The White-Bone Demon of the Farm is as rich as a country

Chapter 329: Falsely conveying the emperor's will

The tired and dusty crowd saw the confidants around Emperor Mingde from afar, and a strong sense of unease involuntarily surged in their hearts.

Could it be that the shocking news I heard before was true?

They worked tirelessly on the journey and also kept gathering various information along the way.

Although there were indeed rumors that there were signs of troop movements in the Xiling Pass area, there had never been any reports that the Zhenxi Army had openly rebelled or had any ill intentions towards the court.

The person who came was Yu Zhaolin, the commander of the imperial guards beside Emperor Mingde.

He saw the prince at a glance, quickly and swiftly dismounted, and respectfully bowed to the prince.

He carefully reached into his bosom, took out a tightly sealed secret decree from the inside of his lapel, and presented it to the prince with both hands.

Upon seeing this, the prince hurried forward to support Commander Yu, quickly took the secret decree, and read it carefully and attentively.

The prince's brows gradually furrowed tightly. After reading the secret decree, he handed it to Chu Ning'an beside him with a serious expression.

"Commander Yu, I wonder how my father is doing recently?" the prince asked worriedly.

Commander Yu's face was solemn, his voice deep and powerful, "Reporting to His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince, His Majesty received the report you sent back to the capital earlier. His Majesty was greatly pleased and had no intention of sending this humble official away from the capital."

Commander Yu paused briefly before continuing, "Just three days ago, the Second Prince mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Your Majesty and the Marquis both believe that something unexpected must have happened to the Zhenxi Army!"

"Are you saying that the Second Prince's disappearance is related to the Zhenxi Army?" The Crown Prince's eyes widened in shock, as if he had heard the most absurd words in the world. His voice trembled as he asked, "How is this possible! Is he crazy? You know, the Imperial Concubine and the Ningguo Duke's Mansion are both in the capital. Isn't he afraid that if this is exposed, his entire mother's family will be implicated and exterminated?"

Commander Yu stood aside, also with a look of disbelief on his face, but since things had come to this point, he could only bite the bullet and tell the prince everything that had happened in the capital.

It turned out that ever since the Second Prince disappeared, the Imperial Noble Consort and the elderly Duke Ningguo had been kneeling outside the Imperial Study, begging His Majesty with tears streaming down their faces to rescue their poor Second Prince.

The scene was truly moving. Both of them looked innocent, as if they had no idea about the matter. They even declared in all seriousness that the second prince might have met with an accident and been murdered.

However, as the days passed, although His Majesty and the Marquis were extremely anxious and sent a large number of people to search for the whereabouts of the Second Prince, they were still unable to find any clues.

What’s even more terrible is that to date, there is no conclusive evidence to prove that the second prince did go to Xiling Pass.

Therefore, even though everyone knew that there must be something fishy about this matter, it was difficult to convict and sentence the Imperial Noble Consort and Duke Ningguo due to the lack of key evidence.

Marquis Wu'an was deeply worried, fearing that something unexpected might happen at this border crossing.

He originally wanted to personally lead a team out of the border to investigate, but considering that his identity was quite sensitive and special, any move would most likely arouse the vigilance of certain people with ulterior motives, thus alerting the enemy and making the situation even more complicated and unpredictable.

Marquis Wu'an had to suppress his inner impulse and continued to wait anxiously for further news.

In this desperate situation, the court had no choice but to dispatch Commander Yu from the capital and order him to escort the Crown Prince and Chu Ning'an along their route back to the capital. A secret decree was also passed, demanding that the Crown Prince and Chu Ning'an rush to Xiling Pass and thoroughly investigate the incident.

Although Ru Yue did not go forward to see with her own eyes what was written in the secret decree sent by Emperor Mingde, for some reason, an indescribable strange feeling always lingered in her heart.

She couldn't help but frown slightly, as if countless questions were churning in her heart.

After a moment's contemplation, she gently tugged at Chu Ning'an's sleeve and stepped forward without hesitation. She walked past Chu Ning'an and went straight to Commander Yu. With a graceful nod, she asked softly, "Commander Yu, does the Marquis have anything for you to convey to Lord Chu?"

At this moment, the prince was still beside the commander, enthusiastically chatting about the details of the incident.

Ru Yue suddenly interrupted and abruptly interrupted the conversation between the two.

Such behavior is really impolite.

Given Ru Yue's noble status as a princess, Commander Yu didn't dare neglect her. He quickly clasped his fists and saluted, replying, "Your Highness, I'm leaving the capital to deliver an imperial decree, and time is of the essence. Your Highness, please tell Lord Chu to take care of himself and protect Your Highness, as this journey will be difficult and dangerous."

After hearing Commander Yu's explanation, Chu Ning'an immediately moved to stand beside Ru Yue.

He calmly placed the prince behind him, as if silently protecting the prince's safety.

Ru Yue still had a faint smile on her face as she asked again, "So, besides ordering the Crown Prince and Lord Chu to rush to the border, does the Emperor have any other instructions?"

Commander Yu was completely stunned, staring at Ru Yue with his eyes wide open, his heart filled with doubts and confusion.

He really couldn't understand why Princess Xihe suddenly did this?

His eyes involuntarily swept over everyone present, and at this moment, he suddenly realized that these people had cleverly separated him from the prince.

Commander Yu's face darkened instantly. He frowned and asked Lord Chu and Princess Xihe in a deep voice, "Lord Chu, and Princess Xihe, what exactly do you two mean by this?"

Hearing this, Chu Ning'an reached out without hesitation and gently pulled Ru Yue behind him to protect her.

He stood tall and straight in front of the commander, as steady as a pine tree.

That handsome face, which looked like a banished immortal, now looked so cold and solemn as if covered by frost, making people dare not look directly at it.

Chu Ning'an said coldly, "As the crown prince of our dynasty, his position is crucial and directly related to the foundation of the country. The situation at Xiling Pass is still unclear, and yet Your Majesty has actually sent the crown prince of a country to search for a prince. Commander Yu, in your opinion, are you simply foolish, or are Your Majesty and Marquis Wu'an simply confused?"

Ru Yue also smiled and said, "Commander Yu really doesn't understand Lord Wei. If he has something to tell Lord Chu, he will only let you tell this princess, and will never let you tell Lord Chu directly!"

These words were like a thunderclap that suddenly exploded in Commander Yu's heart. He was careless and had let Princess Xihe reveal the truth.

In an instant, everyone woke up from their dream and suddenly realized.

Yes, Your Majesty has always been very fond of the Crown Prince. How could he be willing to let the Crown Prince, who has not yet returned to the capital, lead this group of wounded and exhausted guards to take the risk of going to the border?

Thinking of this, the guards hurried forward and quickly surrounded the prince, Ru Yue and Chu Ning'an in the middle, and at the same time drew the swords at their waists, with the sharp blades pointing directly at Commander Yu.

The commander of the Eastern Palace guards shouted angrily, "Commander Yu, you are so bold! How dare you falsely convey the emperor's will? What crime should you take?"