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

Xiao Dingbang glanced at Xiao Xiangqing: "Father, I have already placed Xiao Ce under house arrest. Without your permission, I would not dare to bring him here!"

Xiao Dingbang smiled and nodded: "That's true. If I saw that good-for-nothing, it would ruin my good mood!"

Xiao Yang continued, "Father, if you wish to see him, I will immediately order someone to bring him here."

Xiao Dingbang's eyes flashed with disdain: "No need, I feel disgusted just looking at him. Just make him tell me exactly what Xiao Dingshan made him do as a rebel, and that will be enough."

Xiao Yang nodded as he listened.

Xiao Dingbang said, "Alright, let's not talk about that unlucky thing anymore. Yang'er, tell me how you drove the Turks back."

Xiao Yang said to Xiao Dingbang, "Father, I didn't explicitly say so in the letter. The Turks have almost come out in full force this time, with 80,000 cavalry and all five tribal khans participating!"

"I annihilated half of their army and captured tens of thousands of Turks. Firstly, I enslaved them to cultivate the land there. Secondly, I held them hostage to prevent the Turks from invading our northern deserts again! If they dare to invade again, I will kill those prisoners. Not only that, I also executed the Khan of the Helu tribe among the Turkic tribes, and captured all the other Khans!"

When Xiao Yang spoke of these things, he was full of conviction, holding his head high with an air of arrogance.

Xiao Yang's few words left Xiao Dingbang utterly shocked.

He stood up and excitedly said to Xiao Yang, "Yang'er, you said you captured or killed the khans of the five Turkic tribes?"

Xiao Xiangqing, standing to the side, listened to Xiao Yang's words, her expression turning playful, a look of disdain on her face, thinking to herself, "Isn't he afraid of biting off more than he can chew?"

Xiao Yang cupped his hands and replied, "Father, of course. I only killed Helu. Ashina, Tiesa, Gesa, Helu's son Batu Helu, and their families have all been captured by me and are being held in Lingxiao City by General Xing Daorong!"

As he spoke, Xiao Yang said to Xiao Xiangqing, "Eighth Brother, what's with that expression? Don't you believe me?"

Xiao Xiangqing said, "Your Majesty, you misunderstand. I didn't mean that. I just think Your Majesty is truly blessed with the spirit of a military genius. As far as I know, General Xing Daorong only had a little over 20,000 troops in Maoming City!"

“You have 20,000 troops who defeated 80,000 Turkic cavalry. You won a great victory, killing half of them and capturing the other half! Even if you only captured half of them, there are still more than 40,000 Turks. You are responsible for controlling two prisoners each. How can you expect the Turks not to resist?”

"The Turks are skilled warriors, that's common knowledge. You won such a great victory with fewer troops! As your younger brother, I really need to learn from you."

"Even at his peak, Ninth Imperial Uncle never achieved such a great victory! Second Imperial Brother, your achievement today is worthy of being recorded in history!"

Xiao Xiangqing appeared to be praising him, but in reality, every word she uttered was a form of questioning.

Xiao Yang, his expression unfriendly, asked Xiao Xiangqing, "Eighth Brother, what you're saying doesn't sound like a compliment at all. I sense a hint of mockery in your words. Are you questioning me?"

Without any hesitation, Xiao Xiangqing said bluntly, "Second brother, that's right! I know you want to prove yourself! However, if you say these things in private, Father won't blame you! But if you say them in court, it's fine if you're not exposed, but if you are, then even though you've made a contribution, you'll still be accused of deceiving the emperor!"

Before Xiao Yang could speak, Xiao Xiangqing continued speaking to Xiao Dingbang, "Father, I was just worried that my second brother had done something wrong with good intentions, so I dared to remind him."

Xiao Dingbang nodded: "Eighth Brother, your reminder is correct!"

His face was slightly stiff: "Second Prince, I know you want to show off! But what you're saying is a bit too exaggerated! What if you're accused of deceiving the Emperor in court? What will you do then?"

Xiao Yang's gaze did not waver in the slightest, and a cold smile appeared on his face.

He wasn't flustered at all; Xiao Ce had rehearsed this scenario with him before. He knew exactly how to handle it.

Thinking of this, he still admired Xiao Ce to some extent.

Xiao Yang gave Xiao Xiangqing a disdainful look: "Eighth Brother, stop pretending! Just because you can't do it or others can't do it doesn't mean I, Xiao Yang, can't do it!"

"And another thing, if you want to deal with me, come at me head-on! Don't act like a bitch. Don't think I don't know what despicable things you did while I was away. I didn't say anything to avoid putting Father Emperor in a difficult position! If you keep spouting nonsense, I'll expose everything."

Xiao Xiangqing never expected that Xiao Yang would dare to scold him in front of Xiao Dingbang!

Moreover, seeing Xiao Yang confidently claim that he knew everything, including the despicable things Xiao Xiangqing had done to him.

