Early the next morning, a swift horse galloped into the city of Lige before dawn. The hooves pounded against the approaching dawn as it sped towards the Bian Palace, leaving a trail of dust in its wake.
Shortly after, a piece of news from Liangcheng, thousands of miles away, quickly spread across the entire city of Lige.
Yuwen Jian, the son of Yuwen Nanwang, the chief of the Donghu tribe, had secretly been sent on a mission to the Western Rong State.
When Lu Yan was reading this piece of news sent by Qi Qi, the door of the Marquis of Dingbei's Mansion was knocked on by someone from the palace.
It was an imperial edict from King Xia Jie, summoning all officials to an early court session that day.
Upon receiving the news, all the officials in Lige lost their sleep. They quickly put on their official robes and rushed to the Bian Palace. In just half an hour, the Shanhe Hall was filled with people.
The Western Rong State bordered the Donghu tribe to the north, Qimen to the east, and Xiqin to the south. A century ago, it had been a place of exile for the Li Xia Dynasty. Over time, it had gradually developed into a state. Located in the southwest of Li Xia, it suffered from a lack of water resources, poor soil, and a limited variety of agricultural products. Decades ago, at the beginning of its founding, it had deliberately provoked Li Xia and launched an attack on the fief of the Marquis of Southwest in Xiqin. However, it was soundly defeated by Xiqin and was forced to submit to Li Xia. King Xia Jie had taken a fancy to the Princess Liuli of the Western Rong State, and through a marriage alliance and the opening of a mutual market, peace had been maintained for several decades.
However, thirteen years ago, Princess Liuli had suddenly died in the Bian Palace for unknown reasons. The relationship between the Western Rong State and Li Xia had rapidly deteriorated due to her death. Although the two countries still had commercial exchanges, everyone knew that the Western Rong State had long harbored rebellious intentions. It simply relied on Li Xia because it could not be self - sufficient.
Now, the young leader of the Donghu tribe had suddenly been sent on a mission to the Western Rong State while the Donghu army was facing off against Li Xia. The purpose was obvious. And the Western Rong State, which had originally relied on Li Xia, had agreed to receive the envoy from the Donghu tribe. This was a very dangerous sign, especially when a war between the Donghu tribe and Li Xia was imminent.
Everyone watched nervously as King Xia Jie walked onto the dragon throne. Suddenly, he flew into a rage and swept everything off the table. Overcome with anger, he began to cough violently. Li Qi, who was standing nearby, quickly called for the imperial physician. Although King Xia Jie's health had declined, he had once been a ruthless man. He immediately issued an edict to close the mutual market between the Western Rong State and Li Xia and ordered Chen Luo, the King of Southwest, to carry out the order immediately.
Chen Luo received the edict.
After issuing the edict, King Xia Jie was still filled with anger. He happened to see Xia Chuli standing at the front of the court officials, and a wave of annoyance welled up in him.
Xia Chuli was the son of Princess Liuli. Even when King Xia Jie had doted on Princess Liuli, he had not treated Xia Chuli well. Now that the Qi family dominated the harem, King Xia Jie found Xia Chuli even more annoying. He found a random reason and scolded Xia Chuli in front of all the officials. Li Qi, acting on the instructions of Qi Yan, led the eunuch faction to influence King Xia Jie's decisions in court. Although the officials from the Prime Minister's Mansion, represented by Shen Shiqiu, scolded the eunuchs for interfering in state affairs, Li Qi was very powerful, and King Xia Jie did not restrain him. He waved his hand and sentenced Xia Chuli to thirty strokes of the rod on a trumped - up charge, ignoring the pleas and dissuasions of the court officials below.
Xia Chuli stood silently in the court from beginning to end. It was not until a eunuch came to take him away that he lowered his head, bowed respectfully to King Xia Jie, and slowly walked out.
Outside the Shanhe Hall, the dull sound of the rod hitting the body could be heard. Shen Shiqiu and a group of veteran officials were deeply troubled. They knelt down and begged King Xia Jie to show mercy to the crown prince. Lu Yan glanced at them, pursed his lips, and did not kneel down.
