Chapter 93

Qing Yun sat down in the private room and received the tea handed to him by Chen Bing. He frowned as he felt that he had just overlooked something, but he did not find anything unusual when he looked down from the window of the private room.

Sitting in the most secretive position below, Qi Yue is also secretly looking towards the private room upstairs. The military commander beside him noticed his unusualness but only thought that Qi Yue was searching for the location of the Grand Prince and did not think much of it.

Soon, Qing Yang Building unveiled the topic of the day. The only words on the banner in the middle were "Ruined Flowers and Broken Wood".

As soon as he saw the topic, one of the people in Qing Yun's room immediately slapped the table and said angrily, "How outrageous, this Qing Yang Building is too bold!"

The person who spoke was the companion of the Grand Prince Yan Sa, the son of the Minister of Officials, who knew that the Grand Prince was going to visit Qing Yang Building today, so he booked a private room over here in advance.

It's no wonder he reacted this way. Wei Lin and Chen Bing also looked terrible.

This Qing Yang Building is a gathering place for the scholars in the Capital. Every three days, a topic will be released for all the scholars present to express their opinions. It is known to everyone that the topics released by Qing Yang Building are often related to Imperial affairs.

Aren't the words "Ruined Flowers and Broken Wood" today intended to insult and mock the Grand Prince's crippled state?

Qing Yun leisurely sipped his tea and did not reveal an unhappy expression because of this very directional topic.

When Wei Lin took a look at his expression, he immediately understood, and his anger gradually dissipated. The Grand Prince is an open-minded person and will not be angry just because of these words with a hidden meaning. In the case of the Grand Prince's temperament, even if someone really stood up and cursed at him, His Highness would not be outraged. If that person is justified, he might even praise them.

What's more,... Wei Lin secretly smiled and sipped his tea. The owner of this Qing Yang Building, and even the court officials, should not yet know the news that the Grand Prince's body is already okay.

Wei Lin is very sophisticated and can naturally look away. Chen Bing has always followed Qing Yun's lead and will not say anything if Qing Yun does not express himself. But Qing Yun's companion, Wang Ming, is still young and vigorous. He wanted to show his loyalty in front of the Grand Prince, so he began to calculate slowly, waiting to make a speech later so that the person who would insult the Grand Prince would be speechless.

But Wang Ming was overthinking. Once the topic of today's discussion in the Qing Yang Building was out, unlike the previous days when someone immediately came forward to express their views, the place was eerily quiet, with only the sound of shaking fans and drinking tea.

Wei Lin saw this, smiled, and stroked his beard.

There are good scholars in Qing Yang Building, but they are not brainless people, and they naturally do not dare to speak out when they encounter such topics. After all, the issue talks about the current regent, the Grand Prince. Apart from his reputation of being physically challenged, the Grand Prince's every move has won the people's hearts. Even these scholars who do not do practical work and are only bookish have some admiration for him.

Thinking about it, if he was not seeking the throne, the eldest prince's disability would not be worthy of criticism but would even add to his reputation as a dedicated official.

In a private room, the Minister of Rites under the Third Prince and the owner of Qing Yang Building looked at each other, both helpless. Today's topic of discussion is what they have thought of for a long time before putting out, to remind the people of the Capital once again the shortcomings of the Grand Prince that cannot be ignored.

After all, seeing the Grand Prince's prestige become stronger day by day, while the Third Prince has not moved, they are naturally anxious as they are affiliated with the Third Prince.

The Grand Prince's actions are not criticizable, so they can only shamelessly talk about his body.

However, they never expected that from the scholars from different places who gathered at Qing Yang Building, none of them were willing to stand up and criticize the Grand Prince. This shows how deep the reputation of the Grand Prince has reached in the Capital.

There were even three-year-old children on the street, tilting their faces and asking, "When will the Grand Prince ascend to the throne and become the Emperor?"

"Alas." The Minister of Rites sighed, "It would have been better if Court Master Yang was still around. The building must not be quiet any longer. Otherwise, it will also damage the fame of Qing Yang Building. If no one speaks up soon, find a scholar to host it."

Qi Yue saw the current situation in the building and was also surprised. He knew that the scholars of Qingyang Building were famous for their unstoppable mouths, but now, no one dared to speak up in the face of this vague topic?

