Chapter 137: My dear brother, the food has been robbed
Imperial Capital.
Xiao Zirui brought Yun Bailian excitedly to Fengqi Palace.
The white veil on Yun Bailian's face has been removed, revealing a smooth, white and tender face without a single pus-filled sore.
It was the imperial master who came out of retreat a few days ago and cured her.
"Mother, good news!" Xiao Zirui couldn't even wait to announce the good news without even having time to greet her.
"Oh?" Seeing his delight, the Queen couldn't help but smile as well. "Why are you so happy, my son? Tell me."
Xiao Zirui seemed to have remembered something at this moment, and quickly dismissed the servants before speaking in a low voice:
"All the food and fodder that the Regent brought back from Kingdom Jing has been robbed by my men!"
"Really? He actually managed to get the food back on time?" The Queen was pleasantly surprised, yet also a little apprehensive. "I thought he was being helpless, with only a 10% chance of success at best. Even if he could get the food back, it would take a few days."
"Fortunately, my prince, you made arrangements in advance, otherwise he would have succeeded this time."
Xiao Zirui took Yun Bailian's hand and said with a smile:
"Your Majesty, you may not know this, but this time, thanks to Bai Lian's reminder, I was told to intercept the Regent's grain transport team in advance, and she also pointed out the exact location where they would appear. This is how we were able to achieve this resounding victory!"
"Oh?" the Queen asked happily, "How did Bai Lian guess all this?"
Yun Bailian smiled and said:
"It's strange, actually. I suddenly felt uneasy a couple of days ago, thinking something big was about to happen. I figured the Crown Prince must be most preoccupied with the food and fodder issue lately, so I went to him and asked for a feng shui chart related to this matter."
"Then, when I saw a certain spot on the map, I suddenly had a feeling that the Regent's convoy would appear there in the next two days."
"Fortunately, the prince believed me and sent someone, and it worked as expected."
Her appearance has now returned to its sweet and lovely state. The Queen likes her even more and praises her repeatedly:
"Good, good! You are worthy of being the Heavenly Phoenix. You are the first to achieve this!"
While praising, she took off the jade bracelet on her hand and put it on Yun Bailian herself.
Yun Bailian was overjoyed and felt extremely happy.
Her luck is so overwhelming that nothing can stop her. Let's see how that loser Yun Qingqing can be so proud when the Regent loses his power!
Xiao Zirui suddenly thought of something and sneered:
"Oh, right, the scouts I sent just reported back that after the Regent's troops lost their food supplies, they've headed back towards Jing State! I'm afraid they're still determined to get more food supplies!"
"Could it be that he thinks that with only two days left, he still has enough time to make a round trip to Jing Country? What a fantasy!"
Yun Bailian covered her mouth and chuckled:
"I'm afraid Yun Qingqing might have given him some bad advice again. She's really worried that the Regent won't lose miserably enough!"
The Queen was slightly surprised, and then a deep calculation flashed in her eyes:
"The Regent has always prioritized the greater good. I believe he's already prepared for the worst. Even though he knows he's doomed to fail, he'll prioritize addressing the Northwest Army's food and fodder needs."
Xiao Zirui frowned:
"My Queen Mother is saying that the Prince Regent, knowing full well that he could not keep the military talisman and would be confined to his house for six months, still decided to return to Jing Kingdom to transport food and supplies?"
When he said this, he had basically determined in his heart that this was the Regent's plan, and he couldn't help but clench his fists secretly.
"What's the point of putting the greater good first? It's nothing more than a ploy to win people's hearts!" Xiao Zirui said angrily. "Then he'll definitely spread the word everywhere. The Regent would rather give up his power and be confined to his home than risk transporting the food and fodder back. He'll then voluntarily surrender his military power and retreat in order to advance, thus aligning Father and the ministers with him!"
"With his cunning and the hundreds of thousands of soldiers under his command, it might not be long before he makes a comeback!"
The Queen nodded:
"That's right! He must have planned this. So we absolutely cannot give him this opportunity!"
Xiao Zirui sneered knowingly:
"He must have thought that since the bet failed, there would be no more risk of his food being robbed. Ha, he never imagined that we had already seen through his plan!"
"If I can make him plant it once, I can make him plant it a second time in the same place!"
Yun Bailian smiled and said:
"Don't worry, Prince. With Bai Lian here, no matter which route he takes, he won't be able to escape!"
Xiao Zirui patted her hands gently:
"Bai Lian is truly this palace's lucky star. I still rely on you from now on."
…
A dark secret room.
Bang!
His fist slammed heavily on the table.
"What! Those two losers didn't even see the shadow of the Regent and let him go?"
The secret guard who reported the news lowered his head and dared not breathe.
The person behind the desk read the letter angrily, but then calmed down.
The man threw the letter into the brazier and burned it clean, then fell into deep thought.
The people he sent out would never dare to lie. If that were the case, then the Regent's itinerary... would be incredibly fast.
"Step back first." The man said in a deep voice.
There's something strange about this matter. It seems we can't act rashly.
Let's wait and see what happens.
…
The last day for grain delivery.
At the morning court session, Xiao Zirui was confident of victory and arrived at the court early.
He and Prime Minister Su and others were in high spirits, while the ministers who supported the Regent all looked worried.
Today is the deadline for the Regent to issue a military order to transport grain back to the capital. There is still no news about the prince. What should we do if he really can't come back?
Especially when they saw that everyone in the prince's group was smiling, as if they had already expected the result, it made them even more worried.
At this moment, there was a sudden commotion outside the hall door.
"Meet the Regent! Meet the Princess!"
"The Lord Regent is back!"
Xiao Zirui was stunned for a moment, then immediately turned around to look.
Just then, Xiao Changheng, dressed in court robes, walked in side by side with Yun Qingqing. Even though he was sitting in a wheelchair, his noble temperament could not be concealed.
Since the Princess Regent was also the main person in charge of transporting grain and fodder, the ministers were not surprised by her appearance here.
Xiao Zirui's heart tightened, but then he immediately relaxed and snorted coldly.
I think they only sent a team to Jingguo to borrow more food, and I rushed back to deal with the affairs of the court.
However, if there is no food, what’s the use of these two people showing up?
It’s just right. Today, all civil and military officials will know that the Regent is no longer the god of war who was always sure of victory!
Thinking of this, he walked forward triumphantly, bowed and asked hypocritically:
"Uncle Emperor has returned from a long journey. This time, he must have brought back the food and fodder as promised, right? You've worked so hard, Uncle Emperor!"
The fact that he robbed the grain and grass was kept strictly confidential. Even Prime Minister Su did not know about it. When they asked this question, although their expressions did not show, they had already pricked up their ears and waited for the Regent's answer.
Xiao Changheng glanced at Xiao Zirui coldly and said in a low voice:
"Why are you so anxious, Prince? The answer will be revealed soon."
Xiao Zirui felt more and more proud in his heart, and smiled respectfully on the surface:
"Uncle Huang is right, let's wait and see!"
As everyone was talking, the chief eunuch's shrill voice rang out:
"The Emperor has arrived!"
The emperor walked slowly onto the stage with an ill look on his face as usual. After everyone cheered "Long live the emperor", he got down to business.
When the Emperor saw Xiao Changheng was also there, he immediately showed joy, coughed twice and said:
"The Regent is back? How's the food supply issue going?"
Xiao Changheng lowered his eyes and saluted, his face expressionless:
"Your Majesty, I had already transported 200,000 dan of grain to a place 150 miles from the Imperial Capital, but bandits suddenly appeared and robbed them all!"
"What!" The emperor's face changed drastically.
The ministers in the court were also in an uproar!
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