Quick Transmigration: Cannon Fodder's Daily Rise to Power and Face-Slapping

Chapter 217 Slapping the Arrogant Crown Prince in the Face 10

Civil and military officials, as well as the people of the capital, all watched from the steps. Although they were kneeling on the ground, their attention was focused on the platform leading to heaven.

If burning the sacrificial text takes too long, it will inevitably arouse their suspicion.

The emperor ignored what Gongsun Jing said. He lit the sacrificial text with a tinderbox and then threw it directly in front of him.

Gongsun Jing thought his reminder had worked, so he retreated somewhat smugly.

When the sixth prince heard what Gongsun Jing said, he looked at Gongsun Jing in disbelief.

He prepared all the utensils used in the sacrificial ceremony, so if there were any problems, he would be held responsible.

He looked at the cauldron with worried eyes, fearing that it might suddenly explode or cause some kind of accident.

However, the subsequent sacrificial ceremony went smoothly, and the sixth prince was finally able to relax.

After the sacrificial ceremony to Heaven, the emperor returned to the palace and summoned Crown Prince Gongsun Jing, Sixth Prince Gongsun Xiu, and Imperial Advisor Dongfang Ye into the main hall.

They stood in the main hall, and the emperor asked in a deep voice, "Crown Prince! How did you know there was a problem with the cauldron?"

The Crown Prince already had the answer. Upon hearing this, he calmly replied, "Father, the flames burning in the cauldron are a strange color, with some blue-green light emanating from them."

"Imperial Advisor, how did you know?" the emperor asked Dongfang Ye again.

"Your Majesty, the smell from the burning furnace is rather strange, with a slightly bitter odor. If I'm not mistaken, it should be white phosphorus. Fortunately, the quantity is very small, so even if it's poisonous, the impact will be minimal," Dongfang Ye said calmly.

"Crown Prince, kneel down!" the emperor suddenly shouted.

Gongsun Jing knelt down, bewildered, his expression surprised. "Father?"

"I ask you, the cauldron is so tall, how did you see the flames coming out?" the emperor asked sternly.

"Father, the wind is strong on the mountaintop, and some firelights were blown up. I saw them when I looked up," Gongsun Jing replied respectfully.

The emperor looked at Gongsun Jing's inscrutable expression, and finally said in a deep voice, "Get up."

"Xiu'er, you failed to properly supervise the sacrificial ceremony. You are hereby fined three years' salary. Do you have any objections?" the emperor asked the sixth prince beside him.

"Your subject has no objection," the Sixth Prince said, kneeling.

"Alright, you may all leave," the emperor said wearily.

After the group left, the chief eunuch stepped forward to refill the emperor's tea. The emperor drank the tea in one gulp and then sighed, "Pick a few treasures from the private treasury and send them to Xiu'er. He has been on the frontier for so many years, and now he has to suffer again. We should make it up to him."

"Yes." The chief eunuch gave a look to a junior eunuch beside him, who nodded and turned to leave the hall.

As soon as the sixth prince returned to his palace, he saw several large boxes on the table and asked in surprise, "What are these?"

A young eunuch quickly stepped forward and kowtowed, saying, "Greetings, Sixth Prince. This is a treasure specially selected by His Majesty for you. We hope you will like it."

Upon hearing this, the Sixth Prince personally opened several boxes. The boxes were filled with a dazzling array of jewels, all of which were rare treasures he had never seen before. There were also several boxes of gold bars and gold ingots.

"Father, what's going on?"

"His Majesty said you suffered hardships on the frontier and were wronged after returning. This is compensation for you," the young eunuch replied respectfully.

The sixth prince laughed heartily upon hearing this, "Then thank you very much, Father! Men, carefully store these treasures away!"

The young eunuch smiled, bowed, and left. The sixth prince turned around, sat down in a chair, poured himself some tea, and drank it.

His personal attendant stepped forward, bowed upon seeing so many treasures, and asked, "My lord, where should these treasures be placed?"

