Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

In the Heart-Nurturing Palace.

It was extremely quiet.

Xia Qian's face was extremely pale.

He did not dare to look directly at the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty because it involved too much.

On the other hand, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty was extremely disappointed with Xia Qian's behavior.

Things like non-poisonous pills had miraculous uses that could not be put into words. However, Xia Qian actually gave the formula away to someone else. Even though Xia Qian had his own plans, it was something that irked the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty.

However, what really made the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty furious was not just the non-poisonous formula, but what Xia Qian did.

The Great Xia Dynasty would sooner or later belong to Xia Qian, but he actually handed over the non-poisonous pill formula to someone else for the sake of securing his position and the throne. No matter what, it was a silly thing to do.

“Father!”

At this moment, Xia Qian was kneeling on the ground with agony all over his face as he wept miserably.

“I know I'm at fault but I have my reasons for doing that. As long as I haven't ascended the throne, my brothers are all going to covet my position.”

“Over the years, I have been supervising the nation as the Crown Prince, and in the past three years, I've made lots of enemies.”

“I'm really scared that I might not be able to ascend the throne one day.”

“No matter how good the position of the Crown Prince may be, I will never be king unless I ascend the throne. That's the reason that I committed such a huge mistake, please believe me.”

“I promise that I'll never commit this mistake again.”

The Crown Prince knelt on the ground. He could tell that his father was really enraged.

Hence, he hurriedly took the initiative to admit his mistake. Although he still had to be punished, he would at least not lose his position as the Crown Prince.

If he didn't speak up, his father might really replace him as the crown prince and he would not be able to accept it at all.

“Ridiculous.”

“This is really ridiculous.”

“Since you're the Crown Prince who was personally crowned by me, who would dare to stop you?”

“You're clearly just looking for excuses.”

“Not only are you foolish, you even have so many excuses.”

“Are you worthy of being the Crown Prince?”

The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty rebuked.

In his opinion, the Crown Prince was making excuses for himself.

The reasons he gave were also so disgusting.

‘He will live in anxiety as long as he doesn't ascend the throne?'

‘He won't be able to eat or sleep in peace as long as he doesn't ascend the throne?'

‘Just a bunch of excuses.'

“Father.”

The Crown Prince wanted to continue defending himself, but the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty interjected.

“You don't have to say anything else. Return to your hall. You're not allowed to step out again for a year.”

“Stop meddling with the matter of the non-poisonous pill formula too. If I find out that you are still getting involved, don't blame me for being heartless.”

“Reflect well on yourself during this one-year period.”

“For the time being, you don't have to supervise the nation.”

“Got it?”

The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty's tone was very calm and he withdrew the Crown Prince's rights quietly.

However, the Crown Prince wasn't furious at all. In fact, after hearing that, he felt a little thankful.

“Thank you, Father. I'll certainly reflect on myself.”

The Crown Prince nodded and agreed.

After a while, he got up and left the Heart-Nurturing Palace.

After the Crown Prince left, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty also slowly returned to his seat.

He looked at the Crown Prince, who was leaving, with misery in his eyes.

Although he liked Su Changyu, the Crown Prince was also his flesh and blood.

Since he had conferred Xia Qian the t.i.tle of Crown Prince, he naturally favored and pampered his son but he knew that he could not overindulge him.

He was the future king of the Great Xia Dynasty, and hence, he had to be harsh to him and have strict requirements of him.

The Crown Prince could make mistakes now and it wouldn't matter regardless of how big his mistakes were because the emperor was there to support him.

However, if one day, the Crown Prince became the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty and made a grave mistake, what would happen?

One mistake on his part might cause the people of the world to suffer.

It might also make the Great Xia Dynasty fall.

That was also the reason that he was so strict with the Crown Prince.

However, he also doted on him greatly.

At the very least, he didn't really punish the Crown Prince even though the latter had committed such a huge mistake.

He merely terminated his duties.

If it were any other prince, he definitely wouldn't spare them so easily.

“Ah.”

Seated on the dragon chair, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty rubbed his temples while sighing as Su Changyu's appearance continuously flashed through his mind.

Indeed, people could not be compared with each other.

Xia Qian and Su Changyu were simply worlds apart.

