"This is no place for you to meddle, Sixth Prince!" Fourth Prince Yunting glared at Yun Zheng.
"I have to meddle!" Yun Zheng gently shook his head, his gaze falling once more upon Ban Bu. "The Imperial Preceptor is quite the schemer!"
"Oh?" Ban Bu smiled benevolently at Yun Zheng. "Does the Sixth Highness have some brilliant insight to share?"
As he spoke, Ban Bu purposefully exchanged a glance with Yun Zheng.
Seeing this silent exchange, Yun Li immediately stepped forward to petition Emperor Wen: "Imperial Father, please banish the Sixth from the Great Hall! We can never allow him to collude with Beihuan..."
"Silence!" Emperor Wen glared at Yun Li. "Let them finish! I want to hear what they have to say!"
Granted permission by Emperor Wen, Yun Li had no choice but to retreat resentfully to the side.
Xu Shifu shot a covert glance at Yun Li, signaling him to say no more.
In any case, Yun Zheng had already walked into a dead end.
No matter what he did, he could never prove his innocence!
"Imperial Preceptor, how about another wager?" Yun Zheng stared at Ban Bu, a provocative glint in his eye.
"Oh?" Ban Bu said with lively interest. "How does the Sixth Highness propose we wager this time? I lost to the Sixth Highness the other day, and I've been looking for a chance to play another round!"
He genuinely desired another match with Yun Zheng to wash away his previous humiliation.
Naturally, that assumed Yun Zheng even survived long enough to place a bet.
Yun Zheng smiled and asked, "According to what the Imperial Preceptor stated, exactly how much grain must our dynasty deliver to Beihuan on the thirtieth day?"
Dodging the question, Ban Bu countered, "Could it be that the Highness knows?"
"And what do you think? Does this Prince know or not?" Yun Zheng shot back.
Ban Bu pondered for a moment before smiling. "Roughly how much? Perhaps the Highness has an idea. But the exact amount? The Highness certainly does not know!"
He refused to believe Yun Zheng could calculate the precise figure.
Across the entire world, someone capable of such a feat might exist.
Yet without spending at least half a day on it, absolutely no one could arrive at the exact number!
"Then let us wager on this!" Yun Zheng said solemnly. "If this Prince states the exact figure, Beihuan shall unconditionally gift our dynasty ten thousand warhorses!"
"The Sixth Highness has quite an appetite!" Ban Bu chuckled, then asked, "And if the Highness is wrong?"
Yun Zheng offered a faint smile. "Then take this head of mine!"
"Ha, ha, ha!" Ban Bu burst into laughter, his face full of disdain. "If I may be blunt, Sixth Highness, your head is hardly worth ten thousand warhorses!"
The head of a good-for-nothing prince, wanting to trade for ten thousand warhorses?
In your dreams!
Even if his skull were made of solid gold, it wouldn't fetch that price!
"I suppose you have a point." Yun Zheng rubbed the back of his head thoughtfully, then raised a hand to point at Yun Li, grinning broadly. "Then let's just add my Third Brother's head to the pot!"
Chapter 29: Over a Billion Dan?
Upon hearing Yun Zheng's words, Yun Li's face turned green.
"Sixth Brother!" Yun Li jumped out in a panic, berating him furiously, "How vicious your heart is! Even at death's door, you want to drag me down with you! Imperial Father, you must not let the Sixth run amok!"
Yunting laughed heartily. "Third Brother, just make a little sacrifice! What if the Sixth wins the bet again?"
"Exactly!" The Second Prince nodded in agreement. "We are all princes, and since the Sixth dares to put his life on the line, why shouldn't you?"
"Quite right! Quite right!" The Fifth Prince chimed in.
In truth, they wished nothing more than for Yun Li to drop dead.
At this moment, they suddenly found Yun Zheng looking rather agreeable.
Hm...
The more they looked at the Sixth lately, the more pleasing to the eye he became!
Raging fire surged in Yun Li's chest. Baring his teeth, he roared, "Then why don't you put your own heads on the line?"
"Because the Sixth didn't ask us to!" Yunting laughed righteously.
