How can I bow my head and serve the powerful officials?

He thought Xie Chengze had long forgotten this person, but he didn't expect that when they met again more than ten years later, he and Shen Yuan had a secret without his knowledge so quickly.

He even had a faint and ridiculous expectation just now, thinking that his second brother might really be tired and unwilling to fight with him anymore, and that his second brother had returned to his former gentle and smiling self. But now he found that Xie Chengze might not have changed at all, and he was still the person who was nice to everyone.

He just wasn't nice to himself anymore.

Xie Jinyu didn't know what he had done wrong before.

But he must have done something wrong, which caused his originally friendly and easy-going second brother to gradually become unrecognizable.

He should be held responsible.

"It seems that my second brother likes Minister Shen very much. He has looked at him differently since childhood." Under the golden robe sleeves, Xie Jinyu clenched his fists and pretended to be relaxed.

"Haha, really?" Xie Chengze couldn't find this memory in his mind, so he laughed and said, "Shen Lang is indeed excellent. Of course, the prince's brother is also excellent."

Xie Jinyu was startled, and the next second he looked up and suddenly looked at Xie Chengze.

After fifteen years of being together, he was well aware of Xie Chengze's every emotional change. There was clearly some sincerity in Xie Chengze's words just now.

The second brother is recognizing him.

The second brother also said that he was better than Shen Yuan.

The fists under his sleeves tightened even more, and the eighteen-year-old boy, who was praised by his brother whom he had admired since childhood, couldn't help but straighten his back, a trace of embarrassed embarrassment flashed across his eyes, and even his ears turned red unnaturally.

Shen Yuan keenly noticed this abnormality.

This was the first time he saw the prince so angry.

In his previous life, the prince always smiled, except for Xie Chengze, where he showed some obvious disappointment. However, he had never been as angry as he was at this moment.

But he vaguely felt that something was not right, but he could not grasp the fleeting sense of difference.

"Second Prince." Shen Yuan spoke, interrupting the strange atmosphere between the two brothers, "We are here today to ask for something serious."

Xie Jinyu coughed lightly, sat up straight and said, "Yes, that's right."

"Oh~ Really~" Xie Chengze didn't notice anything unusual. He put his arm around Xie Jinyu's shoulders like a good brother and said with a smile, "Then let me guess, why did you come to see me?"

Xie Jinyu's body tensed up instantly when she was suddenly hugged by Xie Chengze.

In the past, his second brother would suddenly show his affection like this, but he always pretended to be nice, and he could tell at a glance that the other party had ulterior motives. But for some reason, this time he felt like he was back in his childhood, with his second brother hugging his shoulders, simply expressing his affection for his younger brother.

A sense of dependence that was lost and regained filled his heart, mixed with uneasiness and anxiety, a mixture of various feelings. He lowered his eyes slightly, and the hand under his robe sleeve tentatively approached the direction of Xie Chengze, but stopped abruptly.

Afraid of bursting this brotherly relationship which is as fragile as a bubble.

He heard Xie Chengze's soft and gentle voice slowly ringing in his ears, "Yizhou has a special climate. If there is a flood in summer, there will be a famine in winter. Now the Minjiang River has been flooded and the river bank has collapsed. We have to wait until the dry season to send people to rebuild it. This also means that farmers can only grow coarse grains that mature in a short time during this period."

"But these grains usually have low yields and are difficult to preserve. They are simply not enough to meet the winter food needs of the population of Yizhou's 16 counties. When the price of grain soars, the people of the entire state will not be able to afford food, which will cause severe famine, and cannibalism and human trafficking will become common."

"In order to save money, the governor of Yizhou will certainly use prisoners from various counties to build the river embankment. Farmers can't afford to eat, so prisoners can't afford to eat even more. The construction of the river embankment is a huge project, and the number of people in charge of supervising the work is small. It is very easy for the hungry prisoners to rebel and attack..."

Xie Chengze chuckled, "Once those vicious prisoners escape, they will easily occupy the mountains and become bandits, hijacking the official roads, and the people will starve. If the government does nothing, Yizhou will be full of starving people. If the heavens are blind, it will even lead to the spread of plague."

"If the 16 taels of relief funds were put in place, the people of Yizhou might still have a glimmer of hope, but you all know that in the end, only taels of silver fell into the pockets of the county magistrates of Yizhou. That was considered the 'kindness' of those people, wasn't it?"

Xie Chengze patted Xie Jinyu's shoulder and said meaningfully, "Among the memorials that the emperor sent to you, I'm sure many of his close friends mentioned this matter, right?"

Xie Jinyu suddenly looked at him, "How did you know, second brother?"

Could it be that the emperor also showed him those memorials?

"Father has always valued you and never slacked off in teaching you, even using me as your polishing stone. And now you are at an age where you should put your knowledge into practice. The disaster in Yizhou is a classic and cruel example, and it is perfect for training you. Father will naturally send you the relevant memorials."

Xie Chengze smiled bitterly, but he was secretly muttering in his heart that he asked Emperor Jian to deliver the memorial in the imperial study at that time just to go with the flow. Even if he didn't mention it, Emperor Jian had already had this idea.

It's just that the speaker didn't mean it, but the listener took it to heart. After hearing his words, Xie Jinyu was shocked, and felt that the doubts that had troubled him for many years were solved in an instant. He looked at Xie Chengze with astonishment, "Second brother, could it be, could it be..."

Seeing Xie Jinyu so shocked, Xie Chengze immediately had an idea, and held his hands tightly, saying earnestly, "Jinyu, no need to say more, you are my most beloved brother, and being the grinding stone for your growth is what a brother should do, and I am willing to do it."

