Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved-Chapter 184 - Unwilling to Tire You

Chapter 184: Chapter 184: Unwilling to Tire You

Chapter 184 -184: Unwilling to Tire You

“How is the Third Prince?”

Murong Jiu asked curiously.

Actually, the Second Prince should have succeeded a month ago, but Jun Yuyan secretly sent people to muddle the waters, preventing the Second Prince from succeeding and instead leading to the Third Prince’s people discovering the Second Prince’s men.

Of course, those sent by the Second Prince were Dead Soldiers who would never reveal their identities or leak secrets; some who were captured committed suicide, while others implicated Jun Yuyan, creating a diversion.

When the news reached the Capital, it was said the Emperor flew into a rage, suspecting his eldest son of trying to kill his third son and believing that Jun Yuyan and Noble Consort Qi knew something they shouldn’t.

However, Jun Yuyan was prepared well in advance, and everything was part of his plan. Noble Consort Qi, as usual, knew nothing at all and was vying for favor as she always did, recently clashing with the Princess of the Western Regions.

The Emperor first eliminated suspicions towards Noble Consort Qi, then began to test Jun Yuyan.

But Jun Yuyan had long since handed over military power. Though General Fu was his father-in-law, he had also surrendered the Tiger Talisman. The troops under General Fu only obeyed commands from the Tiger Talisman, which essentially meant they were controlled by the Emperor himself.

During this month, Jun Yuyan spent his time accompanying Murong Jiu in his residence, frequently taking her out to dine and have fun. The Emperor intentionally stopped his official duties, and he felt even more at ease, spending the day taking Murong Jiu to Soup Spring Manor to enjoy hot springs and fishing.

The Emperor was naturally suspicious, and though a Dead Soldier had implicated Jun Yuyan, he didn’t quite believe it. Having been the Emperor for many years, he was no stranger to such tactics of framing and guilt-shifting, which he had seen at least hundreds if not a thousand times. After observing throughout this period, he concluded that Jun Yuyan couldn’t possibly know about the affair between the Third Prince and Consort Jing Pin.

Upon reflection, he realized that the only person within the Imperial Palace who had the power to investigate Consort Jing Pin’s affairs was the Empress.

However, despite the Emperor’s repeated searches, he found no evidence.

He had never favored the Empress and, although he played along with Noble Consort Qi just for show, making everyone in the harem believe that she was his most beloved woman to thereby protect Consort Jing Pin, he saw Noble Consort Qi as slightly clever, but easily obsessed with him, loving him more than her own son—unlike the Empress, who was far more scheming.

This was also the reason why the Emperor feigned favoritism towards Noble Consort Qi, whose appearance and personality were most suitable for manipulation.

The Emperor now harbored the deepest suspicion towards the Empress and the Second Prince.

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The Second Prince was also very cautious in his dealings and left no incriminating evidence behind, but unknown to him, Jun Yuyan had already learned everything. Framing him was far easier for Jun Yuyan, and his methods were far more advanced.

In fact, it was simple. The Second Prince indeed had people sent to Yingtian Academy in Yuzhou to gather information, but he dispatched people who appeared to have no connection to him, which was why the Emperor had not caught on.

Jun Yuyan only needed to let the Emperor’s quietly investigating agents know that those initially dispatched to Yuzhou were the Second Prince’s men—that would be enough.

There was no need to frame anyone, just to lay the “truth” before the Emperor.

Murong Jiu knew that an aide who later played a significant role by the Second Prince’s side had his head chopped off by the Second Prince a few months earlier. Lou Zixi, who was supposed to enter the Second Prince’s service, wasn’t his man now.

Thus, the current Second Prince lacked the skill and decisiveness of his previous incarnation, and his decisions were not without flaws.

The Second Prince had repeatedly ordered attempts on the Third Prince’s life, all unsuccessful, and with the back palace Murong Man and Yun Weiwei at each other’s throats, his frustration grew, demanding the Third Prince’s death at any cost.

“The Second Prince was desperate; he mobilized all the Hidden Guards he had trained in recent years and forcibly attacked Yingtian College. The Third Prince was severely injured, he should have died but one of his teachers shielded him from a fatal arrow, buying time until the reinforcements arrived. Those Hidden Guards of the Second Prince, some died, some were captured alive, and in the end, I was ratted out,”

Jun Yuyan said with a wry smile.

Murong Jiu chastised him with a glance and poured him some water. After he had finished drinking, she said, “You really take things lightly. What if the Emperor really suspects you and decides to deal with you? To the Emperor, the Third Prince is his precious child.”

“Ah Jiu, don’t worry. My younger brother created chaos in his haste and left behind evidence. The Emperor has noticed it, but that’s not enough to convict him. Even though the Second Prince might not be convicted, the Emperor has completely begun to suspect him. His days ahead will not be easy. I’m just an idle Prince, and the Emperor will only think of me as honest and straightforward.”

As he spoke, he remembered something and said to her, “The Third Prince wasn’t lightly injured. He has been sent to the Capital already. I expect the Emperor will want you to treat the Third Prince. I’m worried about your comfort; could you ask Uncle Zhai to help when the time comes?”

Murong Jiu, however, shook her head and said, “Master has said that he has saved enough people over the years and does not wish to intervene anymore. He only wants to research challenging medications or difficult, complicated illnesses. I think even if the Emperor asks him, he won’t come out of retirement.”

“Besides, I don’t want Master to be exposed to the public, lest he be disturbed by others in the future. I need to take good care of him in his old age.”

Jun Yuyan nodded with a smile, “We will take care of Uncle Zhai together.”

“If you don’t wish to treat him, we will just refuse the Emperor.”

“That won’t do, the Third Prince must not die; keeping him is perfect for countering the Second Prince. Besides, since the Second Prince considers the Third Prince his greatest enemy, we can also quietly work on big plans in the shadows, like…”

She looked around, tiptoed, and whispered in Jun Yuyan’s ear, “Raising private armies.”

Jun Yuyan’s smile deepened, and he whispered back, “Ah Jiu, are you inciting me to rebel?”

Murong Jiu blinked, deliberately posing as a disastrous temptress, and drew circles on his chest, “Prince, don’t you want to rebel for Ah Jiu?”

Tickled by the notion, Jun Yuyan grabbed her mischievous wrist and pulled her into his arms, “Stop moving around, you’ll still have to personally ‘put out my fire’ later, and I can hardly bear to see you ‘exhausted’.”

Murong Jiu’s cheeks instantly flushed, even her ears turned a reddish hue.

Jun Yuyan did nothing more, aware that she was slightly heavy now. Sometimes when he touched her belly, he felt it was strenuous for her to be pregnant, and he truly did not want to “exhaust” her.

He held her close and said, “I would, I would do anything for Ah Jiu, but we need to start making more Silver to afford maintaining a private army. That burns through money.”

This man was actually willing to rebel for her.

Murong Jiu felt overwhelmingly full, her eyes brimming with laughter.

“Then rest assured, your Ah Jiu is very skilled at making money.”

Of course, she wasn’t actually encouraging Jun Yuyan to rebel. The Second Prince had already been secretly raising a private army. The Emperor would probably entrust the Tiger Talisman to the Third Prince in the future, while Jun Yuyan had nothing, despite having many followers. Sometimes, it was necessary to have contingency plans.

The Emperor’s heart only had room for the Third Prince; who knew whether he might decide to strike at Jun Yuyan in the future? In the Royal Family, father-son affection did exist, but the Emperor cared about someone other than Jun Yuyan.