The Demon Prince

Xiao Xingyue remained composed and respectful: "My father and brother's bodies will be returned to the capital in a few days. I request the highest authority to investigate the cause of their deaths!"

Perhaps because the door was closed, the hall was very quiet.

The emperor did not speak immediately, but looked at him for a long time: "Supreme authority? Fine, if you are truly filial, I will not object."

Xiao Xingyue was puzzled.

In fact, he had been observing the emperor ever since he said that. From the moment he uttered those words, the plan to investigate Xiao Junlin and his eight adopted brothers had already begun.

He just hadn't expected the emperor to be so agreeable.

That leaves only two possibilities.

Either the emperor is absolutely certain that he won't find out anything!

Alternatively, the one who killed the father and brothers was not the emperor; the so-called "Nine Pythons Swallowing the Dragon" had another hidden story.

But if it wasn't the emperor, who else could have touched the Xiao family's iron-blooded rule?

The emperor slammed his hand on the table. "If there's nothing else, go and get to work."

Xiao Xingyue raised an eyebrow. "I have one more small request."

The emperor pressed his hand on the imperial desk, his tone already showing signs of impatience: "Granted. I agree to your investigation into the Xiao family's old case, and I also agree to your investigation into the imperial examination fraud. However, if you fail to find any results, I can cancel the vote a month from now and convict you first!"

Xiao Xingyue cupped his hands in greeting: "Your subject understands. Father, please don't move, your subject will do it himself..."

"What do you mean?!" The emperor was taken aback.

……

After a cup of tea.

The door to the Imperial Study opened.

Xiao Xingyue left carrying a bundle of bright yellow robes.

The chief eunuch's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He immediately ran into the imperial study, but as soon as he went around the screen, he froze on the spot.

The emperor stood before his desk, his dragon robe pulled off!

The chief eunuch knelt down with a thud: "Your Majesty, please forgive me."

The emperor gritted his teeth: "If you dare to spread what happened tonight, I will exterminate your entire family."

……

the other side.

Xiao Xingyue had already walked far out of the palace gate.

A night breeze blew, and the imperial aura emanating from the dragon robe enveloped his face. He hugged the dragon robe tighter to his chest.

He glanced back at the palace and smiled.

"Old Deng is quite generous."

The words had barely left his mouth when a furious roar exploded in his ear: "You unfilial son! Kneel down before your father right now!"

As soon as the sound rang out, Xiao Xingyue almost lost his footing and stumbled.

The wind was cold on the palace path, and the lanterns on both sides swayed violently, creating an eerie atmosphere.

He held the dragon robe, frozen in place, his hair standing on end.

The voice is so similar to the one in the original owner's memories—it's Xiao Junlin, the father!

Holy crap! Is it haunted?

Xiao Xingyue's mouth was dry: "Father?"

"Calling me 'father' won't do you any good!" The voice came again from inside the dragon robe: "You stole His Majesty's dragon robe, are you planning a rebellion? You unfilial son! Kneel down!"

Xiao Xingyue's face darkened. It didn't look like a ghost, but rather like someone was imitating Xiao Junlin's voice and playing a prank on him.

"Who is it? Show yourself!"

In the shadows of the palace walls, someone couldn't hold back their laughter and let out a soft "pfft."

A young girl in a light blue palace dress peeked out from behind the wall.

She was about sixteen or seventeen years old. Her black hair was not styled into the high bun that was proper in the palace. It was simply tied up with a wooden hairpin, and a small copper ruler was stuck in her hair.

His waist was covered with small bags, wooden pieces, iron hooks, and thin threads, all clattering together in a jumbled mess.

Despite her young age, she was already quite curvaceous. If you removed her tattered clothes, it would be hard to imagine how alluring her figure must be, especially her ample bosom, which practically stretched open a pile of items.

Xiao Xingyue recognized her; the woman was the Sixth Princess, Li Lingxi.

He was a notorious eccentric in the palace.

He doesn't like poetry, painting, or jewelry; he only loves wood, iron sheets, mechanisms, medicine powder, and other random things.

Learn everything, dismantle everything.

It is said that when the Grand Tutor was lecturing on the classics, she would listen to half of it and use the other half to study the mortise and tenon structure of the lecture table. When the palace maids brought her meals, she could easily turn the food boxes into hidden weapons.

She was also skilled at voice modulation, able to imitate the emperor's cough and the eunuch's shrill voice...

But she has a strange temper; if you can't keep up with her thinking, she won't bother with you.

Those who could keep up with her thinking were mostly unable to withstand her destructive behavior, and over time, they didn't have many friends.

Li Lingxi, hands behind her back, smiled like a little fox: "The man who was supposed to marry us nine sisters is nothing special. Your face was pale just now, like you just crawled out of a coffin, hehe~"

Xiao Xingyue slung the dragon robe over his shoulder and crossed his arms in front of him: "The legendary sixth princess, who is said to be quirky and incredibly intelligent, is actually just average in terms of physical development."

Li Lingxi immediately puffed out her cheeks: "You're the one who's underdeveloped! This princess is perfectly fine!"

