MLIAM Chapter 56
by VolareYu Shuli was walking outside the Second Prince’s room when his servant was kicking pebbles boredly at the door.
He walked over and greeted him.
“Little General, why are you here?” Although he had been named Prince An, those who were familiar with Yu Shuli still habitually called him Little General, because everyone knew that the Emperor had no good intentions when he gave him the title “Prince An.”
It was better to let him be this unrestrained Little General.
“Is His Highness inside?”
“Yes.” The guard scratched his head, a hint of shyness appearing on his cheeks, “But isn’t the Little General busy?” He muttered twice, “Without any tenderness, it’s a bit too rough on the Prime Minister.”
Yu Shuli’s face darkened. “What tenderness?! What roughness?!”
In the Second Prince’s territory, the only person who could openly spread rumors about him like this, Yu Shuli thought, could only be the Second Prince.
He pushed the door open and complained, “Your Highness, how can you spread rumors about me?”
Zhao Lan was a little surprised to see him come. “So fast?”
Yu Shuli sat down on the opposite chair with a “bang,” raised his eyes to look at Zhao Lan, who was reviewing letters in his hand, and muttered, “Your Highness, you have ruined my reputation.”
The Second Prince raised his eyebrows and put down the letter. “How do you figure? Aren’t you and Wei Yan already married?”
Yu Shuli widened his eyes, “You know about that too?!” They were clearly secretly married in Rongcheng. At that time, Wei Yan even used the pseudonym “Wu Qingqing.”
The Second Prince was a bit too resourceful.
Yu Shuli’s respect for people increased by another layer.
Zhao Yong had a smile in his eyes and nodded, “After all, it was a marriage arranged by Imperial Decree. Your deeds have long been written into storybooks and are circulating everywhere, so it’s hard not to pay attention to you.”
Yu Shuli “ah”ed and was a little nervous, “Doesn’t that mean people will discover that Wei Yan was in Rongcheng at that time?!”
“Why would they discover that?” The Second Prince threw a storybook from the side and said in a clear voice, “Even your parents may not recognize that the protagonists above are you.”
Yu Shuli took the storybook and looked at the title on it.
《A Romantic General and a Handsome Lover》?
He gritted his teeth.
What a mess.
Opening the book, the pictures inside were even more unsightly. In addition to the conspicuous text, there were also vivid and fragrant pictures.
The page he turned to happened to be two white and flowery thighs overlapping, and Yu Shuli couldn’t bear to look.
His ears turned red, and he slammed the storybook shut. “Your Highness, this isn’t right, is it? The scale is too large.”
“Where’s it large?” The Second Prince took the storybook and said dissatisfied, “Nothing that shouldn’t be exposed is exposed. What kind of scale is that?”
Yu Shuli “hissed,” not expecting that the Second Prince, who was always a gentleman, was actually this kind of hypocritical person.
“This storybook was founded by your husband. This Prince also invested a lot of money. At first glance, it seems large, but there’s no real stuff. Rest assured, otherwise the Book Affairs Bureau wouldn’t release it.” The Second Prince cherishedly protected the storybook and said, “It’s just a money-making business, nothing shameful.”
Yu Shuli was surprised once again, “Your Highness also does storybook business?”
“Why not?” Zhao Lan smiled, “Don’t say, Wei Yan is really quite business-minded. He even held autograph sessions with the prototypes of the protagonists in the book.”
“There are prototypes for books?” Yu Shuli didn’t know much about this industry, and widened his eyes curiously when he heard this.
“Of course there are. Many of Wei Yan’s storybooks have real prototypes. Many people are willing to participate in publicity in order to catch the heat of the book and make a quick buck.”
Yu Shuli was a little nervous, “Then what about me…”
“The book uses pseudonyms. Outsiders won’t know. Don’t worry.” The Second Prince coaxed him like a child, “Even if they know, the Little General won’t suffer any loss. The you in the storybook is the you in Wei Yan’s eyes. It’s gilded, so it can’t be too bad.”
“Okay.” Yu Shuli gave up examining it. “Your Highness, I didn’t come to you for this…”
Zhao Lan understood, “You’re asking about the Quzhou matter?”
Yu Shuli nodded.
“The first case, the case of Chou Shuchun, is easy to handle. This Prince has already seized all of the Dong family’s shops, and the three sons of the Dong family have already been imprisoned. Once the investigation is over, if the ingredients of Five-Stone Powder are found, the case can be filed and responsibility can be determined.”
“As for the second case…” Zhao Lan looked at Yu Shuli, “What do you want to do?”
Yu Shuli was stunned. “What do you mean?”
