kvmb Chapter 244: Phoenix Glazed Lamp
Chapter 244: Phoenix Glazed Lamp
Recently, the Crown Princess desperately needed money, or rather, the Crown Prince needed money. Last time, she secretly spent a lot of money to go to the Northern Frontier to redeem Liang Huan, but the King of the Northern Frontier was inhuman and took the money but did not release her brother, so all that money went down the drain. Now, she also has to arrange for the Crown Prince to take a concubine, which will be another huge expense.
The Liang family's finances are now in the Empress's hands, and the Emperor is seriously ill and cautious in everything he does, so she will not touch the national treasury. As for not taking action against Yan Qing, it is mainly because she does not want to cause any trouble at this critical juncture and give the gentry a handle to talk about. Otherwise, she would have taken action long ago just because Yan Qing fled from Chuzhou to the northern frontier to settle down.
Before long, Liang Qinian arrived at the residence to convey the message of the "big boss".
Chen Futu was prepared and had Dian Wei give him the exquisite gift box he had prepared. "Go back and tell your boss that even if the cooperation doesn't work out, we can still be on good terms. This is a small gift I gave her when I first arrived. I will be cooperating with others next, and I have already prepared a shop. I think my goods from the Western Regions will be very popular."
Liang Qinian was bewildered when he received the box, and after a slight hesitation, he hurriedly returned to the East Palace.
The Crown Princess was displeased. "Why are you here again?"
Helpless, Liang Qinian recounted the whole story.
The Crown Princess examined the exquisite box with great interest. "Interesting. Let's open it and take a look."
Liang Qinian carefully lifted the lid of the box, revealing an exquisite phoenix glass cup. This creation was flawless, without a single impurity.
The Crown Princess was immediately captivated by it, then quickly stepped forward and excitedly took it out, admiring it with great delight. "Truly a rare treasure..."
Liang Qinian was taken aback by the exquisite glasswork. Such a treasure, in such condition, would probably be fought over by wealthy and powerful families if it were sold outside. What's most outrageous is that it is shaped like a phoenix. The Crown Princess is about to become the Empress, and this gift is exactly what she wants.
The Crown Princess grew increasingly delighted with the glass artifacts, and so she asked Liang Qinian, "Which country is skilled in glass craftsmanship?"
"Your Highness, only the Western Zhao possesses such glassmaking craftsmanship."
"So this person comes from Western Zhao."
"Perhaps, but the relationship between Zhao Xi'er, the ruler of Western Zhao, and the Northern Frontier is unusual. Does she have other intentions in coming to the capital with these merchants?"
Liang Qinian had heard about some major events.
Back then, when the King of Northern Frontier joined forces with Zhao Xier to conquer Xizhou, they nearly wiped out the Daqian and Longman armies at the Tongguan battlefield. Logically, there shouldn't have been any merchants from Western Zhao coming to the capital, for fear of being implicated.
The Crown Princess put down the glass cup and pondered, "Glass products are under the control of Zhao Xier, and ordinary people cannot obtain them. This Western Region merchant was most likely appointed by Zhao Xier. It seems that I need to meet him. Even if it is not for Zhao Xier, glass products of such quality should be under my control."
The Crown Princess's attitude was very clear: this quality of glass could be called a treasure. Now that Zhao Xier had given her a phoenix, she might also have a five-clawed golden dragon. She had to present it to the Emperor to boost the Crown Prince's fortunes. If she could control this business channel, would she still worry about the national treasury's finances in the future?
Thinking of this, the Crown Princess said to Liang Qinian, "Make arrangements to find a secluded place for me to meet with that Western Region person. This matter must be kept secret and not leaked in the slightest."
Liang Qinian felt relieved and happily left the Eastern Palace, immediately going to make preparations.
As for Chen Futu, he waited in the mansion until nightfall and did not see Liang Qinian. He knew that the matter had been accomplished and the Crown Princess had taken the bait, so he could proceed with the next step of the plan.
"Your Majesty, are you planning to deal with the Crown Princess?"
Liu Longyue was extremely surprised. Chen Futu sneered and asked, "Let me ask you a question. If the Crown Princess wanted the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon Glazed Lamp, but a prince was holding onto it and refused to give it to her, and even tried to harm her, what would be the consequences?"
"what?"
Liu Longyue and the others were greatly surprised.
Isn't this going too far?!
Qi Wen frowned and said, “Your Majesty, you must not do this. If you do, you will inevitably be drawn into the power struggle of the Great Qian Dynasty, which will be extremely dangerous for you. Now that the old emperor is seriously ill, there should be a powerful figure in the capital. If a fight really breaks out, I am afraid that I alone will not be able to protect Your Majesty’s safety.”
Qi Wen is right. Chen Futu's attempt to use this opportunity to incite a power struggle within the imperial court is too radical. If things go wrong, he could get burned.
Chen Futu said in a deep voice, "My purpose in coming here is to stir up trouble. They can forget about having a good New Year. My mind is made up, there's no need to persuade me anymore."
"Ah this..."
The group looked at each other, speechless.
That's just how the king is; he does whatever comes to mind, and his personality is very impulsive.
Next, Chen Futu asked Yan Qing to display some glassware at the shop, expecting that some of the prince's subordinates would go to buy them. Once they selected a target, he would privately reveal that there was a five-clawed golden dragon glass cup that could be presented as a gift to the emperor. Presumably, one or two idiots would personally go there. If they did, he would arrange for people to keep them company with drinking and merrymaking to delay them. Once they were half-drunk, he would take the crown princess to the shop to see the five-clawed golden dragon. Then, he would see how the drunken prince would treat the crown princess.
Given the cruel nature of those princes, if they get drunk, they might make a move on the Crown Princess, and that would be interesting.
After thinking it over, Liu Longyue was utterly impressed. When it came to despicable behavior, the King of Northern Frontier was second to none.
As expected of Zhang Liang's ruler, both the ruler and his minister were more wicked than the other.
If this matter goes smoothly, there is great potential for profit. For example, the Western Region merchants could rescue the Crown Princess from the hands of the prince who was harassing her, thus winning her favor. Or, if the Crown Prince and the prince break off relations, the Northern Frontier King could secretly use the officials who have sided with the Northern Wu to advise the court against policies that are detrimental to the prince. By stirring up trouble in this way, the capital city will surely be in chaos.
Of course, the consequence of doing so would be that he would be hated by some princes and would be at the center of the storm. The King of the Northern Frontier was taking advantage of the old emperor's serious illness, making him watch his brothers fight, worsening his condition, and sending him to his death ahead of time.
The night is getting darker.
Yan Qing brought over dinner, and Chen Futu grabbed her smooth little hand, raising an eyebrow as he asked, "Madam, would you be willing to share a table and pillow with me tonight?"
"Your Majesty, stop joking around. What time is it? Do you still have the mood to think about such things?"
Yan Qing blushed and spat, then gently stepped forward to offer the cup.
Chen Futu took the opportunity to pull her into his arms and pinched her fair chin. "Remember, those princes are all bad. When they arrive, you don't need to personally greet them. Just choose a few pretty women from the brothel to keep them company."
"Your Majesty, rest assured, no one but you will ever touch me."
Yan Qing smiled gently and presented the wine glass to Chen Futu.
Just as Liu Longyue was about to enter, she saw this scene and quickly hid by the door, secretly cursing him for being shameless.
After scolding her, she felt something was wrong. She didn't know why she was angry. Aren't all these people who call themselves kings and rulers the same?