The female anchor turned into the dean of an ancient academy

"Oh? What do you mean, Your Highness?" Chai Zhen remained calm and looked composed.

"Nothing, I just heard that the Great Zhou now values culture over military affairs, and Zhaoyin Academy is famous and has attracted many talents. I just don't know if these scholars who are full of knowledge can withstand the iron hoofs of thousands of troops?" Xia Chenghao smiled unintentionally.

Chai Zhen naturally understood the meaning of his words, but he was not annoyed. He just smiled faintly and asked, "Your Highness, what do you think is the most important thing for a person to be invincible?"

"Of course it's military force." Xia Chenghao answered without thinking. In his opinion, only by possessing powerful military force can one conquer everything and get everything he wants. He paused, and said with a bit of pride: "After learning the reforms of the Great Zhou, my Xixiang country has worked hard for more than ten years. Now we have a strong army and sufficient granaries. In the past five years, we have not suffered a single defeat." He deliberately paused, observing Chai Zhen's expression, and seeing that the other party was still calm, he continued, "These five years also include the Sanchuan Battle with the Great Zhou." He deliberately emphasized the words "Sanchuan Battle", as if reminding Chai Zhen something.

"Xixiang now has 400,000 regular infantry and cavalry," Xia Chenghao leaned forward slightly, staring at Chai Zhen with a burning gaze. "Your Majesty, if these 400,000 infantry and cavalry were chess pieces on this chessboard, how would Your Majesty deal with them?"

Chai Zhen laughed instead of getting angry, as if he had heard something funny. He put down the chess piece in his hand, leaned back in his chair, and looked at Xia Chenghao's face. He said slowly, "Your Highness the Crown Prince is right. Four hundred thousand troops is no small number."

There was a hint of sarcasm in his tone, but it made Xia Chenghao feel a little uneasy. He always felt that Chai Zhen had something else to say, but for a moment he couldn't figure out what he meant.

Chai Zhen deliberately prolonged the ending tone, but did not continue to express the subtext hidden in his heart. Instead, he picked up the teacup and took a sip, as if savoring something.

"What a pity?" Xia Chenghao couldn't help but ask. He had a bad feeling in his heart, but he didn't understand what it was.

Chai Zhen put down his teacup, looked at Xia Chenghao with deep eyes, and said slowly: "Unfortunately, my father was soft-hearted back then, and out of consideration for our old friendship, he staged a drama of repaying kindness with evil, so that today, you Xixiang are burning, killing, and looting in my surrounding towns."

Xia Chenghao's face was slightly solemn, and he glared at Chai Zhen, but he saw that the other party had a calm expression, as if the words just now did not come from his mouth.

"Your Highness, there's no need to be angry," Chai Zhen waved his hand, signaling Xia Chenghao to calm down. "I just want to remind your Highness that the Great Zhou was able to help you quell the civil unrest back then, and today, it can naturally do the same..."

Chai Zhen didn't say anything else, but everyone present could hear the threat in his words.

"Your Majesty, you really underestimate me, Xixiang!" Xia Chenghao said gritting his teeth. He certainly understood what Chai Zhen meant, but he would never allow such a thing to happen.

"Hahaha, Your Highness the Crown Prince might have been young at the time and had a vague memory, or maybe you really forgot how my father helped you quell the civil strife in Xixiang without spending a single soldier, and helped your father go from being a small general to the King of Xixiang who unified Xixiang? Just by force? Hahahahahahaha..." Chai Zhen laughed with his face up, as if he had encountered something very happy.

He picked up a chess piece and placed it steadily on the chessboard. The originally precarious chess game was instantly stabilized, and there was even a hint of a counterattack.

"A person must develop comprehensively to be invincible. What do you think, Your Highness?" Chai Zhen's eyes were deep, and there was a hint of warning in his tone.

The smile on Xia Chenghao's face gradually disappeared. He stared at the chessboard with a complex and indistinguishable look in his eyes.

"Force is certainly important, but it's not the only thing," Chai Zhen continued, his gaze fixed on the chessboard, as if he were looking at a vast army. "If a person wants to be invincible, he must not only possess extraordinary force, but also the wisdom to strategize and unyielding perseverance. All three are indispensable."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Xia Chenghao and said with a hint of meaning, "The same is true for a country. If it only focuses on military strength and ignores the development of other aspects, it will eventually become a giant with strong limbs and a simple mind. It may seem powerful, but in fact it is vulnerable."

Xia Chenghao's expression changed slightly, but he quickly returned to normal. He pressed the white piece in his hand hard on the chessboard, making a crisp "pa" sound, and a cold smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. "Your Majesty is right. I am short-sighted, but..."

He paused, staring at Chai Zhen sharply. "If the day of war really comes, I wonder if Your Majesty will still be as calm and composed as he is now?"

