Chapter 619

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“Dong dong” of the pendulum clock woke Xiao Ming from his dream.

He got up and checked the time. It was seven in the morning. Now with the pendulum clock, Qingzhou’s way of recording time had changed. Compared to the previous rough recordings, the pendulum clock now provided data accurate to the second.

Yesterday, he was excited for a long time about Fei Yuer’s pregnancy, and they chatted until midnight before finally falling asleep.

“Your Highness has been working tirelessly for days. Why don’t you sleep a little longer?” Fei Yuer lay in bed, her voice a little languid. After becoming pregnant, Fei Yuer had become entirely languid. Xiao Ming was not surprised by this; it was a characteristic of pregnancy. After all, coming from modern times, his technology crystal also had information on this.

In his previous life, Xiao Ming was alone and without support. Now, having come to this world and married with a child, he gradually forgot the past, feeling more and more integrated into this world. Especially at the moment he learned he was going to be a father, a sense of responsibility suddenly surged within him. For his family, he had to be even more careful.

After all, the result of defeat in royal power was only one: being eradicated by other vassal princes.

“You sleep. I still have to deal with the envoys from Prince Zhao, Prince Yan, and Prince Liang,” Xiao Ming said with a faint smile.

Fei Yuer seemed a bit self-reproachful. She said, “It’s really not the right time for me to be pregnant, precisely during this period of frequent wars. Isn’t this just causing trouble for Your Highness?”

Xiao Ming got out of bed and put on his clothes. He said, “Princess Consort, what you said is wrong. These government affairs are my concern. You just need to rest and give birth with peace of mind. I will not let you encounter any danger.”

Fei Yuer nodded. Perhaps she was too sleepy. She fell asleep again while Xiao Ming was still trying to speak.

Shaking his head, he dressed neatly and left the bedchamber. After a simple breakfast of porridge and five steamed buns, he headed to the government office.

Upon arriving at the government office, the pendulum clock showed eight o’clock. At this time, the officials in the government office were all handling their respective affairs.

Pang Yukun saw Xiao Ming and said, “Your Highness, yesterday, I dismissed the three. I did not tell them that Your Highness had returned, but from their expressions, they seemed to have known of Your Highness’s return. Today, I’m afraid we can’t continue to deceive them.”

“So, today, I am prepared to personally come out and talk with them, and at the same time, probe their intentions,” Xiao Ming said. For him, history had a high degree of similarity. Currently, whether it was the six states attacking Qin, their defeat stemmed from their disunity. Each state had its own agenda, and as the saying goes, “many people mean chaos.”

This time, Prince Yan, Prince Liang, and Prince Zhao must also have different agendas. If they could be defeated one by one, that would be the most perfect outcome. However, he also understood that there was not much room for maneuver between him and the vassal princes of different surnames.

As soon as the two had finished speaking, an attendant entered the government office to announce that Wang Xi and the other two were waiting outside.

Xiao Ming and Pang Yukun exchanged glances, and together they left the government office.

“Your Highness.”

Seeing Xiao Ming, the three bowed simultaneously.

Cui Zhang then squinted at Pang Yukun and said displeasedly, “Chief Grand Secretary Pang, didn’t you say His Highness was not in Qingzhou? How do you explain yourself now?”

“Yes, indeed. If we hadn’t met you by chance, who knows when we would have been able to meet His Highness,” Zheng Hao also said.

Wang Xi glanced at the two and said nothing. Having served in Empress Zhao’s court for many years, he was very aware of the concept of propriety.

Their words seemed directed at Pang Yukun, but in fact, they were expressing dissatisfaction with Xiao Ming. Xiao Ming naturally heard it. He feigned ignorance and said, “The two envoys have misunderstood. I entered the city without informing Chief Grand Secretary Pang, so how could he have known? However, what brings the three of you to Qingzhou?”

As he spoke, Xiao Ming invited the three into the government office. At this time, Zhan Xingchang also arrived. In the room where the truce agreement was once signed, the six men once again sat together.

“Your Highness, this is the truce agreement signed back then. Does Your Highness still remember it?” Cui Zhang took out the truce agreement.

At this time, Wang Xi and Zheng Hao also took out their copies of the agreement and placed them on the table.

Xiao Ming did not look at the truce agreement but said, “I naturally remember this matter. However, what concern is this of Prince Zhao, Prince Yan, or Prince Liang? Prince Wei committed treason. I am merely cleaning up the imperial family’s scoundrels. This is my family affair.”

Cui Zhang and the other two were instantly speechless, not knowing how to refute. Wang Xi was the first to react. He said, “Your Highness, it’s not that we are meddlesome. Prince Wei himself dispatched envoys to invite us to discuss this matter. Your Highness broke the agreement first. How can you now turn the tables?”

“Hmph! You coerced me by threatening to send troops, forcing me to sign this truce agreement. You were the ones who took advantage of your power first. You criticize me for attacking Prince Wei, but how do you explain Prince Zhao’s attack on Shu, Prince Yan’s seizure of my imperial Yingzhou and Songzhou, and Prince Liang’s seizure of my imperial Jinzhou and Suzhou?” Xiao Ming retorted.

If he had been passive in the past, now Xiao Ming had enough capability to respond proactively. Therefore, he had no intention of continuing to negotiate with them. Now, everyone understood the situation of the Great Yu Empire.

Cui Zhang and Zheng Hao exchanged glances, their eyes flickering. After the chaos in Chang’an, the two families separately sent troops to occupy several prefectures and counties that once belonged to the imperial family. Together with Prince Zhao, the three divided all the former imperial land in the north.

Last time, Xiao Ming didn’t mention it, and they thought Xiao Ming tacitly accepted this fact. They didn’t expect Xiao Ming to suddenly bring it up now.

“Hmph, these lands belonged to no one, how could we not seize them!” Cui Zhang said with a rogue-like attitude. On this matter, he was at a loss for words, because if they still acknowledged the imperial family, their actions would be considered rebellion.

Zheng Hao echoed, “That’s right. The late emperor is dead. The Thirteenth Prince is merely Prince Zhao’s puppet. Without the late emperor’s last will, we will not acknowledge an infant as emperor. Because of this, our purpose in occupying these cities is also to temporarily preserve these places for the imperial family, lest they fall into foreign hands.”

Wang Xi was furious upon hearing this. These two were practically openly calling Prince Zhao a rebel. He said, “The Crown Prince assassinated the emperor. Prince Zhao’s entry into Chang’an was to support the imperial family. The Thirteenth Prince is also Empress Zhao’s legitimate son. If the throne is not his, whose else could it be? His Highness Prince Qi is right; you two families are the truly ambitious ones.”

Xiao Ming was startled. He had merely casually instigated them, and the three immediately began to quarrel. He instantly understood that the underlying conflicts among these three families were not small.

At that time, even if the three families sent troops together, it would probably be a scene where one watched the other go to its death. Thinking of this, he felt more at ease. However, despite the conflicts, he believed that the three families could still form an allied army. After all, the common interest of the vassal princes of different surnames was to eliminate the imperial family.

In this way, they would no longer have any restraints and could become emperors themselves. However, Xiao Ming would not allow them to form an allied army so easily. The Great Yu Empire was not the only one among them that understood schemes and tricks.