The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 214 You have a face as thick as a mountain, I have a grudge as deep as the sea
The Sun Also Rises!

As the already chilly sunlight shone on the Qianqing Palace, the guards on their shift came out of their duty rooms in twos and threes.

As the emperor's guards, they were closest to the emperor's face and held power that others envied, but they also carried untold fatigue, with some unable to close their eyes for almost nights on end.

After all, protecting the safety of the supreme Emperor Qianxi was of paramount importance.

"I'm exhausted tonight, I need to get some sleep!"

"Old Suo, you just got married, and I heard your wife is quite delicate. You'd better take it easy!" the young guard teased, winking at him.

"Nonsense! I'm treating tonight, brothers, let's find a place and have some fun!"

……

Amidst the laughter and merriment, a guard suddenly saw the Crown Prince stride over, accompanied by several eunuchs.

Regardless of which prince the guards were closer to, they immediately fell silent upon seeing the Crown Prince, knelt down on one knee in unison, and bowed to him, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness!"

Shen Ye waved to them and said, "No need for formalities."

"By the way, have you ever seen Orondai?"

When the Crown Prince asked Orondai, all the guards present understood.

Most of them had connections in their families; otherwise, they wouldn't have been sent to serve as guards to Emperor Qianxi.

You should know that becoming this guard is like getting on a fast track. As long as you don't make any mistakes, you can get a good position in a few years.

They also knew a thing or two about some of the secrets.

"Your Highness, I have not seen Orondai."

An older-looking guard answered respectfully.

He didn't want to answer the question, but among everyone present, he was the oldest and held the highest position, so he had no choice but to answer.

"I really don't know where that Orondai has disappeared to," Shen Ye said casually. "He still owes me 60,000 taels of silver!"

With that, he waved his hand and said, "Alright, you guys go ahead and get busy."

"I'm going to see His Majesty."

As they were talking, Shen Ye walked away leisurely.

The guards agreed, and after Crown Prince Shen Ye had walked away, they looked at each other and raised their heads.

"Olundai is truly audacious; he even dares to renege on the Crown Prince's money!"

"Hehe, judging from the Crown Prince's tone, he is full of resentment towards Orondai's actions. I think this matter is far from over."

"What can we do if it can't be finished? Even the Crown Prince can't do anything about it. That's because we still have His Majesty!"

"Let's not get involved in this kind of thing. His Majesty will make all the decisions."

The guard who was answering Shen Ye said loudly, "Just be more careful in the future, so you don't end up like him."

The guard's words immediately calmed down the guards present.

Although they didn't say much, they all felt a deep sense of sympathy.
A person who dares to renege on even the Crown Prince's debts will be able to renege on his own debts with just a word!
Therefore, many people are determined to keep their distance from Orondai.

In the Grand Secretary's office, Tong Guowei was enthusiastically giving instructions to his subordinates when he heard a greeting.

Although the Grand Secretaries of the Southern Study held high positions and wielded great power, they still had to be respectful to the Crown Prince when facing him.

Tong Guowei also quickly bowed to Shen Ye.

His mind raced as he pondered how the Crown Prince had ended up in the South Study.

You should know that this is where the prime ministers hold their meetings, so it's not appropriate for the crown prince to come here.

Just as he was pondering how to respond, the Crown Prince had already arrived at Tong Guowei's side.

Whether it was Tong Guowei or Zhang Ying, these Grand Secretaries all came over to pay their respects.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"

Shen Ye waved his hand and said, "Grand Scholar Tong, everyone, there's no need for such formalities."

"What orders does Your Highness have for coming to the Southern Study?" Tong Guowei emphasized the words "Southern Study" very clearly, implying that this was not a place the Crown Prince could come to at will.

Shen Ye smiled and said, "Grand Scholar Tong, the reason I came here is to ask you, have you seen Orondai?"

“If the Crown Prince wants to see Orondai, just let him go.” Tong Guowei’s heart stirred; he knew very well that Orondai was reneging on his debts.

He acted as if this matter had nothing to do with me.

Of course, as the patriarch of the Tong family, his actions were an indulgent attitude.

However, this is normal, since even when Orondai's father was alive, he couldn't control Orondai.

Once, he was so angry with his unfilial son that he went to Emperor Qianxi and asked his nephew to kill the unfilial son.

Emperor Qianxi was forced into a corner by his uncle and could only try to deceive the emperor.

Shen Ye smiled and said, "If I could get him to come over, I would have done so already."

"But Orondai is too busy."

"So much so that he even forgot about the 60,000 taels of silver he owed me."

At this point, he turned to Tong Guowei and said, "Lord Tong, when you see Orondai, tell him that he still owes me 60,000 taels of silver!"

After saying that, Shen Ye turned and left.

Watching the departing Crown Prince, Tong Guowei felt his face burning with shame. Although he wasn't the one in debt, as Tong Guowei's uncle, he still felt humiliated.

