Chapter 799 The Crown Prince

The time spent fighting wasn't as long as the time spent traveling.

Setting off from Zhennan Pass, heading west through Shanggu Commandery, the cavalry's mobility and ability to conceal the battlefield were brought to the extreme. It was a long-distance raid, leaving men and horses exhausted.

After all this tossing and turning, all this preparation, all this sprinting,

Finally,

That last shudder was completed south of Fan City.

Then,

There was only anticlimactic boredom left.

And the time it took to return was even longer than the time it took to come.

After the shudder, they had to clean up the mess; they couldn't just dust themselves off and leave.

So,

When Marquis Zheng disembarked from the boat at the pier adjacent to Yingdu, it was already a time of drizzling spring rain.

The biting cold of winter had receded, and the warmth of spring was very clear.

As soon as he landed,

Marquis Zheng received two pieces of news.

One was that the grand envoy and all the various rituals required for the conferring of the title of King were still on their way.

Yes, although receiving news on the return journey wasn't very convenient,

Little Sixth was very kind to him. Although he hadn't summoned him back to the capital, he still wanted to hold a grand ceremony for conferring the title of King in Jindong.

The other piece of news was that the Crown Prince's entourage was already waiting in Yingdu.

In fact, ever since he was granted the title of Marquis, Marquis Zheng had been trying to avoid entering Yingdu unless it was absolutely necessary. This was because, with the elevation of his status, it was fine to stay in Jindong, but openly declaring his identity outside was likely to arouse unnecessary suspicion, especially since Yingdu, the former capital, became extremely sensitive when paired with his identity.

But he had sent a letter, telling the people in Yingdu to have the Crown Prince stop and rest there after he arrived, so that he could welcome the Crown Prince across the river into Jindong.

His nephew had come,

As an uncle, he naturally had to show some enthusiasm.

…

Yingdu had also been experiencing many days of light rain, but the elite of Yingdu had been feeling very excited lately.

Xu Wenzu had actually completed the reform of Yingdu's original bureaucratic system long ago, but the positions vacated by those who had been removed would inevitably be filled by others. What Xu Wenzu could guarantee was that he would not be hindered when implementing policies, and at the same time, those elites who "cherished the old kingdom" had been excluded from this circle, but they could not eradicate this group... no, it was the instinct to curry favor that everyone possessed.

Since his ascension to the throne, the late Emperor of Yan had basically never left Yanjing, at most only going to the back garden on the outskirts of Yanjing City.

Since the new Emperor ascended the throne, there had been no news of him inspecting the lands of the Great Yan, and it was very likely that he would follow the style of the late Emperor and only stay in the capital.

Therefore, the arrival of the Crown Prince of Great Yan in Yingdu was a golden opportunity.

Yingdu had been under the control of Yan for several years. Marquises and Princes had come, but this was the first time that a member of the imperial lineage had arrived.

Now that the Yan people's rule over Jindi was becoming more and more stable, and the Jin people were becoming more and more accustomed to the Yan people's rule, coupled with the fact that the Marquis of Pingxi had won another victory, the people of Yingdu had gradually begun to accept that the Yan Dynasty would continue to rule here.

Therefore, for the sake of their own future and the future of their families, countless people were thinking about how to see the Crown Prince every day.

However, because the Crown Prince lived in the Prefect's residence, and the gate of the Prefect's residence had been closed to visitors, many people could only scratch their heads anxiously outside, completely unsure of how to make contact.

However, unexpectedly, the Chenqin Prince's mansion showed great indifference to the arrival of the Crown Prince in Yingdu.

The stewards of the Prince's mansion sent gifts and conveyed greetings on behalf of their Prince. After that, the Chenqin Prince's mansion seemed to have nothing to do with the Crown Prince.

On the contrary, the Crown Prince's entourage took the initiative to send people to inquire, saying that the Crown Prince wanted to follow His Majesty's will and go to Shishan to worship the founding Emperor of Chen Kingdom, Situ Lei, on behalf of His Majesty, which meant inviting Prince Chenqin to go with him.

The Prince's mansion was very tempted, and then, the Prince's mansion refused.

The reason was that Prince Chenqin had to study hard in recent years and could not go out, and had already made a grand vow.

Those who didn't know would really think that what the Chenqin Prince's mansion said was true. At the same time, they would wonder why the son was unwilling to accompany his own father to worship him.

However, some discerning people in Yingdu who had experienced many ups and downs knew the reason, that was, Marquis Pingxi had issued a confinement order in Yingdu that year, confining Prince Chenqin, Situ Yu.

Usually, it could be relaxed a little. Prince Chenqin could travel incognito, drink a bowl of mutton soup on the streets of Yingdu, or even go to the red tents to hunt, and even if his whereabouts were revealed, it wouldn't matter, and it was believed that Marquis Pingxi wouldn't punish him for it.

But if he wanted to do anything under the banner of Prince Chenqin, it would be violating Marquis Pingxi's ban.

If the Pingxi Marquis's mansion was declining,

Then it wouldn't matter, and the ban would naturally be lifted.

But the problem was that Marquis Pingxi had just won a great victory, captured the Great General of Chu alive, and then beheaded a pillar of state. News of his impending conferral of the title of King had already spread from Yanjing City, so he was very popular.

Under this premise, the tight band that Marquis Pingxi wore on the head of the Chenqin Prince's mansion was naturally even more powerful.

…

The back house of the Prefect's residence had been newly decorated. Xu Wenzu moved out early and gave his original residence to the Crown Prince.

Therefore,

Standing guard in the Prefect's residence now was a group of Imperial Guards who had escorted the Crown Prince all the way from the palace. The eunuchs and palace maids who were busy were arranged from within the palace.

