Chapter 32: The Crown Prince wants to join forces? The Second Prince is giving up!

"Your Highness, can you please move aside? You are blocking my sunlight." The second prince half-knelt on the chair.

Holding a book in his hand, he raised his head slightly and glanced at the prince standing in front of him.

The prince stared at him closely and asked, "Second brother, are you planning to continue to be decadent like this?"

The second prince frowned, his eyes puzzled, and asked, "Your Highness, why don't I understand? Reading a book and sleeping every day, isn't this a good life?"

The prince seemed to be a little disappointed, "Second brother, are you willing to watch your fourth brother become the leader of the students and even control the court step by step?"

There was a gleam of brilliance in the second prince's eyes, but the doubt he showed was even deeper.
"Your Highness, you are really abnormal today. Is this really you? Have you been switched?"

Hearing these words, the prince's anxiety disappeared and a smile appeared on his face.

"Hahaha, I was just joking with you. Are you scared, brother?"

A strange smile flashed in the second prince's eyes, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly, revealing a slightly shy smile.

"Yes, I was scared. I almost thought that Your Highness was possessed by something."

"I was thinking about whether I should find someone to do the ritual or something, but now it seems that it is not necessary."

The prince patted his chest, his face full of excitement, "Second brother is so thoughtful, I am very touched!"

The second prince seemed a little absent-minded. He looked at the fruit plate beside him. He pinched the grape stems with two fingers and picked up a bunch.

Then, he raised his hand high, slowly bit off an extremely green grape, chewed it twice, and swallowed it.

He repeated this action over and over again, as if he was enjoying the process of eating grapes.

The prince couldn't stand it any longer, so he took the initiative to speak, "Second brother, have you heard that fourth brother made a new thing, it seems to be called steamed chicken?"

The Second Prince's attention was still on the grapes, and his expression was extremely perfunctory. "Steamed chicken? A new food? The restaurant opened by the Fourth Prince is really good. I'll treat you next time."

The prince didn't respond at all, and slapped his thigh, "Oh, I remember now, it's the 'steam engine', a brand new textile machine!"

"No, no." The second prince frowned and shook his head. "It seems that the fourth prince has opened three restaurants. Which one do you prefer, Your Highness? I'll listen to you."

The prince was excited and said: "When I think that this kind of loom is better than the ones in the three major workshops, I am moved!"

"But it's a bit strange. We just reached a wool deal with Xihu, and a brand new textile machine was immediately made here. Don't you think this is a coincidence?"

The Second Prince clapped his hands and laughed, "What a coincidence! Your Highness the Crown Prince also thinks that the chefs hired by the Fourth Prince are very clever? The new dishes they made are absolutely amazing!"

The prince also laughed, "No matter what, the new textile machine that the fourth brother had people make has made a great contribution to our Daqing, and it deserves a generous reward!"

"Reward! Must reward!" The second prince also looked very happy, "The cooking skills of those chefs are so good, just rewarding them is not enough, I also want to invite them to my home!"

The prince suddenly remembered something else, "The fourth son's contribution is not limited to this one. He has published several new newspapers, and the students of the Imperial College seem to like them very much!"

A trace of memories appeared in the second prince's eyes. "Don't mention it, don't mention it. If you have eaten at the fourth prince's restaurant once, you will never forget it!"

The prince sighed, "Not only our Daqing, but even Northern Qi also likes these newspapers very much."

"Zhuang Mohan, a great man from Northern Qi, even traveled thousands of miles to Daqing to become the disciple of those people mentioned in the newspaper, but was stopped by the young emperor of Northern Qi."

"What scholarly master? In my opinion, those articles were clearly written by Lao Si himself!"

"This kind of talent is just like the God of Literature descending to earth. Our Daqing literary world is finally going to surpass Northern Qi. I am so moved!"

The prince howled hypocritically a few times, "Do you think it's possible to let the fourth child go to Northern Qi to be a teacher to those old scholars? This would be so prestigious for Daqing!"

The smile on the second prince's face disappeared instantly. "Your Highness, are you having some whimsical thoughts?" The prince looked around and pointed at himself. "Second brother, are you talking to me?"

The second prince glanced at him calmly and said, "I have never heard of a prince from one country going to another country!"

"Oh, not entirely. As for hostages, there have indeed been cases in history where a weak country sent a prince as a hostage in order to reassure a powerful country."

The prince smiled awkwardly, "It was just a joke, but you took it seriously, didn't you, second brother?"

The idea is indeed absurd.

Not to mention whether the fourth brother would agree or not, he would definitely not be able to pass the test of His Majesty!
Once the prince of Qing was sent to Northern Qi,

Those who knew the inside story knew clearly that he was going to be a teacher in the Imperial Academy of Northern Qi. If they didn’t know, they would think that Qing Kingdom had surrendered to Northern Qi!
This was a big blow to morale.

Unless Your Majesty is senile, there is no way he would agree to this absurd suggestion.

The Second Prince confronted him directly and asked, "Your Highness, after listening to you say so much today, are you planning to join forces with me to deal with the Fourth Prince?"

The prince quickly waved his hands and denied it, "I didn't, I just felt that the fourth brother had so many ideas."

The second prince pursed his lips and said, "Now that you have finished expressing your feelings, Your Highness the Crown Prince, do you have to go back?"

The prince stared at him for a while, then stood up helplessly, "Since Second Brother doesn't welcome me, I can't continue to be a bad guest, so I'll go back first."

The second prince picked up the book next to him and said, "I won't see you off. Have a safe journey, Your Highness."

The prince had just walked a few steps when he suddenly stopped and said, "What do you think if we join forces..."

Before he could finish his words, the Second Prince waved his hand nonchalantly at him.

The prince glanced back and strode away.

Not long after he walked out of the Second Prince's Mansion, the news was delivered to Guangxin Palace.

"Your Highness, the Second Prince doesn't seem to have any intention of joining forces with the Crown Prince." The yellow-robed palace maid, who was helping the eldest princess comb her hair, slowly expressed her opinion.

The eldest princess raised her lips slightly and said, "The second son doesn't want to participate in the fight for the throne? He has no way out."

"If you are not tempted by the prince's olive branch, you are just waiting for the price to rise."

"Besides, the second brother still has me to help him, so he won't panic."

"The second brother's idea now is very simple. He will wait until the crown prince and the fourth brother are both defeated, and then he will take the opportunity to take the throne."

"But it's not up to him."

At this point, the princess sighed helplessly, "The fourth brother still doesn't trust me. The steam loom is obviously aimed at the three major workshops."

"Since I'm not allowed to intervene, I can only find a way to destroy this so-called steam engine."

"Is there any news from Northern Qi?"

The yellow-robed palace maid shook her head silently. "I haven't received any news yet, but it should be soon."

As soon as the voice fell, at this moment, another palace maid suddenly came in and reported:

"Your Highness, the Emperor of Northern Qi has replied!"

(End of this chapter)