Imperial Husband Chapter 111

Chapter 111

"Is what is written here true? Does this 'gunpowder' truly exist?" Ying Zhengjing placed the memorial in his hand on the table and glanced casually at the guard kneeling on the floor.

The guard cupped his hands and replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. The power of this gunpowder was so great it even forced the 150,000 strong Qianluo army besieging Zhuzhou to flee in disarray."

Ying Zhengjing asked again, "Oh? And who discovered this gunpowder?"

Despite his calm demeanor, Ying Zhengjing himself had not yet recovered from the shock of the gunpowder's immense power. To confirm he had not misread the report, he had summoned the guard he had assigned to closely monitor Zhuzhou in order to verify the facts.

The guard said, "Reports from our scouts in Zhuzhou say it was discovered by the Seventh Prince."

"It was actually Lao Qi?"

Ying Zhengjing raised an eyebrow in surprise.

In Ying Zhengjing's memory, Ying Yuan's presence was extremely faint; he was a negligible figure. If not for later being adopted by Gu Rushuang, Ying Zhengjing might have long forgotten Ying Yuan's existence.

Who would have thought.

It was such a person who discovered gunpowder.

Thinking of this, Ying Zhengjing narrowed his eyes slightly and tapped his fingers rhythmically on the desk. "Aside from Lao Qi, are there others who know how to produce this gunpowder?"

On this point, Ying Zhengjing absolutely had to be clear.

After the battle at Zhuzhou, the fearsome reputation of gunpowder would soon spread across the world. If others who knew the production method were to go to other countries, it would undoubtedly pose a great threat to Da Xia.

Therefore, Ying Zhengjing would rather have such individuals assassinated than allow such an uncontrollable situation to occur.

The guard continued, "In reply to Your Majesty, the one who also knows is the Heir of the Prince of Dingbei. Later, General Bai Yifei also inquired about the method of making gunpowder, but was refused by the Heir, who stated he must await Your Majesty's approval before disclosing the production method to a third party. Furthermore, the scouts we sent to Zhuzhou have learned that the Heir said the current gunpowder is still unstable and requires further refinement."

"Good. I knew Jin'er was loyal to me."

Upon hearing this, Ying Zhengjing slapped the desk firmly, not concealing the excitement in his eyes.

The fact that only Li Jin and Ying Yuan knew about the gunpowder was undoubtedly the best news for Ying Zhengjing. This way, he would not have to worry about the information leaking.

At the same time, Ying Zhengjing also took to heart the report in the memorial about Li Jin's injury.

"Yang Shaochuan."

As Ying Zhengjing called out Yang Shaochuan's name, the guard who had been below quietly departed.

Yang Shaochuan, who had been waiting outside, hurried in upon hearing the call. He bowed to Ying Zhengjing and said, "Your servant pays respects to Your Majesty. May I ask what Your Majesty commands?"

Ying Zhengjing said, "Convey my will to the Imperial Household Department to draft an imperial decree. It should state that Li Jin is to focus on recuperating from his injury, and I will remember that he was wounded for the sake of Da Xia. Furthermore, regarding the matter of gunpowder, I have decided to assign Li Jin and Lao Qi to oversee it jointly. They must return to the capital in three years to report to me on the progress of the gunpowder. As for Zihui, let him return to the capital once his injury has healed."

Speaking of Ying Zihui, who had lost his right to succession and would never walk again, the dissatisfaction in Ying Zhengjing's heart gradually faded.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Yang Shaochuan nodded solemnly and then left quickly.

...

As Ying Zhengjing's imperial decree reached Zhuzhou, the name of gunpowder also spread rapidly throughout Da Xia and even to other nations.v 

"Your Highness, Your Highness the Seventh Prince, good news." Ping'an rushed in to report, "The Qianluo army has retreated."

"Hmm." Li Jin nodded, "The King of Qianluo has ultimately backed down after all."

"Ah?"

Ping'an was bewildered, not understanding why Li Jin would say that.

