「The next day.」
「The Sixty-Seventh Year of Yong'an.」
「3:00 AM.」
The weather had turned cold, and with winter fast approaching, a chill was beginning to descend upon the entire Great Yan Dynasty.
Lu Mingyuan took a hot bath in a wooden tub, dried himself off, and picked up his clothes from a rack to get dressed.
It took considerable effort to properly don all the intricate inner and outer layers.
He wore a long, bamboo-green robe with a Python Pattern. His frame was exceedingly slender. On his head sat a crescent-moon-and-Cyan-Dragon-style crown, secured with a white jade belt. The hair at his forehead was styled with meticulous care.
Lu Mingyuan sized himself up before a Copper Mirror. As he tied back his dark hair, he noted the reflection was blurry.
Even so, he could make out a certain superficiality to his aura—an aftereffect of years spent indulging in wine and women. His features, however, were well-defined and exquisite. His brow bore a striking resemblance to Emperor Yong'an's: intelligent and spirited, and exceptionally sharp when he was serious. But the moment he relaxed and his gaze softened, it would take on a wanton air, transforming him into the very picture of a profligate heir.
'This face will do just fine as a disguise.'
After all, whenever anyone mentioned the Sixth Prince, Lu Mingyuan, their first impression was of the bastard who did nothing but frequent brothels.
'Devouring all that meat jerky last night did have some effect after all.'
He could feel a warm current in his lower abdomen. 'Looks like I'm close to reaching the Outer Strength Realm.'
The Outer Strength Realm.
This realm relied entirely on the Powerful Qi cultivated in the Dantian. At the peak of Perfection, the body would become like a clay Bodhisattva; with Qi sunk in the Dantian, one would be as immovable as a mountain.
At that point, by circulating Powerful Qi throughout the body, felling a bull with a single punch would be no problem at all.
Having finished dressing, Lu Mingyuan prepared to walk around the courtyard and see if there was anything else edible.
His range of movement was extremely limited. The absolute farthest he could go was the greater part of the Harem, all within the gates of the Divine Splendor Imperial Palace.
If he took a single step outside the Harem, fully armed Imperial Guards would block his path.
Worse still, two elite guards now stood watch at the end of the main road leading from his Qingzhu Hall, assigned there specifically to protect him.
Protection in name, but surveillance in reality.
CLATTER-CLATTER-CLATTER!
Suddenly, the sound of horse hooves echoed from the main road.
Five horses were pulling the carriage, a clear sign of a distinguished personage. The steeds were all Dragon-Scale Horses, their bodies covered in black scales like a Qilin Beast, making them look tall and formidable.
Lu Mingyuan knew these were a type of military warhorse—incomparably fierce and extremely difficult to tame. Typically, only generals, princes, or marquises of the Third Grade or higher were permitted a team of three as a status symbol. The identity of this visitor was surely extraordinary.
The carriage rolled slowly down the road and came to a stop before Qingzhu Hall.
A middle-aged man in the crimson robes of a Court official stepped out. His expression was placid, and a faint smile played on his lips.
"Shi Taigong greets His Highness, the Sixth Prince."
The carriage looked familiar to Lu Mingyuan. His expression soured as he said flatly, "What are you here for? Do I know you?"
Shi Taigong's smile faltered for a moment before he quickly recovered. "The Fifth Prince heard of the decree early this morning," he said. "Knowing that Your Highness has been confined to the Cold Palace, he has come especially to offer his sympathies. Surely Your Highness can appreciate the gesture."
Lu Mingyuan's eyes narrowed.
'So, the news of my confinement to the Cold Palace is already widespread. That's actually good news.'
'But why would the Fifth Prince come all this way just to offer sympathies when he has nothing better to do? Isn't this a case of the weasel wishing the chicken a happy New Year?'
He certainly hadn't forgotten.
His predecessor had gotten into a conflict with him not long ago, arguing right in front of the Imperial Palace gates over a Palace Maid.
"This is a jeweled Copper Bell from the Fifth Prince. Your Highness must be sure to accept it."
Lu Mingyuan's brow furrowed as he looked at the small Copper Bell beneath the red cloth. He knew exactly what the man was implying.
They were cursing him.
"Get lost! I won't accept anything from Lu Mingkong!"
With a single swipe of his hand, Lu Mingyuan knocked the Copper Bell to the ground, shouting angrily.
'The original owner of this body would never have tolerated this. Not just now, but from this day forward, I must act in accordance with his established personality.'
