the next day.

News of the disturbances by the southern barbarians was sent to the palace early in the morning.

The court officials argued endlessly during the morning court session, roughly divided into three factions.

One faction argued that the Prince of Huainan's trip to the capital was merely out of love for his son, which was understandable given the court's current predicament. They suggested that the matter should be resolved peacefully by releasing the Prince of Huainan from prison and offering him reassurance.

One faction argued that the King of Huainan harbored wolfish ambitions, and releasing him was like releasing a tiger back into the mountains; he should be executed according to the law.

Another group of peacemakers argued that the King of Huainan had rendered great service and deserved to be spared the death penalty; his military power should simply be taken back.

But who gets this military power back?

Who else has the courage and determination to lead the Huainan army to subdue the southern barbarians?

The argument escalated, and Emperor Zhou's face darkened.

He was filled with remorse.

When Prince An captured Prince Huainan yesterday, he should have ordered Prince Huainan's execution, and then slowly collected evidence of Prince Huainan's crimes to appease the officials and soldiers.

Why do we have to pursue evidence of heinous crimes?

After years of recuperation, the southern barbarians are coming back with overwhelming force.

Zhou Huaichuan broke his leg again at a critical moment.

Other generals who could command independently were all stationed on the borders of various places and were simply unable to spare any resources.

Although Emperor Zhou knew that the disturbances in the southern barbarians were definitely the work of the King of Huainan, he had no choice but to reluctantly release the King of Huainan.

The King of Huainan was very good at acting. After coming out, he knelt down in front of the palace gate, weeping bitterly, saying that he only had one son and was really worried about him.

This caused the people of the capital to feel sorry for him, and the stories circulating among them were all about the heroic deeds of the Prince of Huainan on the battlefield.

When the news reached Emperor Zhou's ears, he was furious.

The second prince was still enjoying the company of his concubine when he was immediately summoned to the palace and reprimanded.

Emperor Zhou urged him to seize the time to study military strategy with Qi Yi, preparing to accompany the King of Huainan to the southern barbarians to defend against the enemy.

The second prince, pampered since childhood, would never have thought of going to such a place.

He immediately complained incessantly, saying that he felt uncomfortable here or there.

Emperor Zhou said with a gloomy face, "Since you're not comfortable with it, then you won't go."

Before the second prince could even rejoice, Emperor Zhou said, "It seems you have no end to this vast land. I hereby bestow upon you the title of a vassal king and grant you Beichuan as your fief. From now on, stay there and live a good life."

A vassal king who is granted a fiefdom is thus forever barred from the throne.

Zhou Huaichuan was a prince, while I was a vassal king, yet I still had to go to glaciers and snowfields like Beichuan.

a bolt from the blue!

The second prince immediately knelt down and said that he only wanted to recover his health before setting off, and that it was definitely not that he did not want to go to the southern barbarians.

Emperor Zhou's expression improved slightly.

The second prince returned to the Imperial Guard with a worried look on his face. Qi Yi pretended not to know and asked him what was wrong.

The second prince thought for a moment and realized that Qi Yi was his father's confidant and a skilled military strategist. If he were to teach Qi Yi military strategy, he would be considered Qi Yi's teacher.

If I take him to the Southern Barbarians, Father Emperor should agree, right?

He immediately sent someone to tell Consort Shu to whisper in the emperor's ear.

Emperor Zhou agreed.

The departure date was set for one month later.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, the deputy general left behind is General Xu, a disciple trained by Elder Qi. He will surely hold out until this old minister returns!"

The King of Huainan acted as if he had never been imprisoned in the imperial jail, showing excessive deference to the Zhou Emperor.

Before Eunuch Su could even help him lift his skirt as Emperor Zhou stepped over the steps, the Prince of Huainan bent down to help him.

Anyone who saw this would say that the King of Huainan was simply fulfilling his duty as a subject.

Today is the Empress's birthday banquet.

Because the Empress had angered Emperor Zhou some time ago, the birthday banquet was not held in a grand manner.

However, Emperor Zhou was worried that scholars would criticize him for not treating Grand Tutor Shen's daughter well, so he held a small birthday banquet in the Imperial Garden.

Only members of the imperial clan and a few trusted ministers attended.

After several rounds of drinks...

The grandson of Prince Xianfu led his newlywed wife to toast the Empress. The two were a perfect match, like a golden couple.

Emperor Zhou then took the opportunity to praise him a few times.

The Prince of Huainan's eyes immediately welled up with tears, and he began to sob: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, please forgive me. This old minister was simply moved to see the eldest grandson of the Prince of Xianfu establish himself in a family and career."

The smile on Emperor Zhou's lips faded: "The Prince of Huainan has had too much to drink. Someone, help him to rest."

The Prince of Huainan suddenly stood up from his seat, walked to the center, and knelt down: "Your Majesty, I have drunk too much. The wine has emboldened me. Today, I dare to ask Your Majesty to grant me one request!"

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Emperor Zhou, out of consideration for his reputation, had no choice but to say, "King of Huainan, please speak."

The King of Huainan said, “I lost my wife at a young age and have been fighting the enemy in the south. I have not been able to teach my son for a single day. Now he is seriously injured and I am afraid that he will never be able to stand up again. I am truly ashamed of my deceased wife.”

Emperor Zhou: ...Don't you have any idea what's wrong with your son?

"...Therefore, this old minister thought that before leaving the capital, I should ask for a marriage for my new son."

As soon as the King of Huainan finished speaking, all the families present with women of marriageable age felt a sudden tightness in their hearts.

Oh my god, please don't tell me you're interested in my family!

Liu Xin had a terrible temper even before he became paralyzed. Now, he's probably even more distorted and extremely irritable. Who would want to marry their daughter to him?

The veins on the back of Emperor Zhou's hand bulged, and his eyes flashed with anger: "Oh? I wonder which family's daughter the Prince of Huainan has taken a fancy to?"

The King of Huainan: "She is the eldest daughter of the Prime Minister of Chu."

One stone stirs up a thousand waves. Isn't the eldest daughter of the Chu family the same Chu Xinxin who was disfigured?

Emperor Zhou's anger subsided considerably: "Her...?"

Ignoring Chu Xuan's angry glare, the King of Huainan explained, "That's right. Xin'er is deeply in love with Miss Chu. The gambling at the horse farm was actually Xin'er's way of winning her favor."

beauty?

A smile?

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances. "King of Huainan, don't you listen to the nonsense you're spouting?"

Given Chu Xinxin's appearance... she wouldn't lie through her teeth if she wanted to go home to give birth, would she?

Furthermore, what do you mean by trying to win a beauty's smile? It's clearly because your Liu Xin's skills are inferior.

Emperor Zhou remained silent for a long time, seemingly weighing something.

The murmurs below gradually subsided.

Chu Xinxin is just a woman whose appearance has been disfigured. So what if she has some talent? Using her to appease the Prince of Huainan is a win-win situation.

Anyway, Chu Xinxin's face was disfigured, so she couldn't marry well. Marrying into the Wang family of Huainan would be like strengthening family ties.

Almost everyone thinks so.

Now that Chu Xinxin is married, they don't need to worry about their daughter anymore.

Everyone's gaze shifted from the King of Huainan to the Prime Minister of Chu, and then back to the Emperor of Zhou.

Emperor Zhou raised his wine cup and gestured towards Chu Xuan: "What does the Prime Minister of Chu think?"

Hmm? The Zhou Emperor has agreed!

Chu Xuan slowly stood up: "It is my daughter's good fortune to be favored by the King of Huainan."