Chapter 498: Influence the Emperor
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
"A little bigger?" The lady didn't manage to react to that. Then, she followed Fang Zhengzhi's gaze and bellowed furiously, "You shameless fella, I will kill you!"
"Mm, that's more like it. Why bother acting all matured?" Fang Zhengzhi nodded when he looked at her.
This was Princess Ping Yang.
Only Ping Yang could shock and silence a crowd like this. After all, her reputation as the number one bully was earned.
"Greetings your highness, I am Chi Hong!" Chi Hou walked forward and bowed to Ping Yang.
"Lord, please do away with the formalities." Ping Yang tried to act in a 'mature' manner once again.
"Greetings Princess!" The crowd fell to their knees.
"Please rise." Ping Yang waved to the crowd then bounded towards Fang Zhengzhi and Yan Xiu. "How was that for a door gift? Shouldn't you be thanking me?"
"Aren't you here to thank me?" Fang Zhengzhi asked in confusion.
"Me? Thank you? How is that possible? I was the one who set fire to the residence! I was the one who told Bai Qi to go there. Would you be standing here if not for me?"
"Would you have the chance to set fire to his residence if not for me?"
"What do you mean?"
"Think about it. That is the residence of the Minister of Law. You couldn't possibly set it on fire by yourself even though you are a Princess. Furthermore, you will be given much credit in the part you played for convicting Wan Chong. Shouldn't you be thanking me?" Fang Zhengzhi asked.
"If you put it that way... I guess so!" Ping Yang nodded after some hesitation. Then, her eyes glittered. "That being said, you should still give me something as a meeting gift!"
"How about I make you a hot pot meal?" Fang Zhengzhi said in exasperation.
"Deal!" Ping Yang nodded immediately. She could feel the saliva building in her mouth as she thought about the hot pot.
Chi Hou's expression was rather conflicted.
Ping Yang and Fang Zhengzhi were probably the only two people in the world who would publicly admit to the role they played in the arson.
However...
This would mean that Bai Qi had no relation to the Shadow Sect. Was he thinking too much? Or was there something that he missed out.
Would Fang Zhengzhi really have put all his eggs in the Ping Yang basket?
If he was asked this question 15 minutes ago, he may have believed that Fang Zhengzhi wasn't capable of this much scheming. However, after seeing what just happened, he had to consider something else.
What was Fang Zhengzhi's motive for returning to the capital?
Ping Yang didn't notice the changes in Chi Hou's expression. After she secured her gift from Fang Zhengzhi, she turned to Yan Xiu.
"Yan Xiu, did you bring anything for me this time?"
"I did." Yan Xiu nodded.
"What is it?"
"Stallion."
"Stallion? Is it the stallion of your Yan Cloud Cavalry?"
"It's a Powerful Gale Red Cloud Stallion."
"Powerful Gale Red Cloud Stallion?! Is that the legendary and rare Powerful Gale Red Cloud Stallion?" Ping Yang's eyes lit up.
"Exactly."
"Male or female?"
"Male."
"Hahaha, that's great! My Snow White will have a partner! Yan Xiu, you are way more generous than this stingy fella. To think that he only offered me a hot pot!" Ping Yang looked at Fang Zhengzhi with scorn.
"Isn't your Snow White already partnered with the Ninth Prince's Purple Lightning Dragon Stallion?" Fang Zhengzhi asked.
"That can be changed!"
"Mm..."
...
News of Wan Chong's arrest spread like wildfire in the capital. Everyone in the city was discussing that incident.
Of course, the other talk of the town was Fang Zhengzhi's return to the capital and the manner in which he returned.
"Fang Zhengzheng?"
Before long, everyone was talking about the new name that Fang Zhengzhi had given himself.
Inside the Crown Prince's residence.
More than a dozen officials sat down in two rows. This time, they were visibly more anxious.
Minister Wan Chong's arrest had stunned them all.
More importantly, the evidence that would convict Wan Chong was a mountainous pile of letters. They were all wondering the same thing...
In those letters...
Was there any mention of them?
Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping tapped his finger on the armrest. The atmosphere in the room was solemn.
Crown Prince Lin Tianrong sat in his chair solemnly as he glanced at the anxious officials.
"What are you all so scared about? Do you really think that Fang Zhengzhi can tear through the entire court?" Crown Prince Lin Tianrong's gaze was icy.
"Your Highness, we..." The officials looked at each other in fear. The road to this point had not been easy.
Pledging allegiance to the Crown Prince...
That was a decision they made to secure their positions and their lives. By doing so, they wanted to secure the future for their descendants as well. However, the incident with Wan Chong worried them.
Everything from the fire to the arrest had happened much too quickly. They couldn't even react in time.
One of the six ministers had been disposed of in the blink of an eye. However, the Crown Prince had not reacted to it.
"Where is Fang Zhengzhi now?"
"Your Highness, Fang Zhengzhi and Yan Xiu are at Ping Yang's residence. I heard that he is making her a hot pot." One of the officials replied.
"Hotpot?!" Crown Prince Lin Tianrong frowned.
"Have Wan Chong's letters been made public?" Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping queried.
