterior motives, but he never expected that the one who would stab him in the back was his own daughter, whom he had always disregarded."
Hengbo sighed at this, but it was a pity that although these losses were considerable for the Second and Third Princes, they ultimately did not affect their foundations. Such punishment was still too lenient.
"Don't worry," Shen Guitang comforted her. "Right now, the Second Prince still thinks his face can be saved. But when he learns the truth, it will be time for both sides to fight to the death."
“He can’t die now because he’s still useful to Ji Heng. Once Ji Heng realizes that he’s no longer a useful pawn, his life will be irrelevant.” Despite his dissatisfaction with Wen Jie, Shen Guitang had to admit that Wen Jie’s move was brilliant. But he would leave the rest to Shen Guitang.
“Let’s wait and see,” Shen Guitang looked up at the dark clouds that suddenly loomed down, “this is just the beginning.”
Hengbo followed his gaze, and thick, dark clouds, as black as ink, obscured all the sun's brilliance. In this treacherous situation in Yujing, could she truly achieve her goal with only her martial arts skills?
“Princess,” Shen Guitang’s suddenly soft voice brought Hengbo back to her senses. She turned around and saw a rare complex expression on his face. “Have you ever thought about setting things right?”
Upon hearing this, her thick, horizontal eyelashes suddenly rose and fell, obscuring all the thoughts in her eyes.
She naturally intended to kill Ji Heng, a fact Shen Guitang surely understood. Yet, he still asked such a question, implying that "restoring order" meant more than just the literal meaning.
He was asking if she had any interest in that position.
So, does she actually have it? Hengbo shook her head. She liked the gentle breeze in the mountains and fields, the changing seasons, and the boundless freedom, rather than the cramped and oppressive atmosphere of Yujing, which lasted day after day and year after year.
Moreover, she pointed to her throat. The Second Prince was disqualified from the throne simply because half his face was disfigured, so what right did she, a mute, have to compete?
“You are different from him,” Shen Guitang said, staring intently at her. “He needs to abide by the rules passed down from his ancestors, but you don’t. You can break them.” After all, the Great Jin Dynasty had only two generations, and both emperors were men. Hengbo itself was a reshaping of the dynasty.
Hengbo didn't expect him to say that, but Shen Guitang could also see that this was just an excuse for Hengbo to refuse.
Even so, he still wanted to say, "Princess, I'm not trying to persuade you. I just want to know what you would choose if that day really came?" After all, there are too many twists and turns in this world, and many people have taken paths that are different from their original intentions. He only hoped that his little princess would not have such a difficult journey.
Even Hei Feng, who had been waiting at the door from afar, felt that Shen Guitang was being somewhat aggressive. Heng Bo, who was facing him directly, smiled. She hadn't expected him to understand her so well.
Even beneath the dark clouds, her smile remained bright and captivating: If that day ever truly comes, Shenxiao would gladly die a thousand deaths.
“In that case,” Shen Guitang said with a slight smile, “starting tomorrow, I will be the one to teach the princess.”
Hengbo:……
Seeing Hengbo come out of Shen Guitang's study looking dejected, Hei Feng, who had overheard a few moments, silently felt sorry for her. What a fine young and beautiful princess she was, how could her young master have taken a liking to her?
Once Hengbo's figure disappeared, Heifeng couldn't help but lean closer: "No wonder Miss Hengbo doesn't like you."
Shen Guitang glanced at him: "Which eye of yours saw that she doesn't like me anymore?"
His tone was too calm, and Hei Feng stared at him suspiciously for a moment before finally shaking his head: "She clearly doesn't like you, otherwise you wouldn't be like this now." He was maintaining a facade of calm.
Once Shen Guitang was exposed, he was too lazy to pretend anymore, and his tone revealed a hint of hostility: "If you don't have anything else to do, you can disappear from my sight now."
Hei Feng quickly took two steps back, but still forced himself to ask, "But why did you make Hengbo prepare to compete for the position?"
Shen Guitang has always been quite indulgent towards the young princess, and now it's obvious to everyone that Hengbo has no interest in that position. Yet, Shen Guitang, who should be supporting her the most, is being so forceful, which he finds hard to understand.
"Ji Zhou spared that old wolf of the Xiongnu for ten years, and now he is finally willing to kill it. But the wolf cubs under the old wolf have all grown up and have their own thoughts. As a result, the Great Jin has become a hot commodity in their eyes."
"Whoever gains the support of the Great Jin will essentially sit on the throne of the Chanyu. And for our Great Jin, this means decades of peace on the northwestern border."
"Great achievements will surely be rewarded. This time, Ji Heng will no longer be able to stop Ji Zhou from returning to the capital."
In fact, this was also Shen Guitang and Ji Zhou's long-standing plan: for Shen Guitang to stir up trouble in Yujing, so that when Ji Zhou returned, he would be less constrained.
However, he hadn't expected that Princess Shenxiao was also in Yujing, much less that he would...
"Ji Zhou regards Ji Jin as a god, so he is willing to stay in the Northwest for more than ten years because of Ji Jin's scheme. Therefore, as long as the princess is alive, he will not have the slightest desire for that position. In fact, he may even want the princess to take the throne more than the former subordinates of the crown prince."
“Princess Shenxiao has never been in control of her own destiny.”
“But,” Hei Feng recalled Heng Bo’s miserable state when Shen Guitang forced her to practice calligraphy, and suddenly felt a sense of sympathy, “the princess doesn’t seem to be cut out for this either.”
“You’ve misunderstood,” Shen Guitang said, her eyes filled with tenderness as she spoke of Hengbo. “She is a rough gem.”
It's not entirely Black Wind's fault for being so blind; even he was initially fooled by her. What was he thinking back then? How could Ji Jin, with all her cunning, have such an innocent daughter? Now, looking at her again, this child is clearly intelligent and talented.
Black Wind: ...
He now feels that Shen Guitang is like that old man from the next street who chased someone for three blocks to argue with them because they said his grandson wasn't smart.
"But now I finally understand why you were in such a hurry to bring Yokobo back."
Shen Guitang has always been an extremely patient person, and he would never act rashly without being absolutely certain. But this time, even Hei Feng felt that he was being too hasty in proposing marriage to Hengbo.
He had previously thought that Shen Guitang was just experiencing love for the first time and was therefore being too hasty. Now it seems that it was clearly the girl's elders who were about to return, which is why he wanted to settle things before the Prince Xian returned to the capital.
After all, the wise king is...
“The Prince Xian will never agree to the princess marrying me,” Shen Guitang said, speaking for him. “Because my real enemy is actually the late Emperor, who is Ji Jin’s father and Shenxiao’s grandfather.”
As he finished speaking, a torrential downpour began, like a thousand horses charging. Shen Guitang turned and glanced at the scene, then suddenly asked, "How is things in Quzhou?"
“The neighboring prefectures and counties have all experienced rain recently, but Quzhou has not seen any rain yet,” Hei Feng paused, then continued, “just like the situation fourteen years ago.”
"Summon Xiao Hui."
"yes."
Shen Guitang's face remained expressionless, but Black Wind knew from the words "Xiao Hui" that his heart was far from calm.
Xiao Hui is the daughter of Li Yu, the former governor of Quzhou, and Xiao Wu, the sister of General Xiao Pingjiang, who is now known as "Chen Ergou".
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The author's note: Analysis of the original sentence: "Shen Guitang also had to admit that his move was truly brilliant, but he would leave the rest to himself."
Question: What is "the rest"?
Answer: His fiancée.
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