What kind of tactics do the people around the Grand Prince have to turn his reputation around in such a short period of time?

Looking at the banner hanging in the center of the lobby, Qi Yue could not help but frown. No matter what, pulling someone's physical disability, this Qing Yang Building is too shameless.

Despite his heart's dislike for the Qing Yang Building's way of doing things, Qi Yue instructed the military commander beside him, "Stand up and say a few words. Be sharp in your words, and be sure to draw out the people in the Grand Prince's private room so that we can accurately distinguish exactly where the Grand Prince is and prevent widespread commotion when we make our move."

The military commander nodded and stood up. He and Qi Yue were both dressed as scholarly students, and although their faces were a bit rough from years of staying in the north, they did not arouse the suspicion of others.

The military commander arched his hand and said aloud, "Since you all do not dare to speak out, then I will come to talk a few words."

"This Ruined Flowers and Broken Wood, the ruined flowers are not decorative, and the broken wood cannot make the building. In addition, what flowers to decorate, what wood used to build the house, it depends on what the owner of the house wants..."

The military officer's words directly cited the eldest prince as being physically disabled and unable to succeed on the throne while pointing out that he was not Emperor Hongming's preferred candidate for the Crown Prince. Such sharp words immediately made the Qing Yang Building restless.

The Minister of Rites in the private room was relieved to see this, thinking that there are still people in the Capital who are dissatisfied with the Grand Prince.

He did not know that although the military commander seems to speak with confidence and eloquence, his heart felt guilty about it. He has been stationed in the north for many years and has seen many people with disabilities. There is a scout in the Northern Army, and although he is one-eyed, his scouting ability is much higher than those who have two eyes.

The military commander has always admired these types of people, but now he has to use this as a reason to attack. How can he not feel weak?

Inside Qing Yun's private room, Wang Ming couldn't sit still at once. He immediately stood up and took the lead to speak out, suppressing several scholars who had stood up to refute the military commander.

"This gentleman is wrong. This flower and this wood can not be generalized. In an elegant hall, a flawed peony is still more suitable than a common wildflower. As for the wood, even if a ten-foot-long one is broken, it still has the ability to support more than a half meter.

Wang Ming's words not only patted the Grand Prince on the back without a trace but also trampled the Third Prince into the mud and set the atmosphere in Qing yang Building on fire.

The two sides of the argument really collided, and there was a mess of discussion in the building.

Qing Yun's face did not change. The comments of the outside world have not affected his state of mind.

Hearing Wang Ming's voice, Qi Yue and the military commander glanced at each other. They swept their eyes across the entire Qing Yang Building to find the best route for a sneak attack later. But Qi Yue, who has always had a careful mind, noticed that although the Grand Prince was traveling in casual clothing, he was not followed by his guards.

As a matter of fact, even in the Capital, the Imperial people will have more than one secret guard hidden in the surrounding area. The Grand Prince, who plans to usurp the throne, should have been more concerned about his life.

Qi Yue had doubts in his heart. They went around upstairs and didn't see traces of the wheelchair on the floor. Did the Grand Prince really leave the palace?

The debate in the Qing Yang Building continued, but suddenly, a clear voice came out from the room where Wang Ming just spoke and strangely suppressed the commotion in the Qing Yang Building.

"It doesn't matter if it's a broken flower or a broken wood, it can still be useful."

Once these words came out, the scholars in the Qing Yang Building who argued in defense of the Grand Prince until their faces and necks were red immediately seemed to have found their backbone. Instead of struggling to come up with clever ideas to argue for victory, they sat down gracefully.

The Capital has witnessed the ability of the Grand Prince, and there is no need to argue over words. Wasn't it evident for all that the broken flower and wood are useful?

Wei Lin looked at the leisurely and calm face of the First Prince. He shook his head and smiled, and his eyes were full of admiration.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Rites in the private room directly fell off his chair in fear when he heard this majestic voice that he could hear every morning at the court.

The Grand...Grand Prince is actually here?

Without paying attention to the changes in the Qing Yang Building, Qi Yue's pair of eagle eyes locked dead on the room where the sound just came out. If someone looked carefully, they could find that the tip of the Northern General's ears were actually red and even trembled slightly.

Just now, that voice was like the most refreshing mountain stream, drilling straight into Qi Yue's ears and then reaching his heart. It was like a tickling little hand that ruffled the tip of his heart.

