Joy of Life: Me, the Second Prince? Summon Yuan Tiangang!

The translucent white jade chess piece in Emperor Qing's hand nimbly flipped between his fingertips, emitting an extremely subtle sound as it cut through the air.

He did not answer Hou Daban's question immediately, but turned his head and looked at the deep night outside the hall.

"They deliberately put on a show of brotherly discord in front of me, yet outside the palace gates they display such brotherly affection..." Emperor Qing's voice was soft, yet carried a chilling sense of oppression. "Grand Master, do you think they messed up their act, or did they never intend to hide it from me in the first place?"

Hou Daban bowed his head, bending even deeper, a fine layer of sweat beading on his forehead: "This old servant is dull-witted and cannot see through the thoughts of the two princes. I just feel that... the eldest prince is straightforward, while the second prince is impulsive. Perhaps it is the nature of youth that makes them not consider things thoroughly."

"Straightforward? Unconventional?" Emperor Qing sneered, slamming a chess piece heavily onto the board with a sharp "smack." "Chengru has led troops on the border for many years. If he were truly just a clumsy fool who only knew how to charge into battle, he would have long since become a skeleton in the sandstorm. As for the second prince... is he unconventional? He treats this world as his stage, and even I want to drag him in to play a supporting role."

Emperor Qing stood up, put his hands behind his back, and slowly walked towards the window.

"They left this loophole to tell me: they performed the play, fulfilling the face I wanted them to 'fight' for; but they didn't sever their ties either. They were 'passing a message' to me, their father. They were testing my bottom line, and also sticking together for warmth."

A complex emotion flashed in Emperor Qing's eyes, a mixture of admiration and a deeper chill.

As an emperor, he needed his sons to be outstanding, but he didn't need them to be too in sync.

"Second Prince, today he actually openly said 'I don't understand' for the sake of a spy from Northern Qi. First Prince, do you think he's truly blinded by greed, or do you believe that with the Luo Wang organization in power, he can challenge the imperial authority and is using Si Lili to launch a challenge against me?"

Hou Daban carefully considered his words and replied cautiously, "His Highness the Second Prince has never followed the usual path. Although Si Lili is a spy from Northern Qi, she is now under the control of the Investigation Bureau. His Highness's blatant protection of her seems like... deliberately handing his weakness to His Majesty so that His Majesty can feel at ease."

"Reassured?" Emperor Qing chuckled, a strange undertone in his laughter. "Is he trying to reassure me? Or is he reminding me that even if he holds something that makes me uneasy, I can't do anything about it? Alright, let's not talk about them anymore. What's the situation with the Censorate? What's that old cripple Chen Pingping been up to lately?"

Hou Daban hurriedly reported, "Your Majesty, since Dean Chen received the order to investigate the assassination of the First Prince, almost the entire Sixth and Eighth Divisions of the Forensic Bureau have been mobilized. It is said that several people have been captured alive and are being interrogated in the cellar. However…"

"But what?"

"However, Dean Chen didn't seem surprised by the assassin's identity. Instead, he sent people to strengthen surveillance around the Second Prince's residence. Moreover, this old servant heard that Dean Chen went to the old site of Taiping Villa this afternoon and sat there for a long time."

Upon hearing the words "Taiping Villa," Emperor Qing's eyes twitched slightly, and his previously calm expression instantly darkened. He remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking: "That old cripple still can't forget the past. Let him be. As long as he can uncover the thread behind the assassin, I will not punish him for his transgression."

"Issue my decree to tell Chen Pingping that what I want is not the lives of a few assassins. What I want is the person who dared to harm my son outside the capital. No matter who that person is, no matter how well he hides, I will make him pay the price."

"Yes, this old servant obeys the order."

……

The Crown Prince's residence was brightly lit.

Li Chengru sat at his desk, with a map of Kyoto in front of him.

Although he had just returned, the intuition of a border general told him that the undercurrents in the capital were far more turbulent than he had imagined.

"Your Highness, Consort Yi has sent some homemade pastries, saying that she wishes you to take care of yourself," a servant whispered.

Li Chengru nodded, but didn't touch the pastries. The words Li Chengze had spoken to him outside the palace gates kept replaying in his mind.

"The waters of Kyoto are deeper than the sandstorms at the border..."

"Second brother, are you helping me or using me?" Li Chengru muttered to himself.

He recalled the scene of Li Chengze openly defending Si Lili during the banquet, and couldn't help but sigh.

That seemingly absurd second brother was actually more clear-headed than anyone else. He used an almost self-destructive method to tear open a hole right under Emperor Qing's nose.

"Since the water is so deep, I'll see who can drown." Li Chengru's eyes hardened as he pressed his hand on the location of the palace on the map, a place he had never truly entered nor truly left.

……

Inside the cellar of the Forensic Institute at this time.

Chen Pingping sat in a wheelchair, his face mostly obscured by shadows, with only his sharp, hawk-like eyes gleaming in the dim light.

In front of him, several assassins, beaten to a bloody pulp, were chained to the wall.

"Still won't you talk?" Chen Pingping's voice was hoarse and calm, devoid of any emotion. "Actually, whether you talk or not doesn't mean much to me. In this capital city, there are only a handful of people who can afford to support assassins like you and dare to lay a hand on the First Prince."

One of the assassins spat out a mouthful of blood and sneered, "Dean Chen, since you already knew, why bother with all this?"

"I just want to confirm if my guess is correct." Chen Pingping slowly pushed his wheelchair closer to the assassin. "Your actions are too clean, so clean that it doesn't seem like a secret organization, but more like... the military's methods. Apart from the palace and the Censorate, only those old guys in the Privy Council know the most about the Crown Prince's return to the capital."

The assassin's eyes shifted slightly, and although he tried his best to conceal it, he still couldn't escape Chen Pingping's notice.

"Looks like I guessed right." Chen Pingping smiled slightly, but his smile carried a chilling undertone. "Go back and tell your master that he played the game in the capital too hastily. The eldest prince is His Majesty's eldest son; to touch him is to offend His Majesty. This fire will eventually burn him."

After saying that, Chen Pingping turned his wheelchair around and no longer looked at the assassins.

"Words like the sea."

"Your subordinate is here." Yan Ruohai stepped out of the shadows.

"Get rid of these people discreetly. Also, subtly reveal the 'clues' we've found to the Crown Prince and the Second Prince," Chen Pingping instructed calmly.

Yan Ruohai was taken aback: "Dean, what does this clue refer to...?"

"The water in Kyoto needs to be murky even more."