Wei Buyi was shocked: "Your Highness, are you saying that we've been deceived?"

Liu Tan shook his head and said, "I don't know. Let's arrest them first. Except for Prince Guangchuan, anyone else who dares to resist will be killed without mercy!"

Wei Buyi hesitated: "Your Highness, what if this is a trap they set? Should we wait and see?"

Liu Tan waved his hand. "No need. Most opportunities are fleeting. Do you think there's a place around here where we can set up an ambush? We've already occupied all the places suitable for an ambush. Where could his men be?"

It's good to be suspicious, but you can't be fooled by the enemy's smoke screen.

Liu Tan has read too many stories about people missing opportunities due to doubt. Although he doesn't know whether Prince Guangchuan will deliberately create confusion, it is right to use force to defeat cleverness!

Wei Buyi led his men forward without saying a word. Since they were more in number, there was no need for an ambush. They could just fire a volley of shots and wait for the enemies to be killed or injured before they could go over and subdue them.

Perhaps Liu Qi did not expect the opponent to come so suddenly, or that he would be defeated so quickly.

He was originally sitting in the car, and when he came out, the situation was basically decided. He was being pointed at by a group of elite soldiers with crossbows. Although he had never seen a crossbow, he knew he couldn't afford to offend them when he saw the sharp arrow tips. He had no choice but to stand where he was, looking around in disbelief.

"With just a few of your men, you dare to lie and claim to have an army of 6,000?" Liu Tan rode slowly towards him on horseback, looking down at Liu Qi.

Liu Qi seemed to be about the same age as Liu Ju, but his demeanor was far inferior to Liu Ju's.

As for his appearance, he was quite good, but his distorted expression made him look a little ugly.

When Liu Qi heard this, he looked up at Liu Tan.

He was visibly taken aback when he saw Liu Tan, then asked, "Are you the King of the North?"

Liu Tan raised his eyebrows: "You don't seem surprised."

Liu Qi, who was originally a little unconvinced, suddenly laughed and said, "You really came, hahahaha. You left your post without permission and led your troops to attack other princes, Liu Tan. Even if His Majesty returns, he can't save you."

Attacking the princes, Liu Tan listened to his counter-attack and asked, "So the six thousand soldiers are fake?"

Liu Qi smiled proudly and said, "Of course, if there really were 6,000 soldiers and horses, how could I have gotten here so quickly?"

Liu Tan thought about it and agreed. Liu Qi was almost reaching Chang'an. If he really brought a large army with him, how could the county governors let him get close to Chang'an?

Since the founding of the Han Dynasty, no prince had ever succeeded in his rebellion, and almost all those who had colluded with the princes had died.

Liu Tan looked at him and asked, "So you set up a trap just to lure me here. Aren't you afraid that I'll chop you down?"

Liu Qi raised his head slightly and said: "I am a member of the royal family. Even if I really committed treason, I will be tried in Chang'an before a final decision is made. You have no right to kill me."

Liu Tan sneered: "You said that even if the emperor came, he couldn't save me. So wouldn't it be better if I dragged you down with me?"

Liu Qi was obviously a little flustered when he heard this, and said in a timid tone: "You...you dare! Aren't you afraid..."

"Now that you've heard me, you should know I'm not really afraid. Tell me, who are you loyal to now? Tell me and I'll spare your life."

Liu Qi originally wanted to be tough and not say anything, thinking that if you want to know the answer, you have to let me live!

Unexpectedly, Liu Tan turned around and said coldly when he saw him like this: "Chop it off."

Liu Qi: ???

When he found that Liu Tan was really riding away on his horse without even looking back, and the soldiers beside him with long swords had raised their swords, he was immediately scared to death.

Well, I was so scared that I trembled and said, "Wait... wait, I'll tell you, I'll tell you!"

However, Liu Tan continued walking forward without looking back. Liu Qi was horrified and shouted, "Liu Tan, how dare you plot to murder the princes! You will not live a good death!"

As soon as he finished shouting this, the soldier next to him swung his long sword down. Liu Qi subconsciously closed his eyes, but was slapped in the face by the sword.

He opened his eyes and looked at the soldier angrily, only to see the soldier pinching his nose and saying in disgust, "Your Highness always keeps his word. He said he won't kill if you answer the question, and he really won't kill. Go ahead."

Liu Qi swallowed and said, "It's... it's the King of Changyi. No, no, no, it's the Prime Minister who sent someone to ask me to pledge allegiance to the King of Changyi, and then he will reward me with the Kingdom of Changyi."

After hearing this, the soldier immediately went to report to Liu Tan. At this time, Liu Tan had already ordered people to clean up the mess and sent someone to find the nearest county magistrate with his order, preparing to keep these captives there first and then take King Guangchuan away.

The county magistrate rushed over immediately after receiving the news. When he saw Liu Tan, he was sweating and looked a little unwell. "Your Highness, the King of the North... Why are you here?"

Liu Tan directly showed the Crown Prince's decree and the Empress's imperial edict and said, "My father was on tour, and something happened in Chang'an that I needed to go deal with. I happened to encounter Prince Guangchuan's rebellion, so I happened to capture the prisoners and brought them to Chang'an. I can't take those prisoners with me, so I'll leave them with you for now. I want to make it clear that you must keep them under guard. Don't kill them, but don't let them go either."

The county magistrate felt like his brain was about to shut down. "Your Highness... on your way back to Chang'an, why would you pass by here?"

