CH 76

Gu Fuzhou meant for the emperor to take the initiative to abolish Xiao Chen’s position as crown prince. This was easier said than done. For decades after he ascended to the throne, the emperor had refused to name a successor. They said he was being cautious, but in fact, he had been creating a Gu. He turned a blind eye to the battle of the princes in order to wait for the final winner.

Four years ago, Xiao Cheng stood out from amongst the princes, proving to the emperor that there was no better choice for crown prince. For this reason, all the other princes had died or had been laid to waste. In the end, the only ones left were an idiot and a dullard. The price of the battle for succession was so great that the Xiao Clan could no afford another one anytime soon. Even if Xiao Cheng has been remiss in his official duties as of late, even if Xiao Jie were able to come out with remarkable achievements, the emperor would not change the crown prince.

Unless, Xiao Cheng were to do something that the emperor simply could never tolerate. Even if Xiao Cheng were to defile the harem, the emperor might still protect him; only grave crimes such as attempting regicide and treason, collaborating with the enemy and betraying the country, would be able to shake his position as heir.

But even though Xiao Cheng was devoting himself to the search for Shen Huaishi, it wasn’t to the point that he had completely lost all sense of rationality. Shen Huaishi had merely turned him from a smart person into an ordinary one. He knew that so long as he didn’t make any grave mistakes, sooner or later the country would belong to him. Therefore, how could he go attempting regicide and treason or collaborating with the enemy and betraying the country? 

Lin Qingyu expressed his doubts, and Gu Fuzhou said, “Do you remember the six names I wrote down?”

“I remember. Xiao Cheng, Shen Huaishi; Xiao Jie, Xi Rong; Xiao Li, the Empress.”

“They are each other’s weaknesses and if you want to do something to one of them, the best breakthrough point is in the other person — this is the general principle of the entire book, Huai’s Refusal of the Monarch”. Gu Fuzhou said, “With this principle, it is not difficult for us to see that if we want Xiao Cheng to do something crazy, it will have to be through Shen Huaishi.”

Lin Qingyu pondered, “You’re right, but right now no one knows Shen Huaishi’s whereabouts.”

Gu Fuzhou said unhurriedly, “Don’t worry, in the time it takes for a song to be played, I’ll have thought of a way.”

Lin Qingyu sneered lightly, “You’re overestimating your own capabilities.” No matter how smart Gu Fuzhou was, it was impossible for him to come up with a comprehensive solution in such a short period of time. He thought that it would take Gu Fuzhou at least two or three days to give him an answer. But who could have guessed that after they alighted from the carriage, Gu Fuzhou said, “Didn’t you tell Xiao Cheng before that Shen Huaishi might have escaped to the north?”

“En.” The Northern Border was located in the extreme north of the Dayu and the King of the Northern Border was the only king of the Dayu from a different clan. Before Princess Jingchun was married to him, he was said to be hidden danger to the court. Even now, the emperor was very guarded towards the king of the Northern Border. He made Xiao Cheng think that Shen Huaishi might be in the north, so naturally, Xiao Cheng dispatched a lot of people to look there. Batch after batch of the crown prince’s trusted men were sent to the north, allegedly to catch the assassin. But the frequency of the dispatches and the attention the crown prince gave to this matter drew tha dissatisfaction of the emperor. It had even begun to draw suspicion.

Lin Qingyu had said this before to plant a seed of doubt in the emperor’s heart. As for whether this seed could grow, he was not completely sure. 

Thinking of this, Lin Qingyu vaguely guessed Gu Fuzhou’s intentions. “You want to make use of the Northern Border…? But since marrying the Princess Jingchun, the relationship between the Northern Border and the capital can be described as that of brotherly friendship and respect. It’s impossible for the the King of the Northern Border to rebel at this time; he has no reason to.”

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“What matter?” 

“Have him find people he can trust and rely on in the Northern Border. Have them spread two rumors; one true and one false.”

