I, the villainous eldest prince, will suppress everything!

Qin Li's words were like a bombshell, each one hitting a nerve.

It lingered in everyone's hearts for a long time, unable to dissipate.

Huangfu Song, in particular, felt his heart surge with emotion upon hearing these words.

Strictly speaking, he wasn't actually one of Emperor Xuan's men.

In his heart, he considered himself a member of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and he wished for the prosperity of the Great Zhou and for it to become stronger and stronger!

If the Great Zhou Dynasty could truly ensure that princes and commoners were treated the same as law, how could it have fallen into its current state of weakness? The Great Zhou would have long been able to stand proudly above all other powers in the world.

Qin Li's argument was so logical and well-founded that Emperor Xuan could not refute it at all.

Moreover, Emperor Xuan also knew that the fault lay not with Qin Li, but with Qin Yu!

It is a fact that Qin Yu forcibly abducted a woman outside Tianxiang Tower, and many people can testify to this!

But he was unwilling to accept it; he harbored resentment in his heart!

I hate Qin Li, the eldest brother, for having a better way of handling this matter.

For example, subdue Qin Yu, escort him back to the palace, and hand him over to him for disposal.

But Qin Li chose the method that Qin Yu found most unacceptable—killing Qin Yu!

In Qin Li's heart, he had long wanted to kill Qin Yu.

In this way, there will be one less person vying with Qin Li for the position of crown prince.

What imperial majesty, what court majesty, what the majesty of the Great Zhou laws... all of these were just excuses for Qin Li to kill his own brother.

Therefore, no matter what, Emperor Xuan had to punish Qin Li.

"Even if the third brother deserves to die, it's not something you, the eldest brother, can do to deal with."

"Boss, what is your punishment for returning to the capital without permission?!"

Emperor Xuan frowned, his white brows furrowed, and stared intently, determined to punish Qin Li.

This was a last resort. Emperor Xuan knew that Qin Li could not be punished for Qin Yu's actions; at most, Qin Li could be accused of abusing his power.

If this news gets out, countless people across the land will applaud and praise Qin Li for doing the right thing.

Therefore, Emperor Xuan could only punish Qin Li for other reasons.

Even if we can't kill Qin Li, we must imprison him so that he can never cause trouble again.

"Returning to Beijing privately?"

Throughout, Qin Li remained calm, even speaking in a mocking tone.

He said, "When did I return to the capital without permission? The war is over, so does my return to the capital count as returning without permission?"

"In my understanding, this should be considered a triumphant return to the capital."

"Is the war over?"

Emperor Xuan couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

Huangfu Song and the Zhao brothers were also extremely surprised.

The war is over so quickly?

According to their calculations, this war will last at least a year and a half.

How long has it been? Less than half a year, and the war is over?

However, their surprise quickly turned into panic.

The fact that the war ended so quickly suggests only one possibility.

That means Qin Li lost; the Northern Barbarians have already reached his doorstep.

Qin Li was able to return alive because the Northern Barbarians deliberately let him come back so that he could act as an envoy.

"Big, bold!"

"Your Highness, before you went to war, you made a solemn pledge: you would not return until victory was achieved!"

"Now that our army has suffered a crushing defeat, and even the capital is in grave danger, do you still have the nerve to return to Beijing?"

"Tell me, how many benefits did the Northern Barbarians promise you to come back as an envoy and persuade us to surrender!"

One of the Zhao brothers, Zhao Guanli, rebuked Qin Li in a trembling voice.

Unlike Huangfu Song, who was a military officer, he was able to remain calm, while he and his brother Zhao Guanwen were almost scared out of their wits.

Qin Li didn't say anything, he just walked straight over.

No one knew what Qin Li was going to do.

But we'll find out in the next moment.

Snapped!

Qin Li raised his hand and slapped him.

How could the elderly Zhao Guanli withstand it?

He was immediately slapped to the ground.

My old bones are almost falling apart.

"How dare you!"

Seeing his younger brother being beaten, Zhao Guanwen tried to protect him, but Qin Li slapped him to the ground.

That's why Huangfu Song didn't speak up in defense; otherwise, he would have been slapped by Qin Li too.

Shaking his hand, Qin Li cursed, "What nonsense are you two old geezers spouting?"

"What do you mean by 'our army suffered a crushing defeat'? You really think our army suffered a crushing defeat? Your intentions are despicable!"

