The emperor nodded in satisfaction. He knew he was suspicious and that the Qin family had always kept a low profile. Yet, at this moment, the Qin family spared no effort. He felt ashamed. "I am deeply ashamed."

The emperor was frank and directly admitted his pettiness.

Qin Zhan kowtowed in thanks and expressed his loyalty: "Your Majesty is wise and virtuous, a rare wise ruler. I am fortunate to be able to assist Your Majesty, and for the Qin family to be able to serve Your Majesty is truly a blessing."

The emperor immediately arranged for Qin Zhan to go to Fengyang: "The Qin family has many men who can provide support. I will also arrange a hundred musketeers for you."

The emperor looked at Xie Qing and asked, "How are the musketeers preparing?"

Xie Qing said: "There are currently 3,000 musketeers, but only 2,000 guns and a small amount of ammunition."

The emperor frowned and pondered for a moment before saying, "Send two hundred men to accompany the General of the Cavalry to the Western Regions. The Marquis of Qin will give another two hundred men. Duke Du will lead his troops to Bianyu Pass and Yongzhou. Send them 800 miles in a hurry to find the Prince of Yong..."

The emperor made a series of arrangements, assigning generals to guard all the passes, big and small.

In the end, only the south was left. The Qiang people occupied a vast area, bordering Yongzhou to the west, Shenyang to the south, and southern Xinjiang. The Qiang people were separated from the Great Zhou by the Ten Thousand Mountains in the southwest. The Ten Thousand Mountains were extremely dangerous. The Qiang people relied on the Ten Thousand Mountains for their survival and were extremely familiar with it.

However, the officers and soldiers of the Great Zhou Dynasty were very unfamiliar with the opposing side.

The emperor was extremely worried: "We must also take precautions in Shenyang. What if the Qiang people allies with the southern border to attack..."

Now that all the countries have deployed their troops on the border and are eyeing the situation covetously, the emperor dare not take the risk.

But now there is no one available in the court.

Someone from the Ministry of War suggested, "Marquis Pingyang once defended Fengyang and fought against the Northern Di for eight years. Why not let Marquis Pingyang go to Fengyang and Marquis Qin go to Shenyang?"

The emperor waved his hand. He knew Lu Yan's ability. No one had ever provoked him in the beginning. He didn't want to use Qin Zhan and Duke Du to guard Bian Yuguan, so he could only let Lu Yan go.

Who would have thought that something that could have been completed in one or two years would take eight years to complete.

The emperor was afraid of him: "There is no one available."

Prince Jing stepped forward and said, "Royal brother, why don't you send the Crown Prince to take a look? The current deployment of troops by various countries at the border is just a suggestion from an advisor. The Fourth Prince is ambitious. What if he has other intentions and tricks us into deploying troops at the border? If this border, which has been peaceful for many years, were to be plunged into chaos again, wouldn't that be his evil plan?"

"So, I think that if the Crown Prince visits the border, he can lead his troops there and intimidate the other nations. If the enemy really deploys troops at the border, we can naturally leave our troops behind and let them see the strength of our Great Zhou!"

Prince Jing is a member of the Fourth Prince's party, but only Xie Qing and Qin Wan know about this.

The emperor and Prince Jing are brothers. They grew up together. Prince Jing made an indelible contribution to the emperor's ascension to the throne.

Therefore, the emperor has special trust in Prince Jing.

Based on this, Xie Qing attached great importance to Prince Jing's words. What exactly was the fourth brother's plan to get him out of the capital?

Prince Jing's words attracted many people's approval:

"Prince Jing is right. There's no news of the battle coming in from the border yet. We only have a few words from the spies, so we can't be too sure."

"But we can't just sit there and do nothing. We can send a few generals over first. There are troops stationed at the border who can hold off a few for now, and the rest of the troops can come later. If it's false news, these troops can just go out for training. If it's true, the troops will follow and it won't delay us too much."

"The Crown Prince is patrolling the border to stabilize the army's morale and deter the scoundrels. What should we pay attention to?"

The Emperor looked deeply at Prince Jing and said, "Your idea is sound. It is settled. Minister Qin, Minister Du, and the others will lead the vanguard troops to the border towns. I will have the troops assembled and they will arrive shortly. You will wait and prepare."

"yes!"

Qin Zhan, Duke Du and others took the order and left.

When Prince Jing saw that everyone had left, he took two steps forward and said, "Brother Your Majesty, I've just thought it over and over again and feel that this trip is dangerous. Why not let me patrol the border in the Crown Prince's place? Tell others that I'm the Crown Prince. This will serve as a deterrent."

The emperor pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "That's inappropriate. Since the Grand Tutor is touring the border, it naturally cannot be done by others. In fact, there are still many places on the border that are unmanned. Prince Jing, I need you to guard one place. Come, and I'll explain it to you in detail."

After whispering to Prince Jing for a while, the emperor patted his shoulder and said earnestly, "Now I only trust you."

Prince Jing's face flushed with excitement. He clasped his fists and bowed, saying, "Don't worry, my royal brother! I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"

Prince Jing turned and left excitedly.

Xie Qing looked at his back and wondered, "Father, what did you ask your uncle to do?"

The emperor snorted coldly and said, "Prince Jing has ulterior motives. He used to be before my royal brother and after him, but now he has his own ideas."

Xie Qing was even more confused: "What important thing did Father ask him to do? Why did he leave so excitedly?"

"Let him go find the fourth brother." The emperor took a look at the teacup. It wasn't tea, it was medicine. He frowned and drank it all in one gulp. "I said, I don't plan to kill the fourth brother, and I want to make him a king."

Xie Qing looked at the emperor silently, thinking to himself, "Father, you are so deceiving people like this... It's really good! When the fourth brother comes back, what awaits him is only death."

Qin Wan walked in at this moment. After greeting, she said, "Father, the staff member died and could not be rescued."

The emperor had already expected this. He waved his hand and told the court about the arrangements that had just been made. He also mentioned Prince Jing's proposal that the prince patrol the border.

Qin Wan knew something was fishy as soon as she heard it: "The Fourth Prince's whereabouts are unknown, and Prince Jing suddenly mentioned sending the Crown Prince to the border. I wonder if Prince Jing has already defected to the Fourth Prince?"

Qin Wan and Xie Qing lived a new life, and thanks to what they saw and heard in their previous life, they learned that Prince Jing and the Fourth Prince had a close relationship.

But the emperor had already guessed it: "Princess Jing has made things difficult for you many times. On the surface, it seems that she wants to maintain the relationship in the harem, but she is too close to Li. Do you think I can't see it? Humph."

Li Zhaoyi had been stripped of her title and banished to the cold palace. Now in the harem, there was no longer any Concubine Li or Li Zhaoyi, but only the Li family.

Qin Wan frowned in confusion: "But if that's the case, why did the emperor summon him to the palace?"

"How can we know what they are planning if we don't enter the palace?" The emperor twirled his ring, his eyes dark. "Our current plan is to find someone to patrol the border in the crown prince's place, concealing the truth from the public."

Qin Wan thought for a moment, then glanced at Xiao Luzi's figure and said, "Father, why don't you let your daughter-in-law go?"

The emperor looked at Qin Wan in surprise: "You?"

Xie Qing disagreed: "It's too dangerous! No! You stay in the palace!"

"Do you have a better candidate?" Qin Wan asked sternly, "If you send someone else, it will be equally dangerous and there's a chance they'll be discovered. But if I go, it's different. I know your habits very well. What's more, if something really happens at the border, I can make the decision on your behalf. If someone else goes, will they be able to make the decision? Will they be able to suppress the local border commanders?"