Shi Taigong, however, merely wore an expression that said he had expected as much. He grinned and said:
"Be that as it may, the Fifth Prince is still your elder brother. For the Sixth Prince to address him directly by name is a breach of etiquette. It is quite improper, a true lapse in decorum."
Lu Mingyuan took a step forward and snorted. "Brother, my ass. He's nothing but an old dog."
As a scholar, Shi Taigong had never been subjected to such vulgar language. Hearing such a vile curse, his face darkened. "Your Highness, you must not speak so coarsely. Such insolence! If word of this were to reach the Holy Emperor's ears, it would reflect poorly on you."
"This is the Harem. Do not bring the filth you've learned from commoners in here and disrupt our sacred rites."
At this, Lu Mingyuan couldn't help but laugh. He raised an eyebrow, chuckled softly, and asked, "And you are?"
Hearing the question, Shi Taigong lifted his chin, looking down his nose as he announced haughtily, "I am Shi Taigong, Left Imperial Censor of the Advisory Platform Bureau."
"Oh. So, Junior Third Grade," Lu Mingyuan said with a nod.
Shi Taigong corrected him with great earnestness. "That was the old system from the previous dynasty. After the reforms in the Seventeenth Year of Yong'an, the position is now considered Senior Third Grade."
"Oh, so it's *just* Senior Third Grade."
Lu Mingyuan said languidly. Then, his eyes narrowed as he lifted a sleeve, gesturing to the pattern embroidered on it.
"What is this?" he asked.
Shi Taigong glanced at it, then looked away, replying with an unperturbed air, "A Python Pattern."
"How many claws?"
Sensing something was amiss, Shi Taigong's tone became much more subdued. He gave a light cough. "Four."
"And what kind of person is permitted to wear a Four-Clawed Python Robe?"
Shi Taigong's gaze shifted uncomfortably. He answered, steeling himself, "Naturally, those of princely and marquisal station, the Royal Family and Nobility, and the direct descendants of the Holy Emperor."
Lu Mingyuan flicked his great sleeve and sneered. "In our Great Yan, it has been decreed since the Grand Ancestor founded this Dynasty that any Court official of the Third Grade or higher must dismount from his carriage and bow when encountering a Prince. Those below the Third Grade are to bow to their very dust."
"How is it that a rule established by the Grand Ancestor himself is so readily broken by a mere Third Grade official like you?"
Hearing this, Shi Taigong averted his gaze, no longer daring to meet Lu Mingyuan's eyes.
"You speak of nothing but rites, yet your own behavior is insolent. It seems Lord Shi's official authority now outweighs the sacred grace of the Grand Ancestor," Lu Mingyuan sneered, his gaze turning profound.
Shi Taigong was speechless for a long moment before finally sputtering, "Your Highness resorts to sophistry! I was clearly discussing the matter concerning the Fifth Prince. What has that to do with me?"
Hearing this, Lu Mingyuan slapped him squarely across the face and roared:
"You cur! If you know it has nothing to do with you, then what gives you the right to look at me like that!"
The slap left a bright red handprint on Shi Taigong's face.
He followed up with a kick that sent the man stumbling.
"Who the hell do you think you are? What gives you the right to speak to me in that tone!"
Still not satisfied, Lu Mingyuan let out a few more curses.
Having absorbed a measure of energy the night before, his strength had increased considerably. It only took a few blows to knock the spindly Shi Taigong to the ground, who immediately started crying and wailing.
"I am a Court-appointed official! How dare you strike me!"
Lu Mingyuan spat. "And it's you I'm striking!"
"Your Highness, help!"
"Your Highness!"
After a series of wretched howls, the curtain of the motionless carriage was finally drawn aside.
A young man in a magnificent Python Robe stepped out. He had strong, handsome features, and swarthy skin. Holding a black folding fan, he looked on with an air of indifference and said:
"Alright, Sixth Brother. Stop making a scene."
Lu Mingyuan's face filled with disgust at the sight of him.
He recognized the man before him, the one with the physique of an athlete.
It was none other than the current Fifth Prince, Lu Mingkong.
The man was said to be vicious and cruel, a tyrant who often bullied the common folk. For the sake of a single Martial Arts Technique, he had once thrown the entire family of a martial arts school into prison. He took the women for himself, indulging in violent and perverse games with them. Once he grew tired of them, he would sell them off to the Music Bureau.
He was an absolute scoundrel—an even bigger one than this body's original owner.
'This bastard has been sitting in his carriage this whole time, refusing to show his face.'
'He's clearly here with an agenda.'
'The reason I was framed, implicated in the case of the Demoness, and thrown in prison... '
'It might very well have something to do with him.'
...