Chapter 146: Do I Look Like Good-for-Nothing to You?

A young Prime Minister's wife, barely twenty years of age, chimed in: "Sister Chuge! How long did it take you to learn horseback riding? Look at my arms and legs—do you think I could ever learn?"

The Seventh Princess, the only person in the imperial palace untainted by fame, fortune, or wealth, eagerly asked: "Sister-in-law, Sister-in-law! It's me, Little Qi! Do you think I have any talent for martial arts? Heh, heh, ha, heh!"

Prime Minister Liu's daughter interjected: "Princess Chu, how is it that your older sister is so petty? A mere flower petal is hardly a rare delicacy, though your Chu Marquis Manor certainly has some tricks up its sleeve. Your martial arts are peerless, and your sister's sorcery is not bad either."

The young lady of the Ning family chimed in: "That's right, that's right! My older brother previously intended to propose marriage to your Marquis Manor. He had admired Chu You for many years, but fortunately she married His Highness the Crown Prince; otherwise, the unlucky one would have been my brother!"

"Hush! Little Sister Ning, if His Highness the Crown Prince hears such words, it's off with your head!"

Prime Minister Liu's daughter frequently studied the intricate power struggles within the imperial palace, and with her father serving in the imperial court, she possessed a deeper understanding of the various princes than most.

Crown Prince Qi Ming was the absolute last person one should ever provoke. While he usually appeared as gentle and harmless as the eldest brother next door, Prime Minister Liu's daughter knew full well that he was actually a man with a pitch-black heart. If he ever targeted you, you would never even figure out how you died—you would simply find some fabricated charge pinned to your forehead.

Prime Minister Liu was one of the few steadfast loyalists to King Qi in the imperial court, leading a small faction that advocated for crowning King Qi, Qi Xiu, as the Crown Prince. This was solely because Qi Xiu had once shown great kindness to Prime Minister Liu, and intuition told the Liu family that the true Son of Heaven should be none other than King Qi!

Crown Prince Qi Ming had attempted to brainwash Prime Minister Liu's family on numerous occasions, yet it remained entirely futile. Consequently, during a certain imperial court session, Prime Minister Liu earned a notorious moniker for failing to properly discipline his son. That son referred to Prime Minister Liu's adopted son, a former beggar who idled away his days doing nothing at all.

The young lady of the Ning family dimly grasped the underlying implications and immediately covered her mouth, her bright eyes wide with the panicked expression of someone who had just declared she said nothing at all.

"Little Sister Ning, you really need to be more careful!" The rest of the sisters began to lecture her. The young lady of the Ning family simply stuck out her tongue in a playful gesture, leaving the others unable to utter another word of scolding. Who could possibly stay mad when this little girl was so adorable? The reprimands lingered on their lips, yet not a single syllable would come out.

"Are you implying that Crown Prince Qi Ming lacks genuine competence?"

Chuge's words truly startled everyone with their audacity.

The group instantly huddled around Chuge, terrified that even a whisper of this might leak out.

"Shh, shh, shh! What is wrong with you all today? Are you trying to fly straight up to the heavens?! You cannot say things like that—it's a capital offense!"

Prime Minister Liu's daughter was so anxious she felt like scratching her hair out until she was bald. Yet these women simply relished this kind of gossip, and with Chuge taking the lead, they chased after her with endless questions!

"That's right! What's wrong with the Crown Prince?"

The Prime Minister's wife rarely dealt with court affairs, nor did she enjoy listening to her husband drone on about political intrigues, leaving her entirely oblivious to such matters. Hearing her young sisters discuss it now, she felt a sudden surge of excitement and eagerly crowded in to join the fun.

Unable to endure the relentless questioning of so many people—why were their thirsts for knowledge suddenly so insatiable?—Prime Minister Liu's daughter finally gave in.

"Fine, crawl a bit closer, and I'll tell you quietly."

Chuge quickly cast a minor barrier, ensuring that anyone nearby would be unable to overhear their whispered conversation.

"Look at you all, cooped up in your inner courtyards and completely detached from court affairs. But it baffles me—could it be that the Seventh Princess and Princess Anle are equally clueless?"

The Seventh Princess and Princess Anle exchanged a knowing glance, their expressions brimming with simulated innocence: "We know! But seeing how curious you all are, isn't it allowed for us to pretend to be curious along with you?"

