Chapter 49: Come on, let's go crazy together

Chapter 49: Come on, let's go crazy together~

The unfilial son swiftly dodged the strike, his cold features etched with mockery.

"You dare dodge!" The Emperor, his collar disheveled, pushed aside the beautiful Hu lady snuggling against his side, his eyes spitting sparks.

The Crown Prince leaned forward slightly with an expressionless face and performed a formal salute. "Greetings, Imperial Father."

The Emperor was in his fifties, blinded by lust; his mediocre, weary face was currently contorted with rage.

In contrast, his offspring bore no resemblance to his biological father.

The Crown Prince's appearance was inherited entirely from Empress Yin, especially those identical phoenix eyes. Whenever he looked at someone, they were filled with a casual, cynical disdain that provoked inexplicable anger in others.

Empress Yin's beauty was renowned throughout the world.

The Crown Prince had fully inherited his mother's beauty, possessing a refined, elegant, and ethereal grace, supplemented by a thousand layers of composure and calm.

Though he currently looked travel-worn, he stood tall and composed, his eyes filled with cold, silent mockery.

Seeing his eldest son like this, the Emperor felt an irrational urge to lash out.

To meet the monarch in such a disheveled state—no crown, no bath! Look at those half-wet clothes, and a stain of unknown yellow mud on his sleeve!

The Emperor grabbed a cup and hurled it at the Crown Prince again.

The Crown Prince was accustomed to the Emperor's daily habit of smashing pots and breaking bowls, so he simply shifted his body to avoid the strike.

"You dare dodge!"

"Ridiculous. You speak as if you've ever actually hit me," the Crown Prince remarked with heavy sarcasm.

The servants within the Mingqian Hall, though long accustomed to this mode of interaction between father and son, were still trembling in fear, heads bowed low against the floor.

"You unfilial brat! You neglect your duties and are nowhere to be found day in and day out!"

"Water has accumulated inside and outside the Mingqian Hall, yet I haven't seen you bring anyone to show concern for me!"

"Imperial Father, do you know? Your most cherished son, Prince Jin, raised his troops in Xishan County at the hour of Chen yesterday!"

The Emperor's pupils shrank.

The news of Xishan County reached the Crown Prince only a night later? What did that mean? What on earth did it mean!

Did his son's influence already span the entire country, perhaps even penetrating every corner?

"Impossible! Do not speak such nonsense. Why would Duo'er raise troops without cause?" The Emperor waved his hand dismissively, refusing to believe it.

The Crown Prince stared at him with cold eyes, then suddenly laughed.

The Crown Prince's laugh was identical to his mother's; one look from the Emperor triggered an extraordinary fury!

His mother was always like this; every time she saw him, she would smile with sarcasm, as if he were some dark, sinister creature crawling out of a gutter, her phoenix eyes brimming with contempt.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Was I laughing?"

"You were laughing!!"

The palace attendants prostrated themselves on the ground, trembling, not daring to lift their heads even an inch.

The dialogue between the father and son was somewhat absurd, but no one could bring themselves to laugh.

"Do you know the reason Duo'er raised his troops? Speak!"

The Crown Prince raised an eyebrow. "Father, do you wish to know the reason?"

"Speak!!!"

The Crown Prince chuckled softly. "I sent people to deliver the heads of Fourth Brother's mother, maternal grandfather, and maternal uncle to him."

"It is said that at the time, he smashed everything on his desk in a fit of madness."

The Emperor stared at his son, dumbfounded, thinking he was hallucinating or that the Crown Prince had gone insane.

"You... what did you say?"

The Crown Prince walked slowly up the wide steps, raised his hand, and casually swept aside the hanging bead curtain.

"I said, I sent the heads of seven, eight, or nine members of Fourth Brother's maternal clan to him in Xishan County! Fourth Brother was exceptionally furious upon seeing them."

"You're insane!!" The Emperor pointed at the approaching Crown Prince, his frame trembling uncontrollably as he instinctively retreated several steps.

"You truly are insane!" He pointed again, nearly leaping in rage. "I thought you had only moved against Noble Lady He!"

That family had no foundation; the Crown Prince's reckless behavior wouldn't have caused much of a storm.

But now he said he had moved against Xiao Mingduo's maternal clan!! He had moved against Consort Shu's entire family!

Did this unfilial son no longer want to be the Crown Prince??

"You have provoked Duo'er." Seeing him approach step by step, the Emperor retreated further and further. "You will pay the price."

"The price? What price? Death?" The Crown Prince closed in on the Emperor, looking at him with a beaming smile.

The Emperor had retreated to a row of antique shelves, with nowhere left to go.

"Don't worry, Father. Xiao Mingduo will die first."

"Was it you who did something to Nan'er?" The Emperor stared at the Crown Prince, questioning him with a trembling voice.

"Father, look at how you speak." The Crown Prince reached out, slowly, very slowly, to straighten his elderly father's loosened collar.

"I promised your beloved Noble Lady He that I would reunite her family. How could I leave Nan'er out?"

"You're mad!" The Emperor jumped up, his face distorted as he swiped the Crown Prince's hand away.

"How old is Nan'er? How could he possibly hinder you?"

"Should I raise a tiger to become a threat, just like you, Father?" Looking at the Emperor's cracking expression, the Crown Prince laughed tenderly.

"How could I be as stupid as you, keeping a lingering threat in my hands? Why would I seek out my own misery?"

"Wildfires cannot burn it all away; the spring breeze brings it back to life. To prevent him from suffering in the future, wouldn't it be more pleasant to end him now?"

The Emperor clutched his chest, so angry he could barely speak.

Gasping for breath, he looked toward Hong Feng, the commander of the Imperial Guard standing by the door.

The man stood perfectly straight at the entrance, but he did not move an inch.

"Stop looking, Father." The Crown Prince's tone was gentle, accompanied by a light smile. "Your influence is gone. Admit that you are old."

"Didn't you believe the Imperial Astronomer's words were mere superstition and falsehoods?"

"Then stay here, Father, and watch closely to see if this world, this vast land, truly undergoes any change."

The Emperor began to panic. Sensing that something was terribly wrong, he grabbed the Crown Prince's wrist. "Where are you going? You unfilial brat, where are you going?"

The Crown Prince shook off his father's hand and strode toward the inner palace.

He was currently very unhappy!

He suddenly felt there was no need to keep anything in the Mingqian Hall. It would be best if the dog Emperor couldn't even find a single piece of wood to burn for charcoal in the future!

***

On the other side, inside the earthen cave dwelling, everyone wore expressions of disbelief. Looking at him like a mental patient, they stole glances at the sixth lady of the Xin family.

The sixth lady's speed of changing expressions was comparable to the speed of light...

Just a moment ago, she had stepped on Lord Liang's leg, causing him to let out a sharp, pig-like scream.

Now, as if her emotions had completely stabilized, she was smiling as she helped him up from the ground, looking apologetic as she straightened his messy collar.

"Don't be afraid, Lord Liang. I didn't intend to kill you all, truly."

If the bearded man hadn't been lying on the cold ground, everyone might have believed her explanation.

Xin Nian pursed her lips and smiled at Lord Liang. "Let's make a deal: if you forget everything that just happened, I will let you go, alright?"

"From now on, you will be like pets—behave well, be obedient, and do not defy me. Then we can live in peace! How about it?"

Liang Guang nodded mechanically.

He had no choice but to nod!

His thigh hurt terribly; he wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but it felt as though the bone might have cracked.