Chapter 64: There Will Be Good News

Chapter 64: Good News Will Come

Li Zhiming had stayed at General Lu's residence for a few days, and Sang Yu had been launching night raids for just as many nights.

He absolutely couldn't take it anymore.

Moreover, the guards on night patrol were new people every day, and that awkward, humiliating scene had to play out again every single night.

As a result, when he came out during the day, he always felt that some people looked at him with strange eyes, whispering behind his back, making him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles.

On the fourth day, Li Zhiming couldn't bear it any longer. He desperately turned down Lu Zhao's attempts to keep him, and hurried back to his own place before nightfall.

The next day, Lu Zhao received an imperial edict to march out and put down the rebellion, departing immediately.

Before he even had a chance to inform Li Zhiming, he was already out of the capital.

He sighed.

His only friend was gone now.

So boring.

Li Zhiming lay sprawled in the courtyard, soaking up the sun, while Sang Yu sat beside him staring at him. After hearing his hundred-and-ninth sigh, Sang Yu finally furrowed his brow.

"Something on your mind, young master?"

He'd originally moved out, but for some reason the emperor suddenly reclaimed his residence, forcing him to move back in and take up residence at the Prime Minister's estate again.

In other words, he'd moved for nothing.

Li Zhiming shook his head quickly. "No, no."

"Really?"

Sang Yu narrowed his eyes, and that familiar stern aura radiated off him, bearing down on his nerves, forcing him to cave.

"Fine, yeah. I'm bored."

"What? Am I not here?"

"..."

"?"

He couldn't keep the conversation going.

This was even more boring.

Lu Zhao...

Sang Yu looked up at the sky and smiled out of nowhere: "Give it a few more days, and the young master will get some good news. Then you won't be bored anymore."

Li Zhiming perked up. "What do you mean? Is the war almost over?"

"I don't know."

"Then why did you say that?"

"Just wait, young master. Good news isn't going anywhere."

Being cryptic, being cryptic again.

How boring.

Li Zhiming deflated again, lying down to count sheep, completely listless.

Days like this were so pointless, utterly pointless. Not a single pretty girl in sight, watched all day by some stinking guy, like being in prison. Too boring.

Li Zhiming clamped his mouth shut and stopped sighing.

So he wouldn't get asked about it.

These peaceful but tedious days dragged on endlessly, and Li Zhiming gradually got used to them, finding ways to entertain himself. Sometimes, when he was in a good mood, he'd play chess with Sang Yu.

Teaching him little modern games, like playing marbles or hopscotch.

Life was pretty comfortable.

At night, when they lay together, Sang Yu curled up obediently in his arms, and he even thought, throwing caution to the wind, that maybe he could just live like this forever. It wouldn't be so bad, really.

Soon, a piece of news broke the peace.

Lu Zhao sent word back from the frontier that the eldest princess had never made it to the northern kingdom, and even the envoys had vanished. The northern kingdom thought our country had broken the agreement and acted dishonorably, so, in a rage, they'd launched an attack.

The emperor threw a huge fit in court.

A traitor.

The word even reached Li Zhiming's ears.

The Old Prime Minister and his wife were also deeply worried. When the Son of Heaven raged, everyone below suffered, each walking on eggshells, terrified that one wrong move would send them straight to the King of Hell.

The family of three rarely sat down to eat together.

The Prime Minister kept sighing: "The situation at the frontier is grim. Lu Zhao sent word that the northern kingdom is furious. Our dynasty already lost considerable troops in the war with Nanxun, and now we have no strength to resist.

His Majesty wanted to grit his teeth and make the sacrifice, using a marriage alliance to secure the nation, but who would have thought..."

The Lady consoled him: "There's nothing we can do about such matters. We can only wait for Lu Zhao to send good news."

"Yes, Father, Mother, don't worry too much."

"How can I not worry? Once we lose, our dynasty's foundation will shake, the people will suffer, and the land will be plunged into misery."

The Old Prime Minister was so worried he couldn't even eat.

Li Zhiming, drawing on his modern knowledge, did his best to analyze and explain the situation to comfort the two of them, and in the process, gradually learned more about court affairs.

And other developments as well.

The eldest princess's departure for the marriage alliance had only happened recently. The emperor had kept it low-key, and the princess had left the capital with the envoys, only to never reach her destination.

It was said that over a hundred people in the party had vanished.

After Lu Zhao's letter arrived, the emperor immediately sent people to search along the route. Several days passed, and no one was found—only a few sets of northern kingdom soldiers' clothing and gear discovered in a small village.

The villagers said they had stripped them from dead men passing through.

After inquiries and investigation, they were indeed soldiers from the Northern Kingdom.

But the princess was still missing.

The Northern Kingdom naturally refused to believe such an absurd accident, only believing our court had ulterior motives, which made them even more furious. Thus, this battle was especially fierce.

Li Zhiming remained shut in, but the Second Prince showed up at his door uninvited.

He got straight to the point: "I've come to you because there's something I need to discuss. With the situation so volatile and the court in disarray, what do you make of it?"

Li Zhiming had no idea why he was coming to see him.

He couldn't understand how a slacker prince who only fooled around and kept pretty boys suddenly cared so much about the nation's affairs.

They'd even crossed paths before because of Sang Yu.

Li Zhiming spoke frankly: "I don't really have any thoughts on it. I'm just a humble official, a civil servant at that. When it comes to the border situation, I'm willing but powerless."

"That doesn't matter."

The Second Prince waved his hand, easygoing and carefree, just as he'd always been—though he made no effort to hide the ambition in his eyes.

"My elder brother angered the Emperor and was stripped of his title. Now the Crown Prince position is vacant, and I intend to go for it."

As he spoke, he stared at Li Zhiming with a piercing gaze, the implication far too obvious for Li Zhiming to know how to react.

Was he really laying his ambitions out in the open like that?

This didn't seem right.

Li Zhiming grew wary: "Your Highness, why tell me this? I'm well aware of my own shortcomings. If you're trying to win my father over by coming to me, you've got the wrong idea."

He had no say in that matter.

To his surprise, the Second Prince shook his head: "No, what I want is your help."

"Me?"

"Yes. As long as you stand with me, support me, and help me get rid of my rivals, I will ensure the Li family prospers—above everyone else, second only to the emperor."

Li Zhiming was puzzled: "I don't see how I can be of any help to Your Highness."

"No, you can. All you have to do is agree."

"..."

Wasn't this coercion?

Li Zhiming was forced to nod, and only then did the Second Prince leave, wearing a satisfied smile.

What the hell are you smiling about?

Even the guard was puzzled: "Why seek him out, Your Highness? Li Zhiming has no talent or ability, and he likely has no influence with the Prime Minister."

"What do you know? The useful one by his side isn't the old Prime Minister."

"Not the Prime Minister?"

"Heh, of course not."

Ever since the Crown Prince met with that mysterious mishap at the hunting grounds, he had been quietly observing everyone's reactions. When he noticed something off about Li Zhiming, he investigated him thoroughly.

And to his surprise, that led to other discoveries.