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A torrential rain suddenly covered Qingzhou.
Outside the study, the patter of raindrops and the dampness of the rain-soaked earth assailed him, making Xiao Ming momentarily recall some childhood memories.
Sitting under the eaves as a child, he would always smell this natural, fresh scent of rain, but now the scent was even richer, invigorating his spirit.
At this moment, facing the pouring rain, Xiao Ming frowned slightly. A few days ago, he had sent a caravan to deliver fifty cannons to the Prince of Huainan. By now, the Prince of Huainan must have received them.
With these cannons, the Prince of Huainan would suffer fewer casualties during the siege, and once the city fell, the rest would be much simpler.
In his opinion, Prince Yan was merely a spent force. The actions of the Tian family and Ji family were enough to reveal the speculative nature of powerful families.
For these powerful families, they fundamentally didn’t care who ruled them; all they wanted was the prosperity of their own families.
Now that Prince Yan had lost Bozhou, the remaining powerful families would inevitably have different thoughts. At such a time, it would be impossible for them to wholeheartedly resist the Prince of Huainan.
Perhaps when the Prince of Huainan breached the city, Prince Yan’s army would crumble. Thus, in his view, Prince Yan’s demise was imminent, and Prince Liang wouldn’t last another month.
If that were the case, he would have eliminated two of the northern three princes, leaving only Prince Zhao.
In this allied army of the three princes, Prince Zhao’s forces were the fewest, which showed that this old fox didn’t think much of the three princes’ allied army. Perhaps for Prince Zhao, the only ones he truly trusted were the barbarians.
His elimination of Prince Yan and Prince Liang actually suited his purpose, saving him the trouble of doing it himself.
Sending fifty cannons to the Prince of Huainan this time was not an impulsive decision by Xiao Ming. Rather, in Xiao Ming’s view, he still needed the Prince of Huainan as an assistant to deal with the King of Chu. He did not want the Prince of Huainan to be disheartened after this battle. All he needed was for the Prince of Huainan to withdraw his forces south of the Yangtze River.
As he was thinking, a eunuch suddenly walked through the rain with an oiled paper umbrella towards Qian Dafu. After exchanging a few words, the eunuch departed.
Qian Dafu then walked in and bowed, saying, “Your Imperial Majesty, the Crown Prince of Chu, Li Chu Yuan, has arrived in Qingzhou with the Third Prince in custody.”
“When the rain stops, let him come to see me.” Xiao Ming showed no surprise, as he had received an urgent letter from the King of Chu three days ago.
In the letter, the King of Chu fabricated an entire set of excuses, implying that the Third Prince was the true culprit behind the enthronement farce, and that he himself was merely deceived.
Secondly, he expressed his willingness to submit to Xiao Ming, and then proposed that Li Chu Yuan live in Qingzhou, simply put, making Li Chu Yuan a hostage to show his sincerity.
Xiao Ming could only sneer at this trick. If he couldn’t see through such a delaying tactic, he wouldn’t be fit to be emperor.
However, the King of Chu had made a good gamble this time. Xiao Ming truly had no intention of dealing with the King of Chu right now, as the urgent matter was to resolve the issues in the north.
His minimum requirement for the King of Chu was for his state to become a market for goods. For now, he didn’t want the wealthy south to become a mess.
The rain continued from early morning until two o’clock in the afternoon. At three o’clock, Li Chu Yuan, escorting the Third Prince, arrived at the traveling palace.
“Crown Prince Li Chu Yuan of Chu greets Your Imperial Majesty! Long live, long live, long long live our Emperor!”
In the main hall, Li Chu Yuan bowed deeply and shouted.
“Dispense with the formalities.”
Xiao Ming smiled. Although he inwardly detested Li Chu Yuan, he had to maintain appearances.
Li Chu Yuan then raised his head. This trip to Qingzhou truly shocked him. Qingzhou’s prosperity and wealth exceeded his expectations.
This also gave him a deeper understanding of Xiao Ming.
“I greet Your Imperial Majesty! Long live, long live, long long live our Emperor!”
The Third Prince entered the main hall with Li Chu Yuan. After Li Chu Yuan shouted “Long live!”, the restrained Third Prince suddenly knelt and shouted.
Xiao Ming was somewhat surprised. He looked at the Third Prince, who was extremely disheveled at this moment, his body much thinner, showing none of the former glory he had in Chang’an.
Li Chu Yuan seized the opportunity and said, “Your Imperial Majesty, the Third Prince falsely transmitted the imperial edict. If we hadn’t believed him, Imperial Father would not have acknowledged him as sovereign. I hope Your Imperial Majesty will investigate thoroughly.”
Xiao Ming laughed heartily. He said, “The King of Chu and the Crown Prince have taken great pains. Such a rebellious person, I will certainly punish severely.”
A hint of a smile appeared at the corner of Li Chu Yuan’s mouth. So far, their scheme had shown no flaws.
After a pause, Xiao Ming continued, “In the letter, the King of Chu mentioned that you would reside in Qingzhou for several years. I wonder what you thinks?”
Upon this, Li Chu Yuan was well-prepared. He said, “I am indebted to Your Imperial Majesty’s consideration. I have always yearned for Qingzhou, and to be able to stay in Qingzhou is my wish.”
“Very good. In that case, you may reside in Qingzhou,” Xiao Ming said blandly. He saw no need for excessive politeness with a hostage.
After a few more perfunctory words, Xiao Ming dismissed Li Chu Yuan but kept the Third Prince in the main hall.
At this time, Xiao Ming looked at the Third Prince and said, “Do you know why I kept you alone?”
“Because I still have some use for Your Imperial Majesty.” The Third Prince seemed to have sensed this long ago.
“In Chang’an, the ministers all said that the Third Prince was highly intelligent. Now it seems that’s true,” Xiao Ming chuckled.
“This is merely the ministers flattering me.” The Third Prince lowered his head. He knew very well that the cleverer the prince, the sooner he died.
With a soft snort, he said, “Prince Yan is an outsider after all, but you are a member of the imperial family. Now that the Great Yu Empire has come to this state, how could I choose to trust the King of Chu and not trust you?”
The Third Prince’s expression shifted slightly. He sighed and said, “Your Imperial Majesty, falsely transmitting the imperial edict was my doing, but this was all at the King of Chu’s instruction. Otherwise, without troops or power, how would I dare to ascend the throne?”
“Even so, your crime is enough for me to chop off your head ten thousand times. However, now that the Great Yu Empire is facing a crisis, if you can atone for your sins with meritorious service, I will spare your life.”
The Third Prince’s voice was a little agitated. He said, “I will immediately write to the King of Shu, urging him to hold back Prince Zhao’s army at all costs.”
Xiao Ming nodded upon hearing this.
His purpose in keeping the Third Prince was precisely this. The King of Chu had abandoned the Third Prince, and at the same time, he had abandoned the Fifth Prince, as the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince were full brothers.
The Fifth Prince had always greatly respected the Third Prince and always obeyed his words. The King of Chu’s current scheme was merely a delaying tactic, which would undoubtedly give Prince Zhao an opportunity to prolong the chaos in the north by taking Shu.
Xiao Ming, seeing this, naturally did not want the King of Chu’s cunning scheme to succeed. Without the King of Chu’s support, who knows what outrageous things the Fifth Prince might do?
“This time, it’s not as simple as a letter. The King of Shu is at the end of his rope. I will send 20,000 men with you to Shu. Whether you want your life or power, you can only choose one.”