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Home/ There’s A Beauty / Chapter 97 (Part 2)

The Seventh Prince covered the boy’s head with a towel and wiped his hair gently, saying with a low smile, “What? You are allowed to leave without saying goodbye, and I am not even allowed to make a little joke?”

“Hmm.” You Shu admitted his mistake and waited until his hair stopped dripping before he started to wear obscene clothes and pants. After sleeping on the straw nest and hard stone slabs for a long time, he finally returned to Prince Duan’s Mansion. 

Now lying on the soft quilt, he couldn’t help but roll around a few times, then he lifted his nose and sniffed the smell on the pillow. That’s right, it’s the usual ambergris fragrance of his master that he missed so much.

Looking at his cheerful and intoxicated expression, the Seventh Prince laughed, “Tell me the truth, are you really a human or a dog spirit?”

You Shu stiffened for a moment and said hurriedly, “I am really a human. This is how I am, you believe me.”

The Seventh Prince was already laughing so hard in his heart, but his face still looked dubious, “Alright, I believe you. I just want you to know that no matter whether you are a human or a dog, I will never despise you.”

You Shu nodded vigorously, feeling warm in his heart, but he didn’t dare to have any more fun. He lay down beside his master and looked at him with sparkling eyes, “Read me a few stories before going to bed?”

The Seventh Prince habitually hugged the person into his arms, then raised an eyebrow, sighing once again in his heart about the difference between a human and a dog. 

When You Shu was still a dog, he would lay on his back, like a small ball that could be held in one palm, with his four paws facing the sky, revealing his pink plum blossom pads, which looked very cute. But now, his body has become bigger and flexible.

Looking down, he can see the beautiful face, a slender neck, a graceful collarbone, and half of the vaguely exposed round shoulders.

This appearance has nothing to do with cuteness at all, and it simply made the Seventh Prince not know where to direct his gaze. He supported his forehead and groaned, knowing that every moment in the future, his lower body might not feel well. He wondered if the constant heat in that place will cause illness.

Well, he has to find an opportunity to ask Doctor Deng.

Although he was thinking a lot in his mind, his face remained calm and indifferent. He bent his legs to prevent You Shu from touching anywhere he shouldn’t touch, and took the person into his arms. Then he pulled out a scripture of mountains and seas from under the pillow and asked in a hoarse voice, “Where was I last time?”

“You were reading “Thunder God”, there was a thunder god with a dragon body and a human head.” You Shu arched his head and drilled into his master’s arms, which was his signature move when he was a dog.

The Seventh Prince sighed again, but still flipped through the pages and slowly began to read the story. After coaxing You Shu to sleep, he hurriedly got off the bed and went behind the screen to take care of his lower body.

Emperor Jing heard that someone brought a dog to Prince Duan’s Mansion to receive a reward. He originally thought that Lao Qi would return to court in a short time, but unexpectedly, the dog turned out to be fake, and the person who brought the dog was also arrested by him, not knowing whether he is dead or alive.  

Deng Chaoshan visited the palace several times and expressed concern over Prince Duan’s refusal to eat or drink and his excessive worries. He also said that he was old and had limited energy, so he asked his young apprentice to guard Prince Duan’s Mansion on his behalf.

Emperor Jing summoned Deng Chaoshan’s apprentice and saw that he was a handsome young man with good medical skills and clear eyes, so he agreed. He originally wanted to declare illness and force Lao Qi to join the court as a political assistant, but he was worried about the other princes who were eyeing the throne, so he had to give up this idea.

However, others were not as reliable as Lao Qi. As soon as he asked his personal attendant to recite the memorials for a few days, the rumor that “the emperor is suffering from eye disease” spread, making all the princes get ready to take action. Eye diseases are not like other diseases that can be treated slowly while still holding on to the imperial power. Once you suffer from an eye disease, no matter how strong you are, you will have to step down from that high place.

Emperor Jing was very anxious. Fortunately, Deng Chaoshan performed another technique to remove the obstruction with a golden needle, which restored his vision to normal. But this was only temporary. If the white clot in his eyes cannot be completely removed, it will grow back after a while. In other words, Emperor Jing’s time was running out.

In the blink of an eye, an ambitious emperor was reduced to a trapped beast in a cage, while his sons, concubines, and courtiers surrounded the cage one by one, peering with red eyes full of aggressive intent. This feeling was very bad, and it also made Emperor Jing extremely angry.  

With every passing day, he deeply missed the days when Lao Qi was by his side. Lao Qi was loyal, reliable, filial, and he never revealed anything about his condition. He didn’t want anything in return, he just wanted to live peacefully with his little dog, but even this small wish was shattered by others. Emperor Jing’s resentment towards Cheng’en Mansion continued to deepen, and he was also full of defensive aversion towards the pressing princes.

After pondering for several days, he finally released the news, saying that he was going to test the princes to find the best successor. The princes were all agitated, pretending to be extremely respectful to their father on the surface, but secretly fighting to death with each other.  

Before Emperor Jing could take action, the Eldest Prince, the Third Prince, and the Fifth Prince were successively demoted to commoners or imprisoned for life. The Fourth Prince noticed the signs and took the initiative to go to the fiefdom, indicating his intention to not participate in the fight. The Sixth Prince placed all of his forces under the command of the Ninth Prince, making every effort to help him seize the throne.

