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

Outside the Yangxin Palace, the wind was biting cold.

Chu Ning came walking on the bluestone imperial road, his black python robe rustling in the wind, and the dragon pattern on the jade belt around his waist glowed coldly under the dim light of the night.

Upon seeing him arrive, the imperial guards on duty in front of the palace immediately knelt on one knee and saluted with their fists clasped together: "Greetings, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

Chu Ning nodded slightly, his eyes swept across the tightly closed palace door, and he said calmly, "Is Your Majesty here?"

The leading imperial guard captain whispered, "Your Highness, His Majesty is reviewing the memorials."

Chu Ning's lips curled slightly, and a hint of sarcasm flashed in his eyes.

Reviewing memorials? Ever since he took over the government, the memorials sent to the Yangxin Palace were nothing more than insignificant greetings. The real military and national affairs had long been handled directly by the Eastern Palace.

"Open the door." His voice was calm, but unquestionable.

Inside the hall, the heater was burning brightly. The Emperor of Chu was leaning on the dragon couch, holding a book in his hand with a lazy look on his face.

Hearing the footsteps, he didn't even raise his head, but said coldly: "How come the prince has time to come to me today?"

Chu Ning stood still, bowed, and said in a respectful yet distant tone: "Your son has something important to report."

The Emperor of Chu then raised his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife: "Oh? Is there anything else in the court that requires my attention?"

Chu Ning's expression remained unchanged as he said directly, "The barbarians have sent an envoy who will arrive in Beijing in five days."

The King of Chu frowned, a hint of vigilance flashing in his eyes: "Barbarian envoys? What are you doing here?"

"It's nothing more than the murder of the barbarian spy and... the evidence that Grand Tutor Dugu Xin is colluding with them." Chu Ning said lightly.

The Emperor of Chu sneered, "Why, the Crown Prince is here to ask me to welcome the barbarian envoys?"

Chu Ning shook his head: "Your Majesty, you have misunderstood. I am only here to inform you. This matter will be handled by me. Your Majesty does not need to intervene."

The Emperor's eyes darkened, and his fingers tightened slightly, causing wrinkles on the pages of the book. "Oh? The Crown Prince is becoming more and more arbitrary now."

Chu Ning remained calm and composed. "I am simply worried that the barbarian delegation may have ill intentions. If they take the initiative to seek an audience with Father, trouble may arise."

The Emperor of Chu sat up straight with anger burning in his eyes. "Are you giving me orders?"

"I don't dare."

Chu Ning lowered his eyes slightly, but his tone remained unyielding: "I am just reminding Father that the barbarians are cunning, and the Grand Tutor is a lesson for us."

"you--"

The King of Chu's face suddenly changed and his chest heaved violently, obviously he had been hit in a sore spot.

Chu Ning didn't wait for him to explode, and directly bowed: "If there is nothing else, I will take my leave."

After saying this, he turned and walked away, his back as straight as a pine tree, without the slightest hesitation.

The moment the palace door closed, Emperor Chu slammed the book in his hand to the ground!

"Rebellious son!!"

He roared angrily, raised his hand and overturned the table, and the pen, ink, paper and inkstone scattered all over the floor.

The eunuch chief, Zhao Ming, was so frightened that he quickly knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please calm down! The Crown Prince is also thinking about you!"

The Emperor of Chu had a sinister look in his eyes. He kicked over the incense burner beside him, and the ashes scattered all over the floor. "For my sake? Ha! He is putting me under house arrest in disguise!"

Zhao Ming's forehead was sweating as he gritted his teeth and advised, "Your Majesty, the barbarians are insidious and cunning, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is afraid of them..."

"Shut up!"

The King of Chu interrupted sharply, his gaze piercing Zhao Ming like a knife, "Even you want to speak for him?"

Zhao Ming shuddered and kowtowed quickly, "I dare not! I am only worried about your Majesty's safety!"

The Emperor of Chu sneered repeatedly, his hands clenched in his sleeves until they turned white. "What a Chu Ning... I have already handed over the military power and even drafted the edict of succession, and yet he still guards me like a thief!"

