Chapter 64: The High Monk is Heartless and Ruthless

  The crown prince had already received the news and was standing at the entrance of the main hall with a bright smile, gazing at the two people walking from afar.

  Qin Lei smiled at the crown prince and said: "Second brother, you got up so early, why don't you sleep a bit more?"

  The crown prince laughed and scolded, "What luck do you have, this is already not bad. If the emperor were here, every day would start at dawn." He said as he walked shoulder to shoulder with him into the house.

  The crown prince and Qin Lei sat down in their seats, Zhong Likan paid his respects to the crown prince before leaving.

  The crown prince narrowed his eyes and stared at Qin Lei for a long time, making Qin Lei's hair stand on end. Only then did he smile and say: "You little rascal, you're always taking advantage of the situation. Yesterday I fell for your trick."

  Qin Lei suddenly shouted " Frame-up, Second Brother! I didn't expect so many people to come and catch me, my heart was afraid, how could I dare to come out?"

  The prince had long since understood his temperament and did not argue with him. He smiled and said, "Alright, this time you win."

  Qin Lei smiled and said: "About what we were just talking about..."

  The crown prince smiled bitterly and said, "It's all up to you."

  Qin Lei raised his thumb and praised: "Indeed a nine-palace crown prince, I admire you!"

  The crown prince merely grunted twice, lowered his head to drink tea, and didn't respond.

  Qin Lei knew that his subordinates, who had been trained for five years and were not up to par, thought for a moment and said seriously: "Second brother, in my opinion, this batch of your subordinates is extremely elite. In terms of quality, they can be counted as one of the best in the world."

  The crown prince raised his head and looked at him, smiling: "Fifth brother rarely teases me. If you're really so clever, how come you and your twenty men couldn't do anything to me for an entire night? Don't even mention being one of the best in the world."

  Qin Lei shook his head and said, "I'm not talented, but I'm extremely enthusiastic about the military. I've also seen the Qi State Army, the Hundred Victories Army, our Great Qin Imperial Forest Army, as well as my Black Guard. In terms of individual soldier quality, yours are still the best."

  The prince saw he wasn't joking and thought for a moment before saying: "Really?"

  Qin Lei nodded and said, "That's right. Today, my subordinates had a brief encounter with them, but unexpectedly, not many of them were captured. Although they outnumbered us, I also have some excellent fighters who can take on ten opponents at once. From what I've observed, your people are more formidable." He was purely motivated by his desire to appreciate talent and feared that Zhong Likan and his team would be neglected by the prince from then on.

  The crown prince's expression eased a bit, and he asked in puzzlement: "Since my men are more numerous and formidable, why can't they defeat your small band?"

  Qin Lei smiled and said, "This kind of battle is not on the battlefield, it's a fair and square fight, with big openings and closings. This kind of battle has its own rules, if you don't understand them, you'll naturally suffer losses."

  The crown prince hummed and said: "So you understand this rule, but Zhong Likan doesn't?"

  Qin Lei nodded calmly and said: "As for special operations, I still have the confidence to lead a team of the world's top elite troops."

  The crown prince was infected by his confident appearance, slapped the table and said loudly: "Well, this palace will hand over this team to you."

  Qin Lei shook his head and said, "That's not necessary. Zhong Likan is very capable. He just hasn't found the right way yet. This team will still be led by him, with me assisting."

  The crown prince exclaimed in surprise: "Could it be that you want to practice another move?"

  Qin Lei stretched out his right hand, spreading his five fingers: "I'm preparing to build five teams. The first team is in charge of defense, practicing opening mountains and rivers, guarding and surrounding. The second team is in charge of assassination, practicing secret infiltration, taking the enemy's head. The third team is in charge of intelligence, practicing disguise, gathering information. The fourth team is in charge of sniping, practicing strong bows and crossbows, frontal attacks. The fifth team is in charge of charging, practicing heavy cavalry, breaking through enemy formations. Once these five forces take shape, they can be clenched into a fist, becoming the second brother's versatile and powerful tool."

  The prince was also slightly agitated, he had indeed been bullied for many years. He waved his hand and said: "In military affairs, my second brother is completely ignorant, so I'll leave everything to you. In short, if you need money, I'll give it to you; if you need men, I'll provide them."

  Qin Lei stood up and clasped his fists, saying: "I will definitely not bring shame to this mission."

  The prince also stood up and pulled Qin Lei's hand, saying: "We brothers don't talk nonsense. Let's go have a meal."

  Qin Lei smiled and said: "Forget it, I haven't slept all night, little brother is going back to sleep for a while."

  The crown prince also smiled and said: "Really won't eat anymore? Later when I go to the Zongren Mansion, it will be more than half a year before I can come back to have dinner with my second brother again."

