Isolated town in northern border region

The King of the Northern Frontier acted rudely during the reign of Emperor Gaozong, dragging the emperor and splitting the dragon throne with his sword!

The news spread like wildfire throughout the entire Great Chu.

Within just three days, from Kyoto to prefectures and counties, from teahouses to fields, everyone was talking about it.

In front of the entire court, Xiao Lie, the King of the Northern Frontier, dragged the Chu Emperor off the dragon throne and then smashed the throne, which represented supreme imperial power, with three slashes!

Such a strange event has never been heard of before!

The key point is that Xiao Lie is not the kind of rebellious and treacherous official who acts recklessly; he has always been known as a wise and virtuous king among the people.

Different people react differently.

A young scholar, who was drinking in a restaurant, stood up with his bowl in his hand.

"That's what a real man is! Forget the dragon throne, forget imperial power, he'll just chop it down!"

Someone nearby chimed in.

"The King of Northern Frontier has conquered even the grasslands of Northern Frontier, what's a chair to him?"

Several young people sitting together began to argue. Some said that Xiao Lie was going to change the world, while others said that he just didn't want to become the second Xiao Mu.

Someone slammed their bowl down on the table.

"No matter what, he did something we wouldn't even dare to dream of."

The person next to him was silent for a moment before replying.

"The King of the Northern Frontier did it, and then what? And then who sits in that chair?"

"Given how it is, it would be uncomfortable for anyone to sit on it, right?"

No one can answer.

The old scholars, on the other hand, were heartbroken.

An elderly scholar with white hair sat in his study, turned to the chapter on "Ruler and Minister" in the Book of Rites, read it over and over again, and finally closed the book and sighed.

"The moral order has collapsed... the moral order has collapsed..."

His beard trembled as he shook his head, as if those few strands of beard were the last line of defense for the entire world of etiquette and law.

"An emperor may be tyrannical, but his subjects cannot be disrespectful!"

"If he can drag the emperor off the throne today, others will be able to disrespect their ruler tomorrow!"

"If this rule is broken, who in the world would dare to sit in that chair?"

The student next to me asked in a low voice.

"But the Chu Emperor did indeed do so many wrong things..."

The old scholar glared at him.

"Whether it's right or wrong, it's all due to the emperor's flawed personal morality!"

"If a subject takes action, that is the subject's crime! They are two different things!"

The court officials fell silent overnight.

Those who had been rushing to submit their memorials fell silent, and those who had been planning to take sides stopped in their tracks.

They couldn't understand...

Xiao Lie went through so much trouble and effort to get to this point, wasn't it all for that chair?

From a legitimate crown prince forced to flee to the northern frontier, he transformed into a brilliant emperor with outstanding military achievements and compassion for the people, ultimately forcing the Chu Emperor to abdicate in a dignified manner!

This kind of glory is rare even in history!

But no one expected that Xiao Lie would actually chop down the dragon throne he was about to sit on!

All the congratulatory messages, drafted rules, and prepared pledges of allegiance that had been written in their minds became worthless overnight.

Some locked themselves in their studies, pondering the matter repeatedly; some consulted with colleagues through the night; some sat under the lamp, staring blankly at the folds of their own writings. No one could figure out what Xiao Lie was up to.

The most panicked were the royal family and members of the imperial clan.

The people of the Chu Emperor's lineage lived in fear and dared not even leave their homes.

Several senior members of the imperial family who were living in retirement in the mansion gathered together overnight, closed the door, and discussed the matter in hushed tones.

Someone slammed their fist on the table.

"He's digging up the roots of the Xiao family! What he said—'Why should the common people gamble the lives of generations on whether the Xiao family's ruler is wise or foolish'—is not just an insult to Xiao Mu, he's an insult to our entire Xiao family!"

Someone was clutching their chest.

"His act of slashing the dragon throne was a blatant disgrace to the Xiao family, trampling their dignity into the ground!"

"Who will respect the royal family in the future? Who will take the Xiao family seriously?"

"If things continue like this, will the Great Chu still bear the surname Xiao?"

No one could answer him.

