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

Xiao Yang knelt on the ground, his face filled with fear and trepidation: "Father is wise. It was your son who was confused for a moment... Please punish me, Father."

Xiao Dingbang remained expressionless and said to Xiao Yang, "Did you hit your head yourself? Did you also send people to beat Xiao Xiangqing?"

Xiao Yang knelt on the ground: "Father, please forgive me. It's all because of that Eighth Prince, who openly opposes me. He even tried to erase my contributions in the four prefectures of Mobei! I saw that Father has recently been favoring him again, and that's why I was confused."

"That's when I realized that all he did was help Father get rid of Xiao Dingshan. If he can do that, so can I. Besides, he's been trying for so long and still hasn't killed him. Why don't I do it and let Xiao Ce do it! It'll be a one-time solution. Then we can put all the blame on Xiao Ce. If those people want to settle scores, they can go after Xiao Ce!"

Xiao Dingbang listened and said to Xiao Yang, "Aren't you afraid that Xiao Ce will turn against you?"

Xiao Yang said, "Even if he dares to turn around and accuse me, others won't believe him. Besides, I'm lying to that good-for-nothing. As long as he does what I say, when it's time to be executed in the autumn, someone else will be sent. Then he can go to the northern desert to live a life of comfort and ease. That good-for-nothing has no ambition; he just wants to prolong his life. I'll find an opportunity to kill him without anyone noticing! He won't even have a chance to accuse me!"

As he spoke, Xiao Yang prostrated himself on the ground: "No matter what, Father, I was wrong... I shouldn't have acted so rashly... However, I did this simply to gain more of Father's attention..."

Upon seeing this, Xiao Dingbang suddenly burst into laughter.

Xiao Yang was completely bewildered by Xiao Dingbang's inexplicable laughter.

"Alright, you did well. Your methods were ruthless, even ruthless to yourself. I was always worried about you before, but seeing your methods now, I should be able to trust you. You yourself said that the biggest mistake you made was not following my instructions," Xiao Dingbang said with a smile.

Xiao Yang looked up and examined Xiao Dingbang's expression, noticing that he didn't seem angry.

On the contrary, he had a very relaxed and happy expression.

"Father, I will not do it again... Please punish me, Father."

Xiao Dingbang waved his hand: "Alright, this isn't a crime at all. However, after you've said these words to me, don't tell a third person. That's the end of this matter!"

Xiao Yang nodded: "Yes, Father."

Before Xiao Yang could continue speaking, the Grand Eunuch Lu Banban stepped forward: "Your Majesty, Lord Xing Shoulu has come to request an audience!"

Seeing this, Xiao Dingbang nodded: "Let him come."

Seeing this, Xiao Yang was about to bow and take his leave.

"You don't need to leave, just listen from the side!"

Upon seeing this, Xiao Yang cupped his hands in agreement.

Xing Shoulu, looking haggard, hurriedly stepped forward; his face clearly showed he hadn't had a proper rest in a long time.

"See Your Majesty!"

As he spoke, Xing Shoulu saw Xiao Yang beside him and bowed in greeting.

"Greetings, Your Highness."

Xiao Dingbang nodded: "Shoulu, you must be exhausted these days. Did you come here today because of news about my ninth brother's death?"

Xing Shoulu nodded: "Your Majesty, this is my duty. The cause of the King of Zhen's death has been thoroughly investigated..."

Xing Shoulu paused as he spoke, then subconsciously looked at Xiao Yang.

Xiao Dingbang said, "Shoulu, Yang'er is no ordinary person, I trust him. It's alright!"

Seeing that the emperor had spoken, Xing Shoulu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the cause of death of the Prince of Zhen has been confirmed. It was suicide, not murder!"

"As for King Xiao Ce of the Northern Desert, I have already conducted extensive interrogations. The First Prince originally intended to secretly meet with King Xiao Ce of the Northern Desert, but when they arrived, they discovered that King Zhen had already committed suicide by biting his tongue! These testimonies have been verified by multiple parties! Moreover, the autopsy showed that King Zhen died several hours before Xiao Ce entered the Heavenly Prison."

"Therefore, Xiao Ce, the King of Mobei, can be cleared of suspicion. The King of Zhen can also be judged to have committed suicide!"

Xiao Dingbang subconsciously looked at Xiao Yang.

Xiao Yang awkwardly shrugged, indicating that he didn't know what was going on either.

"Was it suicide? Or suicide out of fear of punishment?" Xiao Dingbang asked Xing Shoulu.

Xing Shoulu bowed respectfully and replied very carefully, "Your Majesty, since the King of Zhen did not leave any suicide note, we can only determine it to be suicide, not suicide out of fear of punishment."

Xiao Dingbang was silent for a moment, then said, "I understand."

Xing Shoulu presented the case file with both hands, saying, "Your Majesty, this is the case file. Please review it."

As he spoke, Xing Shoulu presented the case file in his hand. The eunuch Lu Banban took the case file from the side and stepped forward to hand it to Xiao Dingbang.

Xiao Dingbang raised his hand: "Lord Xing, I will take a good look at it. It's getting late. You've worked hard these past few days, so you should get some rest."

Xing Shoulu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, there is another matter concerning the attack on the two princes, which I have also come to a conclusion about."

