The Eighth Prince Gets a Beating
Enemies were destined to meet!
During this period, the matter of the eighth prince leading the way and causing trouble, trying to chase Feng Yu Heng out of the capital and forcing her to close Hundred Herb Hall was something that had spread. Although the people did not dare to do anything in the face of a prince, they had internally cussed the eighth prince very thoroughly.
Ever since Xuan Tian Mo had come out of the Sheng Palace on his horse to wander around, he had already received plenty of sharp looks. The commoners did nothing openly, but there were quite a few things done in secret. There were even some that threw eggs under the horse’s hooves.
Xuan Tian Mo was not like the late third prince. He would not begin cursing at the commoners in the street because he was clear that if he wanted to obtain this world, the hearts of the commoners could not be lost. Now that he had fallen to a disadvantageous position, if he caused trouble for the citizens in the streets, he could not bear the burden of that black pot. That was why a prince endured the entire time until he ran into Feng Yu Heng. A cold light appeared in his eyes and could not be held back.
Feng Yu Heng looked up and happened to look into the eyes that seemed to belong to a hawk. The message that came from those eyes seemed to be radiating with death, and was very chilling.
Xiang Rong was frightened and subconsciously took a step back; however, she lost her footing and could not stay standing. Dropping to the ground, she let out an “ouch” when she fell.
Feng Yu Heng clearly could have helped her stay standing, but who knew what she was thinking, as she not only did not help Xiang Rong, but she also took a step back in horror. She then successfully tripped over Xiang Rong’s foot and fell over.
It had to be said that Xiang Rong falling over might not have resulted in any commotion. At most, it would have brought about some concern, but Feng Yu Heng was different. Her fame in the capital was far too great, especially in the most recent days. Because of the matter with Hundred Herb Hall, Imperial Daughter Ji An had practically become something that was nearly spoken about at all times. There were even some people that would wipe away tears while eating and thinking about Hundred Herb Hall, while cursing at the people that opposed Imperial Daughter Ji An.
Now that Feng Yu Heng fell over, she just happened to fall into a busy intersection where many people were walking. It immediately caught everyone’s attention. Everyone looked over, as Wang Chuan and Huang Quan took note of Feng Yu Heng’s gaze. They quickly went to help Xiang Rong and their own young miss. While helping them, they loudly asked: “Young Miss, are you alright? Young Miss, this servant said that you should not go out. With so many of the officials in court finding you displeasing, who knows how many people will act against you!” After saying this, Wang Chuan kneeled toward the eighth prince and said with a look of horror: “Your Highness the eighth prince, we definitely did not intend to disrupt your walk, nor did we intend to block your path. Would Your Highness please show grace. You must not allow your steed to trample our imperial daughter to death!”
As she spoke, she and Huang Quan kowtowed to the eighth prince. While kowtowing, they began to cry. The two even stood in front of Feng Yu Heng, as if the eighth prince’s horse would rear up at any moment. Even Xiang Rong, who was behind them, began to cry. On one hand, she had suffered a shock, but it was not enough to cause her to cry. The most important part was to put on a show.
The eighth prince, Xuan Tian Mo, who was still on the back of the tall horse felt as if there was a buzzing sound inside his head. In the past, he only knew that Feng Yu Heng was sharp with her tongue, and she was very fierce when taking action. She was a master of going to fight on the battlefield. However, he never thought that her ability to act was also so good. She was someone that could spout nonsense without batting an eye. But his horse clearly did not even come close to touching her. There were even quite a few steps between the two. How did the two end up sitting on the ground? Was this not just extortion?
His eyes carried a similar sentiment, as he looked toward Feng Yu Heng; however, he saw that the girl’s eyes carried a provocative expression. The message was clearly: So what if I am extorting you?
Even for someone that was highly skilled in adjusting their mood, he still got angry. The eighth prince’s expression became a little ugly, and he was still on his horse. With the higher position, the sight of the weeping girls caused a feeling of irritation to well up inside his chest. He really hated that he could not trample all of them to death.
A street full of onlooking commoners were able to understand what was happening through Wang Chuan and Huang Quan’s words. it turned out that the person riding the horse was His Highness Prince Sheng! The people reacted and quickly kneeled to kowtow, not even daring to breathe loudly. Their expressions were filled with fear, as they took on a submissive stance. But they knew that what they were thinking internally was completely different from what they were doing. At this time, practically every commoner that was kneeling on the ground was thoroughly cussing out the eighth prince. If it was not for his father being the emperor and thus having to respect him, they really would have begun cursing his ancestors.
With the subtle influence of Hundred Herb Hall, and through word of mouth, the eighth prince had already caused the closure of Hundred Herb Hall, and he had pushed those officials to chase Imperial Daughter Ji An from the capital. It could be said that among the people of the capital, from the officials to the commoners, all of them were secretly cursing the eighth prince. Even the officials of the eighth prince’s faction had taken a wait-and-see attitude. All of this had been caused by the sudden and mysterious robberies.
