The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 73 There is no way out

After the third brother left, Tu Chengyu fell into deep thought.

In his memory, the third brother was quite smart, not like that.

Why are they doing such stupid things one after another? It hasn't been long since he sent people to the Xuan Tie Guard, and now he's back to compete with the second prince for the Prince's mansion.

He didn't even consider that the Liu family and the Empress had put in so much effort to help the Emperor ascend the throne; who knew what they were plotting? Would they allow an ordinary prince like him to outshine the second prince?

He's so stupid to compete with the second son; Tu Chengyu won't pay him any attention.

But he kept saying he wanted to help the Crown Prince, which was blatantly an attempt to drag the Crown Prince down with him.

I don't know if he did it on a whim or if someone was instigating him.

It seems that turmoil is about to break out in the harem.

Tu Chengyu was pondering how to deal with his brothers in the palace when he saw Xiao Xuanzi enter.

Holding a letter in his hand, he said, "Your Highness, the person who went to wait for news at the palace gate has returned. This is a letter that Guard Yao asked him to deliver to Your Highness."

Upon hearing that news had arrived from outside the palace, Tu Chengyu quickly took the letter, opened it, and read it through. After reading it, he said to Xiao Xuanzi:

"I am leaving the palace. Go and prepare my things."

Before long, Tu Chengyu changed his clothes, met up with Lao Yao and the others, and headed straight for the small courtyard outside the palace.

When Tu Chengyu arrived at the courtyard, the patrol battalion and the Shuntian Prefecture government had already surrounded it completely.

If Quan Wenwei hadn't been waiting at the door, Tu Chengyu might have been questioned a few times.

As they entered the courtyard and headed towards the study, Tu Chengyu couldn't help but ask:

When did they launch their sneak attack?

Quan Wenwei replied, "As dawn approached, everyone thought that nothing would happen as in the previous days, so they relaxed their vigilance. Who knew that the enemy would suddenly attack? If they hadn't been unfamiliar with the place, the students would have been in serious trouble."

Tu Chengyu asked, "So they really came for Mr. Quan?"

Quan Wenwei said, "That's right. They didn't go looking for the corpses in the cellar; instead, they all headed towards the central courtyard."

As they spoke, the two went to the study. After dismissing the others, Tu Chengyu asked:

"So, the fake news we released before was seen through."

Quan Wenwei said, "The students probably think that's the case. However, it's also possible that they don't know the location of the Tibetans."

Tu Chengyu asked in confusion, "Didn't we already reveal the location of the cellar through the imperial physician?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Your Highness, perhaps we miscalculated. Perhaps the person behind the scenes couldn't contact the imperial physician, or perhaps the person sent to secretly monitor the imperial physician was discovered, and the person behind the scenes had no chance to contact the imperial physician."

"A variety of reasons are possible, but what puzzles the students is that if they were able to resist coming a few days ago, why did they come last night?"

Tu Chengyu said, "Could it be that the seal was discovered, and they feel that you, Mr. Quan, are a threat?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Perhaps that's the case, but the students always feel that something is not right."

"The students felt that the people who attacked this morning were more suited to die than to kill."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Why does Mr. Quan say that?"

Quan Wenwei replied, "These people did initially seem to be assassins, sneaking into the courtyard, but they were discovered by the guards. Their mission failed, but instead of retreating, they fought the guards."

"Later, the guards deliberately left them a way out as I had instructed, but they wouldn't leave. They only wanted to die with the guards."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Did you capture anyone alive this time?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Not a single one. They either fought to the death or committed suicide."

Tu Chengyu sighed, "It seems that none of our arrangements in the courtyard have had any effect."

Quan Wenwei replied, "That's true. Now we can only pin our hopes on clues about the seal."

Tu Chengyu asked, "What about those people who launched the raid this morning? Although they're all dead, we might be able to find something out from their identities."

Quan Wenwei said, "I have already asked the people of Shuntian Prefecture to investigate the identities of these people. However, I don't have much hope for it. These assassins are unlikely to have left too many clues."

Tu Chengyu said, "Let's try anything, even if it's a dead end. The trail has gone cold, and we don't know when we'll catch the person behind this."

Quan Wenwei said, "Your Highness must be more careful in the future."

Tu Chengyu said, "After I attend Prince Yixiao's birthday celebration in a couple of days, I will stay in the palace and not come out. I will also avoid these scholars."

Speaking of scholars, Quan Wenwei suddenly added:
"These past two days, I've been keeping a close eye on the news from the capital. The scholars' unrest must be fueled by someone behind the scenes. It might even be the person behind the assassination attempt on Your Highness. Should Your Highness send someone to investigate? Perhaps we can find some clues."

Tu Chengyu said, "I cannot interfere in the affairs of the scholars. Otherwise, if I am found out, I will really be unable to explain myself."

When all other methods failed, Tu Chengyu decided to put the matter aside for the time being and instead told Quan Wenwei about the Third Prince's visit to him that morning. After recounting the incident to Quan Wenwei, Tu Chengyu asked, "Mr. Quan, could you please help me think about whether the Prince of Qi had any other purpose in visiting me today?"