He was intimidated by Xiao Yang's imposing manner and figured that Xiao Yang must know something to dare to say that.

His face turned pale and then flushed, and he didn't dare to say anything.

Seeing that Xiao Xiangqing didn't dare to utter a single word, Xiao Yang thought to himself, "Xiao Ce is truly something else."

He was right again!

With a magnanimous expression, Xiao Yang said, "Father, I have not exaggerated a single word you have said. You are free to investigate! By the way, Father, although I did not bring those Turkic Khans with me, I brought you a gift!"

Xiao Dingbang looked at Xiao Yang, took out a brocade pouch from his body, opened it, and inside was a thumb ring engraved with the Turkic tribe.

Xiao Dingbang had seen this thumb ring before; only the Khan of the Turkic Khaganate could possess it!

Xiao Dingbang took the ring from Xiao Yang's hand, examined it for a while, and then his expression became quite interesting.

He had seen these thumb rings before.

His expression changed as quickly as turning the pages of a book. He excitedly grabbed Xiao Yang: "Yang'er, you really captured their Turkic Khan?"

Xiao Yang cupped his hands and said, "Father, it is absolutely true. However, it was not solely my achievement; it was mainly General Xing's skillful and cunning tactics that drove the Turks into a rout!"

"Moreover, although we only have 20,000 troops, Xiao Ce had previously conscripted 100,000 soldiers, although they were composed of refugees. However, under the command of General Xing Daorong, our numbers total 120,000."

"The reason I didn't bring those Khans with me was because I was afraid something might happen. Now, as long as I imprison them, I can use them to command the Turkic tribes! Father, as long as you believe in me, given time, I will definitely make the Turkic Kingdom obediently submit to our Great Xiao Kingdom!"

Xiao Dingbang's smile widened: "Good! Good! Good! I didn't misjudge you! I believe in you! I never expected you to make such an unparalleled contribution to me! I am very happy today."

As he spoke, Xiao Dingbang summoned the chief eunuch beside him and ordered him to inform the imperial kitchen to prepare some fine wine and dishes.

After speaking, Xiao Dingbang looked at Xiao Xiangqing, whose expression was not good, and said with a smile, "Eighth Brother, you meant well. However, your elder brother won't blame you! It's getting late, go and do what I just arranged!"

Xiao Xiangqing knew that Xiao Dingbang was paving the way for him, so he didn't get ungrateful and bowed to apologize before leaving.

Xiao Yang felt somewhat displeased.

It seems Xiao Ce was right; during his absence, Xiao Xiangqing has already secured a place in the emperor's heart.

Otherwise, given Xiao Dingbang's previous personality, Xiao Xiangqing would have been in for a beating.

However, Xiao Yang didn't say anything.

After watching Xiao Xiangqing leave, Xiao Dingbang pulled Xiao Yang aside and asked him about the details of the battle.

Xiao Yang showed no fear whatsoever, and with great enthusiasm and spittle flying, he repeated what Xiao Ce had taught him.

Xiao Dingbang listened intently and nodded approvingly.

After finishing this matter, Xiao Dingbang looked very happy.

Seeing that the time was right, Xiao Yang continued, "Father, I was able to achieve such a great victory thanks in large part to that good-for-nothing Xiao Ce!"

Xiao Dingbang looked puzzled: "Oh? That good-for-nothing can help you?"

Xiao Yang nodded: "That's right. Although that good-for-nothing is cowardly and weak, he's still quite good to the people, so he's quite popular among them. And when he saw me coming, he cooperated very well and didn't resist at all. He told me that as long as I spared his life, he would cooperate with me in anything."

"And in order to save his life, he was willing to hand over his military power! It's clear that he just wanted to prolong his life."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Dingbang's disdain deepened.

"Hmph...useless, just a piece of trash! I knew I hadn't misjudged him." Xiao Dingbang said, looking at Xiao Yang, "What? You're not feeling soft-hearted, are you?"

Xiao Yang smiled and said, "Father, I wouldn't even flinch if this piece of trash died ten thousand times. However, if we kill him after he accuses Xiao Dingshan this time, it will inevitably attract a lot of criticism."

"Therefore, I think that after he makes the accusation, he should be sent back to the four prefectures of Mobei. The four prefectures of Mobei are currently under the control of our people there. As long as Xiao Dingshan is dead, this Xiao Ce will be a complete waste. Rather than killing him, it is better to leave him there and shut up the mouths of some conservatives in the court."

Xiao Dingbang nodded, a look of impatience on his face: "You're right. I don't care about his life or death at all. You decide. Is he willing to cooperate in accusing Xiao Dingshan?"

Xiao Yang nodded: "Father, don't worry about that. That guy is a coward. He'll cooperate with whatever we want to say."

Xiao Dingbang nodded: "Alright! We don't need him to come forward yet. Having him make accusations would only complicate the situation. The Eighth Prince already has irrefutable evidence! This witness is here, and regardless of whether Xiao Dingshan speaks or not, I'm determined to kill him!"