Zhou Yunting, who had walked in afterwards, said helplessly, "What His Highness means is that if the current King of Qianluo were the crown prince who was fighting us some time ago, Qianluo wouldn't have retreated so easily."

Ping'an looked blankly at Zhou Yunting, "How do you know..."

Zhou Yunting replied, "Ping'an, think it over carefully. If that crown prince of Qianluo wanted to retreat, why would he wait until now? Clearly, it's the current King of Qianluo who forced him to withdraw."

Ping'an lowered his head, "So that's how it is."

Seeing this, Zhou Yunting just smiled without saying another word.

Just as Ping'an was about to continue speaking, Yan Zhongjin's voice suddenly sounded from outside the door, "Is the Heir here? It's Yan Zhongjin."

Li Jin raised an eyebrow and said, "I am. Come in."

"Yes."

Yan Zhongjin immediately pushed the door open and walked in, then bowed to Li Jin and Ying Yuan respectively. As for Zhou Yunting and Ping'an, Yan Zhongjin didn't take them seriously at all and simply ignored them.v

Li Jin smiled and asked, "May I ask why Deputy General Yan has suddenly come to see me?"

Yan Zhongjin glanced expressionlessly at Ying Yuan and the others, then quickly changed his mind. "Your Highness, in a few days, I will be returning to the capital with His Highness the Prince (Li Jin's father). You, however, must remain in Zhuzhou for another three years. Therefore, before departing, I came to ask if you have anything you would like me to deliver on your behalf."

"Deputy General Yan is very thoughtful," Li Jin replied with a meaningful smile. "In a couple of days, I will have Ping'an give you the gifts I have prepared to take back."

"Yes."

Yan Zhongjin nodded, then bid farewell to Li Jin.

Li Jin suddenly called out to stop Yan Zhongjin, "By the way, Deputy General Yan, there is an important matter I would like you to inform my father."

"Please go ahead, Your Highness."

"It's regarding the matter of the Successor Princess Consort," Li Jin said unhurriedly. "I would like you to tell my father, in as tactful a manner as possible, that before I came to Zhuzhou, an imperial decree had already been issued to demote her to the rank of concubine."

"What? Impossible." Yan Zhongjin exclaimed.

A single stone raises a thousand ripples.

[一石激起千层浪 (yī shí jī qǐ qiān céng làng): lit. One stone raises a thousand layers of waves; fig. A single action or event causes widespread repercussions or a huge commotion.]

Yan Zhongjin, who had originally intended to sound out Li Jin here for specific information about gunpowder, never expected Li Jin to reveal such explosive news. He lost his composure, his eyes widening in shock.

"It's true. Speaking of how things came to this..."

Li Jin recounted the events of that day to Yan Zhongjin after organizing them briefly. The more Yan Zhongjin listened, the tighter his fists clenched, to the point where his fingernails dug into his palms without him even noticing.

"That's how it happened. Everything is entrusted to Deputy General Yan now."

"Yes."

Suppressing his nearly out-of-control emotions, Yan Zhongjin withdrew.

Ping'an scratched the back of his head, puzzled. "That's strange... Your Highness, why do I feel like Deputy General Yan was acting a bit odd?"

Li Jin shook his head meaningfully. "You're overthinking it. Deputy General Yan has always been like that."

"Huh?"

Ping'an was even more confused.

Zhou Yunting shook his head and reminded him, "Ping'an, His Highness needs to rest. We should leave quickly."

"Ah, right, His Highness' injuries aren't healed yet." Ping'an immediately snapped back to attention, pulling Zhou Yunting along as he headed out. "Your Highness, Your Highness the Seventh Prince, then Zhou Yunting and I will take our leave now."

Probably afraid of disturbing Li Jin's rest, Ping An said this and dragged Zhou Yun Ting away in a flash.

Li Jin and Ying Yuan, who were watching Ping'an’s behavior from behind, could not help but smile at each other in the same way.

