The Demon Prince

Who activated the mechanism?

Outside the small workshop, a crowd of people knelt on the ground.

The heads of several officials were practically touching the ground.

"Your Highness."

"This humble official is unaware."

"I only heard a noise and came to check."

Li Lingxi tossed the core of the mechanism onto the ground, and the copper tooth sprang up, rolling gurgling towards them:

"Who changed the dental order?"

The officials trembled even more violently.

"This humble official is unaware."

"This humble official truly did not know."

"This little appliance has not been used for many years, and its mechanism is old and worn out. Perhaps it broke down on its own."

The more Li Lingxi thought about the changes to the mechanism, the angrier she became:

"Do you even know our house is haunted?!"

Those officials didn't dare to respond at all.

Li Lingxi noticed a minor official in gray robes, kneeling on the ground, cold sweat dripping onto the blue bricks.

"Look up." Li Lingxi walked up to him.

The minor official dared not.

Li Lingxi's voice was even colder:

"I'm telling you to look up."

The minor official froze for a few moments before slowly raising his face, his complexion deathly pale and his eyes filled with panic.

Li Lingxi stared at him:

"Did you activate the external control?"

The clerk's throat bobbed:

"Your Highness, spare my life! I was just... just following orders."

"Whose orders should we follow?" Li Lingxi asked again, though she already had the answer in her heart.

The minor official knelt down again:

"This humble official dares not speak."

Li Lingxi said in a deep voice:

"You dare not speak, yet you dare to lock me in a sleeping potion."

The minor official's body trembled violently:

"Your Highness, I never expected you to go in as well."

Originally, the intention was simply to trap the crown prince, teach him a lesson, and let him know that the Military Equipment Bureau was not a place anyone could interfere in.

Once the words were spoken, the area outside Xiaoqizuo became even quieter.

Xiao Xingyue raised his eyebrows slightly:

"original?"

The minor official was already crying:

"I was just following orders and had no idea that the organization had been altered."

"Your Highness, spare my life!"

Li Lingxi remained silent.

These things used to bother her the most.

Who obeys whose orders, who covers for whom, and who uses the word "protection" to block others' paths?

All she wanted to do was dismantle the mechanisms, become a wooden bird, disguise herself to amuse others, find someone to talk to, and spend the whole day surrounded by blueprints.

But now, standing at the entrance of her small workshop, watching these people kneeling and refusing to pay, she felt an indescribable discomfort.

The sound of hurried footsteps came from afar; the Director of the Military Equipment Bureau, Zheng Yuncheng, had arrived.

"Lingxi".

Yuncheng quickly stepped forward and reached out to check if Li Lingxi was injured.

Li Lingxi took a step back.

Yuncheng's hand froze in mid-air; his urgency and the words he wanted to say were both frozen in place.

Li Lingxi looked at her maternal uncle:

"Uncle, did you tacitly approve of this?"

Yuncheng was speechless for a moment.

Li Lingxi stared intently at him:

Answer me.

Yuncheng remained silent for a moment, then finally lowered his hand:

"Your Highness, we are all doing this to protect you."

Li Lingxi chuckled:

"Protect me?"

She pointed to the secret door behind her:

"Is locking me in a sleeping pill box to protect me? Is deciding who I see to protect me?"

"I like government offices, and you all say that's fine, go ahead and try it out. I want to join the Ordnance Supervision Bureau, but you all say I should keep a low profile and not show off my talents..."

You can't control who I talk to.

Am I a human being, or just a pawn in your power struggle?

Yuncheng felt a tightness in his throat:

"Lingxi, you don't understand. You were born late and your foundation is weak."

The first five princesses all had well-established teams behind them; if you get involved now, you'll be torn to shreds by them.

We've gone to great lengths to give you a foothold in the Ordnance Bureau. If you get close to Xiao Xingyue now and get dragged into the power struggle... your future...

You'll have no way out from now on.

Li Lingxi's eyes were a little red:

"So you choose for me, hide for me, conceal for me, and push people out for me."

But I no longer want to be a princess hiding in the shadows.

Upon hearing this, Yun Cheng's expression completely changed. He felt as if he had been punched in the chest, filled with pain, anger, helplessness, frustration, and heartache for his niece.

In his rage, he glared fiercely at Xiao Xingyue:

"Your Highness, are you satisfied?"

Xiao Xingyue was puzzled.

Yuncheng stepped forward:

"Your Highness was not like this before."

Although she had an eccentric personality, she was always well-behaved and sensible.

But then you came along, you dragged her into this mess, made her defy her family, and put her in the eye of the storm with you!

Yuncheng's anger intensified, and his voice grew even fiercer:

"Xiao Xingyue, you yourself will be in grave danger."