At the same time, there were several Eastern Palace instructors in charge of the Crown Prince's daily studies.

It was like a small Eastern Palace.

After finishing today's lessons,

Crown Prince Ji Chuanye got up and sent away the teacher who came from the imperial examination. After sitting down, he couldn't bother eating the plate of pastries that Little Zhang the eunuch brought up, but first rubbed his wrists.

"Master Liu is even stricter than when we were in the palace."

Ji Chuanye said.

Little Zhang the eunuch smiled and said, "Your Highness, that's because you are his student. Master Liu doesn't want Marquis Pingxi to think that he is not teaching well.

You must know that Master Liu is good at poetry and prose, and although Marquis Pingxi has been fighting all the time, the few poems and songs he has written in his spare time are all excellent works."

Ji Chuanye nodded and silently pulled out a copy of *Zheng Zi's Art of War* from below.

This was the newly compiled *Zheng Zi's Art of War*. Marquis Zheng was busy, and Blindman was also busy. It was written by people in the Ministry of War of Great Yan on the basis of old books. That is, under each plan of *Zheng Zi's Art of War*, there were annotations of real war cases recorded in historical books from ancient times to the present, making the book more vivid.

Many of the war cases were directly taken from Marquis Pingxi's own victories.

Ji Chuanye admired Marquis Pingxi very much, and he loved this *Zheng Zi's Art of War*.

"Uncle Zheng has won another victory."

"Yes, Your Highness. Estimating the time, Marquis Pingxi should be back soon, and you will be able to see him."

"Yes."

Ji Chuanye seemed to have thought of something and closed the book.

He said;

"Brother Situ Yu of the Chenqin Prince's mansion said that he won't accompany me to Shishan to worship that... of Chen Kingdom, the founding Emperor, right?"

"Yes, he was placed under house arrest by Marquis Pingxi."

"But Master Xue told me that filial piety is the most important of all virtues, and nothing is greater than filial piety. Isn't Brother Situ Yu being unfilial by not worshiping his own father?"

Little Zhang the eunuch thought for a moment and organized his words: "The Chenqin Prince's mansion is still more afraid of the Marquis."

Ji Chuanye blinked,

And asked;

"Eunuch Zhang."

"This servant is here."

"Even if I take out the imperial edict of my father and the Prince's seal that my father gave me and is kept by Eunuch Zhang, I still can't get Brother Situ Yu to go out of the city to worship his father with me;

Does that mean that in Brother Situ Yu's eyes, Marquis Pingxi is more terrifying than me, even than, Father?"

Ji Chuanye paused a lot when he spoke. After all, he was young, and he would naturally stutter when he spoke while thinking, but he was still speaking very seriously.

When Little Zhang the eunuch heard this, his back immediately began to sweat coldly. He quickly knelt down,

And said;

"Your Highness, you must not think like this, you must not think like this."

You are going to the Pingxi Marquis's mansion!

Ji Chuanye looked at Little Zhang the eunuch kneeling on the ground and said:

"Eunuch Zhang, get up."

"This servant, this servant..."

"What I mean is, could it be that Brother Situ Yu deliberately wants... me to... think that way?"

"..." Little Zhang the eunuch.

"Mother said that you have to think more about things outside, and if one round of thinking is not enough, you have to add another round, so that you won't easily be caught like a shrimp."

The word "catching shrimp" was a catchphrase that Empress He brought from the folk, and obviously, her son had learned it.

Ji Chuanye reached out and knocked on his forehead.

"Your Highness, Your Highness..."

Little Zhang the eunuch immediately got up, took out a small bottle from his sleeve, poured out a pill from it, and helped Ji Chuanye take it.

This was a Peiyuan Pill (a pill to nourish vitality).

The Crown Prince was young, but he had a lot on his mind. The Emperor had already noticed this.

There was no such situation when he was in the Prince's mansion. Everything stemmed from the day when the Lu family fought for the throne. After witnessing some things with his own eyes at a young age, Ji Chuanye seemed to have been covered with some marks that should not belong to his age.

"Hoo..."

Ji Chuanye took a long breath,

And said:

"I always get dizzy easily."

"Your Highness must take good care of your body."

Little Zhang the eunuch had heard Marquis Zheng tell His Majesty, who was not yet the Emperor at the time, about the Jingnan Prince's heir in the Marquis's mansion, whose body was very strong and had never been sick since he was a child.

Perhaps, His Majesty sent the Crown Prince there in the hope that Marquis Pingxi would have a way to help the Crown Prince stabilize his physical foundation.

"Eunuch Zhang."

"This servant is here."

"Do you think that's what Brother Situ Yu is thinking?"

"This servant... this servant doesn't know."

"Father said that Uncle Zheng is a good person, which means that those who say bad things about Uncle Zheng are not good people. Brother Situ Yu is still a little bad, cough cough..."

"Your Highness, calm down, calm down, you can't read any more books, it's time to rest, it's time to rest."

…

"Son."

"Father."

"Call me Dad."

"Yes, Dad."

"Dad is going to tell you something now."

"Dad, please instruct, this son will remember it."

"Dad is going to send you to the Pingxi Marquis's mansion. Remember, after you enter the Pingxi Marquis's mansion, your Uncle Zheng is the most trustworthy person in this world, and the person you can rely on the most."

"There's also the Empress Mother."

"Your Empress Mother already has a younger brother, and she should have younger brothers and sisters in the future."

"There's also Dad."

"Call me Father Emperor."

"Yes, Father Emperor."

"Father Emperors are the least reliable things."