However, the emperor of Great Xia Dynasty's gaze instantly became extremely calm and peaceful.

The noises of mosquitoes filled the hall.

“Xia Qian, I hope that you're really doing this only to secure your throne.”

His voice was so soft that none of the eunuchs outside could hear him.

An hour later.

In the Crown Prince's Hall.

Xia Qian was pacing back and forth nervously in the Crown Prince's Hall.

In the beginning, he had been too frightened by the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty and hence didn't process the fact that he had been stripped of his duties.

However, it now dawned on Xia Qian that he had lost the responsibility of supervising the nation. To him, it was simply a fatal blow.

He suffered two huge blows.

One was that he could no longer go around getting money in the name of supervising the nation, but that wasn't too bad because he had obtained plenty of money in the past three years which would at least be enough to last him for some time.

The main point was the second one. Once he was stripped of his duties, his younger brothers would be the first to know.

When the time came, they would probably think that he had fallen out of favor and once that happened, they would begin to hatch conspiracies.

That wasn't all. The civil and military officials in court had yet to pick a side. If they heard this news, those sly old foxes would definitely shun him.

That was the very reason that he immediately got someone to call Taishang Xuanji over.

Taishang Xuanji was his uncle and the Chancellor of the court who had always been his father's loyal follower.

Xia Qian reckoned that there must be a reason that his father had lost his temper as soon as he returned. He thought that perhaps someone had secretly informed the emperor. Hence, he couldn't stand it.

He desperately wanted to know the answer.

“Your Highness, Chancellor Xuanji is here.”

At this moment, a lackey walked in and announced loudly.

“Quick, ask him to come in.”

Xia Qian sounded extremely eager.

He would never be in such a hurry when he encountered anything. Only after being reprimanded by the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty would he act this way.

In his eyes, the only person who could oppress him in the entire Great Xia Dynasty was the emperor.

He was terrified of his father, just like how most sons in the world were afraid of their fathers.

Soon, a figure walked in. It was Taishang Xuanji.

“Greetings, Your Highness.”

Taishang Xuanji walked in respectfully and bowed to the Crown Prince.

“Uncle, there's no need for the formalities.”

Seeing Taishang Xuanji appear, Xia Qian was instantly overjoyed, and he soon bowed to him as a junior.

“Your Highness, you're the Crown Prince and I'm just a chancellor after all. I cannot forgo the rules.”

Taishang Xuanji shook his head and bowed again towards Xia Qian.

“Hey Uncle, only you and I are left in the hall now, don't be so formal.”

Xia Qian was good at guessing others' thoughts and manipulating the hearts of people. Hence, he insisted on calling Taishang Xuanji his uncle.

“Your Highness, what's the matter? Tell me straight.”

Taishang Xuanji knew that if it was not a major matter, Xia Qian wouldn't have secretly asked him to come to the palace.

“Uncle, it's a huge matter. I got reprimanded by Father today and he even stripped me of my rights to supervise the nation.”

The Crown Prince told Taishang Xuanji about the trouble he had encountered.

However, as soon as he said that, Taishang Xuanji's expression changed drastically.

“What, you're stripped of your rights to supervise the nation?”

He frowned with a look of shock as he stared at Xia Qian in utter disbelief.

After all, it was only natural for the Crown Prince to oversee the affairs of the nation before succeeding to the throne.

It was a major thing for him to be stripped of his duties to oversee the affairs of the nation. It would at least cause an uproar in the imperial court and even a few princes would get agitated.

In the beginning, their chances of getting the throne were extremely small, but if the Crown Prince was punished, they would have hope.

However, instead of directly asking the Crown Prince what mistake he had made, Taishang Xuanji thought of another possibility.

As soon as that thought appeared, Taishang Xuanji couldn't help but be full of worries.

“Yes, it's all my fault for being greedy and informing the Crown Prince of the Great Ze Dynasty about the non-poisonous pill formula for the sake of getting closer to him.”

Xia Qian hung his head low and seemed a little helpless.

However, after hearing his words, Taishang Xuanji immediately had an epiphany.

“Ridiculous!”

“This is really ridiculous.”

Taishang Xuanji sighed in relief. In the beginning, he thought that the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty really wanted to let Su Changyu take over the throne.

