Lord Liu rolled his eyes at Song Lin and publicly accused Jiang Yulou, "Lord Jiang assassinated Haoyue's Regent without regard for the consequences. If Haoyue Nation comes to hold you accountable, you will have to find a way to solve it yourself!"
Ye Fan confronted them directly, "We are a great nation, Yanyang. How can we be afraid of them? I was the one who seriously injured the Regent. If you have the guts, come and fight on the battlefield."
"Stupid, fighting is not just your job!" Jiang Yulou looked unhappy, thinking that his son and adopted son were still too young and didn't understand the dangers of the court.
"Now is not the time for you and me to blame each other. Since His Majesty has summoned us to discuss this matter, we must find a solution as soon as possible."
Prime Minister Liu, with an air of finally stopping his clutter, solemnly addressed Murong Yao, "Beihai Kingdom must be defended, but conquering the southern border is imminent. Zhang'er has already led his troops to the gates of Nanguan, but 50,000 soldiers are far too few. I request that Generals Jiang and Ye each lead 50,000 black sail troops to aid Zhang'er in the assault."
As soon as Prime Minister Liu said this, he immediately aroused the dissatisfaction of Censor Xu and Jiang Yulou. So the credit goes to your son, but in the end you have to let the Black Sail Army fight for you?
Lord Prime Minister Liu argued that this was all for the sake of Yanyang Kingdom. If we cannot unite to fight against the southern border, Yanyang Kingdom will sooner or later collapse.
He provided some plans to deal with Haoyue Kingdom and Beihai Kingdom, all of which were delaying tactics, which undoubtedly made breaking through the southern border an imminent matter.
Although everyone was dissatisfied, they also understood the interests involved. Now was the best time to defeat the Southern Territory. Internal strife would undoubtedly lead to self-destruction. However, Murong Yao did not want to let his family dominate, so he tried every possible means to suppress the Liu family.
Murong Yao proposed to enthrone Xu Wanrong as queen, but was immediately opposed by Prime Minister Liu and Censor Xu.
Lord Prime Minister Liu believed that this woman was very scheming. Enthroning her as queen would not only embolden the Xu family but also sow discord between the Liu family and the emperor, which would be detrimental to the development of the court.
Censor Xu knew very well that his daughter's heart was entirely on Young Master Jiang, and that enthroning her as queen would affect the stance of Jiang Yulou and Xiling City.
Seeing that the two of them objected, Murong Yao insisted on enthroning Xu Wanrong as queen, citing the fact that he and Xu Wanrong had performed the Zhougong ceremony.
Upon hearing this, several ministers of the Liu family whispered to persuade Prime Minister Liu to agree to this matter. Once Xu Wanrong was enthroned as the queen, Princess Lin could marry Young Master Liu with a legitimate reason.
It seems that the Xu family has been favored, but in reality, Xiling City’s position is bound to turn to the Liu family.
They stood up and demanded the immediate release of Princess Lin, who was captured by Ye Fan, and temporarily detained her in Yong'an City in order to block the news of the assassination of the Regent.
Seeing that the Liu family's intention to win over Xiling City was obvious, Censor Xu submitted a memorial proposing that Murong Yao simultaneously enthrone his daughter and Princess Lin as queens of the East and West Palaces.
Several people argued for a while and the matter ended in a bad mood.
After the court was dismissed, Song Lin went straight to the General's Mansion. Seeing Shen Xu in a daze in the backyard, he quickly told her about the assassination of the envoy in Tianxin Lake.
But Shen Xu had long forgotten everything that happened in the desert. Pei Zhiyuan's death made her distrust anyone in Yong'an City. She listened dully without saying a word.
Song Lin held her hand and said that it turned out that the current emperor and his father were the ones who caused them to be displaced from each other. He would not forgive them, and he did not want to fight for them.
He wanted to take her away from Yong'an City and go to Beihai Kingdom to find his uncle.