This voice...is him?

Qi Yue remembered the softness on his cheek earlier and couldn't help but put away the seriousness on his face and let out a low laugh. He didn't expect that person to speak so clearly and right to the point, which was highly inconsistent with his thin body.

"General!" Seeing Qi Yue's dazed expression, the military commander could not help but remind him eagerly, "Today's discussion is about to end. If we don't do something, the crowd will come out later, and innocent people will definitely be hurt."

At the sound of this, Qi Yue's eyebrows raised. He nodded and said, "Do it!"

To ensure a kill, it is natural for Qi Yue to do it. The people of Qing Yang Building, who were preparing to leave, only saw a black shadow with a majestic momentum moving towards a private room upstairs. Before the people could react, they saw that the black shadow had pierced the screen of the private room.

Exclaims immediately rang out.

Qi Yue should have used all his strength to assassinate the Grand Prince, but he had doubts in his mind whether the Grand Prince was present, and for some reason, he was afraid of hurting the young man in white, so he only used five out of ten points of strength.

And he attacked in an extremely clever direction, facing the main seat of the room. The reason is that if the Grand Prince is present, he will be sitting in the main seat.

However, once he broke through the screen, Qi Yue saw a pair of phoenix eyes with a cold light. It was him!

Seeing that the dagger he was holding had almost reached the neck of the youth, Qi Yue's heart surged with panic and almost called out "careful".

He was about to withdraw his hand despite the backlash of his power, but he saw the white-clothed youth lift the folding fan in his hand without any delay.

The dagger touched the bamboo fan and made a surprisingly metal-clashing sound.

Qi Yue found that the young man's fan was held very skillfully, not only blocking his attack but also not allowing him to easily retrieve the dagger. After the inexplicable burst of panic in his heart faded, Qi Yue's usually dark and serious eyes exploded with a surge of appreciation.

This fan was naturally an ordinary fan, but it played such an effect in the hands of the youth. It was unexpected that this person looked weak but had such power.

"There are assassins! Help, save...lives!"

Seeing that the eldest prince was being attacked, Wei Lin could not care less about himself and immediately jumped to help, almost screaming out in public a "help" used only for the emperor.

Ignoring the panic behind him, Qing Yun had actually been prepared for this. As early as the beginning, he felt a burning gaze sweeping over the room he was in from time to time, and later on, it simply stared unrestrainedly.

"Heh." Qing Yun looked at the hastily masked man in front of him. This man was by no means an ordinary person. His aura was obviously collected and released freely. When Qing Yun first entered the Qing Yang Building, he clearly did not feel that there was someone with such an aura inside the building.

Noticing that the dagger stuck in the fan bone was retracting backward, Qing Yun laughed sarcastically, "What, you want to retreat after a failed blow?"

Why does this person smile so nicely?

Qi Yue thought he was crazy. In this public place, under this dangerous situation of accidentally exposing his identity, he looked at the slightly raised corner of the youth's mouth, and what he was thinking was this.

He used eight points of strength on his hands to take the dagger away. Qi Yue turned over to leave but was entangled by the young man.

This white-clothed youth, armed with only a folding fan, was able to fight him to a draw.

One after another, the two have quickly crossed more than two dozen moves. From inside the room to outside the room, from inside the Qing Yang Building to outside the building, and eventually, the two flew up to the roof and fought.

The more they fought, the more appreciation there was in Qi Yue's eyes. Later, they simply let go of the restrictions and released all their internal force.

Qi Yue was both surprised and appreciative in his heart. He has never met a rival in martial arts and did not expect to fight so soundly today. This young man...is definitely to his liking.

It was not only Qi Yue who was surprised. Qing Yun moved his hands and gradually had a thought in his heart. There are unmistakably not many people who can have such skills in the entire Great Yan. After some calculations, Qing Yun guessed the man's identity.

He came up to the man's ear and chuckled, "I didn't expect that the Great General of the North would commit such a sneak attack and murder."

Being guessed by the youth, Qi Yue did not become irritated but laughed aloud and asked Qing Yun with a burning gaze, "Have you seen me?"

Seeing that the man simply agreed, Qing Yun frowned and looked the man up and down. Suddenly, he reached out and held the fan in his hand to knock on a specific point on the man's waist.