dognovel Chapter 545 The Shocked Prince
Chapter 545 The Shocked Prince
Chu Ning's victory report was sent to Kyoto City at an express speed of 800 miles.
This battle was of great importance and attracted much attention from the court. The messengers did not dare to be negligent and traveled day and night, changing horses at every post station they arrived at.
After galloping at such a rapid speed, the good news reached Kyoto a few days later.
At this moment, the emperor is still building his mausoleum outside the city, and the crown prince is acting as regent in the court!
On this day, the Crown Prince was reviewing memorials in the East Palace as usual.
"Humph, the Lantern Festival is coming soon, and the officials below are actually using this as an excuse to ask for so much silver!"
The prince threw the memorial in his hand fiercely on the table and said, "In the past few days, more and more people have used this as an excuse to ask for money!
Do you really think that you can do whatever you want when the emperor is not in Kyoto? I used to be in charge of the Lantern Festival. How much money does it cost? Don't I know it?"
The prince became more and more angry as he spoke, so he picked up the memorial and drew a big "X" on it!
"Pass this memorial down!" The prince threw the memorial down without any hesitation.
A guard immediately picked up the memorial, turned around and left without saying a word.
But at this moment, the eunuch's voice suddenly came from outside the palace: "Your Highness, Yunzhou has won a great victory. His Highness the King of Chu has sent someone to report the victory!"
As soon as these words came out, the prince's face suddenly became extremely gloomy.
Chu Ning, it’s Chu Ning again!
Why is it Chu Ning who wins every great victory?
That’s not right. Doesn’t General Xiahou Ren exist in Yunzhou? Why did Chu Ning send someone to bring the victory report?
This kind of thing should be reported back by the general.
Thinking of this, the prince narrowed his eyes and a strange look flashed across his eyes: "Let him in!"
A general in armor stepped in.
"General Chen Ping pays respect to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
"General Chen Ping, right? I remember you. You once came to see me with the general!"
The prince had a good memory and recognized the man as the general's man at just one glance.
But Chen Ping's face changed slightly when he heard this, but he didn't say much. He immediately took out the victory report and presented it, saying in a deep voice:
"Your Highness, this is the victory report presented by His Highness the Prince of Chu. Please take a look."
The prince frowned, feeling somewhat unhappy.
I wanted to build a relationship with this person and inquire about the situation at the front line, but he is so ungrateful?
With a cold snort, the prince signaled the eunuch beside him to present the victory report.
After receiving the good news, the prince's face suddenly changed.
"Impossible, this is impossible!"
The prince was so anxious that he jumped up from his chair, his face full of horror: "How could he...how could he destroy the main force of the Yan army and kill the general of the Yan army, Yan Yucheng?"
Just one of these points is enough to be shocking, but Chu Ning did both.
With such merit, if he returns to the court, he will definitely be rewarded.
The prince felt something was not right the more he thought about it and continued to read on, trying to find something wrong in this victory report.
In his opinion, this victory report was fake, and he could convict Chu Ning as long as he could find the false parts.
However, the more he looked, the more frightened he became, and the colder his heart became.
Not until he finished reading it all did he realize that Chu Ning had taken advantage of Xiahou Ren's contradictions, deliberately leaked his whereabouts, and lured the Yan army to attack.
As for the final battle, Chu Ning predicted that Xiahou Ren would retaliate and arranged Zhao Yu as a surprise force in advance.
With the right time, place and people, this battle was accomplished.
However, after reading the good news, the prince's face showed ecstasy.
"Hahahaha, ok, that's great!"
The prince laughed wildly and said, “I never thought that my eighteenth brother would be so powerful. In just one month, he forced the Yan army to fight a decisive battle with him and even completely destroyed its main force, leaving only more than 10,000 people escaping.
I will definitely report this to my father and reward my eighteenth brother and the soldiers on the front line, but..."
At this point, the crown prince suddenly looked unhappy: "Why did my eighteenth brother kill the general without asking the emperor for permission?"
