The empress disliked my achievements for overshadowing her own, so she turned her attention to the N

As Changsun Du walked through the crowd, he saw two familiar faces.

He asked in confusion, "The Prince of Zhennan?"

Chen Nan chuckled awkwardly, "How has Prime Minister Changsun been lately? I was just passing by, so I thought I'd come in and see him. I just didn't expect to take the wrong turn and come in from the Prime Minister's backyard."

Changsun Du wasn't stupid. Hearing Chen Nan say this, he naturally knew that the other party had come to him because he didn't want others to know.

He then gave the order: "Old Master Sun, tell the servants in the mansion that I do not wish to learn about today's events from other people."

They then invited Chen Nan and the other man into the main hall, closed the door, and then began to ask questions.

"I wonder if Your Highness has come to my Prime Minister's residence on some important matter?"

Chen Nan said solemnly, "I want to know why the Prime Minister entered the national treasury to steal the golden nanmu garment?"

"What? Golden silk nanmu clothing?" Changsun Du's face instantly turned cold.

"What do you mean by that, Your Highness? Are you slandering me?"

Chen Nan sighed: "Why is the Right Chancellor so agitated? I am merely stating a fact."

"Does the Prime Minister truly wish to become Qin Qingmin's puppet?"

After he finished speaking, Changsun Du remained silent for a long time.

Indeed, he had been controlled by others for too long, and he was certainly unwilling to become a puppet.

But can he really trust Chen Nan in front of him?

After a long while, Changsun Du's lips moved, and he spoke: "Can I trust the Prince of Zhennan?"

Chen Nan puffed out his chest: "Prime Minister, rest assured, this king is acting for the sake of Northern Wei."

"I believe that the Prime Minister could see the benefits of the previous reforms, otherwise he would not have stood up to support me."

"However, I am curious, why do you, a mere prime minister, become a puppet of Qin Qingmin, a mere dean?"

Changsun Du gave a wry smile: "Your Highness, please forgive me, but it is inconvenient for me to speak of this matter now."

"However, I can tell you the truth about the golden nanmu clothing."

"The clothes were indeed taken from the national treasury by me."

"After receiving the clothes, I handed them over to Qin Qingmin. As for what he wanted the clothes for, I'm not sure."

Chen Nan picked up the thread: "I'm afraid the Prime Minister never imagined that a piece of golden nanmu clothing would appear at an auction in Happy Forest, did he?"

"What? Your Highness means that Qin Qingmin took the national treasure to auction?" Changsun Du's eyes showed a hint of shock, mixed with a touch of doubt.

He never imagined that Qin Qingmin would be so audacious.

They actually dared to put this kind of thing up for auction.

However, when he met Chen Nan's resolute gaze, all his doubts vanished.

He knew that Chen Nan had no reason to lie to him, nor any need to lie to him.

He gave a wry smile: "Your Highness, I was indeed wrong in this matter."

"But, but him, sigh..."

Changsun Du stopped speaking halfway through his sentence.

"Since the Prime Minister has something difficult to say, I will not ask any further questions."

"But Prime Minister, don't forget that you are the Prime Minister of Northern Wei, not a knife in Qin Qingmin's hand."

"I hope that the Prime Minister can play a role at the crucial moment."

Chen Nan left a message and got up to leave.

Before leaving, he heard Changsun Du's voice again: "Does Your Highness have no other purpose in coming to Northern Wei?"

"Or is it that Your Highness is truly devoted to the development of Northern Wei?"

"As I can see, the reform system that Your Highness implemented in Northern Wei is completely different from that in Daqian."

"Furthermore, even the Prince can't stop Qin Qingmin?"

Chen Nan did not turn around and said coldly, "The reforms of Daqian must proceed slowly because although Daqian is corrupt, it has not yet reached the point of collapse."

"Prime Minister, look at the Northern Wei now. Powerful families are wantonly seizing land, and even the capital of Wei cannot avoid it."

"Throughout the court, even you, the Prime Minister, have become a knife in Qin Qingmin's hand."

"If you want to reform, the first step is to shed blood."

"The reason I have been slow to deal with Qin Qingmin is entirely due to his network of connections in Northern Wei and the image he has cultivated for himself."

"I remember, Qin Qingmin went to provide disaster relief on several occasions, didn't he? He claimed it was to help the Empress Dowager share the heavy burden on her shoulders?"

"To be frank, it's only because the Empress Dowager is somewhat foolish that such matters could be handled by local officials, and Qin Qingmin would most likely be the one to take the lead."

"As I just said, the most crucial moment is when we will completely expose Qin Qingmin's hypocritical facade."

"Therefore, the Prime Minister can give this matter a good consideration."

Now that things have come to this, Changsun Du also knows that Chen Nan is genuinely working for the Northern Wei.

He hurriedly stopped him: "Your Highness, please wait. I have something to say."

Upon hearing this, Chen Nan turned around with a smile.

He knew that his actions and persuasion had worked.

Changsun Du sighed and asked, "I wonder if Your Highness has ever heard of a saying?"

"Three emperors, one false ruler, five kingdoms, and one barbarian!"

"Is this a reconciliation?" Chen Nan asked, puzzled.

During his years in the Daqian era, plus his time in the Northern Wei, he had never heard of such a saying.

He had a premonition that Qin Qingmin had someone or some force behind him, and what Changsun Du said was likely related to that force.

Then Changsun Du began to speak slowly.

"Your Highness, the so-called Three Emperors are three imperial dynasties, the One False Dynasty is a false imperial dynasty, the Five Kingdoms are our five countries, and the One Barbarian is a barbarian tribe located on the border of Northern Wei."

Seeing Chen Nan's puzzled expression, Changsun Du gave a bitter laugh: "Since Your Highness doesn't know this, does Your Highness know about the God of War of Northern Wei?"

Chen Nan nodded; he had indeed heard about this.

Long ago, there was an eighth-rank martial artist in the Northern Wei Dynasty.

However, that eighth-rank martial artist tragically died in a foreign war.

"Back then, I was tricked into Qin Qingmin's trap and went to the barbarian tribe to seek an alliance."

"This is why the Northern Wei Dynasty gained the title of God of War."

"And that deceased eighth-rank martial artist was none other than the God of War of our Northern Wei Dynasty at that time."

"In that battle, I served as a military advisor and led the army. Two hundred thousand soldiers were slaughtered by thirty thousand barbarian soldiers!"

"Unfortunately, those barbarians did not attack me. Not only did they not attack me, they also released me."

"At that time, I did consider sacrificing myself for my country and going with the army."

"However, a sudden change occurred within the barbarian territory."

"Then how did you finally get back?" Chen Nan was even more puzzled. Changsun Du's words had left him completely confused.

Changsun Du shook his head, tears welling in his eyes: "Your Highness may not believe it, but even today, I still don't know how I got back."

"I have completely forgotten my memories of that great battle and my experiences with the barbarian tribe."

"I can only remember one thing."

"Later, Qin Qingmin found me and told me that he knew the inside story."

"Later, they asked me to do something before they would tell me the inside story."

"But that's not the inside story you want to hear, is it?" Chen Nan asked.

Changsun Du nodded firmly: "I'm not sure if what Qin Qingmin said is true either."

“Ever since that incident, he has been asking me to do things.”

"Because of my guilt towards the Northern Wei, I gradually got on the pirate ship."