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

"You all join first. I have some good news to tell you later."

Xiao Ce sat down and looked down at the crowd.

Everyone felt their legs go weak as they listened, feeling that the good things Xiao Ce was talking about might not be as good as they thought!

"Now that we're all on the same side, Xiao Jiu, go get some rice porridge and steamed buns for everyone to have something to eat."

Xiao Jiu bowed in agreement and clapped her hands.

A group of servants carried a lot of congee and side dishes.

"Gentlemen, you have not eaten for a long time. You cannot eat rich and meaty food, so please have something light for now. Another day, when I formally host a banquet, I will certainly treat you to fine wine and food."

The merchants waved their hands repeatedly, indicating that it was nothing.

Xiao Ce also ordered one; he hadn't eaten anything that morning either.

...

At this moment, the remaining noble families in the Hall of Ceremonies all went to find their respective patriarchs.

They were as anxious as ants on a hot pan.

At this moment, they were truly terrified...

They were genuinely terrified.

Because of the way those officials were bound hand and foot just now, it seemed that Xiao Ce wasn't faking it.

After all, he even dared to kill Bao An.

Seeing the panicked look on their faces, Cai Tianming sneered and said, "Alright, what are you afraid of? I'll tell you, Xiao Ce is just bluffing us... If he really wanted to kill someone, he would have done it quietly. Why would he tell us first? What does that mean? It means he's just bluffing us!"

Lin Shou continued, "That's right, everyone, you can all calm down. If Xiao Ce wanted to kill us, he would have done so long ago. If he wanted to kill us, why would he keep us here? He's just trying to put some psychological pressure on us, hoping to gain some advantage in our negotiations!"

Liu Xuan nodded in agreement: "Gentlemen, as long as you stand with us on the same side, Xiao Ce won't dare to touch us. Why would he target those officials? Because they have no one to rely on, so killing them would be the least costly thing to do!"

"But we're different. Let alone the four great clans, even your various prestigious families wouldn't dare to touch us! Understand?"

After listening to the words of the heads of several powerful families, the crowd calmed down.

...

Just as they were discussing inside, a sound suddenly came from outside.

"Hey, you guys inside, get in line and come out!"

That voice belongs to Xiao Jiu!

Upon hearing this, the heads of those powerful families revealed expressions of having guessed correctly.

He said to the heads of the prestigious families beside him, "See... they've come looking for us!"

"What should we do later?"

Cai Tianming raised his head slightly and said, "Does this even need to be said? Just watch our expressions! No matter what he says, we won't say anything, and you shouldn't say anything either... Don't let them scare you."

After listening to Cai Tianming's words, everyone nodded repeatedly.

Kan Zongye addressed the crowd, saying, "However, no matter what, don't be too aggressive. We must escape first before we can fight him!"

Everyone nodded in unison, a rare occurrence.

The group of people lined up according to their respective clans, forming four teams, and then went out.

After walking outside, I saw a fully armed team of one hundred people watching from the side.

Xiao Jiu glanced at them and said, "Alright, follow me."

After hearing Xiao Jiu's words, everyone followed suit.

However, after walking for a while, they realized something was wrong.

They've been here more than once or twice, and they know the situation here inside and out.

They're heading outside right now.

Cai Tianming yelled, "Hey, where are you taking us?"

Xiao Jiu glanced at Cai Tianming: "Naturally, I'm here to see the Prince."

"To see the Prince? This is heading out of the city!" Cai Tianming said with a slight frown.

Xiao Jiu glanced at Cai Tianming and said, "I know! If you don't want to come, you can go back to the Hall of Rites!"

Cai Tianming's face flushed red as he pointed at Xiao Jiu and said, "You...."

Fortunately, someone nearby stopped them.

......

On the city wall of the imperial palace, Zhang Yunqing and the merchants stood in neat rows, watching.

An execution platform has already been set up below the city.

Beside the platform were the heads of Bao An, Bao Cong, and Cai Wu. Xiao Jiu had just sent people in to retrieve them.

Bao Cong died the day after Bao An. Partly from an infected wound, and partly from being scared to death.

At this moment, more than forty officials were kneeling on the execution platform.

These individuals had completely lost their earlier arrogance and domineering attitude; their eyes were vacant, and their bodies trembled uncontrollably.

"Boss Zhang, what does His Highness mean by this? Why did he send us here? To watch an execution?"

"We have already pledged our loyalty to the prince, but he doesn't believe us, does he?"

"Boss Zhang, we're not next, are we...? Was that food they gave us just now our last meal before we were executed...?"

...

The more these businessmen talked, the more alarmed they became!

Zhang Yunqing addressed the crowd, saying, "Gentlemen, don't overthink it. The Prince just wants you to see this. He's not just saying he wants to govern the four prefectures of Mobei properly; he'll start with these corrupt officials! Besides, you all don't understand the Prince at all! If the Prince really wanted you dead, he wouldn't give you a last meal before you're beheaded. Look at those people kneeling to die; they haven't even had a single bite to eat."

The expressions on everyone's faces softened somewhat.

"Are you sure you won't die?"

Zhang Yunqing said, "I'm sure you won't die! The prince's meaning is very simple! If you sincerely serve the prince, he will not treat you unfairly! Of course, if you dare to become the prince's mortal enemy, that's what those people will suffer!"

Everyone nodded repeatedly, their emotions were all complicated.

In fact, they knew this simple truth all too well; what they didn't know was how long Xiao Ce could hold out.