However, now that Xia Qian had told him about the reason, Taishang Xuanji understood why the emperor wanted to strip him of his responsibilities of supervising the nation.

That was simply too absurd.

“Uncle.”

Xia Qian seemed very uncomfortable.

“Don't call me uncle.”

“Your Highness, you are really muddled up.”

“Do you know that the non-poisonous pill formula is the foundation for the rise of the Great Xia Dynasty? Do you know how happy His Majesty was when he got the non-poisonous pill formula?”

“Over the years, the Great Xia Dynasty has been suffering several consecutive disasters, so His Majesty thought that it was the will of heaven.”

“However, after the non-poisonous pill formula appeared, His Majesty was relieved because the non-poisonous pill formula is the foundation of the future of the Great Xia Dynasty.”

“This thing can be used to bless countless people of the Great Xia Dynasty, but you actually informed the enemies of such a precious item.”

“You are really, unbelievably foolish.”

Taishang Xuanji bellowed furiously. A short while ago, he was addressing the Crown Prince politely but he was now almost las.h.i.+ng out at him.

He knew that even if the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty liked Su Changyu, he wouldn't stop doting on the Crown Prince.

Perhaps in the eyes of others, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty seemed to be harsh on the Crown Prince but he knew that it was because he favored him.

That was precisely the reason he was that harsh to the Crown Prince.

However, he didn't expect the Crown Prince to be so muddled up as to do such a thing. It was… incomprehensible.

He couldn't understand why.

He really could not imagine what the Crown Prince was thinking and why he was that foolish.

Poof.

In the next moment, the Crown Prince knelt on the ground and looked at Taishang Xuanji with tears all over his face.

“Uncle, I was just being anxious, I didn't know it would result in such a grave mistake.”

Xia Qian did not kneel as the Crown Prince but as Taishang Xuanji's nephew. Hence, it was reasonable.

“You…”

“Ugh! I really don't know what to say about you.”

Taishang Xuanji was also getting dizzy because of his anger.

However, in the next moment, his gaze immediately became sharp as he stared at Xia Qian.

“Xia Qian, let me ask you something, you have to answer truthfully. If you hide anything from me, I won't take pity on you even if you really lose your position in the future.”

Taishang Xuanji suddenly thought of something, and he questioned the Crown Prince with an extremely frightening gaze.

“Please speak, uncle.”

Xia Qian was a little confused, not knowing why his uncle suddenly said this.

“Did you deliberately inform the Great Ze Dynasty of the non-poisonous pill formula so that your father will be forced to retire!?!”

Taishang Xuanji asked in a deep voice.

His words were like a thunderbolt that blasted Xia Qian's brain.

“Uncle, you… you… how can you say such things?”

“Even if I wanted to become the emperor, I couldn't have done that.”

“Otherwise, I'd be no different from a beast.”

Xia Qian was dumbfounded because he did not expect to hear that from his uncle at all.

Taishang Xuanji was relieved to see Xia Qian's reaction.

To be honest, he really couldn't think of any reason for his nephew to reveal the matter of the non-poisonous pill formula.

Xia Qian definitely knew the importance of the non-poisonous pill formula.

Such things were extremely precious to the Great Xia Dynasty, and once it was refined, it would be of great help to the Great Xia Dynasty.

In less than five hundred years, it would be possible to trump the five dynasties. Hence, it was an object that concerned the foundation.

Even if the merit was credited to the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty, Xia Qian would stand to gain too. After he ascended the throne, he used the non-poisonous pill formula to stabilize the nation.

In fact, he could even become immortal.

Hence, under normal circ.u.mstances, the Crown Prince would not use such a thing as a bargaining chip.

The only possibility was that the Crown Prince of the Great Xia Dynasty had deliberately leaked it and borrowed the power of the Great Ze Dynasty to suppress the Great Xia Dynasty.

The matter of the non-poisonous pills must be blocked. It just meant that heaven wouldn't allow it and by then, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty might really retire and let Xia Qian take the throne.

If that were the case, Xia Qian would really go crazy.

The emperor definitely wouldn't spare Xia Qian. The responsibility of supervising the nation was trivial, and it wasn't uncommon for a Crown Prince to be stripped of his position.

