At the tender age of eight, he was hastily dragged out and made emperor!

"This is just never going to stop!"

"What did I do to deserve this?!"

Weiwei Temple, main hall.

Liu Chen stood with his hands on his hips, his brows furrowed. Recalling all that had happened, Liu Chen felt a headache coming on. He had only just begun to make progress on Chu Hui's side, and he was thinking of having the Embroidered Uniform Guard send some people to provoke the delegations from the Northern Barbarians and Western Sichuan, hoping to muddy the waters first.

But before this man could go to the Embroidered Uniform Guard and explain his intentions to Zang Hao and the others, Xiao Yunyi arrived. As an official in the central government, everyone knew that Xiao Jing, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and Minister of Revenue, had great trust in this page.

When Xiao Yunyi arrived, Liu Chen knew something big must have happened.

As expected, through Xiao Yunyi, Liu Chen learned what Xiao Jing was planning and ordered the military command under his control to mobilize and keep a group of people under surveillance.

Liu Chen immediately guessed Xiao Jing's intention.

They're about to make their move and arrest him.

And so, through some conversations, Liu Chen learned that Xiao Jing had gone to find Bao Yuan and Bao Tietou, which further confirmed Liu Chen's suspicions about the Chen Jian case!

Despite the fact that many people were arrested and executed in the beginning of this case, a group of major criminals, led by Chen Jian, were never executed.

The Ministry of Revenue has almost been replaced.

One can imagine how much is involved behind this.

Liu Chen couldn't refuse, so he could only send someone to do as Xiao Jing said. However, this also made Liu Chen feel that some things could be changed, and perhaps this would have an unexpected effect.

Liu Chen was still making plans.

Zang Hao led his men here.

The key point is that this grand arrival will inevitably attract a lot of attention.

When Zang Hao arrived, he was very polite.

This, however, made Liu Chen wary.

The taste is off.

Liu Chen was still making plans when Zang Hao explained his purpose: he hoped to transfer some men from the Military Affairs Department to assist him in handling matters for the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Upon hearing this, Liu Chen immediately felt a headache coming on.

No, I still need your Embroidered Uniform Guard to do things. I haven't even sent anyone to explain the situation yet, and you've already come here to ask to borrow people from my Military Command?

At that moment, Liu Chen cursed inwardly, "When has the Great Yu ever been like this? Why is it that in the Zhengtong Dynasty, cunning foxes of all sizes keep popping up?"

Scolds are scolded.

There's still work to be done.

The current situation is that Liu Chen has achieved what he wanted to do, but he has also gotten himself into trouble, and the key is that he has gotten himself into trouble because of Xiao Jing and Zang Hao's scheme.

In other words, Liu Chen had to divide his attention to do many things.

"Your Highness, Lord Xiong from the Ministry of Rites has arrived."

As Liu Chen pondered what to do next, his attendant entered the hall and explained his purpose. Upon hearing this, Liu Chen frowned even more deeply.

That's when they came to us.

"Please."

Liu Chen sighed inwardly, but his expression remained unchanged as he gestured with his hand.

"Yes."

The attendant immediately responded.

Before long, Xiong Yan, the Minister of Rites, arrived.

"Is the Prince Consort not getting enough rest?"

Xiong Yan looked at Liu Chen, who was coming to greet him, with concern on his face, and said.

"Sigh, there are just too many things to manage, from the Imperial Guard to the Customs Administration, and then there's the reception of the diplomatic missions from both countries," Liu Chen sighed after hearing this.

"It's all just busywork. Lord Xiong knows I'm timid and afraid of messing things up and disappointing His Majesty, so..."

Xiong Yan's lips twitched.

He asked the question casually, but Liu Chen started rambling on and on.

Xiong Yan knew Liu Chen all too well.

If he were timid, the emperor wouldn't rely on him so much.

As a member of the imperial family and the son-in-law of Princess Wu'an, he must have had some extraordinary abilities and skills to be in charge of so many duties.

Putting aside everything else, the Military Commandery, which is under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Guard, has considerable power.

The powers of the North and South Armies were divided between the Military Command and the Patrol Battalion. Now, the main responsibility of the North and South Armies is to guard the capital and defend the city. They have had much less contact with the outside world.

"Look at my mouth, I can't stop talking once I start. Please don't take it to heart, Lord Xiong."

Seeing the change in Xiong Yan's expression, Liu Chen immediately changed his tune, then looked outside the hall, frowned, and shouted, "Are they all dead men? Didn't you see Lord Xiong has arrived? Quickly, bring tea!"

"Yes."

A sound immediately rang out from outside the hall.

"Lord Xiong, please don't take offense," Liu Chen said with a smile. "The people from the Imperial Guard are all used to being lazy, so please don't take it to heart."

"It's alright."

Xiong Yan replied.

But Liu Chen's actions only solidified Xiong Yan's thoughts.

"Lord Xiong, please have a seat."

