A Thorough and Satisfying Verbal Spar

Prime Minister's Residence.

"Ouch, ouch! Ouch..."

Shen Jin clutched his hip and groaned incessantly, his cries sounding utterly miserable.

Shen Kui was annoyed by the disturbance: "Stop that! Your bone is merely dislocated, not broken. What are you putting on a show for?"

Shen Jin felt deeply aggrieved: "Mother! Look at him!"

Wang Shu complained: "Our son has been beaten to this state, and you, as his father, have nothing to say but to scold him? What kind of ability is that? If you're so capable, go and dislocate Qin Yanying's bones!"

After their eldest son, the couple had struggled for over a decade before finally giving birth to Shen Jin.

She treasured this youngest son dearly; all these years, aside from his cultivation, she had never let him suffer a single scratch. And yet today, his hip had been dislocated by someone—how could she not be furious?

Shen Kui flew into a rage: "A doting mother truly ruins her children! Do you have any idea how serious this is? If you keep indulging him, the entire Shen family will be dragged down by this little brat sooner or later!"

Wang Shu wanted to retort, but seeing the fury filling Shen Kui's eyes and sensing that the consequences might indeed be grave, she could only let it drop.

Shen Jin also shrank his neck and stopped his wailing. Seeing Shen Kui pacing back and forth with an anxious expression, he smirked and said: "Father! Isn't the matter already over? That good-for-nothing Qin Muye is still alive and well. With Chen Sui's capability, he will surely clear the Prime Minister's Residence of suspicion sooner or later."

Shen Kui's face was gloomy: "Use your brain. When Qin Muye went missing, your ship was drifting on the inner river. Think of how many checkpoints one would have to pass to leave the city, yet they didn't cause a single stir!

How many people in the entire capital possess such heaven-reaching ability?

I have held the position of Prime Minister for nearly twenty years, yet I have never discovered such an opponent in the capital. This matter is far more serious than Qin Muye simply going missing."

Shen Jin's brain spun rapidly, and his eyes suddenly lit up: "Father! Do you think it's possible that Qin Kaijiang has long wanted to rebel and is intentionally using his own son to put on a show? I've read military books; this strategy is called..."

Shen Kui held his forehead and interrupted: "Jin'er, you are different from others. Please, do not waste your energy on reading."

Shen Jin: "..."

Shen Kui frowned and pondered for a long time, a trace of doubt suddenly surfacing in his heart: "Jin'er! You said earlier that Qin Muye is insecure and sensitive, and that he would definitely seek revenge if he felt wronged."

"That's right! If he hadn't wanted to settle the score, he wouldn't have boarded my ship yesterday."

"But today, why didn't he say a single word?"

"This..."

Shen Jin asked suspiciously: "Father! Do you think he's harboring some malicious intent?"

Shen Kui did not speak, which served as his silent confirmation.

Shen Jin waved his hands repeatedly: "You're overthinking it. The two of them, aunt and nephew combined, don't even have half a brain between them. What kind of malicious intent could they harbor? I suspect His Majesty saw through everything and warned them in advance to stop while they were ahead."

Shen Kui ignored him and walked into the courtyard with his hands behind his back.

Ever since he entered officialdom, his career had been smooth sailing. The only time he could call dangerous was that one incident where, due to conflicting political views, Qin Kaijiang had nearly drawn his blade against him in front of all the civil and military officials.

The grudge between the Shen and Qin families could not be resolved, but he understood the Qin family and did not believe they would resort to underhanded tactics against him.

He did not know who the mastermind behind the scenes was.

But he knew the mastermind's goal.

The conflict between the General and the Prime Minister must continue to be handled with cold detachment.

Only when Great Gan was stable would he have the time to prove that his political views were correct and leave behind a legacy that would go down in history.

Therefore, regarding this case, he had to endure.

[Main Fate: Doting Mother Ruins Child]: A doting mother often ruins her children.

[Fate Grade]: Ninth Grade (2/20)

[Annotation]: Under excessive pampering, constant trouble is stirred up, eventually leading to being killed by his own father.

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[Main Fate: Yin-Yang Dual Face]: One body, two sides; fame and infamy in equal measure.

[Fate Grade]: Second Grade (2499/2560)

[Annotation]: A famous prime minister in life who pushed Great Gan toward its peak; after dying of old age, Great Gan collapsed, and he was written into the Biography of the Treacherous Prime Minister by later generations.

