On the thirteenth day of the first month of the first year of the Zhaowu reign of the Tang Dynasty, in the capital city of the Goguryeo Peninsula.

After a two-week escape at sea, Prince Chen Longxiang's treasure ship "Destroy the Japanese" finally returned to Goguryeo. When the former empress Su Wan'er set foot on Goguryeo soil, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled back down.

The first thing Chen Longxiang did upon returning to Goguryeo was to issue a martial law order in his capacity as the vanguard general of the Tang Dynasty's eastern expeditionary army, ordering the officers and soldiers of the Tang navy in Nanpu Port to cease all activities and await orders in the naval camp.

On that day, Chen Longxiang secretly ordered his personal guards to rush to the naval camp overnight to impose martial law, and immediately took control of all the naval warships anchored in the port.

Following this, half of the red-coated cannons in the royal city were mobilized to Nampo Port to form a coastal defense line in order to prevent the imperial navy from launching a surprise attack on the royal city of Pyongyang from the sea.

The second thing was that, with Su Wan'er's assistance, Chen Longxiang secretly summoned some of the lower-level centurions and chiliarchs in the Tang army that remained in Goguryeo (most of these people were Chen Longxiang's confidants or officers who admired Chen Longxiang's bravery).

He hosted a banquet for these junior military officers in the palace and announced to them a fabricated and shocking story: the Tang Dynasty was in turmoil, and five dukes were plotting a rebellion, joining forces to imprison Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an in the capital palace.

Chen Longxiang, the younger brother of Emperor Zhaowu and the first prince of the Tang Dynasty, risked his life to escape from the imperial city of Jinling back to the Goguryeo Peninsula in order to regroup his troops and return to Jinling to rescue the founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty!

This clumsy lie was believed by these rank-and-file generals who were unaware of the truth and were also trusted confidants of Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin. They all expressed their willingness to follow Prince Chen Longxiang in raising an army to rescue the emperor.

Clearly, these grassroots officials of the Tang Dynasty would rather believe that the founding duke of a different surname was rebelling than suspect that it was Chen Longxiang, the younger brother of Emperor Zhaowu and the first prince of the Tang Dynasty, who was about to raise an army to rebel!

In this way, Chen Longxiang quickly gained control of one-third of the Tang Dynasty's military commanders, including centurions and chiliarchs, who were all powerful generals with real military authority.

The third thing was that Chen Longxiang, the Prince of Jin, who had returned from Jinling City, held a banquet in the palace of Goguryeo capital on the fifteenth day of the first month of the first year of the Zhaowu reign of the Tang Dynasty to reward all the Tang generals who were left to guard the Goguryeo peninsula, in the name of Emperor Zhaowu’s “rewarding the three armies”.

During the banquet, Chen Longxiang once again announced to the Tang generals present the news of "internal strife in the court, the rebellion of the Duke, and the imprisonment of the Emperor."

This move immediately caused an uproar among the Tang generals who remained in command.

Some were astonished, while others questioned it.

But none of that matters anymore.

Having already brainwashed and controlled the lower-level commanders of the Tang army, Chen Longxiang gave an order to arrest and detain all the Tang generals who had come to the banquet. He also forcibly seized their military command tokens and, as the vanguard general of the Tang Eastern Expeditionary Army and the first prince of the Tang Dynasty, commanded the three Tang armies stationed on the Goguryeo Peninsula.

Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin implemented these measures with lightning speed within the Tang army on the Goguryeo Peninsula, gaining control of the situation there in a very short time with almost no effort.

Of course, given Prince Chen Longxiang's immature mind and skills, he was not capable of planning such a meticulous military coup.

Of course, the influence of the former empress Su Wan'er in stirring things up was undeniable.

The military coup that occurred on the Goguryeo Peninsula was something Su Wan'er had been planning since she fled Jinling City in a panic.

This was Su Wan'er's first attempt to directly confront and confront the Tang Dynasty and Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an.

So far, events have been developing in the direction Su Wan'er had envisioned.

Next, Su Wan'er's plan is to go to the Goguryeo Peninsula and instigate Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin to support her eldest son, Zhao Lingwu, to restore his status as emperor.

In summary, it can be summed up in eight words: restore the former dynasty and restore the Great Xin!

Of course, Su Wan'er also knew that these eight words were simple to say but extremely difficult to do.

However, she was confident, and she had to persuade Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin to do things her way!

That night.

In the harem of the Goguryeo capital.

Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin sat blankly in Su Wan'er's palace, still wearing the golden armor passed down from his father and brothers, his expression serious and his eyes slightly vacant as he stared at the flickering candlelight in the palace.

Just today, just two hours ago, he used the pretext of his elder brother “rewarding the three armies” to lure all twenty-seven Tang generals of the rank of lieutenant general or above who were stationed on the Goguryeo Peninsula to the royal palace.

Furthermore, he personally ordered his hundreds of personal guards to take control of all these Tang generals, confiscate their military command tokens, and travel overnight to various military camps on the Goguryeo Peninsula to control the situation.

Initially, Chen Longxiang, who was in a state of high excitement, issued a series of orders in the army entirely under Su Wan'er's instruction and based on his instinct as a "new father".

But as his excitement subsided and he gradually regained his senses, he suddenly realized, "My God, what have I been doing all this time?"

They're rebelling!

They rebelled against the Tang Dynasty, against their own imperial brother, and against their own Chen family!

Although Chen Longxiang was not mentally sound, he was young, impetuous, and rebellious.

However, he can still distinguish between basic right and wrong.