An elderly member of the royal family with completely white hair sat in the corner without saying a word until he finally spoke, his voice very soft.

"This absolutely cannot continue!"

"We have to do something. It's better for that good-for-nothing Xiao Mu to continue being emperor than for that madman Xiao Lie!"

At this moment, an old man asked in a deep voice.

"Then who will stop his northern cavalry?"

"Yongzhou is the gateway to the Central Plains, and there are no natural defenses to the south. Furthermore, Xiao Mu has neglected military affairs in recent years. Who can stop the fierce and ruthless iron cavalry of the northern frontier?"

At this moment, the old royal family member with completely white hair was so angry that he had to lean on his cane to get up.

"Then let's deal with Xiao Lie first!"

"Once Xiao Lie is dead, the Northern Frontier army can march south for revenge. At worst, we'll be rewarded with official positions and titles!"

"Alright... then I'll leave the task of dealing with Xiao Lie to you?"

The room fell silent.

No one responded, but no one refuted either.

But everyone knows in their hearts that Xiao Lie has no rivals in the Chu Kingdom now.

Anyone who dares to assassinate Xiao Lie at this time will surely die!

If the assassination fails, Xiao Lie will not let him off; if it succeeds, the Northern Frontier army will march south to demand an explanation!

Even though the Northern Frontier Army has been bought off by Ronghua Fugui, they still have to avenge Xiao Lie, the wise and virtuous king, on the surface.

The result, naturally, was that the person who did the deed was pushed out to take the fall.

Which of these royal elders, who have lived a life of luxury, would be willing to be the one to stick their neck out?

At the inn, Jiang Min hadn't spoken to Xiao Lie for two days.

On the first night of sleeping in separate rooms, she sat in her room trimming the lamp wick again and again, until the wicks piled up in a small heap, but she still couldn't fall asleep.

The next day, when she came out, her face showed no emotion, but the lotus seed soup that Bisu had brought over was returned untouched.

Xiao Lie didn't say anything about it, but he glanced at her when he left in the morning, and she didn't look up.

On the afternoon of the third day, Xiao Lie neither practiced swordsmanship nor archery.

He found a stone table in the back garden, drew a grid with a katana, and taught Bisu how to play Connect Four.

Bisu initially lost repeatedly, but gradually figured out the trick and actually won a game. Xiao Lie smiled and put away the chess pieces.

"You learn very quickly."

Bisu whispered.

"Your Highness, why aren't you practicing your sword today?"

Xiao Lie looked at the grid of pebbles on the table.

"I don't want to move today, I want to rest."

Bisu didn't ask any more questions, but her gaze remained fixed on his face.

"Your Highness, whatever you wish to do, Bisu will accompany you!"

"Bisu believes that what the Prince did was definitely right!"

Xiao Lie smiled and scratched Bi Su's nose.

"You little brat!"

At this moment, Xu De walked in carrying a pot of tea and sat down on the stone bench next to him.

He didn't rush to speak. After watching the two games of chess, he looked at Xiao Lie with a puzzled expression in his eyes.

"Old Xiao, are you trying to get treatment?"

Xiao Lie dropped the pebble in his hand onto the table, looked up at Xu De, and looked surprised.

"What did you figure out?"

Xu De scratched his head, as if he was sorting out and piecing together the ideas in his mind that were not yet fully formed.

"I spent quite a bit of time in northern Xinjiang and found that all the policies and regulations there were designed to improve the lives of the people."

"Furthermore, even if Zhou Xun truly possessed the talent to govern the country, he would still send someone to oversee the process when delegating power to others."

"That's a system of checks and balances!"

"Just like how we doctors use poison to fight poison, we must always maintain a balance."

"But you're different. Once you hand over power, you really hand it over."

"It's as if that power was never yours to begin with."

He paused for a moment.

"Furthermore, whether it's a factory or a grassland ranch, when government orders are not being implemented, you don't send more people to suppress them, but instead ask the people what difficulties they are facing."

"Then adjust the government orders..."

"You're not like a person in power, you're more like... a head steward."

"On the contrary, the common people are more like the masters of the northern frontier."