"Am I getting old and not as good-looking as I used to be?"
The attendant quickly chimed in, "No! Young Master is still as handsome and beautiful as ever."
As he spoke, he took out a target scope he always carried with him and held it out to Liancheng.
Liancheng looked at himself in the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
"Just as always."
But since it's the same as always...
"Why didn't the princess even glance at me just now?"
Even if they're already married, shouldn't they at least take a second look at his stunningly handsome face?
However, based on Liancheng's years of experience, the look in Yao Youqing's eyes just now was not at all one of amazement or infatuation, not even shyness. It was as if she were looking at any ordinary person on the street.
Is Liancheng an ordinary person?
Absolutely not!
The attendant thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps... the princess has poor eyesight, otherwise why would she have taken a liking to the prince?"
Compared to their young master, the prince is utterly clueless when it comes to winning a woman's heart; in the young master's words, he's a complete blockhead.
Liancheng chuckled and glanced at him sideways.
"If the prince hears this, you'll be dead!"
The attendant smiled and said, "I certainly wouldn't dare say that in front of the prince, but I dare to speak the truth in front of you, young master."
A servant who doesn't know how to flatter is not a good servant, especially a servant who is the son of a young master. Everything else should take a backseat; pleasing the young master is the most important thing.
Liancheng smiled again, then shook his head.
"Their marriage was arranged by the late Emperor of Liang, not because the Princess Consort took a liking to the Prince herself. With the Prince's wicked temper, what woman would want to marry him? Without the consent of his parents and the words of a matchmaker, he probably wouldn't be able to find a wife!"
"Besides... I don't know if the princess has taken a liking to him, but he's definitely taken a liking to this princess now..."
He had known Wei Hong for so many years, and he had never seen him so nervous and cautious in explaining anything to others.
This person is arrogant and domineering, and never bothers to explain himself. Anyone who wants him to explain himself must have a stronger fist than him.
The princess was such a delicate and frail woman; if he hadn't truly cared for her, how could he have treated her so well?
"He cares about this woman more than I thought..."
Liancheng murmured.
The attendant's frivolous expression lessened somewhat as he asked, "So, is this a good thing or a bad thing for us?"
"It's neither good nor bad."
Liancheng looked towards the distant direction of Nanyan.
"We don't intend to use this princess for anything, so their relationship is insignificant."
“But the prince of the past had no weaknesses, but now he does.”
The attendant lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment: "That's still not good. What if someone takes advantage of his weakness someday?"
“That’s perfect for us,” Liancheng laughed, “we can reap the benefits without lifting a finger.”
He was afraid that things wouldn't get chaotic in the Great Liang; if they didn't, he could only maintain the status quo and wouldn't dare to make any other moves.
But if the main beam falls into chaos... then there will be too many advantages to be gained.
"However, since I'm brothers with the prince, I'll definitely side with him!"
Liancheng laughed.
The attendant's face regained its smile: "Young master has always been kind and righteous."
"Of course!"
Lian Cheng said, then, remembering that Yao Youqing hadn't been captivated by his stunning looks, he clicked his tongue twice.
"This princess is just as clueless as the prince. A big clue paired with a little clueless one, they're actually a good match."
Chapter 71 Borrowing Money
As evening fell, Wei Hong returned to Hucheng and went straight to the small bamboo house.
Liancheng, who was drunkenly reclining in the arms of a beautiful woman, listening to songs, watching dances, and drinking, saw him approach with a dark face. He jumped up from the woman's arms and ran away, shouting as he ran, "Your Highness! Your Highness, have mercy!"
With a shout, Wei Hong rushed over, and the two were about to fight.
The prostitutes cried out and scattered, the music stopped abruptly, and was replaced by the sound of hurried footsteps, the clatter of tables being accidentally bumped, and the shattering of bowls and plates on the floor.
The sounds disappeared, leaving only Wei Hong and Lian Cheng on the terrace. Even Lian Cheng's servants had vanished without a trace.
Liancheng was pinned against the wall by Wei Hong, who was grabbing his collar, but he didn't show any panic at being caught. Instead, he grinned and said, "I was just joking. Is it really necessary to get so angry?"
Wei Hong pulled his collar up slightly: "If you dare to make such jokes again, I'll make sure you can never go back to Nan Yan!"
Although he already knew Liancheng's identity, he rarely mentioned it directly to his face. Now that he said such a thing, he must be genuinely a little angry.
Liancheng patted his hand: "Okay, okay, let go of me first, you've wrinkled my clothes."
Wei Hong let go of his hand, glared at him, and sat back down at the table.
Liancheng straightened his disheveled clothes and sat down next to him. The servant who had just disappeared reappeared silently, tidied up the mess on the floor and table, and then left again.
Liancheng was just saying he wouldn't say anything more, but as soon as he sat down, he started being cheeky again.
