Dragon's Origin

Chapter 663 Who Did It (Part 2)

Chief Steward Li was the head of the Imperial Palace's Internal Affairs. He knew a few things, but Eunuch Shen was purely responsible for the Emperor's safety and knew nothing about these matters.

Hearing Chief Steward Li's words, the Emperor frowned on the spot. Planting people in Lizhen Workshop? Even if the Emperor wanted to plant a few people in Lizhen Workshop, he had to do it secretly, and only among the less important guards and servants. What gave the Third Prince the right to want to plant people there?

"What kind of people does he want to insert? In what positions?" The Emperor asked Chief Steward Li, suppressing the anger in his heart. He knew Chief Steward Li must know.

"The Third Prince wants to arrange five people," Chief Steward Li replied quickly, kneeling on the ground. "The head manager of Lizhen Workshop, the head manager of the treasury, the head of the guards, and the head managers of Qianshengyuan and Mengzhifang."

Chief Steward Li's voice grew softer and softer, but everyone in the Imperial Study heard him clearly. The Empress immediately sneered, "When did Lizhen Workshop, Qianshengyuan, and Mengzhifang become imperial properties? The Third Prince wants to change the head managers as he pleases. What great power!"

Not only the Emperor, but even the Empress instantly understood the Third Prince's intentions. The Emperor could even understand his son's thoughts. He saw Lizhen Workshop making so much money and became jealous, wanting to seize this enormous wealth.

If it were just this thought, it would be completely normal. Not to mention the Third Prince, even the Emperor and the various lords thought the same way. It would be abnormal not to think about it daily. The normal thing would be to think about it day and night, even dreaming about it!

But everyone knew that they could only think about it and couldn't do anything. When such a huge amount of wealth became independent, it became a significant force. Everyone was restrained by each other, and no one could touch it. Instead, Lizhen Workshop stood at the center of everyone's checks and balances, making money and counting coins, sitting tight.

The Emperor sent the Third Prince to Lizhen Workshop with selfish intentions. He wanted the Third Prince to learn and see what the most profound knowledge of governing the world and benefiting the people was, not to act like a big shot.

"Why didn't you report earlier?" The Emperor glared at Chief Steward Li. Since Chief Steward Li knew about this, he must also be clear about the stakes. Such a big matter, Chief Steward Li didn't report it in time, which was definitely a dereliction of duty.

"Your Majesty, this happened yesterday afternoon, and the news was only sent to the palace last night," Chief Steward Li quickly explained. "This morning, I received the news that Lord Changsheng had returned to the Lao Jun Temple and had been paying attention. Who would have thought that such a shocking thing would happen this afternoon? This servant is guilty!"

Compared to Wang Sheng's news, the Third Prince's matter was obviously not a high priority. It was normal for the person in charge of distributing information to prioritize things. But who would have thought that the Third Prince failed to install the head managers yesterday and then took the opportunity to attack Meier and Qiangwei when they left the city today?

The Emperor had a headache and was also puzzled. The Third Prince had always been gentle and honest, so how could he do such a thing? But all the evidence showed that it was the Third Prince who arranged it, leaving no room for denial.

"Go and bring the Third Son to me!" The Emperor didn't understand why things had developed like this. He remembered very clearly that when he arranged for the Third Prince to go to Lizhen Workshop, he had specifically told him to speak less and observe more. How did it turn out like this?

As soon as he said this, the Empress sneered. The Emperor immediately changed his words, "Go and tie the Third Son up for me!"

Chief Steward Li agreed and got up to leave the Imperial Study. The Emperor sighed and turned helplessly to the Empress.

"I'm going to see my daughter!" The Empress said coldly, stood up, and walked out, ignoring the embarrassment on the Emperor's face. "You better hope Meier isn't hurt, otherwise I don't mind leaving the palace with Meier! Anyway, we have plenty of gold coins and can live well anywhere."

After speaking, the Empress left the Imperial Study without looking back, leaving only the Emperor and Eunuch Shen in the study with bitter smiles.

The Empress left the palace overnight, and Eunuch Shen hurried to the door to make arrangements. When he returned to the Imperial Study, he saw the Emperor sitting alone, angry, and seemingly with a hint of reluctance and sorrow.

Eunuch Shen could understand the Emperor's thoughts. The Emperor must be lamenting the Third Prince's misfortune and angering him for not living up to expectations. He had personally turned a good situation into a mess. Was there anything more upsetting to the Emperor than this? Looking at the Emperor's lonely figure, Eunuch Shen didn't dare to say much, standing quietly at the door, waiting for orders.

In less than an hour, Chief Steward Li brought people from the Third Prince's residence and apprehended him from his bedroom. According to the Emperor's instructions, he was tied up and brought to the Imperial Study. The Third Prince's residence was entirely surrounded by the Imperial Guards, and everyone in the residence was waiting for the Emperor's disposal.

"Father! Father!" Seeing the Emperor, the Third Prince immediately cried and knelt on the ground, repeatedly asking the Emperor, "Why do you treat your child like this?"

"You don't know?" The Emperor was amused by the anger. Such a big thing had happened, and even the major lords in various places should have received the news by now. The Third Prince didn't even know why he was being tied up?

"Is it because of that lowly woman?" The Third Prince wasn't stupid. Seeing that the Emperor really intended to punish him, he quickly asked, "Father, that lowly woman is just a mere merchant. Why does Father value her so much?"

"A mere merchant?" The Emperor felt that something was wrong when he heard this. When did this Third Son develop this kind of thinking? The Emperor couldn't help but ask the Third Prince, "Did I tell you to speak less, observe more, and learn as much as possible when you arrived at Lizhen Workshop?"

"Father did say these things." The Third Prince replied quickly, kneeling on the ground, "This child has been following Father's instructions, learning for two months, and felt that I had learned something, so I planned to try my hand."

"Try your hand?" The Emperor once again heard something wrong in the Third Prince's words. "When did I ask you to try your hand?"

"Father indeed did not ask this." The Third Prince knelt, seemingly unaware of his mistake. "This child just felt that learning without doing is ultimately not thorough enough. This child's teacher also supported me in practical operation, so..."

PS: I've had a headache for a week in a row. I don't know what's wrong. I'm going to the hospital tomorrow for a checkup.