Quan Wenwei said, "This is a matter of the prince's family, and I should not interfere."

Tu Chengyu said, "Mr. Quan, please speak freely."

Quan Wenwei then said, "From what Your Highness just said, Prince Qi sought you out to discuss the division of the Prince's residence?"

Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "That's true."

Quan Wenwei continued, "However, even though Prince Qi knew he couldn't win against Prince Xing, he still complained about the Empress in front of the Prince."

"This statement is highly inappropriate. If it gets out, Prince Qi will not only lose his royal residence, but may also be punished. If Prince Qi is not just talking nonsense out of anger, then he really has other motives."

Tu Chengyu asked, "If Prince Qi really has other motives, what exactly is he plotting? Is it to drag the Crown Prince down with him?"

Quan Wenwei shook his head and said, "The Crown Prince is prudent in his actions, and with the Emperor watching over him, he certainly wouldn't miss such a little trick."

"Furthermore, as long as Your Highness doesn't tell the Crown Prince about this, Prince Qi's schemes can't proceed. So, in my opinion, if Prince Qi has other motives, it wouldn't be to drag the Crown Prince down with him."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Then, what was his purpose?"

Quan Wenwei replied, "I haven't thought of anything yet. However, there is one thing I don't understand: why is Prince Qi so insistent on wanting the mansion left behind by Prince Yixiao?"

Tu Chengyu said, "Perhaps he felt it was unfair and wanted to fight for it."

Quan Wenwei shook his head and said, "Consort Li has not fallen out of favor in the palace. If Prince Qi wants to compete, he can simply tell the Emperor about this through Consort Li. Why would he go to the Prince?"

Tu Chengyu is now confused and has no idea what the third brother's purpose is.

Quan Wenwei continued his analysis: "After much thought, I can only come up with one possibility. Prince Qi is neither trying to drag the Crown Prince down nor vying for the royal palace, but rather he wants to do something?"

Tu Chengyu asked in confusion, "If he wants to do something, he can just tell Father Emperor directly. Why does he have to do this?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Your Highness, you are not in that position, so you don't know the hardships. The Prince of Qi is of a different status than Your Highness, and the Emperor may not be willing to let the Prince of Qi go out to do things."

Tu Chengyu said, "Mr. Quan, tell me, what are the differences between these two?"

Quan Wenwei said, "The other day, the prince told me that the emperor intends to let you come out and do some work. I suppose this news has already spread throughout the palace."

Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "That's true."

Quan Wenwei added, "The students guess that the Emperor sent not only Your Highness to do this, but also Prince Xing."

Tu Chengyu nodded again.

Quan Wenwei continued, "What I am about to say is truly disrespectful. I beg Your Highness's forgiveness."

Tu Chengyu said, "I forgive you. Speak your mind."

Quan Wenwei said, "The Emperor sent Prince Xing out to do things for three reasons: first, to reward Lady Liu for her contributions; second, to stabilize the harem; and third, the Emperor may have wanted Prince Xing to restrain the Crown Prince."

Upon hearing Quan Wenwei's words, Tu Chengyu sat up abruptly and said, "How could Father Emperor possibly think of restraining the Crown Prince?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Imperial power has always been like this. Even the closest father and son will inevitably resort to such means once they reach that position."

"This move does not mean that the Emperor does not trust the Crown Prince; on the contrary, it is to protect the Crown Prince."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Then what about me? Am I also trying to restrain the Crown Prince?"

Quan Wenwei shook his head and said, "The Prince was sent by the Emperor to protect the Crown Prince, and also to prevent any unforeseen events from happening to him..."

"Mr. Quan" Tu Chengyu immediately interrupted Quan Wenwei.

Quan Wenwei realized his mistake and stopped talking about the crown prince, continuing to talk about other things:

"With this in mind, His Majesty will only allow you, Your Highness, and Prince Xing to take charge of affairs. The other princes will probably be left idle."

"King Qi knew this news, but he didn't want to be a lazy member of the royal family, so he wanted to join the Crown Prince and get a job."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Why didn't he just ask the Crown Prince directly?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Perhaps the Prince of Qi wanted to test the attitudes of the Prince and the Crown Prince."

"Because Your Highness is undoubtedly the Crown Prince's most important helper, whether Prince Qi wants to do things for the Crown Prince depends on Your Highness's attitude."

"So, he first approached the prince. If the prince suppressed the matter, it meant he didn't want him to help the crown prince. If the prince informed the crown prince about the matter, it meant the prince didn't care, and it also allowed him to test the crown prince's attitude."

Tu Chengyu suddenly realized and said, "He actually has such deep thoughts. If it weren't for Mr. Quan's analysis, I still wouldn't have been able to figure it out."

Quan Wenwei said, "The student is just making wild guesses. Perhaps the Prince of Qi didn't think that much about it at all."

(End of this chapter)