Before Xing Shoulu could speak, Xiao Dingbang waved his hand and said to Xing Shoulu, "Lord Xing, I have already explained this matter to them, so there is no need for you to worry about it."

Xing Shoulu didn't want to get involved in this mess, but now that Xiao Dingbang had spoken up, he was happy to oblige.

"Your Majesty, I urge you to review the case file of the King's suicide as soon as possible and then issue your reply. This matter has already caused quite a stir in the city, and if it remains unresolved, I fear things may change!"

Siu Ting-pong listened and nodded.

Xing Shoulu bowed and withdrew.

After Xiao Dingbang stepped down, he looked at Xiao Yang: "Suicide? Yang'er, are you aware of this?"

Xiao Yang shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, I don't know... Do you think it's possible that that good-for-nothing Xiao Ce persuaded him to die?"

Xiao Dingbang shook his head: "Of course not, didn't you hear what Xing Shoulu said? The timing doesn't match..."

As he spoke, Xiao Dingbang began to peruse the file.

After looking at it for a while, Xiao Dingbang said, "Xing Shoulu is meticulous in his work. This case file can completely prove that Xiao Dingbang committed suicide. That good-for-nothing is really lucky. It seems that it is not feasible to try to shift the blame to him. I'm afraid he will escape this time again."

Xiao Yang was not surprised to hear all this, because these things were all part of Xiao Ce's plan.

If Xing Shoulu hadn't always maintained an image of impartiality, he would have begun to suspect that Xing Shoulu had been bribed by Xiao Ce.

He then proceeded according to plan, saying, "Father, let him out. As long as he's alive, many people will go to Xiao Ce, and Xiao Ce can explain himself! Besides, I already have Xiao Ce under my control; he'll definitely listen to me. He's more useful alive than dead!"

"Besides, the King of Zhen is dead, and his former troops have all been wiped out, so he is no longer a threat! But if Father kills him, some people will have something to say about him! Why don't you spare his life, Father?"

Xiao Dingbang nodded, looking indifferent: "Alright, Yang'er, you have a very good idea, so you can decide!"

Xiao Yang cupped his hands in thanks to Xiao Dingbang and said, "Thank you, Father!"

After a pause, Xiao Yang continued to say to Xiao Dingbang, "By the way, Father, I came back this time because of Xiao Dingshan. Now that he is dead, I will pack my things and prepare to continue my journey to the Northern Desert."

Upon hearing Xiao Yang's words, Xiao Dingbang quickly stopped him, saying, "What's gotten into you, kid? Xing Daorong is there now, why would you go to that godforsaken place? I still need you for something important. Just stay here peacefully for a while, the foreign delegation will arrive in the capital in a few days."

"Apart from that good-for-nothing Xiao Ce, you are the eldest prince. Naturally, you should attend the negotiations with them."

Xiao Yang listened with a look of surprise: "An alien delegation? Are you referring to those alien races outside Yumen Pass?"

Xiao Dingbang nodded: "That's right. Outside Yumen Pass, they have now united and called themselves the Western Regions Alliance. That is, their army, together with the King of Zhen, invaded our country! And Consort De's brother is the emperor of the Kingdom of Uz, which is the leading country in this Western Regions Alliance."

"Therefore, we are prepared to negotiate with them!"

Xiao Yang frowned slightly: "Father, now that Xiao Dingshan is dead...may I be so bold as to ask, did Xiao Dingshan truly betray our Xiao Kingdom, or..."

Before Xiao Yang could finish speaking, Xiao Dingbang raised his hand and said, "There's nothing wrong with saying this. Actually, this matter has nothing to do with Xiao Dingshan. However, the fact is that Xiao Dingshan's former army was indeed turned against him and then all of them defected to that Western Regions Alliance."

"This also led to our heavy losses, which forced us to negotiate with these Western Region allied states to delay their progress. Meanwhile, Xiao Xiangqing, the eighth brother, and his uncle Diliti made contact. Diliti agreed to let several of their surrendered generals come with the delegation."

"Once we get here, we can personally accuse Xiao Dingshan. Several of those generals are Xiao Dingshan's adopted sons... They have countless connections with Xiao Dingshan. With their accusations, wouldn't Xiao Dingshan be doomed?"

"However, now that Xiao Dingshan is dead, these things are no longer necessary."

Xiao Yang listened and nodded, but did not continue the conversation.

Because Xiao Ce had not given any instructions on these matters, he was also afraid of saying something he shouldn't have.

Seeing that Xiao Yang didn't respond, Xiao Dingbang continued, "Yang'er, what methods do you think we should take against this delegation this time?"

Xiao Yang paused for a moment, then didn't answer directly: "Father, you and Eighth Prince have already discussed this, so I won't get involved?"

Xiao Yang genuinely didn't know, but Xiao Dingbang thought Xiao Yang was hiding his abilities, so he pointed at him and said, "You brat, are you hiding your abilities with me?"

Xiao Yang smiled awkwardly: "Father, it's true that I'm not very clear about the situation there. I can't offer any useful solutions. Your sudden advice is a bit abrupt, but as the saying goes, 'Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle.' Only after I've investigated their situation and their demands can I provide an effective response."