1612: He Could Use This Opportunity To Catch His Breath

He Could Use This Opportunity To Catch His Breath

Yaoyao glanced at the man out of the corner of her eye. It would be a little awkward to be alone with him at that moment, so she would rather Chen Jin stay.0

She asked casually, "By the way, did you get any information out of that assassin?"

Pretending not to notice his master's murderous gaze, Chen Jin answered dutifully, "The medicine you gave worked, Your Highness. The assassin has confessed that it was all Prince Chen's doing."

"So it was him?" Yaoyao looked at Beitang You, only slightly surprised. Beitang You had already speculated earlier that Prince Chen was the culprit; it was just that the assassin had insisted on accusing Prince Jing.

"Yes." Beitang You nodded. His expression had returned to normal, and he began to explain to her patiently. "I think he grew alert after his failed attempt at ambushing me, so I sent someone to escort him to the imperial capital secretly two days ago. The news wasn't leaked, but he must have known that I was going to deal with him, hence he sent an assassin to attack me. His goal was to shift the blame to Prince Jing and divert my attention. 

"He was certain that I'd become suspicious of Prince Jing after the assassination attempt, and I'd delay my plans for him and shift my target to Prince Jing instead. That way, he could use this opportunity to catch his breath and come up with another plan to conspire against me." 

Yaoyao shuddered. "He's a cunning man, that's for sure, but he's outsmarted himself this time—you didn't suspect Prince Jing at all."

Beitang You put down the Palace Memorial in his hand and pinched his brow. "That's not true. If you didn't happen to have that hallucinogenic that made the assassin confess the truth, I'd have kept my doubts about Prince Jing—even though I knew it could be Prince Chen's plot to shift the blame away from him." 

Yaoyao was dumbfounded.

Perhaps this was the struggle of being an emperor—he had to be wary of everyone.

All of a sudden, she felt that being an emperor was exhausting—there was not a moment when he could let his guard down.

"Then what's your next step?" she could not help asking.

"I'll beat him at his own game," said Beitang You evenly.

Yaoyao nodded. "That's a good idea. We'll trick Prince Chen into thinking that his plan has succeeded, then seize him in one fell swoop once he lets his guard down."

Beitang You chuckled, the fatigue on his face seeming to fade a little. "Smart girl! It appears that my future empress is a brilliant strategist too."

Yaoyao recognized the teasing edge in his tone and shot him an annoyed look. "I'm done talking to you. I need to go back and take a bath."

Beitang You approached her from behind the table. "I'll walk you back."

"No need for that—my room's just nearby. It'd be a hassle for you to walk me back." Yaoyao hurriedly refused as she eyed the Palace Memorials on his table. "I've wasted a lot of your time talking to you, so you should get back to work—don't worry about me." She started to make her way outside, but he grabbed her wrist.

"What're you…" Yaoyao stopped short and froze when she felt a cool sensation on her forehead.

"Good night, my princess." Beitang You straightened up and smiled at her.

"Good night…" Yaoyao sounded a little distant.

"Escort the princess back to her room," Beitang You ordered Chen Jin in a low voice.

"Yes, Master." Chen Jin, who had been desperately trying to blend into the background all this time, finally responded.

"See you, then," said Yaoyao softly.

"See you. Sleep properly—don't kick off your blankets," Beitang You warned.

Startled, Yaoyao glanced at him in puzzlement. How did he know she kicked her blankets in her sleep?

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