This is the southeast direction. Shouldn't you go directly south when you return to Chang'an?

Liu Tan said, "Oh, I received news that Prince Guangchuan was plotting something bad, so I happened to come here to take him to Chang'an for trial."

The county magistrate smiled apologetically and said, "Then... I wonder if Your Highness has an imperial decree from His Majesty?"

"We have to make decisions in an emergency. My father is far away in Qi and there is no time to send troops."

"This... suddenly there are so many people. If the county governor asks, I won't be able to explain."

Liu Tan was in a hurry to leave, but the county magistrate was pestering him. He knew that the other party must have some concerns. First of all, he was worried that he would be the one to rebel. Helping him would be equivalent to being a traitor. Even if he finally found out, his future would be over.

But he was a little anxious. He drew his sword and placed it on the county magistrate's shoulder. He smiled and said, "Let's put it another way. I got lost on my way back to Chang'an and accidentally ran into Prince Guangchuan who had left his fiefdom without permission. I suspect he has ill intentions, so I want to bring him to Chang'an for trial. However, there are too many captives to take with them all, so I'm keeping him here for the time being. Is that okay?"

The county magistrate's face turned pale, and he trembled as he glanced at the shiny blade on his body. The light reflected from the knife made him feel a little dizzy.

He trembled and said, "Your Highness... Your Highness understands. Please stay calm."

Liu Tan simply threw a bag of gold pills at him and said, "Alright, I know you don't have much money here and can't afford to support so many people, but these are more than enough. Don't worry, when I return to Chang'an, you will be recognized as a meritorious official who suppressed the rebellion, and your reward will definitely be more than these gold pills, not less."

The county magistrate was excited. As the lowest-ranking official in the Han Dynasty, he actually only had a little more salary from the court than ordinary people, and occasionally a little bit of extra money. In terms of money, he had rarely seen gold in his life. This was the first time he saw so much gold.

He stared at Jin Wan with his eyes wide open and nodded quickly, as if to say that he would do whatever Liu Tan said.

Liu Tan shook his head helplessly. After leaving the captives behind, he had people carry King Guangchuan away like cargo. After all, King Guangchuan's hands and feet were tied, so he couldn't ride a horse.

The main reason was that Prince Guangchuan had just been frightened to death, and Liu Tan disliked him and didn't want him to ride a horse.

As they were on their way, Liu Tan asked, "I heard you were entering the capital under the pretext of purging the imperial court. Tell me, who are you purging?"

Prince Guangchuan was almost vomiting at this time. He held his breath and refused to speak. As a result, the soldier who was carrying him slapped him on the back. Liu Tan's way of training soldiers was really comprehensive. Strength training was not lacking in other aspects. So the soldier thought he didn't use much force in this slap, but Prince Guangchuan's delicate skin and tender flesh were almost suffocated and he died.

After recovering from his shock, Prince Guangchuan, fearing another slap, quickly said, "It's the Queen, it's the Queen!"

"Huh?" Liu Tan was surprised. He originally thought that it was someone around Liu Ju. Isn't this "clearing the court" just about killing those who supported Liu Ju? At that time, Liu Qumao could completely control the palace to welcome Liu Bo to Beijing.

How is it related to Chen Ajiao?

This time, Liu Qi had learned his lesson. Without waiting for Liu Tan to ask, he honestly replied, "The news came from Chang'an. It said that the Crown Prince went to the Pepper Room in the morning and collapsed after returning to the Crown Prince's Palace in the afternoon. So, everyone is saying that the Crown Prince may not have contracted the epidemic disease, but was poisoned by the Queen. She wants to kill the Crown Prince and welcome the King of the Northern Territory back to Chang'an to ascend the throne!"

Liu Tan's expression was a little subtle after hearing this. To be honest, this statement... Liu Tan personally felt that it was very credible.

This really seems like something Chen Ajiao would do!

Everyone knows what Chen Ajiao is thinking, or it can be said that there is no queen who doesn't want her son to become emperor. It's just that Liu Ju's position as crown prince was too stable before. Now that Liu Che has encountered an accident, Chen Ajiao can completely get rid of the crown prince at this time. Even if Liu Che comes back by then, the matter will be settled, and the only choice he can have is Liu Tan.

After all, apart from Liu Tan, the other sons are even less reliable.

Moreover, when Emperor Wu of Han established Liu Ju as the crown prince, it was because the empress had no children and the emperor was very old and had only this eldest son. It seemed natural to make him the crown prince.

By the time Liu Tan was born, Liu Ju's position as crown prince was already very stable, and the emperor seemed to have no intention of changing the crown prince.

Even so, there were many ministers who clamored to make the queen's legitimate son the crown prince. They didn't even know what Liu Tan looked like, but they still wanted to push him to the position of crown prince.

Now that there is such a good opportunity, neither Chen Ajiao nor those people would be willing to give it up.

However, Liu Tan felt that even if Chen Ajiao wanted to do such a thing, it would not be so full of loopholes.

She could have waited until Liu Tan arrived in Chang'an before making any plans. After all, Liu Ju was definitely wary of Chen Ajiao, but Liu Tan had a good relationship with Liu Ju, and Liu Ju would definitely not be wary of Liu Tan. It would be easier to take advantage of the opportunity to strike then than now.

The most important thing is to act now. If Liu Ju really dies, no one will know about it. If Liu Tan is in Chang'an, it will be easy to do.

But once the blame for murdering the prince was put on Chen Ajiao, the prime minister would be almost invincible.