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

Chapter 356 He wasn't scared, he was just too excited.

Divine Sword!
Unsheath!

As Zhen Yan watched the Crown Prince hand him the pen, his head began to buzz!
Can he even write this? Absolutely not!

Once the pen is put down, the consequences will be far worse than those so-called "Number One Memorial Under Heaven"!
Now look what's happened! The Crown Prince keeps talking about the common people and the world, effectively blocking all his escape routes!
What should he do?
When he impeached the emperor, he repeatedly claimed that he was acting out of pure public interest!
And what happened? Now, for the sake of the dynasty's continuation, when asked to actually draft tax reforms, he chickened out.

Isn't this a laughing stock?
What will the entire court think of him?

What will my colleagues say behind my back?

and also……

Writing is a dead end!
Not writing is a dead end!
This...this is driving me crazy!

Shen Ye glanced coldly at the stunned Zhen Yan, a cold smile creeping across his face.

He could tell that, at this moment, Lord Zhen was probably terrified!
But the arrow was already on the string and had to be released; how could we let him back down?
Having finally found a "tool" who is both obedient and famous, they have no choice but to take the lead!
If you want to mess things up at a crucial moment, do you think I'll let you do whatever you want?

"Lord Zhen, the people of the world are all waiting for you to wield the Great Zhou Divine Sword!"

"You can't let the whole world down, can you?"

"Hurry up and write!"

Without waiting for a reply, Shen Ye shoved the pen into Zhen Yan's hand.

Looking at Shen Ye's burning gaze, Zhen Yan felt incredibly frustrated.

He understood that he seemed to have only one path left to take!
So, the moment he took the pen, his legs went weak, his body swayed, and he fell to the ground with a thud!
He didn't care whether the ground was hard or not, or whether his posture was awkward or not, or whether what he was doing was undignified. At this critical moment, saving his life was the most important thing.

fainted!

At this moment, everyone in the hall was taken aback!
Everyone could hardly believe their eyes.

However, some people think it's normal—

Emperor Qianxi had long seen through Zhen Yan's true nature from his struggles!
While cursing under his breath, he also felt a sense of satisfaction:

You're just bored out of your mind and dare to impeach me? Do you think I'm someone to be trifled with?

Before anything even happened, you cowardly fool, you've already fainted from fright. Heh, perfect, this time I'm going to make sure you're utterly disgraced!

Trying to use me to boost your reputation? You've got some nerve! You've picked the wrong person!
Just as Emperor Qianxi was about to order his men to lift Zhen Yan up and then deliver a few more sarcastic remarks, Shen Ye suddenly spoke up: "Guards, quickly help Lord Zhen up!"

"Lord Zhen was too excited—the thought of being able to speak out for the people and advocate for their rights overwhelmed him, and he accidentally fainted!"

"Such a magnanimous spirit of caring for the world and forgetting oneself is truly admirable."

"Quickly summon the imperial physician and give Lord Zhen good care. After Lord Zhen wakes up, have him write this memorial."

"Make sure you take good care of Lord Zhen."

Zhen Yan's head was throbbing with pain, but at this moment, he dared not make the slightest movement!

He knew very well that his survival depended entirely on how well he acted right now.

Unexpectedly, the Crown Prince uttered such words.

Zhen Yan was seething with anger: You're the one who's excited!
Your whole family is so excited!
Can't you just be a good person?!

However, he only dared to curse in his heart and vent his anger. Since he was "dazed," he absolutely could not wake up.

In less than half a minute, he was swiftly carried away.

The thought of the Crown Prince's words, "Wake up before you write," made him wish he would never wake up.

With Zhen Yan fainting, this court confrontation was finally over.

Emperor Qianxi had won a great victory, and his face was full of smiles.

Tong Guowei and Zhang Ying, however, had ashen faces.

The ministers behind them also all looked grim.

Who doesn't know that the Crown Prince is telling the truth? But who would be willing to sacrifice their present interests for something that may not even happen in the future?
They are all rich, and their relatives and friends are all rich. Who would want to pay more taxes?

"Lord Tong, would you like to have a private audience with the Emperor?" Zhang Ying asked in a low voice.

Tong Guowei waved his hand and said, "There's no rush."

"His Majesty was just in a good mood. Wouldn't it be bad luck to say something now?"

"To avoid the opposite of what's intended!"

Zhang Ying glanced at the smiling Emperor Qianxi, pondered for a moment, and then nodded in agreement.

Many ministers' eyes were still fixed on the tax change chart that Shen Ye had displayed, their expressions constantly shifting, but no one spoke.

No one knew what to say, let alone how to advise the emperor.

Besides, reform is not something that can be accomplished overnight. It would be better to go back and discuss it in detail later.

After all, the nail that sticks out gets hammered down.

Nobody wants to be the unlucky one before everything is agreed upon.

After the officials dispersed, Emperor Qianxi pulled Shen Ye aside to a side hall and asked with displeasure, "You scared Zhen Yan so much that he fainted. Why didn't you take the opportunity to punish him for 'having ulterior motives'?"

"Killing this kind of trash is no big deal; we'll find someone else to replace them later."

Clearly, Emperor Qianxi was furious with Zhen Yan for daring to publicly criticize him.

