Leap Forward Comics: Watch How I Become a Villainess

Chapter 139 The Restless Force

Lu He rushed back to the Princess's residence after lunchtime, but Li Cen had not yet touched his chopsticks and was waiting for her.

She walked over somewhat embarrassedly: "Your Highness, why don't you eat first?"

Li Cen smiled gently: "You are my hero. If it weren't for your planning, how could things have gone so smoothly?" Li Cen told the maids to bring some hot dishes, as the previous ones had already gone cold.

"Your Highness flatters me." Lu He was a little shy from the praise. He lowered his head and scratched himself, then realized that he was wearing a standard official robe with a hat, so he couldn't touch the back of his head. He immediately felt awkward raising his hand.

Seeing that she was different from her usual shrewd self, and instead seemed silly, Li Cen couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh.

"Your Highness, you're making fun of me again."

"How dare I make fun of Lord Lu?" he said, still teasing her on purpose.

After joking around for a while, the dishes were served again, and the two sat down to start talking about serious matters.

“The princes and delegations of the eight countries have been escorted back to their countries by the newly established Imperial City Guard.” Li Cen tapped the table with his fingers: “Just then, the emperor was assassinated, so I used the excuse that Chengde needed to observe mourning to decline this marriage alliance, which also gave Chengde a breather. As long as I become emperor in the future, I will definitely not let her go on a marriage alliance again.”

“That’s natural. Women shouldn’t be given as gifts to foster good relations between two countries. Besides, female officials are flourishing now. The newly appointed Imperial City Envoy and Supervisor are both women, which balances out the fact that the Deputy Envoy and Supervisor are both men. This allows for a 50/50 balance of power within the organization. Moreover, those two are often dispatched outside the capital and cannot return without being summoned…” Lu He was very satisfied with the female official policy that Li Cen was implementing. She had high hopes for Li Cen. Besides, the matter of the Crown Prince had already been resolved. All that was left before Li Cen could ascend the throne was the Third Prince, which shouldn’t be too difficult to resolve.

"They have been secretly recalled." This message from Li Cen suddenly interrupted Lu He's gratified mood.

"What? Who did this? The Crown Prince has been sent away, and the Third Prince has been detained..."

“Grand Tutor Gao,” Li Cen said.

"The message from Nie Qing?" Lu He pondered. It seemed that the act of betraying Nie Qing in the main hall had worked. Nie Qing now enjoyed the trust of Grand Tutor Gao.

"Hmm, she also sent back news that Grand Tutor Gao plans to gather troops, break into the prison, and then enthrone the Crown Prince as emperor, thus launching a coup." Li Cen tapped the table while smiling knowingly.

Gao Yi probably didn't expect that the Crown Prince had already been sent away. Gao Zhan really tricked his father.

"Gao Zhan does have feelings for the Crown Prince, doesn't he?" This thought suddenly popped into Lu He's head. She didn't believe that Gao Zhan really didn't have even the slightest bit of affection for the Crown Prince...

“That’s not important…” Li Cen pursed her lips and lowered her eyelashes slightly: “If the Crown Prince launches a coup, there will probably be no turning back. Gao Zhan wants him to live, so he naturally knows what to choose… If…” Li Cen hesitated for a moment, opened her mouth, but didn’t say the rest of the sentence… She wanted to ask if Lu He would also hope that she would live well if she were to choose.

"The fact that the Crown Prince is gone will be discovered sooner or later. I'm afraid that Grand Tutor Gao will join forces with the court to support the Third Prince. After all, they never intended for a woman to be emperor, even if you are so outstanding and talented!" Lu He said indignantly.

“I’ve thought of that too,” Li Cen said, “Nie Qing has spread the word that the second son of the Nie family recently went on a long trip.” He analyzed further, “Those holding official positions in the court are currently afraid to make any rash moves, but Nie Zhiyuan has no official position and can move freely. He said he was going to visit distant relatives on his mother’s side… but his route was all the way south…”

"Heading south... Hu Wang? Could it be... what are they planning?" Lu He was shocked. He had seen the distribution map provided by the system and discovered that Hu Wang's forces were located in the south, bordering Tongchi Kingdom. If they wanted to rebel, they would probably join forces with Tongchi to borrow troops...

“It’s not impossible. After all, the number of sentries is limited, and they can’t keep an eye on all the officials’ families. There will probably be many oversights.” Li Cen’s biggest concern was that these officials would use their families to send messages. She was worried not only about the Prince of Hu, but also about Chao Zhiyi, who was far away on the border. If they wanted to support Li Yun, they would have to have Chao Zhiyi lead his troops all the way back to the capital.

Now that Grand Tutor Gao and Minister Nie have taken action, I'm afraid the Prime Minister will do the same, and they might be preparing a major counterattack.

"Is the Thousand Machine Guard under General Bai Jin's command now?" Lu He pondered for a moment. "The newly rebuilt Thousand Machine Guard by Bai Jin has shown some progress. Why not send General Bai Jin with the Thousand Machine Guard to the border to take a look?" There are clearly not enough capable men available right now. The Inner Guard and the Imperial Guard cannot be dispatched, the Imperial City Guard is escorting the princes of the Eight Kingdoms, and the secret sentries need to keep a close eye on the movements in the capital. This matter can only be handled by trusted confidants… After much thought, it seems only the Thousand Machine Guard is suitable.

Following the emperor's assassination, Bai Yu was dismissed from his post to quell public criticism. Now, the position of General of the Golden Guard is vacant, but it's impossible to appoint a disgraced official so quickly, especially since, according to the original manga, this position belongs to the protagonist, Chao Huaiyuan…

But seriously, is Chao Huaiyuan still of any use? Can he really betray his country and pledge allegiance to the Princess? Lu He glanced at Li Cen, who was frowning in thought. Should she really push her into a marriage with Chao Huaiyuan? Even if it was fake, using the male lead without any emotion would be something she wouldn't want, right?