Chapter 67 — TVF Chapter 67

The Table-Flipping Old Father (7)

In Great Qi, a princess could take part in governance or lead troops. Thus, there was no rule that a Prince Consort or County Prince Consort could not hold high office or amass wealth.

If a family's youth caught the eye of a princess or noble lady, it was tantamount to attracting the gaze of the emperor and princes themselves. While it might not be an instant leap to the heavens, it would certainly bring considerable rewards to oneself and one’s clan—provided, of course, that the individual was truly talented and could keep his princess or noble lady wife well pleased.

All in all, becoming a Prince Consort was a venture with extremely high returns. Risky, yes, but that did not stop someone like Wang Daren, despite his wife and concubines, from being keen on it. Even receiving a warning note, he weighed the pros and cons carefully after an initial shock—and resolved to go all the way.

Mainly, now that he had switched allegiances, neither the emperor nor Prince Haicheng would likely let him off.

So he returned to Princess Anyang and handed her the note. “Your Highness, please look.”

Princess Anyang was willful and domineering, but far from stupid. After reading the note, she said coldly, “I never expected to hide anything from Prince Haicheng right from the start. On his own turf, my dear grand-uncle lacks for nothing—certainly not eyes and ears.” She belonged to the imperial clan; even if caught red-handed, she had nothing to fear for her life.

Wang Daren could hear the unshaken confidence in her tone and could only force a wry smile.

He pointed outside the window and admitted truthfully, “My family originally planned to ruin the Si family’s prestige by accusing them of being quacks and causing deaths. The plan was set… but right in front of Your Highness, I changed my mind…”

Princess Anyang gave a little laugh. “A married couple’s like two birds sharing the same woods—when disaster strikes, they fly their separate ways. Your family’s thoughts simply differed from yours.”

That analogy left Wang Daren with mixed feelings.

Princess Anyang was making a point. Her mind was already on how to get Prince Haicheng to soon meet the “gift” she’d brought especially for him.

Thinking of Yang Shi, who was waiting obediently back in the residence, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of pity… So beautiful, and so much like her own aunt and her late mother. It was precisely this resemblance that had brought disaster upon Yang Shi and her whole family.

Yang Shi’s father was executed by immediate beheading for treason; all the male members of her household either died or were exiled, while the surviving women were sent to the Jiaofang.

Yang Shi survived only by her drive for vengeance, and during her transfer to the capital, she had been noticed by a Chief Military Inspector at the border on orders from the emperor himself, and subsequently brought to the capital.

Yes, Yang Shi had originally been prepared by someone with an agenda—for the emperor.

Only, no matter how sincerely the emperor grieved for the empress, he would not be lost to love and longing. After a few days of melancholy, a few nights spent in the now masterless Kunning Palace, he decided to use the situation to his advantage and have Yang Shi presented to Prince Haicheng.

When Yang Shi heard that the emperor was willing to redress her family’s grievances, she wept through the night, then devoted herself fearlessly to his cause the very next day.

Princess Anyang was not at all worried that Yang Shi might lose her nerve. Even if she learned the truth, Yang Shi’s life would not be long from the moment she agreed to serve the emperor. As long as she could contact Prince Haicheng, it would be only a matter of time: either Prince Haicheng would fall into madness, or he would die…

She propped her chin on one hand, looking at her former lover with a half-smile: Si Chenghui, don’t think you can escape from the palm of my hand.

As for the disciples’ misadventures, Qin Jingzhou had already heard some the very same day; by the next, he had learned all the details from his most reliable disciple. Meanwhile, Si Chenghui had also sent a servant to report that Princess Anyang had already arrived in the prefecture capital.

Qin Jingzhou gathered his sons, daughters, sons-in-law, and disciples in his study and warned them: “The Wang family submitted to Princess Anyang as soon as they saw her and promptly declared their loyalty to Prince Haicheng.”

