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

Inside the Golden Throne Hall, Emperor Chu was pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back, his restless figure reflected on the gilded floor tiles.

Outside the window, the autumn rain was drizzling, hitting the century-old ginkgo tree outside the hall, making a rustling sound, adding a bit of boredom.

"Your Majesty, you have been gone for two hours. Your health is very important."

The eunuch chief, Zhao Ming, held the ginseng tea and advised cautiously.

The Emperor of Chu turned abruptly, his bright yellow dragon robe drawing a sharp arc in the candlelight. "If anything happens to the Crown Prince, what use will this dragon body have on me?"

Before he finished speaking, the sound of the guards kneeling in unison outside the palace suddenly came: "Your Highness the Crown Prince is welcome back to the palace!"

The vermilion palace door was pushed open, and a cool breeze carrying rain blew in.

Chu Ning stepped over the threshold wearing an ink-black cloak, with fine water droplets on the ends of his hair.

The King of Chu took two steps forward and grasped his son's shoulders tightly with both hands. The force was so strong that even the embroidered dragon pattern was wrinkled.

"Are you feeling unwell? Can the poison be cured?"

The King of Chu's voice trembled, and his eyes swept over Chu Ning's body with a sharp gaze.

Only when he saw his son smiling and shaking his head did his tense back relax a little, and he turned around and shouted:

"Imperial Physician! Hurry up and check the prince's pulse!"

The white-haired old doctor trotted forward, but Chu Ning raised his hand to stop him: "Your son is fine now."

He turned to his father, a sharp glint in his eyes: "I need to tell you in detail about the murderer."

Emperor Chu raised his eyebrows and waved his hand to signal everyone to leave.

After all the palace servants had left, the Emperor of Chu tapped the secret memorial on the dragon table with his fingertips: "I have heard that the barbarian envoy Tuoba Lie was the one who poisoned me!"

"Although the barbarians are powerful, they dare to poison you. This is a provocation to our dynasty!"

"I will order this man to be executed immediately!"

"No."

Chu Ning's voice made the candlelight in the hall flicker: "The murderer is not Tuoba Lie."

"what?"

The King of Chu slammed the table and stood up, causing the teacups on the table to clink.

He suddenly narrowed his eyes, his voice suddenly turning cold: "Prince, do you also doubt me?"

Chu Ning was startled and saw that his father's hands were clenched white in his sleeves.

He suddenly remembered the secret report that Jia Yu had handed over that day - "Your Majesty has been summoning the Imperial Physician frequently in recent days."

"Why does Father say that?"

Chu Ning pretended to be surprised, but his eyes swept across the bronze crane incense burner in the corner of the hall.

In the curling green smoke, he saw the dark currents surging in his father's eyes.

The Emperor of Chu suddenly opened a secret compartment on his desk and threw a stack of memorials in front of Chu Ning. "Your good minister! Jia Yu is the most suspicious of me sharing the imperial meal with you. Ling Haoran is even more ruthless. He even investigated every detail of my contact with the barbarian envoys!"

The parchment scroll rolled to the ground, revealing the word "absurd" written in red.

Thunder rumbled outside the hall, and a flash of lightning illuminated Chu Ning's suddenly cold face.

He bent down to pick up the memorial, his fingertips lingering on the three words "heart-eating poison", and suddenly chuckled:

"Lord Jia has always been cautious, and General Ling is straightforward. Why should the emperor be angry?"

He personally poured a cup of cloud tea for his father and said, "If I had any suspicion of the emperor, I would have brought the imperial guards to question him."

Amidst the aroma of tea, Chu Ning gazed at the newly grown white hair on his father's temples.

How could this old man who had handed over the military command to him have the ability to contact the barbarians outside the palace?

Jia Yu and Ling Haoran suspected him, but they were also anxious to find the murderer.

"Let's play a game of chess."

The King of Chu suddenly interrupted his thoughts and took out a Hetian jade chessboard from the Duobao Pavilion.