"Xiu Xiu, when we find my uncle, we'll return to Qingzhou Prefecture. I'll still be a constable, and you can open a bookstall and teach the children in the village to read and write. Since you like beef patties, we can plant a wheat field..."
Shen Xu listened to him silently, feeling that such words seemed familiar, and his head began to ache slightly.
"Constable...Uncle..."
"Xiu Xiu, did you remember something?"
She shook her head with difficulty, held her head and sat down, closing her eyes and trying hard to recall the scene she saw that day.
At this moment, the guards of the river patrol team came to report that Pei Zhiyuan's blood-stained cloak was found on the rocky mudflats, and there were some personal belongings in it, which were washed ashore by the waves.
They presented the secret order from the Secret Guard and the Jade Bone Fan, and reported, "Young Master Jiang, we haven't found the person in these days. It's very likely that he was swept away by the undercurrent.
The current in the reef area is turbulent, and the cliff is dozens of feet away. There are also whirlpools in the water. Even a healthy person would have a hard time surviving if they fell in, let alone someone who was seriously injured.
Shen Xu was listening nearby. She suddenly opened her eyes and saw the blood-stained fan and the secret order from the secret guard on the tray. There were also dried bloodstains in the copper carving grooves that could not be washed away. All her original hopes were shattered.
"Xiu Xiu, if the body is not found, it means he is still alive. Pei Zhiyuan is such a good martial artist, he won't die easily.
Perhaps one day we will meet him somewhere else, just like you and I who thought each other were dead and now meet again in Yanyang Country."
Song Lin seemed extremely conflicted about Pei Zhiyuan. He didn't want Pei Zhiyuan to die, nor did he want him to appear in front of Shen Xu again.
Shen Xu reached for the jade token with trembling hands, and at this moment Ye Fan hurried over.
“Brother Lin, Nanguan City…” His eyes moved to the jade order in Shen Xu’s hand, and he strode forward to snatch it away, loudly demanding, “How do you have this thing!”
When Song Lin heard him raise his voice, he subconsciously stood in front of Shen Xu and explained, "This is what the river patrol team salvaged. It's from Pei Zhiyuan's coat."
Seeing Song Lin stopping him, Ye Fan swept his sharp eyes towards Shen Xu, and said in a cold tone, "This is a secret order from Murong Yan's secret guards. Are you colluding with the Southern Territory?"
Shen Xu's face was calm, "How do you know this is a secret order from the secret guards and not something else?"
Ye Fan picked up the jade fan on the table, unfolded it and examined it carefully. He couldn't see any mystery inside, so he simply took the two things away, glared at her fiercely, said "take care of yourself", and left angrily.
Chen Xu didn't insist on keeping Pei Zhiyuan's things. Instead, he gently tugged at Song Lin's sleeve and said frankly, "Master Jiang, I was the one who pushed Xu Wanrong into the water at the banquet that night. She admired you and wanted my help, so I helped her. Unexpectedly, a strange combination of circumstances led to her being sent to the dragon bed. My brother likes her and hates me, so he will try to make me unhappy everywhere. Master Jiang, since you promised to protect me, you must always pay attention to my safety."
Song Lin raised the corners of his lips slightly and turned to look at her face. "Of course. Miss Xu admires me, so you pushed her into it. Is there any personal grudge involved?"
"Yes." Shen Xu did not deny it, nor did he avoid his gaze. He said bluntly: "Four years ago, she was the one who bribed the human traffickers to kill me and abandon my body. But I was lucky and I didn't die several times. This time, Pei Zhiyuan accompanied me back to Beijing to seek personal revenge."
Song Lin was stunned. It turned out that what Princess Shen said was true.
"I'll help you get revenge."
Shen Xu's eyes flickered as he chuckled and shook his head, "You can't fight her. Not only does she have the powerful Xu family behind her, but also the current emperor."
"If it were you, what would you do?"
"If it were me, I would first consider taking control of the Imperial City's Imperial Guards."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
