Chapter 595 - 595 592 Not Without Reason_1

Chapter 595: Chapter 592: Not Without Reason_1 Chapter 595: Chapter 592: Not Without Reason_1 The Crown Prince waved his hand dismissively, “Not really. It’s Yan and Beirong jointly attacking Nanrong. This is understandable since Nanrong ambushed and killed Yan’s princess, who was to marry into Beirong as their new empress. How could Yan and Beirong swallow this anger? Naturally, they would attack Nanrong. It is just as well… Nanrong recently plundered our Jin Kingdom’s Dengzhou City, and they deserve to learn a lesson.”

The Crown Prince clearly didn’t take the matter to heart.

“Your Highness!” Bai Qingyan suddenly rose with a solemn expression and bowed towards the Crown Prince, “Yan and Beirong attacking Nanrong… our Jin Kingdom must not sit by and let it happen!”

The Crown Prince didn’t understand Bai Qingyan’s words, furrowing his brows, “Princess of Zhen, what do you mean by this? Do you think the Jin Kingdom should take this opportunity to annihilate Nanrong?”

Bai Qingyan’s gaze fell on the map of the territory hanging in the Crown Prince’s study. She rose and walked towards it, and the Crown Prince quickly followed.

“Your Highness, look here…” Bai Qingyan pointed at Yan, located to the west of the Jin Kingdom, “Yan lies to the west of our Jin Kingdom. Now it also controls Beirong, which lies to our east. If Beirong swallows Nanrong in this war, Yan’s close relationship with the Rong people will form a pincer movement around our Jin Kingdom! Your Highness… with Nanrong there, they entangle Yan and Beirong, ensuring the safety of our Jin Kingdom.”

The Crown Prince glanced at Yan to the south of the map and then at the Rong people to the north, clenching his fist by his side, “Nanrong just plundered Dengzhou. Are we really going to help Nanrong? I just can’t swallow this anger!”

“Your Highness, you must be vigilant in peaceful times. Endure momentary rage for the sake of the overall situation, only then can you strategize for the world! For the peace of our Jin Kingdom, Bai Qingyan requests the Crown Prince to send envoys to Beirong and Yan with warnings. Also, dispatch someone to inform my uncle, so Anping Camp and the Dengzhou Army can be on high alert!” Bai Qingyan said with a long bow toward the Crown Prince.

In military affairs, the Crown Prince always trusted Bai Qingyan. After all, in the Southern War, he had doubted Bai Qingyan to their great loss.

The Crown Prince’s gaze fixated on the map, his fist tightening, “But Father has not yet awakened. This matter…”

“Your Highness, you are destined to ascend the throne someday. His Majesty is currently unconscious and has entrusted the government to you. You must take action to reassure His Majesty that the Jin Kingdom’s future is in safe hands! As long as Your Highness believes it is for the good of the Jin Kingdom, you can give the order! Naturally… if Your Highness is unsure, you can immediately summon the Chief of Staff and Master Tan to discuss this matter. His Majesty entrusted Master Tan to assist in governance, so his opinion is very important!”

Ultimately, the Crown Prince was afraid of taking responsibility. Bai Qingyan understood the Crown Prince’s thoughts, so she suggested discussing the matter with Master Tan. With the agreement of Master Tan and the Chief of Staff, the Crown Prince would feel that even if things went wrong, the responsibility would not solely be his.

Sure enough, the Crown Prince nodded and ordered Quan Yu to quickly summon the Chief of Staff and Master Tan to the Crown Prince’s residence.

For the Jin Kingdom, the more divided the surrounding countries were, the more advantageous it would be. Bai Qingyan understood this, as did Master Tan and the Chief of Staff.

Regardless of whether Beirong and Yan attacked Nanrong to avenge Princess Mingcheng of Yan or to lay out future plans, Bai Qingyan needed to protect Nanrong!

Besides the fact that without Nanrong, it would be detrimental to the Jin Kingdom, Bai Qingyan also needed to protect A Yu and ensure her uncle’s safe training of their cavalry in Nanrong.

“This matter you don’t need to worry about. After discussing it with Master Tan and the Chief of Staff, I will immediately dispatch envoys to Yan and Beirong! You go back and rest well. You have been working hard lately.”

The Crown Prince ordered Quan Yu to open the warehouse and send Bai Qingyan a lot of top-quality medicinal herbs. He also sent gold and silver, ostensibly for Bai Qingyan to use in training soldiers in Shuoyang, but it was actually a reward for her.

Not long after Bai Qingyan left the residence, Elder Fang hurried to the study.

The Crown Prince had already changed his clothes. Leaning on the couch with an ice pack on his head, he removed it and sat up when Quan Yu announced Elder Fang’s arrival. He casually pointed to the mat beside the couch, “Elder Fang, please sit!”

Elder Fang lifted his robe and knelt on the mat. A little eunuch walked in small steps to serve him tea and then retreated. Only then did the Crown Prince speak to Elder Fang, “There is a matter I need you to investigate privately, and quickly!”

Elder Fang cupped his hands towards the Crown Prince, “As Your Highness commands!”

“You are to investigate where the servants sold by the Fu Family and the Empress’s maternal family were sent the year Father married the Empress as the Crown Princess. Find a few to question if Fu Ruoxi and the Empress had an engagement back then!” The Crown Prince looked deeply into Elder Fang’s eyes, earnestly instructing him, “This matter concerns the reputation of the Imperial Family, so I am telling only Elder Fang. You must be cautious in your investigation.”

Elder Fang, upon hearing this and seeing that the Crown Prince had not called Qin Shangzhi or Ren Shijie, immediately straightened up and saluted the Crown Prince, “Rest assured, Your Highness, I will handle this matter impeccably! Your Highness, are you suspecting a connection between the Empress and Fu Ruoxi?”

The Crown Prince nodded, “Ever since the Empress became pregnant, she only allowed Doctor Hu to check her pulse. I recalled that the Empress’s personal palace maid once secretly escorted Fu Ruoxi out of the palace, suspecting… the child in the Empress’s womb might not be Father’s! If this is true, the Empress and King Xin would both be doomed with no chance of recovery, and no one would threaten my position!”

Elder Fang quickly processed the information, then raised his head sharply to look at the Crown Prince, “To utterly destroy the Emress and King Xin, I recall one incident…”

The Crown Prince threw the ice pack into the water basin, “Speak freely, Elder Fang.”

“Your Highness might remember, after the Empress entered the Crown Prince’s residence and learned that Consort Yu had already given birth to Your Highness, she tormented her in many ways. Later the Emress became pregnant… and when King Xin was not full-term, Consort Yu and the Empress quarreled, resulting in King Xin’s premature birth! The Empress claimed that Consort Yu had pushed her. If Madam Shoushan had not returned in time to prove that the Empress had tripped herself and that Consort Yu was actually rushing over to help her, Consort Yu might have lost her life!” Elder Fang’s eyes darkened, “In retrospect, doesn’t Your Highness think perhaps the Empress wanted to frame Consort Yu by pretending her pregnancy was full-term?”

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince’s eyes flared with murderous intent.

Due to that incident, his mother, Consort Yu, was beaten fifty times by Father, nearly dying. Though she gradually recovered, the beating caused her to lose a child and left her unable to conceive again. Consequently, he experienced years of hardship and was often mistreated by the servants.

“What Elder Fang says… is not without reason!”

The Crown Prince felt a surge of anger. If the Empress had indeed framed them, the Crown Prince could definitely not let the Empress get away with it.