The Western Qin Imperial Palace.
The next morning, before dawn.
A guard appeared hurriedly in front of Emperor Jing's bedchamber.
"Your Majesty, as you predicted, after returning to his residence, Yi Shangkun sold off his property overnight and moved his entire family away from their house in the west of the city. They are now fleeing towards the south of the city!"
Emperor Jing was stretching out his arms when two maids helped him change his clothes.
Upon hearing this news, a slight smile curled at the corner of his lips, revealing a sly grin on his face.
Then Wei Yan issued an order: "Pass down the order that anyone who dares to utter a single word about the Yi family's disappearance from the capital overnight will be executed without mercy if the news reaches her ears!"
The head eunuch standing to the side was startled by the order and replied, "Yes!"
After a pause, Emperor Jing then instructed the guard: "Also, tell the men who went with you not to alert them. Just have them keep a close watch on their movements from a distance! If there is any disturbance, report back immediately."
"yes!"
After receiving the order, the guard's expression suddenly became cautious and hesitant.
He then added, "There's one more thing. Yesterday, before Yi Shangkun left, the Prince of Qin also led some men to the Yi residence!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Jing's eyes widened in surprise, and he asked in confusion, "The Prince of Qin? What is he going to do?"
The guard shook his head: "The specific reason why the Prince of Qin suddenly went to the Yi residence is unknown. We have only heard..."
Seeing the guard hesitate, Emperor Jing suddenly shot his gaze into his face.
The guard was so frightened that he blurted out, "I heard that the army suddenly received Yi Shangjun's resignation this morning. Perhaps the King of Qin went to try to persuade Yi Shangjun to stay! But obviously, this was of no use. Yi Shangjun has not returned to the camp yet. He must have gone south with the rest of the Yi family."
Emperor Jing was secretly delighted: "In this way, we have also broken one of the Qin King's wings. With a formidable enemy at hand, I want to see how he plans to spread his wings again."
After reporting, the guard withdrew.
At this moment, the chief eunuch standing to the side raised an eyebrow and began to flatter him, saying, "Your Majesty is wise and truly prescient! I never expected that this Yi Shangkun would actually have a guilty conscience and be so guilty. We only detained that father and son in the palace for two days and didn't even do anything to them, yet they were already terrified and lost their composure, running away in fear and haste!"
Emperor Jing raised his head slightly so that the maid could fasten the last few buttons on his clothes.
Youyou said leisurely, "Those who obey me prosper, those who defy me perish! Over the years, I have never known that there was such a person as Yi Shangkun hiding right under my nose? However, he is also a smart man. After this incident, he should know what he should and should not say, what he should and should not do. Let him live a few more days and see with his own eyes how I become the master of this Lingkong Continent."
The chief eunuch nodded repeatedly in agreement, but then added with concern, "In the end, this King of Qin is truly a scourge!"
Emperor Jing pondered inwardly, as if he had already made a decision, and said, "Rest assured, his days are numbered!"
As they were talking, the maid had already finished fastening his belt, and the change of clothes was complete.
Suddenly remembering something, Emperor Jing asked the chief eunuch, "By the way, has there been any movement at Yong'an Palace lately?"
The chief eunuch thought for a moment and said, "I heard that the Dragon Grace left the palace yesterday, but this old servant has already ordered someone to secretly follow him. Report back immediately if there is any discovery."
Emperor Jing was somewhat surprised to hear this and asked, "Long En has left the palace? Is he alone?"
The chief eunuch replied, "Only Long En."
The chief eunuch still can't believe that a eunuch could have a relative with such an air about him.
He always felt that Eunuch Shou respected this person, whom he called his nephew, quite a bit, and even regarded him as his master.
These two men appeared to be obedient to Emperor Jing on the surface, but in reality, they always harbored a sense of covetousness towards him.
So he asked in confusion, "Does Your Majesty also believe that this Long En is really just Eunuch Shou's nephew? Does Your Majesty not feel that these two people have some kind of inexplicable hostility towards you, whether intentionally or unintentionally?"
Emperor Jing was well aware of his suspicions, but after pondering for many days, he still couldn't determine the reason.
He then simply ordered, "No matter who he is, make sure to keep a close watch on him for me, and do not let him cause trouble or create any further complications at this critical juncture."
"Yes!" The chief eunuch accepted the order with utmost seriousness.
Then, following in Emperor Jing's footsteps, they walked out of the bedchamber together.
The vast Qiankun Hall was filled with solemnity and reverence.
Sunlight streamed through the carved windows of the hall, casting dappled shadows on the magnificent floor.
Civil and military officials gathered here, just as they had every day before, eagerly anticipating the emperor's majesty.
Finally, the figure slowly came into view.
In the imperial court, everyone bowed to him, shouting, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
Emperor Jing, dressed in a golden dragon robe and wearing a crown inlaid with dazzling gemstones, calmly entered the hall, looked down at his ministers, and said, "My beloved ministers, rise!"
Then, she gracefully took her seat.
At this moment, an elderly official dressed in a purple robe, with almost completely white hair, glanced around for a moment.
Seeing that no one seemed inclined to speak first, he finally gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and asked, "Your Majesty, I have recently heard that Regent Mei Zhixuan of Dongning Kingdom has dispatched an army of 200,000 men, which will soon arrive at the border of our Western Qin. Why has the Ministry of War not sent any news about this so far?"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Jing calmly and collectedly asked, "Where is Minister of War, Lord Yu?"
Immediately, the Minister of War stepped forward from the crowd and bowed, replying, "Your humble servant is here."