He slowly walked to the window and looked towards the East Palace, his eyes cold and grim. "I want to see how he responds to the barbarian envoys!"

On this side, Chu Ning also returned to the East Palace.

East Palace, inside the courtyard.

The lights at night shine on the bluestone ground, casting a faint halo of light.

As soon as Chu Ning stepped into the gate of the East Palace, he heard a burst of childish crying coming from the backyard, occasionally interspersed with a few crisp scoldings.

He frowned slightly and unconsciously quickened his pace.

After walking around the corridor, the scene before him made him pause.

Three-year-old Chu Tian was sitting on the ground, his little face flushed red, tears streaming down his face, his little hands tightly clutching the corners of his clothes, looking very aggrieved.

The six-year-old Wu Xiuning stood aside with her hands on her hips, her eyes wide open, looking very disappointed.

When she saw Chu Ning appear, she immediately withdrew her hand like a cat whose tail was stepped on, stood up straight, and looked away with an expression that said, "I know I'm wrong but I won't say it."

"Father! You must make the decision for my child!"

As soon as Chu Tian saw Chu Ning, he immediately stretched out his little hand and cried out with sobs, his voice full of accusations.

Chu Ning's forehead twitched. He walked over, squatted down, reached out and wiped the tears from Chu Tian's face, and asked in a gentle voice:

"What's wrong? Who bullied you?"

Chu Tian sobbed and spoke intermittently, "Sister Xiuning...she, she insisted on making me do horse stance...my legs were so sore...she was also mean to me..."

Chu Ning looked up at Wu Xiuning, who immediately shrank her neck, but still stubbornly raised her little face and argued:

"I'm doing this for his own good! How can a man not know martial arts? When I was six years old, I could beat three imperial guards!"

Chu Ning: “…”

He took a deep breath and turned to look at the guard on duty. The guard immediately nodded and whispered:

"Your Highness, it is true. The Crown Prince cried out in exhaustion after just a few moments of treatment. Princess Xiuning refused to let him rest, and the little prince started crying."

Chu Ning rubbed his eyebrows, feeling helpless.

He raised his eyes and glanced in the direction of the back hall - Shen Wanying and Wu Zhao must have heard the noise a long time ago, but they chose not to show up, obviously wanting to see how he would handle this "sister-brother dispute."

"Xiu Ning."

He tried to keep his tone gentle, "Tian'er is still young, so right now he should focus on learning to read. We can wait until he's six to start martial arts training, okay?"

Wu Xiuning pouted, obviously not satisfied with the answer, but due to Chu Ning's authority, she nodded:

"Then... that's fine."

Chu Ning added, "When Tian'er turns six, I'll let you teach him personally. How about that?"

This sentence obviously hit Wu Xiuning's heart. Her eyes lit up and she immediately smiled:

"Really? That's a deal!"

Seeing that his sister no longer forced him to do horse stance, Chu Tian stopped crying, waved his little fists, and shouted in a baby voice:

"I, I will definitely surpass you in the future!"

Wu Xiuning laughed out loud when he heard this and rubbed his head with his hand: "Okay, I'll wait!"

The rear hall, behind the carved window lattices.

Shen Wanying and Wu Zhao stood side by side, taking in the entire scene in the courtyard.

"It seems that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince handled the situation well." Shen Wanying chuckled, with a hint of teasing in her eyes.

Wu Zhao raised the corners of her lips slightly, and tapped the window frame lightly with her fingertips: "I didn't expect that he is quite good at coaxing children."

Shen Wanying glanced at her sideways, her smile deepening: "Your Majesty, don't you want to go out and take a look?"

Wu Zhao snorted and turned to walk towards the inner hall: "I have no interest in participating in such childish farce."

Shen Wanying looked at her back, shook her head, and whispered to herself: "You're just being stubborn."

But then, a hint of worry flashed in her eyes.

She knew that the barbarian delegation was coming!