Lin Qingyu asked, “What’s the true rumor and what’s the false one?”

“The false rumor is, of course, that the King of the Northern Border is amassing his own troops. Obviously, he now harbors thoughts of disloyalty towards the Emperor. He wants to lead his troops south and take the capital directly.”

Lin Qingyu disapproved, “A rumor like that can only ever be what it is, a rumor. Even if it reaches the Emperor’s ears, the Emperor will only be a little suspicious.” 

“You listen to me first and let me tell you the true one.”

Lin Qingyu reined in his temper and said, “Say it.”

Gu Fuzhou had a smile on his lips, looking like he was in for a good show. “The reason why the King of the Northern Border is going to revolt is because the Princess Jingchun, the bride given to him by the Imperial court four years ago, is a man.”

Lin Qingyu was stunned. “—What?” 

A cold and great beauty making absolutely no attempt to hide his utmost shock held a kind of cuteness that can rarely be beheld. His eyes, like autumn waters, were wide open and his red lips were slightly parted, making Gu Fuzhou want to kiss him.

“Jingchun was mistaken for a palace maid when he first entered the palace. Under Xiao Cheng’s protection, her identity had never been revealed. Only Xiao Cheng and Shen Huaishi know his secret. Of course, we, the vast collection of readers, know too.” Gu Fuzhou tirelessly talked on, “Later, the King of the Northern Realm fell in love with him at first sight and wanted to marry him, to him his queen. His desperate unwillingness to consent to the marriage was because he was afraid he would be exposed and killed.”

Lin Qingyu had never heard such an outrageous thing. “A palace maid is actually a man? How can this matter be kept secret for so many years? IS the rest of the palace stupid?”

Gu Fuzhou shrugged. “Don’t ask. It was what the plot needed.” 

Lin Qingyu was still in disbelief. “The King of the Northern Border must have found out long before. Why has he made no movement at all?”

“Calculating the timeline, the King of the Northern Border should have known about Jingchun during the second year of their marriage. But by then, he had already fallen in love with Jingchun and quite deeply. What can he do? Of course, he chose to forgive. For the sake of the overall situation, the King of the Northern Border, told no one about this and Jingchun continued to dress in women’s clothing.”

Lin Qingyu couldn’t help but say, “He didn’t find out until the next year? Didn’t they share a bridal chamber?”

“Whoever said that you had to have a bridal chamber right after you’re married?” Gu Fuzhou said sourly, “We’ve been married twice; we’ve never had a bridal chamber. The King of the Northern Border is an upright gentleman and he would not engage in loveless lovemaking.” 

After Gu Fuzhou said this, Lin Qingyu suddenly felt that this story was not too outrageous. Jingchun, the bride they had given for a marriage to strengthen their relations, was actually a man. This was indeed reason enough for the King of the Northern Border to raise troops to rebel. Even if the King of the Northern Border had no intention of rebelling, after learning of this matter, the court would think he would. In this way, the doubts he had planted in the emperor’s heart could be used to the greatest effect.

Lin Qingyu pondered for a long time and suddenly asked, “If you already knew about this early on, why are you only telling me now?”

Gu Fuzhou was completely unaware that he had committed any wrong. Without any change in his expression, he said, “As they say, ‘mountains multiply, streams double back and doubts leave no path; through dark willows and blooming flowers, yonder lies another hamlet.’ This kind of thing must only be used at the appropriate time, only then would it be meaningful. Making you doubt life before finally seeing the light; realizing that the future is a resplendent scene of light! You have absolutely no idea how adorable your expression was just now.” Gu Fuzhou looked as though he were savoring a pleasant taste. “That is a sight I will probably only see once in my lifetime.”

Lin Qingyu: “…” 

“Also, who said that no one knows where Shen Huaishi is?” Gu Fuzhou gave a little wicked laugh, “I know. It was written in the original book where Shen Huaishi went after leaving the capital. Although there may have been changes since we started intervening in the plot, but as long as you follow that route, you should be able to find clues.”

