The Second Master of the Red Chamber

The fourth prince frowned as he looked at the man before him, a man whose appearance could not even be described as disheveled and filthy.

From his dark face, one could vaguely see the image of the once spirited third prince.

Suppressing his nausea, the fourth prince went inside.

The smell inside the room was even stronger.

The buzzing of flies could be faintly heard.

The fourth prince glanced at the corner of the wall and then quickly left the stone house.

The Fourth Prince glared fiercely at the officials of the Imperial Clan Court, then turned to the Third Prince, who was still kneeling on the ground, gazing expectantly at him, and said in a deep voice:
"If only I had known this would happen, Third Brother, I wouldn't have done it in the first place."

The third prince immediately kowtowed to the ground and cried, "Fourth brother, I was wrong, I really know I was wrong."

I know you won't forgive me.

I am the way I am today, and it is all my own fault.

I am so happy, truly happy, to see you visit me before I die.

I would die without regret for my brother.

I hope that in the next life, we can still be brothers, and then I can repay the sins I owed in this life.

Seeing the Third Prince banging his head against the ground, the Fourth Prince opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing and turned to leave.

"Move him to the front and give him a clean courtyard."

Finally able to breathe clean air, the Fourth Prince immediately gave orders to the officials around him.

Seeing that the official was still hesitant, the Fourth Prince shouted: "Does my word not count in front of you?"

Who gave you the audacity to let the prince live in such a place, worse than a pig or a dog?

You even refused to provide a chamber pot, how could you...

This is absolutely outrageous!

The official was so frightened that he immediately knelt down and confessed his guilt, thinking that it seemed His Highness the Crown Prince still valued brotherhood.

If that's the case, Prince Yun might still have a chance to turn things around, and in the future, it might be impossible to completely offend him...

Even long after returning to the Crown Prince's residence, the Fourth Prince was still thinking about the Third Prince.

Rationally speaking, he could not accept the mistakes the Third Prince had made.

But emotionally, he couldn't bear to see the Third Prince tortured to death like a dog.

Emperor Ningkang didn't have many children to begin with, and the brothers should have been united and harmonious, but unexpectedly things have turned out this way.

This is one of the reasons why he didn't care at all when he knew that Jia Lian had been taken in by the Empress and many people said that this would affect his status.

Because he genuinely felt that Jia Lian was a good brother.

With one of his older brothers dead and the other disabled, he was not ready to be an older brother, much less ready to shoulder the responsibility of the nation.

At this time, Jia Lian's rise to power just filled this vacancy.

Before the fourth prince could decide how to settle the third prince—whether to give him a chance to start anew or to let him die alone within the high walls like Prince Kang—they decided to leave him behind.

Upon hearing that Princess Zhaoyang had arrived, the Fourth Prince hurriedly went out to greet her.

Princess Zhaoyang could enter the Crown Prince's residence more freely than the Fourth Prince could enter her own princess residence.

She led her female soldiers directly into the Crown Prince's residence on horseback.

Therefore, when the fourth prince walked out of his bedchamber, he saw Princess Zhaoyang jump off her horse and walk aggressively toward him.

The fourth prince immediately felt weak and hurriedly tried to appease her, saying, "Elder sister, why did you come here so suddenly without telling me beforehand?"

Princess Zhaoyang walked up to him, her tone unfriendly: "I heard you went to the Imperial Clan Court?"

"Hmm... I just went there and took a look at my third brother."

"Who is your third imperial brother!"

Princess Zhaoyang's tone suddenly became stern as she rebuked him: "He personally killed the eldest prince and even had his maternal grandfather lead troops to attack the Daming Palace, intending to murder the emperor. You didn't know any of this?"

You still consider him your third elder brother.

The fourth prince, too weak to speak, dared not utter a word.

Seeing this, Princess Zhaoyang softened her tone and questioned, "I heard you released him?"

"No... we just moved him to a different place to live."

