Chapter 474: You're Just Cheap

Imperial Physician Mu was also trapped inside the Heavenly Prison.

Outside was truly unsafe—street ruffians and thugs had seized the chance to run out and profit from the chaos. The thugs didn't dare provoke the great households, so they targeted the city's middle class. Their destructive power was no less than that bunch of rogue soldiers.

Imperial Physician Mu was a typical Jingcheng middle-class household—owned a house, a carriage, and savings, with few family members and no clan gathered around him. Two or three servants could not possibly withstand the thugs' assault; there was even a risk to his life.

At a time like this, no matter how lavish one's home, none could compare to the safety of the Heavenly Prison.

Unable to sleep in the middle of the night, he called Chen Chen Guanlou over for tea.

Chen Chen Guanlou was also full of worries, and the tea only made his mind clearer and clearer.

He suddenly posed a soul-testing question: "Tell me, am I sick? Why is it that I just don't like respectable young ladies?"

These past few years, matchmakers had nearly worn out his doorstep, yet not a single one caught his eye, no matter how good her conditions or how pretty her looks. Just one feeling: bland and tasteless!

For someone accustomed to heavy flavors, there was simply no interest!

Imperial Physician Mu nearly spat out the mouthful of tea he hadn't yet swallowed.

He coughed several times in a row before calming down. Taking out a handkerchief to gently dab the corners of his mouth, he said slowly, "You're just cheap!"

Chen Chen Guanlou: …

He actually had no words to retort.

Nothing to say!

"It's not that you look down on respectable women—you just find their backgrounds too low. Swap in a young lady from an official's family, and you'd surely be wagging your tail and rushing right over. That one last time, the one called, the one surnamed Zhong—you were quite enthusiastic, weren't you? Turns out, she didn't take a liking to you. Hehe…" Imperial Physician Mu was more than happy to see Chen Chen Guanlou stumped.

"You mean Zhong Zhong Susu—she's different. Compared to other young ladies from official families, she's far stronger."

"No matter how strong, she's still a woman. You're just coveting her status, her looks. Don't deny it. Swap in a girl with looks similar to Zhong Zhong Susu's but a much lower status, and you'd surely have a completely different attitude. You're a classic case of saying one thing and meaning another, always eyeing the next mountain, too proud to settle and too picky to commit. Be careful you don't ruin your own eyes with all that choosing."

Chen Chen Guanlou firmly denied it—he wasn't picky at all, he never had been.

Imperial Physician Mu said he was stubborn.

"The hardest thing on your entire body is that mouth of yours."

"Nonsense! There's clearly something harder than my mouth." Chen Chen Guanlou denied it outright.

Imperial Physician Mu burst out laughing. "That claim isn't yours to make—the girls get the final say."

"The girls all say I'm great! My reputation at the pleasure houses has always been consistently high." He was quite full of himself.

Imperial Physician Mu gave a snort of derision. "Keep on bragging! Bragging isn't illegal anyway. If you really can't stand those respectable women, just find a little widow and make do. I can see that's exactly your taste."

"Don't slander me! Between me and little widows, we're perfectly innocent."

"Whether you're innocent or not, I don't care." Imperial Physician Mu's face was full of glee. Drinking tea in the middle of the night, he felt not the slightest bit sleepy. As for everything happening in the not-so-distant Imperial Palace, it had nothing to do with him; he wasn't worried in the slightest. Even if the Emperor died, it wouldn't be his turn to lead the mourning.

His mindset was exceptionally good—nothing to fret over.

As for Chen Chen Guanlou—men, after all, have those few days every month.

Once those days pass, he's a fine fellow again.

After a serious self-analysis, he concluded it was still because he couldn't be there in person to watch the excitement, so his mood felt low and gloomy.

"Do you think the court officials' grand assembly can argue out a result?"

