As he spoke, Gu Ruobai glanced at Su Mingyu, then at Kang Zeyan behind her. "Is it you who took away my princess consort?"
Kang Zeyan pulled Su Mingyu in front of him. "I have no interest in the strife between you two brothers. Since both you, Gu Ruobai, and the King of Yu are vying for this woman, do you want her back by your side?"
Gu Ruobai didn't even bat an eyelid. "She is my princess consort. Where else could she go but by my side?"
Seeing his self - confident look, Su Mingyu rolled her eyes mentally. Even Kang Zeyan couldn't stand it and let out a cold snort. "So you're willing to do anything to get her back?"
Gu Ruobai nodded almost without hesitation. "However, I advise you to take a good look at the current situation. With just the few men you've brought, there's no way you can leave here, let alone take Su Mingyu with you."
"I don't intend to leave." Kang Zeyan raised his eyebrows. "Didn't you just say you were going to see the emperor? I'll go too."
"You?" Gu Ruobai frowned. "What for? Weren't you just saying you're not interested in the strife between us two brothers?"
Kang Zeyan looked down at Gu Ruobai. "But I'm quite interested in you. I want to see how you'll turn the tables in this situation."
"By the way," Kang Zeyan seemed to suddenly remember something. "I've given Su Mingyu Qingming and Liuguang Illusionary Flowers. If you want her to live, you have to ensure my survival first."
"You're despicable!" The King of Yu's face suddenly darkened. "How could you give such drugs to a woman?"
Kang Zeyan remained unmoved. "It's just for self - protection."
After saying that, he squinted and smiled at Gu Ruobai. "Prince Ruixian, how about this deal?"
"Do I have a choice?" Gu Ruobai's face was grim. "Fine. One more spectator won't hurt. Let's go."
When the large group of people returned to the palace in a grand manner, the entire court was shocked.
It was because Prince Ruixian wasn't brought back by the King of Yu under arrest. The two of them walked in side by side, and the King of Yu didn't look too happy. Just one glance and it was obvious that something was amiss.
The emperor looked sternly at the King of Yu and Gu Ruobai. His low and hoarse voice spoke calmly. "What's going on?"
The King of Yu spoke first. "Father, when I received the order to go to the suburbs to suppress the private army secretly raised by Prince Ruixian, I happened to meet Prince Ruixian there. So I brought him along."
The emperor nodded in understanding. "So, is the situation of your suppression the same as what the supervisor of the censorate said? My son, a prince of the court, secretly raising an army and plotting a rebellion?"
As soon as the emperor said this, the entire court fell silent.
Su Mingyu secretly held her breath for Gu Ruobai. It seemed that the emperor was already angry. Would he still listen to what Gu Ruobai had to say next?
Seeing that the King of Yu didn't say a word for a long time, the emperor frowned and looked at Gu Ruobai. "You tell me."
Gu Ruobai stepped forward calmly, looking very composed. "Father, I think it might be unfair for me to tell this. It's better for the King of Yu to do so. After all, I arrived later than the King of Yu. By the time I got there, the King of Yu had already captured my men."
No one expected that Gu Ruobai would actually hand the initiative to the King of Yu, who clearly wanted to kill him.
Kang Zeyan's face didn't look good either. He glanced at Su Mingyu. On that beautiful face, he only saw indifference. For a moment, Kang Zeyan couldn't figure out what this woman was thinking.
The King of Yu felt the emperor's gaze. He stepped forward, bowed, and saluted. "Father, as soon as we got there, we saw that there was indeed an army in training. After I announced my identity, the soldiers immediately laid down their arms and were captured by us."
"So what the supervisor of the censorate said is true. Gu Ruobai is indeed preparing to rebel?" The emperor's face suddenly darkened. His slightly angry look made everyone present kneel on the ground in fear.
"Your Majesty, please calm down!"
"Father, please calm down!"
The King of Yu also knelt on the ground. His face didn't look good either.
"You wretch! What else do you have to say!" The emperor looked at Gu Ruobai angrily, his eyes wide open.
Gu Ruobai remained calm. He looked directly at the emperor. "Father, the King of Yu hasn't finished speaking yet. Are you in such a hurry to get angry?"
"What do you mean?" The emperor looked at the King of Yu in surprise, his voice extremely cold. "King of Yu, you tell me!"
The King of Yu looked back at Gu Ruobai, then said in a low voice. "Father, we did capture the men and confiscated the weapons. But... whether it's the number of men or the weapons, they are all within the scope of the list that Prince Ruixian applied for."
"Supervisor of the censorate, come forward!" The emperor's face still didn't look good. "What's going on here?"
Everyone present knew that after Gu Ruobai was injured in the leg and retired from the front line, he asked the emperor for a hundred or so men. He said that although his leg was injured, his mind was still sharp. Some military strategies couldn't be practiced well on paper, so he needed these men and a place to practice military strategies.
The emperor, considering Gu Ruobai's numerous military exploits and the small number of men he asked for, finally agreed.
It has to be said that after a period of time, Gu Ruobai really came up with several practical military strategies, which played a crucial role in the battles against the mountain bandits near the capital.
Later, the emperor didn't pay attention to Gu Ruobai's army anymore. For such a long time, Gu Ruobai really didn't do anything out of line.
So this time when the supervisor of the censorate impeached Gu Ruobai, the emperor only sent the King of Yu alone to suppress. One reason was that he was a bit skeptical about the content of the impeachment. The other reason was that if it was true, the King of Yu was smart and would know what valuable things to take from Gu Ruobai.
Now that he had issued an order to suppress the army that he had allowed Gu Ruobai to raise, and nothing had been found out, if word got out that he didn't trust his son who had fought for him and even lost a leg, it might chill the hearts of the ministers.
The supervisor of the censorate naturally knew the importance of this matter. He was now sweating profusely and his face was pale with anxiety. "That... Your Majesty."
"Why are you stuttering! Speak! Who gave you the information that my Prince Ruixian was plotting a rebellion!" The emperor angrily slapped the table.
The supervisor of the censorate was so scared that he trembled. "That... Your Majesty, I can explain this. One of my deputies, who used to follow Prince Ruixian, accidentally saw a large number of people training in his military training ground. Later, I also went to take a look. There were indeed quite a few people."