My dear sister, you have no idea how outrageous the Imperial Clan Court has been.

Third... Prince Yun was already locked in that dark room, and those people from the Imperial Clan Court didn't even provide him with a chamber pot, forcing him to just...

On such a hot day, even if I don't tell you, my royal sister, you can imagine how stinky that room must be.

I took a look, and I almost threw up my lunch.

The Fourth Prince originally thought that his words would evoke some sympathy from Princess Zhaoyang and rekindle some of the brother-sister affection from back then.

To everyone's surprise, Princess Zhaoyang simply gave her a cold look and said, "The people of the Imperial Clan Court have neglected their duties, and you can teach them a lesson and punish them."

Who gave you permission to release him without authorization?

Don't you know how ruthless he is?

"Where do you place your own safety?"

Princess Zhaoyang has been serving as the Deputy Director of the Imperial Clan Court for two years now, so how could she not know the ways of the Imperial Clan Court?

Moreover, she had already placed a large number of people in the Imperial Clan Court, so how could she be completely unaware of the Third Prince's situation?

But she was too lazy to pay attention to it, and didn't want to.

It wasn't that she hated the Third Prince to the core, but rather that she knew how insane the Third Prince's nature was.

Now she holds great power, and her younger brother has successfully become the crown prince.

At this moment, she absolutely would not allow anyone to threaten her and her brother.

After everything that has happened, she no longer has those naive ideas she once had.

Moreover, Jia Lian had reminded her that if she had the chance, she should kill the Third Prince directly.

Princess Zhaoyang had originally thought that it would be best if the Third Prince could die in prison, so that she would not have to do it herself and bear the crime of fratricide.

Who would have thought this would happen today?

My unlucky younger brother actually went to see that guy.

It would have been one thing to just read it, but to actually express the possibility of reconciliation is another.

This is a very dangerous signal.

All of the Third Prince's direct descendants were either dead, fled, or went into hiding.

He himself was imprisoned in the Imperial Clan Court and had no opportunity or ability to cause trouble.

However, the fact that the Fourth Prince is doing this might make some people think that the Third Prince might still have a chance to make a comeback.

After all, the fourth prince is the crown prince and the future ruler of the world.

What if he suddenly decides to pardon the Third Prince? Wouldn't he be able to become a noble prince again?

This gives those hiding in the shadows an opportunity to take advantage and make a comeback.

Seeing that the Fourth Prince was keeping his head down and not speaking, Princess Zhaoyang directly instructed the chief eunuch Zhang Bao: "Go to the Imperial Clan Court now and tell them that His Highness the Crown Prince has issued an edict to take the criminal Wei Yan back to his original place of custody and not to improve his treatment in any way."

As the person in charge of the Imperial Clan Court, Princess Zhaoyang could have easily given this order herself.

The reason for using Zhang Bao, the fourth prince's chief attendant, was to preserve the crown prince's dignity.

To prevent the subordinates from saying that the Crown Prince's words are not as useful as those of the eldest princess.

Without hesitation, Zhang Bao listened to Princess Zhaoyang's words and went to deliver the imperial decree.

But then the Fourth Prince suddenly looked up and said, "You're not allowed to go!"

Zhang Bao's legs froze on the spot as he looked at Princess Zhaoyang, unsure of what to do.

"Ling'er..."

Before Princess Zhaoyang could speak, the Fourth Prince was already furious.

He shouted, "I'm just moving him to a cleaner house, how is that disregarding my safety?"

Could he possibly assassinate me?
Even if we take a step back and assume the worst, what good would it do him to kill me?

He killed me, and the position of Crown Prince will no longer be his.

Even if I die, I still have my fifth brother.

Even if my fifth brother and I are useless and were both ambushed by him, there's still Jia Lian, isn't there?

You don't think he can kill Jia Lian as well, do you?

Aren't you Jia Lian's biggest idol? What ability do you think he has now that could pose a threat to Jia Lian?

