Joy of Life - Volume 2 - Chapter 121

Chapter 121: Unlucky Despite the Promotion

Originally, he hadn't wanted to meet the prince, but the blabbermouth Ye Ling’er foiled his plan.

If his aunt, the second princess, were to lose the right to the palace treasury and an enemy took over, all that debt would be exposed. That was what the prince was most worried about. Luckily, the palace treasury would not be switching owners for another two years, so it wasn’t of the utmost urgency. But the Fan household was getting along very well with King Jing, and King Jing’s crown prince Li Hongcheng was… rather close with the second brother. The prince frowned slightly and stared at his junior who was stepping off the carriage, forgetting what to say for a moment.

"You… You are Fan Xian?" The prince finally came back to himself and asked with a smile.

"Oh." Seeing that Fan Xian’s face was extremely honest, the prince’s initial malice lessened. In an instant, the prince decided to observe for a while. "Ignorance isn’t a sin. My sister, Wan’er, is always sickly, so you must take care of her. Don’t be like those other young men in the capital who only seek temporary pleasures."

"But don’t be overly uptight. After the marriage, you are a relative of royalty and will be walking in and out of the palace often. You should relax your demeanor a bit." The prince lectured.
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"The diplomatic groups from Dongyi City and North Qi are entering the capital soon. Because the Niulan Street incident revolves around you, the Imperial court has named you assistant deputy for the time being. I thought I’d let you know in advance so you can get ready. When the time comes, don’t panic." The prince said without much emotion. Unknowingly, he had just done Fan Xian a favor.

The prince snorted coldly. "If you don’t earn yourself some merit, do you think there’d be any place for you in the court?"

The prince waved his whip, which was made from black silk and gold thread, and nodded in satisfaction. He turned around to speak to Lin Wan’er, "You should come to the palace more often. Aunt misses you very much." He paused and then continued, "Aunt often suffered from… headaches." There was nothing unusual in the prince’s voice, his expression was as gentle as usu

al. Fan Xian, however, scanned the prince’s face and picked up some unrest in his weak gaze.

"The prince is setting off." With a shout, the prince’s fleet of carriages began moving slowly towards the summer estate in the mountains. Fan Xian dared not to move until all the carriages disappeared from view. Sighing gently, he stretched his slightly stiff waist and smiled bitterly. "Being a civil servant is hard."

"Ling’er, don’t say such nonsense!" Such was how the food chain operated. Sizhe was afraid of Ruoruo, Ye Ling’er was afraid of the tiger cub. Lin Wan’er got angry, and Ye Ling’er hopped back on to the carriage.

Fan Xian had always acknowledged Lin Wan’er’s political wisdom, which she forged from her days spent deep in the palace. He nodded very seriously. Suddenly, he remembered something. "What about the youngest prince? Is he a difficult one too?"

Fan Xian laughed; he thought he was relaxed enough. Faking a sigh, he asked, "How can I not be nervous seeing Qing’s future ruler?" In his previous life, the highest-ranking person Fan Xian had ever met was merely his school principle. But strangely, since being reborn—perhaps due to being reborn into a high-ranking family—Fan Xian no longer felt nervous around these big shots. He could stay composed, even in front of the emperor.

"Ancient One?" Fan Xian realized Wan’er was talking about the empress dowager who resided in the depths of the palace. For some reason, he shuddered.

Fan Xian laughed and, with a whip of his sleeves, put everything behind him.

Since Fan Xian was fortunate enough to be given another life, then he had to live it to the fullest. Beautiful women, money, power; he mustn’t run low on those. But he had been in murky waters since coming to the capital. He couldn’t help but be vexed.

Suddenly, Fan Xian felt he had the potential to become a millionaire.

Once they were back on the road, Fan Xian and Wang Qinian shared a carriage and therefore their conversation was rather direct. Wang Qinian also frowned. "If someone deliberately made the prince go in order to place us in conflict with him, such an arrangement would be too complicated, and it wouldn't guarantee good results."

"It’s just that I don’t know the way the palace does things. Take the prince’s trip outside the capital for example, how long does it take for preparations? We came to the estate yesterday. Had the prince set his eyes here a few days ago, then this really is a coincidence, not a deliberate ploy."

Wang Qinian looked at Fan Xian with worry. He asked in a low voice, "What good can whoever planned this gain?"

"Could it be the second prince?" Wang Qinian tried to confirm his suspicion.

Fan Xian wasn’t lying when he said he wouldn’t give a damn. But he still made Wang Qinian get out of the carriage to check if they were being followed. He believed in Wang Qinian's abilities. If someone was spying on them, then whoever it was must be captured. If no one was spying on them, it was enough for the encounter to be a coincidence and prove that he was simply too cautious.
With a bitter smile, Fan Xian leaned back against the soft cushion, hoping he really was being paranoid.