Chapter 152 Are you crazy? Who dares to touch Prince Rui?
Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night. Jiang Yu and Prince An were still dealing with matters late into the night, and Prince Kang was not idle either. When he received the news that Prince An refused to have tea with him, he first angrily slammed down the cup in his hand. The expression on his face was completely different from the gentle demeanor he showed in public. The people around him all lowered their heads and breathed extremely softly.
However, King Kang's anger did not last long. Suddenly, his pupils contracted sharply. "Oh no!"
A prince who has been the eldest prince for many years and is still alive and well, and who is also renowned for his virtue, could not possibly be a simple person. It's easy to guess that Prince An probably told the emperor about his invitation to tea.
"Damn it!" King Kang cursed through gritted teeth, then turned and walked out.
Too many unpleasant things happened today, and he was reprimanded and suspected by the emperor. His sense of crisis intensified, and in a moment of impulsiveness, he wanted to talk to Prince An. He guessed that Prince An must have said something to the emperor, which was why the emperor was investigating what happened at the banquet at the Tang residence today.
However, he hadn't previously believed that Prince An was deliberately accusing him. Although the two didn't interact much, they had never had any grudges. Moreover, he thought Prince An was a smart man and wouldn't intentionally oppose him.
It's highly likely that when Prince An was reporting on matters, he said something that reminded the emperor of what happened at today's banquet. He wanted to chat with Prince An, mainly to win him over, since Prince An was in charge of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
But upon closer reflection, after Prince An left the Imperial Study, the Emperor investigated the events at the banquet at the Tang residence. Now, Prince An has refused his invitation. Combining these two points, it all points to one thing: he was tricked by his good sixth brother.
Could it be that Prince An also harbors ambitions to seize the throne?
Prince Kang sat in the sedan chair, his hands clenched tightly, his face terribly grim. He felt that he had been too successful before, which had made him careless and caused him to overlook Prince An.
Prince An was used as a tool by the emperor, treated as a cruel official, and it seemed he had no chance of seizing the throne. But as long as he was a prince, as long as he lived, and as long as he had the will to seize the throne, he could still succeed.
"I was careless," he murmured. "It's also because the sixth prince usually disguises himself too well, making it impossible for anyone to see that he has any intention of seizing the throne."
He narrowed his eyes. If Prince An harbored ambitions to seize the throne, his actions today clearly showed that Prince An wanted to eliminate him. Where would he begin? The Embroidered Uniform Guard was omnipresent; he didn't know what leverage Prince An held over him.
However, Prince An probably doesn't have concrete evidence against him yet, otherwise his father wouldn't have just given him a simple reprimand and warning today. What should be done now?
King Kang was at a loss for what to do. King An was likely already watching him, and any action he took would only provide more evidence. But he couldn't do nothing; waiting to be killed was not his style.
At this moment, the sedan chair arrived at the Prince An's residence. He got out of the sedan chair and went into his study. He paced back and forth with a frown, but after thinking for a long time, he still couldn't find a solution.
"Call Xing Hui over," he said to his attendant, who immediately went to fetch him. A little over fifteen minutes later, Xing Hui appeared in his study.
Xing Hui was the most trusted advisor of Prince Kang. Prince Kang did not hide anything from him and recounted the events of the day, including being reprimanded by the emperor and being rejected by Prince An. Then he asked, "What do you think I should do now?"
Xing Hui frowned deeply upon hearing this, and after a while he said, "In my opinion, Your Highness's biggest concern is the military supplies. If this matter can be covered up properly, nothing else will matter."
"How can we cover this up? There are so many people on Niujiao Mountain. Lao Liu is definitely watching me." King Kang's tone was somewhat anxious.
Xing Hui: "What does Prince An care about most? We need to keep Prince An occupied so that he has no time to think about anything else."
Prince Kang looked at him with a gloomy gaze, "You mean my uncle, Prince Rui?"
Xing Hui nodded, and the Prince of Kang's face twisted in pain. He lowered his voice and said, "Are you crazy? Who dares to touch Prince Rui? In the Emperor's heart, he is more important than any of us sons, and there's also the Empress Dowager... Anyone who touches him will die."
“Your Highness, I did not ask you to harm Prince Rui,” Xing Hui said. “If Prince Rui gets lost or trapped somewhere, Prince An will definitely be anxious to find him. Once Prince An’s attention is diverted, you can immediately move the people on Niujiao Mountain.”
Prince Kang paced back and forth in the room, his expression shifting unpredictably. After a while, he stopped and said, "Although Prince Rui locks himself in his palace all day, he is extremely intelligent. How could we let him get lost or trapped?"
Xing Hui thought for a moment and said, "I heard that Prince Rui recently developed a new type of bow and arrow?"
"Yes, after the Emperor found out, he granted him another prefecture as his fiefdom." Prince Kang's words were laced with sarcasm.
Although the fiefdoms of the princes were not under their direct control, 30% of the annual tax revenue went to the fiefdom's lord. Even a small fiefdom of a prefecture, if not particularly wealthy, would still generate around 100,000 taels of tax revenue annually. 30% of 100,000 taels of silver is over 30,000 taels!
Xing Hui ignored the King of Kang's sour remarks and said, "Bow arms made of different materials can generate different amounts of power. I have heard that the best bow arm material is purple yew."
King Kang nodded, "But purple yew wood is hard to find."
Xing Hui smiled and said, "Has Your Highness heard the rumor that there is a hundred-year-old purple cypress tree on Mount Funiu?"
“This rumor has been around for a long time, Prince Rui will not be fooled,” said Prince Kang.
Xing Hui: "If the rumor is just a rumor, Prince Rui certainly won't believe it. But what if the rumor is true?"
"Is it really true?" King Kang asked.
Xing Hui nodded. "The truth is mixed with falsehood. If people believe that there really are century-old yew trees on Mount Funiu and rush to find them, what will Prince Rui think?"
King Kang: "...He may have doubts, but he might actually go looking for it."
Xing Hui: "I heard that His Majesty had General Ling Heng teach Prince Rui martial arts when he was very young?"
Prince Kang: "Yes, Prince Rui has truly mastered Ling Heng's teachings."
Xing Hui: "Skilled people are bold. I think Prince Rui will go to Zishan. Once he enters the mountain, it won't be difficult to trap him for a few days."
Prince Kang began pacing around the room again. After a while, he stopped and said, "You are in charge of this matter. Be careful and absolutely do not let Prince Rui make any mistakes."
"Yes," Xing Hui replied.
The King of Kang waved him out. He sat in his chair in silence for a long time, then said to his attendants, "Finish things off. As for the military supplies... let Tang Boyang take over."
"Yes," the attendant asked hesitantly, "then what about the princess?"
"Tonight, the Princess Consort... passed away from illness," Prince Kang said in a flat, emotionless voice.
His princess has died, and he is busy with her funeral arrangements. If Prince Rui is lost, it has nothing to do with him.
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