Once he came to his senses, he realized that he had inadvertently caused a major disaster!

Currently, the situation on the Goguryeo Peninsula is under our control for the time being.

If nothing unexpected happens, the 500,000 Tang troops left behind on the Goguryeo Peninsula should also obey the orders of the vanguard general and Tang prince, right?

But what happens next?

What should we do next?

Chen Longxiang repeatedly asked himself what he should do after gaining control of the 500,000-strong army on the Goguryeo Peninsula.

Should he continue to defend Goguryeo as a prince of the Tang Dynasty?

Or, openly raise the banner of rebellion and, like his elder brother when he raised an army to quell the rebellion, establish himself as emperor on the Goguryeo Peninsula?

Or perhaps, like he had deceived his Tang generals, he would lead his troops westward to conquer Jinling and rescue Emperor Zhaowu.

Chen Longxiang's "brain capacity" was already insufficient, and suddenly facing such a complex situation made him feel even more exhausted and helpless.

Even now, he still doesn't know what to do.

On one side were his elder brother and family, who had doted on him since childhood;

On the other side was the woman who was carrying his child in her belly, the woman he deeply loved;

He's torn between his own flesh and blood, and he doesn't want to hurt either side!

But the reality is that, little by little, step by step, he was forced into a situation where he had to make a choice, or more accurately, he had already made a choice.

From this night forward, the moment he ordered the confiscation of the military tallies of all Tang generals on the Goguryeo Peninsula, he was left with only one path: to turn against his elder brother, Emperor Chen Huai'an, and fight against his own kin.

In that instant, Chen Longxiang suddenly realized that he seemed to understand the feelings of his elder brother Chen Huai'an when he locked himself in the study of the Prince's Mansion with several envoys on the eve of the uprising in Longcheng.

Perhaps, my elder brother also suffered as much as I did back then?

Or perhaps, the elder brother was unwilling to embark on the path of rebellion, but for the sake of the lives and property of the royal family, he had no choice but to force himself to do so.

Just like myself now, for the sake of Wan'er's unborn child, I'm even willing to turn against my brothers and fight with my own family?

"Your Highness—"

Just then, a gentle call pulled Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin back to reality from his deep thoughts.

Just then, Su Wan'er, who had just put the young deposed emperor Zhao Lingwu to sleep, walked gracefully out of the inner palace with her big pregnant belly. She looked at Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin with tenderness and said with concern, "Your Highness, it is already late at night. Why don't you take off your armor and rest?"

As they were talking, Su Wan'er came to Chen Longxiang's side and asked understandingly, "Your Highness, is something on your mind?"

"Or, I may help Your Highness remove his armor!"

As she spoke, Su Wan'er indeed began to take action, preparing to personally help Chen Longxiang remove his armor.

"Wan'er—"

Finally, Chen Longxiang, regaining his senses, casually grasped Su Wan'er's boneless little hand and said with a smile, "I'm fine. This armor is heavy, and you're heavily pregnant, so don't bother me and make things difficult for the baby!"

After saying that, Chen Longxiang stood up and began to remove his golden armor.

Su Wan'er was a shrewd person, so how could she not guess Chen Longxiang's thoughts?

This was the perfect opportunity for her to add fuel to the fire, completely severing ties between the two brothers, Chen Huai'an and Chen Longxiang. It was also the perfect time to relieve Chen Longxiang of his psychological burden, allowing him to raise an army and rebel without any scruples, and to assist his eldest son, Chen Lingwu, in regaining the throne and restoring his status as emperor.

While Chen Longxiang was removing his armor, Su Wan'er thoughtfully brought him a basin of hot water, soaked a towel in the hot water, wrung it out, and then wiped Chen Longxiang's face.

Su Wan'er said, "Your Highness, are you worried about how to deal with the 500,000 troops left behind in Goguryeo after you have taken away the military power of these generals who were left behind in Goguryeo?"

Um!

Chen Longxiang did not deny it. After nodding, he took the white towel from Su Wan'er's hand and helped her to sit down in a chair.

It's not hard to see that Chen Longxiang still dotes on Su Wan'er.

Immediately, Chen Longxiang spoke up, saying, "What worries me is not only the fate of these 500,000 troops, but also how to handle our relationship with the imperial court."

"The truth will eventually come out. My use of the five dukes' plot to rebel and imprison the emperor as a pretext to launch a coup on the Goguryeo Peninsula will also be revealed to the world."

"At that time, how should I face and deal with these junior officers in the army? Whether they will still be willing to follow me in battle is still a big question!"

Eh—

At this point, Chen Longxiang couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

Then, he put his arm around Su Wan'er's shoulder and said in a seemingly casual tone, "Forget about that, I'm sure I can handle everything properly."

"Wan'er, you should rest and recuperate in the palace."

"Your primary task is to take good care of yourself and the baby in your womb. Everything else, I will take care of, so you don't need to worry about it!"

"Your Highness—"

Su Wan'er turned around, her peach blossom eyes gazing tenderly at Chen Longxiang, and said sincerely, "Your Highness, I have a humble idea that might be able to solve the predicament you are currently facing."

Um?

Upon hearing this, Chen Longxiang raised an eyebrow and subconsciously asked, "Wan'er, tell me your thoughts, I'd like to hear them!"

Su Wan'er blinked her large, watery eyes and said innocently, "Your Highness, things have come to this point, since we've already broken ties with the Tang Dynasty..."

"Why doesn't Your Highness seize this opportunity to enthrone Xiao Lingwu back to the throne, restore the previous dynasty, and restore the Great Xin Dynasty!"