[Hint]: When the fate fluctuation exceeds 500, you can obtain the fate skill Yin-Yang Dual Face.

These were the fates of Shen Kui and his son.

Qin Muye had noticed them just now, but because he was thinking about other things, he hadn't examined them in detail.

This was the first Second Grade fate he had ever seen, but thinking about it, it made sense. A prime minister who pushed Great Gan toward its peak—how low could his fate grade be?

At least in Qin Muye's impression, Shen Kui was quite capable. Although his methods were dark, he was definitely not the treacherous prime minister that Qin Yanying described.

According to his memories, Li Hong ascended the throne at a young age, at a time when Great Gan had just experienced a great internal rebellion, and its territory had shrunk several times over due to the encroachment of demons and monsters from the four directions.

Fortunately, the monarch and his subjects were of one heart, and the civil and military officials worked together to formulate a national policy of using demons to control demons and using barbarians to control barbarians. By bestowing titles upon foreign states, absorbing great demons from the four directions into the imperial court, and dividing and winning over various external forces, they restored the territory to its peak period, and even surpassed it.

The one who executed this national policy was Shen Kui. The current prosperous era of Great Gan, where ten thousand demons come to court, was largely due to this Prime Minister. The Qin family had initially supported him with all their might, but later, a rift developed between the General and the Prime Minister. The Qin family advocated for an immediate halt, fearing that it would easily lead to a tragedy where the guest usurps the host's role.

Since then, the conflict between the two sides had grown increasingly severe.

But as for who was right and who was wrong, although more people in the imperial court supported Shen Kui, there had never been a definitive conclusion.

Looking at the fate description, Shen Kui must have been wrong.

Of course.

Qin Muye did not care much about who was right or wrong; his eyes were fixed only on the dense string of numbers following the words "Second Rank."

If he could topple Shen Kui, wouldn't that be a massive harvest?

Although he was currently just a small fry, what if?

He still had to find those who played important roles in the torrent of history—emperors, crown princes, prime ministers, marshals—and take them all down!

Especially that mastermind who had poisoned him.

Once he dragged that person out, he would make sure not even their bones remained.

"Muye! Muye!"

"Huh?"

"You still haven't told Auntie why we won't be short of money tomorrow!"

Qin Yanying was somewhat excited: "You aren't planning to take Chen Sui out to rob houses, are you? His Majesty specifically said you cannot abuse your power."

After arriving in the capital, the aunt and nephew had indeed spent quite a bit of money, but it was all for medicinal herbs to nurse Qin Muye back to health; half was covered by the Marquis of Zhennan Mansion, and the other half was reimbursed by the imperial court.

The amount the two of them could actually spend on food, clothing, and enjoyment was not much.

In any case, she felt quite strapped for cash.

If there was money to spend, she would be very happy.

Qin Muye laughed: "Don't worry, Auntie, I'm not the type to break the law!"

As he spoke, he grabbed Bai Yuji's hand: "Yuji, once you marry into the family, I will definitely not let you suffer any grievances."

"Mm!"

Bai Yuji smiled with tender affection. Her body still resisted contact with Qin Muye, but for the sake of the plan, she could endure it all.

At least, she could endure it while in front of Qin Muye.

Returning to the Southern Pacification Mansion, Qin Yanying enthusiastically arranged a new quilt for Qin Muye, then winked repeatedly at Bai Yuji. However, under the hesitant and bashful entanglement of the "young couple," she also arranged new bedding for the room next door.

After dismissing the personal maid, Qin Muye closed the door directly and then walked toward Bai Yuji with a grin: "Little lady! It is time for us to rest!"

"Don't come over here!"

Bai Yuji pulled a dagger from out of nowhere: "Before your body recovers, and while there are no outsiders around, don't you dare try anything lewd with me!"

How did she pull that out like a magic trick?

This woman seemed to have mastered some kind of storage spell; he would have to see if he could learn it when he got the chance.

Qin Muye curled his lips: "Are you saying that when there are outsiders around, I can be lewd with you whenever I want?"

Bai Yuji let out a cold snort: "As long as you aren't afraid of others discovering that you're limp, feel free."

Qin Muye: "..."

Damn it!

One trick is all you need, huh?

Just you wait.

Once I can stand tall again, I will definitely have a hearty verbal battle with you.