"Your Majesty, do you mean..."

Zhao Yi, Hui Jin, and Hui Xiu stared intently at Consort Yin.

Consort Yin's fox-like eyes narrowed even more, her gaze shrewd: "The Ninth Prince is no ordinary person. He is so shrewd and powerful that he could not possibly not know what handing over military power means to him and those around him."

The fact that he could so easily hand over the military tally precisely demonstrates;

He must have a power even stronger than the military tally in his hands. He is not afraid of the emperor, the empress dowager, or even the oppression of all forces!

The current Ninth Prince is the most terrifying and powerful of all!

Zhao Yi, Hui Jin, and Hui Xiu suddenly realized what was going on and praised Consort Yin with admiration, saying, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Cixi Palace.

When the Empress Dowager heard that Shang Xiche had reprimanded Shang Xiye, who had returned victorious, and forced Shang Xiye to relinquish his military power in court, she immediately sent people to invite Shang Xiche over.

I waited from morning until afternoon, and then until evening.

It wasn't until the candles were half lit and the night was almost over that Shang Xiche leisurely arrived.

He disobeyed the Empress Dowager, refusing to sit down, but standing there condescendingly, his demeanor and tone extremely casual and rude: "I heard you were looking for me?"

"I am the one who calls myself 'I'" was the self-designation of emperors before the Five Dynasties period; after the Five Dynasties, no emperor in the great Central Plains, especially after the establishment of the Great Zhao Dynasty, ever referred to himself in this way.

Only a few kings of small, border states would refer to themselves as "I".

The emperor always referred to himself as "朕" (zhen), so why did he suddenly start referring to himself as "孤" (gu)?

The Empress Dowager stared intently at Shang Xiche, her emotionless gaze seeming to pierce a hole in his face, trying to see what he was really thinking: "Is the Emperor planning to stand here and talk to me like this forever?"

Shang Xiche gave a cold smirk at the left corner of his lips, turned around, and dragged a chair over.

Aunt Qiu: "...Your Majesty, you should take the seat of honor, this is..."

"I like sitting here, do I need your permission, you old thing?" Shang Xiche raised his eyes and glared at Aunt Qiu, his words extremely rude.

Aunt Qiu trembled with fright, quickly put her hands down, lowered her head, and took a few steps back until she reached the edge of the couch next to the Empress Dowager, saying, "This servant dares not!"

The Empress Dowager clenched her half-fist on her lap, then relaxed it, and said, "Does Your Majesty think that everything will be fine once you've taken away the Ninth Prince's military power?"

"A mere child is nothing to fear. Everyone in the world thinks that the Ninth Prince is powerful and he does have some ability, but in my eyes, he is nothing more than a clown." Shang Xiche looked at the Empress Dowager with a cold and contemptuous smile, showing no respect whatsoever.

The Empress Dowager widened her eyes slightly and straightened up: "Your Majesty, are you possessed? Even if you want to deal with the Ninth Prince, you shouldn't offend that bandit."

Zhaoping has succeeded. To deal with the Ninth Prince, all that's needed is for Zhaoping to take action.

That bandit is a miracle doctor! My life is still in his hands. Are you trying to kill me?

"Well, that bandit is indeed somewhat useful. The Empress has also told me that the Crown Prince will need that bandit's help in the future." Shang Xiche replied irrelevantly, "Old man, you don't need to worry about these things. I will definitely bring that bandit into the palace for the Crown Prince."

After saying that, Shang Xiche stood up: "From now on, don't send anyone to bother me again. If you behave yourself, I can still allow you to live a life of luxury in this Cining Palace and just wait to die."

"What...what did you say..." The Empress Dowager asked mechanically, looking up.

The emperor actually called her an old hag!

And you expect her to just stay in Cixi Palace, eating and waiting to die?!