“Handle it officially and take down Wei Yan for questioning and punish him according to the law. Handle it privately and find a scapegoat to take the blame.”
Zhao Lan looked at Yu Shuli, “Little General, what do you think?”
Yu Shuli used to uphold military law and had never done anything out of line. He blinked, revealing a hint of struggle on his face.
“If…if it’s handled officially, what will happen to Wei Yan?”
Zhao Lan said, “If it’s brought to His Majesty, even if His Majesty dotes on him, I’m afraid he can avoid the death penalty, but not the living one.” He closed his eyes, “To be honest, with Wei Yan’s body, he can’t bear it.”
Yu Shuli’s body trembled slightly, “Then…what about handling it privately?”
Zhao Lan gave Yu Shuli a meaningful look, “Handling it privately, sacrificing Dong Siwen…how about that?”
Yu Shuli’s eyes were dazed, “Why…sacrifice Dong Siwen?”
“Anyway, she’s currently in the hands of the Marquis of Xuyang, why don’t we divert the disaster eastward and solve everything?”
Yu Shuli’s voice was stagnant, “Dong Lingqing is Dong Siwen’s father…no matter what…it’s unlikely that she would commit patricide, right? Not to mention that His Majesty wouldn’t believe it, outsiders wouldn’t believe it either.”
“If one side is a close, childhood friend, and the other side is a selfish and profit-seeking poisonous father who pushed her into the abyss and maliciously made her addicted to Five-Stone Powder, then…making a choice wouldn’t be too difficult, right?” The Second Prince smiled, “If I were to say that it was indeed Dong Siwen who took the initiative to speak, what would you do?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you think that Wei Yan is really so powerful that he can assassinate Dong Lingqing, who is skilled in martial arts, as if he were in an uninhabited place? Even if you were to carry out this kind of assassination, you wouldn’t be able to do it without a sound, but Wei Yan was able to retreat unscathed. Of course, someone cooperated with him from the inside.” The Second Prince’s eyes were distant, “This woman, Dong Siwen, is indeed extraordinary, resilient and decisive, and righteous in destroying her relatives.”
“Your Highness…” Yu Shuli frowned and interrupted him, “Dong Siwen has already gone through fire and water for me. I can’t do such an ungrateful thing of betraying her.”
Zhao Lan was not disappointed and seemed to think it was natural for him to make such a decision. “Okay, I understand.”
The two sides were silent for a long time, and Yu Shuli suddenly spoke again.
“Your Highness…”
The Second Prince looked over, a pair of eyes that seemed to be able to see into people’s hearts. “What? Do you feel sorry for Wei Yan and can’t bear to see him suffer?”
Yu Shuli didn’t answer, just pursed his lips and asked in a low voice, “If he has to be punished, can I take the punishment for him?”
Zhao Lan’s eyes lit up, “Really?”
Seeing him so happy, Yu Shuli complained, “Your Highness, why don’t you feel sorry for your subordinates at all, and instead look so excited?”
“If you are willing to take the punishment for Wei Yan, then this Prince has a third option.” The Second Prince leaned over and lowered his voice.
“Your Highness!” Yu Shuli complained, “How can you change your mind from time to time! Are you telling the truth?”
Zhao Lan smiled, “You are now spoiled by Wei Yan and your courage is getting bigger and bigger. You wouldn’t dare to question this Prince in the past.”
Yu Shuli turned his eyes away, his ears reddening.
“Then Your Highness, tell me, what’s the way?”
“Detain the Tatar princess and let the Tatar king send troops.” A dark color flashed in the Second Prince’s eyes, “Attack Quzhou.”
Yu Shuli was stunned, “Are we…really going to rebel?”
Although he didn’t care about his reputation as much as before, and he had indeed thought about rebelling, he didn’t expect it to be so soon.
Zhao Lan shook his head, “I received intelligence that the youngest son of Chou Wanshan, Chou Dongsou, is still hiding in Quzhou, a turtle in a jar. Our move is to force the Marquis of Xuyang to rebel.”
“Marquis of Xuyang?” Yu Shuli shook his head, “Not necessarily. He’s quite cunning. I heard that he was originally in Quzhou with Chou Dongsou, but he ran away as soon as he heard the news. My Northwest Army couldn’t find anyone, and he actually ran away. Chou Dongsou is his brother-in-law, and he actually sold him out and ran away first.”
“Moreover, the Marquis of Xuyang is the Crown Prince’s man. If he rebels, wouldn’t that mean the Crown Prince is in trouble? Wouldn’t that give the Third Prince all the advantages?”
