Isolated town in northern border region

"madman!"

"Xiao Lie is a complete madman!"

What is he going to do?

"Should we lead our troops to massacre the city of Yongzhou?"

"Where is His Majesty? How could His Majesty allow Xiao Lie to act so recklessly?"

"Isn't he afraid that Xiao Lie will lead his troops straight to the capital?"

Wang Shouchang's face was deathly pale, and he questioned hysterically, looking exactly like a tenant farmer driven mad by usury.

Luo You closed his eyes and slumped into the chair.

"Our Emperor probably wishes Xiao Lie could slaughter the entire city of Yongzhou!"

Wang Shouchang had been driven to distraction by Xiao Lie these past few days, and was now blinded by anger. However, with his son-in-law Luo You reminding him, he quickly regained his usual political acumen after a little thought.

"Your Majesty, are you waiting for Xiao Lie to make the situation spiral out of control, so that you can not only gain the support of the powerful families, but also have a legitimate reason to take action?"

"These two, uncle and nephew, truly live up to their shared surname, Xiao!"

But after Wang Shoucheng realized this, the panic in his heart intensified!

"My dear son-in-law!"

"This is terrible!"

"Xiao Lie isn't stupid; he can't be blind to the situation!"

"Now that Xiao Lie has directly torn off all pretense of civility, if he wins, we'll naturally be in for a rough time. But if Xiao Lie loses, he might fight us to the death before we're completely cornered!"

"That's why he deployed troops to garrison Yongzhou!"

"What a cunning Xiao Lie! Such a deep scheme!"

"Knowing he's just a prince in matters of principle, he simply adopts a reckless attitude, forcing us to choose sides!"

"At such a young age, he possesses such shrewdness. Coupled with the large army and numerous generals in the Northern Frontier, and the renowned Princess Minyue, it's still uncertain who will ultimately rule the Great Chu..."

In the courtyard of the post station, Xiao Lie was quite relaxed, playing chess with Jiang Min.

"Behold my invincible triangle underwear formation! Once this formation is complete, victory is assured!"

"Huh...huh? Huh!"

"I regret it! My hand slipped!"

"How come you have five in a row? Do you understand my pieces now?"

Jiang Min looked at Xiao Lie with disdain and moved the last chess piece away as if coaxing a child.

Finally, after Jiang Min gave way more than ten times, Xiao Lie finally achieved "five in a row"!

"Haha! I've said it before, I'm not good at Go, but I'm absolutely invincible at Gomoku!"

"Hurry up and put it away, then I won't bully you anymore!"

Xiao Lie wiped the sweat from his forehead and quickly waved his hand to end the game.

Jiang Min didn't expose him, but instead smiled and picked up a chess piece.

"Your Highness, there's still room for maneuver on this chessboard, but in the game of Yongzhou, one wrong move and you're utterly destroyed!"

"Since we've already completely fallen out, we might as well strike first!"

"Although we can't do it openly, we can leave Yongzhou first, and then send someone to launch a surprise attack!"

"If the powerful families join forces with the Chu Emperor, Your Highness will truly be in dire straits!"

Although Jiang Min was a woman, she acted with extreme decisiveness. Her few words, though seemingly casual, were full of murderous intent.

Of course, Jiang Min also had her own ulterior motives. As long as Xiao Lie went on a killing spree, he would have no place to stay in the Chu Kingdom.

At that time, not only will the people have to return to Jing Kingdom, but the five prefectures in the northern border region may also be submitted to Jing Kingdom.

Xiao Lie twisted his neck, squinted at Jiang Min, and raised an eyebrow, completely ignoring her little scheme.

"Don't worry, the powerful families in Yongzhou are now afraid that I will fight them to the death."

"Their family is powerful and wealthy. With a single order from me, I can slaughter their entire clan. That old fox Wang Shoucheng will definitely have to think twice."

"So, he'll try to feed me little by little, cutting off pieces of flesh at a time—that's like boiling a frog in lukewarm water!"

"As for my good uncle, he's just waiting for me to unleash my fury..."

"Therefore, this period of time is actually my best opportunity!"

Just then, Bisu came skipping and hopping over.

"Your Highness, Uncle Qian has arrived."

"General Luo and General Xiao will arrive soon; they are expected to set up camp outside the city tonight."

No sooner had Bi Su finished speaking than Qian Wanli walked in, panting heavily.

"This humble servant greets Your Highness!"

"Miss Bisu is so nimble-fingered; this old man is simply no match for her."

Xiao Lie glanced at Bi Su, who shrank her neck and stuck out her tongue.

"Old Qian, sit down quickly. Bisu, bring some tea and snacks."

Qian Wanli sat down and panted for a while before finally catching his breath.

"Your Highness, may I ask what duty you have bestowed upon me in Yongzhou?"

Xiao Lie chuckled and took out the project plan from his pocket, handing it over.

"Let you go back to your old profession! Become the richest businessman in the world!"

Qian Wanli took the project proposal and read it intently several times, exclaiming in surprise continuously.

"Your Highness! Does this thing truly possess such immense power?"

"Heavens! If I had this, I could dominate the entire market of Yongzhou within three months!"

Finally, Qian Wanli raised a question based on his own business experience.

"Your Highness, this plan is excellent, but it takes time to implement. What if the powerful families blockade us during the initial period?"

Xiao Lie laughed heartily.

"Don't worry! As long as you're arrogant and daring enough!"

"Not a single powerful family, big or small, in Yongzhou dares to say 'no' to you!"

Qian Wanli didn't quite understand, but out of trust in Xiao Lie, he nodded nonetheless.

"Yes, Your Highness, I will follow your instructions."

"There are many key points in this plan, and I need to study it carefully. I won't disturb Your Highness any longer."

Xiao Lie nodded, and Qian Wanli carefully put the plan away and left.

No sooner had Qian Wanli left than Bisu returned with noodles.

"Hmm? Where's Uncle Qian?"

Xiao Lie waved.

"Let's go. I'm hungry too, bring it up."

Xiao Lie blew on it and tasted a mouthful of the noodle soup first.

"I almost got jealous."

"By the way, Bisu, what did you hear during your walk outside?"

"You were jumping and skipping when you came back."

Bisu's eyes lit up, and she immediately became animated.

"Your Highness! All the ordinary people in Yongzhou City are praising you!"

"Those commoners who came to town to sell vegetables, though they dared not say it to the patrolling constables, were all praising the prince for standing up for them!"

"Oh, right! A few literate people even copied the prince's poem back home, saying they'd like to enshrine it!"

Listening to Bisu's description, Xiao Lie frowned as he carefully chopped the noodles.

"They just applaud, but they don't dare do it in front of the patrolling constables?"

Bisu nodded.

"Yes, they say that yesterday an uncle said something disrespectful to the aristocratic family in front of the constables, and his vegetable stall was smashed and he was slapped twice."

Xiao Lie nodded.

"Looks like the fire hasn't burned enough!"

Meanwhile, Xiao Lie was putting his plan into action in Yongzhou, and Emperor Xiao Mu of Chu was in high spirits these past few days.

When the Chu emperor received Xiao Lie's memorial requesting the mobilization of troops, he smiled.

"What a fine King of the Northern Frontier! What a fine garrison in Yongzhou!"

He put down the memorial.

"Let him stay!"

"Young people are ultimately not mature enough; they actually pushed aristocratic families towards my side!"

"Hahaha!"

"My dear nephew, you've made one terrible mistake, and now you've lost the whole game!"