Volume 1: Laughing at the Prosperous Chapter 8

  The night sky fell, and dozens of inner guards rushed out from all around, pointing their swords at Li Yun together, and also surrounded Ye Qingran and the Fourth Prince. Obviously, these people were the prince's confidants. They would do anything for him.

  Li Yun felt a chill in her heart, the empress had just called out to the guards several times to take her away, but they were all slow to respond. Now, with just one order from the crown prince, they were so swift, it was clear that this crown prince's usual demeanor made people not dare to disobey him. She didn't understand why the owner of this body allowed the crown prince to be so merciless towards her. She looked at Ye Tianqing, her fist clenched in her sleeve. This person had better pray that he wouldn't fall into her hands, otherwise she would definitely make him pay for today's humiliation.

  The queen apparently also realized this, and her face, which had been silent and watching the changes, didn't look too good either, but she didn't speak out to stop it.

  The fourth prince looked at Ye Qingran, as if saying "what can you do about it".

  His face sank for a moment, but his thin lips curled up, and he casually stretched out his hand to smooth the hem of his robe, which was originally wrinkle-free. This action caused the guards surrounding him to change their expressions and take a step back. He said slowly: "I haven't been in court for seven years, and I haven't found that this world has changed so much! In the past, who in the entire imperial palace, including the Heavenly Saint, didn't avoid me? Who gave you all the courage to point your swords at me?"

  The last sentence was light, but the whole scenic garden suddenly became gloomy in an instant.

  The guards took a step back in shock, their bodies trembling slightly, and the hands holding their swords were almost unable to hold on. However, since Ye Qingran was too close to Li Yun, they didn't dare get closer, so they could only surround both Ye Qingran and the Fourth Prince. Now, upon hearing this, everyone's gaze turned towards Crown Prince Ye Tianqing.

  Some people even opened up their dusty memories. Seven years ago, who didn't know about the infamous Tian Sheng's chaotic demon king, Ran Xiao Wang Ye, also known as Ye Qingran? He wouldn't kill anyone and would smile at everyone like a spring breeze, but the way he would torment people was truly making them wish they were dead. Countless people had been tormented by him, and almost no one in the entire imperial court had escaped his wrath. Whenever he appeared somewhere, people would flee in fear, avoiding him at all costs. Even the Emperor himself was helpless against him. Later on, it was only because of the kindness of Duke De Qin's old master that he couldn't bear to see the entire capital city being turned upside down by Ye Qingran, so he had him exiled to go through some hardships, and only then did the imperial city finally quiet down. For seven years, he didn't appear in the capital, and people almost forgot about him. Now, thinking back on his past deeds of tormenting others, they couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts when looking at his enigmatic smile.

  But many young ladies also remembered the events of that year, when some bold girls would show affection to the young prince and be thrown into the lotus pond, which was said to be a light punishment. As for men who offended him, there were many more severe punishments. Thinking of this, those women looking at Ye Qing's eyes with spring color also retreated several points. But still couldn't help being overwhelmed by his handsome appearance.

  Li Yun secretly admired him. She didn't expect someone to have such a strong presence! Without doing anything, he could make people fear him so much. Then she thought again that he must have done something in the past to make people fear him so much.

  "Yes, Light Dye, you've been away from the capital for years, and this sacred sky has indeed changed! These slaves have become even more unruly." The Fourth Prince glanced at the sword pointing at him, his voice slightly sinking. "This time you're back, you should properly help Father Emperor punish these slaves. Otherwise, they'll continue to be arrogant, not knowing their own weight."

  The fourth prince's words fell, and he glanced at Ye Tian with a sideways glance.

  The night sky was expressionless, only a pair of eyes grew darker. He suddenly glared at the guards, "I ordered you to take down Yun Shangyue, why are you pointing your swords at Fourth Brother and Young Master Wang?"

  "The Crown Prince pardons the crime!" The guards were already afraid of Ye Qingchen, and now they heard the words and threw away their swords and knelt on the ground.

  "A bunch of trash, get out! Take her to the Ministry of Justice's prison!" The Night Sky Crown Prince was clearly enraged. He didn't expect that the person he had painstakingly trained would be so incompetent in front of Ye Qingran.

  "...is!" Those people immediately got up, trembling with fear, and went around Ye Qing to catch Li Yun.

  "It's too late, you think I, the young king, will forgive so easily? Night Light Ink smiled carelessly and suddenly waved his hand lightly. A red glow flashed in his palm, and a small red snake flew out of his sleeve. In an instant, there were cries of pain, and dozens of people threw away their swords, clutching their arms as they fell to the ground."

  Cinnabar Red Snake? Li Yun was taken aback, didn't expect to see such a good thing here.

  Ye Tian's face changed, his voice suddenly sinking, "Ye Qingran, you openly injured someone in the imperial palace, defying this crown prince's orders. What do you intend to do?"

  The queen's complexion changed too, but she still pretended to be calm and sat down, only her face turned pale. She had never seen such a fierce snake before.

  The women around didn't see Night Light's move clearly, they only saw those people lying on the ground, so there was no scream. Some people even looked at Night Light with admiration. They thought that if anyone could win the heart of this young master, it would be a blessing for several lifetimes. Now seeing Li Yun looking at Night Light with shining eyes, she couldn't help but feel more jealous. Why did this woman who didn't know how to behave get such protection from Young Master Light? It's really hateful!

  "It seems you've gotten something good again!" The Fourth Prince said, looking at the little snake that had slipped back into Ye Qianyu's sleeve, ignoring the Crown Prince's gloomy face as he smiled.

