The Prime Minister's Darling
Chapter 1206 - 1206 589 Scheming (Third Update)

Chapter 1206: 589 Scheming (Third Update) Chapter 1206: 589 Scheming (Third Update) Night had fallen, and the candles in the Zhuang family residence began to light up one by one.

The servants took down each lantern along the corridor, lit them and hung them back up high.

Zhuang Taifu sat in the study, flipping through the documents presented by Xu Cifu and others.

Recently, there had been significant unrest at court, with Minister Xing and Empress Dowager Zhuang being vindicated and their status and power restored. Yet the behavior of Zhuang Taifu during the Empress Dowager’s entrapment had drawn mixed opinions. Some ministers thought him ungrateful and indifferent to sibling bonds, while others argued he was an insider, merely collaborating with the Empress Dowager and others in a charade.

Opinions were diverse, and it seemed the civil officials utilized their eloquence for such debates, lest they find other displeasures to dwell upon in their idleness.

Zhuang Taifu was actually not concerned about the squabbles at court, but rather—

His gaze settled on a landscape painting on the opposite wall.

“Master!” The steward of the Zhuang household announced at the entrance with joy, “The Prince has returned!”

…

Outside the imposing gates of the Zhuang residence, the Prince of An stood in plain clothes, kneeling on the steps.

During the days away from the Zhuang family, Zhuang Taifu had received no news of him. Yet, no news meant he was still alive; if he had died, the Capital City would have been turned upside down by now.

Zhuang Taifu hadn’t made any effort to search for him. Cutting off all the Prince’s options, he had anticipated that it wouldn’t be too long before the young man would return home on his own, seeking his grandfather’s help.

And wasn’t it just as expected?

Zhuang Taifu, donning a brown-gray cloak, made his way to the entrance of the Zhuang residence.

The steward had dismissed all the servants. No matter how Zhuang Taifu decided to punish the Prince of An, the young man was still his grandson. He might watch his grandson’s downfall, but the servants could not.

“I’ll go check on the warehouse.” After the grandfather and grandson met, the steward also found an excuse to retire.

Zhuang Taifu replied, “No need, you stay here.”

The steward felt awkward, “Ah, yes.”

This was too difficult for him. If he laughed at the young master’s misfortune today, what if the young master took charge in the future and made things difficult for him?

Zhuang Taifu paid no mind to the steward; he walked slowly to the steps and looked down at the lonely figure kneeling on the ground.

After so many days, it was time to realize that life outside was not easy.

“Lift your head.”

The Prince of An slowly raised his head, his expression wistful as he looked at his grandfather.

Zhuang Taifu had intended to comment on how thin he had become, but upon taking a closer look, those words got stuck in his throat.

Was it an illusion?

Why did it seem as though the young man had put on weight?

The Prince of An used to be a handsome and elegant young man with only the faintest hollows in his cheeks, giving him a slightly gaunt appearance.

Now, those hollows were gone!

His face had rounded, even his countenance seemed blessed with fortune!

Of course, he was far from fat. It’s just that… he had filled out nicely, appearing more like the sunny and handsome visage befitting his age.

But wasn’t this odd?

He was skinny back home, yet he managed to fatten himself on an outing?

It was mainly because the Prince of An had been exploited for labor by Gu Yan every day, engaging in more physical work which significantly increased his appetite. Over time, he had grown more robust.

In the residence, a single bowl used to suffice, but now he could fit two bowls, and three wouldn’t be too much for this super rice-devouring being!

Zhuang Taifu’s mood suddenly turned somewhat irritable.

“Grandfather.” The Prince of An took the initiative to speak, “Your grandson has returned.”

This sentence finally broke the brief silence and brought Zhuang Taifu back from his uncertainty on how to respond. Zhuang Taifu said coldly, “You know to come back? I have warned you before, if you dared to walk out that door, don’t even think about returning easily!”

The Prince of An bowed his head, “Your grandson knows his mistake, please forgive me, grandfather.”

Zhuang Taifu snorted coldly, “Forgive? You make it sound so easy. If everyone did the same as you, staying at home when pleased and leaving when discontent, what would become of the Zhuang family!”

The Prince of An no longer argued, hanging his head as if regretful.

The steward hurriedly urged, “Master, the Prince was temporarily bewitched. Now that he knows his mistake, please pardon him this time for all the respect he had shown you before. The Prince surely won’t dare to repeat it! Isn’t that right, Prince?”

As he spoke, he looked at the Prince of An, who knelt there with his head bowed in penitence.

The Prince of An murmured a quiet agreement, “The steward is right. Your grandson has suffered enough outside and will never dare to disobey you again.”

This statement seemed to lack conviction, for after all, he had grown so well despite hardship. Wouldn’t he reach for the stars without it?

But Zhuang Taifu truly couldn’t think of any reason why the Prince of An would have been spared from hardship, given that he had personally seen to it that every possible shelter for his grandson had been forewarned not to offer refuge.

Not even the major inns and restaurants would welcome him.

During this period, the Prince could at best rely on the few coins he had to shelter in some lowly inn.

“Come in and kneel!” commanded Zhuang Taifu with a cold voice.

“Yes.”

The Prince of An complied, and the steward quickly walked down the steps to help him up.

The frail body of their own Prince…

Before the thought even finished forming, the Prince of An stood up on his own, as agile as could be.

The steward: “…”

The Prince of An followed Zhuang Taifu to his courtyard.

Zhuang Taifu instructed the Prince of An to kneel at the entrance to the study room.

