Crowned by the Treacherous Big Shot
Chapter 241 - 225: Miao King is a Ruthless Man

Chapter 241: Chapter 225: Miao King is a Ruthless Man

Si Snake carried the corpse out of the Duke Mansion.

In the quiet alley, Ji Li leaned against the cold, hard wall, fanning himself with a folding fan in an effortlessly dashing manner.

"Oh, so someone really went to assassinate the bride? Little Yin Hu’s predictions are spot on, huh. Is she trying to steal my job?"

The top Commander Guard of the Black Armor Army, also known as the Fortune Teller of the Martial World—how else would he end up with such a disastrously unlucky life chart?

Widowed, orphaned, solitary, destitute, and crippled—these are the Five Misfortunes.

Wealth, longevity, and power—these are the Three Deficiencies.

Of the Five Misfortunes, he embodies "solitary." Of the Three Deficiencies, he lacks not only wealth but also power.

And this "power" doesn’t mean influence, but rather luck, fortune, and opportunities.

Which explains why he’s both poor and unlucky.

But considering the price he has already paid, he absolutely won’t allow anyone else to outdo him in fortune-telling!

Si Snake, long accustomed to his eccentricities, calmly remarked, "Deal with the corpse."

Ji Li looked at the corpse on the ground with disdain. "I didn’t kill him. Why should I take care of it?"

Si Snake: "I can’t leave."

Ji Li rolled his eyes dramatically. "Tch, it’s not even your own wife. Why are you taking this so seriously? I think Little Yin Hu bewitched you. You hang on her every word!"

Si Snake turned his gaze behind Ji Li. "Come out."

Ji Li paused mid-fan-flip and smirked. "Caught on pretty quickly, haven’t you?"

Sheep and Hai Pig leapt down from the rooftop using qinggong and stepped toward the two.

Ji Li turned to face Sheep and Hai Pig. "Now that you’re here, take care of your own man’s corpse."

Sheep said, "He wasn’t sent by us."

Ji Li sneered, "Of course he wasn’t sent by you, but he’s definitely with your lot, isn’t he?"

Hai Pig frowned. "Ji Li, you really shouldn’t hold such a grudge against the Prime Minister’s Mansion. The Prime Minister has always been dedicated to the people. Everything he does is for the court and the common folk. He’s never had ill intentions toward the Twelve Guards and has always admired them greatly."

Ji Li snorted coldly. "You can go back and tell that scoundrel Prime Minister of yours that this Commander Guard isn’t buying it."

Hai Pig: "It’s Prime Minister Xun."

Sheep turned to Si Snake. "Si Snake, I remember you saying the other day that the Grand Marshal once agreed to help you accomplish something—something that no one but the Grand Marshal could do. But perhaps the Prime Minister can. Have you considered joining us at the Prime Minister’s Mansion and serving him?"

Ji Li interjected, "Hey! Trying to recruit right in front of me? Do you take me for air?"

Sheep looked at Ji Li. "Rooster, you’re also welcome to join us. Perhaps you don’t know this, but Chen Long has already acknowledged the Prime Minister as his godfather. He’s now the second young master of the Prime Minister’s Mansion. If the Prime Minister were truly a villain, would Chen Long recognize a traitor as his father? If you don’t believe Hai Pig and me, surely you trust Chen Long?"

Ji Li said coldly, "Why should I believe him? And stop calling me Rooster—call me Ji Li!"

"It’s all the same." Sheep spoke seriously, "You don’t need to give an answer right away. When you’ve thought it through, you’re welcome to come find the Prime Minister anytime."

With that, the two turned to leave.

Suddenly, Sheep halted and cast a glance at the shadow on the ground. "Si Snake, I don’t know what task you’re trying to accomplish, but if even the Prime Minister cannot help, then there’s truly no one in this world who can."

"Wait."

Ji Li spoke up.

Sheep turned back to look at him. "Have you made up your mind?"

"Hell no!" Ji Li grabbed the corpse off the ground and tossed it over to Sheep. "Take the corpse with you!"

Sheep frowned.

Hai Pig said coldly, "Ji Li."

Ji Li grinned. "What, want to fight? Come on, then."

Sheep said, "We can’t beat him. Let’s go."

"Smart choice." Ji Li angrily fanned with so much force the fan almost flew away. "Hey, Si Snake, you’re not seriously planning to serve that scoundrel Prime Minister, are you?"