Third Miss Si chimed in, gloating without reservation, “It’s not that the Wang family dislikes Father, they’re just jealous of Brother Hui… Who would’ve thought their own genius son would catch Princess Anyang’s eye? Now they don’t know what to do.”

Qin Jingzhou only smiled, letting the children chat and whisper as they pleased. When they settled down, he delivered the final word: “We’re going down the mountain.”

Most of the disciples assumed he meant to punish the Wang family. Only his sons and daughters, son-in-law, and that reliable disciple sensed otherwise—his real target was surely either Princess Anyang or Prince Haicheng himself.

And don’t forget: Princess Anyang’s plan from the start had been to orchestrate an “accidental” encounter between Yang Shi and Prince Haicheng. In seeking out Wang Daren, her old flame, she was simply using his status as a local tyrant to spread word of a woman who resembled Prince Haicheng’s unforgettable love. That would be enough.

That was why she and Yang Shi made no effort to keep their whereabouts hidden.

In the course of the plot, Princess Anyang and Si Chenghui had in fact colluded to kill—at least nominally—the Prince Haicheng who’d come to the capital ostensibly for mourning rites. Most likely, it had been done by poisoning through Yang Shi, ultimately leading to Prince Haicheng’s death.

With such developments expected—Princess Anyang bringing Yang Shi to use an old trick—it was no wonder Qin Jingzhou didn’t want to stay cooped up on the mountain merely spectating.

After nearly two years with his disciples, it was time to let them see the world and test their skills.

After notifying Prince Haicheng, Qin Jingzhou gathered forty disciples to go down the mountain with him, leaving his second son and youngest daughter to look after their home.

On a side note, the official mourning period was three years, though it actually meant twenty-seven months. Now, only five months remained… Going out during mourning was one thing, but scandal stirred up by the children’s actions would reflect badly on the family.

He needn’t have said it; his sons and daughters all kept to the rules, which made Qin Jingzhou regard them with new respect.

Si Chenghui, upon hearing the news, was so excited he went out of the city himself to welcome them—convinced his uncle had rushed over to support him.

Though his uncle, a fellow transmigrator, never admitted it outright, Si Chenghui believed that their interests generally aligned and that they would look out for each other.

If his uncle played New Year’s Eve, he would play the Lantern Festival—he had to show his sincerity.

He accompanied his uncle and company to the house gifted by a disciple, and once seated, spoke frankly: “The First Prince’s Third Son, the County Princess, and I have all seen the secret weapon Princess Anyang brought… According to His Highness and the County Princess, Yang Shi looks almost identical to Imperial Concubine Dugu; her comportment and mannerisms have been specially trained. I suspect this Yang Shi will all but overlap with Prince Haicheng’s white moonlight. Plenty at the prefecture capital have seen her; Prince Haicheng surely knows by now…”

Qin Jingzhou continued, “Sooner or later, Prince Haicheng’s longing and curiosity will win out. He won’t be able to resist meeting Yang Shi.”

Si Chenghui nodded emphatically. “That’s exactly what worries me—the prince knows it must be a trap, but he still might not be able to help himself… If something happened to him…” He had indeed planned on establishing his own power, but not now. His wings hadn’t even fully grown!

Qin Jingzhou sipped his tea. “One can never forget a white moonlight out of reach.”

Si Chenghui felt the same. “Most likely, we can’t stop it—we’ll have to figure out how to pick up the pieces.”

Qin Jingzhou didn’t think all that highly of Prince Haicheng, but he liked the prospect of the emperor’s plan even less. Considering his objectives, if both sides lost, so much the better.

Besides, with the emperor’s and Prince Haicheng’s energies so consumed, their ability to stir up the world would be limited. In the end, one’s loss or death would benefit almost everyone.

And, as fate would have it, just as the two were strategizing, Prince Haicheng, after a sleepless night of indecision, at last could not resist. He brought his inner attendant and personal guards in search of Yang Shi—he had to see for himself how this Yang Shi could so resemble his beloved, as if she had come back to life!

