I Became the Devil Queen's Heart Demon

Chapter 650 - 247: The Empress Baby’s Ball Skills! The Crown Prince Invites Me to Be a Teacher?_3

The voices gradually became weaker and eventually faded away, as if falling into a deep sleep.

The Shadow Man gazed at the quiet golden tent, silent and speechless.

"The torrent of destiny, is it..."

...

...

After leaving the racecourse, the Empress went to bathe, while Chen Mo returned first to Zhao Hua Palace.

Upon entering the inner hall, he saw the Crown Prince sitting obediently on a small stool, biting his pen with a look of deep resentment.

Fan Sijin, in a light blue palace robe, stood beside him, having changed to a new hair crown.

"Your Highness, you didn’t go back?" Chen Mo asked curiously, as he thought the Crown Prince had already returned to the palace to rest.

Fan Sijin glanced at him, saying in a somber tone, "Thanks to Mr. Chen’s brilliant idea, the Crown Prince was dragged off halfway to play football, causing him to not finish his coursework. I fear he can’t give an account to Master Lv."

"..."

Chen Mo’s mouth twitched.

The way she said it made it sound like he had led a child astray...

"But it’s already this time, why is Mr. Chen still in the palace?" Fan Sijin asked coldly, "Are the affairs of your Sky Scale Guard so leisurely?"

The words hinted with sarcasm, clearly still upset about what happened on the field... Chen Mo, however, didn’t mind. He lounged back in a chair and said, "Besides being Fu Qianhu of the Sky Scale Guard, I am also the Yulin Lang General of the Personal Merit Guard. Staying in the palace is quite normal, right?"

Fan Sijin frowned, saying, "Even if you’re part of the Forbidden Guard, you should only patrol outside. I’ve never seen anyone come and go from the Inner Court as they please."

Chen Mo shrugged, "Now you have."

"..."

Fan Sijin turned her head away, feeling that speaking any more with this person could be infuriating.

Chen Mo glanced at the books on the table, seeing the title page inscribed with "Qiyuan Political Affairs", filled densely with tiny, fly-like script, enough to give anyone a headache.

The Crown Prince was nearly biting through his pen, lamenting, "Fan Sigui, the question Master Lv gave is too hard. I don’t know how to solve it..."

Fan Sijin shook her head, "The assignments given by the Grandmaster are all within Your Highness’s capabilities. If Your Highness studies earnestly, you can surely solve them."

The Crown Prince pouted, "But this question is really not in the book, see if you don’t believe me."

"Impossible..."

Fan Sijin took the paper, glanced at it, and was momentarily stunned, pondering quietly for a long time before placing it back on the table.

"Let’s wait until Her Majesty the Empress comes to answer it for you."

"..."

Chen Mo chuckled, "Is it that you can’t solve it either?"

Fan Sijin was quite straightforward and admitted, "I’m just a servant in the palace, I know nothing about statecraft. Not being able to solve it is quite normal, isn’t it? Mr. Chen, on the other hand, seems to know a lot. If you’re confident, why not have a look?"

"Sure, I’ll take a look."

Chen Mo muttered, getting up to stand behind the Crown Prince.

With a glance down, he saw seven bold and vigorous characters written on the rice paper, the content clear and concise: Summarize the way of governance in fifteen characters.

Chen Mo frowned slightly.

The simpler a question looks, the harder it usually is to answer.

Governance involves politics, economy, culture, military, livelihood... so many dimensions—how can it be summarized in a mere fifteen characters?

So this question tests not practical matters but one’s understanding of governance.

Seeing Chen Mo silent for a long time, assuming he was stumped, Fan Sijin sneered, "It seems Mr. Chen is quite ordinary."

Tsk, this woman really holds grudges...

Chen Mo said calmly, "What’s difficult about this? From my perspective, no need for fifteen characters, seven will suffice."

Fan Sijin raised an eyebrow, "Mr. Chen must be joking, right?"

Without more words, Chen Mo picked up a brush and elegantly left seven characters.

"Govern a big country like cooking a small fish?"

Fan Sijin looked at the sentence, amused, "If Mr. Chen doesn’t understand, there’s no need to scribble nonsense. How can frying a fish compare to governance? By that logic, any cook should be able to rule, right?"

Chen Mo earnestly replied, "A good cook isn’t necessarily a good emperor, but a good emperor is certainly a good cook."

Though the statement was unconventional, both had strong backing and weren’t overly cautious.

Fan Sijin was genuinely intrigued, crossing her arms, "Why doesn’t Mr. Chen elaborate?"

With his hands behind his back, Chen Mo explained slowly, "If the fire is too harsh, it burns; stirring too much, it falls apart. Adjusting in time, maintaining calmness, acting in accordance with reason... Frying fish is like governing a nation."

?

Fan Sijin was stunned.

She had been present when Master Lv lectured the Crown Prince and understood the deep meaning...

If he weren’t deeply knowledgeable in affairs of state, he couldn’t have expressed such a concise statement!

So this guy really understands?!