"No." Si Snake replied with utter calm. "He can’t accomplish the task."

"What task exactly?" Ji Li’s curiosity was piqued.

Si Snake didn’t answer and simply said, "You can go to the Prime Minister’s Mansion if you’d like—I won’t stop you."

Ji Li rolled his eyes dramatically again. "I just managed to shake off the Grand Marshal; why would I willingly go looking for another boss? Besides, I’ve got my hands full waiting to deal with Little Yin Hu!"

Si Snake ignored him and returned to Yao Qingluan’s courtyard, where he sat alone on the rooftop.

The vast heavens stretched endlessly, and the stars shone brilliantly.

He sat there, cloaked in endless despair and solitude.

-

The next morning, Meng Qianqian rose early.

Lu Yuan had already gone to court.

Meng Qianqian sniffed her sleeve. Why did her sleeve carry his scent?

Could it be... they accidentally touched?

As Meng Qianqian looked at the impossibly spacious thousand-worker-crafted bed, she realized that at some point, both the pillows and the mattress had become infused with his scent, so much so that it was impossible to distinguish hers from his anymore.

"Miss."

Ban Xia parted the curtains with a cheerful smile.

Meng Qianqian hurriedly tucked her sleeve away. "Where’s my husband?"

Ban Xia replied, "The young master has gone to court. The Miao King escorted him there."

Ever since the Miao King arrived at the Capital City, he refused all visitors and personally escorted Lu Yuan to and from court each day, stating, "What if he gets lost again?"

"I’m not a child!"

"I don’t care! Even if the Heavenly King himself comes, he must be escorted!"

The stubbornness across three generations of their family was unmistakable, just as was their shared sharp tongue.

Lu Yuan, perpetually ferried to and from court by his grandfather brandishing candied hawthorn skewers, thoroughly shattered his "Great Traitor" persona in the eyes of his peers.

And as if that weren’t enough, the Miao King would sit cross-legged at the palace gates and question passing officials with a stick: "Did you impeach my grandson today?"

"No, no, absolutely not!"

Panic-stricken officials would scamper away in terror.

The Miao King had the audacity to beat even the Prime Minister’s son and came away completely unpunished. Were they out of their minds, courting disaster on purpose?

And then there was the third thing the Miao King did: secretly dismantling the wheels on the Prime Minister’s Mansion’s carriages.

Once a day, every day.

The Prime Minister’s steward was livid. "Miao King, you—"

The Miao King clasped his hands behind his back and strolled away in grand fashion. "Which eye of yours saw me do it? No proof? Then you’re slandering me—no, slandering all of Miaojiang!"

And then there was the matter of tossing frogs and snakes into their carriages—not deadly, just revolting.

Once, he was caught in the act by the Imperial Guard, but the Miao King didn’t bat an eye. "I’m just delivering some local specialties from Miaojiang. I’ve sent plenty before, and your Prime Minister didn’t return them. I thought he liked them. Don’t just arrest me for bribing—go arrest the one who accepted, too."

Come on then, let’s all sit in jail together!

Prime Minister Xun’s face turned as green as the frogs he’d been gifted.

They say to meet force with force, but when facing someone this shameless, what can you bury him with?

-

After practicing martial arts for an hour, Meng Qianqian returned to the courtyard to find that Liu Qingyun was already up.

"Mother, you’re up so early?"

Ever since her rich mother-in-law started splurging extravagantly, Meng Qianqian had upgraded Liu Qingyun’s title.

Liu Qingyun, looking half-asleep, replied groggily, "Hurry and take a bath, then change your clothes. You’re coming to the palace with me later."

Meng Qianqian asked, puzzled, "What are we going to the palace for?"

Liu Qingyun yawned. "To check on that useless younger daughter of mine on behalf of my mother."

Meng Qianqian declared, "I’m not going."

Liu Qingyun opened her eyes and gave Meng Qianqian a calm yet piercing look.

Meng Qianqian frowned seriously. "Consort Li doesn’t like me—she bullies me."

Liu Qingyun: "Oh, so you’re tattling?"

Meng Qianqian blinked and nodded honestly.

"What audacity." Any trace of sleep vanished from Liu Qingyun’s face as she stood up and walked out. "Aren’t you going to wash up?"

Meng Qianqian blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

With a slight wave of her wide sleeves, Liu Qingyun said coolly, "Didn’t you say you’re tattling? Let’s go."