Ying Yuan did not forget Li Jin’s physical condition and immediately instructed him, "A-Jin, lie down quickly. From the moment you received the imperial decree until now, you haven’t properly rested even once. If this continues, your body won’t be able to hold on."

"A-Yuan, you also need to rest."

"I’m fine."

"You didn’t sleep at all last night. How could you possibly be fine?"

After saying this, Li Jin forcefully made Ying Yuan lie down together with him.

"A-Jin, the gunpowder—"

"Shh." Li Jin reached out his finger and blocked Ying Yuan’s lips. "The matter of the gunpowder isn’t urgent. We still have three years. But you—if you exhaust and ruin your body, wouldn’t everything left fall onto me alone? Aren’t you afraid I’ll be worked to death?"

"A-Jin won’t die."

Li Jin's words indeed had a better effect on Ying Yuan than any others. Immediately, Ying Yuan listened and no longer insisted on getting up.

Li Jin roughly ruffled Ying Yuan's hair. "Yes, I know that with you here, nothing will happen to me."

Thump, thump.

Suddenly, faint footsteps from the roof inexplicably reached them, instantly capturing the attention of both Li Jin and Ying Yuan.

They are coming.

Ying Yuan silently mouthed the three words.

Li Jin nodded in understanding.

The person who had infiltrated Li Jin's room grew impatient. Hearing no more sound from below, they carefully lifted a roof tile and blew some white smoke inside.

Approximately two minutes passed.

Believing the drug had taken full effect, the intruder jumped down from the roof. Gripping a dagger, he carefully pushed the bedroom door open and crept toward Li Jin’s bed.

But in that critical moment, just as the intruder drew near, Ying Yuan was the first to move. With a sudden, sharp kick, he struck the man’s wrist, sending the dagger flying across the floor.

Almost instantly, Li Jin joined the fight. Seizing the moment while the man was distracted, he subdued the intruder in one move.

"Don’t even think about it.”

Seeing the intruder attempt to bite into a hidden poison capsule, Li Jin immediately dislocated his jaw.

How is this possible? the intruder thought, panic rising. They should be unconscious by now. Where did this resistance come from?

"You're sent by Ying Ziheng, aren't you?"

Li Jin smiled as he named the master behind him. Instantly, the man's back stiffened, and a flash of poorly concealed fear passed through his eyes.

How does he know...

"You're asking how I know? That's not for you to find out." Li Jin saw through his thoughts at a glance but showed no intention of answering. Instead, he straightforwardly knocked the man unconscious.

Ying Yuan asked in surprise, "A-Jin?"

In recent days, those attacking Li Jin had acted almost incessantly, day and night. However, Li Jin was not easy to deal with either. Apart from the first attempt, he had managed to evade each subsequent attack, though not without close calls.

During this time, they had managed to capture some individuals. Unfortunately, these people had undergone special training; no matter how Bai Yifei interrogated or pressured them, they wouldn't talk.

Therefore, Ying Yuan was astonished that Li Jin suddenly knew who was behind this man.

Seeing Ying Yuan's question, Li Jin decided to be direct. "I just found out recently myself..."

Li Jin had indeed just learned this not long ago. To be precise, the day after the imperial decree arrived, someone secretly sent him a message, stating that those sent to assassinate him were all dispatched by Ying Ziheng.

Ying Yuan frowned. "A-Jin, the person who gave you this information... must have ulterior motives, right?"

Although the informant didn't leave a name, anyone capable of uncovering such confidential information must hold a significant position within Ying Ziheng's circle.

Li Jin shook his head.

"Perhaps..."

"A-Jin..."

Li Jin said with a gentle smile, "A-Yuan, don't worry too much. 'The boat will straighten itself when it reaches the bridgehead.' If he has demands, he will come to us sooner or later."

[船到橋頭自然直 (chuán dào qiáo tóu zì rán zhí): lit. When the boat reaches the bridgehead, it will straighten naturally; fig. Things will work themselves out when the time comes.]