night.

In the largest room of the Central Government Office, Yuan Li sat in a chair eating a sweet treat while gazing at the starry sky outside the window.

Less than three steps from his toes, Yuan Xiu lay flat on the ground, his long hair spreading out like tree roots emerging from the ground.

The room was brightly lit with many lights on. Yuan Xiu had his eyes closed, it was unclear whether he was sleeping or taking a nap.

"Brother, it's this time of year, the ground is cold, please get up." Yuan Li put a sweet treat in his mouth and said mechanically, expressionless.

Yuan Xiu remained silent.

Yuan Li added, "There's no point in you demeaning yourself like this. The Wen family uncles and nephews don't care about your feelings at all now."

"snort……"

Yuan Xiu then said, “You and I are brothers, one a king of equal rank and the other the emperor of the Great Jing Dynasty, yet we have fallen to such a state. I feel ashamed even to open my eyes, let alone stand up.”

Yuan Li continued to stare out the window and said calmly, "We can't beat Zhao Huan and his son in a fight, and we can't escape the clutches of Wen Tai and his nephew. We're lucky to be alive."

"I expected it, I expected it long ago..."

Yuan Xiu waved his arms vigorously and shouted, "Zhao Huan will rebel sooner or later, Wen Tai will rebel sooner or later, I was right to be wary of them! I expected this!"

"It's you!"

Yuan Xiu suddenly opened his eyes, pointed at Yuan Li, and said, "It's all because of you, you useless thing! I entrusted you with such a great situation, but you couldn't even keep an eye on them!"

Yuan Li sighed and turned his gaze away from the window.

Yuan Xiu's expression turned worried, and he said, "If it were not you who was in charge of the Central Secretariat, but my elder sister... I wouldn't be afraid even if there were ten Zhao Huans or ten Wen Tais!"

Yuan Li looked at Yuan Xiu and said with shame, "It is my brother's incompetence."

"Of course you're incompetent!" Yuan Xiu suddenly sat up.

Just then, Wen Hu, clad in armor and carrying a sword, walked in and said bluntly, "Your Majesty underestimates Prince Xin. Prince Xin is not incompetent; his inability to manage the Central Secretariat is not a matter of ability, but rather that he covets your position. Once a person becomes greedy, he only cares about his own interests and will not care about the lives of others."

"Is that so, Your Highness Prince Xin?" Wen Hu chuckled at Yuan Li.

Yuan Xiu glanced at Wen Hu with disgust, waved his hand, and shouted, "Do you have the right to interrupt when I'm disciplining my brother?"

"Hey, it was I who spoke out of turn."

Wen Hu pretended to slap his face, then bowed to Yuan Xiu and said, "Your Majesty, I have come to report something to you. I will leave after I finish speaking."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Xiu stood up and sat down in the main seat.

In the past, when he was in the Jing Palace, he would either lie half-reclined on the dragon throne or sit directly on the dragon table, never sitting properly. Now that he was outside the palace, he actually sat up straight.

Wen Hu couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "You didn't care when you had authority, but now that you've become a puppet, you miss that authority."

"What is it? Speak."

After offering the necessary politeness, Wen Hu's tone became arrogant, as if issuing an order, and he said, "According to intelligence, Zhao Huan has dispatched Feng Jing and a large number of troops to Yun Jing, presumably to prevent the Southern Zhou army from taking advantage of the situation to advance north. As a result, their defenses in the west are much weaker. In order to enable Your Majesty to return to Chang Sui as soon as possible, I hope Your Majesty can encourage the three armies and order them to charge back to Chang Sui in one fell swoop."

Yuan Xiu's eyes lit up, and he asked suspiciously, "You mean, Zhao Huan didn't strengthen the defenses in the west, but instead sent troops to Yun Jing?"

“Exactly! Zhao Huan must have thought we wouldn’t advance eastward, and that’s why he’s been careless. This is a golden opportunity.” Wen Hu nodded.

Yuan Xiu muttered to himself, "At this time, Zhao Huan made the right decision to focus the defense on Yunjing County!"

Wen Hu's heart skipped a beat.

Of course I know that from the perspective of the overall situation in Dajing, Zhao Huan did the right thing.

But what do you mean?

You, a dog emperor who used to only know how to indulge in pleasure and distrust his ministers, have suddenly become a wise ruler?

Isn't that ridiculous?!

Yuan Xiu said, "In the battles of Suidong and Changsui, both Zhao Huan and Wang Ren's troops suffered heavy losses. Zhao Huan knows that if his troops are exhausted, your troops will only be more exhausted. At this time, it's right not to guard against you. The troops of Feng Jing that have invaded later are the strongest in terms of fighting power right now. Zhao Huan dared to send them to Yun Jing, which shows how broad-minded he is. He has my Great Jing and the people of Great Jing in his heart!"

Wen Hu said, "Your Majesty, now is not the time to praise the enemy. As long as you inspire the army and give the order, Changsui will be back in your hands, and you can continue to enjoy your life in Jing Palace!"

"If you want to fight, then fight. Do you even have the right to speak now?"

Yuan Xiu glanced at Wen Hu and said, "Why must I encourage him..."

"Oh, I understand!"

Yuan Xiu suddenly stood up, a mocking smile on his face, and said, "I only thought about how exhausted the soldiers of both armies are, and forgot about the issue of morale and fighting spirit. Compared to Zhao Huan's side, the situation of our soldiers is even worse, isn't it?"

"After suffering repeated defeats, the soldiers were terrified."

“Zhao Huan is using the pretext of ‘cleansing the court of corrupt officials.’ Even though I am with you, the soldiers will suspect that I may be being held hostage by you.”

"If that's really the case, what's the point of continuing to work for you?"

"Traitor?"

Yuan Xiu flicked his sleeves, pointed at Wen Hu, and said, "You sent me to encourage the three armies, and ordered the troops to be dispatched to Changsui, all to help you organize your soldiers, right?"

"What a clever scheme, Lord Sha! Was this another idea from that Mr. Commoner?"

Wen Hu curled his lips slightly.

The dog emperor was confused for more than half a year, how did he suddenly become smart?

Wen Hu did not realize that Yuan Xiu was not stupid at all.

He was too lazy to explain, and said, "In that case, Your Majesty, please give the order quickly!"

"Why issue the order?"

Yuan Xiu turned around and said, "I won't!"

Wen Hu said, "Your Majesty, now is not the time to be willful. If we miss this opportunity, once Zhao Huan has recovered, it will be difficult to retake Changsui!"

Yuan Xiu said, "If we send troops to Changsui now, Zhao Huan will have to stop us and will inevitably have to recall Feng Jing. Given Zhou Jinghuan and Yang Qingzhi's cunning, they will definitely take advantage of the situation to move north, and then Dajing will really be in chaos!"

Wen Hu said, "The Great Jing Dynasty is in chaos!"

Yuan Xiu turned around abruptly and shouted, "Yes, the Great Jing is in chaos, and it's all because of you! Because of Wen Tai! Because of all you traitors and rebels!!"

Wen Hu's eyes darkened, and he said angrily, "Now that things have come to this, how can His Majesty blame us uncle and nephew?"

“Since Your Majesty ascended the throne, my uncle has been working diligently and devoted himself to the Great Jing Dynasty. It is precisely because of this that Your Majesty has entrusted him with important responsibilities.”

"Speaking of the chaos that plagued Dajing..."

Wen Hu pointed at Yuan Li and shouted sternly, "Prince Xin is the real culprit!!!"