Those people are all dead, and Gu Shaoyu has released Prince Rong.

Upon hearing the tremendous noise, Rong Wang's 20,000-strong army hesitated to advance.

The main generals were all negotiating with Prince Rong, while the generals behind them were only deputy generals; they dared not charge forward on their own.

Meanwhile, the garrison in Zizhou watched from afar as Grand Secretary Gu flew his kite, and they all cheered and shouted.

But what was that loud explosion?

After being released by Gu Shaoyu, Prince Rong stumbled forward a few steps due to inertia.

He ran back to the explosion site, saw his son's body torn to pieces, and looked at the generals and guards who had died tragically. He sighed deeply, and tears streamed down his face.

Nanxing and Hongying kept a close eye on him. If he dared to order the army to fight, they would kill Prince Rong first!

Unexpectedly, Prince Rong stood up, walked up to Gu Shaoyu, and said, "I'll trouble you to wait for me for three days, Grand Secretary Gu. I will make arrangements and will definitely accompany you back to the capital to plead guilty and await His Majesty's judgment."

Gu Shaoyu nodded, watching him stagger away.

The head steward was completely baffled. Seeing Gu Shaoyu return unharmed, he asked anxiously, "Your Excellency, why did you let him go? Did you reach an agreement with him?"

Gu Shaoyu nodded: "It's settled! Prince Rong will issue an edict to recall the front-line troops, and he himself will return to the capital with me to plead guilty."

Everyone found it unbelievable; was Grand Secretary Gu too miraculous?

Is that all?

How can we subdue King Rong's army without a fight?

Hongying and Nanxing, among others, believed that Prince Rong was terrified by the clay pot thunder.

Gu Shaoyu sent a message to Xie Yu and Ling Xun, informing them that their mission in Zizhou had been successfully completed and that they had packed their bags to return to the capital.

Xie Yu and Ling Xun arrived quickly, both very curious about what had happened: "Will Prince Rong really come back with us in three days?"

"meeting!"

"Why?"

"Because he never intended to rebel," Gu Shaoyu explained to the two men about the negotiations taking place.

When Prince Rong came with those people, it seemed as if he was the leader, but how could that fool the shrewd Gu Shaoyu?

"King Rong was exhausted and looked helpless, while everyone else had their eyes burning with anticipation, waiting to capture this prince."

He didn't mention the content of the negotiations from the beginning; he went straight to cursing me, cursing His Majesty, and calling for my assassination. This was a clear message: he didn't want to negotiate.

Logically speaking, in a battle between two armies, if Prince Rong were to capture Gu Shaoyu alive, it would not only boost morale but also restrain the imperial court.

On the contrary, killing Gu Shaoyu would not benefit Prince Rong at all; instead, it would arouse the anger of His Majesty and the imperial army. An army driven by desperation is bound to win, and will fight the enemy with even greater ferocity.

Therefore, Gu Shaoyu concluded that Rong Wang's uprising was not his own idea, but rather that he was coerced by someone.

Sure enough, when Gu Shaoyu was carrying him away, he told Gu Shaoyu that one of the three generals was named Wei Anxiong, who was Wei Jingzhong's nephew.

After listening to Gu Shaoyu's analysis, everyone had only one thought in their hearts: admiration!

Two days later, Gu Shaoyu received news that the Rong King's army had retreated.

Three days later, Prince Rong, dressed in prison clothes, came to Zizhou to find Gu Shaoyu.

"Grand Secretary Gu, your humble servant is ready. Please put on the shackles!"

He stretched out his hands, asking Gu Shaoyu to put shackles on him.

Gu Shaoyu observed that his hair and beard had turned white in three days, he was dressed in prison clothes, his gaze was calm, and he exuded a gentle and refined air.

He then said, "Since Prince Rong has genuinely confessed his guilt, this pavilion need not be bound by formalities!"

There's no need to wear shackles anymore.

Accompanying Prince Rong were Wei Shuyun, Shen Su, and Jin Feng, who were bound hand and foot. Prince Rong said, "These three people said they were ordered by Wei Jingzhong to kill you. So I had them bound and handed over to the Grand Secretary for his disposal."

Before returning to the capital, Gu Shaoyu, Magistrate Qin (acting prefect), Xie Yu, and Ling Xun must undergo a preliminary review.

The court was immediately convened, and Rong Wang, Wei Shuyun, Shen Su, and Jin Feng were interrogated separately.

As Gu Shaoyu deduced, the Prince of Rong was too old to have any intention of rebelling. It was the Prince of Rong's heir, Zhou Fengzhi, who was the one who wanted to start a rebellion.

Zhou Fengzhi was misled by Wei Jingzhong, who claimed that the Crown Prince was weak and sickly and would not live long, and that His Majesty had also coughed up blood several times, hoping to support Zhou Fengzhi to ascend the throne.

Zhou Fengzhi and Wei Jingzhong had been in private contact for a long time, which was unknown to Prince Rong.

He was a carefree prince, used to a comfortable life, and only liked to travel and enjoy the scenery. Since Zhou Fengzhi was granted the title of heir apparent, he no longer cared about the affairs of the manor.

He was the last to know that the prince's palace had started a rebellion.

Enraged, he cursed Zhou Fengzhi, saying he was muddle-headed and had his head in his crotch. He called the Wei family traitors, saying they had long harbored rebellious intentions and that their son had actually colluded with the traitors, deserving to die.

Fearing that he would make mistakes, Zhou Fengzhi imprisoned him and the princess in the dungeon.

If it weren't for the fact that Gu Shaoyu was going to meet with Prince Rong to negotiate, he would still be imprisoned in the Prince's mansion.

The magistrate of Qin County wrote down the crimes that Prince Rong confessed to and asked him to sign and affix his seal.

"Grand Secretary Gu is truly amazing, a role model for my entire life." Magistrate Qin admired Gu Shaoyu so much that his eyes sparkled.

Gu Shaoyu glanced at him, and Magistrate Qin immediately suppressed the smirk on his face and bowed respectfully to him.

Next, Wei Shuyun, Shen Su, and Jin Feng were interrogated.

Wei Shuyun's interrogation went very poorly. Whether he had instructed the five major grain merchants to inflate prices or tricked Prince Rong into killing Gu Shaoyu, he denied it.

Shen Su was Princess Yu Rong's lover and also her strategist. Gu Shaoyu only said one sentence to him: "Ding Fengqi has already had his family property confiscated and been imprisoned. You led the way. Even if you return to the capital, the princess will not let you go. You will die a terrible death."

Shen Su realized he had been watched the whole way and would surely die if he returned. He kowtowed desperately, pleading, "Your Excellency, please spare my life!"

Gu Shaoyu said, "That depends on whether you have enough leverage to negotiate with this organization."

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