Emperor Jing said in a deep voice, "You should answer this question."
The Minister of War accepted the order: "Yes!"
He then turned to the old official, speaking arrogantly and righteously: "I wonder where this gentleman heard this information from? How could our Ministry of War be completely unaware of such important military intelligence? Could it be that you are questioning whether everyone in our Ministry of War is just a good-for-nothing?"
Before the purple-robed official could utter a single word in his defense, the Minister of War continued, addressing the crowd, "Two hundred thousand troops, coming from the distant Dongning Kingdom, traversing mountains and rivers—how did they manage that?"
As he spoke, he glanced around and said sarcastically, "Could it be that this gentleman drank too much last night and is still unconscious?"
Such aggressive words made the purple-robed official tremble with anger. His elderly body shook as he pointed at the Minister of War: "Yu Long, you..."
But before he could finish speaking, the Minister of War, a man in his prime, interrupted him, continuing, "What? It's clearly you who, relying on your old age and seniority in court, have ulterior motives, deliberately spreading rumors to sow discord and incite this disastrous rumor that will harm the country and its people. Tell me, what exactly are you trying to do?"
In the main hall, under the watchful eyes of everyone, the purple-robed official, so blatantly slandered, was instantly speechless: "I..."
Seeing that the man was quickly defeated, Xuan Yuanhan frowned.
It seems that Emperor Jing is determined this time, even bringing out the Minister of War in front of all the civil and military officials, vowing to keep this extremely urgent military intelligence a secret and silence any gossip...
At that moment, the Vice Minister of War, standing behind the Minister of War, seemed to sense Xuan Yuanhan's displeasure.
He then secretly shook his head at him, signaling him not to put up any more futile resistance.
However, after thinking for a moment, Xuanyuan Han still spoke up and asked, "Your Majesty, I have something to say!"
Emperor Jing glanced at him disdainfully and asked, "What does the Prince of Qin want to say?"
Xuanyuan Han composed himself and said, "Although Dongning Kingdom and my Western Qin have never attacked us before because their battle lines are too long and they fear they will run out of manpower, as the saying goes, there's no smoke without fire. Whether this news is true or false, I am willing to go to the Eastern Border on behalf of Your Majesty to test its authenticity!"
These words immediately caused an uproar in the court, with civil and military officials whispering among themselves.
"How can we do this? What if the news is true?"
"Your Highness, you mustn't!"
"Your Majesty, you must not grant His Highness's request!"
"Your Highness's actions are far too dangerous!"
"If the enemy situation is true, then Your Highness will be doomed..."
"Absolutely not!"
"Absolutely not!"
...
Of course, there were also many of Emperor Jing's forces involved, who were secretly pleased and putting on airs...
Amidst the commotion, the aloof Emperor Jing let out a cold snort: "Hmph!"
He was secretly delighted: "King Xuanyuan Han of Qin, these are the words I've been waiting for!"
Then, he raised his voice and gave the order: "Granted, very good! My brother is indeed worthy of being the God of War of Western Qin and the backbone of the court. I believe that even the strongest enemy can be defeated one day with my brother by my side.
The sound was like a thunderclap exploding overhead.
Everyone knelt down and begged.
"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
However, Emperor Jing insisted, "In that case, I will trouble my brother to make the trip himself to ease the worries of all the officials!"
After a brief pause, he said confidently, "Rest assured, Your Majesty, if any emergency occurs, I will immediately dispatch a large army to provide support as quickly as possible, and I will not put Your Majesty in any danger!"
Xuanyuan Han stared into his eyes, clearly not believing him. In the end, he simply bowed and said, "Your subject... thanks Your Majesty!"
After the court session ended.
As Xuanyuan Han walked towards the palace gate with several colleagues, he was still being persuaded.
"Your Highness, how could you be so reckless before the palace this time? Those are two hundred thousand elite troops!"
"If we were to encounter such a situation, we would be at their mercy, like fish on a chopping board!"
Those traveling with him echoed his sentiments.
"yes!"
"yes!"
Only Xuanyuan Han remained silent throughout.
Then a voice came from behind: "Your Highness, please wait!"
Xuanyuan Han stopped abruptly, turned around, and said, "It's you!"
The person who came was none other than the Vice Minister of War who had given him a hint in the main hall earlier.
Seeing that the Minister of War had been summoned by the Grand Eunuch, the Vice Minister of War dared to hurriedly follow after him.
He immediately asked, "All's fair in war, but when and how did Your Highness become so muddle-headed? The Emperor's wolfish ambitions are blatantly obvious. Today, he and the Minister of War staged this whole thing, clearly waiting for Your Highness to volunteer, so that even if something untoward happens, it will be Your Highness's own idea, and no one else's fault! How could Your Highness..."
The Vice Minister of War was so angry he couldn't continue speaking, so he sighed heavily, "Alas..."
Finally, Xuanyuan Han spoke up and explained, "There is no time left. If I continue to do nothing, then soon, countless innocent people of my Western Qin will be at the mercy of others!"
The Vice Minister of War said, "Perhaps, let's wait a little longer, there are always other ways!"
Xuanyuan Han thought for a moment and said, "What other way is there? Saving lives is like putting out a fire. I can wait, but can the innocent people of the eastern border of Western Qin afford to wait?"
The Vice Minister of War wanted to say something more: "But..."
But Xuan Yuanhan interrupted him in the end: "Alright, I am all alone. The only one I cared about has already left me. There is no need for you to persuade me any further, Minister!"
Watching Xuan Yuanhan's retreating figure, the Vice Minister of War stood before him with utmost respect: "Your Highness..."
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