SWDnovel Chapter 5: Gains and Losses
Chapter 5: Gains and Losses
"Oh? Then tell your brother, how did you get the money?"
Yin'e was taken aback, then blinked and put on an innocent expression: "Who said I got the money? No, really no, I'm trying to figure something out too."
He shrugged, his face showing an indifferent attitude.
Yin Tang (Ninth Prince): "..."
Yinzhi (Eighth Prince): "..."
The two of them were stunned at the same time.
Looking at Yin'e's innocent face, they were momentarily speechless.
If you say he's lying, his expression certainly doesn't seem like he's lying;
If he wasn't lying, then what does "can get through it" mean?
Such ambiguous and vague answers are more unpleasant than a direct rejection.
Yin Tang (the Ninth Prince) opened his mouth as if to say something, but swallowed the words back down.
He originally planned to take the opportunity of persuading the tenth prince to sell his belongings to expose the prince's debt, but now the tenth prince refuses to even admit that he is "short of money", so how can he bring up those words?
You can't exactly say, "Tenth Brother, I suggest you go to Qianmen Street and embarrass yourself, and drag the Crown Prince down with you," can you?
The atmosphere in the study fell into a subtle silence for a few moments.
"Haha, let's not talk about that, let's not talk about that." Yin'e waved his hand and laughed heartily. "Eighth Brother, your tea is really good. What kind is it? Send two catties to my residence later."
Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) smiled and said, "This is a new batch of pre-rain Longjing tea. If you like it, I'll have the servants pack two jars for you later."
"Then thank you very much, Eighth Brother." Yin'e clasped his hands in a fist salute, looking happy that he had gotten a good deal.
Lunch was at the Eighth Prince's residence.
The dishes weren't many, but each one was exquisite.
Yin'e ate with great relish, slurping down two bowls of rice.
Seeing his eating habits, Yin Tang (the Ninth Prince) became even more confused.
This carefree attitude doesn't seem like an act at all.
Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) remained calm, occasionally serving food and tea to Yin'e, saying, "Eat more, you've lost weight."
After the meal, the palace maids brought out tea for rinsing the mouth and handkerchiefs for wiping the hands.
The three of them rinsed their mouths, washed their hands, and then sat down to drink a cup of tea.
Yin'e glanced at the sun outside the window; it was already slightly setting in the west.
He stood up, clasped his hands in a fist and palm salute, and said, "Eighth Brother, Ninth Brother, it's getting late. I have some things to take care of at my residence, so I'll head back now and come see you another day."
"Are you leaving already?" Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) also stood up. "Let's sit a little longer."
"No, no, I really have something to attend to." Yin'e waved his hand with a smile. "Thank you for the tea and meal, Eighth Brother. I'll treat you both to a meal at my residence another day."
"Of course, of course." Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) escorted him all the way to the door of the study, and then added, "Be careful on the way."
Yin Tang (the Ninth Prince) also smiled and waved, saying, "Tenth Brother, take care."
The three parted with reluctance, a scene of brotherly affection and respect that was deeply moving.
Yin'e stepped out of the study and stood in the courtyard without rushing to leave the mansion.
He opened his palm, and the faintly glowing book "Overheard" immediately appeared.
He looked around to make sure no one was around, and then immediately called out the name "Aisin Gioro Yinzhi (Eighth Prince)".
The familiar buzzing sound echoed in my mind, followed by the voices of those two people.
Inside the study.
After Yin'e left, the air was quiet for a moment.
"Brother Ba, judging from Lao Shi's personality, he's probably really made some money."
Look at how nonchalant he is today. Two hundred thousand taels of silver is like twenty coins to him; he's not worried at all.
He paused, then frowned: "It seems that the plan to have him implicate the Crown Prince... is not going to work."
Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) sat on the daybed, toying with a string of sandalwood prayer beads in his hand, his face darkening.
"Sigh." He sighed, his tone tinged with reproach. "I told you a long time ago to help him pay back the money, but you wouldn't listen and insisted on this 'selling his belongings' scheme."
Now look what's happened, he got the money without going through us.
If others find out, they'll all think that our Eighth Prince's Party is heartless and ungrateful, unwilling to help even our own brothers.
After this, who will trust us?
Yin Tang (the Ninth Prince) was scolded until his face turned red and white, and he nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, yes, Eighth Brother is right to teach me a lesson."
I didn't expect that Lao Shi could solve the problem by himself; he's not usually like this..."
"Alright, what's the point of saying all this now?" Yinzhi (Eighth Prince) waved his hand. "Hurry up and take the money to the Ministry of Revenue to settle the Tenth Prince's accounts directly."
We must return it in a grand and public manner, making it known to everyone!
It would be best if the entire court knew that it was our Eighth Prince's faction that helped Tenth Brother pay off his debt.
"This..." Yin Tang (the Ninth Prince) hesitated for a moment, "But didn't he say that he could handle it?"
"What if he actually manages to get the money himself? Wouldn't it be pointless for us to help him pay it back?"
"What do you know?" Yinzhi (Eighth Prince) put down his prayer beads, his gaze sharpening. "Whether he got the money or not, we have to pay this debt for him."
First, it's for outsiders to see, proving that our Eighth Prince Party is united and as close as brothers;
Secondly, it will shut Lao Shi up and make him feel indebted to us. That way, he won't be able to refuse us if anything happens in the future.
"Eighth Brother's insight is brilliant," Yinzhen (Ninth Prince) sincerely praised, then suddenly remembered something, "What about the Crown Prince's 500,000 taels... how should we spread the word?"
Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) was silent for a moment, then tapped his fingers lightly twice on the table.
"I have my own plans for this," he said calmly. "Don't worry about it for now, go and take care of Lao Shi's matter."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Yin Tang (the Ninth Prince) responded, stood up, and hurriedly walked out.
While listening to the conversation between the two inside the house from the courtyard, Yin'e heard that the Ninth Prince was about to come out. To avoid bumping into the two of them, he quickly found a corner to hide.
He only breathed a sigh of relief after seeing him completely disappear outside the courtyard.
"That was close," Yin'e murmured. "But I must say, this 'Overheard' is really powerful. If I could know everyone's private conversations and conspiracies, wouldn't I be invincible?"
But now was not the time to think about it. He waited until the Ninth Prince was far away before slipping out from behind the wall and walking out of the mansion.
Upon seeing Yin'e finally emerge, Yin De eagerly stepped forward and asked, "Tenth Prince, how did it go? Have the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince given up?"
Yin'e looked around, then whispered, "Get in the sedan chair first, we'll talk about it when we get back."
"Yes, sir!" he then shouted, "Get the sedan chair and return to the mansion."
Sitting in the sedan chair, Yin'e couldn't wait to open the book "Overheard" that no one else could see.
But this time, he frowned.
He discovered that the text written below Yinzhi (the Eighth Prince) had changed.