Consort Dan fixed her beautiful eyes on Jiang Chen, half-smiling: "Do you feel that you and the old master see eye to eye on this?"
Jiang Chen scratched his nose: "You've already said everything I could say. To be honest, I don't really care who becomes Crown Prince or who becomes King. But I am, after all, a guest consultant invited by the Fourth Prince, so I ought to do something on his behalf. Besides, from my own standpoint, wouldn't it be better for him to be Crown Prince than for Ye Dai?"
Suddenly, Jiang Chen paused. "Why don't you seem surprised at all that the brothers are trying to kill each other? Did you predict this?"
Consort Dan revealed a smile brimming with wisdom: "I didn't predict it—the old master did long ago. The announcement that the Crown Prince position would be decided next January was actually a rumor deliberately spread at his behest. He wanted to test the reactions of all parties once more."
"Looks like the test got a bit out of hand, didn't it? Hard to put the genie back in the bottle now?" Jiang Chen chuckled.
"How could it be out of hand? Everything is under control," Consort Dan said with a smile.
"What do you mean? They're about to make their move. Once the killing starts, who knows how many will make it out alive?"
"If only one makes it out alive, he becomes Crown Prince. If they all walk out without a scratch, Ye Rong becomes Crown Prince. It's that simple."
"So you're saying Ye Rong was decided on long ago?" Jiang Chen was genuinely surprised.
Consort Dan shook her head with a mysterious smile: "It wasn't decided long ago. It was decided only after the old master's birthday banquet—after he gave you the Tian Gui Knight Order."
"Uh, am I really that influential?" Jiang Chen felt somewhat embarrassed. He hadn't really been involved in the princes' schemes at all. Could attending a birthday banquet, unintentionally giving a gift, and answering one riddle really determine who got the Crown Prince position? That seemed way too far-fetched.
"Don't doubt it. The old master has never been wrong about people. Though he never said it outright, the meaning was already crystal clear—whoever has Jiang Chen's support will have the Crown Prince's position."
"The King would agree to that? And his own sons are trying to kill each other—he can just sit back and watch?"
Consort Dan sighed: "Jiang Chen, when I call you naive, you turn around and be infuriatingly cunning. When I call you cunning, you go and be naive again. When someone sits on the King's throne, didn't they claw their way there through killing their own siblings step by step? You know that spirit apes kill each other and only one survives to the end—did you really think the survival rules of an imperial family would be gentler than the world of spirit beasts?"
Jiang Chen smiled. She had a point.
Setting aside the Tiangui Kingdom—hadn't the previous Eastern Kingdom's King, Dongfang Lu, supposedly colluded with the former Crown Prince Dongfang Guo, leading to the Crown Prince's death so he could seize the throne?
Guo Jin's father had been implicated in the whole affair, dragging the Guo family into ruin, never to recover.
If Ye Rong was truly outstanding—if he could survive the rules of this jungle—it would prove he could withstand the trial. Whether in strength, willpower, or fortune, he'd have the potential to be King.
Conversely, if this small amount of competition led to his death, then even if Ye Rong's talents in every area had won over the higher-ups, it would only prove his fortune was insufficient—not enough to rule a kingdom.
In that case, they could only fall back on the law of the jungle and let whoever walked out alive become King.
With his thoughts finally clear, Jiang Chen grinned: "Consort Dan, since we've stumbled upon this, we can't just stand by. After all, I am the Fourth Prince's guest consultant. When the lord is shamed, his subjects must die for him."
Consort Dan laughed prettily: "Spare me. Don't think I can't see right through you—do you look like a loyal subject bursting with integrity?"
Jiang Chen set off at a brisk pace up the mountain path, and Consort Dan hurried after him: "Are you really going to charge up there so brazenly? Aren't you afraid they'll spot you and silence you?"
"Isn't there a great beauty like you with me? I'm sure even if they've completely lost their minds, they wouldn't lay a cruel hand on you."
"You overestimate my charm. Women are merely decorations in the eyes of men. How many emperors throughout history have loved beauty over their kingdoms?"
Jiang Chen burst out laughing: "No wonder you treat all those princes with such cold indifference—you already saw through their true natures long ago."
Consort Dan shot him an exasperated look: "Stop talking nonsense. Jiang Chen, level with me—is there something you're hiding from me?"
"Does that even need to be asked? Of course there is." Jiang Chen smiled. "Don't worry though. Before they spot me, I'll definitely spot them first."
Anticipate the enemy—discover them a step before they discover you!
Though Consort Dan didn't know why Jiang Chen was so confident, his composed and self-assured demeanor left no room for doubt.
Jiang Chen didn't follow behind Ye Dai and his group. Instead, he shot off directly toward the southeast.
Since he knew Ye Rong and the others were roughly fifty li to the southeast, Jiang Chen wasted no time and headed for the valley at full speed.
Ye Dai's group would need to regroup first and likely do some planning. Jiang Chen was confident he could reach the valley before them.
Sure enough, a quarter-hour later, Jiang Chen and Consort Dan arrived at the outskirts of the valley.
At the entrance to the valley, as expected, there was a scout from the First Prince. Jiang Chen took Consort Dan, slipping past the scout's notice, and infiltrated the valley.
"Jiang Chen, should we go straight in to meet up with them, or—"
"Don't go looking for them yet. We don't want to alert the prey. If the Fourth Prince and his people know we've arrived, their formation will change, and the scout will pick up on it."
Consort Dan thought it over and nodded.
"How much of that Mishenxiang do you have left?" Jiang Chen asked with a smile.
"Only three bottles," Consort Dan counted.