"I..." Choking slightly, Yun Li had no choice but to appeal to Emperor Wen once more. "Imperial Father, the Sixth is deliberately trying to take my life! You must not let him act so recklessly!"
"Quiet, all of you! Have you not made enough laughingstocks of yourselves before the Beihuan delegation?" Emperor Wen glared irritably at his sons, then turned back to Yun Zheng. "Sixth, stop this nonsense! This is entirely out of the question!"
"This son was merely joking with Third Brother." Yun Zheng grinned, then turned serious. "If this Prince loses, you shall have my head, plus the three million dan of grain you mentioned earlier."
As soon as Yun Zheng spoke these words, the officials naturally erupted in fierce opposition.
Yun Zheng was already under grave suspicion of communicating with the enemy.
Wasn't this simply handing three million dan of grain to Beihuan on a silver platter?
"Unacceptable!"
"Your Majesty, the Sixth Highness is aiding Beihuan!"
"Sixth Highness, what on earth is your intention?"
"Sixth, if you want to die, go ahead, but keep your hands off Da Qian's grain!"
"An ambition like a wolf's..."
Aside for a sparse few individuals, the crowd scrambled forward to voice their objections.
"Quiet!" Emperor Wen brushed aside all dissent. "Three million dan of grain—I approve it! Today, I shall consider three million dan of grain the price for a definitive result!"
A result!
Hearing Emperor Wen's words, the gathered officials suddenly understood.
Emperor Wen intended to buy peace of mind with three million dan of grain!
"Imperial Preceptor, His Imperial Father has already consented. And you?" Yun Zheng stared at Ban Bu. "Does the Preceptor dare to wager?"
"Why wouldn't I!" Ban Bu laughed with absolute confidence. "However, verbal promises are worth nothing. We must set down an agreement in black and white, lest Da Qian renege on the debt when the time comes!"
"Very well!" Emperor Wen nodded, immediately ordering the drafting of the wager.
Emperor Wen personally produced the imperial seal and stamped the document.
Seeing this, Ban Bu had no choice but to take out his own seal and press it onto the paper.
"Sixth Highness, you may speak now!" Ban Bu fixed his gaze on Yun Zheng with a triumphant smile, victory already in his grasp.
"Then the Imperial Preceptor and everyone present had best listen closely!" Yun Zheng suddenly raised his voice. "On the thirtieth day, the quantity of grain our dynasty must deliver to Beihuan is one billion, seventy-three million, seven hundred and ten thousand, one hundred and eighty dan!"
By pure coincidence, Yun Zheng had once memorized powers of two.
He remembered this particular sequence of numbers with absolute clarity.
Boom!
As Yun Zheng's voice fell, a thunderclap seemed to detonate within the minds of everyone present.
Over a billion dan?
How on earth did he calculate that?
No matter how one figured it, it was impossible to reach such a staggering sum!
When Zhang Huai had calculated five million dan, they had already found it inconceivable.
Let alone over a billion dan?
He was doing it on purpose!
Yun Zheng was doing this deliberately!
He was aiding the enemy!
"A traitor to the state! A national traitor!"
"This subject begs to die with his words! I implore Your Majesty to execute this traitor! If Your Majesty refuses, this subject shall dash his brains out against the pillars of this Great Hall!"
"Three million dan of grain... Our dynasty will lose three million dan of grain for nothing..."
Heartbroken and filled with anguish, the officials wished nothing more than to hack Yun Zheng into ten thousand pieces.
Some had even broken down into loud wailing.
At this moment, Yun Zheng was no longer any Sixth Prince.
He was a traitor!
A traitor who colluded with an enemy state to plunder Da Qian's grain stores!
"Imperial Father, the Sixth is harboring a deep grudge against Da Qian and Your Imperial Father! Even at the cost of his own life, he wants to help Beihuan swindle three million dan of our grain!" Yun Li's face was a mask of grief and indignation as he desperately squeezed tears from his eyes.
"Stop your howling!" Emperor Wen berated the assembly. "The Beihuan Imperial Preceptor hasn't even declared whether it's right or wrong, what are you all howling for?"
Though Emperor Wen privately felt that a billion-plus dan was far too exorbitant, he refused to believe Yun Zheng would genuinely trade his life to collude with Beihuan and steal Da Qian's grain.