Prime Minister Liu's daughter pressed a hand to her forehead once more.

"Back then, the Second Prince Qi Xiu, also known as Prince Qi, received imperial orders to command fifty thousand elite troops with the mission of subjugating the Yan territory along the border. Those people in the Yan territory were a bunch of unreasonable barbarians. Prince Qi's fifty thousand elite troops fought them for two whole years, only managing to achieve a stalemate.

"Later on, nobody knew where those barbarians managed to acquire poison, and they even incited a rebellion within one of Prince Qi's divisions. Within two short days, Prince Qi's remaining thirty thousand elite soldiers plummeted to a mere ten thousand. Prince Qi wanted to order a retreat, but those barbarians launched a sudden surprise attack. How could a mere ten thousand battle-weary soldiers possibly stand against them?"

At this point, Prime Minister Liu's daughter's tone was heavy with regret: "In the end, Prince Qi's most loyal subordinate risked his life, barely managing to escort Prince Qi back to the imperial capital from the clutches of those barbarians.

"However, Prince Qi's injuries were far too severe. Countless physicians were summoned, and while they ultimately managed to save his life, his shattered meridians could never be healed."

Upon hearing this, everyone cast a sympathetic glance in the direction of Qi Xiu, followed by another sympathetic look toward Chuge.

Chuge: "???"

"And then? What happened next?" the Ning family's young lady asked eagerly, unable to wait a moment longer.

"Eventually, the imperial court finally realized that the Yan territory was a bitterly hard nut to crack. His Majesty issued a nationwide decree calling upon talented and capable individuals to lead troops in conquering the realm. Crown Prince Qi Ming, somehow catching wind of the intelligence that the Yan barbarians had been severely battered and required only ten thousand elite troops to be thoroughly crushed, seized the opportunity.

"Disregarding whether the intel was true or false, and encouraged by the Empress, Crown Prince Qi Ming petitioned His Majesty for twenty thousand elite troops. Sure enough, the situation in the Yan territory mirrored the reports letter for letter. It took him a mere two days to successfully conquer the Yan territory and return in triumphant procession.

"That day was a nationwide celebration, with the entire realm singing the praises of the Eldest Prince, Qi Ming, for subduing the Yan barbarians in just two days. Yet not a single person remembered the Second Prince, who had endured two years of grueling warfare on the border only to be left permanently disabled for life.

"Because of this, the Eldest Prince Qi Ming was universally lauded by the court and established as the Crown Prince, while the nation of Qi was subsequently renamed Yan-Qi."

Prime Minister Liu's daughter licked her parched lips before continuing: "To this day, aside from scavenging the victory at the border's Yan territory, the Crown Prince has not achieved a single legitimate merit of his own."

"So the Crown Prince's position was essentially picked up off the ground by the Eldest Prince?"

Prime Minister Liu's daughter nodded, picked up her teacup, and drained it in a single gulp. How refreshing!

Her throat was practically smoking and her voice cracking from all the talking, yet not a single one of these women had bothered to hand her a cup of water. It was enough to infuriate anyone!

What Prime Minister Liu's daughter had recounted largely mirrored what Little Scumbag had told her, albeit with considerably more detail.

"Alright! You are strictly forbidden from breathing a word of what was said tonight to anyone, or else we won't be able to remain sisters!"

The girls nodded one after another. As women, they either disliked meddling in politics or were barred from touching state affairs by tradition. Now that they had finally caught a glimpse of real historical secrets, they nodded along like chicks pecking at rice.

Chuge was sent back to rest. Chong Li disliked the clamor and had already returned to the tent earlier to wait for her.

"You're back?"

"Mhm."

"Leaving tomorrow?"

True to form, Chong Li was truly the roundworm in her belly. "Mhm."

"Then tomorrow I shall go and treat Qi Xiu's limbs, have him return to the Qi family manor, and write you a letter of divorce to provide you with a logical cause of death."

Chuge suddenly stepped forward, wrapping her arms around empty air right across from Chong Li: "Chong Li, why do you always have everything arranged so perfectly?"

Chong Li offered a faint smile as his human-skin mask peeled away under the influence of spiritual energy: Because of you.

Yet the words remained safely tucked away in his heart, unspoken. After tonight, it would soon be time for them to assume brand-new identities once again.