  "This little king has always had a lot of good things, do you want to take a look?" Ye Qingran heard this and looked at the Fourth Prince with raised eyebrows.

  The fourth prince's smiling face suddenly stiffened, shaking his head, "Good things are more meaningful when used by those who need them."

  Ye Qing's face turned pale as she let out a cold snort and said disdainfully, "Look at your guts, still as small as before. Truly useless."

  The fourth prince suddenly became angry, glared at Ye Qingran and said, "You dare? You only know these shameful things. If you were worthy of being on stage, why would Duke De expel you from the capital?"

  "That's what Xiao Wang thinks, that this capital city is no longer interesting, and wants to go out and have some fun." Ye Qingran said.

  "What's so interesting about the capital city now? Why have you come back?" The Fourth Prince pressed on relentlessly.

  "It's because there was nothing interesting outside, but now Beijing is interesting again, so I came back!" Ye Qingran said matter-of-factly.

  The fourth prince suddenly became angry, flung his sleeve and said: "No matter what you say, it's all your fault." As soon as he finished speaking, he seemed unwilling to be blocked back like this, and whispered in a huff: "If you have the ability to rescue Yun Shangyue from him today, that would be something."

  "I didn't know you wanted to rescue her that much? Is it because of affection or because she's useful?" Ye Qing's lips moved slightly, his voice avoiding the crowd and reaching the Fourth Prince's ears.

  "Whatever it is, don't bother with him, you want to save him, don't you have an ulterior motive?" The fourth prince blinked his eyes and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear.

  "I'm... " Ye Qing looked at Li Yun, seeing her staring at his sleeve, the corner of her mouth twitched slightly. In response to the fourth prince's inquiring gaze, he chuckled and immediately put on a serious face, saying ruthlessly: "Mind your own business!"

  "The...!" The fourth prince was so angry that he couldn't say a word. He cursed silently. To say nothing of the seven years of traveling outside, even if it were ten or twenty years, this little demon king would not change his nature and would still be the same.

  The two of you came and went, seemingly completely forgetting the angry prince above and the wailing guards around.

  "You dare to injure someone in the palace, defying both the Empress and my orders. What do you want? Didn't you hear what I said? After being away for seven years, I thought you had made some progress, but now you're even more lawless! Night Sky only saw their lips moving, unable to hear their voices. Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, his face turned even darker. For many years, no one has dared to defy him. And yet, this Ye Qing Ran returns and dares to oppose him. How infuriating!"

  "I heard that, Prince Brother's voice is so loud, the flowers and grass around are trembling. It really scares me! However, Prince Brother is also too heartless. How can you say that Moon Sister is also a beauty with national color and heavenly fragrance? You don't like her, that's fine, but how can you be so ruthless to lock her up in prison? You may not mind, but I do. I, Xiao Wang, have always been the one who cherishes flowers the most. How can I bear to let a flower that can topple cities wither away? That would be such a pity!" Night Light Ink's words, which were clearly not suitable for a prince, were seen by everyone, and with just a few light sentences, she dispelled the tense atmosphere of Prince Brother's violent anger.

  The fourth prince cursed in his heart. He didn't even blush when he said such words at night, would he cherish and pity her? Who would believe that!

  The crown prince's face turned red with rage, his forehead bulging with blue veins as he glared at Ye Qingran. Ye Qingran remained nonchalant, and the crown prince slowly reined in his anger, no longer paying attention to him. He spoke slowly, "Today's matter, I'll let it slide since you just returned." After a pause, he turned to Li Yun, his voice extremely cold, "As the saying goes, 'beautiful women are a calamity.' Today, because of you, my brothers and I almost became enemies. Even if I wanted to be lenient with you, it seems that's no longer possible."

  Li Yun's expression had completely disappeared, and she looked at him coldly.

  "Guards, take the Crown Prince's secret guards and throw Yun Wangfu's Yun Shangyue into the heavenly prison. If you dare to resist, regardless of death or injury. If someone assists, it will be considered a joint crime, without considering the consequences, and taken down together." Ye Tianqing's voice was not loud this time, but it was extremely powerful. His gaze was sharp and his aura was clear. Only now did he fully display the advantages and majesty of a crown prince.

  As soon as he finished speaking, more than a hundred people wearing tight black clothes appeared around him, surrounding Li Yun instantly, passing by Ye Qingran and the Fourth Prince.

  Li Yun remained still, knowing that if she moved even slightly, she would likely be injured or worse. Ye Qingran gazed at the emerging Prince's Hidden Guard, his thin lips pursed tightly, and his eyes dimly lit. He hadn't expected Ye Tianqing to be so ruthless towards Cloud King's Cloud Shallow Moon, not even giving him an inch of leeway despite his efforts to protect her. His hand clenched into a fist in his sleeve as he considered whether to take action or not. While taking action would be easy and could save Cloud Shallow Moon, the consequences might be dire. Ye Tianqing would likely use this incident to frame Cloud Shallow Moon with the crime of being a seductress, causing his brothers to turn against each other in guilt. That would be far worse than burning down a small pavilion. The Emperor wouldn't tolerate it. Unlike when he was younger, he couldn't afford to be reckless now. If he openly opposed the Prince in the palace, even shedding blood, the Emperor's tolerance would likely wear thin.

  Thinking of this, Ye Lightly dyed her eyebrows with worry and hung her head down to think of a countermeasure.

  The fourth prince looked at the hidden guard, his mouth slightly curled up. Today, even if they couldn't rescue Yun Shangyue, being able to lure out Ye Tianqing's hidden guard was already half a success. As for Yun Shangyue... he wanted to see if this little demon king could still save someone or not?

  Digression

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