The Side Character Wants to Lie Flat-Chapter 151 - 152: I Have a Plan

Li Ji raised an eyebrow. "Bowing so formally to me already? How clever. I do appreciate clever people."

Sang Zhong was on the verge of tears from anxiety.

"I belong to the Crown Prince! I can’t go with you, Prince Zhao!"

Li Ji was even more pleased. "So, a loyal servant after all. I just love using fiercely loyal people like you."

Sang Zhong was indeed fiercely loyal to the Crown Prince. Otherwise, the Crown Prince would never have entrusted him with the task of assassinating Prince Zhao.

But right now, Sang Zhong’s reluctance to leave with Prince Zhao wasn’t just out of loyalty to the Crown Prince.

It was more due to his guilty conscience and fear.

He was afraid Prince Zhao would discover what he had done.

Knowing Prince Zhao’s temperament, if he found out the truth about the attempt on his life, he would surely have him torn to pieces!

Sang Zhong frantically looked to the Crown Prince, hoping he would help keep him there.

Li Cheng was also very uneasy at this moment.

Of all the servants present, Prince Zhao had singled out Sang Zhong with a single glance.

’How could there be such a coincidence in the world?’

Li Cheng didn’t believe it.

He suspected Prince Zhao already knew the truth about the suspension bridge’s ropes being cut.

’If I had known this would happen, I would have eliminated Sang Zhong beforehand to prevent any future trouble.’

’It was all because of my carelessness. I thought Prince Zhao was dead, so there was no need to clean up the loose ends.’

Li Cheng said in a low voice, "Sang Zhong is clumsy. I’m afraid he won’t be able to serve you well, Prince Zhao. Why don’t you pick someone else?"

But Li Ji retorted, "Since you dislike him so much, what’s the harm in giving him to me?"

Li Cheng stared at him intently.

It was as if he was trying to read some clue from his face.

However, no matter how hard Li Cheng looked, Li Ji maintained his usual calm and leisurely demeanor.

The two were locked in a stalemate for a moment.

The atmosphere became extremely oppressive.

Everyone present lowered their heads, not daring to even breathe too loudly.

Li Ji, however, seemed completely oblivious to this and spoke as if to himself.

"If you have no other orders, Crown Prince, I’ll be taking Sang Zhong back with me."

After speaking, he gave a perfunctory lift of his hand, a gesture that passed for a bow.

He looked at Sang Zhong, who was now pale with fright, and said with a grin.

"Let’s go."

Sang Zhong looked pleadingly toward the Crown Prince.

However, Li Cheng merely stood there with a dark expression, not saying a word.

In truth, there was nothing he could say.

If he insisted on keeping Sang Zhong, it would seem strange, and Prince Zhao might use it as an excuse to stir up other trouble.

The situation was already unfavorable for Li Cheng, and he didn’t want to complicate it further.

He could only watch helplessly as Prince Zhao led Sang Zhong away.

Only after the two of them were far in the distance did Li Cheng turn and return to the room.

Lin Qingzhi cautiously observed the Crown Prince and saw that his expression was absolutely terrible. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

She didn’t know what Sang Zhong had done, but she could guess the general situation from the Crown Prince’s reaction.

Sang Zhong must have done some dirty work for the Crown Prince in the past.

Now that Sang Zhong had been taken by Prince Zhao, that dirty work had become a sword hanging over the Crown Prince’s head, and no one knew when it would fall.

Normally, Lin Qingzhi would have proactively offered the Crown Prince a strategy.

But after the scene Prince Zhao had just caused, the Crown Prince was already displeased with her. Even though she had done her best to salvage the situation, a small seed of resentment remained in his heart.

She was very worried that the Crown Prince would distance himself from her because of this.

She could only adhere to the principle of "the less said, the fewer mistakes made," becoming even more cautious and not daring to speak a single extra word.

"Walking on thin ice" was the perfect way to describe her at this moment.

