With the cannon fodder script in hand, it is easy for the king to change his fate

Chapter 998 The Heir Takes the Empire as Dowry 10
“Auntie said that once the underground palace is finished, I can go and take a look. The carvings are all about the Ao Kingdom. In the future, the information about the Ao Kingdom will probably be the most complete among all dynasties.” Xie Nuo sat down, playing with the teacup on the stone table. “When Auntie allows me to visit the underground palace, do you want to go?”

As a prince of the Wu Kingdom, Yun Qinglan had also heard of the legends of the Ao Kingdom.

Because the information was so scarce—the book only mentioned it briefly, and even those few words were described as absurd and wonderful—he didn't believe that such a country had ever existed. He guessed that it was just something someone had imagined, or something that appeared in a storybook.

It wasn't until the underground palace of the Ao Kingdom was discovered that Yun Qinglan realized the Ao Kingdom had truly existed.

He didn't know if Aoguo was really as good as the few words that had been written about it before. He wondered how it could possibly be that good, but he was also very interested.

If the Kingdom of Ao truly exists, and matches the few strokes of the legend, it must be a very powerful nation.

Such a powerful nation left behind an underground palace; it's unimaginable what shocking things might still exist inside.

It's incredibly precious that it could be placed inside an underground palace.

If he can grasp even a little bit of this, he might be able to return to the Kingdom of Wu sooner to take revenge and reclaim everything that belongs to him.

"What, you don't want to go? That's not right, you should be interested in these things. Or are you scared?" Xie Nuo's voice rang in her ears, bringing Yun Qinglan back to her senses.

His restless heart calmed down instantly. He was still living under someone else's roof, so how could he talk about returning to Wu to take back everything?
But considering that Xie Nuo has been favored by the Empress of Zhao, he may well receive help from her in the future.

If Xie Nuo becomes the heir, the probability of him using the power of Zhao Kingdom to seek revenge will be much higher.

Regardless of his own personal matters, given their current situation, it was undoubtedly best for Xie Nuo to become the heir to the Zhao Kingdom. Having lost the struggle and fled to the Zhao Kingdom, he understood best how difficult the situation of the defeated could be.

"Don't worry, Auntie just seems a bit serious usually, she's not scary at all. Besides, you just need to stay by my side and keep an eye on things, you don't need to do anything else. You're my page, and when we go to the palace, no one will dare to bully you." Xie Nuo saw Yun Qinglan's silence and thought that she really hadn't seen such a situation before, so he was a little worried.

Since bringing Yun Qinglan back a year ago, she has been living in this small courtyard house, and she is adorably honest.

She was usually quite willing to take Yun Qinglan out to broaden his horizons on certain occasions, but he was too shy and didn't want to go out, so she didn't force him.

What she didn't know was that Yun Qinglan didn't wander around because she was afraid of being targeted by her enemies.

The states of Wu and Zhao are neighboring countries and have historical ties. If he were to wander off and be recognized by Wu people in Zhao, it would certainly cause a lot of trouble. Even if Xie Nuo could spare his life, it would be much more difficult for him to return to Wu and reclaim everything, since his opponents would be on guard.

Moreover, the other party might not actually let him go. If it can't be done openly, it can still be done covertly. In short, exposing his identity would only bring harm and no benefit.

He looks like a teenager now, but in a few years, when he looks different, he won't have any problems going out.

However, he was not opposed to going to the palace.

The entire journey was by horse-drawn carriage, so there was no chance of encountering outsiders.

People from Wu who travel to and from Zhao Kingdom would never go to the royal palace unless they were envoys.

"It's my honor to see the underground palace of Ao Kingdom. Thank you, Princess, for giving me this opportunity," Yun Qinglan said. Xie Nuo exclaimed, "You're always like this. You're already by my side now. Taking you to see it is nothing."

“Now I’m curious about one thing: why is there a blank in the history books about the Kingdom of Ao? Who wants to erase the traces of the Kingdom of Ao’s existence?” Xie Nuo said, resting his chin on his hand. “Why would anyone want to erase the traces of a country’s existence? Whether it’s the legends or what my aunt said, they all prove that the Kingdom of Ao was a very powerful and legendary country.”

"I wonder if there are any related records in the underground palace. It's really intriguing."

"Whether there are any in the underground palace is hard to say." Yun Qinglan frowned. "If Ao Kingdom knew that someone would erase the traces of Ao Kingdom's existence, and made preparations from the beginning, how come this underground palace has been hidden for thousands of years without being discovered? Just how powerful is this being that makes them afraid to show themselves and prove Ao Kingdom's existence?"

"If they didn't know what happened next, why would the Ao Kingdom leave behind an underground palace with such complete records?"

Yun Qinglan had seen a lot, but she was still at a loss about this matter.

"Never mind, I'll ask my aunt after the underground palace is finished. If the people of Ao Kingdom really know the reason, my aunt will definitely tell me." Xie Nuo waved her hand, afraid that there would be no answer in the underground palace. She wouldn't be able to sleep then, and she would die of curiosity.

"Oh, right, there's something else interesting." Xie Nuo's smile held a hint of mischievousness, which piqued Yun Qinglan's interest.

He asked, "What is it?"

You could tell that Xie Nuo was very happy.

Xie Nuo laughed a few times before saying, "Isn't the underground palace full of information related to the Ao Kingdom? According to my aunt, there are also many poems, articles, and calligraphy and paintings inside. Once these things are made public, the reputation of a certain great Confucian family in the world will probably be ruined."

"Could it be that the ancestors of this great Confucian family plagiarized the poems of the Ao Kingdom's literati?" Yun Qinglan immediately thought of it. Apart from that, it seemed that nothing could ruin the reputation of this great Confucian family.

If that's the case, then things are really going to get interesting.

Looking at Xie Nuo's happy smile, could this renowned Confucian family, whose reputation is about to be ruined, be the Zhou family?
"Is it the Zhou family?"

“Probably.” Xie Nuo laughed out loud. “Let’s see how arrogant they can be then. The Zhou family is the most annoying. All they think about is having women stay at home to be good wives and mothers. Some time ago at a banquet, one of their women even sneered at my mother, my second sister. And yet they still want to form a marriage alliance with my family. A bunch of greedy bastards disguised as scholars.”

"Heh, otherwise how could they be a great Confucian family with a history of thousands of years? They all look like scholars, aloof and refined, but in reality, they are better at fighting for their own interests than anyone else."

Yun Qinglan agreed with this statement.

Since they are all established families, it is natural that they are best at making profits and building a reputation for the family; otherwise, how could they pass on their legacy?

"Your Majesty, the information regarding Zhou Wenling's plagiarism of works by writers from Ao Kingdom has been compiled." Yuan Qi approached. "Would Your Majesty like to take a look now?"

“There must be quite a few, so I won’t look at them. Just give me a number,” A-Zhen said. From the client’s memory, she only knew that the Zhou family started with Zhou Wenling, who had produced many outstanding poems, essays, and paintings throughout his life.

He was born at the end of a chaotic period, and his most active period was in the Liang Kingdom.

However, the other party never held an official position. Due to his talent and the viewpoints he put forward, he gained the appreciation of the King of Liang and held a very high position.