Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 722: Chapter 355: Escape

Mr. Fan’s face was deathly pale, a look of terror in his eyes, he stood trembling aside with his back hunched.

Prince Wei was reading the letter Zhao Yao had specifically left for him. After finishing, his face was extremely grim.

"Tenth Brother is being reckless, and you didn’t stop him!"

Mr. Fan’s body shook violently. He stammered, "Prince, I tried to stop him, but to no avail."

Prince Wei spoke coldly, "Tell me in detail about what has happened these past few days."

"Prince, in these past few days, Tenth Prince..." Mr. Fan reported to Prince Wei everything Zhao Yao had done, where he went, whom he met, and the activities he had engaged in.

Prince Wei hadn’t expected that Zhao Yao had even gone to meet with Li Jue.

"Prince, Tenth Prince said he wanted to play around with Li Jue himself and asked you not to interfere." Mr. Fan conveyed Zhao Yao’s message verbatim to Prince Wei. "Tenth Prince also said not to worry about him because he will be just fine."

"Nonsense!" Prince Wei harshly scolded, "Does he think he can handle Li Jue?"

"Please rest assured, Prince, I have sent Hidden Guards to secretly protect Tenth Prince, and he will be safe," Mr. Fan added quickly after speaking, "We have control over Tenth Prince’s every move, he will not come to any harm."

Hearing this, Prince Wei felt slightly relieved.

"Where is Tenth Brother now?"

Mr. Fan answered respectfully, "Tenth Prince was captured by Li Jue’s people yesterday and is now imprisoned in a secret chamber."

"Is Tenth Brother hurt?"

"No, Tenth Prince is safe and sound," Mr. Fan said submissively. "Li Jue gave Tenth Prince three days, and if he doesn’t escape the secret chamber by then, he will kill him."

"He dares!" Prince Wei’s face was cold with rage, "If he dares to touch Tenth Brother, I’ll bury his entire clan with him!"

Mr. Fan shuddered at the overwhelming aura emanating from Prince Wei.

"Send someone to rescue Tenth Brother right now."

"Prince..."

As soon as Mr. Fan began to speak, Prince Wei shot him a cold glare, frightening him to the point where his legs weakened, nearly causing him to fall.

"Prince... Tenth Prince said that if you disrupt his plan, he will be angry."

"Let him be angry." Prince Wei was not afraid of Zhao Yao’s anger; he was worried about his brother’s safety. "Go rescue Tenth Brother right now."

"As you command."

Just as Mr. Fan was about to leave, Zhao Yao’s robust voice came from outside: "Eighth Brother, you’re back."

Prince Wei was surprised to hear Zhao Yao’s voice, and he rushed outside. As he reached the doorway, he saw Zhao Yao running happily towards him.

Zhao Yao, once in front of Prince Wei, carefully examined him. Seeing that he was in good spirits, he nodded with satisfaction, "Eighth Brother, it’s good to see you’re well."

Prince Wei pulled Zhao Yao in front of him, carefully scrutinizing him, "Are you hurt?"

"I’m not." Zhao Yao spun around in front of Prince Wei and then jumped a few times. "I’m perfectly fine."

Prince Wei led Zhao Yao back inside, then knocked hard on his head.

Zhao Yao held his head, looking aggrievedly at Prince Wei: "Eighth Brother, why did you hit me?"

With a stern face, Prince Wei reprimanded, "You’ve really grown bold, daring to confront Li Jue."

Zhao Yao, grasping Prince Wei’s arm, smiled ingratiatingly, "Eighth Brother, hear me out."

Prince Wei’s expression remained stern, "Speak."

Zhao Yao first seated Prince Wei and then personally poured tea for his dear Eighth Brother.

"Eighth Brother, have some tea first."

"Speak first," Prince Wei insisted, not reaching for the tea, "How did you escape?"

"Eighth Brother, Li Jue couldn’t keep me locked up at all." Zhao Yao had prior experience being confined in a secret chamber, so he knew how to escape when he was locked up again. Moreover, since he had provoked Li Jue, he had definitely prepared in advance.