Xie Jinyu only felt a tingling and sad emotion spreading throughout his body, his lips trembling slightly. He looked at Xie Chengze with red eyes, and in his eyes there was a sudden surge of grievance and guilt like a tide.

He had never thought about it, and never imagined that the reason why his gentle and outstanding second brother had changed beyond recognition and the reason why he was fighting against him in every way was just to cooperate with his father and hone his path to becoming a king!

No wonder, no wonder he could never find the reason why his second brother suddenly changed his gender, no wonder his second brother only treated him coldly——

It turns out that the second brother has never changed, he has always loved me the most!

He also said that he was his most beloved brother...

Seeing Xie Jinyu's eyes turn red with guilt, Xie Chengze knew that the game was won.

Although Xie Jinyu in the original book is extremely cunning, he is set up to be a person who cares deeply about brotherhood. If he had not given the original owner the opportunity to reform again and again, Shen Yuan would not have fought with the original owner for ten years.

Therefore, Xie Chengze simply exaggerated the situation and turned Emperor Jian's intentional and incidental use into his own active help, thus completely clearing himself of his villain identity.

Oh, is he a genius?

Xie Chengze didn't notice that Shen Yuan's face was almost as black as charcoal. He raised his hand and coughed a few times. His face, which was red from the sun, showed a trace of weakness and pain because he pretended to be sick. "Ahem, now you are old enough to be independent. It's time for you, the grinding stone, to retire after your success."

This retreat is a lifetime

"Second brother..." Xie Jinyu held Xie Chengze's hand tightly with her backhand, as if she wanted to embed his finger bones deeply into her own fingers, staring at him without moving, "I... I will treat you well."

He will bring the best things in the world to his second brother.

This was a promise he had made since childhood.

Xie Chengze didn't realize the seriousness of the matter at all. He nodded with satisfaction and continued to fool around, "Second brother also hopes that Jinyu will treat second brother better. You are the brother that second brother loves the most."

Xie Jinyu lowered her eyes, looked at the two people's intertwined hands, and raised the corners of her lips slightly, "Of course, I like my second brother the most."

It has been like this since childhood, and it is still like this now.

"Let's get back to the point. Father intends to send someone to Yizhou to supervise the disaster relief. However, the officials are colluding with each other and their power is already intertwined. It is not appropriate to send anyone. Only the newly appointed Minister of Rites has not yet taken sides. He is also a disciple of Master Shen and has a pure heart. He is the most suitable person."

"But Minister Shen is a newcomer after all. He has no say in government affairs. A strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake. The local officials may not be able to be manipulated by him, so another prince must be sent to assist him. In other words, he can be used by Minister Shen..."

Xie Chengze raised his head and looked at Shen Yuan with a half-smile, "The crown prince is not suitable, and the fourth brother has no prestige. Only this second prince, who is well-loved by the world, is the most suitable."

He did not forget his character, and after coughing twice, he continued, "So, you want to invite me to come out of the mountains and go south to Yizhou, but you are afraid that I will be reluctant to give up the glory and wealth in the capital and don't want to go to Yizhou to suffer, right?"

In the original book, the original owner refused to go south to Yizhou, and the prince had no choice but to go there himself. Because he supported Shen Yuan, he offended many officials, which prompted them to support the second prince, and the second prince's party gradually formed.

The false dragon seized the throne and the disaster of Yizhou began.

Xie Jinyu stared at Xie Chengze with a twinkling gaze. He knew that his second brother's previous stupid behavior was all fake. Now that he was just sitting in Chenghuan Palace, he could see the situation in the court and Yizhou very clearly. Wasn't this enough to prove that his second brother really hid his stupidity in order to polish him?

The sweetness and bitterness in her heart kept flowing, but thinking of the dangerous situation in Yizhou, Xie Jinyu felt a little more worried. "The situation in Yizhou is unclear. It will take more than a month to rush from the capital to Yizhou, and more than three months to rebuild the river embankment. If there is famine or riots during this period..."

If Xie Chengze was injured, Xie Jinyu would rather go to Yizhou himself.

Seeing Xie Jinyu was about to retreat, Shen Yuan immediately stepped forward and said, "The Second Prince is extremely wise and will definitely be able to take on this task. He is the only one who can do it."

Shen Yuan knew very well that Xie Chengze could not stand the compliments from others. In his previous life, he had taken advantage of this many times to make the arrogant Xie Chengze step into the trap he set.

As soon as Shen Yuan finished speaking, he saw Xie Chengze looking at him with a smile, "Jin Yu is my brother. If he asks, I am willing to help him. However, this is also considered to be helping Minister Shen. I wonder what benefits Minister Shen will give me?"

This is to ask for benefits from him. Shen Yuan sighed inwardly and pressed on, "Your Highness, the Second Prince, is going south to Yizhou. The people will benefit from it. The praise of the people is the best thank you for your Highness."

Xie Chengze smiled, "Yes, if the people benefit, the praise is the best thank you gift to me. If Minister Shen benefits, what is the thank you gift?"

Shen Yuan: ...

"Yes, once the Yizhou matter is handled, Minister Shen's official career will be on the rise." Xie Jinyu reminded, somewhat dissatisfied with Shen Yuan's lack of tact.

Shen Yuan: ...

Shen Yuan gritted his teeth and asked, "What benefit does the Second Prince want?"

Xie Chengze let go of Xie Jinyu's hand and walked slowly towards Shen Yuan barefoot, staring at him with those charming phoenix eyes, "You are the benefit that this prince wants."