152: Zhu Nan

Zhu Nan nodded heavily and continued, “Just one day ago, the elite students from Fengyang No. 1 High School’s selection camp participated in the Great Ming Cloud Platform Challenge’s test competition. As a result, they all suffered crushing defeats, thoroughly taught a lesson by other competitors of the same Realm across the country. Only Ninth Young Master appeared last. He first defeated Fu Fei, a Martial Apprentice at the Peak from Shuntian No. 1 Middle School with a 100% win rate, with a single sword. Then, he used another sword to defeat Chu Qingxuan, a Martial Artist at the Peak also from Shuntian No. 1 Middle School with a 100% win rate, despite Chu Qingxuan being a Realm higher. With just two swords, he earned over 10,000 points, ranking first in points for the Martial Apprentice Realm in the national test competition!”

“What?!” Prince Fu slammed the table, his small eyes wide open, and a large amount of fat on his body shook violently, indicating his extreme unrest.

In his opinion, if the information Zhu Nan had previously reported only indicated Long Yuan's future development potential, then this performance in the test competition truly demonstrated Long Yuan's astonishing current combat power!

One must know that he had only used two swords so far. For Long Yuan, his trump card was clearly his Mental Energy talent. In Prince Fu's view, if properly honed, Long Yuan's combat power would be far more than just a Martial Artist at the Peak.

“I hope it’s still not too late… No matter what, we must ensure Ninth Young Master’s combat power reaches the Martial Commander level!!!” Prince Fu secretly made up his mind.

He took a deep breath and asked, “When does Fengyang’s Inter-school Competition begin?”

“In three days! June 18th!”

“Three days? This Prince wants to personally see his performance…”

“Your Highness, absolutely not!” Zhu Nan quickly said.

“Oh? And why is that?” Prince Fu was startled.

“Your Highness, these past few days you have been restless. This Eunuch dared not advise you, but ever since you personally visited Xuanji Tower last time, the news has already spread to the Northern Capital. According to information this Eunuch received from a friend who is an internal minister, officials have already slandered you to the Emperor, saying that you have left your fief without authorization, neglected your duties, and abandoned the people of Southern Yue to the fangs and claws of fierce beasts…”

“What?! Someone dares to speak such rebellious words against this Prince?!” Prince Fu roared.

Zhu Nan quickly bowed and said, “Your Highness, please calm your anger! Times are different now. This Eunuch only learned from a friend’s guidance that the current situation is vastly different from before. Several powerful Princes are now sharpening their swords, intending to contend for the succession. They are powerful, have many capable people under them, and employ various unpredictable schemes! Even Prince Rui, the current Crown Prince, is constantly struggling, having to deal with the challenges set by the various Princes every day, and his position is precarious! And Your Highness, you probably cannot stand by idly, because even though Your Highness has long said he would not participate in the succession struggle, with Your Highness’s financial resources, you have long become a juicy piece of meat in the eyes of many powerful Princes. Everyone wants to take a bite from Your Highness. The censor’s slander was probably the result of some Prince’s instruction, but this is just a small matter. Who knows how many more major incidents will target our Prince Fus Mansion! This Eunuch also listened with trepidation. These past few days, I haven’t been able to eat or sleep well, only thinking about how to help Your Highness solve your worries!!!”

Prince Fu listened dumbfounded, not expecting that the clear-sighted person was an internal minister by the Emperor’s side!

That’s right, these internal ministers spend their days by the Emperor’s side, and the Emperor spends his days neglecting his duties doing carpentry. Almost all important matters are handled by these internal ministers, and naturally, there are astute ones among them. They see more, hear more, and comprehend more, so they naturally understand the general situation of the world very clearly, far more intelligent than the good-for-nothings in his own residence…

What surprised him was that Zhu Nan, this Eunuch, actually had such a friend. This was a good channel for obtaining information and should be put to good use!

He quickly asked, “Who is your internal minister friend?”

Zhu Nan quickly replied, “Your Highness, this Eunuch’s internal minister friend is Eunuch Wu Zhen, who is by the Emperor’s side. He and this Eunuch are from the same hometown and entered the palace in the same year. We grew up together in the palace and saved each other’s lives. Later, this Eunuch was sent by the Emperor to Your Highness and separated from him, but we still kept in touch often. When we had holidays, we would also arrange to meet and catch up…”

“So it’s Wu Zhen! This Prince does have some impression of this Eunuch. He looks kind and benevolent, handles matters effectively, and is very much favored by the Emperor. I didn't expect him to be able to give you such guidance. It seems he genuinely cares for you!” Prince Fu sighed.

“Your Highness, Eunuch Wu and this Eunuch have a life-and-death friendship. If he doesn’t treat this Eunuch well, who else would he treat well?” Zhu Nan said proudly.

“Very good! Then do you know why this Prince has been so restless lately?”

“This… Could it be that Your Highness also knows about these matters?” Zhu Nan asked.

“Indeed! This Prince has been having nightmares recently, which is why I went to Sabado for a divination. With his guidance, I learned that our Prince Fus Mansion is currently facing an extremely dangerous situation. Those powerful Imperial Princes could come to carve our flesh and drink our blood at any time. It’s just a pity that everyone in this residence, except for you, this clear-sighted person, are all good-for-nothings, and not one can share this Prince’s worries…”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Nan fell to his knees with a thud and loudly declared, “Your Highness, this Eunuch swears to serve Your Highness and share your worries until death! I will never allow anyone to lay a hand on our Residence!!!”

Prince Fu was stunned and said, “This Residence is about to face the targeting and carving up by my powerful brothers. You know this situation, so why don’t you flee quickly instead of staying here to pledge loyalty? Actually, if you just say it, this Prince will not blame you. After all, you have diligently worked in this Residence for so many years. Even if there’s no merit, there’s hard work. This Prince is not a heartless person. Whatever you want, as long as this Prince has it, I can bestow it upon you, allowing you to go far away and escape this quagmire early…”

“Your Highness, saying that truly humbles this old servant! Ever since this Eunuch was sent by the Emperor from the Imperial Palace to Your Highness, this Eunuch’s fate has actually been tied to this Residence. Whether this Residence prospers or declines, this Eunuch will never change his heart and will definitely live and die with Your Highness and this Residence!” Zhu Nan cried.

“Oh? Is that truly what you think?” Prince Fu asked in surprise. To be honest, he hadn't known much about Zhu Nan, this Eunuch. He had only seen him work diligently and, since he was sent from the palace, initially thought he was sent by the Emperor to monitor him, so he had a certain degree of wariness towards him. But now, hearing him say this, he finally wondered if he had misunderstood Zhu Nan a little bit?

Zhu Nan continued to weep, “Your Highness, this Eunuch knows you have some prejudice against me. Indeed, this Eunuch admits that when I was sent from the palace to this Residence, this Eunuch, like other servants in the residences, had a certain supervisory responsibility. However, this Eunuch has never done anything to offend Your Highness! This, this Eunuch can swear to heaven!”

…