The Second Prince smiled indifferently, “That’s exactly what he wants him to take advantage of.”
Yu Shuli was puzzled and was about to ask again when he saw a crack in the door.
His expression was stern, “Who is it?!” What’s wrong with the Second Prince’s servants, why are they so careless?
A lazy and contented voice sounded faintly, “Husband’s memory is so bad. How long has it been since we last met that you’re giving me the cold shoulder?”
Hearing the familiar voice, Yu Shuli’s vigilance faded. He breathed a sigh of relief, didn’t have time to correct Wei Yan’s address, and instead complained, “Wei Yan, if you’re coming, just come. Why are you being so sneaky and secretive?”
Wei Yan’s knuckles pushed open the door frame, then slowly straightened and reached his hand in.
After that, he slowly walked in.
Yu Shuli’s gaze fell on his fair and bony hands.
He was in a daze.
Not long ago, he used these hands…to tease and bully him back and forth on his body.
Yu Shuli’s ears turned red with a “bass” sound. In his confusion, he met Wei Yan’s scrutinizing gaze, and his heart was beating so fast it was about to fly out.
“Husband, what are you staring at me for?” Wei Yan didn’t ignore Yu Shuli’s unease and laughed, not only noticing his shy and dazed expression, but also pointing it out.
Yu Shuli was caught, glared at him, and said, “I think you look good! Is that not allowed?!”
“Yes.” Wei Yan curved his lips, “I’ll let you take a closer look when we get back. At that time, even if you don’t want to just take a look, it’s okay to do something else. Let’s talk about serious business now.”
Hearing this, Yu Shuli gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and wished he could punch him.
Who the hell doesn’t want to talk about serious business?
His finger movements just now were clearly intentional! He was deliberately teasing him!
Yu Shuli is no longer the innocent person he once was. He can now analyze Wei Yan’s every move.
He knows when he’s acting and when he’s serious.
The Second Prince chuckled softly, not interrupting their interaction, but instead wearing a teasing expression of watching a good show.
“Your Highness! Look at him bullying me!” Yu Shuli turned his head and shouted at Zhao Lan.
“Where? This Prince didn’t see it.” The Second Prince lied through his teeth.
Yu Shuli widened his eyes, “Your Highness! You’re helping him now and not me?! I’ve been your old subordinate for more than ten years! As the saying goes, you only see the new people smile, but you don’t hear the old people cry…” Wei Yan was able to win the Second Prince’s heart so quickly, he really deserves to be a charmer!
The Second Prince smiled helplessly, “What nonsense are you talking about again?”
Wei Yan also smiled indulgently and rubbed Yu Shuli’s head, “He’s always been like this, never ceases to amaze people with his words, quirky and eccentric.”
The Second Prince nodded to him as a greeting. “Is your body feeling better?”
Wei Yan nodded, “Thank you to the Second Prince for inviting the doctor, who saved Xianqing’s life.”
The Second Prince looked concerned, “Speaking of which, the poison in your body has been accumulating for a long time, and it’s not a small matter. Why don’t you seize the time to seek out famous doctors from all over the world or call Yang Ming to see if there are any treatments?”
“There’s no rush. Now that the Quzhou matter is over, His Majesty will definitely summon me back to the capital. If he discovers that the poison has been resolved at that time, it will add a lot of trouble.” The smile on Wei Yan’s face faded a little, and he stopped there, unwilling to mention these things in front of Yu Shuli. “Let’s discuss this matter later.”
“Okay.” The Second Prince expressed respect for Wei Yan’s opinion and, seeing that he was in good condition now, pulled the topic back to the main point. “Just now this Prince was talking to Ji’an about the aftermath of the Crown Prince’s removal. The Little General has some doubts about this matter, so let Xianqing explain it to him.”
Wei Yan smiled and looked at Yu Shuli, not being secretive, “It’s okay to have someone else be the Crown Prince. When the Third Prince makes more trouble, His Majesty will be annoyed and will naturally think of his other sons.” He scratched Yu Shuli’s nose, “Husband, what do you say, is that right?”
Yu Shuli was teased by him like a child and angrily slapped his hand away, “Which one is your husband?!”
Wei Yan raised his eyebrows, “I’ll give you a chance to beat up that Chou Dongsou. Do you want it?”
Yu Shuli “hmm?”ed and his eyes lit up instantly. He couldn’t bother to dislike Wei Yan, but instead raised his hand to grab his sleeve and asked, “Really?”
Wei Yan hooked his lips and pressed his finger on his cheek, looking at Yu Shuli with a smile. “Whether it’s true or not depends on your performance.”