Chapter 130

In the Eastern Palace,

The Crown Prince was teaching the Young Prince how to play chess.

Their brotherly bond was deep, so the Young Prince often stayed in the Eastern Palace.

“I got it!”

A youthful voice exclaimed with excitement.

“Doesn’t this move go here?”

The Young Prince tilted his small face up, his eyes sparkling as he looked at the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince lowered his gaze and, upon seeing the move, a hint of surprise appeared on his warm face.

In the next moment, he reached out and ruffled the Young Prince’s head, sincerely saying,

“You’re really smart, little brother. When I was your age, I spent a whole night thinking about this move.”

The Young Prince joyfully made his move and said with a smile,

“It’s not because I’m smarter than you, it’s because my teacher is better than yours!”

The Crown Prince was slightly taken aback by this remark, then smiled, “Little brother, you’re always good at praising others.”

At this moment, a palace guard entered quietly, glanced at the Crown Prince, but said nothing.

The Young Prince glanced at the guard and immediately said with a smile, “Brother, I’m tired. Can I stay here tonight?”

Putting down the chess piece in his hand, the Crown Prince said affectionately, “Then you’ll sleep with me tonight.”

The Young Prince happily murmured, then obediently lay down.

“Go wash up first, little brother, and wait for me!”

The Crown Prince couldn’t help but ruffle his head again. “You’re such a good boy, go on.”

A new eunuch assigned to the Young Prince quickly followed him.

As the Young Prince left in quick steps, passing by the guard, he glanced at him, his expression unchanged.

He had never seen this guard by his brother’s side before.

His brother seemed busy lately.

He had to listen to orders, learn martial arts from Master Qiao well, grow up quickly, and then he could share the burden for his brother!

As the Young Prince stepped over the threshold and looked at the distant lights, he squeezed his small hand and felt determined.

When the guard approached the Crown Prince, he whispered something softly.

The Crown Prince played with a black chess piece between his fingertips, his expression calm and contemplative.

“Has General Guo left?” the Crown Prince suddenly asked.

The guard respectfully nodded, “General Guo has left, but Young Master Guo did not leave the palace with him.”

The Crown Prince nodded lightly at the news, “Since Guo Gaoyi has been left behind, then this matter is settled.”

Leaving Guo Gaoyi in the palace meant he would be imprisoned secretly, keeping the matter discreet.

If the Emperor was willing to preserve General Guo’s dignity, it meant that the command of the Southern Border Defense would undoubtedly be handed over to him.

General Guo was loyal and capable, a boon to the people of the Yong Dynasty.

“What about the other guards?” the Crown Prince asked again.

The guard quickly replied, “Huang Pei has been interrogated.”

The Crown Prince had a plan in mind. Huang Pei was capable, and he might be able to uncover something.

Pulling out a radish to bring out the mud, he thought, Second Brother, you’ll have to admit this one…

“Dismissed,” the Crown Prince said.

The guard respectfully withdrew.

The Crown Prince sat quietly in the room, gazing at the flickering candlelight, lost in thought.

Someone had conveniently resolved Guo Gaoyi’s dilemma today, without even needing his men to act.

If General Guo had sent someone to watch over Guo Gaoyi, he probably wouldn’t have even been allowed into the Zuixian Tower.

Who could it be?

Such strategic planning, swift and precise action, and yet able to retreat unscathed.

The Crown Prince had his suspicions.

In the next moment, his gaze shifted slowly to the black and white chessboard, and then he casually made a move.

In this game, no one can escape.

What matters is who will emerge as the ultimate winner…

The Crown Prince suddenly brushed his sleeve and strode out into the moonlight outside the hall.

Can’t keep Little Xi waiting.

That little clever ghost probably knows everything.

---

The next day at the morning court, the Emperor of Yong said a lot of eloquent words in front of his courtiers.

The gist was to express gratitude to General Xiao for his many years of service on the border. With his eldest daughter’s wedding approaching, he wanted him to take a good rest.

Then he issued an edict, transferring his military power to the highly respected General Guo.

Although the courtiers were prepared, they didn’t expect the Emperor to make up his mind so quickly.

They thought it would take at least ten days or half a month to determine the candidate.

Of course, since the Emperor had made a decision, all they had to do was kneel down and exclaim “Long live the Emperor.”

Qiao Zhongguo remained calm. It wasn’t until he quietly raised the corners of his mouth when he saw everyone bowing down.

This decision was fought for by many people with great effort!

With General Guo now in charge, there would be no worries, and he could focus on guarding the southern border!

After court, Huang Gonggong first went to the prison.

The Emperor’s decision yesterday was to imprison Guo Gaoyi for three years, and only then could he return home after the term ended.

Even after returning home, he couldn’t step out of the Guo Mansion.

Guo Gaoyi originally thought he wouldn’t survive, but now that he had saved his life, he naturally felt grateful, loudly proclaiming his gratitude for the Emperor’s great kindness.

But at this moment, Huang Gonggong’s visit to the prison was not for Guo Gaoyi, but for those few officials.

“Have they all been interrogated?” Huang Gonggong asked calmly.

The jailer quickly brought over a few sheets of paper, all confessions extracted during the overnight interrogations.

“Master, they are all here. Please have a look,” the jailer said, trying to please.

Huang Gonggong took them, glanced at them casually, then tucked them into his robe without changing his expression.

“Those officials, have they been dealt with?”

After Huang Gonggong spoke, he calmly turned and left. It wasn’t until he left the prison that his face subtly changed.

Today, the Emperor was probably going to be furious!

Hurrying into the imperial study, Huang Gonggong saw the Crown Prince and Tan Hanchi there, so he composed himself.

“Zhan’er, you and Minister Tan can leave first,” the Emperor ordered calmly.

The Crown Prince remained calm and respectfully retreated with Tan Hanchi.

Seeing this, Huang Gonggong handed the confessions he had to the Emperor, “Your Majesty, they have been interrogated.”

The Emperor lowered his eyes and scanned through them.

Actually, there was nothing special in the confessions. It was just that those officials took money to frame Guo Gaoyi as instructed, but they didn’t know who was behind it.

The Emperor had long anticipated this.

He was just waiting for ironclad evidence to confirm his suspicions.

Now, with clear evidence that someone was indeed pulling the strings behind the scenes, the Emperor closed his eyes slowly.

Huang Gonggong, seeing the Emperor’s calm demeanor, felt a sudden panic rising in his heart, his face showing signs of anxiety.

Because he knew the Emperor well, and this was just the prelude to his wrath!

But even so, as a servant, he had to speak up.

“Your… Your Majesty…”

Huang Gonggong was about to speak, but the Emperor suddenly waved his sleeve, throwing the memorials on the table to the ground.

Crash—

“Your Majesty, please take care of yourself!”

Huang Gonggong jumped slightly, quickly kneeling down and advising with a loud voice.

The Emperor’s face was extremely dark, and veins bulged on his forehead.

He braced his hands on the table, his chest heaving violently. After a while, he gritted his teeth and said, “I underestimated the second one!”