Lin Qingyu sneered again and again: “Do you think you are very powerful, do you want me to give you a prize?”

Gu Fuzhou realized that something was not right, and blinked his eyes: “Huh?”

Not only had Gu Fuzhou not come forth with information about important clues but he was even putting on airs in front of him. Lin Qingyu was so angry that he wanted to poison him. Miffed about having taken to long and now he has missed his chance, Lin Qingyu simply ignored Gu Fuzhou. 

Gu Fuzhou was now deeply aware of his own mistake. He proffered a birch and asked for a flogging; he knelt by his bedside that night and told Lin Qingyu every little detail he could remember from Huai’s Refusal of the Monarch; not leaving out even the details of Xiao Cheng and Shen Huaishi’s first time in bed after they managed to make up.

His excited retelling was coldly interrupted by Lin Qingyu. “Why do you remember these plots so clearly?”

Gu Fuzhou sighed innocently, “It’s not like I want to, but the author’s writing was so detailed, so exaggerated. It left a huge shadow on my heart. You know, at seventeen, I wasn’t all that clear on how two men did it. But the author spent several thousand words eloquently describing how Xiao Cheng found a good jade ball, matching it with his own twin dragons plunging into the sea. My expression at the time was like this –” Gu Fuzhou picked up a book and his facial features wrinkled together, vividly reconstructing the situation at the time. “Is this alright? That can’t go in. No matter how I think about it, that just won’t go in.”

A vein popped on Lin Qingyu’s forehead. “…Enough, shut up.” 

After that, Lin Qingyu dispatched Zhang Shiquan to the Northern Border. Meanwhile, Gu Fuzhou picked out a few capable soldiers from his own personal guard and following the route he had planned, went to seek out Shen Huaishi’s whereabouts.

In the blink of an eye, it was the fourteenth day of the first lunar month and tomorrow was the Lantern Festival.

The annual Lantern Festival was the liveliest time of year in the capital. Usually there was a curfew in the capital. People weren’t allowed to go out after dark. But during the Lantern Festival, the curfew in the capital was temporarily relaxed for the evening festivities.

Gu Fuzhou has been in the Dayu for two years but had yet to celebrate the Lantern Festival. “I heard that for you, the Lantern Festival is equivalent to a carnival. Is this true?” 

“A carnival?” Lin Qingyu smiled lightly, “You could say that.”

It was the night of the Lantern Festival. In the Dayu, groups roaming around to admire the lanterns was very popular. It was night and the capital was a sea of ​​lights. Poetry riddles were written on lanterns, all sorts of performances were being put on show and women all travelled around in groups. The tip of the willow reaches the moon and lovers meet at nightfall. Young ladies from well-off families are only able to go out during the Lantern Festival to meet up with the men they like.

Hearing that last sentence, Gu Fuzhou was slightly surprised. “Really? I thought that you people of the Dayu don’t date at all before marriage. I thought all matters regarding the marriage are decided by your parents.”

Lin Qingyu’s heart moved. He asked, “What does ‘ dating ‘ mean?” 

Gu Fuzhou explained to him patiently, even telling him the story behind this word. “Look at the big boats in the canal. They’re all dragging along small boats. Once they get near the shore, the big boats will create a deep draught,  making it is difficult to pull in to shore. At this time, it’s the small boat that can unload and go ashore. In this way, they rely on each other to go back and forth. So in my hometown, ‘dating’ refers to when two people fall in love and begin to rely on each other, making them loathe to be apart. To explain it in your words, it probably means holding someone’s hand and growing old together.”

Lin Qingyu said slowly, “So, ‘dating’ also means a pledge of one’s love?”

“You can understand it to be like that.”

Lin Qingyu looked at him meaningfully, “Oh.”