Chapter 135: Spreads 3/4

So, those storytellers continued telling their stories.

At this time, a complete set of five books had already been placed in front of King Jin.

Feng Da didn’t distribute many books, and King Jin didn’t know about this yesterday evening.

But today, Lu Qingxi had arranged for storytellers to spread these stories everywhere! King Jin’s people soon gathered the entire set of books and presented them to King Jin.

King Jin flipped through the books and, without hesitation, kicked the person kneeling in front of him: “These books have already been printed, and Lu Qingxi has arranged for people to spread them everywhere in teahouses and taverns… why did you only just discover this now?”

The person who was kicked over got up and knelt down again: “Your Highness, there hasn’t been much news in the capital before…”

“No news? Are you telling me these books just suddenly appeared overnight?” King Jin was furious.

He had been spreading rumors about the innocence of the Lou family to deal with Magistrate Zhang. Now, suddenly, this book appeared… Wasn’t this telling people that everything he said before was a lie?

King Jin had a very bad temper.

When he was young, the old King Jin controlled the court, so his treatment was even better than the emperor’s at that time.

At that time, the good things from all over the country hadn’t even reached the emperor yet, but he already had them.

Back then, he was indescribably arrogant, always feeling like he was the top dog.

After all, his father only had him as his son, and he was pampered by him on weekdays.

But then his father suddenly passed away… His status plummeted instantly, and for many years, he had to grovel and flatter the emperor.

King Jin felt extremely stifled, and his temper got worse. After realizing that he might be the next emperor in these few years, he became even more unrestrained.

King Jin kicked a few more times at his subordinates who came to deliver the books, making them roll down, then called his advisers to discuss what to do next.

King Jin’s mansion was in chaos because of just a few books.

At the same time, in the mansion of the Prince of Yan, the Prince of Yan also saw these books.

The Prince of Yan was the current emperor’s half-brother from the same father.

The royal family of Daqi was declining, with only a few people left. In theory, the Prince of Yan could be titled as a prince.

But the mother of the Prince of Yan, the late emperor’s favorite consort, poisoned the current emperor, causing him physical harm and leaving him without an heir.

If it weren’t for the late emperor forcing the current emperor to swear to spare the life of the Prince of Yan, the Prince of Yan would have died long ago.

The current emperor is soft-hearted. After the death of the late King Jin, he did not hold the current King Jin accountable.

But he harbors deep hatred towards the Prince of Yan.

Although the late King Jin, relying on his position as regent, controlled the court and prevented the emperor from wielding power, he never did anything harmful to the emperor.

The mother of the Prince of Yan, on the other hand, was different. That consort always saw the emperor as a thorn in her side, to the extent that when the current emperor was young and clearly an imperial son, he lived an extremely difficult life.

One winter, when it was bitterly cold, he fell ill, and there wasn’t even any charcoal to use! In the end, it was Lu Qingxi who went to the imperial kitchen to make a scene and brought back some charcoal, allowing him to survive.

Because of this, Lu Qingxi was different to the emperor.

It’s hard to say whether the emperor was lucky or unlucky.

That year, for some unknown reason, there was suddenly a smallpox outbreak in the palace.

Both the emperor and the consort’s eldest son contracted smallpox. The emperor was nursed back to health by Lu Qingxi, while the consort’s eldest son perished.

Later, the late emperor fell seriously ill. The consort’s second child, who was the Prince of Yan still in infancy…

The late emperor doted on the consort. In his early years, he intended to pass the throne to the consort’s eldest son, but that child died of smallpox!

The Prince of Yan was still young and it was uncertain if he could grow up. Added to that, the consort had done quite a few outrageous things, making the court officials extremely averse to her…

The late emperor named the current emperor as the crown prince.

Then, the consort poisoned the current emperor.

The late emperor could overlook the mistreatment of her son by the consort, but couldn’t tolerate her poisoning his own son. Moreover, at the time, the late emperor was seriously ill, and his feelings towards the still-beautiful consort changed…

The late emperor ordered the consort to be buried alive, and on condition of this, he made the emperor swear to spare the Prince of Yan.

In the face of his ailing father, the Emperor agreed, but afterward, he paid no heed to the Prince of Yan.

The Imperial Concubine, who weakened his health and left him without an heir… she was the person the emperor hated the most.

She was also the person Lu Qingxi and Concubine Liu hated the most.

The Prince of Yan is twenty years younger than the current emperor, barely in his twenties.

Concubine Liu’s appearance is considered decent among the common folk, but compared to the noblewomen in the capital, she looks quite ordinary. The late emperor’s Imperial Concubine, on the other hand, was a stunning beauty.

The Prince of Yan resembles her and is exceptionally handsome.

Although the emperor ignored the Prince of Yan, he is well-known and admired in the capital for his literary talent and handsome appearance, attracting the affection of many young ladies.

However, the emperor doesn’t concern himself with the Prince’s marriage, and the Prince himself never brings it up… until now, he still hasn’t married.

In the study of the Prince of Yan, only he and his tutor are present.

As they read their respective books, the Prince of Yan suddenly said, “I underestimated Lu Qingxi.”

His tutor agreed, “He does indeed have some talent.”

“Teacher, what should we do next?” the Prince of Yan asked.

His tutor replied, “Naturally, we should assist Lu Qingxi and further expose the weaknesses of King Jin!”

“Should we also promote this book ourselves?” the Prince of Yan asked.

“Indeed!” The Prince of Yan’s tutor’s eyes were filled with excitement. “Your Highness, our opportunity has come!”

The emperor detested the Prince of Yan so much that the Prince of Yan always thought he would never have a chance to rise.

He is knowledgeable and surpasses King Jin in every aspect, even outshining his own royal brother. But because of some old incidents, he has no chance at the throne.

How could he resign himself to this fate!

Over the years, he has done many things, but the emperor has never given him a second glance.

Over the years, King Jin has made many mistakes, but the emperor still hasn’t given up on him.

At one point, he felt he had no hope, but now…

Actually, he doesn’t need the emperor’s favor, does he?

As long as King Jin fails to meet expectations, the court officials will take notice of him. When the time comes, if the emperor doesn’t choose him, then who else could he choose?

There are no decent adult men in the royal family. If they choose a child, who knows if that child will even grow up?

The Prince of Yan smirked and contacted his subordinates, instructing them to cause trouble for King Jin.

At the same time, the shopkeeper Mu led Chang Duan out of the door.

“The person who came to the capital with you is quite talented. In just one day, he has already sent out a lot of books.” The shopkeeper Mu looked at Chang Duan with a good mood.

Chang Duan smiled, “He is indeed clever.” The fact that Mu’s son can read… it shows he’s not simple.

“But he’s unfamiliar with the capital… I’ve already sent someone to capture him. It shouldn’t take long to bring him back.” The shopkeeper Mu chuckled.

Chang Duan: “…”

The shopkeeper Mu took Chang Duan to the place where they would meet people, which was the warehouse rented by the Shen family’s caravan.

After arriving in the capital, the Shen family’s caravan rented a large warehouse, where they stored a lot of goods.

In fact, the goods could be stored on the ship, but the docks here are small, and their ships cannot stay at the dock for long…