Chapter 186 How Much Did You Participate?
Emperor Xiao Xuan was not in a good mood, especially after receiving the memorial from the capital, which made him even angrier.
The conquest of the foreign tribes was going very smoothly, and the foreign tribes that had previously coveted Dayu were now falling apart.
The foreign royal court has fled in panic, leaving behind the people of city after city.
The Weiyuan Army was incredibly brave and invincible, and King Zhao fought just as fiercely against the enemy.
Now, half of the territory of the former vassal states has been taken over by the Great Yu.
But at this very moment, memorials from the capital city kept arriving at Emperor Xiao Xuan's desk.
The cases of unauthorized use of the imperial robe, the death of Lord Shangguan in the Ministry of Justice prison, and the sudden deaths of thirteen scholars were all presented to Emperor Xiao Xuan.
Every case shocked him; each one seemed to be aimed at the Crown Prince.
He had to take time out of his schedule to deal with these things.
He quickly realized that all these cases could actually be classified as the same case.
It was all caused by the King of Wu. The King of Wu had ulterior motives, or rather, his son wanted more.
...
After reading the memorial in his hand, Emperor Xiao Xuan remained silent for a long time.
When Zhao Wang returned from his patrol, he saw that Emperor Xiao Xuan hadn't said a word. Just as he was about to say something, Zheng Wanwan, who had been serving Emperor Xiao Xuan, brought him freshly brewed tea.
"Your Majesty, I just brought you a hot cup," Zheng Wanwan said softly.
Emperor Xiao Xuan then picked up his teacup and took two sips.
"Wanwan, take these two memorials to General Shen and have him read them before reporting back to me," Emperor Xiao Xuan said, pointing to the two newly arrived memorials on the table.
Zheng Wanwan immediately agreed.
After watching Zheng Wanwan leave with two memorials, Emperor Xiao Xuan gestured for Prince Zhao to sit down and talk.
"How was today's inspection?" Emperor Xiao Xuan asked softly.
"Everything as usual!"
The soldiers were all stationed at their posts, whether they were visible or hidden, all were manned.
The siege battle two days from now will be a sure success.
"The royal court of the foreign lands has nowhere left to retreat," King Zhao said happily.
Emperor Xiao Xuan smiled and nodded, then looked at the Prince of Zhao's arm.
The injuries sustained during the previous siege have not fully healed.
"How are your injuries? Have you seen a medic?"
"I've examined it. It's just a superficial injury; nothing serious has been done. It will be fine in a few days."
"Father, this injury is nothing!" King Zhao laughed.
Emperor Xiao Xuan smiled as well.
This son... is very brave, but his brain... well, I don't expect him to be perfect. It's already good enough if he's strong in one area.
Although many people said that this son was most like himself, Emperor Xiao Xuan knew the truth.
I'm not as stupid as my son... If I were that stupid, how could I hold onto my position?
"These days... you've had a tough time!"
"Accompanying me on my personal campaign is no easy task!" Emperor Xiao Xuan laughed.
Upon hearing this, King Zhao immediately grinned.
"Father, I like it here."
"To be able to fight alongside my father on the battlefield is the greatest blessing I can have."
Emperor Xiao Xuan laughed twice, then handed a memorial from the table to the Prince of Zhao.
"Take a look at this report!"
King Zhao was taken aback.
Let him look at the memorial, but is it even readable?
Seeing that the King of Zhao hesitated, Emperor Xiao Xuan gestured with his chin, "Take a look! It's alright, I told you to look!"
King Zhao finally breathed a sigh of relief and picked up the memorial to read it carefully.
After reading only the beginning, the King of Zhao's expression changed drastically...
By the time the memorial was finished, King Zhao had turned pale.
"Father, Fifth Prince... Is there some misunderstanding here? Fifth Prince would never dare to do such a foolish thing!" King Zhao's first reaction was to kneel down and plead with King Wu.
The memorial that King Zhao was reading was the one that Chancellor Lin had sent to Emperor Xiao Xuan.
The document details how the King of Wu fabricated the case of privately making dragon robes, how he arrested Lord Shangguan, and how Lord Shangguan died in the Ministry of Justice prison.
"Father, there must be some misunderstanding here!" King Zhao still wanted to plead for mercy.
Emperor Xiao Xuan pointed to the box beside him.
“Those are all witness testimonies and evidence; he cannot deny them!” Emperor Xiao Xuan said.
"But……
Father, the fifth prince can be a bit awkward sometimes, but he only feels awkward because he thinks he can do more.
"He probably doesn't have any bad intentions." King Zhao quickly pleaded for mercy.
"Then did Lord Shangguan die in vain?" Emperor Xiao Xuan asked.
"Fifth Prince...he should be punished!" King Zhao lowered his head.
Everyone knows Lord Shangguan's status in the court. No matter who the other party is, they will definitely have to give an explanation.
"Then what punishment do you suggest?" Emperor Xiao Xuan asked.
King Zhao looked up, thought for a moment, and finally spoke.
"How about we demote him to a commoner? In any case, let's spare Lao Wu's life for now."
King Zhao's plan was sound; even if he were demoted to a commoner, he would still have a chance to be reinstated...
"Huaiyan, are our food and supplies going smoothly while we are fighting abroad?" Emperor Xiao Xuan suddenly asked.
King Zhao was taken aback, wondering why Emperor Xiao Xuan had changed the subject so quickly.
"The supply of provisions is sufficient, and both provisions and gunpowder used by the main force's weapons battalion will be replenished in a timely manner," King Zhao immediately said.
Emperor Xiao Xuan hummed in agreement.
"It's not just in the north that the food supply is plentiful."
The same was true when Lao Qi went to the southwest. He fought two battles with the Biao Kingdom, and both went smoothly. The supplies of food and military provisions were very timely.
"Tell me, whose credit is this?" Emperor Xiao Xuan asked, looking at King Zhao.
King Zhao then understood Emperor Xiao Xuan's meaning.
The King of Wu framed the Crown Prince in the capital, but the Crown Prince ignored these matters and simply continued to perform his duties as before.
"Your Highness! This is all thanks to Your Highness!"
Even if the King of Zhao disliked the Crown Prince, he had to admit that the Crown Prince had planned very well in both the north and the southwest.
Half the credit for the success on the battlefield should be attributed to the efficient allocation of military supplies.
The prince who couldn't get on the horse did this very well!
Compared to the other two, the King of Wu's actions were even more despicable.
"Father, the fifth prince made a mistake!" King Zhao then said in a low voice.
Emperor Xiao Xuan nodded, and then handed another memorial to the Prince of Zhao.
"Take another good look at this report."
King Zhao dared not refuse to look.
After reading the memorial, King Zhao was drenched in cold sweat and collapsed to the ground.
Huimintang, which previously supplied medicines to the garrison, was actually exterminated because it was in cahoots with the King of Wu by people from Minjitang.
All for the sake of securing military procurement orders.
And even his steward was involved...
"Father, this...this..." King Zhao could hardly believe it.
"This was discovered by the Supervisory Department during their audit, along with the testimony of the owner of Minjitang."
Huaiyan, tell me honestly.
How much of this did you participate in? Emperor Xiao Xuan stared intently at Prince Zhao.
King Zhao...
He really didn't know anything about the Minjitang incident!
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