"They definitely can't. When have you ever seen a grand assembly actually solve court affairs?" Imperial Physician Mu saw through the truth at a glance. "Summoning all the Jing Si Pin officials into the palace, in my view, is clearly an open scheme. Just wait and see—when this grand assembly ends, my guess is that'll be when the new sovereign ascends."

"Then which prince or imperial prince are you betting on?" Chen Chen Guanlou asked casually.

Imperial Physician Mu pondered for a moment, then said quietly, "Zhongwangdian's odds of winning are quite high. I've heard Xie Changling has been released from prison. Him getting out at this time must be to campaign for Zhongwangdian. When that group of former Eastern Palace officials unites, plus there's still a batch of officials in court firmly supporting the Loyal Prince—as long as the old Emperor doesn't wake for a single day, the Loyal Prince has his chance."

Chen Chen Guanlou nodded in understanding. "By your logic, the Loyal Prince is the biggest suspect. If the old Emperor dies, it benefits him most."

"I never said that." Imperial Physician Mu denied it outright. "You've turned bad on me, kid—catching words and twisting them. I almost got led down the wrong path by you."

"Old Mu, that's clearly judging a gentleman with a petty man's heart. Would I harm you? Would I tell outsiders about our conversation? If you can't even trust me, you're really—your paranoia is too severe, it's no good."

Chen Chen Guanlou sternly criticized the other man: not a shred of basic trust between people—does it have to be this cynical?

Imperial Physician Mu gave two dry chuckles, completely unmoved.

"What I can think of, how could you not think of it? Stop trying to trap me into saying things. I'm purely analyzing—I'd say the Loyal Prince's odds are a bit higher. But I haven't denied the chances of the other princes and imperial princes either. What if someone wants to be a power minister? Compared to an adult imperial prince, an underage one is definitely easier to control."

"People all say the Great Qian's sky cannot tolerate power ministers." Chen Chen Guanlou said with a grin.

"Times change. This moment is not that moment. During the old Emperor's reign, a power minister definitely wouldn't be tolerated. As for the future, hehe…" Imperial Physician Mu wore an attitude of watching a good show—he was also a classic spectator who never minded things getting bigger.

Chen Chen Guanlou, however, shook his head. "Right now it's still impossible to tell who has the chance to be a power minister. The old Emperor played the balance-of-power game very skillfully. Look at the several senior ministers in court—basically all in a relationship of mutual entanglement and checks and balances, each with their own little calculations. And not a single one is a pushover. Li Xiang has the longest seniority, but even he can't run a Yiyantang. If he insists on doing something, someone will definitely step up to oppose him."

"Times make heroes. Right now it's a contest of time, of strength, but also of guts and tactics. Whoever wins depends on who's more ruthless and whose tactics are a notch better. The reason I say the Loyal Prince's odds are high is because there's a Yiwei Sect master protecting him. On that point alone, he's already ahead of the other princes and imperial princes."

Chen Chen Guanlou raised an eyebrow. "You're sure there's a Yiwei Sect master protecting the Loyal Prince?" He was quite curious about this. The circles he moved in were too low; many things were still shrouded in fog for him.

Imperial Physician Mu said with certainty, "I can confirm it. Don't ask me where my information comes from. I can only tell you, I have my own sources."

"Having a Yiwei Sect master protecting him, and still getting deposed—he really is useless." Chen Chen Guanlou spoke the plain truth. If he had a Yiwei Sect master protecting him, back when the Crown Prince was being deposed, he'd have fought it out no matter what. Winner takes all, die and face the sky—what's there to fear.

The Loyal Prince clearly lacked a certain heroic courage; his nature was indecisive. A person like that couldn't accomplish great things!

"You don't understand! You think only the Loyal Prince has a Yiwei Sect master by his side? There are more than one Yiwei Sect master in the palace. Your Majesty has Yiwei Sect masters too—who'd dare to fight to the death?"

"How many Yiwei Sect masters does Your Majesty have by his side?"