The powerful princess arrives with a space warehouse

At this moment, Crown Prince Tuoba Di sneered in his heart, but he did not show it on his face. He just looked at his father seriously. He seemed to be pleading for these three people:

"Father, now is not the time to hold the Imperial Uncle, General Zhen, and Second Brother accountable. This matter seems quite suspicious. Our main priority is to quickly find these missing war horses."

The emperor snorted coldly, anger boiling in his eyes, and swept his sharp gaze over the three people below the stairs.

Prince Han Tuoba Honghan and Second Prince Tuoba Feng were stunned when the Crown Prince kindly spoke up to defend them. Why didn't the Crown Prince kick them when they were down? Instead, he spoke up for them.

Does he have such good intentions? What's his plan? Could it be that the Crown Prince and General Zhen are colluding to frame them?

Crown Prince Tuoba Di ignored the two men's expressions and continued, "Father, in my opinion, there are only two possibilities for the mysterious disappearance of so many war horses in Black Sand City."

Zhen Song's eyes were full of doubts. He looked at Tuoba Di and said anxiously:

"Your Highness, please tell me quickly, what are the two possibilities? I, Prince Han, the Second Prince, and I have turned almost the entire Black Sand City upside down, but we haven't even seen the shadow of a warhorse."

"Your Highness believes that one possibility is that someone bribed the guards at the west gate of Black Sand City and sent all the war horses to a tribe in the desert. Another possibility is that someone lured these war horses away from the Xiling Mountains."

Tuoba Honghan's brow furrowed after hearing the Crown Prince's analysis. Could it be that this incident really wasn't the work of Crown Prince Tuoba Di and his men? He thought again: although Tuoba Di and the Second Prince were at odds, they shared the same desire to go to war with Western Chu. So, he wouldn't necessarily make any small moves at this time.

He pondered for a moment, and felt that what Tuoba Di said was very likely, so he nodded and said, "What the prince said is indeed possible."

But he immediately frowned again, looked at the emperor sitting on the dragon throne, and said to his dear brother:

"Your Majesty, if this matter is as the Crown Prince speculates, I still have doubts. Who did this? What is their purpose?"

Upon hearing this, the emperor couldn't help but frown, obviously stumped by the question.

Tuoba Di's eyes flashed coldly, and he asked, "Uncle, have you sent anyone to interrogate the guards at the west gate of Black Sand City?"

"No!" King Han shook his head.

"Brother Crown Prince, how could those guards have the guts to collude with others and release the war horses privately? Besides, how could thousands of war horses run silently? And how could our patrol soldiers not notice it?" Second Prince Tuoba Feng hurriedly defended.

These soldiers from Black Sand City all belong to King Han, which means they are his people. Naturally, he does not want to weaken his own power.

Tuoba Di glanced at Tuoba Feng calmly without saying anything. He then asked, "Uncle, General Zhen, Second Brother, have you sent anyone to search for him in the Xiling Mountains south of Black Sand City?"

He knew that the Xiling Mountains were very deep and large, leading all the way to the swampy area of ​​southern Xinjiang. On the other side, after crossing a few mountains, it led to the desert area. However, no one could generally enter this mountain range. There were many large animals, snakes, and poisonous creatures, and in some places there was even poisonous fog.

"Your Majesty and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, I once led soldiers to search the periphery of the mountain over there and near the foot of the mountain, but we didn't find even a single horse hoof print." General Zhen Song reported.

Tuoba Feng also hurriedly said: "Father! I, your son, your uncle, and the generals have all searched those places."

He continued, "I think if the war horses entered the Xiling Mountains, they would have no chance of survival, and we would probably still hear their neighing. Besides, there were thousands of them. Who could have the ability to lead so many horses away silently without alerting anyone?"

Crown Prince Tuoba Di pondered for a moment and said, "Your Highness feels that one of our men must be involved in this matter." He glanced at Prince Han and said, "Uncle, I am not saying this to target your men. I am simply addressing the matter at hand."

When King Han heard what Tuoba Di said, he looked at Tuoba Di with a cold light in his eyes, but he had no way to make any excuses. It was indeed at his hands that they lost thousands of war horses.

Tuoba Di continued his analysis, "Without our involvement, it would have been impossible to lead so many war horses away quietly."

"Father, in my opinion, the one who could easily take the warhorse away must be someone the warhorse is familiar with."

He paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered an important clue. He looked up at the emperor and said, "Father, I suddenly remembered that some tribes in the desert are proficient in a horse-controlling technique."

The emperor leaned on the dragon throne, his face as gloomy as ink, and his eyes swept over the people in the hall with a heavy gaze, remaining silent.

Hearing what the prince said, he frowned slightly, obviously recalling the related rumors. Not only did the desert tribe have such talented people, but even in Southern Xinjiang and Beiyue Kingdom, there were people who were good at horse riding.

At this moment, Tuoba Honghan suddenly remembered and quickly stepped forward and said, "Your Highness is absolutely right. Your Majesty, I have just remembered that there are people in the Dirong tribe who are proficient in this technique."

"Di Rong?" Tuoba Di's voice suddenly turned cold as he pressed the issue, "Uncle, are you sure anyone in the Di Rong tribe has such abilities?"

"That's right!" King Han nodded solemnly, his tone becoming more serious. "Among the Dirong tribe, there are not only people who are proficient in horse control, but also those who are skilled in controlling insects and snakes."

Tuoba Di's eyes glared. "So, this matter is very likely related to Di Rong!" He then asked:

"On the day Zhan Ma disappeared, were there any unusual sightings in Black Sand City? For example... did any Dirong people enter Black Sand City? Or were there any other people familiar with Zhan Ma?"

After Tuoba Di's questioning, Prince Han, General Zhen Song, and the Second Prince were all startled. Then their expressions changed, and they blurted out almost at the same time: "That day... Di Rong's people did come to Black Sand City!"

"What? What did you say? Di Rong's men have been to Black Sand City?" The emperor was furious and slammed the table. "What were they doing in Black Sand City?"

"Father," Tuoba Feng muttered in a low voice, his face full of confusion, "We bought our war horses from the Dirong tribe. Why would they steal the horses they sold to us?"

The emperor was furious when he saw this. He grabbed a memorial and threw it at him, cursing, "Idiot!"

The memorial hit Tuoba Feng's forehead hard, then slid down his clothes and fell to the ground. He was filled with grievance and doubt, but he didn't dare to ask any more questions. He could only stand there with his head down.

Tuoba Di was about to speak when the emperor's personal eunuch walked in from the doorway and reported to the emperor: "Your Majesty, the Minister of Rites is requesting an audience outside the palace!"

The emperor calmed down for a while before speaking, "Announce!"

"Yes"

After a while, the Minister of Rites Xuan Yiming hurried in and saluted the emperor: "Your Majesty, your humble servant pays respects to you!"

Then he said to the Crown Prince and the others, "Your humble servant greets His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Prince Han, and the Second Prince."

"What's the matter!" the emperor said coldly.

"Your Majesty, the envoys from Western Chu and Beiyue who are attending the Crown Prince's wedding have arrived in the capital."