The Prince of An whispered, “Let me kneel inside, it’s embarrassing out here.”

Zhuang Taifu chuckled, “You still know shame?”

The Prince of An thoughtfully replied, “If I’m shamed it’s not a big deal, but it would be bad if it tarnished Grandfather’s reputation.”

“Hmph!”

With a cold huff. Zhuang Taifu brushed his sleeve aside, ultimately not turning the Prince away.

The Prince of An knelt in the center of his study room.

Since Prime Minister Zhuang wanted to give him a lesson in humility, naturally, he wouldn’t appear too concerned about him. For instance, asking him how he had been spending his days, where he had stayed, whether he had eaten well, or if he was dressed warmly, and so on.

If he had asked, perhaps he would have noticed some minor inconsistencies and clues.

Prince An occasionally sized up Prime Minister Zhuang. Prime Minister Zhuang was aware of it, but he didn’t think much of it; he simply assumed the child was gauging his mood.

He said icily, “Don’t expect me to forgive you so quickly.”

“Then, how much longer must I kneel?” Prince An asked with a pitiful look.

Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Zhuang was infuriated. Was this what coming to admit fault looked like? Barely knelt and already thinking of getting up?

Prime Minister Zhuang snapped, “Kneel until you learn your lesson!”

Originally intending to send Prince An back to the courtyard, Prime Minister Zhuang changed his mind—it was only fitting to have him wear through the floor with his kneeling!

“Master.”

The steward came again.

This time, his expression was somewhat evasive.

Prime Minister Zhuang understood, and he looked coldly at Prince An on the ground: “You’d better kneel properly!”

“Yes,” Prince An replied with resignation.

Prime Minister Zhuang left the study room.

Prince An quickly got up and pressed his ear against the gap in the door.

The steward whispered, “Master, Jian Ping has returned. He says he has something to report to you. Should I bring him over?”

Prime Minister Zhuang looked back at the study room’s ajar door and said indifferently, “Forget it, have him wait for me in my tea room.”

The steward replied, “Yes.”

When Prime Minister Zhuang returned to the study room, Prince An had already resumed his kneeling position respectfully. Prime Minister Zhuang’s gaze swept over a landscape painting on the wall, hesitated for a moment, then said to Prince An, “You may go back first!”

“Thank you, Grandfather.” Prince An bowed his hands, made a small bow, then stood up, leaning on the table.

He left the courtyard, and then Prime Minister Zhuang went to the tea room on the other side of the corridor.

Meanwhile, Prince An made a round outside and came back.

“I left my jade pendant inside,” he said to the youth guarding the courtyard.

Prince An had always been a particularly special presence at the Zhuang household, free to enter and exit Prime Minister Zhuang’s courtyards, and the fact that he had just been brought back personally by Prime Minister Zhuang implied that any discord between them had been resolved. The servant dared not stop him and let him in.

Prince An hurried back to Prime Minister Zhuang’s study room. He did not search everywhere, but headed straight for the landscape painting hanging on the wall opposite the desk.

He had noticed earlier that during the process of reviewing memorials, his grandfather had looked at this spot three times, once more when he went out to talk to the steward, and again when he told him to return to the courtyard.

With his understanding of his grandfather, there must be a secret behind this painting!

He took down the painting only to find disappointment; behind it was just an ordinary wall.

No hidden compartment, no cracks.

Prince An said, puzzled, “What’s going on? Am I overthinking it? Does Grandfather simply like this painting? Is this painting priceless?”

It did seem to be an antique painting with considerable value.

Prince An furrowed his brows, “That’s not right, there must be something amiss, would a man with as high standards as my grandfather really care so much about an antique painting?”

Thud!

The painting slipped from Prince An’s hand, falling to the ground, and the end of the scroll came loose.

He quickly squatted down, picked up the scroll, and removed the end piece that appeared to be whole but was actually attached separately.

The scroll was hollow!

There was something inside!

Prince An turned the scroll upside down, and a rolled-up, golden imperial edict fell out.

Prince An spread it out to see that it was actually a blank imperial decree from the late emperor, sealed with the imperial jade seal and the late emperor’s stamp.

If something were written on it, it would become a decree from the late emperor!

To depose the current emperor or establish Prince Ning or any other prince or royal as the emperor would be no difficult matter at all!

Was this what Jian Ping brought back from Yan Country?

Was it the trump card the Empress Dowager Jing left for Qin Fengyang?

If the Empress Dowager Jing had such a powerful item, why didn’t she use it earlier to save her life?

There was no time to ponder these doubts, Prince An only knew such a terrifying item must never fall into his grandfather’s hands!

He pocketed the imperial edict and hung the painting back up without any damage.

He approached the doorway.

After a moment’s hesitation, he gritted his teeth and turned back.

…

The night was dark and windy.

Prince An walked briskly outside, clutching the imperial edict in his chest.

“Your Highness.”

Along the way, many servants and maids greeted him.

He ignored them all, heading straight for the Zhuang family’s main gate.

“Your Highness, it’s late. Are you going out?” the gatekeeper asked.

Prince An’s gaze flickered, but he responded with a normal tone, “I have a little business to take care of.”

“Should I send someone to accompany you?” the gatekeeper inquired.

“No need,” Prince An declined.

The gatekeeper said no more and stepped aside to make way.

Prince An stepped over the high threshold. His one foot had just crossed and not yet touched the ground when the stern and icy voice of Prime Minister Zhuang came from behind, “Stop right there!”