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

"The emperor's betrayal?" Xiao Ce asked in confusion.

"Uncle Zhong, I haven't asked you this yet. After we left, did anyone try to assassinate us? Because I fought my way here, even the people from the northern deserts didn't have time to react. Let alone those people in the capital?"

Lin Zhong nodded and looked around.

Then, she subconsciously looked at Yin Pan'er, who was standing next to Xiao Ce.

Xiao Ce said to Lin Zhong, "Uncle Zhong, Pan'er is one of us. I've had her help manage all nine cities here! She's trustworthy!"

Yin Pan'er felt a warmth in her heart, but she still looked at Lin Zhong with some wariness and didn't seem to have any intention of saying anything.

Yin Pan'er is a very clever woman; she understood Xiao Ce's attitude.

Whether or not Lin Zhong listens to what he is about to say is no longer important to him!

"Your Highness, I'll go and tell them to make sure they bring up the best wine, the best food, and the best meat!"

With that, he left.

Xiao Ce watched Yin Pan'er leave, feeling quite satisfied. This Yin Pan'er was not only beautiful, but also intelligent.

She truly won his heart.

Watching Yin Pan'er leave, Xiao Ce said to Lin Zhong, "Uncle Zhong, can we talk now?"

Lin Zhong bowed deeply, his hands clasped in respect: "Your Highness, please forgive me, but this matter is of utmost importance..."

As they spoke, Lin Zhong mentioned that they had indeed been attacked several times before Xiao Ce left.

However, all attempts were unsuccessful.

Later, they seemed to realize that the main target was not there, and no one came to attack.

Their journey was very peaceful. Just before they passed Yanmen Pass, they received a message by carrier pigeon from Prince Xiao Dingshan, and upon reaching a city in between, he sent another message by fast horse.

When the King of the Town heard that the Emperor and his ministers knew of Bao An's death, the Emperor was furious and summoned some of his ministers that very night to discuss the matter.

It is said that they have already come up with a plan to deal with you.

The King of Zhen inquired for a long time, but only learned some things. It was said that they intended to use the disaster victims for their own purposes. Furthermore, it was rumored that they had already dispatched 20,000 troops to Maoming City, located outside Yanmen Pass, at the junction of the Central Plains and the northern desert.

After listening to Lin Zhong's words, Xiao Ce looked puzzled: "Using disaster victims as a pretext! I have soldiers, money, and people! Do they still want to control me? This is the northern desert, not the capital! If they push me too far, I'll just establish a kingdom here, so what?"

Lin Zhong nodded and said, "That's true, Your Highness. I can't think of any other methods they might have. But why did they send troops here?"

Xiao Ce said with a smile, "Uncle Zhong, don't worry too much... Don't be afraid, we'll meet force with force! After their 20,000 troops arrive, we'll hold Yanmen Pass. It won't be so easy for them to take it! By the way, you've arrived, the refugees should all be here by now."

Lin Zhong nodded and said, "The last large group of disaster victims came with us!"

Xiao Ce nodded and said, "Uncle Zhong, don't worry! Everything here is under control! But I'm still worried about Uncle Wang in the capital. If you could send him a letter, tell him to be careful over there. That damned emperor is inhuman! Let him find a way to leave there."

Upon hearing Xiao Ce's words, Lin Zhong quickly cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, please be careful with your words! No matter what, he is still your father."

Xiao Ce spat, "If he did anything decent and treated me like a son, I'd consider him a cheap father. But look at what he's done! I thought he'd had a change of heart and wouldn't bother me anymore. Turns out he's just waiting for an opportunity. Let me see just how many dirty tricks they have up their sleeves!"

Seeing Lin Zhong's worried expression, Xiao Ce comforted him, "Uncle Zhong, you can rest assured. The Emperor and his bunch of idiots combined are no match for me."

Seeing Xiao Ce's confident expression, Lin Zhong felt relieved.

Having witnessed Xiao Ce's abilities along the way, his expression softened somewhat.

...

Kyoto, inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Xiao Dingbang sneezed twice while sitting on the dragon throne, while Consort Hui, who looked unwell, stood beside him.

With a worried expression, he asked, "Your Majesty, are you alright?"

Xiao Dingbang waved his hand and said, "It's alright! Did you come here because of news from the northern desert?"

Xiao Yang's face was grim as he said, "Reporting to Father Emperor, it's true. The spies I arranged outside Yanmen Pass sent a message by carrier pigeon! Sixty thousand troops have crossed Yanmen Pass and entered the northern desert! All three hundred and thirty thousand refugees have been transported there!"

Xiao Dingbang said with a cold expression, "Good! Now we can close the net! That good-for-nothing must be gloating right now! If I hadn't let him go, would everything have gone so smoothly for him?"

Consort Hui knelt down beside Xiao Dingbang and said, "Your Majesty, you must capture him alive! Cut him into a thousand pieces! My brother fought valiantly against the Turks in the northern desert, and yet he was beheaded by that good-for-nothing on the grounds of being a traitor! He even threatened the officials there to submit a memorial together, which is a provocation against Your Majesty."

Xiao Yang then knelt down: "Yes, Father, Xiao Ce must have done it on purpose! He thought that after going to the northern desert, the mountains would be high and the emperor would be far away, and you wouldn't be able to deal with him! The first thing he did after he got there was to kill my uncle! He came for me! And he also came for you, Father."

Previously, Xiao Ce, together with all the officials in the northern desert and the powerful clans, submitted a memorial to the emperor, stating that Bao An had colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country. In order to appease the people, he was beheaded.

This memorial is filled with both witness testimonies and physical evidence. Once again, Xiao Dingbang suffered a loss he couldn't speak of!