"Please, Your Highness."

"Lord Xiong, have some tea."

"Please, Your Highness."

The tug-of-war began unexpectedly.

"Does Your Highness know that His Highness Prince Rui has summoned a group of people away?" Xiong Yan asked as he took a small sip of tea and saw Liu Chen holding a teacup in one hand and the lid in the other, blowing on the floating tea leaves before taking a sip.

"Cough cough~"

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Chen began to cough violently.

"Is the Prince Consort alright?"

Xiong Yan hurriedly put down his teacup and was about to get up and walk towards Liu Chen.

"It's alright, it's alright!"

Liu Chen quickly put down the cup lid and waved to Xiong Yan, "Ahem! Lord Xiong, please have a seat!"

You little bastard, you didn't call Xia Rui and the others away, did you?!

But Liu Chen cursed inwardly.

"I wonder which people Your Highness Prince Rui summoned away, that Lord Xiong is so worried?" Liu Chen cursed inwardly, but his face remained unchanged. Under Xiong Yan's gaze, he put down his teacup and asked, flicking his sleeves.

"Xia Rui, Su Qi, and Lu Jun are the newly appointed Jinshi who are observing the government."

Xiong Yan replied, "As Your Highness knows, these newly appointed scholars were drawn from the central government to oversee the administration and are responsible for receiving the delegations from both countries."

"Now that they are all familiar with their own affairs, His Highness Prince Rui transferred them away without informing them and placed them in the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs. Putting aside what we think, what will the delegations from both countries in the capital think?"

You rascal, are you trying to probe my intentions?!

Upon hearing this, Liu Chen immediately understood Xiong Yan's meaning.

It seems his guess was correct.

Chu Hui, without consulting anyone, separated the delegations from the two countries and relocated them to new places. Xiong Yan, who was in charge of assisting with the reception, must have thought of something.

Does it matter what they think?

Thinking of this, Liu Chen smiled and said to Xiong Yan, "His Highness Prince Rui's coming-of-age ceremony is over. What the two delegations need to do now is to see who is more sincere, so that we can achieve their purpose of visiting our country."

"Does Your Highness think it's unimportant?"

Xiong Yan countered, "If Zong Qingdao's rebellion hadn't occurred, perhaps things would be as Your Highness said. But now a rebellion has broken out within our own borders. Doesn't Your Highness find that strange?"

"What's weird?"

Liu Chen feigned ignorance.

You bastard!

Xiong Yan cursed inwardly.

This is why he never underestimated Liu Chen; he was as slippery as an eel. But it was also because of this that Xiong Yan became even more convinced of his conjecture.

"Zong Qingdao rebelled, doesn't Your Highness think it's too much of a coincidence?" Thinking of this, Xiong Yan said what he wanted to say. As he said this, Xiong Yan didn't forget to glance at the hall door, and then continued.

"The things that Prince Rui is doing now give me the feeling that he is deliberately testing the delegations from the Northern Barbarians and the Western Sichuan."

"If I am not mistaken, the rebellion in Zongqingdao may be linked to the Northern Barbarian delegation, or the Western Sichuan delegation, or perhaps both!"

Liu Chen's expression turned serious.

"This official does not know what Prince Rui intends to do, nor does he know what the Imperial Son-in-Law is thinking."

Xiong Yan flicked his sleeves and leaned forward to say to Liu Chen, "But there is one thing I must remind you of: we must not let the delegations from both countries leave our country in a huff. At least, we cannot allow all of them to do so."

"Otherwise, it would be detrimental to our dynasty."

"Lord Xiong, are you worried that Zong Qingdao's rebellion is just an attractive facade?" Liu Chen followed up on Xiong Yan's words. "And the real core is actually our dynasty's borders?"

Xiong Yan nodded silently.

This is exactly what he was worried about.

If that's the case, the envoys from both countries will send the news back to their respective kingdoms. If they join forces to invade the borders of Dayu, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Since it involves some secrets, the fewer people who know about it, the better.

The troubles encountered by the Northern Barbarians and the problems arising in Western Sichuan are known to very few people, even in the current central government of the Great Yu Dynasty.

But this is exactly what Chu Ling wanted to see.

Chu Ling wanted to see for himself what the attitudes and behaviors of the civil and military officials in the central government of the Great Yu would be in this complicated situation.

"Lord Xiong, aren't you overthinking this?"

Despite having this suspicion, Liu Chen pondered for a moment before saying to Xiong Yan, "If that's really the case, why would the two countries go to such lengths to send envoys to our court?"

"Am I overthinking things?"

Xiong Yan countered with a question.

After hearing these words, Xiong Yan guessed that Liu Chen was also worried about this matter. The subtle glances people give without realizing it don't lie!

"What does Lord Xiong wish to do for me?"

Seeing Xiong Yan's reaction, Liu Chen inquired.

"I would like to ask the Prince Consort to persuade His Highness Prince Rui."

