Chapter 76

Chu Shaoling had underestimated the Emperor's ability to incite public outrage. After the court meeting that day, the Emperor immediately sent an order to the Northwest, commanding the local militia to be disbanded at once, and the ringleaders who had gathered the brave men to be arrested and brought to the capital. Those who disobeyed the order would be executed without mercy.

Chu Shaoling sighed as he looked at the imperial edict: "When the officials oppress the people, they have no choice but to rebel."

Wei Ji had never heard of such a thing. Looking at the few lines of black characters on the edict, he was almost furious enough to explode his lungs. He angrily said, "What does this mean?! When the barbarians attack, why can't we organize a militia to fight back? Are we supposed to just take a beating?!"

"What you said is the same as what Duke Jing'guo said at the court meeting today." Chu Shaoling sneered coldly, "But according to the Great Chu Law, it is indeed not allowed. Privately amassing troops is a great crime. The Emperor is not afraid of them fighting the barbarians, he is afraid that some people with ulterior motives will take the opportunity to gather soldiers and rise in rebellion."

Wei Ji understood, but he was still trembling with anger: "But it can't be like this. I heard that the people on the western border are now living in misery. The barbarians burn, kill, and plunder. If the people show the slightest disobedience, they are directly beaten and killed. There are also many good families who have been, been, been brutally ravaged! The Emperor ignores it, but how can he even disband the only militia that can resist the enemy?!"

Seeing that Wei Ji was so angry that even his eyes were red, Chu Shaoling hurriedly pulled him into his arms and laughed to comfort him: "Why are you getting so angry?"

Wei Ji's thoughts were simple, and he had never heard of such an unjust thing. He angrily said in a low voice, "They are his people, his own people! The Emperor, he, he..."

"He's a bastard, he's a bastard, don't be angry." Chu Shaoling gently rubbed Wei Ji's back to soothe him while coaxing, "You're not old but your temper is not small. If you get sick from anger, it's not worth it. I have already submitted a request to go to war. By then, there will definitely be many people supporting it. This battle must be fought. When the time comes, I will take you with me. You can kill as many Liaoliang barbarians as you want."

Chu Shaoling regretted telling Wei Ji about these things, fearing that Wei Ji would get sick from anger. He kept coaxing, "When the leaders who gathered the militia are escorted to the Imperial City, I will definitely find a way to save them, okay?"

"Your Highness is benevolent." Wei Ji felt really upset in his heart. After a long time, he said, "I wish I could draw my sword and charge into the palace right now."

Chu Shaoling laughed, "Your mouth is getting more and more unruly."

Chu Shaoling gently stroked Wei Ji's back and said softly, "I haven't become the Emperor yet. When I ascend the throne, you can say whatever you want. For now, you still need to be more disciplined, understand? The war with Liaoliang is inevitable and won't be delayed by a day or two."

Wei Ji took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "I was out of line."

Chu Shaoling kissed Wei Ji on the forehead, "How old are you, still acting like a child."

Unlike Wei Ji, Chu Shaoling had been by the Emperor's side since he was a child and had seen too much of the Emperor's incompetence. He was not surprised at all by the Emperor's actions. No matter when, the Emperor would always put himself first. Even though he clearly knew that the few hundred militiamen on the border could not possibly attack the Imperial City, he would still be wary and would hurry to extinguish this small hidden danger.

Chu Shaoling originally wanted to spread some rumors in the army. The military officers were the easiest to incite. Now it seemed that he didn't need to bother. The Emperor's edict had already been sent down. Now Chu Shaoling was just waiting to go to war.

Seeing the little general in his arms, angry and red-faced, Chu Shaoling felt extremely cute and couldn't help but tease, "Alright, the fire is lit. In the future, if there's anything, I won't dare to tell you."

Wei Ji thought of his appearance just now and also felt a little embarrassed. He was held in Chu Shaoling's arms, kissed and coaxed for a long time before he felt a little better.

The next day, at the morning court, sure enough, many officials submitted memorials requesting the Emperor to establish Chu Shaoling as the Crown Prince. The Emperor still kept it without issuing a decree, only saying that there were many matters in the court now and it would be discussed later. Chu Shaoling remained calm as always, only secretly sending someone to Prince Rong's fief to deliver a letter to Chu Shaotao.

With the frequent wars in the Northwest, the Emperor also understood that it was unavoidable this time. He immediately ordered people to prepare for the deployment of troops and the transportation of grain and grass.

In the Tanghe Palace, Chu Shaoruan, who had learned the news from somewhere, hurriedly wrote a thick memorial and sent it to the Imperial City to apologize, begging the Emperor to let him return to the palace. He said that there were many matters in the court now and he was willing to come back to serve as a dog and horse. His words were so sincere that even Chu Shaoling felt a little reluctant. Unfortunately, when the Emperor brought up this matter during the court meeting, no one spoke up, and the matter of Chu Shaoruan's return to the court came to nothing.

The Emperor was determined to bring Chu Shaoruan back. Since he couldn't get through the front court, he had to find a way in the rear palace. This time, the Emperor put in a lot of effort. He ordered people to specially select many cloud brocades that the Empress Dowager loved from the storehouse and personally sent them over.

