After crossing, I was forced to hold on to my thighs and build a kingdom

The welcoming banquet carefully prepared by the Third Prince for the Prince of Dingbei was naturally a feast for both the host and the guests.

As soon as Su Cheng'an left the Prince's Mansion, the news that the Third Prince was concerned about his subjects and respected the virtuous and talented spread throughout the streets and alleys of the capital.

People were talking about it and praising the Third Prince Shenyou. Just looking at the way he treated the Prince of Dingbei who came from afar, he would definitely be another king of the Jin Dynasty who was respectful, benevolent and generous in the future.

I believe that in the near future, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the future King of Dingbei will once again compose a hymn of praise for the harmony between the monarch and his ministers in the court of the Great Jin Dynasty.

The fact that he and the Prince of Dingbei were friends for many years and had a close personal relationship was also spread with details.

Su Cheng'an returned to his own mansion and just laughed coldly when he heard the news that was spreading the reputation of the third prince.

"I didn't realize I'd become such a close friend with this nobleman! If I let this situation continue, will we become close friends tomorrow?"

"Since the Third Prince is so eager to establish a close relationship with you, why don't we just go along with it..."

Chen Zhe stroked his beard and stretched out his hand to make a pushing motion.

Su Cheng'an lowered his eyes in thought. After a moment, he looked up at the door and whispered, "Let's do as Uncle Chen said. Since the Third Prince has already set up the stage, why don't we go up and sing a few lines? Otherwise, wouldn't it be unfair to the Third Prince's kindness?"

He beckoned Qingying over and instructed, "Have our people spread the news that the Third Prince repeatedly urged the Prince of Dingbei to drink during the banquet, and that the Prince of Dingbei finally left the Prince's Mansion drunk. Then have our people contact the two who are unwilling to give up..."

After Qingying left, Su Cheng'an said to Chen Zhe, "Alright, arrange for Li Bao to come as planned! As long as he survives this time, I will definitely not treat him unfairly in the future."

"The prince is already helping him to get revenge. How can he not make sacrifices for such a big thing? And the prince has already reduced the damage to the minimum. If it still doesn't work, then he can only blame the heavens for not blessing Li Bao!"

Seeing Su Cheng'an's serious expression, Chen Zhe comforted him in a gentle voice.

The young man shook his head slightly, a flicker of guilt crossing his face. "No matter what, he ultimately helped me avoid disaster." He frowned and sighed softly, "If I had let him calm down and handle things calmly, he might still have a chance of survival."

Chen Zhe nodded and went down to find Li Bao in person to give him detailed instructions.

That night, when the news that the Third Prince and the Prince of Dingbei were drinking and having a close personal relationship was still circulating in the capital, another even more explosive news came out from the Dingbei Palace.

The Crown Prince Su Cheng'an, who had just returned to the Dingbei Palace from the Third Prince's Mansion, suddenly suffered from severe abdominal pain at dusk and vomited out all the food he had eaten at the banquet. His face turned as pale as paper and he was sweating profusely. The steward of the palace was so frightened that he took a sign and called two imperial doctors to treat him that night.

In the early morning, the prince finally woke up, but he was still too weak to eat immediately. He only took a few spoonfuls of ginseng soup to moisten his throat and recuperate.

The news spread like wildfire the next day, even overshadowing the news about the Third Prince yesterday.

Those who are interested in good things will even communicate and speculate with each other.

"Have you heard? The Prince of Dingbei went to the Third Prince's residence for a banquet yesterday. When he returned in the afternoon, he had severe abdominal pain and vomited up all the food he had eaten at the banquet."

"I heard it! I also heard that we brought a sign to the imperial physician overnight, and he worked until the early morning before the prince finally woke up. He still can't eat!"

"The imperial physician only said he had gastrointestinal discomfort and kept silent about everything else. How could the Prince of Dingbei, such a strong young man, collapse after visiting the Third Prince's residence?"

"Yes, yes! This is too coincidental. I think the symptoms of Prince Dingbei clearly indicate that he ate something he shouldn't have! If the imperial physician hadn't arrived in time, the consequences would have been disastrous."

"But isn't it said that the Third Prince and the Prince of Dingbei have been friends for many years and have a close relationship?"

"Tsk! We've been friends for years, so what? So what? Three princes fought for the throne, and what happened? One was crippled, another's reputation was tarnished, and only this third prince, as pure and clear as the wind and moon, remained unscathed. The deep meaning behind this is too profound to ponder!"

"That's true. Killing brothers for the sake of imperial power and wealth is common. If the Prince of Dingbei becomes an eyesore to some people because of his power, they'll inevitably be eager to eliminate him."

"Shh! Shut up, that's enough. We just need to keep it to ourselves and don't dare tell anyone else."

"I understand, I understand. It's because we have a close relationship with you, brother. We can just chat casually in private. If it were anyone else, I would definitely keep my mouth shut."

"Yeah, it's getting late, let's get busy! See you later."

Speculations like these became increasingly prevalent among the discussions of the people in the capital, and finally reached the ears of the Third Prince Shenyou.

When he heard about Su Cheng'an's half-concealed poisoning incident, he was stunned for a moment, and then a frost covered his handsome face. He smashed a set of fine Ru kiln Tianqing tea set to pieces.

"Su Cheng'an! How dare you frame me like this? I will kill you to avenge my hatred!"

The usually gentle and refined Third Prince lost all his politeness at this moment. He gritted his teeth and cursed loudly.

Because of anger, his whole face was distorted and looked a bit creepy.

"Your Highness, please calm down! It's better to stay still than to move at this moment." A middle-aged aide whispered in a low voice not far away.

"You still want me to be quiet?"

Shenyou slammed the table and stood up, pointing his finger outside. "Look at what's being spread out there now! They're almost saying that it was me, the Third Prince Shenyou, who poisoned and persecuted the Prince of Dingbei! But don't you know whether I poisoned him yesterday?"

He sneered, a hint of cruelty flashing in his eyes. "Su Cheng'an is indeed cruel enough. He would rather harm himself than frame me. If you weren't worried about the impact on the ceremony, do you really think I wouldn't dare to kill him?"

"Your Highness has already said that your enthronement ceremony will be held the day after tomorrow. Everything else is prioritizing the ceremony. When it's over, you will be the legitimate Crown Prince. Then, wouldn't it be better to take his head as avenge for the humiliation Your Highness has suffered today?"

Upon hearing about the enthronement ceremony, the Third Prince's expression relaxed slightly.

Seeing the situation, the staff continued to persuade, "Your Highness, don't forget that although the Prince of Dingbei has framed you, the affairs of the Second and Fourth Princes are inextricably linked to us. If Your Highness turns against Su Cheng'an today, those two princes will definitely come forward, even if it means being used as pawns by the Prince of Dingbei, because they don't want Your Highness to suffer."

"Marquis Jingchuan has refused to submit, and we can't use any of his troops. Elder Li and his men are cunning and slippery. They only support us on the surface, but do nothing in secret. We don't have many troops at our disposal at the moment, so we're inevitably stretched to the limit. We can only take care of one thing but not the other."

"If the Prince of Dingbei really joins forces with those two princes and does something bad to us during the ceremony, even if we have three heads and six arms, I'm afraid we won't be able to defend ourselves. If we're not careful, we'll lose everything and suffer a great loss!"

The Third Prince calmed down after being told these heartfelt words by his staff. Although he still looked angry, his tone was much more cautious.

"Sir, your concerns are reasonable. I will tolerate him for two more days!"