However, Xiao Dingbang believed that Xiao Ce had framed him! He felt that Xiao Ce was provoking him.

Xiao Dingbang nodded in agreement: "Don't worry. I'm not stupid. Since General Bao An went to the northern desert, not an inch of land has been lost there. How could I not know his achievements? Weren't we waiting for them to bring all the disaster victims over?"

As he spoke, Xiao Dingbang called over a eunuch standing nearby: "Draft an imperial edict!"

"General Bao An is posthumously conferred the title of Marquis of Zhenbei, a hereditary title!"

"Due to the influx of too many unregistered refugees into the four prefectures of Mobei, in order to maintain stability in the four prefectures of Mobei, General Xing Daorong is hereby ordered to lead 20,000 troops to garrison Maoming City and guard key roads! No one is allowed to enter or leave the four prefectures of Mobei!"

"Go and send my secret letter to the powerful clans of the Northern Desert, telling them to gather evidence of Xiao Ce's rebellion. Whoever possesses the evidence will be granted the power to execute the king. Whoever takes the evidence and kills the rebellious King Xiao Ce will be appointed as the ruler of the four prefectures of the Northern Desert!"

Xiao Dingbang issued three imperial edicts in succession, which were the result of their discussions.

The first imperial edict was to tell the world that Bao An was not a traitorous general as Xiao Ce had claimed.

The second imperial edict revealed that the emperor knew Xiao Ce was trading rare and precious goods like Tianshan sugar and fine salt with merchants from the Central Plains. As long as Maoming City was held at all costs, cutting off Xiao Ce's retreat, he would be like a trapped beast in the four northern prefectures. It's important to remember that Xiao Ce was also leading 300,000 starving refugees; without a supply of food, they would surely rebel within a week.

The third imperial edict was their intention to use the powerful clans of the four prefectures of the Northern Desert to eliminate Xiao Ce! With the Lord of the Northern Desert in their interest, those powerful clans would surely respond.

Consort Hui reminded him, "Your Majesty, wasn't it to capture them alive?"

Xiao Dingbang shook his head and said, "We can have them cut him into a thousand pieces when he's in the four prefectures of Mobei. You know, the King of Zhen still has considerable prestige in the army. If he insists on protecting him, I'm afraid something else might happen. It's better to kill him directly in Mobei. By then, even if he finds out, it will be too late."

Xiao Yang reminded him, "Father, we must make sure they find out the location of the Immortal Mountain. If we can obtain the location of the Immortal Mountain and take control of it, it will definitely be a major source of revenue for the Xiao Kingdom."

Xiao Dingbang nodded and said, "Not bad! Hmph... that good-for-nothing is actually quite lucky, he even met some kind of immortal."

Consort Hui chimed in, "Your Highness, I believe his talk of immortals is just a figure of speech. If he had possessed these things before, he would have revealed himself long ago. None of our people who were monitoring him heard of them... Clearly, he acquired them only before he left!"

Xiao Dingbang's expression changed slightly: "My beloved concubine, do you mean... it was given to him by the Prince of Zhen?"

Consort Hui nodded and said, "That's right. King Zhen has been fighting all over the country in recent years, traversing every inch of Xiao Kingdom's land. It's obvious that they discovered this immortal mountain cave on their own and hid it for other purposes! That explains why we've never heard of these things before, and they only appeared after Xiao Ce left this place."

Seeing the changing expressions on Xiao Dingbang's face, Xiao Yang continued, "That's right... Father, and I've also heard that they claim to be recruiting soldiers from among the disaster victims, but according to the scouts, those soldiers are all very proud and their movements are perfectly synchronized. They don't look like new recruits at all, but rather like well-trained veterans!"

"Moreover, there are rumors that those soldiers are all veterans secretly kept by the Eighth Prince!"

Xiao Dingbang's eyes flashed with a cold light as he listened: "Quickly investigate this news. If we can find solid evidence, this time I will not only be able to get rid of that good-for-nothing Xiao Ce, but also remove Xiao Dingshan, this thorn in my side! That would truly be killing two birds with one stone!"

Xiao Yang cupped his hands and said, "Father, it's actually very simple! Just arrest that good-for-nothing, and then make him write a confession. Wouldn't that confirm Eighth Imperial Uncle's crimes? You should know that harboring soldiers is a crime punishable by being torn apart by chariots!"

A glint of excitement flashed in Xiao Dingbang's eyes: "Will that good-for-nothing talk?"

Xiao Yang said, "Father, do you really think that Xiao Ce was able to reach the northern desert safely because of his own abilities? He is a well-known good-for-nothing. The reason he was able to get there so smoothly this time was all because of the Eighth Imperial Uncle's confidant, Lin Zhong, who accompanied him."

"Lin Zhong taught him along the way, and with the Eighth Imperial Uncle protecting him, he was able to remain safe and sound. Now that we have cut off their supply lines, they will surely be thrown into chaos! That good-for-nothing is as cowardly as a mouse. Once he is captured by the powerful clans, he will probably be scared out of his wits without even being subjected to any torture."

"Your Majesty knows this good-for-nothing inside and out. When the time comes, not only will we not be able to make him betray the Eighth Imperial Uncle, but we can make him say whatever we want!"

Xiao Dingshan nodded in satisfaction and said, "Then go and give the orders quickly. If we can get rid of that good-for-nothing Xiao Ce and Xiao Dingshan this time, you will be the one to make the greatest contribution! With that good-for-nothing Xiao Ce and that stubborn Eighth Prince dead, I can openly and legitimately make you the Crown Prince, and no one in the court will dare to object!"