"Not yet, but Bai Qi has already handed them over to the Federal Supervisory Commission. Prime Minister, as you know, there were too many witnesses, so it is difficult..." One of the officials in the robes of the Federal Supervisory Commission stepped forward.
"Mm, I know. Even though the case is with the Federal Supervisory Commission, we can still continue our plans using the Ministry of Law."
"What do you mean?"
"All we need to do is find a replacement for Wan Chong. Then, this case will be isolated to Wan Chong and no one here would be implicated." Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping added.
"Yes, yes. As long as we still control the Ministry of Law, we can still continue as planned."
"Yes! Since Wan Chong is the Minister of Law, his case cannot be handed back to the Ministry. However, our dealings with Wan Chong..."
"Prime Minister, do you have anyone in mind to take over that position?"
The eyes of the anxious officials brightened up when they heard this. They saw a glimmer of hope in the darkness.
"There's no need to worry about the position. With me and the Crown Prince, that would not be a problem." Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping asserted.
"That's right! With the Crown Prince and the Left Prime Minister, there's nothing to worry about!"
"Yes yes yes! We are all much more assured now that the Crown Prince is in control."
"This is great!"
The officials felt much more assured.
"Okay, it's getting late, go back and get some rest." Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping waved the other officials off.
"Okay, we will take our leave!"
"Your Highness, we will be taking our leave now!"
The officials stood up and bowed to Crown Prince Lin Tianrong and Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping. Then, they left.
The study was quiet once again.
"Smack!" A crisp sound broke the silence.
"Damn, Ping Yang!"
"Your Highness, Princess Ping Yang must have been put up to it by Fang Zhengzhi. She may be mischievous, but she is no arsonist."
"Prime Minister, what do you think we should do?"
"The first order of business is to assure the officials on our side. I may have made a mistake here. I wanted to exchange a Minister of Law for Fang Zhengzhi's life. But now, we have lost a Minister of Law. This complicates matters." Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping replied.
"What's so complicated about a Minister of Law?" Crown Prince Lin Tianrong said dismissively.
"Ordinarily, this would be a small issue. However, you must not forget that Fang Zhengzhi's case is with the Ministry of Law!" Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping reminded.
"What do you mean?"
"If Fang Zhengzhi was dead, then it wouldn't matter if the case was with the Ministry. However, if he's alive and the position goes to a King Duan sympathizer, then..."
"You're saying that he will use the Ministry of Law to dismiss the case?"
"Mm."
"How dare he?!"
"The fight for the throne will always be bloody. Since King Duan wants to contest it, he will ignore the fact that the both of you are brothers. Your Highness, think about it. If you were King Duan, wouldn't you do the same thing?"
"I understand. That being said, I can't watch idly by as Fang Zhengzhi walks around telling everyone he's Fang Zhengzheng!" Crown Prince Lin Tianrong was frustrated.
"There's no need to watch idly by. However, we must wait for the right opportunity." Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping shook his head.
"What opportunity?"
"The banquet is soon. The Emperor would be at the Ten Mile Lake. If we execute it cleanly, there would be no trouble."
"Are you suggesting that we assassinate him at Ping Yang's residence?"
"No, Ping Yang's residence is highly guarded. It may be even more heavily guarded than the palace."
"So what should we do?"
"Your Highness, rest assured. Fang Zhengzhi will not be staying in Ping Yang's residence for very long. I have my ways to lure him out." Left Prime Minister Yu Yiping's eyes glowed icily.
...
Inside King Duan's study...
Chi Hou put his teacup down and smiled as he looked at Mr. Hua and Old Wen.
"I never expected that you would be able to take out Wan Chong the moment you entered the city! I am in awe!" Mr. Hua smiled when he saw Chi Hou put down the teacup.
"That had nothing to do with me." Chi Hou waved him off.
"I never expected that the Crown Prince would have Wan Chong ambush you at the gates! What was even more unexpected was that Fang Zhengzhi managed to get rid of Wan Chong!" Old Wen's voice echoed through the room.
"You were beside Fang Zhengzhi when it happened. Do you know what Wan Chong is being accused of?" King Duan stood up and walked over to Chi Hou to help him refill his tea.
Chi Hou stood up to reject but ended up having to accept the refill. Then he squinted, almost as if he was thinking about something. Then, he returned to his original calm look.
"Your Highness, you're thinking of getting rid of all of those aligned with the Crown Prince, but the time is not right."
"What do you mean?" King Duan asked respectfully.
"In order to get our hands on the evidence, we need to have someone on our side as the Minister of Law. That is the only way we can drive this case." Chi Hou replied.
"You are right. If we don't have someone on our side as the Minister of Law, we can't do anything about the others loyal to the Crown Prince." King Duan nodded.
"Your Highness, do you have confidence that you can secure that position?"
"Erm..." King Duan hesitated, then shook his head. "Right now, more than 80% of the officials are loyal to the Crown Prince. For us to secure the Minister of Law position..."
"Your Highness, have you thought about securing it during a court session?"
"Please advise!"
"I think that it is time that you get up and move around." Chi Hou replied cryptically.
"Where do you want me to walk to?"
"There are no more than three people in the capital who can influence the Emperor. Your Highness, you can consider that." Chi Hou replied.
"You're talking about someone who can influence the Emperor?" King Duan squinted, then his eyes brightened.