in2ebook Chapter 131 The Prince of Jin has always been ambitious
Chapter 131 The Prince of Jin has always been ambitious
Seeing Xu Jiaojiao's vacant gaze and her expression as if struck by lightning, completely unaware that he was talking to her, Zhao Yunzheng couldn't help but wave his hand in front of Xu Jiaojiao's eyes: "Jiaojiao?"
Xu Jiaojiao's raven feathers trembled, and she looked at Zhao Yunzheng as if she had lost her parents, telling Prince Chen about her request for Tu Zhannan's help.
After hearing this, Prince Chen laughed: "So you're worried that Tu Zhannan will be implicated?"
Thinking that Jia Rong had finally managed to put Li Mingyu out of her mind and met the resolute and upright Tu Zhannan, she felt that if Tu Zhannan suffered because of her, she would feel guilty and remorseful for the rest of her life.
But Prince Chen remained calm and collected, which made Xu Jiaojiao feel heartbroken: "Your Highness, please, you must save General Tu!"
"Cough cough..." A low cough came from outside.
The familiar boy's voice made Xu Jiaojiao stiffen, and she immediately looked outside.
Seeing Tu Zhannan walk in with an embarrassed look on his face, she blinked in surprise, as if she were hallucinating.
It wasn't until Tu Zhannan walked up to her and bowed to Prince Chen, who was trying not to laugh, that Xu Jiaojiao realized this was not an illusion.
"This humble servant greets Your Highness Prince Chen..."
Tu Zhannan cupped his hands in greeting to Prince Chen, then looked at Xu Jiaojiao and teasingly curved his lips: "I'm sorry to have worried you, Madam. As Prince Chen's most fortunate general, a few mere guards wouldn't have caused me to panic and mistakenly kill a weak woman. Madam, please don't worry so much next time~"
Xu Jiaojiao fell silent for a moment.
Seeing her embarrassed, Prince Chen's smile deepened: "Alright, Jiaojiao was just worried about you. Since you're alright, let's get down to business."
Tu Zhannan, who had been grinning roguishly, stood up straight in a second, lowered his head and began to speak: "General Yingyi has said everything that needs to be said at the main camp, so I have nothing to add. But regarding Su He, I have captured Su He's guards. Would Your Highness like to interrogate them?"
Zhao Yunzheng was a little tired and didn't want to waste too much energy on irrelevant people: "No need, you can interrogate them. If you can get any important information out of them, then come back and report."
He paused, then added, "Don't kill him. Keep him alive; he might be useful."
Tu Zhannan nodded slightly, his expression hesitant: "Your Highness, there is one more thing..."
Seeing that he was hesitant and not as straightforward as usual, Prince Chen frowned: "Speak your mind."
A faint blush rose to Tu Zhannan's cheeks: "Princess Jiarong... she fell ill due to the stress and anxiety over your disappearance..."
Zhao Yunzheng's brow twitched, and worry appeared in his eyes: "Is it serious?"
Tu Zhannan shook his head: "The military doctor said she would recover in a few days, but Princess Jiarong is so worried that she hasn't eaten or drunk anything, and she has visibly lost weight in the past two days. I am really worried..."
Zhao Yunzheng thought for a moment and said, "It's alright. This girl usually eats a lot and is quite plump. Letting her go hungry for a few days won't be a problem."
She is naive and easily deceived; she cannot keep secrets. Unless absolutely necessary, it is best not to tell her anything about me.
As he spoke, he looked up at Tu Zhannan meaningfully: "Before I return to camp, I'll trouble you to look after Jia Rong."
What's the difference between these words and acknowledging Tu Zhannan as his brother-in-law?
Tu Zhannan was flattered and overwhelmed: "It is my greatest honor to have Your Highness's trust. How could it be hard work? Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will do my best to take good care of Princess Jiarong and will never let her suffer the slightest grievance!"
Xu Jiaojiao couldn't help but cast a teasing glance at Tu Zhannan to get revenge for his earlier teasing, making Tu Zhannan blush.
