Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui is currently drinking tea and playing chess with his supporter Gu Beiju.
Zhao Lingrui seemed a little absent-minded.
In the past, he and Gu Beiju were both "constantly victorious generals" in their games.
But today, I have lost three games in a row...
"Your Highness King Yu, it seems that your thoughts are not on this chess game."
Gu Beiju said calmly.
As soon as his son fell, King Yu lost again.
"well."
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui sighed and waved his hand, indicating that the game of chess for today would end here.
"...How can I play this chess game well if I have worries in my heart?"
"What's wrong with His Highness Prince Yu? Could it be that, like my little sister, he also has a sweetheart?" Gu Beiju said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, King Yu Zhao Lingrui waved his hand again and said——
"It's not like I have a sweetheart, it's just because of the Prince of Zhenbei."
"... Beiju, do you think this Prince Zhenbei is our ally?"
"Hmm..." Gu Beiju thought seriously: "...It's hard to say allies, but I should count them as friends."
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui chuckled and couldn't help but said: "Bei Ju, what do you mean by this? Isn't it an ally, but a friend? Shouldn't friends be more reliable than allies?"
"This friend is just a friend. Not a close friend."
Gu Beiju said calmly, as if he was also recalling the scene when he got along with Yan Wulu, and continued -
"To put it bluntly, if His Highness Prince Yu, or I, were destitute and had nothing, went to seek refuge with the Prince of Zhenbei, I think His Highness the Prince would definitely take us in and drink with us.
Eat eucalyptus. This is a friend."
"...However, if Prince Yu now wants to deal with the crown prince and ascend to the position of crown prince, then Prince Zhenbei will most likely not help us. This is not an ally."
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui was not stupid, he easily understood what Gu Beiju said.
However, he felt a little pity.
"I think back when Prince Zhenbei helped me deal with Old Fourteenth, I thought he had already placed a bet on me. Unexpectedly, he decided to go it alone in the end? It seems that he just doesn't like Old Fourteenth.
.”
Gu Beiju also had a somewhat cryptic look on his face, and he suddenly said -
"Perhaps what Prince Zhenbei did is the best way."
"... Among the three princes, King Jin is irritable and ruthless, and is very good at military affairs. Many officers and soldiers support him. If he ascends to the throne, the three vassals will be destroyed."
"Um."
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui nodded, "...If Old Fourteen ascends the throne, given his personality, he will not lead troops to attack Northern Xinjiang and Tubo, even if the sun rises in the west. How can he still need it?
The three vassals guarded the border for him, which was a waste of money from the national treasury."
Gu Beiju took a sip of wine and continued——
"As for the relationship between Your Highness Prince Yu and the Crown Prince, to be honest, based on Bei Ju's judgment, I believe that the Crown Prince's ascension to the throne may bring a peaceful ending to San Francisco."
"...As for your Highness, will you?"
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui’s expression is a bit complicated and unpredictable.
"Bei Ju, you are mine, right?"
Gu Beiju's expression changed when he heard this... These words are so strange and ambiguous?
Although His Highness Prince Yu is also handsome and talented, he is indeed not my type!
"Cough cough cough..."
Gu Beiju coughed a few times, and then he continued: "...Beiju and the Gu family have always been your loyal supporters, His Highness Prince Yu. We have been in the same boat for a long time."
"Then I won't hide it from you either."
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui said with a serious expression, "The Three Feuds have indeed made great achievements in resisting foreigners and are powerful in guarding the borders and suppressing the territory."
"...but at the same time, they are like three powder barrels tied to Da Gan, and three borers attached to Da Gan. How much military expenditure does Da Gan need to pay for them every year, and their fiefdoms, I, Da Gan, almost... It cannot be governed."
"...This situation must not be allowed to exist forever!"
"...If I ascend the throne and cut down the vassal vassal, it will only be a matter of sooner or later, not whether or not I will do it."
As Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui spoke, he was filled with pride for a moment.
But suddenly, he felt a little melancholy again...
"That's it for the other two princes of the feudal lord. But I really get along very well with the prince of Zhenbei, Yan Wulu."
"... Thinking about it, if he can take the initiative to hand over military power in the future and consciously live in Jinling permanently, I will definitely treat him with the courtesy of the 'Prince of Seven Pearls'."
"Your Highness Prince Yu, do you think Prince Zhenbei is like this kind of person?" Gu Beiju suddenly asked secretly.
"In my opinion, he... doesn't look like that."
As Yu Wang Zhao Lingrui said, he suddenly chuckled again -
"That's all, it's too early to talk about this now. Let's talk about something else."