Staring at Ban Bu, Yun Zheng asked with a smile, "Imperial Preceptor, is this Prince correct?"
"Wrong!" Ban Bu shook his head with a chuckle. "Over a billion dan? How on earth did the Highness calculate that? Even with an appetite as vast as Beihuan's, we could never demand such a mountain of grain!"
At Ban Bu's words, the fury of the court soared to the heavens.
They were moments away from tearing Yun Zheng limb from limb.
Even Emperor Wen's expression as he looked at Yun Zheng turned abruptly ice-cold.
"Is that so?" Unfazed, Yun Zheng sneered at Ban Bu. "If the Imperial Preceptor refuses to admit it now, it matters not. This Prince can perform the calculations here on the spot for the Preceptor. It is not difficult at all!"
"Then let the Sixth Highness calculate away!" Ban Bu snorted.
He completely refused to believe Yun Zheng could possibly compute such an exact figure in so short a time.
Even if Yun Zheng guessed right, the people of Da Qian wouldn't believe it!
Unless he forced these fools of Da Qian to witness the concrete step-by-step calculation.
He was betting that Yun Zheng couldn't do the math!
"Imperial Preceptor, you truly are shameless!" Yun Zheng gently shook his head. "Since that is the case, this Prince shall calculate it for you!"
Turning to Emperor Wen, he requested, "Imperial Father, I must trouble you to have some extra paper prepared. Today, this son shall expose the tricks of this shameless scoundrel before everyone!"
"Very well!" With a wave of Emperor Wen's hand, Mu Shun immediately ordered the preparation of paper, brushes, and ink.
He wanted to see for himself how Yun Zheng had managed to arrive at a figure of over a billion dan!
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Yun Zheng began his calculations.
Although Da Qian lacked the mathematical concept of exponents, it possessed the concept of multiples.
Calculating via multiples was somewhat cumbersome, yet crystal clear.
Only, as a modern man, though Yun Zheng had inherited the original owner's memories, he remained unaccustomed to using a writing brush; even simple numbers came out crooked and awkward.
Damn it, I'll have to go pluck a couple of geese for their feathers later!
Yun Zheng couldn't help muttering inwardly.
Seeing these figures, the onlookers alternated between contempt and utter bewilderment.
"What manner of symbols are these?"
"Ghostly talismans! Purely ghostly talismans!"
"A prince of our Great Qian, and he can't even write characters properly!"
"No wonder the Sixth Highness had General Yuan write his invitations for him before."
"This old man has read extensively, yet I have never laid eyes on such markings..."
"Can one actually calculate anything with these?"
The officials who crowded closer to inspect the paper furrowed their brows in unison.
"These are numerals I learned from an ancient text called *Investigations of Things*. They make counting and calculation much simpler..." Yun Zheng briefly explained to the crowd as he continued his computations.
Fortunately, he was only writing numerals; if he had been writing an official memorial with handwriting this atrocious, his cheap old man would likely have slapped him twice on the spot.
Watching the figures flow from Yun Zheng's brush, Ban Bu felt a fierce jolt in his chest, cold sweat steadily beading across his forehead.
Damnation!
Someone in Da Qian actually recognized these numerals?
If calculations were based on these numerals, arriving at the exact result genuinely wouldn't take much time at all.
How could this be?
How could this good-for-nothing recognize such numbers?
For all his plotting and scheming, he had ultimately miscalculated this good-for-nothing Sixth Prince!
This boy had repeatedly ruined his plans; he could not be allowed to live!
As he watched Yun Zheng press on with his calculations, a murderous intent sprouted wildly in Ban Bu's heart.
However, killing Yun Zheng was a matter for another day.
Right now, he had to survive the immediate crisis!
Ah!
Miscalculating a single person meant losing the entire game!
"No need to calculate!" Before Yun Zheng could finish, Ban Bu spoke up.
"Oh?" Yun Zheng lifted his head. "What does the Imperial Preceptor mean by this? Could it be the Preceptor has no desire to see the final calculation?"
Meeting Yun Zheng's gaze, the old man's face flushed slightly red.