His guards and staff were all executed by his father.

His palace maids and eunuchs were interrogated and dismissed by you and me together.

His wife and children are now in Lingnan, under the supervision of local officials.

Even those ministers who had once sided with him have been demoted or dismissed by you.

Tell me, what does he have left to fight against you and Jia Lian?
Why are you so afraid of him?

"Ling'er, you..."

Princess Zhaoyang was almost stunned by the questioning.

This was the first time the Fourth Prince had spoken to her in such a tone.

However, before she could get angry, the fourth prince became gloomy.

"I know you all look down on me and think I'm not capable of sitting in this position."

I never intended to sit in this seat.

It was you, you and Jia Lian, who forced me to take this position.

But you forced me to take this position, yet none of you listen to me.

I've only made this small decision, and you immediately come over to refute it.

Why did you go through all that trouble in the first place?
Why not just let Jia Lian, or even just let Your Highness take this position?

Anyway, there have been empresses throughout history.

Princess Zhaoyang remained silent.

She realized that she had encountered the biggest, most unsolvable problem.

She didn't understand before why the Emperor Emeritus had passed the throne to Emperor Ningkang, clearly acknowledging Emperor Ningkang's authority, so why the father and son still ended up like that.

Now, she seems to be facing a similar problem.

Clearly, everything she did was for the good of the Fourth Prince, to protect him, but it seems that he misunderstood her.

Her mind raced, trying to figure out what Jia Lian would do and say in this situation if he were there.

Looking at the stubborn-looking Fourth Prince, Princess Zhaoyang took a deep breath and said in as calm a tone as possible:

"Alright, Ling'er, it was the elder sister who was wrong just now; she shouldn't have scolded you."

but……"

Princess Zhaoyang was somewhat at a loss for words.

After all, some of the things the Fourth Prince said made a lot of sense.

Theoretically speaking, the Third Prince indeed lacked the strength to confront them, and had no reason to endanger the Fourth Prince's safety.

If the Third Prince were to make a move against the Fourth Prince at this time, it would undoubtedly be paving the way for the Fifth Prince or Jia Lian.

A man accused of fratricide and patricide will no longer be acknowledged by the court officials. In the army?

The army is now under her and Jia Lian's control.

Knowing that the fourth prince had clearly developed a rebellious attitude, trying to persuade him at this point would only deepen his misunderstanding.

So he asked, "Are you really just going to move him to a different place, with no other plans?"

The fourth prince was somewhat surprised, and it was the first time he had truly experienced the taste of power.

Even her elder sister, who always beat and scolded her, began to calm down and listen to her advice.

Thinking of the deep-seated grudges between her elder sister and her third brother, she found it hard to believe that the third prince might speak kindly when he was about to die.

Therefore, he resolutely assured her: "Of course. Even if I were stupid, I wouldn't forget that he was the murderer who killed my eldest brother."

For this alone, I will never forgive him.

Princess Zhaoyang felt somewhat relieved upon hearing this.

He figured he could just send more people to keep an eye on him. If he behaved himself, that would be fine.

If he doesn't behave, I'd rather bear the blame myself than allow him to cause trouble again.

Not wanting to continue the conversation with the Fourth Prince, Princess Zhaoyang took the opportunity to ask about the funeral of the Emperor Emeritus.

The fourth prince began to complain as soon as this was brought up.

"Your Majesty, you have no idea how exhausted I've been these past few days."

I never thought it was that difficult when I watched my eldest and third brothers prepare for such things.

Now that I've been put in charge of my grandfather's funeral arrangements, I've realized there are so many intricacies and complexities involved.

Ah, if only Jia Lian were in the capital.

I heard that someone in the Jia family died a few years ago, and he has handled the funeral arrangements for many of the Jia family's elders and peers. He has a lot of experience.

If he were alive, he would be in charge of his grandfather's funeral arrangements.

