The mutiny in Hua City could not be concealed forever.
Ji Yunxi and the others thought it over and then invited the Prince of Rui to discuss the matter.
The Prince of Rui had not yet heard the news. He was discussing the porridge - distribution project with his princess.
"Uncle."
Feng Xingzhi strode in, forgetting all about the etiquette. "Uncle, I have something urgent to discuss with you."
Seeing his serious and tense expression, the Princess of Rui immediately led the servants away.
"I'll go back first. You two talk."
Only after everyone had left did Feng Xingzhi speak. "Uncle, General Ye Minghua of Hua City has rebelled. He has defected to the Northern Di tribe and is leading his troops towards the capital."
The Prince of Rui was shocked. He accidentally dropped and broke his teacup. "Who rebelled?"
"Ye Minghua."
"Is the news accurate?"
Lu Shu stepped forward in time. "Your Highness, the army has already set out. The news is indeed accurate."
"This!" The Prince of Rui grew nervous. He paced back and forth in the room. After a while, he asked, "Does the Emperor know?"
"Probably not yet. But if we wait for him to find out, it might be too late."
The Prince of Rui nodded. "You're right. Waiting for the capital to dispatch troops might be too late. However, I do have a royal army. Although the number is not large, it can hold out for a while."
Ji Yunxi thought for a moment. Knowing the character of the Prince of Rui, she had nothing to hide. She stepped forward. "Your Highness, I'm the master of the Dream - Hua Pavilion. All the disciples of the Dream - Hua Pavilion can cooperate."
The Prince of Rui had heard of the Dream - Hua Pavilion. At first, he was taken aback, and then he was overjoyed. "That's great! Every single one of them! The longer we can hold out, the more time the capital will have to react! I'll write a letter to report this immediately!"
Feng Xingzhi stopped him. "Uncle, I've already sent someone back."
"Good, good. You've reacted quickly and done well."
The Prince of Rui let out a sigh of relief. Just as he sat down, he saw Li Jiuge standing at the back. This girl had caused him quite a bit of trouble when she was a child, so he recognized her at once.
"Jiuge? Why are you here?"
Seeing that she couldn't hide, Li Jiuge stepped forward. "Uncle."
"Wow! Jiuge has grown up so much!"
The Prince of Rui's eyes were filled with joy at seeing a junior.
"Uncle, this matter might be related to me." Li Jiuge was a bit at a loss. "A few days ago, someone in the court proposed that I marry Ye Minghua's eldest son. I didn't want to, so I ran away... Could it be because of me..."
Her voice grew softer and softer, and her tone was full of timidity and grievance.
The Prince of Rui frowned. "Marry Ye Minghua's eldest son? Dream on! How old are you! Your husband should be the best. Ye Minghua is like a toad trying to eat swan meat!"
Li Jiuge was stunned. She didn't expect her uncle to have such an attitude.
"Ye Minghua was actually an old acquaintance of mine. I just didn't expect that at his age, he would do such a thing!"
Ji Yunxi said in a solemn voice, "This matter is probably not that simple. Jiuge had never been urged to get married before. Suddenly, he asked the Emperor to marry Jiuge as his daughter - in - law. He must have already prepared for the rebellion when he did this."
"It's impossible to quickly assemble an army in such a short time. He just wanted a reasonable excuse. And even if Jiuge really married, she might be taken as a hostage instead of a real daughter - in - law!"
Thinking of her close friend being so schemed against, Ji Yunxi's eyes were filled with anger.
The Prince of Rui understood this point. The little bit of friendship he had for his old friend vanished in an instant.
"This scoundrel!"
Feng Xingzhi looked at the Prince of Rui. After a moment of silence, he suddenly clasped his fists and bowed to apologize. "Uncle, I have to apologize to you. I shouldn't have suspected you before. We captured the son of Sang Yuanyi of the Northern Di tribe and learned that they were selling arms to the people of Southern Yan. The destination was Rui City, so we came. Now it seems that we misunderstood. Please forgive me, Uncle."
Hearing this, the Prince of Rui waved his hand with a smile. "It doesn't matter. Actually, I guessed that your purpose was not simple when you came. Although I didn't know about the arms, I knew it must be related to things like rebellion. But since I didn't do anything wrong, I couldn't directly explain it to you.
As he said this, the Prince of Rui let out a hearty laugh. "Moreover, even if I had said something, you might not have believed me. But I've always behaved uprightly, so I'm not afraid of your investigation. I just let you do as you pleased."
He stood up and patted Feng Xingzhi on the shoulder. "Okay, Uncle doesn't blame you. Uncle knows that you're all for the people. If you feel bad about it, just toast me a few more glasses of wine at your wedding."
Feng Xingzhi was touched. With all his sincerity, he said, "Okay, I definitely will."
After clearing up the misunderstanding, the Prince of Rui immediately ordered his men to gather the army and assemble his royal troops.
During the process of gathering the troops, news came from Hua City.
A disciple of the Dream - Hua Pavilion reported, "My Lady, a letter has come from the direction of Hua City. If Princess Jiuge is willing to marry General Ye's son, he will withdraw his troops."
The Prince of Rui glanced at Li Jiuge and immediately sneered. "Nonsense! If this scoundrel really wanted our Jiuge as his daughter - in - law, would he send troops to force her?"
Ji Yuchen had been suppressing his anger. "He just wants the court officials to step in. Now they will surely all be inclined to sacrifice Jiuge to avoid war."
Ji Yunxi clenched her fist. "Then we'll take care of Ye Minghua before the news reaches the capital."
The Prince of Rui watched from the side. Ji Yunxi had the demeanor of a great general. Coupled with her spiritual power and cultivation, which were quite profound, even more unfathomable than the top experts in his army, he felt a lot more at ease.
Feng Xingzhi was in poor health. Having a fierce daughter - in - law was actually a good thing.
"Miss Ji is truly worthy of marrying into our Feng family! What a magnificent presence!" The Prince of Rui let out a hearty laugh.
Feng Xingzhi's eyes were full of tenderness. He glanced at Ji Yunxi and then said to the Prince of Rui, "Uncle, I'll lead the troops to fight the enemy myself."
The Prince of Rui waved his hand. "Don't talk nonsense. You don't have as much experience as I do. I'm the only one in the city with experience in leading troops. It's most appropriate for me to be the commander - in - chief."
As he was speaking, the Princess of Rui also came over. "Xingzhi, your uncle is right. Let your uncle lead the troops. You can rest assured."
Ji Yunxi smiled slightly. "Your Highness, Your Highness Princess, Azhi's abilities are no less than mine. It's just that he had many difficulties before, so he has concealed his abilities until now. But Your Highness is right. We have no experience. It's better for us to be your lieutenants and stay by your side."
The Prince of Rui was surprised. "Xingzhi, is what Miss Ji said true? Are you really in good health?"
"True, I'm fine, Uncle."
The Prince of Rui was extremely happy, but he still firmly refused them. "The battlefield is ruthless. Swords and arrows have no eyes. You'd better stay at home safely."
However, his words were refuted one by one by Ji Yunxi, Feng Xingzhi, and Ji Yuchen.
Finally, helplessly, he had to agree.
They all walked out together. The Prince of Rui turned back and stared at his beloved wife. Unable to hold back, he stepped forward and hugged her in front of everyone.
And Ji Yuchen, taking advantage of everyone's inattention, reached out and pinched Li Jiuge's hand, making her blush.