Chapter 519

In the Hall of Nurturing the Heart, an instant dead silence fell, and everyone cautiously looked toward Prince Rui Xiao Yin.

Crown Prince, this first cut of his ascent truly hurts!

One must know that back then Xiao Yin pretended to be mad and foolish before Emperor Longqing, and many senior officers in the army personally intervened to protect him, allowing Xiao Yin to secure his position within the Imperial Guard.

From then on the Imperial Guard became Xiao Yin's private troops, but the Crown Prince, upon just taking the throne, demanded that Xiao Yin hand over the Imperial Guard; this was tantamount to placing a knife directly at Xiao Yin's throat.

Xiao Yin's brows slightly furrowed as he slowly lifted his eyes, coldly staring at Xiao Ting before him.

Xiao Ting's expression remained unchanged, and with a faint smile he said to Xiao Yin, "I have a manor in the outskirts with pleasant scenery, perfect for the Imperial Uncle's convalescence."

What does the Imperial Uncle think?

Xiao Yin's lips curled into a faint, mocking smile as he said lightly, "Fine! Your Highness is very filial; I, the Prince, am deeply gratified."

As soon as Xiao Yin finished speaking, the people in the Hall of Nurturing the Heart all changed expression at once, looking at Xiao Yin in disbelief.

Even Xiao Ting, who had proposed stripping Xiao Yin of his military authority, did not expect Prince Rui Xiao Yin to agree so readily.

Consequently, the move he intended to use next was forcibly suppressed, and his expression twitched slightly at that moment.

After speaking, Xiao Yin seemed to want to verify his words, so he took the iron badge at his waist that commanded the Imperial Guard and handed it to the official Wang Gong.

"Here, this is the badge; please, Crown Prince, keep it safe. If it gets lost, it has nothing to do with me."

Wang Gong, trembling, carried the badge and presented it before the Regent Prince Xiao Ting.

"Crown Prince!"

Xiao Ting took the badge from Wang Gong's hands, his expression showing some surprise.

It was originally pressure on Xiao Yin, yet he did not expect Xiao Yin to hand over the command so willingly.

He flipped the badge over and over, confirming it was genuine, not forged.

Moreover, resigning from the Imperial Guard leadership in front of so many people made the matter settled, even if the badge hadn't been handed over.

Xiao Ting, clutching the badge, smiled and said, "The Imperial Uncle is straightforward; the manor in the outskirts has already been renovated for him, and he can move in tomorrow."

As soon as Xiao Ting uttered those words, a cold gasp rose around them, and even those from the Lin and Li families who supported the Crown Prince furrowed their brows slightly.

They understood that Crown Prince Xiao Ting had been heavily suppressed by Uncle Nine lately; after finally getting a chance to vent his frustration and attempt a comeback, this move seemed overly bold.

Lin Jingyuan's brows twisted fiercely, and he turned his face slightly to look at the scholar Li Hechen standing on the other side.

Li Hechen also wore an uneasy expression, unsure whether the Crown Prince had been suppressed for too long or what was happening.

Suddenly his mind went blank; how could these policies be so overwhelming and completely different from what they discussed together last night?

Last night they discussed with the Crown Prince how to weaken Xiao Yin's influence in the army, prevent regional military fiefdoms, and reclaim authority into the Crown Prince's hands.

They only need to wait until a hundred years after the Emperor, when the Crown Prince ascends the throne, and then the realm will be worry‑free.

Yet no matter how urgent, this is not a method that can be rushed like that.

Perhaps the Crown Prince can no longer endure and wishes to cut through the tangled mess swiftly.

Fine, if today we can trim some of Xiao Yin's military authority, that would already be a great victory, yet at this moment the Crown Prince actually intends to

directly put forward a second proposal: to imprison Prince Rui Xiao Yin in the manor out in the outskirts?

Yes, this is clearly imprisonment, and they don't even want Xiao Yin to stay in Shang Jing for a day, forcing him to move into the manor the next day—this is not a joke.

If Xiao Yin is driven to desperation, he can do anything.

Xiao Ting lifted his head and stared intently at Xiao Yin before him, showing no fear, and slowly raised his eyes to look at his own list of students.

Between the two, lightning flashed and thunder roared, with countless clashes; to onlookers it seemed merely a transfer of military authority, but to Xiao Ting it was a vindictive battle to clear past humiliation.

He thought of Gu Jiu Ling, who had always pursued him and never forgotten him, yet now was bearing children for Xiao Yin and even continued to scheme for Prince Rui's manor.

So what? Things hidden in the shadows can never be presented on the table.

Even if Gu Jiu Ling stakes all her wealth and life on the weakening, it cannot rescue his declining situation.

Xiao Ting now harbored a ruthless resolve; he wanted that woman to regret, to regret having ignored him in the past.

Uncle Nine, do you have any opinions?

Xiao Yin chuckled lightly, "It's meaningless."

"Tonight the old Prince can leave with the furniture."

I said this to you, and Xiao Ting was caught off guard by Xiao Yin.

Xiao Ting suddenly felt a slight panic in his heart, but couldn't pinpoint what he was anxious about.

Now none of the princes even have a single capable fighter, which has already made Xiao Zheng the Regent, and his next move will make things even easier.

In this situation, what else can Xiao Yin do? Does he intend to become a chaotic rogue?

Although Xiao Yin has borrowed much strength over the past six months, bolstering his power, it wasn't just because of a single sentence that he now had to relinquish the Imperial Guard's position?

Fortunately now, without hesitation, they strike while his wings are still unformed, to crush him completely.

Yet Xiao Ting harbors a tiny secret deep within his heart that he has never disclosed to anyone.

Imprisoning Xiao Yin in the manor means Gu Jiu Ling would also have to follow.

When the time comes and he claims all the realm's authority for himself, he'll be curious to see who this time the group will write about.

Though he cannot win Gu Jiu Ling's heart, he still intends to lock Gu Jiu Ling up again.

He originally thought Xiao Yin would resist, but the usually hot‑tempered Prince now behaved as meek as a rabbit.

No matter what unreasonable demands Xiao Ting made, Xiao Yin complied with each one.

Xiao Ting's brows furrowed sharply, an inexplicable anger rising in his heart; he wanted to see exactly where Xiao Yin's bottom line lay. Stripping his military authority and sending his child to the outskirts—he could still tolerate all that.

Xiao Ting gave a cold laugh and said, "By the way, when the Imperial Uncle goes to the outskirts, does he need to bring Imperial Aunt along?"

Hiss!

A gasp sounded, and the Crown Prince inexplicably mentioned Gu Jiu Ling; did he not know that Gu Jiu Ling is Xiao Yin's bottom line?

Xiao Ting gave a cold smile at him, about to continue speaking, when suddenly Lin Jingyuan stepped forward and bowed to Xiao Ting, saying, "Your Highness, I have a matter to report."

Lin Jingyuan's words temporarily interrupted Xiao Ting's speech; it seemed somewhat impolite, but anyone with eyes could see it was saving Xiao Ting's life.

At this moment, everyone could sense the faintly spreading killing intent emanating from War God Xiao Yin's body.

Lin Jingyuan shivered and said: "Your Highness! Long West has suffered a flood; tens of thousands of disaster victims—how to relieve them? Please, Your Highness, decide."