As an envoy of a foreign state, having one's falsehoods exposed publicly was hardly a glorious affair.
"Ahem, ahem..." Ban Bu coughed twice to cover his embarrassment. "Just now, this Imperial Preceptor remembered incorrectly. The figure calculated by the Sixth Highness is... correct! This Imperial Preceptor... has lost!"
Chapter 30: You Can Go Dash Your Brains Out
Ban Bu fought hard to salvage what little dignity he had left.
At Yun Zheng's speed, he would finish the calculation in no time.
If he waited until then to concede, it would solidify his reputation as a sore loser.
Admitting defeat now at least preserved a shred of face.
Hearing Ban Bu's words, everyone froze.
When they finally snapped out of it, the court erupted into complete chaos.
"What?"
"It really takes that much?"
"How can that be possible!"
"This, this..."
Even with Ban Bu's confession, many within Da Qian still refused to believe it.
None of them had imagined that such a seemingly meager starting amount of grain would snowball by the final day into a terrifying total of over a billion dan!
Over a billion dan of grain—the entire population of Da Qian would have to go without food or drink for an entire year just to scrape that amount together!
And that was merely the quantity required for the final day alone!
This wasn't just a trap!
It was a bottomless abyss!
If they had truly signed that agreement, Da Qian would have been finished!
"The Imperial Preceptor is truly skilled! I am filled with admiration!" Emperor Wen stared coldly at Ban Bu, fury surging in his chest.
Now, how could he fail to see through Ban Bu's scheme?
Ban Bu had deliberately diverted everyone's attention toward the number of warhorses, nearly tricking Da Qian into signing a pact of eternal damnation!
An ambition like a wolf's!
A crime deserving of death!
"No matter how high this Imperial Preceptor's skills are, they pale beside the Sixth Highness!" Ban Bu shook his head with a bitter smile. "The vast erudition of the Sixth Highness is something Ban Bu has never witnessed in all his days! To possess a great talent like the Sixth Highness is Da Qian's supreme fortune!"
Hearing these words, a flash of murderous intent cut across Yun Zheng's eyes.
Praise-to-kill!
This old immortal!
Even in defeat, he still wanted to stab him in the back!
"The Preceptor flatters me." Yun Zheng stood up, shaking his head with a smile. "This Prince merely had some good fortune and happened to read that ancient text. I venture to guess the Preceptor has read it as well?"
"I have not," Ban Bu replied, shaking his head. "These are deductions I figured out on my own."
"Is that so?" Yun Zheng feigned disbelief, offering a meaningful smile. "Imperial Preceptor, there is no shame in secretly studying Da Qian's ancient texts!"
At this, Ban Bu's face twitched violently.
He certainly hadn't read any ancient texts.
He had learned this from a wise sage in another nation!
Yet if he claimed he hadn't stolen the knowledge, no one in Da Qian would believe him.
Now he found himself in a position where he had no way to clear his name!
"If the Sixth Highness says it was stolen study, then let it be stolen study." Ban Bu forced a self-deprecating smile, then pressed on, "Sixth Highness, how were you able to calculate the exact figure without pen and paper in such a short span of time?"
Yun Zheng shook his head. "This Prince didn't calculate much. I can only say the Preceptor's luck was poor."
"Poor luck?" Ban Bu looked at Yun Zheng in confusion. "How so?"
Yun Zheng smiled. "When I first read that ancient text, I found it quite fascinating. During my idle moments, I used the methods described within to calculate similar problems. As it happened, I had worked out this exact number before, and having repeated the calculation many times, the impression stuck firmly in my mind..."
"If you knew all along, why didn't you say so earlier?" Yun Li demanded angrily, his voice fraught with agitation. "Did you have to wait until our entire court of civil and military officials made fools of themselves for your amusement?"
Yun Li was dying of fury inside.
He had never dreamed that a dead-end trap would be shattered by Yun Zheng.
Now, Yun Zheng had scored yet another massive merit!
It seemed all of them had lived as jesters in this farce!
"Third Brother, you wrong me." Yun Zheng gently shook his head. "I calculated this number many years ago. Familiar as I am with it, this was a matter of immense gravity—surely I had to verify it a few times in my mind first?"
"You..."