Chai Zhen said nothing, just picked up the teacup and took a sip. The fragrance of tea filled the air, but it could not cover up the smell of gunpowder in the air.

"So, back to the question I just asked His Royal Highness, is His Royal Highness satisfied with our Great Zhou?"

When Xia Chenghao left the hall, his steps were noticeably quicker. His personal bodyguard, Amu, followed closely behind him, not daring to breathe.

"Your Highness, the Emperor of the Great Zhou..." Amu hesitated to speak. He wanted to ask something but did not dare to say more.

"Hmph, he's just relying on the fact that my father owed the Chai family a favor, so he's so arrogant and domineering!" Xia Chenghao suddenly stopped and punched the palace wall, creating a shallow dent in the bluestone brick wall.

Amu shuddered with fear and quickly lowered his head, fearing that he would be affected by Xia Chenghao's anger. He had followed Xia Chenghao for many years and knew that the Xixiang Prince seemed cynical but was actually arrogant and hated being looked down upon.

"Let's go back to the inn!" Xia Chenghao took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in his heart, and strode out of the palace.

Upon returning to the inn, Xia Chenghao immediately summoned the accompanying officials and informed them of the meeting with Chai Zhen in detail. He then ordered: "Send the order down and inform Yu Lamuli to mobilize 150,000 infantry and cavalry and march to the border immediately!"

"Fifteen thousand?!" an attendant official exclaimed, "Your Highness, isn't this too risky?"

"Humph, taking a risk?" Xia Chenghao sneered, "Didn't you see the look in his eyes? He's clearly convinced we dare not act rashly! If we don't teach Chai Zhen a lesson, he'll really think I, Xi Xiang, am a soft persimmon that he can manipulate!"

Xia Chenghao's eyes flashed with a fierceness, and he continued: "Don't worry, if Chai Zhen wants to play this role, I can cooperate with him, but the protagonist must be Xi Xiang!"

"Yes!" everyone answered in unison. Although they still had doubts in their hearts, seeing that Xia Chenghao had made up his mind, they said no more and each took the order and left.

On the other side, in the imperial study, Chai Zhen stood in front of the window with his hands behind his back, looking at the towering palace with a frown.

"Your Majesty, are you worried about Prince Xixiang?"

The speaker was a thin middle-aged man wearing purple official uniform. He was the Prime Minister of the current dynasty, Chai Zhengqi, and also Chai Zhen's uncle and the late emperor's half-brother.

"Alas..." Chai Zhen sighed softly, a hint of self-blame in his tone, "Did I get too impulsive today? Although Xia Chenghao is young and hot-headed, he is also a great hero. I am worried..."

"Your Majesty, don't blame yourself," Chai Zhengqi said in a gentle voice. "Xixiang and our Great Zhou have always been in constant dispute. Now that Xia Chenghao has suddenly proposed a marriage, there must be something fishy going on. Your Majesty is simply giving them a taste of their own medicine."

Chai Zhen turned around, looked at Chai Zhengqi, and asked, "Uncle, what do you think Xia Chenghao is planning?"

Chai Zhengqi pondered for a moment and slowly said, "I believe that Xia Chenghao's move is nothing more than an attempt to use the name of a marriage alliance to test the strength of our Great Zhou. Therefore, I have previously strongly suggested to Your Majesty and the Queen Mother that they must receive the Xixiang delegation with high standards to demonstrate the strength of our Great Zhou."

"Uncle, it's not time to break off relations with Xi Xiang yet. I still want to ease relations with Xi Xiang. I wonder what your opinion is on my next move."

Chai Zhengqi paused, lowered his voice and said, "Marriage!"

Upon hearing this, Chai Zhen's expression suddenly became serious.

"It seems that this is the only way for now." A cold light flashed in Chai Zhen's eyes.

He returned to his desk, picked up a wolf-hair brush, and wrote the four big characters "Marriage Edict" on a blank piece of rice paper.

"Zhenbei King Chai Zhengqi listens to your orders!"

"Chen is here!"

"I hereby order you to serve as an envoy for the marriage alliance. You will work with the Queen Mother and Empress to select one of the women in the imperial family to marry Xi Xiang!"

"Your Majesty, this... is about the Queen Mother." Chai Zhengqi looked embarrassed.

Chai Zhen naturally understood what he meant.

"I have my own arrangements for this matter, just go ahead and do it." Chai Zhen handed the written edict to Chai Zhengqi.

"I obey your order." Chai Zhengqi took the imperial edict. Although he was confused, he still retreated respectfully.

Chai Zhen looked at Chai Zhengqi's departing back, a meaningful smile appearing on the corner of his mouth.

"Xia Chenghao, if you want to play, I will play with you to your heart's content!"