Nine coffins are still placed in the mourning hall of the Prince of Zhenguo's Mansion, and the old faction of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites is watching you closely.

The Fifth Princess, the Second Princess, and the Fourth Princess—all these princesses' people are watching you.

"What right do you have to drag the Sixth Princess into this?"

Xiao Xingyue looked at him, completely calm:

"Yun Jianzheng, you're mistaken."

Yun Cheng's eyes darkened:

"Where did I go wrong?"

"It wasn't me who dragged her into the power struggle." Xiao Xingyue glanced at Li Lingxi:

"She is the emperor's daughter, and from the day she was born, she has been caught in a whirlpool."

Yun Cheng's body trembled.

Xiao Xingyue continued:

"You're telling her to keep a low profile, to stay out of the way, to not get too close to people—it sounds like you're protecting her..."

Actually, she was just told to close her eyes and wait for the waves to come.

Yuncheng roared:

"What do you know?"

The Military Equipment Bureau was no ordinary government office.

If she gains too much control, everyone will be watching her!

"So someone used the Ministry of Works' methods to modify your organization..." Xiao Xingyue sneered:

"You don't know?"

Yuncheng's pupils contracted:

"The Ministry of Works' methods?"

Li Lingxi picked up the copper teeth and threw them in front of Yun Cheng:

"The cuts, copper nails, and hidden grooves are not the internal practices of the Ordnance Bureau; they seem more like those of the repairmen from the Ministry of Works."

Yuncheng squatted down, picked up the copper tooth, and as he examined it, his expression grew increasingly grim.

The small workshop had been tampered with, yet no one from the Ordnance Bureau noticed.

Or perhaps someone discovered it but has been keeping it a secret?

Li Lingxi took a deep breath:

"From today onwards, I will personally review all personnel coming and going at the Xiaoqi Workshop, all organizational changes, and all borrowing of drawings and documents."

No official of the Ordnance Bureau may bypass me and use any underhanded means to operate within the agency!

Several officials shuddered simultaneously.

Yuncheng stared blankly at his niece. She used to squat in the corner taking apart all sorts of things, answering one out of ten questions. People said she was strange, but she didn't care.

But now, she stands before everyone, having personally reclaimed the small workshop and regained control of the Ordnance Bureau.

Yuncheng felt somewhat lost and dazed.

The person he'd protected for so many years was finally starting to stop letting him protect them.

Should he hate the prince in front of him, or should he be grateful?

Xiao Xingyue straightened his sleeves:

"Alright, now that we've finished talking about the princess, it's time to talk about my business."

Yuncheng asked, "What else does the young master wish to do?"

"Settle the accounts."

Xiao Xingyue smiled, his fate uncertain:

"I came to inspect the old weapons today and almost got charged with trespassing into the forbidden warehouse and touching firearms. The Sixth Princess was also almost knocked out by the sleeping powder. If this gets to Father Emperor's ears, my petty tricks will probably be ruined."

The Ordnance Supervision Agency has been altered by the Ministry of Works for many years, and you didn't even know it.

This is a serious dereliction of duty.

Yun Cheng's expression darkened:

"What does the Crown Prince want?"

Xiao Xingyue nodded:

"Cloud supervision is so satisfying."

"The small-scale equipment—no, the entire arsenal of the Imperial Armory—is permitted to be selected by the Prince's Palace for modification and use by the palace's guards."

Yun Cheng frowned. The gadgets from the small workshop were fine, but a batch of items from the entire Ordnance Bureau needed to be selected…

He said in a deep voice:

"Your Highness's appetite is far too great."

"Is it big?" Xiao Xingyue looked at the officials:

"Why don't we go to the palace now and let Father Emperor judge this matter?"

"Just look at how much the Military Equipment Bureau really did by imprisoning the Sixth Princess and the Crown Prince of Zhenguo in that smoke-filled trap."

Yuncheng's face darkened.

Li Lingxi suddenly spoke:

"Granted."

Yun Cheng was taken aback: "Your Highness."

Li Lingxi looked at him:

"The small workshop belongs to me, Uncle, and the future Ordnance Bureau... will also belong to me..."

Right?

I was right!

Yuncheng opened his mouth, but then swallowed his words:

"Since Your Highness has given your permission, then we shall comply."

Seeing his appearance, Xiao Xingyue felt a stirring in her heart.

That old fox, who was so heartbroken just now that he wanted to give him a good beating, is now starting to think.

It doesn't seem like admitting defeat; it's more like changing the abacus.

Sure enough, after Li Lingxi led her people to seal the core of the mechanism, Yun Cheng suddenly appeared beside Xiao Xingyue:

"Your Highness, may I speak with you in private?"