Chapter 47: The Situation Becomes Gradually Clear

Princess Ruyue had developed a profound interest in Li Ye.

Suddenly, Li Ye was like an enigma, drawing her in and making her want to understand and explore him.

Because the Third Prince maintained close ties with the military generals of the imperial court, the Princess, as the daughter of the Prince of Equal Rank, naturally walked closer to the Third Prince. However, there was no romantic attachment whatsoever between Princess Ruyue and the Third Prince.

The Third Prince favored martial arts, but literary accomplishments were his greatest weakness. Although Princess Ruyue had practiced martial arts since childhood, she preferred the study of literature. Next came music and rhyming verse, and martial arts came dead last. Furthermore, Princess Ruyue believed that a country should be governed by culture and civility. If a country were ruled solely by military force, it would plunge the nation into endless warfare and leave the common people destitute. Thus, she merely regarded the Third Prince as an older brother.

Yet, the other young talents she encountered fell far short of her literary standards. Consequently, Princess Ruyue had remained single. Coupled with the fact that she was the apple of the Prince of Equal Rank's eye, her father would never let her marry lightly, having promised to let her choose her own husband.

While Princess Ruyue had not fallen in love with Li Ye or desired to marry him simply because he composed two poems, she certainly held no small degree of favorable impression toward him. The more she pondered, the more unfathomable Li Ye's actions appeared. His commercial pursuits and love for wealth were merely a facade. In truth, he was capable of leading troops into battle while possessing extraordinary literary talent. Such a man made the Princess feel as though she had finally found a kindred spirit. She had already made up her mind to interact with Li Ye more frequently in the future and truly get to know him.

The conversation that followed consisted of rather insipid topics—either where the scenery was lovely or which restaurant served decent food. Since the Crown Prince and the Third Prince were fierce competitors, neither continued to openly court Li Ye on the spot. Both parties maintained a tacit understanding, yet each had already resolved in their hearts to draw Li Ye over to their side no matter what.

After chatting for more than an hour, Li Ye finally stood up to take his leave.

"It is getting late, and the wine has made me a bit lightheaded. To avoid making a fool of myself, I shall take my leave early," Li Ye said as he rose.

As he spoke, he swayed slightly on his feet. Xiaocui hurriedly stepped forward to steady him.

"Since that is the case, Ruyue will not press you to stay longer! I hope you will not refuse if there is an opportunity in the future for us to discuss poetry together again."

"Haha, to fulfill Princess Ruyue's request is my greatest desire; how could I possibly refuse?"

"Since the Sixth Brother has had too much to drink, you should go back and rest first. I will host a banquet to invite you another day!"

"Very well!"

"Crown Prince, Third Brother, everyone, farewell!"

Li Ye bowed to the assembly, then turned and departed with unsteady steps.

Linyue's eyes were filled with utter adoration for Li Ye. She had no idea his literary talent was so exceptional; she had rarely seen him read much in the past. To think he was so formidable as to overshadow Princess Ruyue, the foremost talented woman of the realm. Linyue felt an overwhelming sense of pride. Her master was truly remarkable—not only proficient in both the scholarly and martial arts, but also extraordinarily astute in business. He held the master plan for everything he did. Such a man was well worth her lifelong devotion.

Together, they supported Li Ye as they walked out of the Immortal Gathering Tower. The moment they stepped into the carriage, Li Ye's drunkenness vanished entirely.

"I knew Your Highness was only feigning intoxication; a little wine like that could never truly make you drunk," Xiaocui remarked.

"Did Your Highness fake drunkenness to leave because you didn't wish to speak with them any longer?"

With a solemn expression, Li Ye replied, "Indeed. Everyone knows the Third Prince and the Crown Prince are contending for the throne. They both want to rope me in while simultaneously fearing I might be won over by the other. Such an environment is nothing short of torture for me."

"Your Highness displayed astonishing literary talent today, which may not be a good thing. I'm afraid both imperial princes will redouble their efforts to recruit you. If they fail to win you over, they will undoubtedly view you as a threat." Linyue was quite perplexed. Usually, Li Ye tried his utmost to conceal his brilliance and minimize his presence. Yet today, he had acted entirely out of character with such a stunning display. From now on, even if he wanted to keep a low profile, it would be impossible.

Li Ye let out a deep sigh. "Originally, I had no desire to do so! But this Shi Wushuang is no good man. I always felt that Yunlu Pavilion sending him here harbored malicious intentions. I had to strike him down, to completely shatter the halo of being Yunlu Pavilion's most renowned disciple, and make everyone realize that he is nothing special after all."

"What? Shi Wushuang actually harbors ill intentions? Why would that be?" Linyue asked, greatly astonished. Although Linyue held no affection for Shi Wushuang—after all, he had stolen Li Ye's woman and she despised him intensely regardless—she had never imagined this. Even though Linyue had detested Qin Qingxue from the very beginning and hoped she would part ways with Li Ye sooner, Shi Wushuang's brazen snatching of another man's beloved was something Linyue found utterly unacceptable.

She had originally assumed Li Ye simply loathed the man out of justifiable resentment. But to claim that Shi Wushuang harbored malicious designs against Dayuan was something she found hard to comprehend.

Li Ye trusted Xiaocui and Linyue implicitly and kept nothing from them. He explained, "Judging by Shi Wushuang's usual demeanor, if a man is truly infatuated with the woman he loves, he should cherish her down to his very bones. Yet today, when he looked at Princess Ruyue, his eyes revealed undisguised greed. He is in the throes of a passionate romance with Qin Qingxue, yet he takes an interest in another woman. This can only mean one thing: he does not truly love Qin Qingxue at all. His approach to her has an ulterior motive. Qin Qingxue's only notable asset is her identity as a female general of the Dayuan Dynasty. I fear he intends to use this connection to seize control of Dayuan's military power. He is merely a disciple dispatched by Yunlu Pavilion to be stationed here, seeking an official post in the imperial court. Even if he were close to the Crown Prince and gave him full support, that would be normal. Yet, he chose to accept the Third Prince's invitation as well. That is highly abnormal."

"Your Highness means to say that Shi Wushuang is playing both sides, hoping to gain the support of both the Crown Prince and the Third Prince, or perhaps willing to be courted by both?" Linyue mused, her beautiful eyes growing brighter and brighter as she seemed to grasp the underlying logic.

"Precisely. Shi Wushuang dares to treat the Third Prince and the Crown Prince as mere chess pieces, making them slaughter each other while he sits back to reap the fisherman's profit. If my guess is correct, Yunlu Pavilion's true ambition is to seize control of the entire Dayuan Dynasty."

Hearing this, Linyue drew in a sharp breath of cold air, utterly shocked. "This is no trivial matter! We must report this to the Emperor immediately."

"No, no. I suspect His Majesty already knows! Now that I think about it, the disciples of Yunlu Pavilion travel far and wide, actively interfering in the political affairs of many nations. Their ambitions likely extend far beyond this. Their ultimate goal is to conquer the entire realm. The reason His Majesty gave me an army is probably because he saw through my discord with Shi Wushuang, and granting me troops was merely a way to strengthen my standing," Li Ye analyzed.

"So that was it! No wonder when we were fighting at the front, General Zhao Wudi suddenly arrived with reinforcements. It must have been because the Emperor feared you might be in danger or unable to cope with the bandits of Vulture Mountain, and sent General Zhao to assist you." Linyue finally pieced everything together.

Li Ye stretched lazily and said, "Since His Majesty has given me a task, I have no choice but to carry it out. Besides, as long as I want to live a comfortable life, I will never allow Yunlu Pavilion to meddle in the affairs of the court."