The young general and the prince, who was to be married off, fell in love at first sight!

Chapter 244 Extra (6) Looking Back on the Road Ahead 01

Changping, the seventh year of Pingwu.

Lin Wanghui, annoyed by the interruption of his experiment, came out of the courtyard and strode toward the main hall, too lazy to even change out of his homemade lab coat.

As soon as he reached the main hall entrance, Lin Wanghui saw several eunuchs dressed in blue sitting inside waiting. He paused at the entrance to calm his agitated mood before slowly walking inside.

"Eunuch Yi."

Several eunuchs quickly turned around.

"This servant greets Your Highness." The head eunuch, known as Eunuch Yi, bowed deeply.

"No need for formalities, sir." Lin Wanghui politely greeted him, but without uttering a single word of pleasantries, his expression calm as he went straight to the point, "I wonder what imperial decree His Highness the Crown Prince has sent you with?"

Yi Qiao's expression froze for a moment. But it was only for a moment.

He quickly put on his signature obsequious smile again, "Look at what you're saying, Young Master. The Lin family is a favorite of the Emperor, so His Majesty and His Highness naturally take great care of the Duke of Lin and his son..."

"Speak the key."

Lin Wanghui cut Yi Qiao off decisively, showing no respect whatsoever, clearly unwilling to say more to him.

This time, Yi Qiao's stiff expression didn't return to normal so quickly. Having encountered Lin Wanghui's cold face twice in a row, he understood that this young master Lin was unwilling to even bother with formalities.

Helpless, Yi Qiao could only shake his sleeves and straighten up, abandoning his hunched posture. He didn't dare to hold Lin Wanghui accountable for not bowing his head in the face of the Crown Prince's decree, and pretended not to see it, reading the decree with empty eyes.

"By order of the Crown Prince, the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo is to be summoned to the Eastern Palace for an audience immediately."

"I'm busy."

Lin Wanghui refused without hesitation.

The atmosphere in the main hall instantly became oppressive, and Yi Qiao couldn't even maintain his last smile.

"Your Highness, you—"

Lin Wanghui frowned and raised his hand to stop Yi Yu from speaking further. "It is suspicious for a subject to be too close to a prince, which could be considered forming a clique for personal gain. Besides, I have no personal relationship with His Highness the Crown Prince. As for politics, it has long been irrelevant to my Lin family."

Yi Qiao was so anxious that he was covered in a fine sweat. He said with a bitter face, "Why must Your Highness make things difficult for this servant? His Highness only wants you to come to the palace for a meeting, why are you turning people away like this?"

But Lin Wanghui remained unmoved.

"You don't need to morally blackmail me. I said I'm not going, and that's final. If Lu Xingzhou wants to punish me, let him come and kill me!"

Let's see who dies first!

Lin Wanghui finally lost control of his emotions, his irritability and disgust almost overflowing.

"roll!"

Yi Qiao fell silent.

Yi Qiao left in despair.

*

The eunuchs arrived full of expectations, but left dejectedly.

Seeing the figure disappear, Lin Ze, who had been standing by for a long time, finally stepped forward.

"Your Highness, what about the Duke—"

"There's no need to tell my father."

"Yes." Lin Ze respectfully accepted the order, then couldn't help but ask, "But even if you reject the Crown Prince so directly, do you think he will give up easily?"

"Heh." Lin Wanghui sneered, "The emperor's backlash and serious illness are known throughout the court. With the people's hearts in turmoil and the imperial power unstable, the crown prince will naturally not give up on making peace with the Lin family. Just wait, he might come in person soon."

"Then I'll make an excuse that you're busy with experiments and can't get away?"

"No need. If you avoid it once, there will be another time."

It might even enhance his reputation as a patron of Zhuge Liang, but it's really unnecessary.

"He can come if he wants, but I'm not going to the palace."

What kind of thing is he that dares to ask me to see him? Lin Wanghui's face was full of disgust; he was utterly fed up with this father and son from the imperial family.

