Dragon's Origin

Chapter 665: Who is in the Dark (Part 2)

Disappointment! The Emperor was truly disappointed!

He had thought that by having Grand Scholar Lin teach the Third Prince, and allowing him to study the ways of governance and economics in Lizhen Lane, he could gradually cultivate his overall perspective and nurture him step by step as his successor.

Alas! From the moment he had Grand Scholar Lin teach the Third Prince, the prince had slowly been led astray.

How foolish must one be to believe the words of those who only engage in idle talk and not practical work? Even if he believed them, why believe them so blindly? Did he not have a few suitable advisors by his side to help him analyze the situation at hand?

No, there must be hidden circumstances behind this.

"How many people did you send to kill Mei'er?" The Emperor suddenly thought of something and immediately asked.

"I only gave the order to the head of the guards in my estate," the Third Prince quickly replied. "The specific arrangements were made by him. I don't know exactly how many people were sent."

"What was the result?" The Emperor asked again. If he didn't know the specific process, he should at least know the result, right?

"That Rose is definitely dead." Fortunately, the Third Prince seemed to know the detailed result, and quickly said, "More than a dozen guards were also killed on the spot. Basically, the goal was completely achieved. The manager of Dream Fragrance Workshop was killed, and that lowly woman was warned and frightened. They didn't do too much, and they withdrew immediately after succeeding, leaving no trace!"

"Well, at least you know that every move should have a purpose." The Emperor nodded faintly, considering it a rare compliment. But upon hearing that they left no trace, the Emperor angrily picked up a brush holder from his desk and threw it over: "No trace? Then how did I find out?"

Grand Scholar Lin had been a cunning old fox for so many years, how could things be so simple? It was easy for him to deceive the Third Prince, but did he not know that moving against Mei'er and Rose would provoke Wang Sheng's backlash?

The Emperor himself had killed four princes in the capital, at least two of whom were related to Wang Sheng. As long as they were slightly clever and paid attention, they would know that after the four dead princes were investigated and their families were confiscated, all the wealth and servants were sent to Wang Sheng's mansion.

Could the Third Prince not know this? Could Grand Scholar Lin and the others not know this? Yet the Third Prince was fooled by them into thinking that Wang Sheng posed no threat and could be easily dealt with with a single sentence.

Yes, Wang Sheng might face a counterattack from various major families in a few months, but so what? As long as Wang Sheng was willing to rely on any major feudal lord, he could continue to be his master.

Was Lizhen Lane simple? The Third Prince only learned a superficial understanding after a few months of study. He hadn't even personally operated it, yet he thought he could control Lizhen Lane? Could controlling Lizhen Lane be achieved by simply changing the manager? How naive must one be to think that way?

If Grand Scholar Lin and the others were not too naive, then they had other plans. As for the Third Prince, he was definitely the best candidate to take the blame, and one who would make everyone except the royal family happy. He just didn't know if this idea was Grand Scholar Lin's intention, or the intention of someone or several people among them.

Just at this moment, Chief Li silently stood at the door of the Imperial Study again. Obviously, the names that the Third Prince had just mentioned should now have been "invited" to the palace.

"Someone, take him down and find him a place to sober up and eat something," the Emperor ordered towards the door.

Eunuch Shen didn't say a word, but led people in and took the Third Prince away. As he walked, he continued to sigh in his heart. The Third Prince should eat something good! He wouldn't have the chance later.

"Have they all been captured?" After everyone had been sent away, Chief Li came in and the Emperor asked unhappily.

Chief Li shuddered and quickly knelt down to report: "Reporting to Your Majesty, Grand Scholar Lin has been captured, but among those students, three have already died. Among the Third Prince's advisors, five have also died in their respective residences. Everyone else has been captured."

"Interrogate them carefully." The Emperor nodded. It was normal for people to die. It would be abnormal if they didn't! Eight people had died, this number was really good, almost the same as the number of the Eight Great Feudal Lords!

"Bring Grand Scholar Lin here, I will question him personally." The Emperor still wanted to hear Grand Scholar Lin's words and see his inner thoughts. A scholar who had been famous for decades and had served as a Grand Scholar in the court should not be so shallow, right?

Unfortunately, the Emperor was destined to be disappointed. Grand Scholar Lin's performance was even more unbearable than he had imagined.

Although this world still revered cultivation strength, Grand Scholar Lin, who did not have high cultivation but had found a way to profit from his knowledge, was not the only one, but rather several generations, more than a dozen people. They had successfully developed a set of self-amusing theories that claimed all other occupations were inferior, only studying was superior.

Because they had always been suppressed by those with high cultivation strength, they craved power and wealth more than ever. Once they had the opportunity, they would try every means, even unscrupulous ones, to seize it. For example, this time Grand Scholar Lin instigated the Third Prince to deal with Mei'er, the fundamental purpose was this.

Of course, Grand Scholar Lin was also clever, knowing that he could not reach out to Lizhen Lane, so he pretended to be doing everything for the Third Prince, for the court, and for His Majesty, but his real goal was Qianshengyuan. Qianshengyuan was also an industry with hundreds of millions of gold coins a year, which was enough to satisfy Grand Scholar Lin's appetite.

Grand Scholar Lin did not consider the Grandmasters of Linglong Pavilion so simply. Someone had secretly sent him a message, saying that they were confident in dealing with those Grandmasters. However, the people who sent the message were his disciples and several people who were also around the Third Prince. Grand Scholar Lin did not hide their names and told the Emperor everything. Of course, he couldn't hide it either.

Everything was a calculation, especially this time targeting Mei'er. Originally, they didn't intend to instigate the Third Prince to act so quickly, but several of Grand Scholar Lin's students acted abnormally in the morning, desperately urging the Third Prince to act. Grand Scholar Lin didn't understand, but someone directly sent him one million gold coins, and he agreed in a daze. It wasn't until he learned in the afternoon that Lord Changsheng had returned to the capital that he realized things were not good.

When Chief Li went to invite Grand Scholar Lin, Grand Scholar Lin seemed to know that things were not good, he had dressed up and waited, and did not escape. In the heart of this Grand Scholar, there was still loyalty to the monarch and love for the country, which was the fundamental reason why the Emperor accepted Grand Scholar Lin back then, because of this loyalty to the monarch and love for the country.

"Tomorrow morning, send the person to Lord Changsheng." The Emperor was also tired, and sighed wearily, instructing, "Let Lord Changsheng handle it! As for the person behind it, let him dig it out himself."

Completion Check: Every part of the original text file has been translated.

Length Comparison: The length of the translated English text is comparable to the original Chinese text, ensuring completeness.

Confirmation Statement: The translation is complete and accurate.