Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

"Dissatisfied?"

Chu Ning sneered at the four clan leaders in front of him: "Even if you don't accept it, you are now my prisoners!"

"Your Majesty!"

Chen An shouted loudly, and Meng Xiao, Bai Miao, and Zhao Pan's knees went weak and they fell to their knees.

Only Lin Jian straightened his back, his eyes blazing with anger.

"Chu Ning! You can kill me or chop me up as you please, but don't even think about humiliating me!" Lin Jian's voice was hoarse, and his face was still stained with blood, but he couldn't hide his arrogance.

Chu Ning didn't take it as an offense, instead he chuckled, "Lin Jian, why are you so angry? If you hadn't been rebellious in the first place, how could you have ended up in this situation today?"

"The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. There is no point in talking too much!"

Lin Jian sneered: "I only regret that I couldn't kill you, a young boy, with my own hands!"

The palace's civil and military officials paled at the words, and Chen An's face was gloomy: "How dare you, a traitor! How dare you speak disrespectfully to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

Chu Ning raised his hand to stop them, his eyes sweeping over the four clan leaders: "Do you know why the White Horse Cavalry suddenly came back to support? Why did the palace guards seem to be empty? Why were you able to break into the South Gate so easily?"

Meng Xiao raised his head, a hint of doubt flashing in his cloudy eyes: "What... do you mean?"

"meaning is……"

Chu Ning slowly stood up and walked down the stairs calmly: "This is all in my plan."

"Nonsense!"

Lin Jian violently struggled against the chains, causing a loud clattering sound. "You only won by chance, yet you dare to boast so shamelessly!"

"We almost succeeded last night. Humph, why do you have to show off in front of us with such a condescending attitude?"

He just wanted to know the answer.

But seeing Chu Ning's expression, he would rather not know the answer.

Chu Ning stopped in front of Lin Jian, and their eyes clashed like swords.

But Chu Ning suddenly smiled, and that smile made Lin Jian's heart tremble inexplicably.

"Master Yang!"

Chu Ning turned around and called out, "Why don't you explain this to the four clan leaders?"

He enjoyed the feeling of being a winner at this moment.

Of course, he didn't want to explain this kind of thing himself.

Yang Xingye, who had been standing behind the crowd, strode out, his armor clanging.

His right arm was still bandaged, the injury from the assassination attempt a few days ago.

"Yang Xingye?" Bai Miao's face was gloomy, full of confusion. "Aren't you seriously injured and dying?"

If they had not almost succeeded in assassinating Yang Xingye, they would not have been so confident.

Yang Xingye touched the wound on his right arm and smiled meaningfully: "Bai Miao, this wound is not a vital one, it just caused more bleeding."

"If not, how could you all believe that His Royal Highness truly had no one to rely on, and how could you have the audacity to rebel?"

There was an uproar in the hall, and Lin Jian's face changed suddenly, as if he had thought of something terrible.

"A few days ago!"

Yang Xingye looked around at everyone and said in a loud voice, "His Royal Highness has sent me news that the Jin State has been plagued by long-standing problems and that the new policies have been repeatedly obstructed by the aristocratic families."

"The four major families, in particular, control the local military and political power, annex land, and enslave the people. If we use tough measures to eradicate them, it may cause unrest. If we leave them alone, it will be even more difficult to govern in the future."

Zhao Pan sneered when he heard this: "Just based on your one-sided statement?"

"Don't be impatient."

Yang Xingye took out a stack of secret letters from his pocket and said, "These are the letters that the four of you have exchanged with the Tang Dynasty envoys over the past two months."

"You promised to cede the three northern states, the Meng family provided military rations, the Bai family was responsible for transmitting intelligence, and the Zhao family was prepared to support the Yan army at the border. The evidence is irrefutable. Do you still want to quibble?"

Lin Jian's face was ashen, his lips trembling: "You...you have long..."

"good."

Chu Ning took over the conversation, his voice calm but with unquestionable power.

"I have long known that you are colluding with foreign enemies, but if I take direct action, I will inevitably be branded as someone who oppresses aristocratic families, and it will be difficult to govern Jin in the future."

He paused, a sharp glint in his eyes. "I will first have General Yang pretend to be seriously injured and use this as an excuse to return to Jinyang. Then I will deliberately transfer the White Horse Cavalry to weaken the palace guards."

Yang Xingye added, "I pretended to be seriously injured and unconscious, and His Royal Highness pretended to be frightened and angry, making it impossible to implement the new policy. All of this was done to lure the snake out of its hole."

Meng Xiao suddenly burst into a shrill laugh: "What a trick! Chu Ning, you are a hundred times more vicious than the rumors say!"

"vicious?"

Chu Ning's eyes turned cold. "The Meng family seized 3,000 hectares of farmland from the people and forced 78 tenants to death. Lord Bai also sold illegal salt, causing the official salt to stagnate and the people to have difficulty eating."

He looked directly at the other three people: "As for you, you colluded with the enemy country and intended to split the land and become king. Who is so cruel?"

Lin Jian's forehead was covered in cold sweat, but he still said forcefully, "Even so, this place is also the land of our Jin State. You are just an outsider. We are contacting the Tang Dynasty only to restore our country!

"To restore the country? The Jin State has been destroyed, so how can we talk about restoring the country?"

Chu Ning stood with his hands behind his back, his voice suddenly rising, "But for the sake of the people of the world, for the sake of the land of Jin, there are some things that must be done!"

"The four of you are so intertwined and intertwined. How can we eliminate you all in one fell swoop if we don't resort to extraordinary measures?"

These words were so powerful that everyone present was shocked.

Even Lin Jian, who had been shouting, was speechless, and the anger in his eyes gradually turned into fear.

Seeing that the situation was getting tense, Chu Ning softened her tone and said, "Actually, if you had behaved yourself, why would I resort to such a desperate measure?"

"The new policy was intended to leave room for the aristocratic families, but you are greedy and have brought about your own destruction."

Bai Miao suddenly fell to the ground, tears streaming down his face. "Your Highness, please have mercy! I was simply confused for a moment and was bewitched by Lin Jian. I'm willing to give away all my wealth just to save my life!"

Seeing this, Zhao Pan and Meng Xiao also kowtowed and begged for mercy.

Only Lin Jian gritted his teeth and remained silent, but his legs were shaking slightly.

"What else do you have to say?" Chu Ning asked.

Lin Jian was silent for a long time, and finally he sighed: "Your Highness, your methods are excellent, and I am convinced."

These words seemed to drain all his strength, and he instantly became hunched over, without a trace of his former majesty.

Chu Ning nodded slightly, turned and walked towards the dragon throne, his sleeves bringing up a breeze.

He stood still on the steps, looking down at the ministers: "What happened today was not because I was bloodthirsty, but because I had no choice but to do it for the sake of the country."

"The four great families are guilty of treason. According to the law, their entire clan will be implicated. Their land will be confiscated and distributed among the landless. Private armies will be disbanded, and able-bodied men will return to farming."

This decision was both majestic and benevolent, and the court officials bowed down in admiration: "Your Highness the Crown Prince is wise!"

The sunlight now completely shone into the hall, making Chu Ning's figure look tall and slender.

He looked at the clear sky outside the temple and knew that a new era was about to begin.

The four major families, the thorns that were embedded in the flesh and blood of the State of Jin, were finally uprooted.

What he needs to do is to let the people of this land truly enjoy the blessings of peace and prosperity.

"Take all of these traitors away and behead them in public!"

Chu said in a deep voice, his voice was filled with relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders, but also with the determination that there was still a long way to go.

After dealing with these people, the next step is to prepare how to deal with the three major dynasties!