Chapter 742: It’s ok to pretend to be stupid, as long as you are not really stupid
It's okay for those who had never shown any intention of rebellion before and were just watching. They were as "obedient" as ever in the memorial. But for those who had secretly communicated with Prince Pingshan before, and even had some secret thoughts of rebelling together, the intention of surrender was almost written directly in the memorial.
Tang Ning flipped through the memorials of respect from the princes of various places and couldn't help but chuckle. "The newly appointed Prince Xun is fine. My brother at least gave him a promising future. It's understandable that he gave half of the money in the Prince Xun Palace to the court for war. But what's with that Prince Anshun? He actually gave my brother a gold mine..."
These gold and iron mines have always been under the control of the imperial court. If a provincial government finds them, it must report to the court immediately. If anyone dares to keep them privately, the entire family will be exterminated. However, Xie Tianyong did not have enough prestige in the court before, and there were some aristocratic families who opposed the imperial power. The court was in chaos. The princes in various places respected the royal family on the surface, but in fact they all had their own thoughts in secret.
Like the King of Luochuan, Prince Anshun was not a descendant of the Xie family. His ancestors were kings of different surnames who were granted titles for their military merits while conquering the world together with Emperor Taizu. These people were ambitious by nature. Prince Anshun hid the gold mine very carefully and regarded it as his greatest strength. But now he actually handed it over to the court.
Not only did Prince Anshun refuse to accept any remuneration, he also kept saying that it was a "gift" to congratulate the new emperor on his ascension to the throne.
Tang Ning leaned in Xiao Yan's arms and looked at the people beside him: "Brother, what did you do to them to scare them like this?"
Xiao Yan's fingertips gently twirled her flowing black hair, and he said lazily, "Nothing much, I just threw the head of King Luochuan into his room."
Prince Anshun had some dealings with Prince Luochuan in private, and had also secretly "supported" Prince Pingshan before. However, compared to the other two who rebelled openly, Prince Anshun only made some subtle contributions without directly expressing his rebellious intentions. Naturally, Xiao Yan would not kill him like he did with Prince Xun and Prince Luochuan.
He simply ordered people to chop off the head of King Luochuan and throw it into the room of King Anshun who was having sex with his concubine. The concubine, who died with her eyes and nose gouged out and full of bloody holes, was so scared that she fainted immediately. King Anshun also lost his virility and almost became inhumane.
"After Prince Pingshan was defeated, Marquis Wenxin showed no mercy, beheading over a thousand rebel leaders on the spot. All but Prince Pingshan was captured alive, and the rest of the Pingshan Palace was wiped out. The subsequent deaths of Prince Xun and his son, as well as Prince Luochuan, showed them that I'm different from Xie Tianyong and the others."
In the past, emperors would be concerned about their reputation and what would happen after their death. Even if they had deep and vicious intentions, they would rule the world with kindness on the surface.
But he won't.
Xiao Yan chuckled softly, his fingertips alternately tossing the black hair tangled in his hair. "My notoriety has long been known throughout the world. Everyone knows that I am cruel, ruthless, vicious, and cold-hearted. Afterwards, I will definitely punish the culprits of the Prince Rebellion. If they want peace, they only have two options."
"Either you fight me to the death, or you can just surrender to me."
The price of surrendering cannot be just a few words.
The others would at most send some gold, silver, treasures and rare toys, but King Anshun was the only one who was in such a state of panic because of the bloody head of him and his concubine hanging above his bed curtains that he sent his biggest trump card directly to the capital.
Tang Ning listened to Xiao Yan's light-hearted words and couldn't help but laugh on his shoulder: "No wonder they are so willing to give up."
She had just taken a quick look. Not counting the gold mine sent by Prince Anshun, the gold, silver and money sent by other people alone amounted to nearly 200,000. The remaining horses and food were the most important. These people were all smart and knew what the court needed, so she sent them what they needed.
Tang Ning couldn't hide the smile in his eyes. "A few days ago, Uncle Qian was still worried that the gold my brother had cheated from the noble families wasn't enough for the battle in Beiling, and the Ministry of Revenue couldn't pay more silver. Now that these princes have subsidized him, Uncle Qian can rest a little easier."
Xiao Yan laughed. That's right. Qian Baokun didn't look as sad as before these days. His face was almost broken by laughter.
Tang Ning leaned against Xiao Yan and chatted with him. The teapot on the table was licked by the flames below. When the boiling water in the pot rolled, a light white mist rose from the water vapor.
Tang Ning said, "Aru sent a message to the palace, saying that Di Tao sent a letter to her, saying that they will not be returning to the capital in the short term. Is my brother planning to let him and Qi Cheng guard Munan Pass together?"
Xiao Yan said calmly, "Not really. Lang Ke is guarding Munan Pass, so we don't need them. I have other plans for them."
Tang Ning vaguely guessed something when he heard this and whispered, "Western Xinjiang?"
Xiao Yan nodded, and Tang Ning didn't ask any more questions. She didn't know as much about military affairs as Xiao Yan did, and some arrangements were better known to as few people as possible. She was just a little curious: "Does Di Tao know the cause of death of Prince Xun and his son?"
Xiao Yan hummed, "Qi Cheng didn't hide it from him."
When Di Tao and the other two left the capital, he had issued a secret order, asking the father and son of Xun Wang to tell the outside world that it was the King of Luochuan who killed him. In fact, Xiao Yan knew very well how he died. Although he had told Qi Cheng to keep his actions secret from Di Tao, fearing that his youthful impulsiveness would cause trouble, the two of them were in the same army, and it was impossible for Qi Cheng to hide everything he did from Di Tao.
"A few days ago, Qi Cheng sent a letter back to the capital, saying that he had discussed the matter with Di Tao before proceeding. Di Tao was reluctant at first and even argued with Qi Cheng. But later, when Qi Cheng ran into trouble in Fenglin County, it was Di Tao who helped cover it up and was able to handle the matter properly."
Prince Xun and his son had long been on guard against the imperial court, and Qi Cheng almost fell into a trap when he took action. If Di Tao had not acted in time, the "crime" of Prince Luochuan murdering Prince Xun and his son would probably have been difficult to prove.
Xiao Yan put his arm around Tang Ning and said, "I originally thought that Di Tao's youthful spirit needed a few more years of tempering, but I didn't expect him to be much smarter than I thought."
If not for this, he would not have planned to let Di Tao and Qi Cheng stay in the south to deal with the Western Frontier.
Tang Ning hesitated: "So his previous straightforwardness and innocence were all fake?"
Xiao Yan laughed: "Who knows."
Maybe it's fake, maybe it's real.
But no matter whether Di Tao was pretending before or suddenly became enlightened after going to the South this time, it made no difference to Xiao Yan.
He doesn't dislike people who pretend to be stupid, as long as they are not really stupid.
The charcoal stove in the house was burning brightly, and it was as warm as a spring day.
Xiao Yan, wearing only his inner shirt, took the battle report from Tang Ning's hand and placed it on the table before pulling him into his arms. "Tomorrow we have to open the Taimiao to offer sacrifices to our ancestors, and we also have to bring the remains of our father, the emperor, and the consort to the imperial mausoleum. The people from the Imperial Observatory and the Ministry of Rites said it's a little early. Rest up, we'll be busy all day tomorrow."
Tang Ning put her face close to his and rubbed it gently: "Brother, come with me."
Xiao Yan lowered his head and kissed the corner of her eye: "Okay."
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