Lin Ze also sighed, "Given the current situation, the Crown Prince can only cling to our Lin family and will chase us all the way home. The young master can't avoid him in the end. It's good that we meet, and that'll be enough to fulfill our proper etiquette."

"etiquette?"

Lin Wang snorted, his gaze toward the palace filled with disdain.

*

As expected, the Crown Prince, who had been flatly rejected by Lin Wanghui, still came to the door at dinner time.

The grand procession of the Crown Prince stretched endlessly through the palace gates and stopped in front of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. The palace maids, guards, eunuchs, and officials in front and behind, along with the seemingly endless convoy, completely blocked the street in front of the mansion.

Looking around, besides the likes of Huagai, there were four or five huge carts in the procession, making Lin Ze frown. Four years had passed, and he still couldn't understand how a grown man could carry so many carts of stuff for such a short trip.

As expected of someone who had never served in the military, even the emperors of the Lu family for over a dozen generations didn't have his grand entourage.

Lin Ze twitched his lips as he watched Lu Xingzhou, supported by two eunuchs, step by step alight from the carriage not far away.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Everyone bowed in unison, while Lu Xingzhou stood still, waiting for the maid to straighten his clothes before slowly making his way to the gate of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

Lu Xingzhou smiled gently, "No need for formalities. Where is Wang Hui? Why didn't he come out to greet me?"

You call him "Wang Hui"? You think you can expect my young master to come out and greet you as soon as he sits down to eat? Dream on!

Lin Ze had one thing in mind, but not another on his face. "Your Highness, Your Highness's arrival was sudden. The Crown Prince was having a meal in the side hall, and his demeanor was not proper for receiving Your Highness. The Crown Prince was afraid that Your Highness would be waiting anxiously, so he asked us to greet you on his behalf."

Lu Xingzhou's face darkened for a moment.

But mindful of his purpose, he quickly put on his signature warm smile again.

"Have a meal?"

Lu Xingzhou slapped his forehead as if suddenly realizing something, "It was my fault. I was only thinking about coming to see Wang Hui as soon as possible, but I forgot to check the time. I came at a bad time."

Lin Ze was almost laughing in anger.

Everyone knows that! You deliberately timed your visit to mealtime so that the Crown Prince would politely invite you to stay for dinner, allowing you to put on a show for the court officials. And you even have the audacity to say it like that!

The disdain in Lin Ze's lowered eyes deepened.

"Please, Your Highness."

Lin Ze didn't want to pretend with him anymore, so he stepped aside and decisively led the man towards Lin Wanghui.

Better to die than see my fellow Daoist die. Let the young master deal with this hypocrite!

Lu Xingzhou was also eager to see Lin Wanghui. He nodded, and the two, though on the same path, walked one after the other toward the side hall in silence.

*

Lin Ze wasn't lying; Lin Wanghui had indeed just sat down at the dinner table.

As a meticulous and detail-oriented scholar, Lin Ze's daily routine was incredibly packed, with every moment precise down to the second. Consequently, his first invention in this world was a mechanical watch.

It's currently his usual time for dinner.

Logically, upon receiving the news, he, as a subject, should have immediately put down his chopsticks, washed up, tidied himself, and gone out to greet the emperor. He should have also been perceptive enough to have someone prepare another table of fine dishes for the crown prince to enjoy together.

But things are different here in Lin Wanghui's place. For Lu Xingzhou, it's not worth changing his schedule and missing dinner.

Therefore, when Lu Xingzhou thought he had found a good opportunity and entered the side hall with great pride, he happened to run into Lin Wanghui, who was doing things his own way and showing no respect whatsoever, swallowing the last bite of rice and then putting down his chopsticks.

Haha!

Unexpectedly!

You thought you could time your meal with me, but I actually finished eating the moment you walked in.

Lin Wanghui was secretly delighted. "You little brat, trying to outdo the King of This Volume in terms of timing? You're still a grandson!"

At the entrance to the side hall, the confident Lu Xingzhou was immediately dumbfounded.