Dressed as the prince's substitute? I took the throne

"Old housekeeper, I'm afraid you haven't realized your situation yet!"

Zhou Chuxuan sat on the ground slowly and handed a piece of cake to the old butler, but he turned his head away in disgust.

"Your life is in my hands. Whether you live or die is just a matter of a word from me!"

"Hmph, I'm not a fence-sitter like Erhu. If you want to kill me, just do it! The Prime Minister will naturally seek justice for me! Don't even think about getting me to reveal anything about the Prime Minister!" said the old butler stubbornly.

"I didn't realize the old housekeeper was so stubborn!" Zhou Chuxuan smiled lightly, not getting angry: "Erhu, let him go!"

Upon hearing this, Erhu looked at Zhou Chuxuan in confusion, but let go of the old butler.

"Hmph, if you want me to work for you, wait for the next life! You'd better kill me now!" The old butler got up from the ground and snorted coldly.

"I won't kill you, just go away!"

Zhou Chuxuan slowly stood up, pointed to the door, and said with a smile: "Remember, say hello to the Prime Minister on my behalf!"

"You'll let me go?" The old butler hesitated for a few moments. Seeing that no one was planning to take action, there was a hint of disbelief in his cloudy eyes.

"Of course, please!"

Zhou Chuxuan waved his hand, signaling the old butler to leave.

"Hmph, I hope you don't regret it!" The old butler walked out of the room tentatively, and seeing that no one was planning to take action, he hurriedly walked away along the wall in shame.

"Why let him go? Keeping him here is also a bargaining chip for us. Wouldn't you be letting a tiger go back to the mountain? Li Nian will definitely attack us!"

Erhu frowned and stared at Zhou Chuxuan, thinking that he had some good countermeasures, but he let him go without saying anything.

"Haha, don't worry, Li Nian won't attack us!" Zhou Chuxuan said firmly, then raised his eyebrows and looked up and down at Erhu: "Remember, from now on, remember to call me Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

"You haven't really replaced him yet!" Erhu said gritting his teeth. He felt like he was walking on the edge of a cliff with every step he took, and if he wasn't careful he would end up in pieces.

"This is not something you should be considering. Go back and strengthen the defense of the East Palace. I don't want any assassins to sneak in quietly!"

After Erhu left, Xu Hanyan was still sitting in front of the bronze mirror, her hands tightly clasped together. From the rolling of her throat, it could be seen that she was still in shock.

"What? Are you scared?" Zhou Chuxuan slowly sat down beside Xu Hanyan, and naturally put his right hand around her waist.

"That's the Prime Minister, the one who truly holds power in the Wu Dynasty! Aren't you afraid?" Xu Hanyan's voice trembled slightly as she spoke.

"The Li family behind him is even more of a behemoth. Even the Xu family would be constrained in every way!"

"You actually let the old housekeeper go back like that? Do you know what this means?"

Facing Xu Hanyan's flustered questioning, Zhou Chuxuan seemed unhurried, and even had the leisure to peel a grape and put it in his mouth.

"Of course I know! But, in the final analysis, he and Erhu both have their own desires! If he wants the throne, he must choose to cooperate with the prince!"

"As for who the prince is, it doesn't matter!"

Zhou Chuxuan smiled and said, "Not only can I be sure that we are safe, but Li Nian will also send someone to show his goodwill to me later!"

"Showing goodwill to you? Are you crazy?" Xu Hanyan turned her head and glanced at Zhou Chuxuan, her eyebrows furrowed, her face full of disbelief.

"Li Nian is a veteran minister of the Wu Dynasty. Even Your Majesty has to show him some courtesy! Looking across the entire Wu Dynasty, besides Your Majesty, who else could make him actively show goodwill?"

"What's more, you are now considered his mortal enemy. You have hindered his plans!"

"Hindering him? I didn't! On the contrary, I was promoting his plan! Moreover, compared to the real prince, I am the most suitable partner!"

Zhou Chuxuan's hand slowly touched Xu Hanyan's thunder, causing the other party to tremble as if he was electrocuted, and rolled his eyes at him.

"You? You're the most suitable candidate? Why? Is your influence in the Wu Dynasty even deeper than His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's? I don't think you've accumulated any power these days!"

"Haha, don't forget, what Li Nian ultimately wants is the throne! Since he wants to ascend the throne, the so-called crown prince is nothing more than a puppet, a stepping stone!"

"In other words, no matter who he cooperates with, it will be temporary!"

Under Xu Hanyan's astonished gaze, Zhou Chuxuan lowered his voice and whispered in her ear, "Compared to a ruthless and troublesome figure who has been operating in the Wu Dynasty for many years, wouldn't I, a person with no foundation, be easier to control?"

"When he ascends the throne in the future, wouldn't it be much easier to kill me than to kill the real crown prince?"

Xu Hanyan looked at him in surprise: "Of course! But after you..."

"What happens next is not up to me now. At least, the current situation is that he would rather join me in killing the real prince!"

Zhou Chuxuan smiled mysteriously, and then, as Xu Hanyan screamed, he carried her to the bed and pulled the curtains.

"No, not today!"

"all the same!"

At the morning court the next day, Zhou Chuxuan stood on time in the Taiji Hall for the first time, standing alongside several princes.

A group of court officials lowered their heads, talked among themselves, and cast strange glances at Zhou Chuxuan.

"I heard that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is no longer foolish, but has become a little greedy and lustful?"

"I've heard about this, too. After that recitation, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince suddenly became less foolish, but a bit greedy!"

"I also heard that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince seemed to be pretending to be stupid before, and he wasn't really stupid!"

"Shh! Shut up! You can't talk about this in the Taiji Hall, or you'll bring disaster upon yourself!"

A group of court officials were talking about this, and the looks of several princes were even more strange, especially the second prince Zhou Heguan, who slowly approached Zhou Chuxuan.

"Sixth brother, you've worked so hard pretending all these years! You even deceived me, your second brother?"

Zhou Chuxuan remained calm, his gaze fixed on the front as he spoke softly, "Second brother, you're joking. I was just momentarily dazed, and that's when I finally felt something! What do you mean by disguise? Second brother, I don't quite understand what you're saying!"

"Hmph! We are brothers, why do you have to be so secretive, Sixth Brother?" Zhou Heguan snorted coldly, "You have deceived Father. Aren't you afraid of his punishment?"

"It seems that Second Brother's intelligence work is still not up to par! Your scouts should be executed!"

Zhou Chuxuan smiled slightly and did not directly answer Zhou Heguan's question.

"you!"

Zhou Heguan certainly knew that Emperor Wu had gone to Zhou Chuxuan's residence, and he just wanted to play a trick on him.