"Hahaha, yes, it's too early, too early." Gu Beiju agreed.
"Why?"
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui suddenly remembered what Gu Beiju said before and couldn't help but ask: "...I remember that Gu Xiaomei is also a beauty of a generation. How come she suddenly has a sweetheart?"
"...It turns out that I, the king, wanted to propose marriage to the Gu family and marry Gu Xiaomei as his concubine. Now it seems that there is no chance?"
The words of Yu Wang Zhao Lingrui were joking.
Gu Beiju raised his drink and smiled:
"Your Highness Prince Yu, please don't let my little sister hear this joke. She is obsessed with her benefactor Xianggong. If she hears that Your Highness wants to marry her, I guarantee that she will run away from home and hide out on the same day. Let’s get married and pursue love.”
"Hahahaha." King Yu Zhao Lingrui also laughed when he heard this, "...Little sister Gu is still a passionate woman."
"Don't mention it, don't mention it."
"...it wasn't the last time King Jin rebelled. She went to Beichengfang City to play for a long time. Later, in order to avoid the rain, she did not return home in time."
"...In the end, I was almost killed by some of King Jin's rebels... Well, luckily, a mysterious man appeared in the end and rescued my little sister. Otherwise, I wouldn't have let these people go so easily."
As Gu Beiju spoke, he hammered the eucalyptus with one hand, clenched his fist angrily, and lamented the great luck in the misfortune.
It can be seen that he really loves his little sister.
Hearing this, King Yu Zhao Lingrui also lamented that the rebel army had broken through the city and it was extremely dangerous. Fortunately, Gu Xiaomei Jiren had her own destiny.
However, Zhao Lingrui suddenly thought of something and couldn't help but said -
"The mysterious man... I'm afraid he is the Prince of Zhenbei, right? That Yan Wulu likes to deal with beauties the most every day. He is capable of saving beauties as a hero."
"Probably not, the appearance doesn't match what the little sister said. Moreover, Prince Zhenbei should have been still in the palace during that time." Gu Beiju thought carefully.
"Well, that makes sense."
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui nodded when he heard this, then turned around and said half-jokingly: "...Haha, it would be better if it wasn't that guy Yan Wulu, otherwise, even this king would not be able to envy the beauty next to him."
When Gu Beiju heard this, he felt that King Yu was telling the truth.
Gu Beiju knew that Princess Yu, whom Prince Yu Mingyuan was marrying, was also a well-known dignified beauty in Jinling City and the eldest daughter of a well-known family.
Moreover, there are a lot of other charming wives and concubines around King Yu, which are much more than those around Yan Wulu...
Although the quality is somewhat inferior, the quantity is superior!
Gu Beiju thought secretly in his heart.
And King Yu Zhao Lingrui seemed to have a whimsical idea, and he couldn't help but whisper like gossip -
"Beiju, I heard that since Yan Wulu left Jinling, the eldest lady of the Cen family has been distracted these days, hahaha..."
"... Let Mr. Cen take a closer look, otherwise, with that little witch's temperament, she might run out of the Cen family one day and go to Yanbeicheng to find Yan Wulu."
When Gu Beiju heard this, he chuckled for a while.
"Not only that, Your Highness, hasn't Xia Hai just assumed the post of commander-in-chief of the Jinyi Division? Hasn't his only daughter Xia Jingjing been missing food and food every day lately? I feel like Xia Hai is going to have a headache for a while."
As the two chatted, they couldn't help but laugh out loud in Prince Yu's palace.
Amidst the hearty laughter, the image of Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui gradually emerged.
Sometimes, Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui often thinks——
If he really ascends to the throne in the future, it would be great if Gu Beiju and Yan Wulu could still chat, laugh, and drink with me like they did today or in the past.
but……
Zhao Lingrui's expression turned gloomy again.
He heard that his father used to talk to the Prime Minister of Qin, the King of Zhenbei, and Governor Cao, and they were all close friends who talked about everything and slept together on the same bed.
Compared with Gu Beiju and Yan Wulu, their friendship is deeper.
But since my father ascended the throne, and now, no matter how good friends are, they can never be worth the words "the king and his ministers are different".
Prince Yu Zhao Lingrui shook his head slightly.
He thought, if he could only choose between "Emperor" and "Friend", then...
...He will definitely choose "Emperor" without hesitation!
What the "Emperor" brought him, apart from the so-called loneliness, was all happiness that ordinary people could not imagine!
