Deposed Crown Prince: After three years of service on the frontier, the entire court knelt and begge

Consort De nodded approvingly and said with a smile, "That's right, they themselves are full of flaws. We just need to praise them to death! Xiang Qing, you must not regard Xiao Yang as your opponent... He is not worthy. If you regard him as your opponent, you are lowering your own status."

"Do you remember your foolish actions before? You thought Xiao Ce might have been biding his time, and that he was truly capable, so you sent someone to assassinate him..."

Xiao Xiangqing felt somewhat embarrassed upon hearing Consort De's words.

When Xiao Ce left, he sent Nie Bing to assassinate him.

At first, he thought that Xiao Ce was just pretending to be useless.

However, after listening to the news from the northern desert, he realized that Xiao Ce was truly a good-for-nothing.

Xiao Xiangqing bowed slightly: "Mother, I understand... I was overthinking it!"

Consort De said to Xiao Xiangqing, "It's good that you're cautious. However, there's no need to be overly cautious! You still lack a true strategist who can help you, and your actions are often immature!"

Xiao Xiangqing bowed to Consort De and said, "Your Majesty is right. I will consult Your Majesty's opinion on everything from now on."

Consort De smiled and waved her hand: "I don't want to get involved in these things anymore! By the way, did you go to find that Mr. Qianlong that I asked you to find before?"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded in agreement: "Mother, I have already gone to look for him... but there is no news... However, I have already spread the word! As long as this Mr. Qianlong you mentioned really comes to our territory, we will definitely be able to find him."

Consort De nodded.

Xiao Xiangqing then asked Consort De curiously, "Mother, who is this Mr. Qianlong? You seem so nervous..."

Consort De said with sharp eyes, "Someone who can help you ascend to the throne."

Xiao Xiangqing's eyes were filled with eagerness; he knew of his mother's abilities.

If Consort De dared to say those words, she would be 90% certain of success.

"Mother, then I will send more men..."

Consort De waved her hand to interrupt, saying, "There's no need for such a fuss... Just send people to search normally. This Mr. Qianlong is elusive... He won't be easily found when he doesn't want to see anyone!"

"Should we still look for her?" Xiao Xiangqing was even more confused by Consort De's ambiguous question.

Consort De shook her head and said, "Of course we'll look for him. It's our attitude to look for him. When Mr. Qianlong wants to see us, he will naturally take the initiative to find us."

Xiao Xiangqing nodded: "Mother, what should I do if he takes the initiative to contact me?"

Consort De instructed, "If he comes to you, you must treat him the same way you treat me. Then, you must get him to help you seize the throne!"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded, but her eyes still held a hint of doubt: "Mother, is this person really that amazing?"

Consort De nodded: "That's right, you'll see when you see him! Alright, since the Emperor isn't coming, I'm happy to have some peace and quiet. These days, your father has been coming over every few days, and I have to serve him, which is really annoying. Now, I can finally have a few days of peace and quiet."

Xiao Xiangqing knew that Consort De did not have a good impression of her father, the Emperor. Her return to public life was all for his sake.

"Then, Your Majesty, I shall take my leave as well."

Consort De waved her hand: "Just focus on yourself during this time. Our top priority is Xiao Dingshan. We can't sleep peacefully until he's dead."

"Mother, how about we stick to my original plan and kill him without anyone noticing? The people in the prison are all my men. We can just say he suddenly fell ill and died unexpectedly." Xiao Xiangqing said with a ruthless look.

Consort De waved her hand with a serious expression: "Foolish. Hasn't your father been able to secretly get rid of him all these years? The Prince of Zhen holds a high position in the army and in the hearts of the people. If he dies a violent death, it will cause a lot of unnecessary trouble."

"You might not notice anything immediately, but this is a seed of disaster, and nobody knows what will grow out of it. Even if we have to take action, it can't be you or me, understand?"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded and said to Consort De, "Your Majesty, I understand!"

Consort De waved her hand: "Alright! Go and attend to your affairs."

...

Xiao Ce and his group had very little time to rest.

After telling Xiao Yang his plan, Xiao Ce abandoned the carriage and set off on horseback.

He also changed into a military uniform and joined the escort team.

They traveled at full speed and arrived at the heart of the Central Plains, outside the most prosperous city of Anhua, in less than ten days.

In just a few months, things have changed a lot here.

The last time he passed through this area, there was a disaster, and he was able to help the area out of trouble.

Now, things have returned to normal, and merchants are coming and going in an endless stream.

Xiao Ce then allowed Xiao Yang to enter the city.

He also wanted to find out some news about Kyoto before returning.

After this period of adjustment, Xiao Yang has regained some of his original self.

However, they were still quite wary of Xiao Ce.

"Brother, should we go in through the normal procedures, or sneak in?"

Xiao Ce rode up to Xiao Yang's side: "Of course we should go in openly and honestly! You've been doing it openly and honestly the whole way. Besides, with that big guy Fan Gang Ashina around, we can't be discreet even if we want to. And use your brain, if I wanted to go in quietly, why would I need to follow you?"

