Chapter 71

Chapter 71: The Emperor Favors Only the Crown Prince

That very night.

The bandits were taken to the imperial prison in the capital.

Chen Shaobei hurried to the palace in the middle of the night to report the outcome to Mo Lingwei.

At this late hour, the notoriously fierce Crown Prince sat behind a screen depicting flying cranes.

With only one lamp lit in the hall, its flickering light allowed Chen Shaobei to see only Mo Lingwei's relaxed posture.

"All captured?" Mo Lingwei's voice sounded tired, or perhaps it was Chen Shaobei's impression.

"Yes, Your Highness. Everything happened as you predicted. The treasures you bestowed attracted the bandits. But the Sixth Prince was frightened, and with Concubine Li devotedly tending to him, no one colluded with the bandits, resulting in their complete capture."

Mo Lingwei nodded slightly: "Well done."

As he spoke, his figure staggered.

Alarmed, Chen Shaobei hurried around the screen to support Mo Lingwei.

However, as he approached, he saw frost covering Mo Lingwei's hair and eyebrows.

His face, pale and cold from the frost, looked strikingly handsome.

His eyes were weary, clearly he had been forcing himself to stay awake, waiting for the results of the capture.

"Your Highness!" Chen Shaobei exclaimed anxiously, "I'll call the imperial physician."

"Don’t," Mo Lingwei stopped him. "If you go now, Father will focus his attention on me and overlook Shen Ningning's merit."

"Let her receive her due reward. After that, you can inform Father. This illness of mine won't kill me."

Chen Shaobei, feeling heavy-hearted, hesitated for a moment before nodding: "Alright."

Mo Lingwei closed his eyes, seemingly reaching his limit.

"While I'm asleep, keep an eye out and ensure no one takes Shen Ningning's credit."

"But... I just saw Miss Shen in Xiangyun Village. She even mentioned inviting Your Highness to her home for a meal served in ice bowls as a token of gratitude."

Mo Lingwei's lips twitched into a smile.

"Don't tell her about my illness. Just say that once I'm free, I’ll visit her."

"Alright..." Chen Shaobei watched as Mo Lingwei lay down and covered him with a blanket before leaving.

The next day, at the morning court session.

Chen Shaobei reported the capture of the bandits causing trouble.

"It was all thanks to the alert cooperation of the villagers of Xiangyun Village, especially a young girl surnamed Shen. Her intelligence and the wolf pack she raised were of great help."

"Due to capturing the bandits, we also recovered the disaster relief grain that had been stolen. Although not much was left, at least we achieved a result."

The Emperor was overjoyed and repeatedly expressed his desire to reward them.

"Prime Minister!" he called out, wanting the Prime Minister to represent him in rewarding these villagers.

But then he remembered that the Prime Minister was again absent due to illness.

The Emperor then instructed a eunuch, "Open my treasury, select some jewelry and ornaments, and reward this Shen Ningning!"

At this moment, Secretary Wei stepped forward, bowing: "Your Majesty, while the young Miss Shen's actions are commendable, she is a subject of Cangyun Nation and serving you is her duty. Isn't it inappropriate to reward her too generously?"

Chen Shaobei's cold gaze turned towards Secretary Wei.

"The Crown Prince personally oversaw this matter. The clues provided by Miss Shen were key to capturing the bandits. Why doesn’t she deserve a generous reward?"

The Emperor raised his hand: "Enough, my ministers. I have already made my decision."

"This merit must be rewarded. I will not only reward her but also the entire Xiangyun Village!"

"Summon someone to prepare ink and brush. I shall personally bestow a decree on Xiangyun Village."

The eunuch hurriedly made preparations.

Secretary Wei looked at Chen Shaobei resentfully.

The Emperor's heart is biased; as long as it concerns the Crown Prince, he lavishes rewards blindly.

Does a village deserve such a lavish reward?

When the rewards reached Xiangyun Village, the villagers huddled together, jumping and laughing joyously, their laughter reaching the skies!

Shen Ningning sat on the back of the Black Wolf King, her hair tied in two buns, her face radiating joy and cuteness.

It was all because of the brilliant idea given to her by Mo Lingwei!

He first bestowed treasures, making the bandits believe the village harbored valuable items.

Then he secretly arranged for Chen Shaobei's soldiers to disguise themselves as villagers and hide in the houses.

As expected, they caught the bandits in a trap.

Shen Ningning ran up to Chen Shaobei, asking softly, "Brother, do you have time to come today?"

Remembering Mo Lingwei's instructions, Chen Shaobei's eyes flickered before responding, "The Crown Prince is busy with many affairs recently. Once he's free, he will come to visit Miss Shen."

Shen Ningning felt a bit disappointed.

But she quickly understood.

Her brother was the Crown Prince, of course, he was busy!

She smiled sweetly, "Okay, I'll wait for him!"

Chen Shaobei had the gifts delivered and then left.

The old village chief set off six strings of firecrackers at the village entrance!

They crackled joyously, like it was New Year's.

He directed the villagers to hang the plaque inscribed “Xiangyun Village” by the Emperor himself, above the village entrance.

This was a matter of immense pride and glory, a story to be boasted about for generations!

"Ningning, we owe so much to you this time."

"Yes, Ningning is our lucky star. Now even the Emperor knows about our little Xiangyun Village!"

Shen Ningning was surrounded by everyone.

In their joy, the villagers even lifted the young girl into the air and caught her again.

This made Black Wolf King anxiously howl, worried that Shen Ningning might get hurt.

Finally, when the young girl was set down, she smiled broadly: "It's because we were united that we achieved such a great result!"

"And it's not just my credit; Wolfie and the little monkeys contributed too!"

The monkeys had alerted her, and the wolves brought back the bandits trying to escape.

The village elder nodded thoughtfully: "Only by working together can we make our lives prosperous."

"But it's because of Ningning that we have this honor. So, all the treasures awarded by the Emperor should go to Ningning. We mustn't be greedy!"

After he finished speaking, the villagers brought out two chests of treasures.

These were the rewards previously given by Mo Lingwei, originally meant as bait.

Shen Ningning didn’t expect that the villagers would return the treasures they had taken.

The village elder looked at her with deep sighs: "Ningning, what you have brought to our village is peace, and that's more valuable than any wealth!"

"If the bandits had entered the village to kill and plunder, we would have lost everything we’ve built over a lifetime."

Shen Ningning, however, blinked her round eyes, her voice soft and clear, making her point logically.

"Alone, I certainly couldn’t have managed. Aunts and uncles, you all played a part. Everyone talked about leaving, but there were still people like Uncle Liu and Brother Chen who chose to stay."

"Grandpa Village Chief, I don’t want to keep these treasures all to myself. Since we are one village, we should all share in the wealth!"

"You decide how to distribute these treasures. Let's ensure everyone in the village gets a share of what we’ve kept!"

After Shen Ningning finished speaking, the villagers' faces beamed with joy.

Auntie Liu's voice rose high: "Then I still want that pearl necklace, and no one better fight me for it!"

The village elder smiled broadly: "Alright, alright! Since Ningning has spoken, let's follow her suggestion."

In the end, each family received five or six pieces of jewelry, totaling a value of three hundred taels!

The villagers lined up at the village chief's door to receive their pearls and gems.

The more scared they had been before, the more relieved they felt now!

Just as everyone was rejoicing, Auntie Deng’s voice came from the entrance of the village —

"Oh my! I hope I’m not too late!"