Li Cheng clasped his hands behind his back and stared at the landscape painting on the wall for a long time before coldly spitting out a single sentence.

"He cannot be allowed to live."

Lin Qingzhi’s heart pounded with fear when she heard this.

There were only the two of them in the room. Although the Crown Prince might not have been speaking to her directly, she couldn’t pretend she hadn’t heard.

So, she asked cautiously.

"Then... kill him?"

Li Cheng didn’t speak.

This was considered a tacit agreement.

Lin Qingzhi analyzed the situation.

"But Prince Zhao’s legs have recovered. With his skills and caution, it will be very difficult for us to succeed. And even if we do, it will be hard to explain to the Saint."

The last time you caused Prince Zhao to fall into the river, you could still pass it off as an accident.

If Prince Zhao is harmed again here at the county government, you can’t claim it was another accident, can you?

How can there be so many accidents in the world?

The Emperor isn’t a fool. Would he let you deceive him like that?

The hands Li Cheng held behind his back clenched into fists.

He had, of course, already considered everything Lin Qingzhi said.

’The suspension bridge incident was a golden opportunity.’

’Such opportunities are rare. Once missed, they’re gone forever.’

He told himself silently.

’I just have to endure it.’

’The throne will be mine sooner or later.’

’Once I ascend the throne, dealing with a mere Prince Zhao will be entirely up to me.’

Li Cheng took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.

He turned around and said coldly.

"For now, we’ll let Prince Zhao run free a while longer. The person I want to kill now is Sang Zhong. He knows too much. He can’t be left alive."

Lin Qingzhi frowned. "But Sang Zhong has already been taken by Prince Zhao. It will be very difficult to get to him."

Li Cheng said grimly.

"It’s true that it would be difficult for us to act, but it would be very easy if one of Prince Zhao’s own trusted people did it."

Lin Qingzhi asked, "Are you suggesting we bribe someone close to Prince Zhao?

But Prince Zhao is an extremely cautious man. The spies we previously planted in the Prince Zhao Mansion were all rooted out, almost without exception.

Even my own cousin completely lost contact with us after marrying into the Prince Zhao Mansion.

To this day, I still don’t know if she’s dead or alive."

She paused here, a plan suddenly forming in her mind.

"I have a plan, but I’m not sure if it’s appropriate for me to say it."

Li Cheng immediately said, "Speak!"

Lin Qingzhi slowly laid out her idea.

"I’ve heard that the reason Prince Zhao is so cold to my cousin is that Lady Hua has been working against her.

Prince Zhao dotes on this Lady Hua. Whether it was going to Yuqing Mountain to escape the summer heat or heading south for disaster relief, he always kept Lady Hua by his side.

Even when he fell into the river and nearly died, he didn’t leave Lady Hua behind.

From this, we can see that he truly likes Lady Hua.

And men, well, they can’t help but place a little more trust in the women they like.

We can try to use Lady Hua as our way in."

Lin Qingzhi paused here.

Seeing that the Crown Prince didn’t interrupt, she knew he was satisfied with the plan.

So she continued.

"The only problem is, Lady Hua won’t be easy to bribe.

After all, she comes from a decent background and is deeply favored by Prince Zhao.

She wants for nothing, whether it be gold and jewels or fine silks and satins.

I really can’t think of anything we could use to move her."

But Li Cheng gave a sinister smile.

"If bribery won’t work, then we’ll use threats!"

Lin Qingzhi asked tentatively, "Your Highness means...?"

Li Cheng lowered his voice and gave a few instructions, finishing with:

"A woman’s reputation is her most important asset. As long as I have a hold over her on that point, she can forget about ever escaping my grasp!"

As a woman herself, Lin Qingzhi couldn’t help but feel a certain repulsion toward this method.

But given her current position, she couldn’t say a single word in opposition.

She smiled and offered a flattering compliment.

"The Crown Prince is brilliant!"

...