Of course, before entering the courtyard where Yang Shi stayed, Prince Haicheng did not forget to put Princess Anyang under house arrest; all who came with her were carefully watched by his most trusted men.

Once everything was secure, Prince Haicheng drew a deep breath—he was actually a little nervous—then stepped into Yang Shi’s room.

By candlelight, he saw her: a plain white dress, hair loose, head bowed, sitting by the window… exactly as in the last memory he had of her… Prince Haicheng’s heart seized, and he called out, voice trembling, “Qingqing!”

She lifted her head, crimson lips parting slightly. “My lord.”

Even her voice was identical!

He knew full well this woman was sent to entrap him by the emperor himself, but Prince Haicheng simply could not restrain himself; he hurried forward and embraced the figure he could never banish from his dreams. “Qingqing!”

Prince Haicheng brought Yang Shi straight back to the Prince’s mansion.

The disciple who had given Qin Jingzhou the house came from one of the most prominent local clans. The house was only two streets from the Prince's mansion.

Though Prince Haicheng could go out in plain clothes, he could not travel without his personal guards; so every entrance and exit was known to all the neighbors.

Still, none of this surprised Qin Jingzhou and Si Chenghui—what did was that, the next day, Princess Anyang’s little prince came to Si Chenghui in tears. For the sake of that vixen, her mother had been slapped twice by the Prince; both Qin Jingzhou and Si Chenghui found that… remarkable.

History had seen passionate sovereigns who, for the sake of true love, ignored all other wives and even neglected their own offspring. But for Prince Haicheng to seclude himself with Yang Shi for seven straight days, refusing even to handle state matters… Now, that was grave. After all, “from this day on, the king ceases to hold court” was considered a most ominous sign.

Another half-month passed, and Prince Haicheng still refused to meet with his officials. This time, however, it was not that he could not bear to leave Yang Shi, but that he… coughed up blood, and was so ill he could barely get up for court—yet he was only just over forty, in his prime, with no prior health troubles. By contrast, it was the emperor whose lack of longevity was long gossiped about.

Anyone could guess what the problem was—it lay with Yang Shi!

To be fair, Prince Haicheng had always pined for the real love of his life, Imperial Concubine Dugu, but let’s not forget: in the end, he never asked to marry Dugu, never fulfilled her final wish.

One could thus imagine the depth of his feelings.

Now poisoned by Yang Shi, even though he had suspected the emperor’s ill intent, he had never expected the emperor to play so dirty!

Alas, regret came too late.

After several days of rage-fueled outbursts, Prince Haicheng’s condition worsened—and his “dependence” on Yang Shi only grew.

Another half a month passed. Yang Shi was visibly near death. At last, Prince Haicheng stopped hiding his illness and called in famous doctors. After their consultations, he was able to get out of bed… but there was little more to say.

Qin Jingzhou guessed that news of this would reach the capital, and the emperor would dispatch troops against Prince Haicheng. He knew his own cue to step onto the stage had arrived.

Prince Haicheng, after a stretch of humiliating and miserable trials, was now desperate enough to clutch at any straw. Hearing that his in-laws wished to visit, he agreed without hesitation.

When Qin Jingzhou visited, he saw a Prince Haicheng so thin as to be almost unrecognizable. After respectfully taking his pulse, he spoke to his system: “Just as I thought. If you want a true cure, it’s simple. Cut it off.”

The system roared with laughter.

Of course, Qin Jingzhou did not say this to Prince Haicheng. “Your Highness, did she tell you you were bewitched, and that no medicine could save you?”

Prince Haicheng’s eyes lit up. “You’re the only one who sees through it instantly!”

Qin Jingzhou smiled. “We’ll be relatives soon—I have no reason not to speak plainly. Actually,” he said more seriously, “you’re not bewitched. You’ve simply been given something addictive.”

Prince Haicheng let loose a colorful string of curses, denouncing the emperor’s ancestors to Qin Jingzhou’s face…

When you're truly infuriated, why spare yourself?