The Crown Prince, biting his finger, asked blankly, "So you’re saying, a good emperor should do nothing at all?"

"Cooking fresh ingredients, one fears they might crumble; governing a nation, one dreads it might fall into chaos."

"When the government’s orders are too numerous and harsh, it’s like boiling a cauldron with fierce fire—the people cannot bear the disturbance; managing officials with confusion and disorder is like chopping minced meat with random blades—the nation must inevitably harm its roots."

Chen Mo, with his legs crossed, laughed and said, "It’s not scary if those in power are incompetent, but it’s terrifying if they overexert themselves. Comparatively, it’s better to do nothing at all—this is called ’Governing without Intervention.’"

"Governing without Intervention?"

The Crown Prince pondered for a moment, then asked, "So how do you grasp this degree?"

Chen Mo picked up his teacup, sipped leisurely, and said:

"I believe it can be summarized in twelve words: harmonize the vessels, observe the heat, and stir with caution."

"In other words, it means: balancing leniency and strictness like blending five flavors; assessing the timing and situation, neither hastening nor delaying; once laws are established, do not alter them lightly."

The Crown Prince fell into deep thought upon hearing this.

When it comes to understanding state affairs, Master Lv is definitely above Chen Mo.

However, the Grandmaster’s teachings are too profound, making people drowsy every time they hear it, while Chen Mo’s vivid and lively remarks actually piqued his interest.

Fan Sijin stared blankly at Chen Mo.

Initially, she wanted to see Chen Mo make a fool of himself, but unexpectedly, she heard such astonishing remarks!

When the Crown Prince came back to his senses, he looked at Chen Mo with bright, admiring eyes and said, "I didn’t expect you to not only be good at playing football but also to understand state affairs... How about becoming my Grand Tutor in the future?"

"Pfft!"

Chen Mo spat out a mouthful of tea in disbelief, "Cough, cough, Grand... Grand Tutor?!"

The Crown Prince nodded, "I currently have a Grandmaster but no Grand Tutor or Grand Protector. It’s vacant anyway... Hmm, I’ll go to Father tomorrow and have you guide my studies..."

Chen Mo waved his hands repeatedly, "Your Highness, stop joking. I’m just a fifth-rank military officer, how could I have that qualification?"

The titles of Grandmaster, Grand Tutor, and Grand Protector are collectively known as the Three Ducal Ministers.

The Grandmaster oversees military and political power, the Grand Tutor guides academic and moral conduct, while the Grand Protector is responsible for the Crown Prince’s etiquette and safety.

Although the power of the Three Ducal Ministers has weakened over time and become honorary titles, they are still genuine standard first official ranks!

Such titles have strict criteria for conferment, either being the founding merits of the nation or a powerful minister or grand secretary... Chen Mo, being just a fifth-rank military officer without even the qualification to participate in politics, was too far off and had absolutely no chance of being directly promoted.

If such a thing were to be spoken of, it would only become a laughingstock.

However, the Crown Prince was not bothered, "So what? I’ve heard from Master Lv that the Qilin Pavilion is just your starting point, and you will rise with the tide eventually... By then, wouldn’t becoming a Grand Tutor be easy?"

?

Chen Mo was stunned for a moment.

Did Master Lv really say that?

Seeing the Crown Prince growing increasingly excited, Chen Mo dared not stay any longer and found a pretext to run away.

He knew his limitations, he was just putting on a show earlier, and the content he spoke was merely borrowed rhetoric, empty talk...

Teaching the Crown Prince to play ball was fine, but teaching governance was too far-fetched.

Moreover, he didn’t want to get entangled with the Crown Prince...

The Empress, after taking a bath, had just arrived near Zhao Hua Palace when she saw Chen Mo hurrying away.

"How strange, why is this little thief running so fast?"

"I just changed into new underwear and was thinking of showing it to him..."

...

...

Chen Mo passed through the Inner Court and arrived at Qianqing Gate.

Despite the twists and turns today, he did make some significant discoveries, which should be reported to Her Majesty the Consort.

With the Consort’s insight and perspective, perhaps she would know what the red rune on the Crown Prince was.

After the Palace Attendant announced his presence, it took but a moment for a figure in white to appear gracefully.

"Director Xu..."

Before Chen Mo could finish his greeting, Xu Qingyi extended her hand eagerly, "Where is it?"

Chen Mo asked puzzled, "What is it?"

"What do you think? Of course, it’s the follow-up content of Silver Bottle Plum!"

"..."

Xu Qingyi frowned, "It’s been several days, don’t tell me you haven’t written a single word? You promised me last time that you’d update at least five Chapters!"

Chen Mo replied awkwardly, "I’ve been too busy lately and haven’t found the time..."

"Chen Mo, I really have to restrain you now!"

Xu Qingyi huffed, "Later, come to me, I want to watch you write with my own eyes! You can’t leave until you finish!"

Chen Mo: "..."

It was one thing to be urged to update in person, but now he was going to be locked up? This generation of readers is too aggressive...