Of course, Xuan Tian Mo was roughly able to guess what those officials were thinking, but at the same time, he suspected that those officials were working together and making false reports to get out of handing him the money. Both sides had their own thoughts, and the current situation was frozen. Neither side was willing to expose the other first.
As for these commoners, Xuan Tian Mo was naturally not foolish, “anti-eighth coalition” had already grown quite a great deal in the capital. It was all for the sake of going to the Sheng Palace to cause a commotion. How could he not know about it? But what could he do even if he knew? He had a way of handling a few officials, but an entire city of commoners left him a little troubled. He could not have them all killed, right?
Xuan Tian Mo’s expression became even uglier, as he stared straight at Feng Yu Heng for quite some time. After a while, he smiled then spoke up: “Younger sister really is careless when walking. You’re still so far from this prince’s horse, so how did you end up falling on the ground? Is the ground uneven?”
Feng Yu Heng shook her head, “The capital’s streets were fixed by Father Emperor’s people. Money is prepared for it each year. How could it be uneven? A-Heng just never thought that such a tall horse would appear in this commotion and was given a shock. Only then did I fall over. I truly do not dare to blame it on Your Highness the eighth prince. Your Highness must have an urgent matter to take care of, thus you rode a horse and charged into the disturbance. You must not neglect it because of A-Heng. That is not a responsibility that A-Heng can shoulder.”
She just sat on the ground without any intention of getting up. She just spouted her nonsense with a pitiful tone, and it sounded very realistic. Even Xuan Tian Mo wondered if his horse had really given her a fright. Of course, he knew that Feng Yu Heng could not possibly have been frightened by a horse. It was good enough if she did not scare the horse. But could he just begin arguing with a girl in the street?
He had no intention of doing this sort of thing in front of the commoners. No matter what sort of status Feng Yu Heng had, whenever she put aside her posture and acted like a little girl, she was indeed just a little girl. No matter what he said today, he would end up the subject of ridicule. In the hearts of the commoners, his bad impression could not be changed. That was why he chose to compromise. He was even prepared to take the initiative to apologize. This was originally a small matter. He was a man. Giving a girl a shock then apologizing was not shameful.
Xuan Tian Mo prepared to dismount his horse and personally help Feng Yu Heng up, but just as this thought came to mind and before he could realize it, he never thought that the guard at his side suddenly shouted: “Impudent commoner! You actually dare to block His Highness the eighth prince’s path. What sort of crime do you think it is?”
Once this shout came out, the eighth prince, Xuan Tian Mo, was given a fright. He then angrily glared at the guard; however, the guard did not think that what he had done was wrong. He was a newly appointed guard, and he had been given the job of accompanying the eighth prince. He was very happy on the inside, and he was hoping to make a good showing and thinking of how to protect his master. If his performance was good, getting a promotion would not be a problem. In truth, he did not have much ability, nor did he have the ability to weigh his words. If this was in the past, Xuan Tian Mo definitely would not have brought this sort of guard with him outside. But there was nothing that he could do during this period. Because of the missing items in the palace, he had killed too many people. For a period of time, he was lacking in manpower, and he could not go out on his own, thus he chose this person; however, he never thought that it would result in this outcome.
The guard had said this sort of thing, which meant that he could no longer go with his original plan. He could not get off his horse at this time and apologize. He had already offended her. What was the point of being nice now? For a while, the atmosphere was just frozen.
Yet that guard just felt that he had done very well. With justice on his side, he stood there while making a show of his strength. He just continued to accuse Feng Yu Heng’s group of not knowing what was good for them. He even took out his sword and pointed it at Huang Quan. In his eyes, Feng Yu Heng was just an imperial daughter that was not from the imperial family, while his master was a true prince, and the eighth prince’s power was not something just any other prince could compare to! This imperial daughter actually dared to act like this to his master. He had to vent for his master.
The guard blustered with great vigor, but not a single person of Feng Yu Heng’s group moved. Even the usually-impulsive Huang Quan was able to endure. It was because they had already seen that the kneeling commoners around them had begun to react!
The commoners had indeed reacted. Faced with the eighth prince, they only dared to get angry but did not dare to speak, but when they faced a lowly guard, they could vent their anger for Imperial Daughter Ji An. They really could go ahead with it. Especially when they saw the guard pull out a sword, someone immediately shouted: “Murder! A guard murdered someone in the streets!”
There were even more people that began to voice their complaints: “You’re just a guard. What right do you have to speak to Imperial Daughter Ji An like this?”
“The dispute is between the imperial daughter and the prince. Where is there any room for you to speak up?”
“You’re a shameless guard. A grown man is pointing a sword at a young girl. My ass! So shameful!”
“That’s right! So shameless!”
These accusations and curses filled the air, and the guard felt that he had lost too much face, as he actually turned around and pointed his sword at the commoners. But there were many commoners. What would they be afraid of him for? Very quickly, they were angered, and the people began their attack. The men and women carrying baskets took out stalks of lettuce, eggs and potatoes then began to throw them at the guard.
In an instant, a “hail of eggs and vegetables” filled the street. There was even some “hail” that went astray, as an egg somehow smacked the eighth prince, Xuan Tian Mo, on the forehead and broke open!