Wandering the Heavens

"Zhuo Dingfeng was beaten to a pulp, and Xie Yu was scared half to death!"

Li Gang reported this to Mei Changsu, and soon Xiao Jingrui and Yan Yujin came hand in hand, and they also confirmed the authenticity of the news.

"Is the Marquis okay now?" Mei Changsu thought about it and decided to hear the details.

"Father is in a very bad condition now. He was summoned to the palace for questioning early in the morning and was eventually beaten with thirty sticks for dereliction of duty. After the execution, he was unable to stand and was carried back to the mansion. On the surface, it was because of dereliction of duty, but in fact, it was because he secretly defected to the prince and let the fact that Xie Bi worked for Prince Yu be exposed, which angered the emperor." Xiao Jingrui's words were full of disappointment.

Zhuo Dingfeng's serious injury and his father's dismissal from office reminded him of the Ningguo Marquisate's awkward position of betting on both sides.

"It's normal for the emperor to be angry after such a big incident happened outside the palace on New Year's Eve. I believe that it won't be long before Lord Xie will be able to return to his post," Mei Changsu comforted.

"It's difficult. I'm afraid Lord Xie won't be able to hold on for long." Yan Yujin shook his head.

"Father... he is no longer conscious. The doctor diagnosed him with trauma and excessive worry." Xiao Jingrui was also confused.

Overnight, the Ningguo Marquis Mansion became unfamiliar. The once harmonious Ningguo Marquis Mansion and Tianquan Villa were now in a bleak state. Zhuo Qingyao was young and energetic, but he was only incompetent and furious. Xie Qi was pregnant and had to comfort him.

Yan Yujin noticed the reactions of both Xiao Jingrui and Mei Changsu.

With such a thing happening during such a big festival, there wasn't much to say, and after a few pleasantries, Xiao Jingrui and Yan Yujin said goodbye and left.

After seeing them off, Mei Changsu asked Li Gang to pack up as he was going to visit Meng Zhi.

Mei Changsu was not surprised that Meng Zhi was beaten with ten military sticks during the New Year, and told him to rest and recover until the time came to apologize. However, Mei Changsu was surprised that Zhuo Dingfeng was deposed and Xie Yu was desperate after being summoned.

Up to now, they still can't figure out why this person took action.

Zhuo Dingfeng, one of the top ten swordsmen on the Langya List, was crippled and thrown in front of the gate of Ningguo Marquis' Mansion on New Year's Eve. The news spread quickly, and well-known masters began to go to Jinling, looking for an opportunity to challenge this mysterious man.

This was fueled by the Langya Pavilion and the Jiangzuo League, who wanted to force this person out in this way.

The consequences of this incident were still very serious. Xie Yu lost his job. Apart from the title of Marquis, he no longer had any real power. He was relieved of his duties in Jinling's city defense and the Xuanjing Division. Because Xia Dong took action, he reported to Xiao Xuan all his dirty deeds of secretly supporting the crown prince and letting his son Xie Bi join Prince Yu.

This kind of fence-sitter who is so deeply hidden made Xiao Xuan, who had entrusted him with an important task, extremely disappointed. If it weren't for the eldest princess and the dirty work he did back then, he really wanted to kill Xie Yu to vent his anger.

But surprisingly, the patrol battalion was finally handed over to Xiao Jingyan, who was pretending to be a grandson at home.

No one knows a son better than his father. Xiao Xuan knew that his stubborn son would not be able to force the emperor to abdicate.

The current situation is that the Crown Prince has lost several powerful ministers who supported him, and Prince Yu has gained the upper hand. Therefore, a prince must be supported to compete with Prince Yu, and the simple-minded Xiao Jingyan becomes his inevitable choice.

Mei Changsu was not optimistic about Prince Jing reappearing in front of the court officials in a short period of time, but he had to do his job no matter how reluctant he was, as he had to obey the emperor's orders.

Mei Changsu naturally tried every means to make amends for Prince Jing in front of Prince Yu. So under Qin Prajna's suggestion, Prince Yu pushed many things to Prince Jing in order to show his concern for his brother, saying that young people should exercise more.

Among them was the case of an explosion in a private gun factory.

New Year's Eve, New Year's Day and Lantern Festival were so close together that firecrackers and fireworks were in short supply during this period. For this reason, the prince's private gun workshop worked overtime and forgot some necessary procedures, resulting in a huge explosion.

