FID – Chapter 712

Chapter 712: I Know You’re an Honest Scoundrel

There was a knock at the door.

“Come in,” Duan Ting said, and someone pushed the door open.

Liu Yusheng glanced over and saw a beautiful woman walking gracefully into the room, accompanied by a young servant. Her eyes and brows were full of allure.

“Zimei greets My Lord and the two esteemed guests. It’s been a while since My Lord last visited. Shall everything proceed as usual today?” she asked with a gentle smile.

“As usual. Keep an eye on things outside and make sure no one disturbs us,” Duan Ting said calmly. “And unless I call for you, there’s no need for you to come and greet me again.”

“Yes, My Lord,” Zimei replied with the same pleasant smile, showing no sign of displeasure at being treated so coldly—it was as though she was used to it. “I’ve had a pot of tea prepared. Please enjoy your time with the esteemed guests. I will take my leave.”

After she left, Liu Yusheng shook her head and sighed. “How did you manage to train someone to be so obedient?”

“That’s a personal charm—something not everyone can learn,” Duan Ting said, praising himself before turning serious. “Back to the palace—did Prince Yuan visit today?”

“We had just left the palace gates when you already got the news. Looks like you’ve planted quite a few informants in there,” Feng Qingbai remarked lightly.

“Isn’t that normal? Others have planted plenty of spies around my residence as well. I can’t even speak freely without having to find a hidden spot outside to talk.”

In a place like this, no one’s surroundings were ever truly clean. You could never even guess what methods others had used to plant spies right under your nose.

Feng Qingbai had already told Liu Yusheng about what happened in the palace while they were on the carriage, which was why she had remarked at the palace gates that Duan Ting was pitiful.

Now that the two men were discussing serious matters, she quietly sipped her tea, staying silent and not interrupting.

“It seems the Emperor wants to use this opportunity—while the two nations are forming an alliance—to elevate Prince Yuan’s status and start building momentum for him,” Feng Qingbai said, not bothering to hide anything. After all, Duan Ting likely knew most of it already. 

“Right now, the political scene in Beicang is already rife with open and covert power struggles between the princes. Once Prince Yuan enters the fray, the conflict will only escalate. Since he has the Emperor’s personal support, his chances of winning are the highest. If you ask me, you’re better off continuing to play the cripple. That way, you can at least protect yourself by staying out of it.”

Duan Ting rubbed his temples. He had to admit that it made sense. By maintaining the appearance of being a cripple, he wouldn’t be seen as a threat, and the other royal family members wouldn’t take him too seriously. A cripple couldn’t possibly ascend to the throne.

If he didn’t want to get involved, all he had to do was stay in his wheelchair for the rest of his life. Once the power struggle ended, he might be one of the few princes left standing with his life—and his limbs—intact.

“I won’t let Prince Yuan climb to the throne,” Duan Ting said, lowering his gaze.

He had been biding his time for so long, not to make someone else’s plan come to fruition.

Feng Qingbai didn’t try to persuade him but said, “The only leverage you have is the Sacred Dragon Token. If you try to use it to ascend to that position, you will lose far more than you gain.”

“Even if I have to be shattered into pieces, I must do this.”

Liu Yusheng, sitting quietly nearby, looked up at Duan Ting. From his words, she could feel a deep, bitter hatred and a determination to risk everything.

What was it that made him so determined to take that throne?

Meeting the questioning looks in their eyes, Duan Ting clenched his teeth. After a long pause, he spoke again.

“When I was twelve, my father personally gave me permission to visit the imperial library. But at the door of the library, I was ambushed. After that day, I became a cripple. If I hadn’t met Miss Liu, I would probably have spent my life in a wheelchair. It was because you discovered the cause of my disability that I began to understand who the real culprit was when I looked back on that day.”

After the ambush, he fell into a coma, though there was still a sliver of consciousness in his mind. He was carried back to his chambers, and the imperial physician came to treat him. In his dazed state, he knew what was happening around him.

He remembered two very strange sentences that echoed in his ears at the time.

“Your Majesty?”

“Mm.”

Those were the only two sentences—very brief—and after that, he completely lost consciousness.

When he woke up again, his lower body had no feeling, and he lost the ability to stand.

Now, looking back and combining Liu Yusheng’s words that his spine had been taken, there was only one possible explanation.

At that moment, the physician’s question meant: “Your Majesty, do you really want to do this?”

And his father, the Emperor, had responded with a cold, indifferent “Mm.”

That sound, in that moment, must have been so chilling and heartless!

In fact, from that time—or even earlier—his father’s chosen heir had been Prince Yuan.

It was a pity that the other princes had fought each other in secret for so many years, completely unaware that their fate had already been sealed.

All of them were out of the game.

While they fought each other to the death, there was one person who was protected so thoroughly that not a single ripple of the conflict touched him, and he never suffered even the slightest injury because of it.

Listening to Duan Ting recount the past, though he didn’t directly state who the culprit was, Liu Yusheng and Feng Qingbai both had a near-perfect guess.

If it weren’t for the most unlikely person, Duan Ting’s expression wouldn’t have been so painful. Along with the intense hatred, there was still a lingering disbelief in his eyes.

It is often said that even tigers won’t eat their own cubs, but that saying never applied in royal families.

“You hadn’t revealed your talents before you became a cripple. Logically, you shouldn’t have been a threat to anyone,” Liu Yusheng said lightly, her gaze fixed on the man. “Did he do that to get the Sacred Dragon Token?”

Only this explanation could make the entire situation seem logical.

Otherwise, with the status of the Emperor of Beicang, why would he be so wary of a young boy and go so far as to cripple him?

Duan Ting gave a bitter smile. He knew these two would figure it out—they were both smart people.

“For the Sacred Dragon Token, he did more than just that. My maternal family was destroyed overnight, my mother died suddenly—it was all his doing. The only reason I’m still alive is that he couldn’t find the Sacred Dragon Token on me at the time. Otherwise, I would have already become a pile of dust.”

“So after you were cured, you kept the news tightly under wraps, all to prevent the Emperor from finding out?” Feng Qingbai asked.

“There was no other choice. He wants my life. I’m no longer the naive boy I once was, and I’m certainly no mediocre talent. Once I can live as a normal person again and still hold the Sacred Dragon Token in my hands, he will immediately consider me his greatest enemy and get rid of me at all costs.”

“Are you making excuses to bring us here for a secret discussion today because you want to ally with me?”

“Do we still need to form an alliance? Haven’t we already been on the same side?”

Feng Qingbai sneered. Where did he get this confidence from?

“Unfortunately, I’ve already agreed to join Prince Yuan’s side.”

Duan Ting leaned back, showing no disappointment. “I knew you wouldn’t betray me. When it comes to trusting someone in Beicang, besides Prince Yuan, there’s only one person you could choose to trust—and that’s me. Besides, agreeing to something is one thing, actually doing it is another. I know you’re a true villain.”

The smug look on the man’s face was painfully obvious, making it hard to look at.