This time, Zhao Yao managed to escape the secret chamber thanks to the help of his "good friends." It was with the help of animals that he easily got out. Of course, he couldn’t say this to Prince Wei.

He told Prince Wei that he had observed the secret chamber for a long time the last time he was imprisoned and had gained experience. Thus, when he was confined again, he was able to escape smoothly.

Prince Wei hadn’t expected Zhao Yao to be so clever and attentive. He said with a sarcastic tone, "You’ve truly developed some skills."

"Eighth Brother, don’t forget, I’ve often gone to the Ministry of Works to hang out with those craftsmen. They are very skilled, many of whom are proficient in Mechanical Techniques, and I’ve learned a lot from them," Zhao Yao said cheerfully, "Secret chambers always have mechanisms, and the mechanisms are never too complicated. Once I’ve seen them, I can remember and deduce many solutions."

Hearing Zhao Yao say this, Prince Wei suddenly remembered Zhao Yao did frequently visit the Ministry of Works and often worked on projects with the craftsmen there.

"Secret chamber mechanisms are just that." Before returning, Zhao Yao had already thought about what to say to Prince Wei, "Besides, the secret chamber I was locked in this time is similar to the last one. It was Li Jue’s carelessness."

Prince Wei was convinced by Zhao Yao’s explanation. Although Zhao Yao wasn’t particularly smart with academics, he truly had a talent for crafting. Moreover, many craftsmen at the Ministry of Works were indeed skilled in Mechanical Techniques, so it was not surprising that Zhao Yao could learn them from them.

"Eighth Brother, if I didn’t have confidence, I wouldn’t play hide-and-seek with Li Jue..."

Zhao Yao’s mention of this made Prince Wei angry. He reached out and poked Zhao Yao’s forehead hard, sternly scolding him, "You’re risking your life just for this? Tenth Brother, do you think you have a long life?" The phrase "long life" was something Prince Wei learned from Zhao Yao.

"Eighth Brother, isn’t Mr. Fan around?" Zhao Yao pointed to Mr. Fan standing not far away, "Mr. Fan said he would send people to protect me secretly; that’s why I dared to challenge Li Jue."

Prince Wei was amused and enraged by Zhao Yao’s reasoning.

"Eighth Brother, I trust that the people Mr. Fan sent can keep me safe." Zhao Yao chuckled fawningly, "Besides, Li Jue has been too arrogant. If I don’t put a damper on his conceit, he will really think I’m an easy prince to bully."

"If Li Jue bullies you, I’ll get justice for you." Ever since learning that Li Jue had captured Zhao Yao, he had already become a dead man in Prince Wei’s heart. Once matters in Jinling were resolved, Li Jue wouldn’t exist in this world anymore.

"Eighth Brother..."

Prince Wei interrupted Zhao Yao’s words, speaking to him with a stern face, "Tomorrow, I’m sending you to Yangzhou."

"Eighth Brother, my matters with Li Jue aren’t over yet... ouch..." Zhao Yao protested, but his head was smacked forcefully by Prince Wei, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Don’t worry about Li Jue’s matters, tomorrow you’re going to Yangzhou for me." Prince Wei laughed coldly, "If you don’t go to Yangzhou tomorrow, I’ll have you escorted back to the capital directly. You can choose."

Seeing Prince Wei truly angry, Zhao Yao dared not haggle anymore and quickly said, "I’ll go to Yangzhou, I’ll go with you to Yangzhou tomorrow." He certainly didn’t want to get escorted back to the capital now.

Prince Wei, hearing this, finally smiled contentedly.

"That’s a good boy."

"Eighth Brother, really..." Zhao Yao persisted.

Prince Wei glared at Zhao Yao, speaking very coldly, "You can’t, you must go to Yangzhou tomorrow!"

Zhao Yao lowered his head, muttering softly, "If I leave tomorrow, Li Jue will think I’ve run away because I’m afraid of him..."

Although his voice was low, Prince Wei heard it clearly. Consequently, his head was smacked again.

"If you’re displeased with Li Jue, one day I’ll personally bring him to you for you to deal with as you wish."