"Guards! The Emperor has passed away! Arrest the treacherous minister Li Shangshu and his accomplices!"

Gao Changhong waved his hand, and a group of skilled guards headed towards Minister Li and his entourage.

Gao Changhong stood with his hands behind his back, his face exuding a calm and composed air. He glanced at Gao Yuanbin sideways.

He said in a deep voice, "Today you have betrayed your father and disappointed him greatly, but your father will not kill you. I just want you to know that your passion is ultimately not worth it."

"Really? It's too early to say whether it's worth it or not."

Gao Yuanbin scoffed lightly, then slowly raised his hand from under his sleeve and snapped his fingers with internal force. In an instant, several agile black figures rushed out from all directions of the main hall.

"This is......"

Gao Changhong's pupils suddenly dilated. He could clearly sense that the martial arts skills of this group of people were all above his own. They didn't even seem like dedicated guards, but rather like some kind of martial arts practitioners.

That's right!

These were indeed people from the martial arts world, sent by Xiao Ye to reinforce Gao Yuanbin.

This group of people were quick and precise, and in just a few moves, they had knocked down all of Gao Changhong's men.

Subsequently, the Imperial Guards outside the palace also rushed in, all pointing their swords at Gao Changhong.

He was utterly defeated!

"Hahaha! Guards, lock the Regent in the imperial prison!"

The emperor laughed loudly, as if all the pent-up frustration of the past ten years was released at this moment. He had finally taken down the regent!

This time, Gao Changhong had no one to help him.

Those guards were just his only precaution, but he didn't expect Gao Yuanbin to have even more powerful helpers.

He hung his head, his eyes filled with resentment, but he didn't say a word, remaining surprisingly calm.

“Yuan Bin, you did a great job this time! Don’t worry, after the Regent falls, I will issue an edict to acknowledge your merits. Although you are his son, this matter will not implicate you.”

The Emperor patted Gao Yuanbin's arm happily.

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I do not seek credit; I only hope that Your Majesty will grant what you said before."

Gao Yuanbin said with a slight bow.

Before helping the Emperor of the Northern Desert, he had secretly met with him and privately told the Emperor that he hoped to spare the Regent's life.

The emperor could cripple his martial arts and strip him of everything, but he hoped to spare his life in the end.

Not only because he was his father, but also because sometimes living is far more torturous than dying.

He wanted him to watch power slip away from his hands.

"This... I will consider it."

The emperor's smile faded, and his eyes darkened with complex emotions.

*

News of Gao Changhong's failed attempt to usurp the throne quickly spread throughout the court and the country, and the entire capital of Daliang was filled with sighs of regret.

In fact, because Gao Changhong usually disguised himself very well, presenting himself to the people as a good prince who worked diligently for the Northern Desert, some people were even unwilling to believe that it was true.

However, due to the suppression by the imperial court, no one dared to speak up for him openly.

On the other side, Gao Junning, who was feigning illness, immediately fled the city with the Regent's wife and his sister after Gao Changhong entered the palace.

At this moment, they are hiding in a town dozens of miles away from the imperial city, waiting for Mo Hanyu's maternal grandparents to come and meet them.

"Mother, Father has truly failed! He's been imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison. Should we go and rescue him?"

Gao Junning rushed over with the information he had gathered from outside and told it to Mo Hanyu.

"Save him? What can you do to save him? Do you think you can save him with your abilities? Consider this a lesson for him, we don't need to worry about him."

Your father still has his own power in the south. I stole the token from his study. After my maternal grandfather's people arrived, we rushed to the south and took over your father's people.

"Then you can establish your own power base over there. The Northern Desert is in chaos right now, and the South is too far away. The Emperor is young and inexperienced; he certainly can't manage you effectively. As long as you do well in the South, you can be considered a local tyrant!"

Mo Hanyu scoffed coldly.

Since Gao Changhong himself cares about that unfilial son and doesn't prioritize her and Gao Junning, then he shouldn't blame her for being ruthless.

Despite being with him for so many years, she never won his heart. In the end, all he cared about was the child born to that woman, and she finally gave up on him.

Now, all she wants is for her children to have a good life.

When Gao Junning heard Mo Hanyu mention that they still had influence in the south, his eyes suddenly lit up.

If I go to the south and become a local tyrant, and then work hard for a few more years, I might be able to come back and become the true emperor of the Northern Desert.

With that thought, he abandoned his original plan to save Gao Changhong.

After waiting for a day, they fled south.

As for Gao Changhong, after spending two days in prison, he met the Northern Desert Emperor who came to see him.

"Your Majesty, I have come to see you off."

The young emperor, unlike his former naiveté, now wore a dragon robe and exuded an aura of majesty. Even his previously innocent eyes had suddenly become dark and profound in the past few days.

This finally gave him a hint of the unfathomable nature of an emperor.

"Thank you for remembering me, Your Majesty."

Gao Changhong sat in the shadows, his imposing aura undiminished. His expression was obscured, but his tone was full of sarcasm.

Seeing that he was now a prisoner yet remained so calm, the Emperor couldn't help but frown and ask in confusion, "Is the Regent not afraid of death?"

I'm here today to send him to hell!

Although he verbally agreed to spare Gao Yuanbin's life, once he truly secured his throne, he felt that he wouldn't feel at ease unless he eliminated the threat completely.

After all, he never wanted to experience the days of oppression he had endured for over a decade under the Regent again.

However, to maintain his dignity and avoid being branded as a fickle man, he couldn't kill him openly. So he came to the prison in person, attempting to end his life by 'committing suicide out of fear of punishment'.

"Death? If I can die carrying the secrets of the Northern Desert royal family, then my death will not be in vain."

"What secret?"

Upon hearing this, the Emperor looked at Gao Changhong with a puzzled expression.

Then he slowly stood up and walked towards him.

"Doesn't Your Majesty find it strange that the Northern Desert royal family only has one prince in your generation?"

Gao Changhong spoke in a low, enigmatic tone, his words leaving one with a tantalizing sense of unease.

"That's all because the late emperor's concubines fought for his favor and harmed each other, which is why only I, the prince, was lucky enough to survive. What kind of secret is that?"

The emperor flicked his long sleeves, appearing completely calm on the surface, but in reality, he felt somewhat uneasy.

"Is that so? But hasn't Your Majesty noticed that your elder brother, the Emperor, died of the same disease? Why didn't you have this disease?"