Now that he has a chance to vent his anger, he certainly doesn't want to let it go.

Shen Ye understood Emperor Qianxi's feelings—after all, it was incredibly humiliating for a dignified emperor to be publicly insulted by a mere official!
I can't quell my hatred without killing him!

Shen Ye wasn't surprised, and calmly said, "Father, Zhen Yan doesn't deserve to die. But right now, we still need him!"

"No, it should be said that tax reform needs a 'sharp sword' that can charge into battle and move forward without hesitation."

"Your subject is not fit to be this sword, nor is anyone else willing to be."

“Now that Zhen Yan has stepped forward himself, I think he is the most suitable, so let’s grant his request!”

"After all, he has already submitted the 'Number One Memorial in the World'!"

Emperor Qianxi, recalling Zhen Yan's cowardly demeanor just now, curled his lip in disdain and said, "Him? A 'divine sword' like Hai Rui? He doesn't deserve it!"

Shen Ye smiled and said, "Father, of course he is not worthy."

"But, we have to choose the best among the cripples, so we can only use him right now."

"At present, he is in a dilemma and has no choice but to obey."

“We can forge it into the ‘divine sword’ of our Great Zhou. That way, if anything happens in the future, my son and I won’t have to personally intervene!”

Emperor Qianxi pondered for a moment and then nodded.

But then he sighed and said, "Your Highness, do you understand now?"

"Zhen Yan would rather write a memorial criticizing me, the emperor, than dare to touch the privileges of those officials and gentry!"

"Thinking about it, it's truly disheartening!"

Shen Ye wanted to say that this was normal. He had only offended one person, but if he offended all the officials and gentry in the world, he would be courting death.

Thinking this in his heart, he calmly said, "Father, that's precisely why we need someone to pave the way for us."

"Moreover, we must not show any weakness."

"Otherwise, tax reform will be even more distant."

Emperor Qianxi nodded and said, "You did a good job today. I'll leave Zhen Yan to you."

"I hope you can truly forge him into a 'divine sword' capable of cutting through all obstacles!"

Shen Ye solemnly replied, "Please rest assured, Father, I will certainly live up to your expectations."

Emperor Qianxi returned to the Sizhi Study in a good mood, while the princes stayed behind.

Shen Ye said to everyone, "Eldest brother, brothers, today's debate has finally not disappointed Father."

"I've prepared some food and drinks, how about we have a couple of drinks together?"

The eldest prince knew that this meal was, in essence, a celebration for the crown prince's victory.

Of course he didn't want to go.

But this time, the fact that Zhen Yan was criticized to the point of fainting is a great joy. If I don't agree to celebrate, wouldn't that mean that this result is not what I want to see?
That would make it seem even more like dissatisfaction with the Emperor.

So he hesitated for a moment, then said insincerely, "If Your Highness is so kind, then we brothers will have to trouble Your Highness today."

The Third Prince and the Fourth Prince were even less inclined to attend the banquet. After all, they had not performed well today; their methods were not exactly honorable, and they had been rendered speechless by Zhen Yan's sharp retorts.

How could two defeated generals possibly have the face to eat?

However, seeing that the eldest prince had agreed, they had no choice but to bite the bullet and follow.

"Today, the Crown Prince displayed his might, making that fellow surnamed Zhen suffer greatly! We must offer the Crown Prince a proper toast!"

The Tenth Prince chuckled and chimed in, "If you ask me, among us brothers, only the Crown Prince can handle this kind of guy!"

The third and fourth brothers were getting increasingly annoyed. If you want to flatter someone, just do it. Why do you have to be so sycophantic and domineering? Are you doing this on purpose or something? Are you afraid that the young master won't remember our performance today or what?

Shen Ye responded modestly to the Tenth Prince's praise and then returned to his residence surrounded by the crowd.

The wine was good, and the food was good.

The meal lasted for more than an hour, and when everyone left, they all looked drunk.

The fourth prince seemed to have drunk too much, and the eighth prince helped him walk back.

However, as they approached their residence, the Fourth Prince suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Eighth Brother, we've been a bit too hasty this time."

"The Crown Prince refuted Zhen Yan, and Father Emperor will probably trust him even more!"

The Eighth Prince did not let go of the Fourth Prince's hand, but replied in a low voice, "Fourth Brother, I think that although the Crown Prince is triumphant today, he has also sown the seeds of his own downfall."

"He wanted to reform the tax system and take back the privileges that the court had given to officials and gentry. His ideas were good, but he also made countless enemies."

"When all the officials and gentry in the world oppose him, that will be the day his position as crown prince is lost."

"Our opportunity will come then."

The fourth prince hesitated for a moment and then asked, "Eighth brother, do you think the crown prince really wants to implement tax reform?"

"Fourth Brother, in my opinion, the Crown Prince is definitely not just talking about this."

"Since he's even produced that tax table, he's probably serious about it."

The Eighth Prince said, a hint of a smile in his voice, "Fourth Brother, the feeling of being 'enemies of the world' is not pleasant."

The fourth prince looked hesitant.

He didn't want to be at odds with the world, but deep down, he harbored a faint hope for tax reform.

Will the Crown Prince fail?
　The first update of the day is here! Please support me, everyone! And please vote!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)