Chiyo Yokoyama could tell what Eiko was thinking just by looking at her expression. This adopted younger sister, like her adopted mother, was a pleasure-seeker. She wouldn't cooperate unless she was taught a lesson.
"Don't think you can hold onto your current wealth and status. If Prince Ming were an honest and unassuming prince, he could live a peaceful and stable life. Unfortunately, he is not one to be content. He even disregarded his own mother and recognized Consort Duan as his mother. What kind of good person do you think he is?"
Yingzi didn't care whether it was good or not; she only cared about the other person's status and whether they had enough money to make her live a good life. As for whether they would abandon her in the future, she wasn't too worried. Now she knew to save money and leave herself a way out.
If she really can't stay in the capital, she will take her valuables and leave to find a remote place where no one knows her.
Eiko Yokoyama didn't really have that much ambition, but she couldn't tell Chiyo directly, otherwise Chiyo would kill her with a single sword stroke. So she suppressed her emotions and continued to cooperate, but in her heart she was thinking about saving more money so that she would have a way out if Chiyo's plan failed.
"Understood. I will keep an eye on Prince Ming and won't let those women in his courtyard climb over me. In short, if Prince Ming really becomes emperor, the empress's position must be mine," said Yokoyama Eiko, her head bowed.
Chiyo Yokoyama looked at her and said, "You'd better behave yourself and not try anything funny. This is the capital city. You could lose your life if you're not careful. Don't blame me if you cause trouble later."
Watching Chiyo leap out of the palace, Yingzi bit her lip, feeling somewhat worried. Her older sister didn't care about her brother's life or death, but she couldn't ignore it. After getting involved with Prince Ming, Yingzi's power also grew, and now she had quite a few people under her command who could do things for her.
Two weeks ago, her people found out that Yokoyama Ichiro and the masked man had been taken to a mountain to mine stone in a quarry. That was a very grueling job, and those who were sent to quarry were serious criminals.
You can imagine how bad the treatment of those serious offenders was. They not only had to do strenuous physical labor every day, but they were also either not given food or were beaten.
With Ichiro and the masked man's skills, they could easily escape, but their hands and feet are shackled with heavy chains, so escape is out of the question. I heard they've been tortured to the point of being skin and bones, and can barely walk. How can they possibly escape?
Eiko Yokoyama wanted to ask Myo-oh to pull some strings and rescue her brother, but Myo-oh currently has little real power and his reach is limited. Even if Myo-oh had the ability to get Ichiro out, this wouldn't work.
They will definitely find out Ichiro's identity as a Japanese man then, but how will they explain Eiko's identity as a Japanese pirate, given that she is Ichiro's younger sister?
If Prince Ming and Prince Cheng both harbor deep hatred for the Japanese, wouldn't that repeat the history of what happened in Anyang Prefecture?
After much thought, she decided that she couldn't let Prince Ming know about this matter. It would be better for her to handle it privately. She had already started making arrangements a couple of days ago. Prince Ming was very generous to her, giving her many valuable gifts and money. She was now quite well-off.
She could buy more people to work for her, and then find an opportunity to rescue Ichiro and the masked man from the quarry. Actually, Yokoyama Eiko didn't want to save the masked man, but she was worried that if she didn't take care of him, he would cause trouble. Saving the masked man would give her an extra help, since he was very skilled in martial arts.
The rescue mission must succeed; failure is not an option. Otherwise, if it causes trouble and ruins Chiyo's grand plan, she will kill someone.
On the day Ahui and Prince Cheng left the capital, the sun shone brightly and the weather was beautiful. Unfortunately, no one came to see them off. The Consort had not seen Prince Cheng for a long time, and even knowing that her son was leaving, she had no intention of seeing him one last time.
In particular, the Consort was furious that Prince Cheng insisted on marrying a fisherwoman of low status. She had clearly chosen a well-bred young lady in the capital to be her son's wife, but her son had rejected her without hesitation.
The Imperial Concubine was furious at his ungratefulness. She angrily declared, "Since I, as his mother, can no longer control him, and he only thinks about that lowly woman and doesn't respect me, then from now on, I'll pretend I don't have this son, and we'll never see each other again."
The Left and Right Princes returned to their fiefdoms, and the mother and son didn't know when they would see each other again. Now that things had turned out this way, it would be better to sever ties.
Outside the Shili Pavilion, Xingxing, Zhu Lin, Zhang Xiantao, and Zhao Mingyue were waiting. They had agreed to come together to see Prince Cheng off.
"Elder brother, please take good care of yourself on your journey. Don't worry about things in the palace. Some people are too stubborn and can't be persuaded. We can only wait for them to come to their senses. If they choose to go down a dark path, that's their own choice." This was the first time Xingxing had addressed Prince Cheng as elder brother, and Prince Cheng's eyes were slightly red.
"I understand, my brother. There's no need for you to worry, sister. From now on, I will have nothing to do with palace affairs. As for my mother, I only hope that she won't end up in a bad situation. My relationship with her and her son is too shallow, so I'm afraid we won't be able to keep in touch by letter as often in the future."
It's impossible to say he's not sad at all. After all, the Imperial Concubine was his birth mother, and she genuinely loved him for over a decade, raising him to adulthood. The bond between mother and son is real, and it hasn't completely faded, just become weaker.
"I'm afraid my brother will have to put in a lot of effort to protect the southern coastal areas. The fishermen everywhere are hoping that my brother can protect them." Xingxing wanted to tell Prince Cheng that although he was lame and disfigured, there were still people who needed him. He could defend Anyang Prefecture and the surrounding prefectures and cities and prevent the Japanese pirates from invading.
"Royal sister, can your brother really do it?" Prince Cheng asked, his voice choked with discouragement.
“You can definitely do it, you have to believe in yourself,” Xingxing paused, her expression solemn. “Father also believes in you. What I just said is what Father means.”
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
