Chapter Thirteen: Winning Hearts and Minds

Just as the two were about to leave, shouts from the servants came echoing out.

“The Third Prince has arrived!”

Before Zhou Hao could even greet him, the Third Prince stormed in, his fury blazing. None of the servants dared to stop him.

Zhou Hao understood perfectly well; it was right that no one tried to block him.

Perhaps the one who let the Third Prince in was even a dog he kept.

“Oh, isn’t this Third Prince? Not fretting over at your mother’s place today, but coming to bother me?”

Seeing the Third Prince, Zhou Hao’s anger welled up, and he stopped dancing around with words. Instead, he directly confronted him with sharp rebuke.

As expected, it infuriated the Third Prince greatly. He pointed a finger at Zhou Hao, his gaze full of wrath.

“You… you uncivilized barbarian! I’m not here to trade insults with you today. It’s Mother who summoned you to the palace!”

With that, he threw a stack of papers from his sleeve. The elegant handwriting suggested it was from the Empress herself.

“I’m not going. I still have matters to attend to. If that wretched woman wants to see me, she can come here herself.”

Zhou Hao didn’t even glance at the imperial decree, tossing it aside carelessly.

Even if the Son of Heaven summoned him, he wouldn’t show a good face—let alone the Empress.

What good would going to the palace do?

It would only be to frame him or to strike underhandedly.

No matter the schemes, as long as he didn’t fall into their trap, they could do nothing.

“Hmph. I thought we weren’t as ungrateful as you. Today, Mother is summoning you to the palace to give you face.”

“Face? How much is her face worth? Is it worth ten years of peace on the frontier?”

“If not, then get lost!”

With that, Zhou Hao slapped the Third Prince across the face. When he wobbled, Zhou Hao kicked him in the rear, turning him into a rolling disgrace.

“Tell that wretched woman if she sincerely wants peace talks, she should come out of the palace and meet me face to face!”

“Not send some insignificant lackey and then hypocritically claim to be giving face. That’s not giving face; that’s humiliation!”

As if the previous blows were not enough, Zhou Hao kicked the Third Prince in the stomach, sending him flying again.

“Let’s go. We’ll each mind our own business.”

Zhou Hao glanced at Luo Xu and strode out of the mansion.

After all, the most valuable things in the mansion were the gold and silver.

But they were all sealed and stored in the treasury.

If anything went missing, it could easily be pinned on the Third Prince.

Thus, Zhou Hao wasn’t afraid of any trouble the Third Prince might cause in his residence.

---

Luo Xu looked at Zhou Hao with a strange sense of admiration.

What kind of position was his father scheming for?

The Third Prince certainly had a fondness for personal combat.

After a brief reflection, Luo Xu left the mansion.

All the servants would need to be replaced—a huge undertaking.

After the two left, the Third Prince struggled to rise from the ground, his eyes full of venomous hatred.

“You won’t go? Then don’t expect to stand again!”

He turned to a maid by his side and said coldly,

“Do you know which room he’s staying in?”

“Yes, my lord. I left a special mark outside that room. Also, here is a note about the barbarian who visited yesterday; please have a look.”

The maid pulled a piece of paper from her waist, scribbled with crooked handwriting, recording the visitor's details and attitude upon leaving.

The Third Prince gave a cruel smile, the expression twisting his wounds painfully.

“I should have killed him in the mansion! Then I wouldn’t have suffered so much!”

He snorted coldly and, leaning on the maid, slowly left.

If that barbarian entered the palace, whether it was framing and slandering or a direct execution by beating, it would all be up to the Empress’s word.

But now he was refusing to go.

His earlier plans were useless, but that didn’t mean he was safe.

The Empress’s assassins would make sure this man could neither live nor die peacefully.

“Hmph, once you’re thrown into prison, I’ll torment you however I please.”

---

After leaving, Zhou Hao followed the list into a narrow alley.

Had he not seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn’t believe such squalor existed within the imperial city.

The walls were patched with straw and mud, and the roof tiles were broken.

Anyone living here clearly had emptier pockets than faces.

Passersby looked pale and ragged, their clothes full of patches. If one wasn’t careful, they’d mistake them for street beggars.

“Kid, your father owes us four taels of silver. With interest, it’s eight taels now. Tell me, when will you pay up?”

Turning a corner, Zhou Hao heard some thugs blocking a child, seemingly intent on taking him away or collecting their principal.

“Don’t target Li’er. We will pay the debt.”

A woman rushed out from a courtyard, wanting to get to the child, but was stopped by a firm hand.

“Madam Li, your husband is ill, and you owe a debt. That’s true, right?”

“Debts must be repaid—it’s only right. We’re here to collect. Why do we feel like the villains?”

The thug leader stood before Madam Li, sneering.

“We will repay, just give us a few more days. Once Li Tie is well, he’ll go hunting and pay you back.”

Madam Li was at a loss, pleading repeatedly, wanting to reach Li’er quickly.

But the thug blocked her again, a mocking smile on his face.

“That’s not possible. Our superiors expect their money. If I give you leniency, what about the others? If no one gets leniency, what do I eat or drink?”

Hearing the name Li Tie, Zhou Hao immediately understood.

The retired soldier he sought was none other than Li Tie.

“A few taels of silver? I’ll pay it for them.”

Zhou Hao stepped forward, casually pulling out some silver coins and tossing them toward the thugs.

He couldn’t ignore this matter.

If he did, how could he win hearts in the future?

But the thugs didn’t take the silver. Instead, they sized Zhou Hao up and down.

“Where did this rich kid come from? Playing the chivalrous hero here?”

“You’re not paying for her! No way!”

“Today, I want Madam Li to pay!”

The thug stomped on the silver coins, pressing them deep into the mud.

“I see. You’re trying to force the good woman into prostitution.”

Zhou Hao’s expression turned icy as he looked at the thugs as if they were already dead men.

No wonder they surrounded the child first, then pressured Madam Li step by step.

If he hadn’t been here today, who knew what those thugs would have forced Madam Li to become.

The thugs didn’t want the silver. Even if Li Tie really took out eight taels, they wouldn’t accept it.

They would find excuses to raise the interest anyway. After all, it was just empty talk.

Those thugs never intended to get any silver from Li Tie’s family.

Their goal had always been one thing: to seize Madam Li, the hen that laid the golden eggs.