Chapter 487 - Proper Palace Intrigue (26) (1/2)

Chapter 487 : Proper Palace Intrigue (26)“State Teacher, this matter concerns the reputation of our country. If you know, don’t keep it to yourself.”

One of the officials fought down his fear and approached Shi Sheng to speak.

“I don’t know means I don’t know.”

Their voices weren’t soft, so everyone in the chamber heard them.

Lu Ruo had her own agenda, but it wasn’t the best time for her to speak right now.

“Are you perhaps looking down on my present, State Teacher?”

Shi Sheng switched the hand she used to prop up her jaw, her lips tilting upwards slightly.

Ming Jin knew she was about to say something unpleasant, so he gave a short, slightly pitying look at the Second Prince.

“You know what this thing’s called?”

“Didn’t Zhao Yi-niangniang already say it just now?” The Second Prince didn’t know what Shi Sheng was getting at. “This is called a clock.”

The smile on Shi Sheng’s face grew even more brilliant. “You’re giving a clock to someone on their birthday? Are you planning on changing your surname too? Or calling a thief your father[1]?”

‘Send clock…send off?!’

The ones with faster minds all got the hint, immediately staring at the Second Prince rather unhappily. ‘But State Teacher, why is your wording so weird? What do you mean “calling a thief your father???”’

The Second Prince still hadn’t understood however. “Why can’t I give a clock?”

“Of course you can, I never said you couldn’t.”

The Second Prince harrumphed coldly, ignoring his people who tried to convince him otherwise with very urgent looks, and spoke disdainfully, “Don’t change the topic if you can’t get it to work?”

Shi Sheng’s eyes curved upwards. “If I make it move, how about you agree to my condition?”

“What condition?” The Second Prince frowned.

“Oh, nothing hard. Just do a lap around Vermillion Street[2] naked.”

Everyone, “…” ‘That isn’t hard?!’

The Second Prince ground his teeth. “And if you can’t get it to move?”

Shi Sheng was indifferent. “Name whatever condition you want.”

The Second Prince pondered for a while. He felt like backing down a bit. ‘This woman is so confident, maybe she really can get it to work.’

“This…”

Shi Sheng gave him a half-smile, whereupon the Second Prince felt a rush of anger surge up. ‘If I admit defeat, I’ll be losing face for Xi Liang! Maybe this woman is simply bluffing in an attempt to scare me off. No matter how many people I got to look at the thing, none could get it to move—I don’t believe she can!’

The Second Prince steeled himself, and spoke through gritted teeth, “Fine.”

“Bring it over.” Shi Sheng commanded him.

“State Teacher, you’re really demanding.” The Second Prince was so angry that his face was turning dark.

“Forget it if you’re not moving.”

Second Prince, “…”

He got people to lift the clock over to Shi Sheng, who instructed them to place it down.

Shi Sheng took out several Nanchi[3] batteries, opened the casing at the bottom, popped out the rather rusty old batteries and inserted the new ones in.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

The crisp sound echoed throughout the chamber.

Shi Sheng raised her chin in the Second Prince’s direction, signalling for him to get the people holding it to lift it higher.

Lu Ruo was dumbfounded. ‘It’s battery powered?! How can there be something battery powered in this era?! This is simply too illogical!’

Shi Sheng had the aloof expression of an expert. ‘It’s very logical—that thing dropped in from another dimension. After all, you, a fully grown human, could drop in, so why can’t objects do the same? Isn’t that right?

In a virtual world, the only limit is your imagination—don’t try finding logical errors in everything. It’s not like you’re playing Find Your Sis[4].’

Several people lifted the clock up, making the ticking sounds even clearer as time flew past.

Everyone had odd expressions.

The hall was completely silent save for the ticking of the clock.