“Xia Qian, if you really don't have that idea in mind, everything will be salvaged.”

“Although you've done a major thing, His Majesty is just stripping you of your t.i.tle for the time being. This is a good thing but also a bad thing.”

“At least no matter what, you are still the Crown Prince, and in your father's heart, you are still the future emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty.”

“Your father is only disappointed in you, but not completely so.”

“During this period of time, you must not get involved in anything anymore.”

“Don't try to rope in officials or meddle with the affairs of the dynasty. Just remain in the palace quietly and read or drink some wine to entertain yourself. Do you understand?”

Taishang Xuanji comforted Xia Qian.

In the current situation, staying still was the best thing to do. If he got up to any nonsense again, there might really be some issues.

No matter what, he wanted his nephew to become the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty.

It was from the bottom of his heart.

That was the reason that he instructed Xia Qian because he didn't want Xia Qian to make mistakes again.

“Okay, I understand, thank you for your pointers.”

After hearing Taishang Xuanji's words, Xia Qian immediately felt relieved. As long as his uncle could give some advice, it would mean that he was not in a desperate situation yet.

However, at this moment, Xia Qian couldn't help but speak.

“Uncle, there are some things that I find strange.”

“Father obviously resents me so much, but why did he order clothes for me?”

Xia Qian asked casually.

He just didn't know what to say, so he casually struck up a conversation about a certain topic.

However, as soon as he said that, Taishang Xuanji fell a little silent.

In an instant, Xia Qian immediately noticed the changes in his uncle's expression.

He was truly a smart person. Otherwise, how could he have become the Crown Prince?

“Uncle? Are the clothes not for me?”

Xia Qian hurriedly asked Taishang Xuanji.

“I don't know about this matter, Your Highness, don't bother asking about this. It's just some clothes, it's nothing much.”

Taishang Xuanji did not want to get involved in this matter.

He shook his head to deny it.

However, Xia Qian smelled a rat about that matter because he understood his uncle too well.

When it came to tricky situations, his uncle would choose to stay out of them as long as he could. Clearly, there was something fishy about that matter.

“Uncle, what exactly is going on?”

“After Father made a trip out, he has changed drastically.”

“You must know something.”

“Uncle, I'm your nephew, you can hide it from the world, but you can't hide it from me.”

“Mother has mentioned before that the first person I called after I was born was you, Uncle.”

“I don't trust anyone in the entire Great Xia Dynasty except you, Uncle. If you know something but are hiding it from me, wouldn't I really be a loner?”

Xia Qian asked agitatedly.

In the end, he immediately cried.

Indeed, as soon as he said that, Taishang Xuanji couldn't help but shake his head as he took a deep breath.

He knew that he had said something wrong.

In the beginning, he really didn't want to say it but Xia Qian had a point.

He was Xia Qian's uncle, and the first person Xia Qian called out to after he was born.

Thinking of this, Taishang Xuanji couldn't help but answer him.

“Xia Qian, I can let you know but you must remember to pretend that you didn't hear anything after I tell you.”

“Don't act presumptuously or I'm really afraid that… you will lose your position.”

Those words made Xia Qian a little shocked. Even though he had informed the enemies about the non-poisonous pill formula, he had merely been stripped of his responsibilities.

What else could be more major than that?

Xia Qian was full of curiosity.

“Uncle, tell me, I'll definitely pretend that I've never heard it.”

“I can even make an oath.”

Xia Qian nodded with a look of determination.

However, Taishang Xuanji did not say anything and instead went to the tea table where he dipped his finger into some tea and then wrote a word on the table.

“Ten.”

When Xia Qian saw that word, he immediately froze as if he had been struck by lightning.

“Ten.”

He knew what it meant.

Tenth Prince.

The legendary Tenth Prince, who could bring supreme blessing to the Great Xia Dynasty.

He was also the person that Xia Qian feared the most.

It was because the Tenth Prince did not die, and rumor had it that he could be stranded among the mortals.

Now that Taishang Xuanji wrote such a word…

How could Xia Qian not understand?

Xia Qian completely understood everything.

‘No wonder.'

‘Why would Father do this to me?'

‘No wonder Father thought of replacing the Crown Prince.'

‘Seems like Father has… found the Tenth Prince!'