After saying this, the prince turned to look at Chen Ping and asked in a cold voice: "You were all brought up by the general, why didn't you stop my eighteenth brother?"
Chen Ping's face was calm, and he said calmly: "Your Highness, the general colluded with foreign enemies, plotted to murder the prince, and even tried to send our army's food and grass to the enemy. We are very angry about this behavior.
His Royal Highness the King of Chu is strict in his military discipline and would not tolerate such people in the army, so he beheaded him in public!"
As soon as these words came out, the prince's face suddenly became a little ugly.
It is not difficult to see from Chen Ping's attitude and tone that Chu Ning has completely taken control of Yunzhou's troops, otherwise how could Chen Ping speak for Chu Ning.
This damn guy already has an army of 100,000 in Bingzhou. If he controls the troops in Yunzhou, the troops in his hands will account for half of the troops in Da Chu!
Thinking of this, the prince snorted coldly: "Even if the general is wrong, the eighteenth brother has no right to behead him without authorization. This palace will definitely report this matter to father!
As for this victory, I will reward you according to your merits, but the reward for my eighteenth brother will have to wait for the emperor to decide.
General Chen has come a long way, so he must be tired. Go down and rest."
"I'll take my leave now." Chen Ping responded and bowed before leaving.
The prince stared at Chen Ping's departing back, a hint of cruelty flashing in his eyes.
The victory in Yunzhou was unexpected, but Chu Ning beheading the general was also shocking.
He didn't believe that Chu Ning was a brainless person. He dared to kill the general in such a high-profile manner. He might have some support.
He can't act rashly!
Thinking of this, the prince made a prompt decision: "Come here, go and ask Lord Ling and Lord Yang to come over!"
Half an hour later, Minister of Justice Ling Haoran and Yang Yuntao, who received the news, rushed to the East Palace.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!" The two men bowed.
The prince picked up the victory report with a sullen face and said, "Take a look at this victory report for yourselves."
Yang Yuntao frowned, and immediately stepped forward to take the good news and check it with Ling Haoran.
After a moment, the two looked at each other, with a flash of shock in their eyes.
No one expected that Chu Ning could defeat the main force of the Yan army in Yunzhou and kill Yan Yucheng.
Of course, they could never have imagined that Chu Ning even killed General Xiahou Ren!
"His Royal Highness!"
Ling Haoran said in a deep voice: "The killing of the general is no small matter. Your Majesty needs to return to the court to deal with it. If this matter is not handled properly, it will definitely cause a mutiny!"
The crown prince is now regent. If a mutiny occurs during this period, the crown prince will be responsible.
The prince's face changed when he heard this. He was so focused on how to take revenge on Chu Ning that he forgot about his own situation.
"Someone, come and pass this good news to our father immediately!" The prince acted promptly and sent someone to deliver the good news.
After the eunuch took down the victory report, Yang Yuntao said in a deep voice: "Your Highness, the King of Chu is so arrogant and domineering. Once he returns to the capital, his reputation and power will surely be far greater than before.
I suggest that you send someone to tell General Xiahou Yan about this immediately."
Chu Ning has made great contributions and will definitely be rewarded after returning to Beijing. Even if he is punished for killing the general, his military achievements are there and the people will definitely respect Chu Ning even more.
The best way is to let Xiahou Yan take action!
Of course the prince cannot take action at this time. It would be most advantageous for him to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, then reap the benefits!
The prince narrowed his eyes upon hearing this and nodded, "That makes sense. I'll leave this matter to you, Lord Yang!"
Everyone knows that Yang Yuntao is the prince's confidant. If Yang Yuntao goes there personally to deliver the message, Xiahou Yan will not doubt it.
What's more, Yang Yuntao is a good speaker and can take the opportunity to persuade Xiahou Yan to take action against Chu Ning!
"As you command!" Yang Yuntao responded, bowed and turned to leave.