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

In the imperial study in the rear hall of the Taiji Hall, Li Shiming was reviewing memorials, and the sound of his red brush scratching on the bamboo slips could be clearly heard.

Suddenly, there was a sound of hurried footsteps outside the palace. The commander of the imperial guards, Luo Tong, rushed in without any notice and knelt on one knee:

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Fourth Prince has left the capital!"

"Snapped!"

The red brush in Li Shiming's hand broke with a sound, and the ink splashed on the memorial, creating a glaring red.

He stood up suddenly, and the teacup on the dragon table was overturned by his sleeve, and the scalding tea spilled onto the bright yellow dragon robe.

"Bastard thing!"

Li Shiming shouted angrily and slammed the table, causing the documents on the table to scatter to the ground.

"How dare you go to the front line without permission? You're totally lawless!"

The servants in the hall were so frightened that they knelt on the ground, not daring to breathe.

Li Shiming's face turned ashen, veins bulged on his forehead, and he paced back and forth in the hall, his dragon boots making dull sounds as they stepped on the golden bricks.

"Somebody come!"

He suddenly stopped and shouted, "Send orders to all checkpoints to conduct strict inspections. This rebellious son must be stopped! We absolutely cannot let him die on the front lines!"

Just as the commander of the Imperial Guards received the order and was about to retreat, Changsun Wuji, who had been standing quietly by the side, suddenly stepped forward and said with a bow:

"Your Majesty, please wait."

Li Shiming cast a sharp glance at this trusted minister: "What is your opinion, my dear minister?"

Changsun Wuji calmly adjusted his sleeves and said calmly, "I just asked your Highness's personal guards and learned that your Highness went in the direction of Luoyue Slope."

"In my humble opinion, instead of forcibly stopping it, it would be better to..."

"Not as good as what?" Li Shiming narrowed his eyes.

"Why not let His Highness go and see it for himself?"

Zhang Sun Wuji smiled slightly: "With the military god General Li Jing in charge, I'm sure His Highness will be able to do nothing wrong."

Li Shiming frowned, walked to the window, and looked at the gloomy sky in the north: "My dear, why are you suddenly speaking up for that rebellious son today?"

Changsun Wuji stepped forward slowly and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, please understand. The State of Wei has always been resentful of our dynasty's delay in sending troops. If our prince goes to the front in person..."

Before he finished speaking, Li Shiming's eyes flashed, and he turned and stared at Changsun Wuji: "You mean..."

"Exactly."

Changsun Wuji nodded with a smile: "Plus, the Scorpion Tribe cooperated with us in the play. Even if Sima Yi wanted to make a fuss about this, he would not be able to do so."

Li Shiming stroked his beard thoughtfully and walked back to the dragon table.

He picked up a memorial and put it down again, then suddenly asked, "Where is that rebellious son now?"

"Based on the time calculation, we should have already passed the capital."

Changsun Wuji replied, "It's probably too late to send people after them now."

Li Shiming was silent for a long time, then suddenly let out a meaningful sigh: "Forget it, since I can't stop it, I'll just make the best use of it."

He sat back on the dragon throne, took a fresh piece of rice paper, and ground the ink himself: "I will write a letter to Sima Yi right now, saying that the Fourth Prince heard that the war in Wei was urgent and volunteered to go to help."

Zhang Sun Wuji's eyes flashed with approval: "Your Majesty is wise. This way, we can not only silence the Wei Kingdom, but also..."

"I can make that ignorant brat suffer a little bit again."

Li Shiming snorted coldly, but his pen continued to move. "Tell Li Jing to protect that rebellious son. If anything goes wrong, bring him to justice!"

Upon hearing this, Changsun Wuji stopped talking immediately.

There were some things he only said briefly; if he continued, the emperor would lose face.

He has served Li Shiming for so many years and knows Li Shiming very well.

Since the Fourth Prince has already gone to the front line and this matter cannot be stopped, the only thing we can do is to maximize the benefits of this matter.

Half an hour later, a carrier pigeon flew out of the palace and headed straight for the State of Wei.

At the same time, in the northern border between the Tang Dynasty and the Scorpion Tribe, a carefully planned "war" was taking place.

At dawn, 30,000 Scorpion cavalry suddenly appeared outside the Tang Dynasty border military camp.

Leading the group was none other than the Scorpion Clan general Ashina Yuandu. He was clad in black armor, his face painted with hideous battle patterns, and looked particularly terrifying in the morning light.

"Fire arrows!"

With his order, thousands of rockets streaked across the sky and landed on the Tang army camp.

The tents were instantly engulfed in flames, and the Tang soldiers fled in panic.

"Withdraw! Quickly withdraw!"

Tang army general Liu Rengui "hastily" ordered his troops to retreat southward in a "disorganized" manner.

The Scorpion Cavalry let out earth-shaking shouts, brandished their scimitars and charged into the empty military camp, cutting down all the Tang army flags.

However, this "defeat" only lasted half a day.

That afternoon, the regrouped Tang army suddenly launched a surprise counterattack.

Liu Rengui personally led the elite troops to launch a surprise attack from the flank, engaging in a "fierce battle" with the "unprepared" Scorpion army.

The two armies fought back and forth with swords flashing and sabers flying. It seemed brutal but in fact they were holding back.

Arrows were aimed specifically at shields, and swords were aimed only at armor.

The soldiers' shouts were deafening, but only a few actually fell.

When the battle reached dusk, Ashina Yuandu ordered a retreat as agreed.

The Scorpion cavalry fled north in a panic, leaving behind dozens of tattered flags.

Liu Rengui pursued the enemy for more than ten miles before calling back his troops.

Returning to the camp, Liu Rengui wiped the "blood" off his face—actually, it was the cinnabar water he had prepared long ago—and laughed:

"That was a good scene!"

The deputy general came over and whispered, "General, the list of our casualties has been drawn up. There are 328 of them, all of whom were deserters previously recorded."

Liu Rengui nodded with satisfaction: "Very good, immediately send someone 800 miles to report the victory to His Majesty and the State of Wei!"

"Let's just say our border troops fought bloody battles, repelling the Scorpion Tribe's 50,000-man army, beheading 8,000, while suffering over 300 casualties."

He looked at the gradually dissipating dust in the north, a meaningful smile curling up his lips. "Now, His Royal Highness the Fourth Prince's initiative to fight is even more convincing."

That night, several carrier pigeons took off from the Tang army camp.

One flew towards Chang'an, one flew towards the capital of Wei, and the other flew quietly towards the Chu camp.

On an official road leading to the front line of Luoyuepo, Li Ge, who knew nothing about this, was still riding his horse.

He walked into the central military tent with high spirits, but he didn't know that he had become an important political pawn, and he didn't know that a real storm was brewing.

Looking at the dark night, a cold look appeared in Li Ge's eyes.

"Chu Ning, everyone says you are so cunning and the most talented person in the world, but I don't believe it!"

"Hmph, this time, I will first capture your 60,000-man army at Luoyue Slope, and then command the Wei army to defeat your main force!"

"A mere illegitimate child, do you think you can truly be invincible just by sitting on the throne?"

"I am the fourth prince of the Tang Dynasty, and I will make sure you never return!"

Li Ge was full of confidence and prepared to take the opportunity to annihilate the Chu army, kill Chu Ning, make great achievements, and inherit the throne.