Zhao Yunzheng didn't say anything, but the corners of his mouth clearly turned up.
Tu Zhannan coughed softly, feigning seriousness to hide his embarrassment: "Does Your Highness have any plans for the main camp?"
Zhao Yunzheng nodded slightly: "Two days have passed, and most of the soldiers who went to the hunting grounds to look for people should have withdrawn. Starting today, you and Lao Fei should order the soldiers in the main camp to enter a state of combat readiness, guarding the main camp day and night in shifts, and ready to assemble at any time upon receiving military orders."
Tu Zhannan acknowledged and wrote it down: "Yes, Your Majesty. However, His Majesty is still in the camp. I'm afraid that if he sees anything unusual about the soldiers in the camp, His Majesty will become suspicious."
Zhao Yunzheng said calmly, "If the Emperor asks, you should say that suspicious people were found near the camp, and patrols have been intensified to protect the Emperor and the court officials."
As one of the garrison commanders of the western suburban camp, Tu Zhannan could not leave the camp for too long, lest it arouse suspicion.
His visit to the Bamboo Garden to see Prince Chen was out of concern for Prince Chen's safety, and he wanted to see him, which is why he risked leaving the camp.
Having confirmed that Prince Chen was safe and sound, Tu Zhannan did not linger and immediately turned back to his camp.
After Tu Zhannan left, Zhao Yunzheng looked at Xu Jiaojiao, who looked bewildered, and asked, "Shall we go get some noodles?"
A bewildered Xu Jiaojiao nodded: "I'll listen to the prince!"
With Yingyi absent, it was Prince Chen who personally drove Xu Jiaojiao to Wenmei Village this time.
While eating noodles, Prince Chen told Xu Jiaojiao about the whole story of the hunting ground incident.
He had anticipated encountering Prince Fuchen at the hunting grounds and planned to use this as a pretext to trap Prince Jin and make the emperor witness firsthand the fact that Prince Jin was harming his own brothers. However, reality deviated from his plan.
He never expected that Xu Jiaojiao would enter the hunting grounds to find him before Jia Rong, nor did he expect that Su He and Zheng Antong would enter the hunting grounds with Xu Jiaojiao, and he never expected that Su He would die in the hunting grounds.
There was no news of Prince Chen, the emperor was old, the crown prince was weak and sickly, and Prince Jin was in charge of many affairs at the western suburban camp.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Prince Jin conveniently pinned the blame for Su He's death on Prince Chen. The Protector-General of Annam, who already had a grudge against Prince Chen, was naturally furious and determined to demand an explanation from the emperor.
Just then, the Prince of Jin found evidence that the Prince of Chen had plotted a rebellion many years ago.
Based on this evidence, Prince Jin announced to the world that Prince Chen's disappearance was not due to an ambush, but rather an attempt to escape and gather troops, intending to seize the throne by surprise. All of this was accidentally discovered by Su He, who was in love with Prince Chen, so Prince Chen killed Su He to silence her.
The Governor-General of Annam immediately raised the banner of righteousness, sent a message back to the southern border, and ordered his son Su Yu to gather the Annam army to march to the capital and rescue the emperor.
Ostensibly, he was there to rescue the emperor, but in reality, he was plotting to seize the throne.
The crown prince is weak and has no children. Even if he is able to inherit the throne, he will have to find a suitable successor.
Prince Jin has always been ambitious, but the actions of his birth mother, Consort Ru, have earned him the reputation of being the son of a wicked concubine, which destined him to be ineligible for the throne from the very beginning.
But he was unwilling to give up and never abandoned his ambition for the throne.
Therefore, the Prince of Jin's open and covert struggles with the Prince of Chen over the years were not only due to the death of Consort Ru, but also because of the struggle for the throne.
The killing of Su He has given him and the Su family the opportunity to raise an army and march into the capital.
In Zhao Minghuai's view, once the Annamese army stormed into the capital, Prince Chen would be nothing more than a fish on a chopping board, at his mercy. If Prince Chen dared to show his face, he would use the pretext of killing a rebel to behead him on the spot...