Xiao Yang nodded repeatedly, looking extremely apprehensive.

So Xiao Yang ordered a soldier to go and inform the garrison that the city lord should come to greet them.

As the second prince, Xiao Yang was subject to the laws of the Great Xiao Kingdom. When a prince personally visited a city, the city lord and county magistrate were required to kneel and welcome him with their officials.

Xiao Ce entered the city to meet Xu Zhiyuan and the heads of various merchant guilds.

...

At this moment, Xu Zhiyuan was handling official business in Anhua City.

After receiving Xiao Yang's letter, one of the guards immediately went to report it.

Upon hearing the news about the city gate guards, Xu Zhiyuan's eyes widened, and he said with slight excitement, "What? Are you sure? Is it the Second Prince Xiao Yang's troops?"

The guard said with certainty, "That's right, this is the Second Prince's letter of clearance."

Xu Zhiyuan saw that it was Xiao Yang's clearance letter and happily paced around a few times before ordering the guards to retreat.

Then, turning to a clerk beside him, he said, "Good...good...good! It's truly a case of finding something you've been searching for without even looking for it! Go and inform the managers of the Zhou, Qian, Zhao, Sun, and Li merchants that the fish we've been waiting for has arrived!"

The advisor, Xu Zhiyuan's confidant, asked: "Lord Xu, is the King of Mobei among their troops?"

Xu Zhiyuan nodded: "There's no mistake. The business owners of these chambers of commerce each have their own informants in Kyoto. Xiao Yang has already secretly escorted the King of Mobei to the capital. I thought there was no chance, but I never expected him to come here on his own initiative! Good!"

The advisor said somewhat nervously, "Are we really going to save the King of the Northern Desert? Wouldn't that be going against His Majesty?"

Xu Zhiyuan's gaze was firm: "The King of Mobei is the benefactor of Anyuan City, and even the entire Great Xiao Kingdom... Back then, if it weren't for his efforts in taking all the disaster victims to the four prefectures of Mobei, our Xiao Kingdom would have faced the calamity of national destruction! Moreover, I heard that this time they captured the King of Mobei and brought him back to the capital to force him to accuse the King of Zhen!"

"Whether it's the King of the Northern Desert or the King of the Town, they are both good people! Now that they've come to my territory, if I don't do something, my conscience won't allow it. At worst, I'll just give up this county magistrate position."

The clerk nodded: "My lord, I will follow you. I'll go now..."

Xu Zhiyuan nodded: "Go and tell them to wait at the mansion. I'll go pick up the Second Prince first. This Second Prince is very arrogant. If we are late in welcoming him, it may displease him."

The advisor bowed.

Xu Zhiyuan then ordered his men to go to the city gate to greet them.

They arrived very quickly, just as Xiao Yang and his team reached the city gate.

They saw that Xu Zhiyuan and his group were already waiting at the city gate.

Xiao Ce and his men made some changes to their military uniforms, including wearing masks.

Therefore, outsiders could not distinguish which of these soldiers was who.

As Xiao Yang approached, Xu Zhiyuan and his entourage knelt down to greet him, saying, "Welcome to the Second Prince's arrival in Anhua City."

Xiao Ce noticed that in just a few months, Xu Zhiyuan seemed to have aged even more.

Xiao Yang raised his hand and said, "Magistrate Xu, there's no need for such formalities. Please rise."

Xu Zhiyuan knelt on the ground, a look of surprise flashing across his face: "Second Prince, do you know me?"

Xiao Yang wouldn't normally know such a minor county magistrate. He only knew him because Xiao Ce said he wanted to meet him.

Throughout the journey, Xiao Ce never mentioned or requested to see anyone, nor did he enter any city to rest or recuperate.

They stopped at post stations to rest along the way.

Therefore, upon hearing that Xiao Ce had specifically entered Anhua City to see Xu Zhiyuan, he couldn't help but feel somewhat curious about this Xu Zhiyuan.

Because Xiao Ce had taken a liking to him, Xiao Yang's attitude improved considerably.

"Lord Xu is a capable minister. When I was in the capital, I heard many officials praising you! I was passing through this place and wanted to pay you a visit."

Hearing Xiao Yang's polite words, Xu Zhiyuan couldn't help but feel a little suspicious.

After all, the Xiao Yang of the rumors is not like this.

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

However, he still acted politely on the surface, and the two sides even started exchanging pleasantries.

This made Xiao Ce, who was standing next to Xiao Yang, feel somewhat helpless, and he spoke up to remind him:

"Second Prince, let's go into the city first and talk later."

Upon hearing Xiao Ce's words, Xiao Yang quickly replied, "That's right, this isn't the place to talk. Let's go inside and discuss it!"

Xu Zhiyuan bowed in agreement and then led the way.

The group entered the city in a grand procession, attracting the attention of many people.

Especially eye-catching was Fan Gang Ashina, who stood out like a crane among chickens in his Turkic attire.

What Xiao Ce didn't notice was that there were more than a dozen pairs of eyes in the shadows of the crowd, searching for him.