Chapter 4: The Prince is a Woman (4)

It was useless for the imperial physicians to examine him; that side would certainly cooperate.

The Emperor wanted to know what kind of medicine the Prince of Ning’s heir was selling in his gourd, so he instructed him to proceed as usual.

The Prince of Ning’s cronies, however, were all filled with sorrow. How could he have gone insane?

They were on the verge of rebellion, and the leader had fallen ill—the bitterness of this situation could only be understood by those experiencing it themselves.

News of the Prince of Ning’s insanity spread quickly. Ye Ji naturally knew some of the circumstances and decided to go see for himself.

According to what those people below were saying, it seemed the old dog Ning would have a hard time making a comeback?

Stepping into the Prince of Ning’s tent, what Ye Ji saw was Ning Guangjun standing there, laughing heartily and saying excitedly, "Good, good, good! You are all talents, all talents! Work hard, and this Prince will certainly not treat you poorly."

Ye Ji fell silent, lifting his eyelids to scan those "talents": a stool, a basin, a sword, and a pair of boots.

It seemed the old dog Ning was truly insane.

According to Zhao Jincai, it was very likely the effect of that bowl of mushroom soup from the Prince of Ning’s heir.

Ye Ji chuckled inwardly. The old dog Ning probably never imagined he had raised such a "filial" son.

His gaze fell upon the person standing not far from Ning Guangjun with their head slightly bowed. His eyes darkened; he wondered what Ning Zhen’s purpose was in doing all this.

It looked quite interesting. He would wait and see.

He wanted to see how this kid would court death!

"Heir to the Prince of Ning," Ye Ji called out in a deep voice.

A-Zhen raised her head slightly and bowed, "Your Majesty."

"Take good care of the Prince of Ning. You are permitted to summon the imperial physicians from the palace at any time." Ye Ji scanned her face casually, catching a glimpse of a pair of harmless and clear eyes, and a strange feeling flickered in his heart.

It felt as if he had seen these eyes somewhere before.

Where could it be?

For a moment, Ye Ji was actually distracted.

He didn't speak, and no one dared to make a sound, all quietly waiting for the young Emperor's orders.

It was well known that the Emperor and the Prince of Ning were actually at odds. Now that the Prince of Ning had gone insane, it was definitely a good thing for this young Emperor. Without the Prince of Ning, the Prince of Ning’s estate didn't know what it would face in the future; in any case, it was destined to decline.

The Prince of Ning’s cronies present were already making other plans in secret. When the Prince of Ning was well, there was still hope, but now that he was crazy, what use was he?

As for that mediocre heir who was usually reticent, he couldn't be counted on. Everyone knew he was a talentless person with almost no close friends, just a timid sycophant who followed behind the Prince of Ning all day long.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," A-Zhen replied, finally pulling the distracted man back to reality.

Ye Ji felt a bit annoyed by his previous behavior. He swept his gaze quickly across her face, turned around, and left in a hurry.

He must have been distracted because he hadn't slept all night and was in poor spirits!

It was all the old dog Ning’s fault for suddenly getting sick and being unable to rebel, causing him to stay up all night for nothing.

The hunting activities at the Pingshan hunting grounds ended with the Prince of Ning’s sudden illness and his subsequent insanity upon waking.

On the way back to the city, A-Zhen felt that the attitude of the Prince of Ning’s cronies had become much colder. During this time, many people came to see Ning Guangjun several times, but Ning Guangjun remained crazy, showing no signs of improvement.

Especially after learning that even the imperial physicians had no solution, fewer and fewer people paid attention to Ning Guangjun.

Ten days passed, and the once-bustling Prince of Ning’s estate was now deserted.

As the saying goes, a camel that is dying is still bigger than a horse, but some people began to set their sights on the Prince of Ning’s estate. The Prince of Ning was crazy, but the estate had plenty of assets. Not to mention what outsiders were thinking, the people underneath were already unable to restrain themselves.

At the end of the month, when the shops in the capital were balancing their accounts, many of them showed problems.

A-Zhen leaned casually against a soft cushion, flipping through the account books with a very serious expression.

There were two other people in the room helping to check the books: one was her personal maid, Qingzhu, and the other was her personal guard, Yingfang, who was dressed as a guard. Yingfang was a woman, and like the client, she was disguised as a man, all to keep the client’s secret.

Both of these people were personally selected by the client and were absolutely loyal to her.

The client was indeed somewhat cowardly and dull, but that wasn't her original personality; it was because she had grown up under the suppression and intimidation of Ning Guangjun.

For A-Zhen, this personality saved a lot of trouble; at least the Prince of Ning’s cronies wouldn't push her to lead a rebellion. Seeing that the Prince of Ning was finished, they ran faster than rabbits.

It was very convenient.

The Emperor in the palace was no pushover; whatever those people wanted to do next, they would be dealt with sooner or later.

Stopping the rebellion was a success. Next was to resolve the remaining hidden dangers in the Prince of Ning’s estate, and after that, it would be time to deal with the problems of the client’s seven sisters—they were all pitiful people. Except for the fifth sister, Ning Yuxue, who was doing okay, the rest of the sisters were living in dire straits.

As for the Emperor in the palace, she originally had a plan. Making him interested was one part of it; as long as he was interested, he wouldn't make a move against her for the time being, and she would have enough time to prepare.

After seeing him that day, she was even more confident.

When she met Xiao Qi, she only sensed that they were fated, but she didn't expect that the internship plane Xiao Qi drew would give her such a big surprise.

Fu You...

It was time to go home.

After finishing the accounts, A-Zhen called over all the shopkeepers in the capital. They stood there like dead pigs unafraid of boiling water, waiting for this heir, who had no presence, to speak.

They didn't think this heir could do anything to them at all.

The Prince of Ning was useless, so they had to find a way out for themselves, right?

The heir didn't have the ability to manage so many shops; they couldn't be blamed.

"It seems you all have nothing to say?" A-Zhen asked.

One of them stepped forward, looking respectful on the surface but actually full of disdain in his eyes. He bowed and said, "Please give us your instructions, Heir, so we may follow them."

A-Zhen tapped her fingers lightly on the account book: "Good, this heir will speak, and you all must follow."

These shopkeepers were even more disdainful. Speaking so softly—she was indeed as cowardly as the rumors said; what kind of authority could she have? In the near future, those shops would become their own possessions.

"Everyone, spit out everything you've eaten. This heir will let bygones be bygones."

As soon as A-Zhen said this, some people present couldn't help but sneer.

Then, some began to cry and complain, saying that business in the capital was getting harder and harder, and it was good enough to have some profit, so how could there be long-term prosperity? They all put on a look of disappointment, as if to say, "I worked hard for the Prince of Ning’s estate, how could you, the Heir, treat me like this?"

They were certain that she wouldn't dare to do anything. Besides, if they left, who would manage these shops? Rely on this Prince of Ning’s heir? Did she have anyone? She probably had a hard time even managing the Prince of Ning’s estate itself.

Without them, many shops would have to close in less than a month. If she drove them away, they would find another way to make a living; there were plenty of people who wanted to take a bite out of the Prince of Ning’s estate, and they would surely be welcomed.

"Since the Heir doesn't trust us, we will leave on our own. You can manage the shops yourself, Heir." Before A-Zhen could speak, one shopkeeper angrily prepared to leave, and the others followed suit, shouting the same things.