"What nonsense about the Northern Barbarians sending me back as an envoy! That's completely untrue!"

"I, the prince, have won the battle, and won a resounding victory!"

"Not only did I defeat the Northern Barbarians, but I also recovered all of the Nine Provinces in the North, and even reclaimed Xuanque Pass!"

"What?!!"

This time, Huangfu Song finally spoke.

It was shock, it was disbelief.

He looked at Qin Li and said excitedly, "Your Highness, what did you say? Say it again!"

Qin Li didn't say anything, just waved his hand and went back, saying as he walked, "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you. I've figured it out. After this trip, my credibility in your eyes is zero!"

"Since you don't believe what I say, you should believe what the Seventh Prince Qin Feng says, since he's come back with you too."

"Quickly, summon the Seventh Prince to the palace!" Huangfu Song shouted immediately, impatiently bypassing Emperor Xuan.

Emperor Xuan did not express his dissatisfaction; he also wanted to know whether what Qin Li said was true or false.

If it's fake, he won't let Qin Li off the hook.

The crime of deceiving the emperor is enough to give Qin Li a hard time.

Soon, Qin Feng appeared in the main hall.

Qin Feng was in high spirits, his eyes were bright and piercing, it was clear that he had made preparations for entering the palace in his own residence in advance, and perhaps he had even drunk several pots of strong tea.

He couldn't afford to be unprepared for entering the palace. With such a major event happening today—the Third Prince's tragic death—Qin Feng was certain that Emperor Xuan would summon him to the palace.

"Greetings, Father Emperor!"

After a brief bow, Qin Feng stood up.

Emperor Xuan didn't speak, he just waved his hand.

Huangfu Song, speaking on behalf of Emperor Xuan, quickly stepped forward and asked Qin Feng, "Seventh Prince, the First Prince says the battle has been won! Our Great Zhou not only repelled the Northern Barbarians, but also reclaimed Xuanque Pass!"

Is this matter true or false?

Huangfu Song stared intently at Qin Feng, wanting to know the answer.

Qin Feng spoke the truth, giving him no room to lie, and said, "Reporting to Lord Huangfu, it is of course true; otherwise, we would not have been able to return to the capital in triumph."

This statement came out.

boom!

The main hall erupted in chaos.

Although the number of people in the main hall could be counted on one hand, the liveliness was no less than that of a grand court assembly.

Upon learning of their victory, Huangfu Song, despite his advanced age, was so overjoyed that he almost jumped up and down.

Emperor Xuan was also very happy, excitedly slapping the table and repeatedly saying "Good! Good!"

Because no one expected that they could win this battle.

But after laughing for a while, they shut up.

They were happy because they had won the battle.

That won't be enough to punish Qin Li.

Emperor Xuan looked at Qin Feng, his tone unpleasant, "Seventh Brother, you're not lying to me? The Northern Barbarians have hundreds of thousands of troops, led by the Empress herself. They also have the Iron Pagoda. Can you really win?"

Looking at it this way, how could they possibly lose! The Great Zhou has no chance of winning!

After Qin Li set off on his campaign, Emperor Xuan did not think about how to provide logistical support to help Qin Li win the battle.

Instead, they were thinking about how to compensate and negotiate peace, so that the Northern Barbarians would withdraw their troops!

"Father, I would never dare to deceive you!"

"Our Great Zhou has truly won!"

"If you don't believe me, Father can send someone to check."

"Look! Atop Xuanque Pass, isn't that the dragon flag of my Great Zhou Dynasty flying?"

Qin Feng said, word by word.

Seeing that Qin Feng didn't seem to be lying, Emperor Xuan's face didn't show any joy, only a slowly darkening expression.

While the Great Zhou's victory was undoubtedly a good thing for the Great Zhou, it was a terrible thing for the emperor!

Qin Li has made such a great contribution, how can he be punished?

If someone dares to treat him, someone will dare to drape a yellow robe over Qin Li's shoulders!

Emperor Xuan would absolutely not allow such a thing to happen.

After thinking for a moment, Emperor Xuan said nothing, but simply got up, flicked his sleeves, and left.

Before leaving, he called Huangfu Song away, saying he had something to say to Huangfu Song alone.

"Why did you leave?"

Watching Emperor Xuan leave, Qin Feng was completely bewildered...

Qin Li walked up and put his arm around Qin Feng's shoulder. "It's normal that you don't understand. You still don't understand our father at all."