As Zhao Lingrui thought, his face gradually dispersed his worries and revealed a perfect smile.
…
Imperial City.
Prince's East Palace.
On the long journey, Prince Zhao Lingfeng was dealing with a series of decisions regarding the restoration of the northern urban area of Jinling City, the aftermath of the massacre of the Yi family mission, and reconnection with the Yi family in the Western Regions.
The old emperor now seems to be willing to rely on the prince, and many things have begun to be handled by the prince.
A secret agent from the secret door appeared from the shadows, stepped forward, and bowed to report——
"His Royal Highness, there is a letter from a secret agent under his command. The Yi family has issued a 'Jianghu Order', intending to use the power of the Jianghu to intercept and kill the prince of Zhenbei on his way back to the north."
"Yi family? Intercept and kill? Prince Zhenbei?"
Zhao Lingfeng murmured to himself, slightly confused for a moment...
"Yes."
The chief of secret agents responded, "Looking at the secret letter, Yi Xiangtian suspected that the Prince of Zhenbei was secretly sabotaging the marriage and taking away his two legitimate daughters, so he posted widely in the world to recruit assassins."
"...In the Yin Yuan Secret Book, several masters on the list have already accepted the post. It's really scary."
"...Furthermore, Lu Minghui, a disciple of Prince Jin's palace who was able to fight with Governor Cao, also accepted the order of Jianghu this time after escaping from Jinling. I'm afraid that Prince Zhenbei is in great danger."
When Zhao Lingfeng heard this, his eyes were playful, and he was no longer as generous and gentle as before...
"These charlatans are becoming more and more outrageous."
"...We must not let them assassinate the Prince of Zhenbei."
"His Royal Highness, but..."
The chief secret agent looked ashamed, "Yi Xiangtian spent all his personal wealth and even hired some masters from the Yin Yuan Secret Book. How can we... stop him?"
"...How about Fei Ge informs King Zhenbei? Or informs His Majesty and asks Governor Cao to take action?"
"The King of Zhenbei is already too far away from us. Telling this matter will only leave a gap in the air. My father is busy with government affairs for another day. I won't trouble my father about this small matter. I will handle it."
Zhao Lingfeng still looked calm. He slowly stretched out his hand, picked up a cup of white jade tea, and took a sip.
The secret agent felt anxious and restless inside.
He really couldn't think of how His Highness the Crown Prince could stop Yi Xiangtian, who was already on the verge of taking action.
And Zhao Lingfeng also clearly saw the impatience and doubts of the secret agent around him...
He chuckled lightly, without any sense of gentleness and clumsiness. It only made people feel that he had a pearl of wisdom in his hand. He continued calmly——
"Don't Yi Xiangtian want to use the power of Jianghu?"
"...That just lets him know who has the final say in today's world. (1)"
…
…
Yan Wulu's team headed north.
Close to Yaowang Valley in Hedong.
Passing through the last section of the valley.
After passing here, there is the flat Hedong Plain, and there will be no more terrain changes until you reach Yaowang Valley.
After leaving Yaowang Valley and heading north, we entered the territory of Beidi, which was controlled by the Zhenbei Army.
In other words - there is no place more suitable for interception and killing than this section of the valley.
The leading team is about to enter the valley.
Yan Wulu suddenly raised his hand to signal the team to stop and observed the cliffs on both sides.
Ye Changtian and Li Mieling also stopped their horses for a moment and stopped beside Yan Wulu to be on guard.
"Have you sent a vanguard to inspect the cliff?" Yan Wulu suddenly asked.
Li Mieling had a higher position in the army and was the first to answer——
"Brother-in-law, sentries have been dispatched, but there is no reply here yet."
Ye Changtian then raised his hands and continued to suggest——
"Your Majesty, this place is too dangerous and it is easy to set up an ambush. Why don't you stop the army first and then send someone to check it out?"
"Brother-in-law said that we need to march quickly. It is enough for me to take a look at these places. The team does not need to stop."
Li Mieling said directly.
It's still difficult for him to always remember what Yan Wulu said at the beginning.
After saying this, Li Mieling was ready to fly up the cliff.
Yan Wulu waved his hand slightly to signal him to stop.
"It's better to send some skilled sentry riders to inspect with you."
"...I don't know why, but I always feel that there may be traces of enemies here."
"...It would be too dangerous for you to go to Mi Ling alone."
As he said that, some sentry riders from the team took the initiative to come out and ride up the cliff with Li Mieling.
…
(1), a famous line from the TV series "Nirvana in Fire", I thought it was very interesting at the time, so I used it here.
