Chapter 673: The Mouthpiece

Prince Jin suddenly burst into loud laughter.

"At the end of my rope, to encounter someone as interesting and daring to speak the truth as you—Heaven has not treated me poorly. It is only a pity I did not get to know Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen sooner; I have missed many opportunities."

Chen Guanlou laughed. "Many thanks to Your Highness for thinking highly of me. However, even if you had known me earlier, I would still have kept my distance from you."

"Why?"

"Because you are a loser!" Chen Guanlou said bluntly, scaring the prison guards present into lowering their heads, wishing they didn't exist.

Prince Jin's expression indeed changed, as if his sore spot had been pricked, suffering the greatest humiliation of his life.

He gritted his teeth, staring fixedly at the other man. "You look down on me?"

"As a loser, one must have the self-awareness of a loser. Once defeated, you must admit it and be prepared for your life to end and your path to vanish. I know you high-born royals usually refuse to accept your fate, viewing yourselves as superior. But there is only one seat, and you have many brothers; if you aren't ruthless and cold-hearted enough, it is only natural to lose your life when you lose." Chen Guanlou spoke of life and death as casually as if discussing what to eat for dinner, not taking Prince Jin's anger to heart at all.

That is just the kind of person he is.

In his eyes, regardless of wealth or status, if someone catches his fancy, he will be courteous. If they don't, he will spray them with words regardless of who they are.

The sharp-tongued Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen, a reputation well-deserved.

As for the mood of those he berates or whether their emotions are stable, he never cares. He only cares about his own satisfaction, not whether others live or die. A typical type who asks for a beating; the only reason he hasn't been sacked and beaten to death is his profound cultivation.

"Listening to you, you seem to have much insight. If it were you sitting in my position, what would you do?"

Prince Jin calmed down in an instant. His ability to control his emotions is worth acknowledging.

Chen Guanlou, however, did not indulge him, pointing at the cell door. "Your Highness, please enter!"

Without entering the cell, everything is off the table.

Want to chat? Fine!

Stay honestly inside the cell, and there will be plenty of time for idle chatter.

He is the Heavenly Jiang Jiang Yucheng; he has never forgotten his duties.

Prince Jin was furious, glared fiercely, and unwillingly stepped into the cell.

Bang!

Chen Guanlou personally closed the cell door and locked it. He waved his hand, dismissing the guards who were playing the quail.

He leaned against the opposite wall and said casually, "What would I do in your position? While the late Emperor was alive, I would of course act shamelessly to demand power. Even if I couldn't get power, I would still brush up my presence so the late Emperor would remember me as a good son.

When the late Emperor fell into a coma, I should have struck decisively, taking the palace with lightning speed and imprisoning all the imperial princes, including that one. I would reason with them, and if they were unwilling, well, sorry, go see the ancestors."

"Doing so would damage my reputation. I fear that after taking the throne, I would not escape the world's criticism!" Prince Jin said, not quite agreeing.

Chen Guanlou sneered, his expression somewhat incredulous, as if he had heard the most ridiculous joke in the world.

He laughed and said, "In the face of life and death, in the face of imperial power, in the face of that chair, reputation is worth nothing. You lot, you group of imperial princes were ruined by those Confucian scholars. At the moment of life and death, in the struggle for power, you are still considering reputation.

History books are written by the victors. Even if you can't change the history books, if your reputation stinks, does it affect you being Emperor? Look at you, poisoned by Confucian scholars, what is the result? How good can your reputation be anyway? Guess how history books will evaluate you after you die—will they show mercy and praise your benevolence just because you didn't kill your siblings out of concern for your reputation? Are you stupid!"

Prince Jin had lived for decades, and this was the first time someone had pointed at his nose and called him a moron to his face. He couldn't save face.

His expression changed on the spot.

"Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen, although I am a prisoner, I am still the Prince Jin of the Great Ming Dynasty. You had best be more polite."

"I would like to be polite, but seeing you so stupid, still obsessed and unawakened to this day, tsk tsk, I really can't help but speak. I ask for Your Highness's forgiveness! In my view, your generation of princes, under the oppression of the late Emperor, have all become fools. You have ambition and drive, but lack the ability to act. The late Emperor was such a muddled ruler, and the court officials were in an uproar, yet among you sons, not a single one could seize the opportunity. Stupid to the point of death!"

Chen Guanlou spoke his mind.

Some things he had held back for years, and he had long wanted to say them.

The Taixing Emperor was such a formidable person, playing the high officials of the court in the palm of his hand; the officials argued all day, in an uproar, yet could do nothing to him. A mere Jiang Tu, and the officials couldn't even move a hair of his.

Such a formidable person, yet the sons he produced were one more useless than the other. It really is regression to the mean; the Emperor's family cannot escape this law!

In the Emperor and these princes, he only saw two words: mediocre!

The Jian Shi Emperor is somewhat strong, but his strength is limited. However, he has one advantage: he has a top-tier think tank by his side, and he can listen to their suggestions.

He guessed that the Jian Shi Emperor dared to move against Prince Jin at this time, nine times out of ten, because of the plan provided by the think tank represented by Xie Changling.

This plan is not excellent; it can even be called risky.

A safe approach would be to wait at least three to five years before acting.

It is only the first year of Jian Shi, and he is already acting in such a hurry; the way he eats is too ugly. If the reputation of fratricide spreads, Prince Chu will certainly use it to add bricks and tiles to his cause of rebellion.

Not discussing positions, just in terms of courage and execution, Prince Chu is several times better than this group of princes. Daring to raise an army in rebellion while the Taixing Emperor was in power, he is a warrior! And being able to withstand the Taixing Emperor's offensive, he clearly has some skills.

Now that Prince Chu is fighting the Jian Shi Emperor, even if he can't win, he can probably fight to a draw.

"Stop talking nonsense! As sons and subjects, how could we rebel." Speaking of the word rebellion, Prince Jin subconsciously lowered his voice. Although he knew it was impossible for anyone to eavesdrop nearby.

No one can eavesdrop under the nose of a Ninth-Rank martial artist, unless they are a Grandmaster.

"That is why you became a prisoner!" Chen Guanlou mocked him without the slightest sympathy, watching his joke, not giving Prince Jin a shred of respect.

Prince Jin was furious. "Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen, you really are a petty person."

"Even if I am a petty person, I am a true petty person! Your Highness, you don't need flattering words now; you need someone who dares to tell you the truth. That way, when you leave this world, you will know where you lost and where you went wrong. Exactly how many opportunities to take the throne you missed. Reflect well! The struggle for imperial power has always been life or death; a struggle without deaths, hehe, you really are brotherly and fraternal."

Chen Guanlou's words were full of mockery.

According to his understanding, after the explosion at the Heaven-Offering Ceremony, when the Taixing Emperor fell into a coma, he should have picked up a knife and started killing. Instead of being gentle, still talking about rules, ethics, and reputation. Educated by Confucianism to be both hypocritical and cowardly, he deserves to lose! ===== CHAPTER 674 =====