Coincidentally, on the day of the explosion, the Queen went out of the palace to the temple to pray for the Empress Dowager. In order to let the gods and Buddhas see her sincerity, she also requested the Emperor to order the people of the nearby streets to follow Queen Yan out of the city, and all expenses would be borne by the Yan family.

Xiao Xuan thought that Queen Yan's request was quite boring, but filial piety was more important than anything else, so no matter how unwilling he was, he had to obey her imperial decree and let Prince Yu go with him to handle it, and he left Jinling with nearly a thousand people. Afterwards, he was glad that he listened to the Queen.

Therefore, in this huge explosion, only the workers and the manager inside the private gun factory died.

The person behind the private gun factory was the former Minister of Revenue Lou Zhijing. Lou Zhijing was the prince's man, so Prince Yu did not have any psychological burden about handing this case over to Prince Jing. He was wholeheartedly looking for money to resettle the people.

The Crown Prince was badly bullied by his stubborn younger brother. If it weren't for Concubine Yue's pity and Prince Yu's popularity, his punishment would never have been as light as confinement.

Of course Prince Jing was dissatisfied with this punishment, so he became even more irritated.

When a new storm was brewing in Nanjing, an urgent report from the southern border was sent to the palace.

There were rumors in Chu that the siblings of Prince Mu were imprisoned in Jinling, and the southern defense line was leaderless, so the army was assembled and would march north in the near future.

Xiao Xuan threw things again, and quickly summoned the Crown Prince, Prince Yu, Prince Jing, the Mu siblings, and the Ministry of War and Ministry of Revenue to discuss the matter.

"Father, your Majesty, I think that Prince Jing has been fighting outside for many years, so you can send him to the southern border to prepare for war." Prince Yu was about to tear off the roof as soon as he came up.

Before coming, Qin Prajna told him that no matter what, the Mu family was bound to leave Jinling, but the emperor might not agree readily and he had to find a way out. Prince Yu was willing to give him this way out.

"Father, your Majesty, I am willing to go!" Prince Jing stepped forward to express his opinion.

"You are confused! What are the people of Chu saying? It's because I imprisoned Prince Mu's mansion in Jinling that I planned to send troops. If I let you go, you will just sit back and watch their rumors!" Xiao Xuan looked at Prince Jing who was confused and scolded helplessly.

“Father, I request that Princess Nihuang and Prince Mu return to the southern border to garrison and prepare for war.” The prince stepped forward and began to bargain.

"So..." Xiao Xuan hesitated.

He had finally managed to get the two of them to Jinling with the help of Mu Qing's inheritance of the title, and he was extremely reluctant to let them go back.

"Your Majesty, why don't you let Mu Qing go back? Nihuang has been fighting in the southern border for many years and is tired of the fighting. It would be just right for her to recuperate in Jinling." Mu Nihuang stood up and spoke slowly.

"Your Majesty, I have been under my sister's protection for many years. I am afraid that I will be overwhelmed if I return to the southern border alone. Please send someone to assist me." Mu Qing made the request at this moment.

"Tell me who you want to help."

Xiao Xuan thought about it and decided that he could only let Mu Qing go back. With Mu Nihuang as a hostage in Jinling, he had to think about his sister first before doing anything.

"I want Xiao Jingrui, the young master of Ningguo Marquis' Mansion, and Yan Yujin." Mu Qing smiled innocently.

"You want to take them both to the southern border. Do you want to fight or have fun traveling?" Xiao Xuan's face darkened.

Everyone knows that after Mu Qing entered Jinling, he got along well with the two of them. For three kids to go to the southern border, where the sky is high and the emperor is far away, they might as well go to heaven.

"Your Majesty, I think the young prince's request is reasonable, but they are all young people after all. I suggest sending someone to supervise them." The Minister of War now began to speak up.

Xiao Xuan fell silent after hearing what the Minister of War said. The Prince Mu's Mansion had guarded the southern border for many years and managed it like an iron barrel. At this time, Mu Qing took the initiative to ask for people, and they were all related to the royal family. Perhaps this was also an opportunity to extend his hand into the southern border.

"What you said makes sense. I agree. But Mu Qing, in order to let the three of you prepare for war in the southern border, I will let Xia Dong keep an eye on you. Don't just think about having fun and traveling around all day."

"I obey your command." Mu Qing thanked him weakly.