His Peasant Wife : Yao Ling

"I have a hunch because I heard that Grandmother is the previous Empress’ sister. But who is the princes’ mother?" Yao Ying asked curiously.

"The Empress’ beloved niece --- in other words, she is also your grandmother’s daughter. My sister. Your aunt." Wang Luo Hai explained.

Yao Ying asked in surprise, "I thought that Father is the only son."

"Yes, I’m the only son, but not the only child," Wang Luo Hai smiled.

Yao Ying and Yao Ling looked at each other. ’Well... that’s true. They never ask whether the matriarch had another child or not. They just assumed that Wang Luo Hai was the only child.

"Ah... it means Wang Fu is the maternal family of the princes and that’s why Wang Fu becomes their backer, right?"

Wang Luo Hai nodded.

"But why do they also want their maternal family to drink the poison? Don’t they trust their own maternal family?" Yao Ling asked in confusion.

"I would make the same decision if I was them. They were once betrayed by one of our family," Wang Luo Hai said but he didn’t divulge on it any further. Yao Ying and Yao Ling could see the pain in his eyes, so when he didn’t say anything, they didn’t push for an answer. They believed he would tell them when he was ready.

"Who are the princes?"

"I will give you a brief description of each prince," Wang Luo Hai said.

The first prince is Shen Wang. He’s the oldest prince, but popular for his lecherous behavior. He already has a Wang Fei, but he still goes around to fill his household with concubines --- even the King is having a headache because of him. Because of that, he is unfavored and only dwells with lust every day. His mother already passed away so he also didn’t have powerful backers. One word to describe him --- useless prince.

The second prince is Chu Wang. One of the strongest candidates to become a crown prince. He’s popular because of his handsomeness. He’s quickwitted and has a strong backer. His mother is the daughter of General Wu and because of General Wu’s current strong popularity, Chu Wang’s position in the court is pretty stable.

The fifth prince is only five years old, so he doesn’t pose too much of a threat. His mother is the current favorite concubine of the King. Everything can change in a few years, so it never hurts to be careful and plans ahead just in case the fifth prince -- Chen Wang rises in power.

Yao Ying asked, "So... it means we support the third and fourth prince?"

Wang Luo Hai nodded his head in excitement, "Yes. They are actually twins and very close to each other. They have a bond that is known only to a few people --- they are able to feel the other person pain. So when the other is in danger, the other can feel it. They can detect each other’s mood. This fact is only known to a small circle of people, so both of you should seal your mouth."

Yao Ying and Yao Ling answered at the same time, "Yes."

"What are their titles?" Yao Ling asked curiously.

"Xiao Wang and Ming Wang."

"Anything else that I should know about them?" Yao Ying asked, feeling interested in knowing more about the persons that they supported wholeheartedly.

"Because of their combined power, they greatly affect the court. However, because of that, the King is wary of them. He is even slightly jealous of their power. Xiao Wang is very good at business and he is very wealthy. Ming Wang is the brain in politics. The King even attempts to drive a wedge between them for a few times just to lower their influence and power," Wang Luo Hai explained.

Yao Ying shook his head. "That’s why I hate politics. It makes the relationship of the people in the family become so complicated. Father and sons can become enemies in a heartbeat."

"Indeed... that’s the cruelty of the royal family. The princes can’t run away from their fates and they have to work hard to protect themselves. Even the fifth prince won’t leave untouched if Chu Wang starts to move. That man is very cruel and nothing can stop him when he lays his eyes on something --- including women."

"Are the reasons for you to support them purely because you are blood-related, Father?" Yao Ling asked. She didn’t agree with that kind of perception. She would respect Wang Luo Hai more if the reason was that of the quality of the princes themselves. After all, the winner would take over and control their kingdom. If it fell to the wrong hands, then the kingdom would be ruined.

"No... of course, not. Although they are young, they are wise and have a certain charisma that makes people trust them and give them their loyalty. They also care about the people. You don’t know the crazy amount of donation that Xiao Wang has given to the citizens," Wang Luo hai explained.

Yao Ying and Yao Ling didn’t really care about those superficial things. They already heard enough about the princes and they wanted to see them before they could make a judgment about their characteristics.

"Then what about the boss of our organization? Is it the prince?" Yao Ling asked with twinkling eyes. Wow! It seemed like Yao Ying would be able to meet with a prince! When they were peasants, they wouldn’t dare to think that someday they would meet a prince. After all, the princes were high up there. They only heard a rumor here and there back at the village, but because to them it was a piece of insignificant news, they didn’t bother to pay attention to it.

"Yes, we are directly under Ming Wang’s leadership," Wang Luo Hai smiled. "Xiao Wang won’t be bothered to lead such a big organization, but he is the one who manages the business side --- such as our Fu Rong."

Yao Ying and Yao Ling looked at him in surprise. "Fu Rong? Is our Fu Rong under the banner of Xiao Wang? Isn’t this our Wang Fu family business?"

Wang Luo Hai laughed when he saw the surprise in their expression. "Yes, it’s under Xiao Wang’s banner. We directly report our accountancy to him --- well... more like his subordinates. After all, we are staying a bit far from the capital."

"What about the profit? I know that our manor is still able to live luxuriously, so how do we split the profit?" Yao Ying started to rack his brain, calculating their profit. After all, the accountancy currently is held by him.

Wang Luo Hai shook his head when he saw Yao Ying’s reaction. He knew that Yao Ying didn’t mean anything bad about what he asked about. He could see that Yao Ying wasn’t a greedy person, so Yao Ying probably thought about their Wang Fu. "Eighty - twenty. We get the eighty percent of the profits. The rest will be used to fund the prince’s political expenses."

"Only twenty? I thought he would take at least fifty."

"No, Xiao Wang has already calculated everything. Besides, Fu Rong is only a small part of his business chains. He always generously shares his profit with his subordinates," Wang Luo Hai explained.

Yao Ying and Yao Ling were impressed by Xiao Wang’s characteristics. It seems like he wasn’t a petty or stingy person.

"Father, if you want to help the princes, why don’t you stay in the Capital? Won’t it be easier for you?" Yao Ling asked.

"No, it’s far too dangerous. The King is a very cautious and narrowminded person. He already guards himself against the princes. If we are staying there, we most likely will become a suspect and won’t be able to live as freely as now. After all, we are the maternal family of the princes," Wang Luo Hai explained the real situation in the Capital.

"Hah... the life of the royal blood is very dangerous. The luxurious comes with a heavy price, especially with a paranoid King as a Father," Yao Ling felt that the princes were quite pitiful.

"Is the princes’ mother still alive?"

"Yes, but she’s practically living as a hostage." Wang Luo Hai sighed in sadness, remembering his sister’s current situation.

"A hostage?" Yao Ling asked in surprise.

"Yes." Wang Luo Hai nodded.