"I didn't say anything to the princess, I just told her the truth."
"Besides, what's wrong with a man visiting a brothel? Your princess wouldn't be that petty, would she?"
Wei Hong slammed the wine pot on the table and stared at him coldly.
Liancheng waved his hand: "Alright, alright, I won't say anymore. I'll punish myself with three cups, okay?"
As he was saying this, he picked up the wine pot to pour himself some wine, but Wei Hong snatched the wine pot back.
"You should be punished by going outside to buy more wine. This pot of Drunken Li Bai isn't enough for me!"
Liancheng sighed and shook his head: "They won't let me drink the wine I brought. What kind of logic is that?"
Despite saying that, he didn't ask for the wine again.
Wei Hong drank several cups in a row, satisfying his craving for alcohol, before asking him, "What do you want?"
“It’s nothing serious,” Liancheng said. “It’s just…you know I’ve been spending a lot lately, so I was thinking…”
"I have no money."
Wei Hong interrupted him before he could finish speaking.
Liancheng's face stiffened, and he sat up straight with a hiss.
"Can't you change this habit? Shuozhou is now militarily strong and its treasury probably holds more silver than the Liang Dynasty's national treasury. Why are you still so stingy?"
Wei Hong paused, holding his cup: "You're calculating my savings?"
Liancheng shrugged nonchalantly: "I've been doing business with you for so long, I must know exactly what I've done with the money, right?"
"Shuozhou has enjoyed favorable weather and smooth trade routes in recent years, and it is no longer the Shuozhou it once was."
"Besides, Your Highness, how could you only do business with me? You must have other channels. All in all, it must add up to a considerable sum. You might even be richer than me now!"
Compared to the Liang Dynasty's national treasury, which only spends and never receives, Wei Hong's side is making a fortune every day.
Liancheng quickly calculated that he must have a lot of money on hand, and he would never again have to scrape together the soldiers' pay like before, wishing he could deduct it from his own expenses.
Wei Hong chuckled: "Brother Lian, you're joking. No matter how rich I am, how can I compare to you? You are the real richest man in Nan Yan, and I'm just making a pittance from your pocket."
"What do you mean by 'richest man'? Your Highness, you only see how much I earn, but you don't see how much more I spend! If I weren't so desperate, I would..."
"Anyway, I have no money."
Wei Hong remained adamant, repeatedly emphasizing the word "no money."
Liancheng rolled his eyes: "Alright, I won't borrow money from you anymore. How about this, can you let me reduce your share of the profits by 30% this year?"
Liancheng would give Wei Hong a fixed amount of money every year. The more he earned, the more he would receive, and the less he earned, the minimum amount he would receive.
In other words, the more he earned, the more Wei Hong earned. Even if he lost money, Wei Hong wouldn't care and would still give him the money he was owed, not a penny less.
It was obviously easier to get Wei Hong to give up a portion of this year's profits than to make him give up the money he already had. Wei Hong nodded after hearing this.
"Okay, but you'll have to add an extra point next year to make up for what you owe."
In short, you can't just take things for free; you have to pay back the principal and interest on whatever you borrow.
Liancheng's eyes nearly popped out of his head: "Our friendship of so many years isn't worth this little bit of silver?"
"not worth."
Wei Hong answered without hesitation.
Liancheng spat, "Aren't you this stingy with your princess? She wears the best hairpins, uses the best lip rouge, and her clothes are made of materials that are only available as tributes from the palace."
"How long have you been married to her? And how long have you known me?"
Wei Hong showed no remorse for his words, and said matter-of-factly, "That's my wife, it's only natural for me to support her. You're nobody to me, why should I spend money to support you?"
Liancheng was completely unable to refute this. He opened his mouth but couldn't say anything. Finally, he said helplessly, "Didn't you say your ambitions lay elsewhere? If that's the case, why make so much money? If I were that person in the court, I would also be wary of you!"
Which emperor wouldn't be wary of a prince who is strong, capable of fighting, and also dedicated to accumulating wealth?
Wei Hong sneered: "I want to make them wary. Those they didn't fear are all dead now."
"Just like you, Brother Lian, in the beginning no one feared you, but did they ever treat you kindly back then?"
Liancheng was the son of the Southern Yan emperor, born out of wedlock. His mother was of low status and was carrying twins when she was pregnant with him.
The Southern Yan royal family has always considered the birth of twins to be an ominous sign, especially two children of the same sex, as it foreshadows the destruction of the country.
So her mother was moved out of the palace while she was pregnant, and could only be brought back to the palace if it was confirmed that she gave birth to a boy and a girl; otherwise, one of them had to be drowned.
The children born were twin boys, and Liancheng was lucky; he was the one who didn't drown.
Even after he returned to the palace, the Southern Yan emperor still disliked him, and the royal family members all bullied him.