We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

With the help of the Shanhaiguan defenders, the refugees began to gather in an orderly manner near the city wall and set up camp.

Xue Zhen ordered the soldiers to move out their marching tents and build temporary shelters with cloth and wood.

The bonfire was lit, and the flames flickered in the night, bringing some warmth and comfort to everyone.

The refugees sat around the fire, talking in low, hushed voices.

Not far away, the soldiers started making a fire and cooking.

The sound of bowls and pans colliding and the aroma of food filled the air. The refugees swallowed and looked eagerly in the direction of the fragrance.

Li Che was not idle either. He personally led the personal guard battalion to carefully count the number of people.

Cavalry were also sent out to patrol along the route to prevent any refugees from falling behind and losing their way and wandering in the wilderness.

The wilderness in ancient times was different from the modern one. If you didn't gather together and light a bonfire at night, you would most likely encounter wild animals.

Although Du He also wanted to rest, Li Che was busy, so he could only help with the work in the back.

Seeing Li Che's friendly attitude towards the refugees, which was completely different from his previous image, he couldn't help but said indignantly to Huo Duanxiao beside him:

"Why is the King so close to the common people and so distant from the scholars? How could I, the son of the Prime Minister and a court official, be beaten by him in public?"

"Prince Feng is so irritable. It must be very difficult to work under him, right?"

Huo Duanxiao looked at him as if he were a fool.

With this level of skill, why are you still trying to sow discord?

He really couldn't understand what kind of person Prime Minister Du was. He had been planning strategies for His Majesty since he started the rebellion and was considered the number one think tank in Daqing.

How could such an unintelligent son be born, so different from his father?

Huo Duanxiao asked calmly, "Do you think His Highness hit you because he dislikes you?"

Du He looked indignant: "Isn't it?"

"Have you ever thought about what would happen if you were to flaunt your military prowess outside Shanhaiguan and get into conflict with the border generals, and the matter reached His Majesty?"

Seeing Du He's bewildered expression, Huo Duanxiao continued:

"Let me tell you, if this gets to the court, the civil and military officials won't target you. After all, you're just a nobody. They'll just use this as an excuse to impeach Prime Minister Du for his poor parenting!"

"Prime Minister Du is the Left Prime Minister of the Imperial Court, a high-ranking official. He is still in his prime, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will remain in power for a long time. How will Your Majesty then check and balance him?"

"Do you think he's so powerful that he can do anything? In fact, he's very cautious and treads on thin ice!"

"In his position, if any stain is caught by the political enemies in the court, he will be attacked by everyone. After all, there are only two prime ministers in our dynasty, and too many people are eyeing that position."

After hearing Huo Duanxiao's analysis, Du He suddenly realized what was going on and looked horrified.

"This... I didn't think so much. Zheng Ze, what should I do?"

Huo Duanxiao shook his head helplessly: "The deed has already been done. There is no point in thinking about it any more."

"Thanks to His Highness, the beating and scolding you received seemed like punishment, but in reality it was an excuse."

"His Highness has given you a beating as punishment, which means the matter is over. General Xue will not mention this to His Majesty."

"Instead of repaying your gratitude, you blame His Highness behind his back. Have you truly lost your mind?"

Although Du He is stupid, he is not completely stupid.

He can still tell who is good to him and who is bad to him.

"This... I really didn't think that much." He slapped himself hard, making a crisp sound. "I really deserve to die!"

Li Che heard the voice, looked back, and looked puzzled.

What's wrong?

Damn, this kid is already stupid, will he become even more stupid after being beaten by me?

I just want to give Du Fuchen some face, but don't make an enemy because of this!

Huo Duanxiao quickly pulled Du He back and whispered, "Don't make it public. Your Highness is kind-hearted and doesn't expect anything in return."

"But so many people witnessed that scene just now that it's inevitable that word will reach His Majesty's ears. When you return, explain the entire incident to Prime Minister Du and come up with a countermeasure."

Du He was already frightened and nodded repeatedly: "I understand, I understand."

Seeing this, Huo Duanxiao smiled with satisfaction.

In this way, Prime Minister Du really owed him this favor.

In the battle for the crown prince, the Du family is currently relatively neutral. Only Du He used to be close to the prince, so he doesn't take sides.

Yes, Prime Minister Du is indeed of a calm disposition and does not like power struggles.

But when it comes to that position, how can anyone except Your Majesty remain truly neutral?

Rather than waiting for him to be forced to take sides in the future, it is better to tie him to the chariot of Fengguo!

Although Li Che never said that he wanted to fight for the throne, in the eyes of Huo Duanxiao and other Fengguo officials, that position could only belong to his own prince!

What if His Majesty does not pass the throne to Your Highness?

That is not the business of these civil officials, but the business of the military generals.

If Your Majesty and the officials in the court do not know how to judge people, the soldiers and civilians of my country do know a little bit about fighting!

. . . . . .

After a night of reorganization, Li Che bid farewell to Xue Zhen and led the refugees through Shanhaiguan and headed towards Chaoyang City.

He did a rough count yesterday and found that there was a big problem with the number of refugees.

The imperial edict stated that 50,000 refugees should be relocated to Fengguo.

But according to yesterday's statistics, at least 80,000 people came, a full 30,000 more!

Li Che couldn't figure out where these 30,000 people came from, as if they appeared out of thin air.

But this is not a bad thing. The more people from Qing come to Fengguo, the better. What he lacks most now is manpower.

Although there is a shortage of food and other things, it is not a problem as long as there are people.

At worst, we can let the Fengtian Army borrow some from Goryeo and Khitan. I don’t think they will be stingy.

The road after leaving the pass, as King Yan said, is even more difficult than inside the pass.

Du He saw patch after patch of weeds. There was no road under his feet at all, only a path trampled out by the people in front.

But when the team walked a distance away, Du He suddenly opened his eyes wide, his eyes full of disbelief.

He subconsciously looked back and saw the wild field covered with weeds behind him.

He turned his head back and looked forward.

The flat road, ten feet wide, stretches as far as the eye can see without any ups or downs.

This road appeared inexplicably, without any sign at all, as if it led to heaven!

"Zhengze, this is... this is..."

"Oh, I forgot to tell you, this is a section of road that His Highness recently built. He named it Chaoyang Avenue."

Du He trembled and said, "This road must be about eight feet wide, right? It looks almost the same as the road in the imperial capital."

"There is no eight feet." Huo Duanxiao shook his head.

Du He had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Huo Duanxiao say, "This road is ten feet wide, not an inch off."

"Young Master Duo? Ten feet?!"