Chapter 608

"Zhang'er is cute, I'm also close to him, I didn't expect his temperament to be so big despite his small size, he actually directly slapped the aunt!" Baili Yan reacted, then immediately shouted angrily.

She first wants to confirm the matter of slapping the aunt.

The Great King rubbed Lao Qi's cheek, muttering to himself: "Lao Qi, did it hurt when you were pinched? Look at how red your face is, it's almost splitting open, but the aunt definitely didn't do it on purpose." Baili Zhang had tears hanging on his face as he leaned into his elder brother's embrace; this guy basically doesn't know what an aunt is.

Baili Yan, having grown up this way, has always been supreme in Ru'nan; no one has ever dared to greet her face, and now she is simply furious.

"Make Baili Zhang apologize to me! Your Majesty is no longer young; you must observe some propriety!"

Zhao Bao and Zhang Xu were utterly shocked, their pupils constricting—this person is teaching the Emperor propriety?

Great King: ……

After hearing her outrageous words, the Great King couldn't be bothered to pretend anymore.

"The Princess of Ru'nan made the Imperial Prince cry and still won't stop, and now she's berating Me? Today I've truly broadened my horizons—I've never heard of such an arrogant princess of a princely state! What is Ru'nan trying to do? Let me think…"

The Great King stood up, glanced around at Baili Yan, and boldly guessed: "Are you trying to force Me to grant the Princess death, so that the Prince of Ru'nan has a righteous pretext to march his troops north?"

Baili Yan's face changed at once; there is no one in the world who isn't afraid of death, and the Great King thought he was no exception, let alone this pampered Princess.

"You dare!"

"It seems you haven't found out what kind of person I am—don't overreach. What do I have to fear? Come, summon the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan. As for Baili Yan, strip her of her Princess title, demote her to commoner, and throw her into the Imperial Prison."

Almost as soon as the Great King finished speaking, the surrounding Black Eagle Guards lunged forward and seized Baili Yan. They were so fast that even Zhang Xu and Zhao Bao, who were attending nearby, didn't have time to react.

"Baili Jing, you dare!!! Ah! Let me go! Let go! I am the Princess of Ru'nan! Impudent!" Baili Yan shrieked hysterically.

The Great King spoke calmly: "Drag her out slowly, let the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan see how arrogant the princely vassals are." Don't think he doesn't know that the Prince of Guanghan, upon seeing the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan, complained that he was covertly stripping the fief, not putting the princely vassals in his eyes.

With Baili Yan's loud voice, no one in the Hall of Establishing Statutes had dared to howl like that for years; Baili Zhang was so frightened he didn't dare to sob, and Zhang Xu stared with his mouth agape.

Wei Shen, who was counting, felt most relieved and happiest, saying, "Tsk! I almost thought the one sitting in the Hall of Establishing Statutes was her father!"

Great King: ……

The route to the Imperial Prison was the same as the one the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan took from the former court, so everyone inevitably met; the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan was so shocked that several strands of his beard were pulled out.

"Baili Jing! Let me go quickly! … And you lowly servants, let go!"

Baili Yan continued to shout Baili Jing's name in a shrill voice; the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan took a moment to realize who Baili Jing was, revealing a look of astonishment similar to Baili Zhang's.

This is… crazy?!

This attire and headpiece—she's a member of the imperial clan!

He couldn't immediately recognize who she was, tried to step forward to ask a couple of questions, but the ones escorting her were the Black Eagle Cavalry, and aside from the Great King's entourage, no one paid any attention.

The Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan saw that she didn't even blink an eye, quickly dragged the woman away, leaving behind a trail of screams...

He hurriedly asked the little eunuch who had announced his arrival, "What… exactly happened?"

That little eunuch was Zhang Xu's apprentice, extremely clever; no matter how you asked, he didn't leak a word.

The Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan quickened his pace, all the while recalling who could be so bold as to shout the Emperor's name and even order the Emperor to release her. The Grand Princess Changchun? No, the Emperor's younger brother treats her well, having defied ministerial opposition to let her return to the palace. The daughter of the Grand Princess Chaoyang? The age could match, but he doesn't recall her looking like this! As he walked, he suddenly stopped, remembering that this morning the Emperor had mentioned the Princess of Ru'nan during court… Oh no!

It would have been better if it were the Grand Princess Changchun! Only a few days have passed since her peaceful days!

By the time he hurried all the way to the Hall of Quiet Contemplation, the Great King was still consoling the Seventh Imperial Prince.

"… Lao Qi, don't cry either, it's just that your cheek was pinched; your elder brother is still the Emperor, after all, and he's been scolded by others! This Emperor really isn't much of a big deal—the supreme under heaven is just a fart!"

"Your Majesty!" Zhao Bao hurriedly reminded the Great King not to speak foul language; a good child shouldn't say such things.

Great King: "I am not a good child; I am a poor little thing~"

The Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan, who had been preparing his words to persuade the Emperor to turn big matters into small and small matters into nothing: ……

"Long live the Emperor!"

The Great King glared, "I can't settle this. It's perfect that the Grand Minister of the Clan has arrived to make a decision for me! Baili Yan, the daughter of the Prince of Ru'nan, loudly rebuked me. Did you hear that in the former court? Is our Great Jin's rule that feudal princes are the most noble? How did I not notice that when I was a feudal prince?"

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. The Princess Consort of the Prince of Ru'nan has lost decorum in your presence."

"Wait, she is no longer a Princess Consort; I just demoted her to a commoner."

Grand Minister of the Clan: ……

He changed the subject, beginning to earnestly advise the Great King. The idea was that there are already several strong rebel kings in the south, so there's no reason to provoke the Prince of Ru'nan now.

Almost saying the gourd isn't under control, don't let the ladle rise again.

Being able to say this, the Great King appreciates it; this old man either just wants a peaceful life or means well for him.

"You're wrong, Grand Minister of the Clan; it's the Prince of Ru'nan who provoked me. The Prince of Ru'nan has taken an interest in the Establishing Chapters Palace, from yesterday's auction to today's performance—clearly he's seeking a pretext for rebellion."

The Grand Minister of the Clan thought for a long time, sighed deeply, and had nothing to say.

"I can afford to lose face, but the two hundred thousand cavalry of the Northern Border cannot! Let the Prince of Ru'nan immediately enter the capital to apologize!"

"... I will attend to it immediately."

These words quickly reached the former court; the old-timers marveled at how fast the Great King stirs up trouble—what a short time this has taken!

It's almost certain that the fief of Ru'nan can only be reduced by force. As for this Great King, he's not afraid; after all, when it comes to warfare, the Northern Border is professional.

However, the Prince of Ru'nan is inclined; he obviously wants to rebel, but he still needs to find an excuse, unwilling to openly rebel and give the world a handle.

The Great King's nimble mind clearly grasped this point. He cries that upholding the state and society is at least justified—the Guanglie Emperor killed his elder brother and seized his father's realm, so he too has a legitimate claim. The Prince of Ru'nan clearly harbors ambition and also wants fame.

The Great King also has something to say: "It's always been me, the Prince, pointing fingers from the moral high ground—when is it the Prince of Ru'nan's turn? Have Xie Tu rush to put this in the newspaper; the Prince of Ru'nan wants to rebel but is playing tricks, I despise him!... Well, the latter part doesn't need to be written."

Zhao Ba: ……

"Let Junior Official Xie himself consider how to write it?"

The Great King raised his chin and nodded slightly; warfare is his specialty, and writing articles is Xie Tu's specialty.

The Great King's cavalry detachment brought from the Northern Border is now stationed in the newly vacant Western Great Camp; Big Mouth Wei Shen, upon going to the camp, immediately spread the news, with the result that before morning court the next day, the Eastern Capital Duke had received a joint petition for battle from the mid-level officers of the Western Great Camp's Black Armor Cavalry.