The Prodigal Son

The next day, Qin Yu got up early and spent nearly an hour in his room tempering his body before hastily eating something and heading to the palace.

He arrived precisely on time.

He entered the palace around the time the court session was ending.

"Qin Yu, Qin Yu..."

Just as he was walking towards the inner palace, he heard a voice calling out to him.

Qin Yu looked in the direction of the sound and saw Lü Si waving at him from afar.

What's wrong with this kid?

It actually took the initiative to greet me today?

Is he planning to default on his debt?

Qin Yu was secretly suspicious and walked towards Lü Si, who also walked towards them.

The two were like a pair heading in opposite directions...

Nonsence!

What a load of nonsense!

As soon as Lü Si arrived, he mysteriously pulled Qin Yu aside, as if he were a thief.

What are you doing?

Qin Yu looked at Lü Si, puzzled.

Lu Si looked around and asked in a low voice, "I heard that the heir of the Prince of Chengyang has issued a challenge to you?"

"and then?"

Qin Yu raised an eyebrow and teased, "What, are you going to challenge me too?"

"Speak properly!"

Lu Si looked displeased and snorted, "Let me tell you, Zhao Yan is now trying to win me over!"

"To win you over?"

Qin Yu laughed. "What, are you guys forming a losers' alliance?"

"you……"

Lu Si was furious. "If you don't speak properly, I'm not talking to you anymore!"

"As if I'm going to tell you that?" Qin Yu rolled her eyes at him. "Just remember to pay me back! The rest is up to you!"

With that, Qin Yu prepared to leave.

"No, no!"

Lu Si quickly grabbed Qin Yu, "Are you in such a hurry to reincarnate? I haven't finished speaking yet!"

"Speak your mind, or shut up!"

Qin Yu was displeased. "I still have to see His Majesty. If I'm delayed and His Majesty blames me, I can put all the blame on you!"

"I'm telling you, you son of a bitch, you don't know what's good for you!" Lü Si glared angrily at Qin Yu, then glanced around furtively before lowering his voice and saying in a seductive tone, "If you forgive my debt, I'll become Zhao Yan's inside man!"

What the hell!

Qin Yu looked as if he had seen a ghost.

Lü Si has become clever!

Everyone knows that a good bird chooses a good tree to perch on, right?

However, what surprised Qin Yu even more was that Lü Si would actually bring up this matter on his own initiative.

"Shouldn't you be hoping Zhao Yan would kill me? Why are you trying to be my mole? Just so I can forgive your debts?"

Qin Yu looked Lü Si up and down, as if trying to see right through him.

"That's one aspect."

Lü Si did not avoid Qin Yu's gaze, "I had dinner with him yesterday, and I suddenly realized that compared to Zhao Yan, you are still slightly more pleasing to the eye..."

Of course, he couldn't tell Qin Yu the truth.

Whether Zhao Yan acted formally or not was unimportant to him.

The important thing is that he heard from his father last night that Zhao Yan had asked the Emperor for his hand in marriage!

Moreover, this scoundrel spends all his time running around the peony garden, and it is said that the Empress Dowager is very pleased with this bastard!

If he gains favor with the Empress Dowager, she will pamper him from now on. What will he have left to do?

"It's impossible to forgive the debt!"

Qin Yu patted Lü Si on the shoulder, "However, if you really become my inside man, I can share some of the benefits with you!"

"I want my debts forgiven!"

Lu Si insisted, "Let me tell you, Zhao Yan knows I have a deep-seated hatred for you, he would never imagine that I would be your inside man! Being your inside man will only bring benefits, not harm!"

Would it be beneficial to include him in the trip?

Dogs don't believe it!

What benefits did Qin Yu get from bringing him along?

They've done plenty of things to swindle him!

The only advantage is that I bought it myself for 100,000 taels of silver!

"That won't do!"

Qin Yu shook his head, "Paying back debts is a matter of course!"

Seeing that Qin Yu was unmoved by reason, Lü Si became anxious.

After a moment's hesitation, Lü Si steeled his resolve and gritted his teeth, saying, "Then let's each take a step back! You forgive half of my debt! That's my bottom line!"

"You can definitely lower your bottom line a bit."

Qin Yu smiled at Lü Si, "How about this? I'll waive the change for you, you just need to pay me back 100,000 taels of silver! Consider the medicine I gave you for treating your injuries a gift!"

It's no big deal if I lose 30,000 taels!

I happen to have a plan.

If necessary, Lü Si might have to resort to a self-inflicted injury ruse.

Consider this an advance payment for medical expenses!

Hearing Qin Yu's words, Lü Si couldn't help but curse inwardly.

Is my own face only worth this little bit of money?

After hesitating for a moment, Lü Si offered another condition, "Then do me one more favor! Put in a good word for me with His Majesty and ask him to grant me exemption from court!"

"You don't want to attend court either?"

Qin Yu felt as if he had found a kindred spirit.

Suddenly, he and Lü Si felt a sense of mutual respect and admiration.

"Who the hell wants to attend court!"

Lü Si snorted, "Isn't it better for me to sleep in at home until I naturally wake up? I went to court with my father early this morning, and I'm still sleepy! The court is really something, can't they hold court after 9 AM?"

Speaking of this matter, Lü Si was very depressed.

He was not as excited as he was yesterday when he went to court.

I just feel sleepy!

I should have asked for a fifth-rank official position.

That way, there's no need to attend court!

Qin Yu thought for a moment and replied, "I can only mention it to His Majesty on your behalf, but I can't guarantee whether it will be successful!"

Lu Si frowned.

What if that grandson doesn't even mention it?

After hesitating for a moment, Lü Si finally nodded in agreement: "Then it's settled!"

Although Qin Yu is a bit of a scoundrel, his reputation is still pretty good!

Most importantly, he genuinely disliked that grandson of Zhao Yan.

Once the agreement was reached, Lü Si immediately informed Qin Yu: "Zhao Yan wants to undermine your prestige at the Confucian Temple debate in a few days!"

Qin Yu scoffed, "I have no interest in the debate at the Confucian Temple, so how can he possibly undermine my prestige?"

Although he had never participated in the debates at the Confucian Temple, he knew a little about them.

The Temple of Literature is not a temple; its full name is the Temple of Literature Academy.

Its predecessor was the Taoist temple where Tao Gao, the sage of literature, lectured and taught.

A debate is held at the Confucian Temple on the tenth of each month.

Debates are not limited to any particular topic; sometimes they are debates about national policies, and sometimes they are debates about a major event.

"Are you stupid?"

Lu Si snorted, "Since he has this plan, he should have a way to make you scream in the Confucian Temple debate! However, I don't know what his method is right now. I'll tell you when I find out!"

"OK!"

Qin Yu nodded and smiled.

This guy really got into the undercover role pretty quickly!

Check it out!

That's what it means to love what you do!

I hope he's not a double agent!

Soon, the two of them left separately.

Qin Yu wandered around for quite a while before entering the inner palace.

Soon, Qin Yu arrived outside the Imperial Study.

After receiving the report, Qin Yu was taken into the Imperial Study by Shangguan Youyi.

As soon as Qin Yu entered, Zhao Luan's cold gaze swept over him. "Qin Yu, how dare you! On your first day in office, you're already an hour and a half late! Do you think I'm being too lenient with you, or are you trying to intimidate me?"