If Xiao Ce can establish himself here, currying favor with him would definitely be a profitable deal.

However, if Xiao Ce's enthusiasm only lasts three minutes, they will be the next to suffer after he is killed by those powerful clans.

Just as they were talking, they saw Xiao Jiu leading a group of fully armed soldiers and a group of heads of powerful and prestigious families over.

After these family heads arrived, they lined up in a row.

Cai Tianming looked down at the city walls and immediately saw the officials they had arranged, all kneeling on an execution platform.

"What do you mean?"

Xiao Jiu addressed the crowd, saying, "His Highness ordered that you all see this. These people not only betrayed the Great Xiao Kingdom, but also the people. You all need to see this."

Cai Tianming stared at his son's head, hanging there, his face grim and his fists clenched tightly.

"He wouldn't dare! Even if it's the death penalty, it's not his place! The Great Xiao Kingdom has its own laws!"

Xiao Jiu walked straight up to Cai Tianming, staring intently at him: "Are you not convinced?"

Cai Tianming's face twitched slightly. If it were any other time, a servant would have dared to speak to him like that, and would probably have died tens of thousands of times over.

However, he dared not show his anger at this moment, and could only suppress the rage in his heart.

"I was just saying that the laws of the Great Xiao Kingdom are still in effect. Even if he is a prince, he must abide by the law."

Xiao Jiu said to Cai Tianming, "The prince said that he has arrived, and he is the law of the Northern Desert. I hope you will get used to it!"

After saying that, he looked at Cai Tianming and asked, "Are you dissatisfied? I can take you to the Prince! However, I can't guarantee whether the Prince will make an example of someone to scare others."

Cai Tianming immediately shut up.

Because he previously thought that Xiao Ce wouldn't dare to kill so many court officials.

However, judging from the scene outside the city, there were thousands of onlookers.

These people were all enslaved people with tattoos on their faces, and they had long harbored deep hatred for these corrupt officials.

Clearly, Xiao Ce had caused such a commotion that killing people was the only way to end things.

He was terrified that Xiao Ce might act rashly and kill him too.

He stopped talking.

Xiao Jiu deliberately shouted at the top of her lungs, "If you're watching from here, just watch quietly and don't make a sound! You must learn from this! You must not do anything that betrays the country and the people!"

It wasn't far from the execution platform, and Xiao Jiu was shouting at the top of her lungs.

Therefore, everyone on the execution platform heard it.

They subconsciously looked in this direction, and many of the officials saw the heads of the four major clans.

Upon seeing them, they grasped at the last straw.

"Cai Tianming! You told me to listen to you...you said you'd protect me! Please come and save me! Save me! I don't want to die..."

"Liu Xuan! Come save me... I'm dying in your place... Come save me... If you don't save me, I'll haunt you even as a ghost... You said you'd take care of me... I don't want to die..."

"Lin Shou! What are you looking at? Come save me..."

"Kan Zongye, save me! If you don't save me... don't blame me..."

Upon seeing this, those waiting to be beheaded no longer addressed them with respectful titles, but instead called them by their given names!

They were all getting anxious because they knew that Xiao Ce was determined to kill them.

And their only way to survive is through them.

They pleaded while simultaneously threatening others.

The heads of the four major clans found these people's words extremely grating.

Some officials even began to list their crimes directly, saying that they deserved to die.

This infuriated these people.

Cai Tianming shouted directly, "Don't you dare make false accusations! Don't talk nonsense. Tell your family that they're still over there! Whatever you do, you have to think about your family."

Upon seeing this, one of the officials went berserk and started shouting.

"Cai Gou! You're threatening me with my family! If you dare harm even a single hair on my family's head, I'll haunt you even in death! Cai Gou, all I've done for you! And now you're threatening me on my deathbed... then don't blame me for being ruthless..."

"Patriarch Kan, do you remember your most beloved youngest daughter, who was raped by the Turks? That was done by people Cai Tianming paid to do... They weren't even Turks..."

Cai Tianming's face turned red with anger: "You're talking nonsense... you surnamed Tian... if you keep talking nonsense, I'll kill your whole family!"

The official kneeling on the ground grew anxious and burst into curses: "Fine, you want to kill my whole family? Then I'll have even more to say... I'll expose all your dirty secrets..."

Seeing this, Cai Tianming almost roared, "Shut up...shut up! You shut the hell up!"

Unfortunately, one side was on the city wall and the other was below, so they were powerless to stop it.

However, after Cai Tianming broke down, all he could do was curse, and it quickly turned into a dog-eat-dog verbal battle!

Listening to the dog-eat-dog conversation from one side of the city wall, he smiled and said to Qian Lai beside him, "Indeed, gossip among acquaintances is quite interesting!"

Qian Lai looked at Xiao Ce with some admiration and said, "Your Highness, is this your plan?"

As he spoke, Xiao Ce smiled slightly at Qian Lai and said, "Go add some fuel to the fire, and send someone to whisper in everyone's ear that if they complain well, I might spare their lives."

Qian Lai looked at Xiao Ce with some surprise and said, "Your Highness, do you really want to let them go? That might hurt the people's feelings. These people have worked so hard..."

Before Qian could finish speaking, Xiao Ce interrupted, "How could that be? They're going to die today! We're just playing with them, adding fuel to the fire! These people seem to be hiding a lot. If we can get them to reveal their betrayals, it'll make my plans run more smoothly!"