Shen Xihe was worried about Xiao Huayong. Standing beneath the vast sky of the grasslands, gazing at the boundless horizon, her mind remained clear. Though Xiao Huayong had feigned illness immediately upon arriving in Tingzhou—a move unlikely to raise suspicion among others—how could Xiao Changtai, who had seen his true face, not grow suspicious?
Knowing full well that Xiao Changtai would become suspicious, he had still proceeded this way. It was clearly a deliberate ploy to make Xiao Changtai suspect that Xiao Juesong was none other than Xiao Huayong in disguise, thereby provoking Xiao Changtai to exhaust all efforts in attempting to assassinate him. His intention was to eradicate Xiao Changtai completely, leaving him no chance to escape.
He surely understood that someone as cunning as Xiao Changtai would never act without a contingency plan. The best fallback would be to seek out Your Majesty.
The only uncertainty was how Xiao Changtai would swiftly relay the message to Your Majesty. Upon receiving the news, though Your Majesty would be too far away to intervene directly, he would undoubtedly expose all his arrangements in the northwest, sparing no effort to eliminate Xiao Juesong at any cost.
He was single-handedly uprooting every embedded threat in the northwest, once and for all.
Yet, despite his exceptional abilities, martial prowess, and the loyalty of extraordinary followers, Xiao Changtai was inherently treacherous. The extent of his hidden strength remained unknown, and now he had drawn Your Majesty’s forces into the fray…
Shen Xihe simply could not set her mind at ease. Amid her anxieties, Haidongqing, having heard her repeated blows on the bone whistle, swooped down from afar. The moment she caught sight of its silhouette, Shen Xihe mounted her horse and turned to instruct Zhenzhu, “Take Ye Shi back and ensure her safety.”
Before her words fully faded, she cracked her whip and shot forward like an arrow released from its bow. Moyu and Mo Yuan flanked her—Mo Yuan leading the way, following Haidongqing, while Moyu trailed behind with her guards.
Simultaneously, at the Protectorate Headquarters in Tingzhou, Pei Zhan received Your Majesty’s secret decree: a location outside Tingzhou, ordering him to lead troops to intercept and kill Xiao Juesong.
Pei Zhan promptly went to the sickroom where the Crown Prince lay ill. Addressing Tianyuan, who stood guard at the door, he said, “Commandant Cao, I have received an imperial decree and must leave the headquarters. As for His Highness the Crown Prince here…”
“Since you bear an imperial decree, Minister Pei, do not delay. This is the Tingzhou Protectorate Headquarters. With His Highness here, you need not worry,” Tianyuan quickly reassured.
Everything was unfolding according to the Crown Prince’s plan. Upon receiving Xiao Changtai’s secret report, Your Majesty would inevitably dispatch someone to deal with Xiao Juesong. With no other leader present, Pei Zhan was the ideal commander.
“I wish to see His Highness the Crown Prince,” Pei Zhan requested.
“Please wait a moment, Minister Pei,” Tianyuan replied courteously before turning to seek permission inside. Moments later, he emerged and ushered Pei Zhan in. Entering the room, Pei Zhan could vaguely discern the Crown Prince through a layer of gauze curtains, struggling to sit up while draped in his robes.
In Pei Zhan’s presence, Tianyuan lifted the gauze curtain. Through the gap, before the curtain fell back into place, Pei Zhan caught a glimpse of the Crown Prince’s face as he turned. Aside from a pallid complexion and weary, dim eyes, it was unmistakably him. Pei Zhan then performed a formal salute and recounted the situation from beginning to end, though he omitted the specifics of the imperial decree.
“How can we neglect His Majesty’s command?” the Crown Prince’s voice was laced with exhaustion and weakness. “Minister Pei, you may go. I shall remain here awaiting your return. As for the safety of Tingzhou, General Pei need not worry. I have heard that the heir has already led troops to defend against the enemy outside the city.”