After several battles, in March of the following year, Emperor Jing issued an imperial decree to officially appoint the Ninth Prince as the crown prince. The Mansion of the Ninth Prince’s Prince had its plaque changed, becoming the Mansion of the Crown Prince, with a lively and bustling atmosphere. But Prince Duan’s Mansion, separated by a street, fell into complete silence.

Of course, this so-called silence was only seen by outsiders, but the court elders never dared to ignore Prince Duan, and they have to go and seek his advice on government affairs from time to time. 

To be honest, they were extremely dissatisfied with the Ninth Prince’s performance. He was able to defeat the brothers, so he was certainly capable, but if one really has to say: His talents can only be used to govern a small country. Unlike Prince Duan, who is an unparalleled talent that can bring peace to the world. Using “pearl casted in dark” to describe the gap between the two is not enough. It would be more appropriate to say that “the light of fireflies dares to compete with the sun and the moon”.

(Pearl casted in dark= good things falling into the hands of ignorant people)

When Prince Duan was here, no matter how controversial the court affairs were, they would be resolved within a day. Prince Duan would first ask the cabinet elders to express their opinions, divide those with different opinions into several factions, and then argue with each other. In the end, the method of the winning side will be adopted. If Prince Duan’s own ideas are contrary to the majority of people, he will personally step forward to refute them. His eloquence is like a sword and halberd, which can make everyone obey his commands without any second thoughts.

Not only does he possess extraordinary charisma, but he also knows the art of checks and balances. Every time a government decree is issued, his actions could only be described with the words ‘the momentum in the sea is like using the body as an arm, and the force in the arm is like using the finger, and everyone must obey’. (Commanding as one wishes, without any restraint.)

On the contrary, the actions of the Ninth Prince after joining the cabinet could only be described as “a complete mess”.  Whenever there is a disagreement between the elders in the cabinet, he will be hesitant and struggle to make a decision. Then he will pretend to have a headache and dismiss everyone. After returning, he will invite his aides to discuss.

Unfortunately, those aides were not intelligent enough, and it was already the limit to seize the throne for him. Therefore, when it came to national affairs, their heads went dizzy and they didn’t know what to say, causing many jokes one after another. That’s all right though. But in order to consolidate the position of the Crown Prince, they excluded dissidents, harmed the loyal and virtuous, and used shameful means to replace the cabinet elders, pushing their own people up.

Emperor Jing just watched with cold eyes, but his heart has now become completely cold towards the Ninth Prince. Before he was appointed as the crown prince, the Ninth Prince had done everything in his power to show filial piety. However, as soon as he entered the court, he began to eliminate the confidants of Emperor Jing. He also used the excuse that, in order to prevent his father’s eye disease from worsening, he would take all the memorials for review. Where did Lao Qi do this when he was here?

Comparing the two, Emperor Jing became even more aware of Lao Qi’s advantages. He thought that if Lao Qi had good legs, he would appoint Lao Qi as the crown prince!

It was only then that the Seventh Prince felt that the time had come and was ready to return to the mountains. In the past few days, dismissed cabinet elders have come to him to complain one after another, trying to probe him secretly. They were fed up with the Ninth Prince’s suppression and exclusion of dissidents.

Although the Seventh Prince was extremely capable, he was extremely opposed to the centralization of monarchical power. He even once said: The cabinet system is a healthier political system, and the number of cabinet ministers can be increased but must never be reduced.

On the contrary, the Ninth Prince actually planned to replace all the cabinet ministers with his confidants, wanting to achieve the goal of absolute monarchy. Once power is delegated, it becomes very difficult to take it back. These elders have been running the court throughout their lifetime. Even if they are dismissed, their influence has been deeply rooted. So how could the Ninth Prince move them just as he wished? Even if the Seventh Prince’s legs are disabled, they are willing to support him to the throne, but the prerequisite is that the Seventh Prince himself must have that willingness.

After a brief exchange, the two parties became aware of their respective plans. Only the Ninth Prince and Emperor Jing were still in the dark.

Today was the annual horse racing festival. The Seventh Prince got up early in the morning and prepared to take You Shu into the palace to watch the horse racing. You Shu had already crawled into his master’s arms before he woke up. He stuck out his tongue and licked randomly until he reached the thick beard before humming twice and opening his dazed eyes.

The Seventh Prince’s legs had long since recovered. He pressed the person under his body and rubbed him for a while. Only then did he go to fetch his obscene clothes and trousers, putting them on. He whispered, “Follow me closely after entering the palace. Don’t wander around.”

“Do you have anything important today?”

The Seventh Prince didn’t answer the question, “I think the political system of Dayan is very good, with numerous cabinet ministers. The monarch only needs to make decisions at critical moments, holding power in his hands but not being subjected to restrictions. If he wants to go to court, he can go to court. If he wants to leave, the cabinet ministers will naturally handle the government affairs properly. Don’t you think that’s good?”

You Shu understood everything and said seriously, “Master, just move forward, I will be right behind you.”

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