Xiong Yan stood up and bowed to Liu Chen. "I know that His Highness Prince Rui is a man who hates evil and is concerned about the country. But since this involves the delegations of the two countries, I would appreciate it if you could discuss it with us."

This bear is no ordinary creature.

As Liu Chen rose to his feet and avoided the formalities performed by Xiong Yan, he overheard Xiong Yan's words and couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion.

It seems they want to use him to persuade His Highness Prince Rui to discuss the matter between the two countries' delegations with them properly before making a decision.

But actually?

This was clearly an attempt to use him to have His Highness Prince Rui relay some of the subordinates' ideas to the Emperor, so that the Emperor could have some thoughts on them.

If one were simple-minded, one would think that Xiong Yan was making a fuss over nothing, that it was completely unnecessary. If he really had something to say, why didn't he just go to an audience with the emperor to say it?

After all, you, Xiong Yan, are a minister trusted by the emperor.

But Liu Chen is clearly not simple.

Liu Chen guessed that the reason Xiong Yan did this was because of the poem "Jade Plate" that appeared at the previous coming-of-age ceremony. This was clearly not a spur-of-the-moment idea, but something that the emperor had been planning for a long time.

The meaning of this is obvious to anyone with eyes to see.

But that's not all. Recently, some people have started to make moves. It was Prince Rui who started it, but now the momentum has clearly split into several groups.

Xiong Yan had spent a considerable amount of time in the local area, and he knew all too well what this meant.

"I will do my best to handle this matter."

Thinking of this, Liu Chen composed himself and returned Xiong Yan's greeting.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Your Highness."

Xiong Yan bowed slightly and said, "In that case, I will not trouble Your Highness any further."

After speaking, Xiong Yan bowed to Liu Chen and then turned and walked out of the hall.

"Your Highness, please wait."

Watching Xiong Yan's departing figure, Liu Chen, who had walked out of the hall, frowned slightly. Xiong Yan's visit this time only strengthened his suspicions.

Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you don't really want to break ties with the Northern Barbarians and Western Sichuan, do you?

But this is not a good thing for the Great Yu.

Even if we were to completely break off relations, this isn't the time for that.

……

“It’s interesting, they’re all moving.”

Imperial City, Imperial Clan Court.

Chu Hui leaned against the cushion and smiled at Guo Huang, Wang Yu and the others, "But this is good too, it can also divert the attention of Murong Tianxiang and the others from some of the troubles that have occurred in our dynasty."

"Your Highness, Xia Ji has already left Gyeonggi Province."

After hearing this, Wang Yu lowered his head and said, "At this rate, Xia Ji and his party will be able to cross the Xiliang Road and return to Xichuan in as little as five days."

"In other words, these next few days are crucial."

Chu Hui suppressed his smile and said, "As long as Murong Tianxiang doesn't notice anything in the next few days, then every extra day we deceive the Northern Barbarian delegation will be a gain for our dynasty."

"Is such that."

Wang Yu nodded.

"Since that's the case, then let's go tomorrow. I'll go to the Xichuan delegation and have a drink with Xia Ji." Thinking of this, Chu Hui fiddled with the prayer beads in his hand and said with a half-smile.

"Your Highness, won't this give us away?"

Guo Huang looked at Chu Hui with some concern.

"You still don't understand people's hearts."

After hearing this, Chu Hui pointed at Guo Huang and said, "If we do nothing, we'll only give ourselves away. Besides, we've already replaced Xia Ji with our own people."

“In the coming days, we will not only deceive Murong Tianxiang and the others, but also some people in the Xichuan delegation. You have seen the list that Xia Ji gave us.”

"Within Xichuan, there are quite a few people plotting against Xia Ji, hoping that Xia Ji will die in Dayu. Don't you all know what that means?"

"Do the people in Xichuan want to gain something through war, especially war against our dynasty?" Guo Huang asked, his brows furrowing slightly.

“My brother once said something that I think is very good.”

Chu Hui said, "The world is bustling because of profit, and the world is bustling because of profit. This world is driven by profit. If this profit cannot be transferred, then harm will come."

“The fact that Xia Ji killed one person and sent this list already shows his attitude.”

"Xia Ji is a ruthless character who will not give up until he achieves his goal. Once such a person makes up his mind, he will definitely make it happen. Otherwise, it will be a loss. In the matter of seizing the throne, once Xia Ji's ambition is born, it will never disappear."

Guo Huang and Wang Yu exchanged a glance and said nothing more.

"Wang Yu, there's something I need you to handle personally."

"Your Highness, please explain!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yu immediately bowed and said...

"come over."

Chu Hui gestured, and Wang Yu did not hesitate and immediately stepped forward. Under Guo Huang's gaze, Chu Hui whispered to Wang Yu. Guo Huang lowered his head upon seeing this, but he was puzzled. What could be so important that His Highness needed to be so cautious?