The Shanhe Hall was immediately filled with cries and chaos. In the commotion, Chen Luo, who was standing beside Lu Yan, raised his eyebrows and nudged him with his elbow. He whispered, "Is the Marquis of Dingbei jealous?"
Lu Yan glared at him and snorted, "Not likely."
Chen Luo smiled and whispered, "You're so cold - hearted. Aren't you already on the crown prince's side? Who are you trying to impress with this act?"
Lu Yan gave him a sidelong glance and said, "Your words are interesting. If you're trying to get information from me, you'd better save your effort."
"You're really heartless. Once you've chosen a side, you don't care about your brothers anymore? You're just like that Su Huanyu who ran away at a critical moment." Although Chen Luo complained, there was not a trace of blame on his face. Instead, he seemed to be enjoying the situation.
Lu Yan knew that Chen Luo was a very calculating person. He gave Lu Yan the impression of a leopard lurking in the dark, waiting for the most opportune moment to strike.
"In that case, the Marquis of Southwest should think carefully about his own future." No one wanted to make a deal with a dangerous person, and Lu Yan especially disliked Chen Luo's sinister personality. After leaving this remark, he ignored Chen Luo's nudges and remained silent.
Outside the Shanhe Hall, more than a dozen strokes of the rod had already been counted. Considering the trumped - up charge that King Xia Jie had placed on Xia Chuli, these strokes were already more than enough. Despite the pleas in the Shanhe Hall, King Xia Jie was still angry. He disliked the group of old officials from the Prime Minister's Mansion, which only added to his annoyance. He directly ordered Tian Che to supervise the execution of all thirty strokes on the crown prince. He also lifted the house arrest of Prince Yu, Xia Yanhe, and allowed him to attend the early court again.
The old officials from the Prime Minister's Mansion had no choice but to stand up reluctantly, wiping away their tears.
However, punishing the crown prince was just a minor matter. The most urgent problem still remained unsolved. Closing the mutual market was just a punishment for the Western Rong State, but it was not enough. If the Western Rong State and the Donghu tribe formed an alliance, it would mean that Li Xia would face attacks from the east, north, and west simultaneously. Currently, Qimen did not have the ability to resist the Donghu tribe. It was only with the help of the Lu family's army that they had been able to confront the Donghu tribe for so long. But if the Western Rong State joined the war, the northern state would have to defend itself against foreign enemies, and it would be impossible to spare any troops to support Qimen.
Just when everyone was at a loss, Qi Shuhuan, the assistant prime minister, suddenly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have a proposal. Since the Donghu tribe has sent its young leader on a mission to the Western Rong State, Li Xia should show the same level of sincerity. I suggest that His Highness the Crown Prince be sent on a mission to the Western Rong State to prevent an alliance between the Western Rong State and the Donghu tribe."
As soon as these words were spoken, there was an uproar in the court. Shen Shiqiu was so angry that he immediately stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty! His Highness the Crown Prince must not be sent on a mission to the Western Rong State. The Western Rong State has long had a false appearance of friendship with Li Xia. If His Highness the Crown Prince goes there, his safety may be at risk!"
Qi Shuhuan snorted and said, "What does the Prime Minister mean? Since His Highness the Crown Prince is the son of the former queen, he has half of the blood of the Western Rong State in his veins. He shares the same origin as the people of the Western Rong State. How dare the Western Rong people harm him?!"
Qi Shuhuan's words were extremely malicious. Everyone knew that King Xia Jie already disliked Xia Chuli because of his bloodline. His words were pushing Xia Chuli towards the Western Rong State, implying that Xia Chuli was closer to the Western Rong State. But everyone also knew that Xia Chuli's position was very awkward. The Western Rong people regarded him as a Li Xia person, while King Xia Jie disliked his Western Rong blood. He had never received his father's love, and his mother had died early. If he were sent on a mission to the Western Rong State, as Shen Shiqiu had said, it was even uncertain whether he would be able to return.