  Qin Lei suddenly remembered that he would have to resume his prisoner identity after today, and with a gloomy face, he said: "My younger brother was seventeen years old last month, and it's not even three months since I shouldn't be a prisoner. I've gotten used to it."

  The crown prince looked disheartened, so he patted his shoulder and said: "Don't worry, the empress dowager has her own arrangements, you will definitely not be wronged. We still have to rely on you to train soldiers." After finishing speaking, he pulled Qin Lei towards the dining hall.

  Qin Lei entered the dining hall and was amazed by the unprecedented grandeur. Three rows of tables were lined up with a hundred or more dishes, each one a genuine delicacy. Except for dragon marrow and phoenix brain, which were hard to come by, the Crown Prince had brought all the fine foods that could be found in the capital to the table overnight.

  Qin Lei didn't sleep all night and his body was tired. However, he couldn't bear to reject the Crown Prince's kind intentions, so he randomly picked one up and took a bite. The fragrance hit his nose, and his spirits were lifted. He couldn't help but praise: "Delicious..."

  The prince glanced at the female official who was serving Qin Lei, and she smiled warmly at him, saying: "Your Highness, this is a special dish made by Master Ma of the Osmanthus Flower Building, especially for you. It's a pear flower shredded jade cake, which is fragrant, soft, crispy, and refreshing. Pear flowers are a rare delicacy during this season, and they were collected in the spring by the Osmanthus Flower Building using a secret method. There aren't many left, and making this dish used up half of the pear flowers in the capital."

  Qin Lei said: "Then let His Highness eat all the pear blossoms in this half of the city."

  The prince smiled and said, "No need, no need, eat a few more dishes. Later, I'll pack half of the pear blossoms in food boxes for you to take to the Zongren Mansion. The conditions there are simple, and you can't eat anything good." After finishing speaking, he softly sighed, "Fifth brother, you've suffered on behalf of your older brother."

  Qin Lei shook his head and said, "Second brother doesn't have to worry, guarding a full table of dishes and saying he's suffering, the Buddha will not be pleased."

  The crown prince lost his smile and said, "But I envy your carefree and ruthless attitude."

  Qin Lei waved his hand repeatedly and said: "I'm not heartless. Being heartless is bad!"

  The crown prince asked in surprise: "What's wrong?"

  Qin Lei said: "In the Tang Dynasty, there was a monk named Tang Seng..."

  The crown prince smiled and listened to him, thinking that he was going to tell a story. He knew that his younger brother had never been educated and couldn't even write properly. So he picked up his tea cup, took a light sip, and listened intently to Qin Lei's words.

  "Who would have thought that he suddenly changed the subject and started talking about himself: 'Now my second brother has made me heartless, removed two of my five organs, and become a monk. That won't do, I haven't even married yet.'"

  The crown prince let out a "pu" sound, and the tea water in his mouth sprayed out. The water mist wetted half of the table. The palace maid by his side had never seen such a lazy emperor before, and she couldn't help but secretly laugh.

  The crown prince rubbed his belly and laughed for a while, then waved his hand to let the eunuch change the dishes on the table. He glared at Qin Lei and said: "Don't talk while eating, don't speak while sleeping!"

  …………

  Even the grandest feast has an end. After breakfast, the Crown Prince said to Qin Lei: "Fifth brother, you go take a bath and change your clothes first. We can make it to the Clan Mansion before noon."

  Qin Lei thought to himself: "Second Brother's procession is like that of a prisoner on death row, how ominous." He then followed the palace maid leading the way, walking far into the distance.

  Qin Lei spent a short time in the mansion, but within nine days, he eliminated all the eunuchs and palace maids who served him. This record may not be unprecedented, but it was certainly a first. This feat also earned Qin Lei a notorious reputation among the servants, eunuchs, and palace maids of the Zhongdu household. Later, when instructing the wet nurses, they would scare misbehaving apprentice eunuchs and palace maids by saying: "If you don't listen, we'll send you to the Shuxiang Pavilion." This method was tried and tested, and it actually reduced the number of times the wet nurses whipped them, sparing the eunuchs and palace maids a great deal of suffering.

  Later, this legend gradually spread, and the book fragrance pavilion filled with book fragrance of the crown prince became a metaphor for human hell, similar to Yan Luo Temple and Xiu Luo Court.

  Of course, these are the culprits that Qin Lei does not know about now. He slowly strolled along the lotus pond, and did not hurry to go to the bathhouse.

  Qin Lei really wanted to have a fun palace maid and asked, "Your Highness, why haven't you gone to take a bath yet?" Then he seriously replied, "Little girl doesn't understand things. Ancient people's words: hungry don't shave head, full don't wash bath. Don't even understand this principle?"

  Unfortunately, the palace maid followed behind, not even daring to lift her head. He inexplicably thought of Nian Yao, that ignorant little servant girl, and wondered if she would ask.

  Division line

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