If Qi Wang was no longer the Prime Minister, his influence would decrease greatly. On the other hand, should the Crown Prince participate in political affairs, he would be able to live up to his title. Then he would have built strong foundations, be deeply rooted and untouchable.
Qi Wang did not flinch but bowed down and said, “Your order is my command.”
Everything that he got was related to the Empress. If he refuted for a temporary loss, it might affect his position in the Empress’ heart and that might lead to a bigger loss.
The Empress seemed to have expected that reaction from Qi Wang, she responded, “So that’s it. You can retreat now.”
The Empress did not bother to appease Qi Wang further. She made the decision in a clear and direct fashion and told both of them to retreat.
Qi Wang and the Crown Prince gave their salutes and left the hall together. Qi Wang’s face turned gloomy as he sarcastically said, “Your Highness, political affairs were complicated. Make sure you watch out for your health and don’t tire yourself.”
The Crown Prince calmly replied, “With your constant concern, my health will be fine.”
Qi Wang responded, “The world is a big place filled with talented people. The Crown Prince is the favorite among people, naturally, you’ll have special people protecting you. When will it be my turn to look after you? I’ve been a busy body indeed.”
He left after finishing his words, leaving the Crown Prince behind at the jade steps. The Prince walked down slowly and yet almost slipped. It was a eunuch who held on to him and prevented the fall.
In the hall, the Empress sat on her dragon chair as her eyes pierce through the hall as if she saw everything happening outside.
The Crown Prince’s slip showed that his mind was not at ease. If it was not for that eunuch who happened to be by his side, he would have made a fool of himself and became a laughing stock. The Empress let out an ambiguous smile and thought that her son was getting more and more interesting.
Her eyes ended up on the last two lines written on the paper, ‘No chance of meeting people to pass the secret; all will just end up as empty talk!”.’ If it was not for her unshakable realization, she would have spent the whole life trying to master the Art of the Emperor. Her sovereignty and throne were all just mediums. No one knew what she really wanted.
The Crown Prince returned to the East Palace and was welcomed by Zhao Xiang. The father-son went to a quiet room and Zhao Xun can no longer hold back his laughter. Although the laugh was not loud, his satisfaction could clearly be felt.
It was the first time Zhao Xiang saw his father this happy. When Zhao Xun stopped laughing, his son asked, “Father, did something good happened?”
“I should be able to sleep well today onwards,” Zhao Xun’s laughter had yet to fade as he replied his son.
Zhao Xiang responded, “Is that prescription really effective? Father, what was written on the prescription?”
Zhao Xun shook his head, “The prescription was just a bait. Thanks to it, I was able to be honest to Her Majesty. The Empress had a heart of kindness and would not take the most brutal action. Earlier today, Her Majesty ordered Qi Wang to withdraw from central administration while I can start participating in political affairs. It was a move to calm the court. Although we still need to be cautious, at least we’re quite safe within the next three to five years.
At the same time, he was greatly impressed by Shen Lian’s ability. It was Shen Lian’s sharp observation that read his mother’s true intentions and the opposition situation in the administration and solved it with a poem.
After the Empress took over the throne, she was able to calm down the rebellion of the Qinghe Jun Wang but yet the world was still full of hidden turbulence. The reason why she appointed Zhao Xun as the Crown Prince was to give some hope to the ministers and people who were in favor of the previous throne and at the same time promoted Qi Wang as a sign of warning to Zhao Xun.
This tactic of using Qi Wang was to check and balance the Crown Prince’s power, but it only increased internal friction, and cause the failure to transit some of the loyalty of previous ministers to the current era.
Now that the Empress had abolished Qi Wang’s Prime Minister position and the Crown Prince being allowed to take part in political affairs, it showed that she did not want more chaos under her rule and she intended to unify the nation.
Therefore, Zhao Xun could confidently say that he would be safe for at least the next three to five years and he would be able to sleep well. Even if Qi Wang wanted to assassinate him, Qi Wang would not yield much out of it as the only person who could decide on his life and death was the Empress. If the Empress thought of him as a hindrance, he would not be able to survive anyway.
The part where he almost slipped this morning was partially real and partially an act. It was his way of telling the Empress that everything he owns was under her control.
Unlike his father who experienced the cruel battles of the power in the palace, Zhao Xiang was not able to understand the considerations of an experienced politician. He was only able to grasp it after the Crown Prince explained thoroughly to him.
He then realized that he had underestimated his father.
He also realized that unpredictability of Shen Lian did not stop at his mysterious means, but the depth of his wisdom was beyond impressive.
******
Speaking of wisdom, Shen Lian was not necessarily the smartest person on earth. Just like a game of chess, a third person would be able to have a clearer view being not involved in the game. Furthermore, he had read plenty of history literature throughout his previous and current life.
Ruoxi got influenced by her brother’s excitement and too, practiced writing. On his usual piece of paper, he wrote sixteen words, ‘Being together for too long leads to separation, being separated for too long leads to togetherness’. After writing and inspecting it, he hugged Ruoxi and gave her a kiss.
Ruoxi smirked, “I am already a big girl, don’t kiss me!”
Shen Lian replied, “Tell me about it when you’ve reach the height of my shoulders.”
Ruoxi pouted and said, “You seem really happy today.”
“That’s because I might have the solution to something that has been bothering me.” Shen Lian smiled with a relaxed expression. Although he had yet to balance the eight energies, he found a direction to take.
Shen Lian gently places Ruoxi down. The little girl didn’t want to leave him as his scent was pleasing, just like the fresh smell of the wood and grass after rain. Sometimes she would wonder if her brother’s flesh would taste good.
Of course, Shen Lian wasn’t aware of the girl’s odd ideas.
A man dressed in servant’s outfit came by the clinic; the material of clothes he wore was somewhat particular. He had a mustache above his lips and looked average. But he had high-low eyebrows and it made him looked awkward.
His footsteps were light and it seemed that he was quite an advanced practitioner of martial arts.
He was rude as he walked in without knocking on the door.
The weird-browed man looked at Shen Lian and smiled, “Are you the owner of this clinic?”
“What do you think?” Shen Lian sized this person and deduced that he was an overconfident Jianghu expert.
“Can you really bring dead people to live?” the weird-browed man asked.
Shen Lian gave an ambiguous smile and responded, “Do you want to know?”
Weird-browed man replied, “Well, I’m curious.”
Shen Lian calmly responded, “How about if I beat you to death and revive you. Then, you’ll be able to find out.” Beyond his calm words lies a hint of a murderous aura.
Weird-browed man felt a sharp drop in the clinic’s room temperature. While Shen Lian’s figure continues to expand, he could not stop shrinking, as if Shen Lian transformed into a God who came down to the mortal world.