I wonder how he is doing in North Korea now.

"Did he kill all those damned Japanese slaves?"

Following the Fourth Prince's words, Princess Zhaoyang also fell into thought.

Thinking that Jia Lian had assembled his elite troops entirely according to his own wishes.

Even if I can't create a miracle like last year, I should be safe and sound, and my heart gradually calmed down.

……

The Korean Peninsula is a fertile land.

North Korea is not a small country; it has a rather large population.

The reason why they were still being beaten by the Jurchens in the north, and also bullied by the Japanese across the sea in the south.

It's purely because I'm bad at it.

At this time, the aftershocks of the war had just subsided in the Korean capital.

Most of the people who fled the war have not yet dared to return, so the area appears rather desolate.

Li Yaochen rode his horse along the street adorned with white sails, feeling quite melancholy.

However, before he could finish grieving, he saw a large group of high-ranking officials from the imperial court standing in the middle of the avenue in front of the palace gate, ready to welcome him.

He knew all those people, from the Left Speaker (Prime Minister) to the judges of various departments, basically all the famous figures in the court were there.

Li Yaochen was taken aback, then realized that these people might be there to greet him, and a strange feeling welled up inside him.

He quickly dismounted and trotted forward.

But as he ran, the person opposite him also ran.

Left State Councilor Kim Se-ga, the emperor's brother-in-law and the most powerful person besides the King of Joseon, actually led the way to him, helped him up when he was about to pay his respects, and had a peaceful smile on his face.

"Lord Li was entrusted with a critical mission and secured powerful reinforcements for our dynasty."

This act saved the queen and the new king, as well as nearly ten million people in Korea.

The magnitude of this achievement is as great as the sun and moon.

Please accept my respects!"

Following Kim Se-ga, other North Korean ministers also expressed their gratitude to Yi Yo-sin.

Being flattered by so many colleagues and even superiors made Li Yaochen beam with joy, and all the grief he had accumulated on the way for the "death" of Old Wang disappeared.

They responded to everyone's enthusiasm one by one.

Jin Shijia waited until he had enjoyed the crowd's adoration before lowering the volume of the others and asking with a slightly more serious tone:
"I wonder if Lord Li is aware of the current situation on the front lines."

Have those Japanese pirates been completely wiped out by the heavenly army of the superior nation?

Upon hearing Jin Shijia ask about serious matters, Li Yaochen dared not delay and quickly replied, "The elite troops under the command of the King of Pingliao have now forced the last main force of the Japanese pirates to the eastern coast."

Moreover, Lord Pingliao dispatched a fleet to cut off the Japanese pirates' escape route by sea.

It seems only a matter of time before the main force of the Japanese pirates is completely wiped out.

Everyone looked on with reverence whenever Li Yaochen mentioned the words "King of Pingliao," which didn't surprise anyone.

Originally, sending Li Yaochen to the Great Wei to ask for reinforcements was just a last resort.

Success is great, but failure is no big loss.

I originally thought that even if the people of Wei, who are always concerned about their reputation, were willing to send troops to help, it would only be a token gesture.

Unexpectedly, the people of Wei were so loyal this time.

They actually sent an army of 100,000 to help, and even had their King Pyeongryo, whose fame had spread to Korea, personally lead the troops.

The King of Pingliao's 100,000-strong army truly lived up to its reputation.

Almost immediately upon landing, they turned the tide of the entire battle.

In just over two months, they helped them recover most of their lost territory and decimated the once invincible Japanese pirates.

That's terrifying.

But some people still questioned: "Lord Li, does the King of Pingliao really have 100,000 elite soldiers under his command?"

"Are the people of Wei really willing to send an army of 100,000 to help us?"

Li Yaochen hesitated only slightly before nodding solemnly: "It's true."

My lords, you have not seen how powerful the Great Wei is now.

Their warships stretched out on the sea, blotting out the sky, so that their beginnings and ends were completely invisible.