"Whenever I feel upset, I play chess to calm myself down. Actually, you and I haven't played many games together."

As the black and white jade pieces landed on the chessboard, the Emperor of Chu suddenly sighed, "The barbarians are adept at using poison. It's said that the Green Blood Pill requires seven kinds of poisonous insects to refine for ninety-nine and eighty-one days."

He placed a black piece: "If you conquer the barbarians someday..."

"You must first obtain the poison sutra."

Chu Ning's white piece cut off the black dragon, and a gleam of light flashed in his eyes.

He thought of the Barbarian Saint mentioned in the Jinyiwei intelligence. It was said that this woman was good at making strange poisons and had used poisons in foreign wars.

He had long been wary of the barbarians.

There are now nine dynasties in the Central Plains, and the Chu State occupies the land of five dynasties. It is extremely powerful. After dealing with the remaining three dynasties, it will definitely defeat the barbarians in the future.

After all, the barbarians have opposed him time and time again, so he can't let them go.

The King of Chu nodded with satisfaction and asked, "What are the recent developments of the Three Dynasties?"

"It's just a double act."

Chu Ning chuckled and pointed at the chess piece in Yanzhou: "I have deployed three legions there, with 160,000 soldiers and horses, enough to give them a hard time!"

"Even if it's a sneak attack, they won't be able to gain any advantage."

He never dared to take the Three Dynasties lightly.

Whether it is Li Shiming, Sima Yi, or Liu Che, these three are not ordinary people.

It is not easy to defeat the other party.

Now the other party is accumulating strength, but isn't he the same?

However, he now occupies the land of five dynasties and is even more powerful. The longer the time drags on, the more advantageous it will be for him.

And this is why he wants to continue delaying.

Even though Sanchao is recruiting soldiers and horses now, he believes that time is on his side.

While thinking, a confident smile flashed across his face.

The King of Chu didn't notice his son's unusual behavior. He was worried that his excessive focus on the frontline troops would cause Chu Ning to be unhappy, so he changed the subject:

"The person who poisoned you this time must hate you to the core. If you don't get rid of him..."

Before he finished speaking, Chu Ning suddenly stood up and the jade chess pieces rolled all over the ground.

"I hate you to the core..."

Chu Ning muttered to himself, and many people in Kyoto City appeared before his eyes.

But he really couldn't imagine that he had any enemies in Kyoto.

After all, all the civil and military officials in the court support him now.

In addition, he returned with even greater power after destroying the State of Jin. How could he still have any enemies?

"Ning'er? Ning'er?"

When the King of Chu saw that Chu Ning didn't say anything, he looked up in confusion, only to find that his son had recovered as usual.

"Your son remembered that the military report has not been reviewed yet." Chu Ning bowed and took his leave.

In the rain, Chu Ning walked quickly through the corridor.

The King of Chu was stunned.

We were playing chess well, why did you just quit?

Did I say something wrong just now?

Thinking of this, the Emperor of Chu couldn't help but shout outside the palace: "Zhao Ming!"

"Your Majesty!" The eunuch chief, Zhao Ming, walked into the hall in small steps.

The emperor pointed to the position opposite him and said, "You come and finish this game with me."

Zhao Ming's mouth twitched: "Your Majesty, please don't torture me. I am no match for you."

"Huh, boring!"

The Emperor of Chu lost interest and waved his hand to disrupt the chess game. He said with displeasure, "I was about to win, but he didn't want to play anymore?"

After a pause, he looked at Zhao Ming and asked, "Tell me, did I offend him with what I said just now?"

The corner of Zhao Ming's mouth twitched.

This is a life-threatening question.

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince left in such a hurry, I'm afraid he may have thought of some clues about the poisoning."

Zhao Ming looked in the direction Chu Ning left and whispered, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has always been cautious. If he leaves in such a hurry, I'm afraid he's going to take action."

Emperor Chu raised his eyebrows: "But, he just said that he had no clues."

Shaking his head, he said, "Forget it. Let him be. I can't control it anyway."