Her eyelids drooped, her gaze becoming even more arrogant. "You were just calling me 'Dad,' and now you dare to talk back?"

"What's your name?" Xiao Xingyue pretended to be hard of hearing.

"Father!" Li Lingxi blurted out.

"Good boy." Xiao Xingyue smiled. "Alright, stop imitating my dad's voice. Why are you deliberately blocking my way?"

Li Lingxi was speechless for a moment, one hand on her hip: "Who told you to hold the dragon robe? Did you kill Father Emperor? Is he dead? Are you planning a rebellion? How many soldiers do you have? Do you need firearms?"

Is this woman really that curious? It's driving me crazy… Xiao Xingyue rolled up his dragon robe: “No comment.”

"You unfilial son!" Li Lingxi mimicked Xiao Junlin's voice again.

Xiao Xingyue's eyes suddenly sharpened. "That's right! You can imitate, so can you imitate Lu Chengzhang's voice?"

"Minister of Rites?" Li Lingxi scoffed haughtily, then his voice deepened, surprisingly adopting a tone reminiscent of Lu Chengzhang's mild, bureaucratic manner: "I am here, Your Highness, kneel!"

Xiao Xingyue's eyes lit up: "What a talent!"

Li Lingxi had just finished gloating when she immediately took a half step back: "Your expression is off."

Xiao Xingyue whispered, "Do you want to come to the prison with me? You pretend to be Lu Chengzhang, say a few words outside Cui Daoyuan's cell, scare him, and maybe he'll confess everything on the spot."

Li Lingxi blinked, her smile fading: "No, the Heavenly Prison is boring, and so are you."

"Hey you!" Xiao Xingyue wanted to say a few more words, but then he saw Li Lingxi suddenly crush a bead in her hand, followed by a large amount of smoke spreading out.

Xiao Xingyue waved his sleeve, spreading his fourth-grade true energy around him and dispersing the smoke, but Li Lingxi's whereabouts were already gone.

"This sixth brother..." Xiao Xingyue sighed helplessly.

……

Half an incense stick later.

Back at the Prince's Mansion, Xiao Xingyue went into the inner courtyard, closed the door, sat on the couch, and began to practice the Sacred Dragon Technique.

"Lu Chengzhang's martial arts skills are quite high, and the assassin might have been hired by him. I need to improve my combat strength quickly!"

After one night.

As dawn broke, Xiao Xingyue felt the flow of true energy in his dantian, confirming that he was at the fourth rank of martial arts.

Li Miaoqing's national fortune became more refined, like the power of medicine entering the meridians, and the Holy Dragon Skill also gained an extra layer of supple energy.

"Just this national fortune alone has allowed me to reach the fourth rank, and I haven't even fully absorbed it yet. If all nine princesses were gathered together, wouldn't I be able to take off from here?"

Xiao Xingyue thought for a moment, "I can pretty much fool Li Shunhua now. I'll wait for her to come to me for practice again..."

Just as he was making plans, a woman's urgent cry came from outside the courtyard: "Xiao Xingyue!"

Xiao Xingyue thought it was Li Shunhua who had come, "How dare you come during the day this time..."

To everyone's surprise, Li Miaoqing stormed in with a accusing look on her face, pointing at him as soon as she entered: "What you did to this princess in the academy's basement..."

Xiao Xingyue spoke first, abruptly standing up, even more agitated than her: "You dare to come here!"

Li Miaoqing was stunned: "Why wouldn't I dare to come?"

Xiao Xingyue grabbed the bed sheet and covered himself with it:

"You've stolen my innocence, and you still dare to come here to demand an explanation?"

Li Miaoqing stood there dumbfounded. She had seen shameless people before, but she had never seen anyone turn the tables like this: "What nonsense are you spouting?"

Xiao Xingyue raised his voice:

"Am I talking nonsense?"

Who told me to hurry up?

Who said they've come several times?

Who made an appointment with me to do it again in the afterlife?

Li Miaoqing rushed up and covered his mouth with her hand: "Shut up!"

Her palms, fragrant with medicine, trembled violently: "Say that again, and I'll poison you until you're mute!"

Xiao Xingyue's mouth was covered, and he mumbled, "You...uh...uh..."

Li Miaoqing said in a deep voice, "This matter must not be told to anyone."

Xiao Xingyue pried her hand off:

"You don't want Father and your sisters to know that we've already slept together, do you?"

Li Miaoqing's vision went black. Those were such familiar lines! She was so angry! She was genuinely terrified!

She, the dignified Seventh Princess, granddaughter of the King of Medicine, and renowned throughout the capital as the Little Fairy Doctor, would be utterly humiliated if word got out that she'd been taken advantage of by that pig Xiao Xingyue in the basement…

Li Miaoqing gritted her teeth: "Let's make a deal! I'll invest in you in a month, and you keep this a secret."

"Vote for me?" Xiao Xingyue waved his hand. "Isn't the vote used to offset the Holy Dragon Skill issue? You want to use your vote for two purposes?"

Li Miaoqing glared at him: "What else do you want?"

Xiao Xingyue tapped the table: "I want you to be my pill supply chain!"