The King of Pingliao used such a powerful fleet to transport his 100,000-strong army to us.

I observed it carefully along the way.

The army that the Prince of Pingliao has brought to help us this time, even if it's not quite 100,000, is close.

Tens of thousands of people gathered, a sea of ​​people.

Not to mention the 50,000 troops, each distributed across hundreds of warships.

Thus, even though Li Yaochen had been with the fleet the whole time, he still hadn't figured out the exact number of troops under Jia Lian's command.

Anyway, the Great Wei claimed to have dispatched 100,000 troops.

He also thought it was about the same.

The main reason is that the fighting power displayed by the Wei army is too terrifying.

He couldn't accept it without such a large force.

The Korean ministers were shocked to realize that Lee Yo-chen was not lying.

He thought to himself, "As expected of the Celestial Empire, it is terrifying that it can send out an army of 100,000 at once!"
Although their total strength across North Korea is more than 100,000.

However, the Japanese pirates launched a surprise attack this time, catching them off guard.

Secondly, when they finally managed to gather their forces and organize a resistance, they were shocked to find that their own army was rotten and utterly vulnerable to those fierce and reckless Japanese pirates.

As a result, in just over a month, half of the country was lost.

In desperation, they had no choice but to send someone to ask the Great Wei for help.

However, they didn't have much hope for the Great Wei at first, since a distant source of water can't quench an immediate thirst.

Therefore, when their king heard that the Japanese pirates had broken through the defenses and were heading towards the capital, he was so frightened that he immediately fled with his officials and concubines.

They planned to move the capital to the north.

That way, they would be closer to Liaodong under the Great Wei, and more likely to receive the Great Wei's protection.

It's unclear whether it was bad luck or the fact that the King of Joseon had been weakened by years of indulgence in wine and women.

On the way of escaping, he suddenly fell off the carriage and died.

Just a few days after he fell to his death, the ministers received news from Li Yaochen that reinforcements from the Great Wei had arrived.

What followed was exactly what everyone had been hoping for.

With the arrival of the Heavenly Army from the superior nation, the entire battle situation was reversed.

I wonder if their king, if he knew this news in the afterlife, would be so angry that he would die again.

The ministers were intimidated by the power of the Great Wei and fell silent for a moment.

Ultimately, someone expressed concern, saying, "I've heard that wherever the King of Pingliao's army goes, they demand grain, supplies, and all sorts of provisions from the local officials, and their appetite is enormous..."

As the saying goes, it is easier to invite gods than to send them away.

The Japanese pirates are now clearly capable of being wiped out.

But how should we deal with these 100,000 Wei soldiers?

"What if they have ulterior motives..."

"shut up."

Jin Shijia immediately interrupted the man's speech.

"Since the founding of our country by Emperor Taizu, we have always been protected by the Great Wei."

This time, the Great Wei only sent troops to rescue us because we begged them.

How can you presume to know the great nation with such treacherous thoughts before anything has even happened?
Isn't that ungrateful and disloyal?

In the past, they might not have fully accepted this so-called suzerain state.

However, our ancestors were forced by circumstances to agree to submit to us.

In recent years, apart from the ministers sent to pay homage and offer tribute, the domestic population has long since stopped taking it seriously.

But now that I have witnessed the strength of the superior nation firsthand, the term "superior nation" comes out so naturally.

But these are just polite words.

Why are we all gathered here today? Is it really just to welcome Li Yaochen back to the country?
Obviously not.

Everyone knows that the Japanese pirates are about to be wiped out.

However, tens of thousands of Wei soldiers were still within the country's borders.

After the Japanese pirates were wiped out, how to treat these Wei soldiers and how to deal with the renowned King Pingliao became crucial.

And obviously.

Of all those present, no one was more familiar with the habits and preferences of the Prince of Pingliao than Li Yaochen.

They contacted him in advance to understand the situation so they could respond accordingly. (End of Chapter)