He couldn't accuse the Crown Prince of this, because the Crown Prince hadn't even mentioned looking for him.

They're just looking for Orondai!
"Hey, the Crown Prince has even come all the way here looking for people, haha!" Tong Guowei explained softly, noticing the strange looks he was getting.

His explanation received a great deal of response.

"Yes, the Crown Prince is just looking for someone!"

"Lord Tong, let's talk about the situation in Tibet..."

As everyone started talking at once, Tong Guowei's expression finally improved a little.

However, Tong Guowei felt very relaxed at this moment.

If the Crown Prince simply lets go of Orondai's matter so easily, even if the family loses some face, it's not unacceptable.

After all, if the crown prince can't even collect debts owed to him, it will have a significant impact on him.

The Crown Prince did not dare to forcibly confiscate Orondai's property to pay off his debts, after all, Orondai's was the residence of a first-class duke, and without Emperor Qianxi's order, who would dare to confiscate his property?

However, Tong Guowei's smile soon faded, because the very next morning, while he and a group of ministers were waiting outside the Hall of Supreme Harmony for the morning court session, the Crown Prince arrived ahead of schedule.

Unlike usual, the Crown Prince did not come directly to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, but instead entered through the Gate of Supreme Harmony.

Tong Guowei had no idea how the Crown Prince ended up there, since it was quite a distance from Taihe Gate.

Along the way, people kept bowing to the crown prince.

After all, there is a distinction between ruler and subject. Although the crown prince is not the ruler, he is still a semi-ruler, and the respect due to the crown prince must be given.

After a series of greetings, the Crown Prince responded with three sentences: "No need for formalities. Have you seen Orondai? He still owes me 60,000 taels of silver!"

These words were so concise that many ministers wore strange expressions.

Chen Tingjing, the Left Censor-in-Chief in charge of court etiquette, also felt a sharp toothache after hearing his subordinates' report.

To say that the Crown Prince was impolite seems a bit of an overstatement.

However, the Crown Prince's resentment is really not a good thing.

After all, he is the Crown Prince of the current dynasty. For him to keep nagging about how Orondai owes him money, that's... that's not a good way to put it!

But it doesn't seem right for him to criticize the Crown Prince!
It's already infuriating to be owed money and not paid back, so can't we even say something about it?
Even the Qianxi Emperor shouldn't be this domineering!
Left with no other choice, he said to Tong Guowei, "Lord Tong, Orondai owes the Crown Prince money. You must take good care of this matter."

"Look at what this place has become."

Hearing this, Tong Guowei felt quite aggrieved. He spread his hands and said, "Lord Chen, I'm not an inspector, so how can I interfere?"

"Besides, Orondai and I have already separated our families, so I really can't control his affairs!"

Tong Guowei's words made sense, but he was not only Orondai's uncle, but also the chief Grand Secretary of the court. To people, his words sounded like an excuse.

Seeing Tong Guowei's dismissive attitude, Chen Tingjing angrily said, "Since Lord Tong can't handle this, then he shouldn't blame us censors for being rude!"

As he spoke, Chen Tingjing turned and left.

Watching Chen Tingjing leave, Tong Guowei felt a burning urge to bite him.

What does this have to do with me? Why is Chen Tingjing blaming me?
Although he thought it had nothing to do with him, Tong Guowei knew that he really couldn't shirk responsibility for this matter.

Just as Tong Guowei was pondering what to do, he saw Shen Ye walking over with a smile.

Although he harbored countless grievances against Shen Ye, he still had to maintain his composure in the face of the smiling Shen Ye.

"Greetings, Your Highness."

When he bowed, everyone else followed suit!

Shen Ye smiled and said, "No need for such formalities, everyone."

"By the way, Grand Secretary Tong, have you seen Orondai?"

Upon hearing this, Tong Guowei suddenly felt a headache coming on. He forced a smile and was about to speak when Shen Ye said, "You still owe me 60,000 taels of silver!"

These words were spoken in one breath!
Although Tong Guowei was furious, he could only say, "I haven't seen him recently."

Shen Ye smiled and said, "Then, Lord Tong, please continue with your work."

At this point, he turned to Zhang Ying and asked, "Lord Zhang, have you seen Orondai?"

"They still owe me 60,000 taels of silver!"

……

Listening to Shen Ye and Zhang Ying's conversation, Tong Guowei felt his vision blurring.

At this moment, the Crown Prince's questions seemed to make the censors very uncomfortable, but Orondai had truly lost face!

Everyone knows about debtors not paying their debts, but if no one talks about it, it just fades away.

But if the prince mentions it every day and every time he sees him, Orondai will forever be nailed to the pillar of shame for being a deadbeat.

This matter will never be over.

This prince is too cruel.

Just then, he heard the conversation between the Crown Prince and Prince Gong again: "Uncle, have you seen Orondai? He still owes me 60,000 taels of silver!"

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(End of this chapter)