The Turks had breached the city gates but were blocked by the army at the entrance. Geng Liangcheng had let the wolf in through the back door, while Shen Yungan was already commanding forces in battle at the city gates. Pei Zhan had naturally received these reports, but his duty to protect Xiao Huayong’s safety prevented him from going to see for himself.They had originally followed Shen Yungan's trail to Tingzhou, so his appearance here raised no suspicions. As for the internal unrest elsewhere and Shen Yueshan's emergence, through deliberate control by Shen Yueshan and Xiao Huayong, news had temporarily not reached Tingzhou.
The questions of why Shen Yungan appeared here and why he had mysteriously disappeared that day were not matters to be pursued at this moment.
"Your Highness, please rest well. I take my leave." Pei Zhan, having detected nothing suspicious, bowed and withdrew.
Tianyuan escorted Pei Zhan outside and stood at the doorway, watching his figure grow smaller and smaller until it shrank into a blur of light under the intense sun. He let out an almost imperceptible sigh.
The Emperor had sent Pei Zhan to pit Jing Wang against the Crown Prince, to see who would prevail—whether it was to temper Jing Wang with the Crown Prince or temper the Crown Prince with Jing Wang, or perhaps some other scheme, no one knew. The Crown Prince had turned the situation to his advantage, instead driving a wedge between Jing Wang and the Emperor. This time, Pei Zhan was dispatched under imperial orders to capture Xiao Juesong, a mission from which he was destined not to return. The Crown Prince's move achieved multiple goals: driving a rift between Jing Wang and the Emperor, eliminating Xiao Changtai, and clearing out all the Emperor's remaining agents in the northwest. It was a perilous gambit, and Tianyuan felt some concern, unsure whether the Crown Prince could handle it.
Yet he himself could not leave. He had to remain here, steadfast, declaring to everyone that the Crown Prince had been here all along.
After leaving the Protectorate Headquarters, Pei Zhan quickly rendezvoused with the men the Emperor had assigned to him. These were the spies and covert forces the Emperor had embedded over the years—numbering in the hundreds, and not a single one was mediocre.
With these men, Pei Zhan swiftly headed toward the location provided by the Youning Emperor.
This location had naturally been leaked by Xiao Changtai. He had used his covert network in the capital to deliver the message directly to the Emperor. When the Youning Emperor received it, he hesitated greatly, fearing it was a trick by Xiao Juesong. Xiao Changtai dared not expose himself, and his words would not be trusted by the Emperor, so he had to use an inconspicuous messenger to reach the Emperor directly. But an inconspicuous messenger lacked credibility, which naturally made the Youning Emperor doubtful.
However, Xiao Huayong gave him a hand. At this point, Xiao Changqing made another appearance, still using Rong Ce as a pretext, reporting to the Emperor that he had discovered traces of Xiao Juesong in the northwest.
The Youning Emperor was well aware of Xiao Changqing's capabilities. If Xiao Changqing did not have some degree of certainty, he would never personally report it. Moreover, he used Rong Ce's name. Although the Emperor knew that, due to the Gu family affair, Xiao Changqing harbored resentment toward him as his imperial father and might secretly scheme against him, Xiao Changqing would never implicate the Rong clan, even if he feared no consequences for himself. Thus, Xiao Changqing had indeed discovered Xiao Juesong in the northwest, in Tingzhou—this was no false report. Xiao Changqing did not provide a specific location, only his own deductions.
This secret report, however, contained a precise location. The Youning Emperor had also received news of Xiao Changtai's presence in the Turkic camp and surmised that it was most likely Xiao Changtai who had sent the secret report. It seemed that Xiao Juesong had sought out Xiao Changtai, and the two had either failed to reach an agreement or had conflicting interests. Xiao Changtai wanted to fish in troubled waters, so he had to stir the waters into chaos.Well aware of this, the Youning Emperor had no choice but to comply with Xiao Changtai's wishes, for Xiao Juesong was a thorn in his side. As long as Xiao Juesong lived, there was a high likelihood that the secret of how the emperor had killed his own brother to seize the throne would be exposed—something he could not tolerate.
Without delay, he issued orders to Pei Zhan. Xiao Changtai was equally certain that the Youning Emperor would not let this opportunity slip away.
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