Choking slightly, Yun Li was left entirely speechless.
There was simply no flaw to be found in Yun Zheng's words!
Even if Yun Zheng had deliberately wanted to watch them make fools of themselves, with an explanation like that, no one could seize upon the point to condemn him.
"Enough!" Emperor Wen cut Yun Li off, turning to Ban Bu. "Imperial Preceptor, my mood at present is quite foul. The matter of the grain shall be discussed tomorrow!"
"Very well." Ban Bu nodded slightly. "As it happens, this Imperial Preceptor's mood is also exceedingly foul; I am hardly in a suitable frame of state affairs."
The trap he had wracked his brains to set for Da Qian had been effortlessly dismantled by Yun Zheng, and he needed to return and re-evaluate his position.
Ah!
Such a magnificent situation!
Ruined entirely by this good-for-nothing prince!
Did Da Qian truly possess such a miraculous ancient text?
"Then it is settled!" Emperor Wen gave a slight nod. "Guards, escort the envoys of Beihuan back to rest!"
"Wait!" Ban Bu suddenly called out.
"Does the Imperial Preceptor have other business?" Emperor Wen asked with displeasure.
Ban Bu let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "This Imperial Preceptor has something here that I originally intended to hand over upon leaving the Imperial City of Da Qian. But seeing as things stand, there is no need to wait until then..."
With that, Ban Bu drew the letter he had received the previous night from his bosom.
The death trap laid for Yun Zheng had already been broken.
Keeping this letter in his possession was of no further use.
Rather than holding onto it, he might as well hand it to Emperor Wen and throw their internal politics into even greater chaos!
The more chaotic Da Qian's internal affairs, the more beneficial it was for Beihuan!
Seeing the letter in Ban Bu's hand, Yun Li's pupils contracted sharply.
Xu Shifu felt a brief tightening in his chest as well, but quickly regained his composure, signaling Yun Li with a glance not to worry.
Yun Li had already cleaned up his tracks completely.
Even if Emperor Wen obtained the letter, he could never trace it back to them.
Without waiting for Emperor Wen's command, Mu Shun stepped forward swiftly to take the letter, holding it aloft in both hands as he delivered it to the imperial desk before Emperor Wen.
Emperor Wen opened the letter, swept his gaze over it briefly, then suppressed his rising anger and nodded. "My thanks to the Imperial Preceptor! The Preceptor should lead the others back to rest."
"Agreed." Ban Bu nodded and promptly led the Beihuan delegation away.
Once the Beihuan delegation had departed, Emperor Wen's expression collapsed completely.
"Close the hall doors. Light the lamps!" Emperor Wen commanded, frost coating his features.
What?
The expressions of the officials shifted violently.
What did Emperor Wen mean by this?
Was he afraid someone would run off?
"Close the hall doors! Light the lamps!" Mu Shun cried out.
Rumble...
As Mu Shun's voice echoed, the heavy doors of the Great Hall slowly swung shut, leaving only a narrow gap.
Immediately afterward, a crowd of eunuchs and palace maids rapidly lit the lamps stationed throughout the Great Hall before hastily retreating through the reserved gap.
Boom!
Once the eunuchs and maids had all withdrawn, the heavy doors closed completely.
Emperor Wen's abnormal actions made everyone's hearts leap into their throats.
Everyone understood that Emperor Wen's heart must be blazing with monstrous fury.
Today, someone was undoubtedly going to meet a bad end.
However, it certainly wouldn't be Yun Zheng.
Emperor Wen slowly stood up, sweeping his frosty gaze across the assembly. "Just now, who was it that claimed they would dash their brains out against the pillars of this Great Hall?"
Hearts trembling, the officials lowered their heads in silence.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, it was Assistant Minister Yang!" Xiao Wanchou pointed straight at Assistant Minister of Revenue Yang Ji, who had buried his head as low as it would go.
"Old General Xiao's memory is quite sharp." Emperor Wen gave a slight nod, his gaze locking onto Yang Ji.
"Your Majesty!"
Scared out of his wits, Yang Ji collapsed to his knees with a heavy thud, wailing, "This subject failed in his scrutiny and wronged the Sixth Highness! I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"