The Empress Dowager had been giving the Emperor the cold shoulder for the past few days, and her heart had softened a little. She no longer avoided seeing him. Who knew that after the Emperor met the Empress Dowager, he didn't say a few words before turning the topic to Chu Shaoruan's matter. The Empress Dowager immediately became furious and said coldly, "It seems that it was I who was being presumptuous. If it weren't for some matter, how could the Emperor think of me?"

The Emperor didn't want it to be like this either, but now the war situation was urgent and really couldn't be delayed. If he didn't take this opportunity to bring Chu Shaoruan back, it would be even more difficult later. The Empress Dowager had completely given up this time.

She immediately served tea to send off the guest and said indifferently, "The Emperor's rear palace cannot interfere in politics. The Emperor really doesn't need to tell me about these things. I don't understand them either. The Emperor can just do as he sees fit."

The Empress Dowager, leaning on Granny Sun, was about to go inside. The Emperor desperately tried to stop her and said in a low voice, "The other day, this son misspoke. If Imperial Mother is unhappy, just say it to this son. How can there be grudges between mother and son overnight?"

Hearing this, the anger in the Empress Dowager's heart grew even stronger. She said coldly, "So it turns out the Emperor understands everything. Since you understand, why didn't you come to say these words and send these things to me before? Now I'm afraid it's not sincere to come and coax me. In fact, it's for the sake of your precious son, right? Hehe, I still have some discernment. Granny Sun, help me to the Small Buddha Hall."

The Empress Dowager, following Chu Shaoling's advice, never held her anger in her heart. As soon as she left Ci'an Palace, she went to the Small Buddha Hall and scolded Consort Li to her heart's content. She also ordered Consort Li to kneel on the ceramic tiles and copy Buddhist scriptures. Consort Li had already been tormented into a terrible state these past few days. After kneeling for only two hours, she fainted. The Empress Dowager's anger subsided a little. She ordered someone to drag Consort Li back to her room, without summoning the imperial physician, and lazily returned to the palace to rest.

The Emperor was truly at his wit's end this time. Losing the Empress Dowager's support was equivalent to losing the support of the Jing'guo Duke Manor, which held considerable power in the military and was crucial at this critical juncture. Pressured by both the former court and the inner palace, the Emperor had no choice but to summon his relatives to discuss the matter of establishing an heir.

Before the heir issue was settled, a major incident erupted in the west. Upon receiving the Emperor's arrest warrant, several militia leaders on the border immediately cursed the Emperor for being muddled and incompetent, and committed suicide in anger. The local people were furious and rose up in rebellion, slaughtering all the officials sent by the Emperor before forming troops and fleeing south.

Upon receiving the news, the Emperor immediately fainted. After waking up, he issued an edict to establish Chu Shaoling as the crown prince and appoint him as the Grand General to lead the army to quell the rebellion in the northwest Liaoliang.

"Your Highness," Wei Ji looked at the crown prince attire on the incense table in disbelief, mumbling, "You've become the crown prince just like that?"

Chu Shaoling patted Wei Ji's head and laughed, "Isn't it great that it's quick? The war is urgent, so there's no time for a grand enthronement ceremony. It's quite good, saves the trouble."

This was a bit faster than Chu Shaoling had anticipated. The rebellion in the northwest had left the Emperor's prestige in tatters, and at this point, the Emperor dared not go against public opinion anymore.

"The northern army has already set out, and the soldiers in the imperial city will also depart in a couple of days." Chu Shaoling kissed Wei Ji on the forehead, "Finally able to go to the battlefield, are you happy?"

"War is not a good thing, but I'm still happy to kill the barbarian rebels." Wei Ji was still worried about Chu Shaoruan taking advantage of the situation after Chu Shaoling left. Chu Shaoling smiled and reassured, "I have already sent someone to pass a message to Chu Shaotao a few days ago. It won't be long before Chu Shaotao comes to the imperial city."

Wei Ji instantly understood Chu Shaoling's intention and nodded, "Your Highness wants Chu Shaotao to keep an eye on the Third Prince."

"Yes." Chu Shaoling held Wei Ji's hand and gently rubbed it, saying, "Ordinary people can't handle the situation. Now that the Empress Dowager is unwell, we can't trouble her with everything. The most suitable person is Chu Shaotao. He is Chu Shaotao of the Rong Prince Manor, so others won't dare to act against him easily, as they have to be wary of Prince Rong in the fief, right?"

Wei Ji thought about it but still felt it was inappropriate, "Isn't Chu Shaotao not allowed to leave the fief?"

Chu Shaoling pinched Wei Ji's face, "Do you take your prince for a fool? I told him to feign illness, saying that the physicians in the fief are not competent enough, so he needs to come to the imperial city to seek good imperial physicians and medicinal ingredients. The Emperor can't refuse that."

Wei Ji nodded, "That is indeed a solution."

Chu Shaoling sneered coldly, "I'm afraid I won't be able to wait for him to come before I have to go on the expedition. In this letter, I have already made clear the matters in the imperial city. If Chu Shaoruan dares to take a step out of Tanghe Palace, kill him directly and see if the Emperor dares to confront me."