The sixth prince raised his hand and lightly tapped the servant on the head. "What are you doing! Exchange all that gold for cotton clothes and rice, and send them to the frontier!"

"Just put the rest of the gemstones and jewelry in any storeroom."

"Yes, my lord!" The servant waved his hand behind him, and several other servants came in to carry the boxes.

"By the way, make it discreet, don't let them find out!" the Sixth Prince said.

"Yes, Your Majesty, rest assured," the attendant replied, then turned and left with the other attendants.

The sixth prince was in high spirits after receiving the reward, but Gongsun Jing returned to the East Palace with a grudge.

After returning to the East Palace, Gongsun Jing remained silent. He tore up all the characters for "patience" he had written and threw them on the ground. Only after venting all his anger did he have his study cleaned up.

When the guest minister entered the study, Gongsun Jing's complexion had returned to normal.

"How did things go?" Gongsun Jing asked in a deep voice.

"Your Highness, it will take another month," the guest minister replied, bowing.

"We must make sure everything goes perfectly! You know that, otherwise we're all doomed!" Gongsun Jing said in a low voice.

"Your Highness, rest assured, I will do my utmost!"

Gongsun Jing beckoned his guest to come forward, and they continued their detailed discussion.

*

When Dongfang Ye returned to the mansion, he saw Leng Yuexing waiting for him in the front hall.

Leng Yuexing sat in the chair, smiling as she looked at him and said, "Did the Emperor ask you?"

Dongfang Ye quickly stepped forward, pulled Leng Yuexing into his arms, and nodded, saying, "I asked."

"Then?"

"The emperor doesn't believe the sixth prince did this, so he punished him with three years' salary. He seems to have a lot of doubts about the crown prince," Dongfang Ye said, recalling the scene just now.

“The Crown Prince probably won’t be able to tolerate this any longer,” Leng Yuexing said with a smile.

"The Emperor was able to let it go so lightly even though the sacrificial ceremony was ruined, and he gave the Sixth Prince such a lenient punishment. How could the Crown Prince possibly tolerate this?"

Dongfang Ye nodded. "According to information obtained from our informant, the Eastern Palace had already entered a state of full martial law beforehand."

Upon hearing this, Leng Yuexing raised an eyebrow and said, "So, he's really going to rebel? Tell the Sixth Prince this news, and we should start preparing."

"This is not urgent."

"Not in a hurry? Then what's the rush?" Leng Yuexing asked, raising an eyebrow.

Dongfang Ye chuckled lightly, "Naturally, it's because our wedding is in a hurry."

"You want to hold the wedding ceremony before the Crown Prince's operation?" Leng Yuexing asked with a smile.

“Of course, there is a national mourning period after the emperor dies. I don’t want to wait that long. I want the whole world to know that you are mine as soon as possible!” Dongfang Ye said, cupping Leng Yuexing’s cheeks.

Leng Yuexing suddenly smiled, "Alright, I'll do as you say!"

Upon receiving Leng Yuexing's reply, Dongfang Ye began preparations the next day.

Dongfang Ye spent two weeks completing all the formalities of the Three Letters and Six Rites except for the wedding ceremony itself, and the wedding ceremony was scheduled for half a month later.

Gongsun Jing was on the verge of madness when he learned of their wedding before he took action.

He desperately asked the guest advisor if the time could be brought forward, but the guest advisor replied that a month was already the fastest time, and there was no way to bring it forward any further.

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Jing smiled sinisterly and said, "Since that's the case, then we'll have to use force!"

"Your Highness! We are about to succeed, and it would be bad to cause any unforeseen complications at this time..." the guest advisor advised.

“After he succeeds, he will belong to someone else. How can I possibly tolerate that?” Gongsun Jing said sternly.

"Your Highness, there are plenty of beauties in the world! Once you become..." The guest minister pointed upwards, "would you still be afraid of not finding a beauty?"

"Oh? You've seen countless beauties, have you ever seen anyone more beautiful than Leng Yuexing?" Gongsun Jing asked slowly.