Shunzi was stunned for a moment. He didn't know about the previous events. He looked at Cen Chaoge, then turned to look at Xi Xiang, and said in a daze, "What is he talking about? Isn't he from Lingnan? How could he say... the Crown Prince lured him back to Lingnan?"

Xi Xiang had grievances that he couldn't express. With all that had happened, even with his eloquence, he couldn't argue his way out. Xi Xiang looked at Bairen apprehensively...

Bairen stared at Cen Chaoge, and understood in just an instant. He realized why Cen Chaoge was able to find a way back to Lingnan, why Qi Xiao was willing to not marry Roujia for his sake, and why Qi Xiao had taken a liking to him...

Cen Chaoge clung to Bairen like a lifeline. The matter of leaving Bairen behind to return to Lingnan alone had always weighed heavily on his conscience. Every time he thought about it, he felt immensely guilty. Now that he finally had a chance to clear his name, how could Cen Chaoge let it go?

He crawled over, stumbling, and grabbed Bairen's clothes tightly, repeating over and over, "Bairen... You see it now, right? You understand, right? This was all a trap set by the Crown Prince. He deliberately harmed me in order to deceive you, and even caused Roujia to be married off to this place..."

Bairen looked down at Cen Chaoge, raised his hand, and slapped him hard across the face with a loud "smack"!

"A trap set by him?" Bairen grabbed Cen Chaoge by the collar, staring coldly into his eyes, enunciating each word, "Then, why did you fall for it?"

Cen Chaoge was like a duck whose neck had been grabbed. He was suddenly at a loss for words.

After a long while, he said in a fluster, "I... I had no choice. I did it to return to Lingnan... Didn't you just say it yourself? I'm the only son of the Cen family. I can't die! Besides... Bairen, didn't you also submit to the Crown Prince to save your own life? You understand this principle, so how can you not sympathize with me?"

Bairen couldn't help but laugh, tears glistening in his eyes. He chuckled, "Yes... When I came to the imperial city, you all said I did it to save my life. When I submitted to the Crown Prince, you still said I did it to save my life. Haha... I understand the Crown Prince's hardships now..."

Bairen shoved Cen Chaoge away and said with a cold laugh, "Say whatever you want."

Bairen turned to Shunzi, "He knows too much. Keep a close watch on him. Don't beat him or starve him, if only to appease Minister Cen's spirit in heaven."

Xi Xiang nodded, pulled out a hemp rope from his sleeve, stepped forward, and tied up Cen Chaoge's hands behind his back. Cen Chaoge wanted to shout again, but Shunzi casually grabbed a piece of mourning cloth, crumpled it up, and stuffed it into Cen Chaoge's mouth. He dragged him out of the hall to find a secure place.

Xi Xiang felt uneasy and stepped forward to explain intermittently, "Your Highness... It's not what you think. The Crown Prince at that time, he..."

"You don't need to say anything," Bairen said wearily, rubbing his forehead. "I have no heart to think about these things now... Please go quickly and bring the letter to His Highness. That alone would be a great service. Also... rest assured, I will keep an eye on Chaoge. Until this matter is resolved, I won't let him see anyone."

Seeing that Bairen could distinguish between priorities, Xi Xiang felt relieved. He said in a low voice, "In any case... Whether the Crown Prince truly cares for you, you know best. As for the past... Let's wait for the Crown Prince to explain it to you in detail later. Right now, we can't delay anything. This servant will take his leave first."

Bairen's heart was filled with sorrow. Explain in detail later? Hopefully... Hopefully, there would still be a chance to sit together with Qi Xiao and talk intimately in the future.

After seeing Xi Xiang off properly, Bairen summoned Dong Boru. When Cen Chaoge had left, Dong Boru had taken on the role of communicating with the secret strongholds outside on Bairen's behalf. He had been away from the prince's residence for over a year, and it was only recently that Bairen had been using the gambling house more that Dong Boru had found the time to return. Bairen looked at Dong Boru with a bitter smile, "Teacher, do you know everything now?"

Dong Boru nodded, "They have already told this subordinate. Your Highness... What are your plans?"

Bairen was silent for a while before asking in response, "My people... In total, how many do we have?"

Dong Boru's heart trembled. He paused for a moment before saying, "Less than five hundred."

Bairen nodded, "That's enough."

Dong Boru was extremely anxious, "What does Your Highness intend to do?"

Bairen took out the golden seal hidden in his sleeve and said in a low voice, "Fight our way back, take it back by force. Arrive ahead of the Emperor and quell the rebels first. Then... Lead our entire Lingnan clan to bow before the Emperor in allegiance. As long as the internal turmoil is resolved, Lingnan will still belong to Daxiang. The Emperor won't be able to take military action.

"Afterwards... Whether I successfully ascend the throne or am convicted and beheaded, at least... I will bear all the responsibility, and there will be no more bloodshed."

Dong Boru was greatly alarmed. He immediately knelt down to dissuade him, "Your Highness, you mustn't! Minister Cen's faction has already been defeated. Now the entire the Lingnan capital is in the hands of the Second Young Prince. It won't be that easy..."

Bairen looked at Dong Boru calmly, "Then what do you suggest, Teacher?"

Dong Boru was at a loss for words.

Bairen said slowly, "Wait for the Emperor to send troops? Wait for news of my mother, my younger aunt, all my relatives, as well as the nobles in the Lingnan capital, dying at the hands of the rebels? Or wait for the Emperor to quell the Lingnan rebellion, take back the Lingnan Prince's manor, and bestow upon me an empty title like Marquis of Cheng'en or Marquis of Jia'en?"

Bairen tightly grasped the golden seal in his palm and said coldly, "Teacher... My father is already dead. I can no longer be a carefree crown prince. The lives of countless people in Lingnan rest on my shoulders. I have to shoulder this responsibility."

"Besides... It's too late to say anything now," Bairen put the golden seal back into his bosom and said softly, "I have already sent scouts back to Lingnan. They will bring news of the situation in the imperial city, letting them understand that the Emperor's thirty thousand iron cavalry are ready to strike. If they don't side with me, they will only face death."

"Teacher, believe me, no one wants to die. There will always be clear-headed people. When the time comes, with inside help and outside support, I will have a chance of success."

Dong Boru was still worried and said anxiously, "What if it doesn't succeed?"

"Then I will die a martyr," Bairen said with a faint smile. "Teacher... Do I have any other choice?"

Dong Boru sighed deeply, "How could the Dongling clan produce such a beast like Wenyu!!"

In a side hall of the Qianqing Palace, Qi Xiao reclined on the couch, gently stroking the life token at his waist. Jiang Deqing carefully observed Qi Xiao's expression and said softly, "Your Highness... The officials have all gone to dine. Your Highness... Why don't you have something to eat as well?"

Qi Xiao didn't respond. After a while, he said, "Eunuch, if I had seized this position a day earlier, perhaps... none of this would have happened."

Jiang Deqing was shocked and alarmed. He hurriedly said, "Your Highness, watch your words! This... This is the palace!"

Qi Xiao closed his eyes and said nothing more.

He naturally knew this was inside the palace. He knew everything, and it was precisely because he knew too much that he had so many worries. Over the years, he had been steady and cautious, advancing step by step, believing he had never made a misstep. Qi Xiao almost felt that as long as his thoughts were meticulous enough and his plans comprehensive enough, there was nothing he couldn't accomplish.

But now Qi Xiao understood, now Qi Xiao felt deeply, that in the face of military power, everything else was just empty talk.

With a blade pressed against your neck, even if you had a heart full of strategies, could you avoid death?

In the face of absolute imperial power, everything else was powerless. And this imperial power should have been in his own hands.

Qi Xiao had been enduring ever since he could remember, enduring until this day. Qi Xiao knew he still had to endure.

Jiang Deqing knew that Qi Xiao's heart was now no different from a mountain of knives and a sea of fire. He persuaded in a bitter voice, "Your Highness, don't think too much. You have been good enough to the heir. If not for you, that Princess Roujia would still be in Lingnan now, together with the Queen, their life and death unknown. If not for Your Highness, the heir would have probably been schemed to death by the Feng family long ago. This... you haven't let him down in any way."

Outside, a young eunuch said in a low voice, "Your Highness... the Emperor has sent this servant to bring you food."

Qi Xiao turned his head to look at Jiang Deqing. Jiang Deqing understood in his heart and nodded, turning to go out. Outside, the young eunuch handed a food box to Jiang Deqing with both hands and left. Jiang Deqing returned to the room, put down the food box, and handed a letter to Qi Xiao, saying in a low voice, "The young eunuch just now is Xi Xiang's disciple, he can be trusted."

Qi Xiao shook open the letter and first saw a few lines of words on the back of the letter. The handwriting was Xi Xiang's. Qi Xiao's heart trembled. Cen Chaoge had returned, Bairen knew everything...

Without regard for these things, Qi Xiao turned the letter over and read the short lines three times back and forth.

Jiang Deqing was really anxious in his heart and couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, what exactly happened?"

Qi Xiao's eyes were crimson red as he gritted his teeth and said, "He told me that no matter what he does next, it has nothing to do with me, that I should stay out of it and focus on protecting myself, so that... we can meet again in the future..."

Jiang Deqing was stunned, "The heir... what is he going to do?!"

As they spoke, several young eunuchs ran in from outside. The leading one said hurriedly, "Crown Prince... the Emperor wants you to enter the palace immediately, something big has happened!!"

Qi Xiao's heart trembled as he stood up and said sternly, "What happened?!"

The young eunuch was already flustered, and being swept by Qi Xiao's gaze made him even more frightened. He stammered, "Lingnan, the Lingnan Prince's Manor... is on fire. I heard it was ignited by the spirit banner when burning joss paper. It's all... all on fire. This servant only heard the ministers inside saying something about sending people to strictly guard the city gates, but... but the day has already dawned, and the city gates were opened an hour ago..."

Qi Xiao's eyes almost seemed to be oozing blood. After a long while, he said, "I... understand."