Chapter 537: Borrowing a Knife to Kill

Xie Ling now needed to lean on a cane just to stand straight.

This was everything Prefect Liu had brought upon him!

The successive thunderbolts, the continuous despair, the constant mental breakdowns—they had kept him coughing up blood for days.

His essence, Qi, and spirit were all gone.

He felt as if he were about to die.

He no longer had a path to turn back; this time, he had not only lost nearly half the wealth of the Longyan Dynasty, leaving the group of wealthy men who followed him with nothing, but he had also squandered almost all the foundations of his and the Empress's faction.

This was the price of going all-in!

And...

Did they think he really wanted to take such a desperate risk?

Who didn't want to live?

However, if he didn't pull off one last stunt, he would truly have no chance left.

On one hand, the Crown Prince sat as steady as a mountain in Jinghua, and if Xie Ling returned, he would only be at the Prince's mercy. On the other hand, he could no longer afford to feed these fifty thousand death warriors... Yes, he truly could not afford them anymore.

Matters had already reached this point.

All-in.

He could only continue to go all-in!

He wanted Prefect Liu dead!

He wanted Xie Chan dead!

"Kill!"

"Kill, kill, kill!"

The fifty thousand death warriors shouted in unison.

The sound shook the mountains and wilderness.

The target.

West of Jinghua, Yang'an Pass!

This was the intelligence they had received: the path Liu Zheng must take on this trip to Jinghua.

Ten days later.

The party had already left the borders of Liangzhou and reached Hanzhong. With the Princess arriving, the Prince of Yong in Hanzhong naturally came out to welcome them, fawning all the way.

Seeing the Prince of Yong again, Liu Zheng naturally could not avoid exchanging pleasantries with him.

The main force would rest here for one night before continuing their journey.

At the banquet, the Prince of Yong sat right next to Prefect Liu, and when the wine had flowed freely and the atmosphere was warm, he chuckled and said, "This Mandarin has also prepared; tomorrow, I shall depart for Jinghua at the same time as Prefect Liu."

Liu Zheng was shaken, his heart deeply moved.

Only then did he realize that the Prince of Yong was waiting to travel with him because he knew Xie Ling would certainly cause trouble along the way... If Xie Ling did, Liu Zheng's three thousand soldiers might not be able to hold him off.

"My thanks to the Prince of Yong!"

Liu Zheng thanked him with emotion.

The Prince of Yong laughed, patted Liu Zheng on the shoulder, and said indifferently, "It is a pity, Prefect Liu, that you are not of the royal family."

Prefect Liu was shaken, his expression changing slightly: "Prince of Yong, please be careful with your words..."

"Hahahaha!"

Only then did the Prince of Yong stand up unsteadily, lean down, and whisper into Liu Zheng's ear: "Yang'an Pass is only a few hundred miles from Jinghua. Prefect Liu, take a guess: will the Crown Prince send troops to meet you?"

Hearing this, Liu Zheng's expression changed drastically.

Indeed.

As they drew closer to Jinghua, did the deceit and treachery become all the more apparent?

Jinghua.

Eastern Palace.

The Yellow Plum Opera was still playing.

Crown Prince Xie Fang ate pastries while tapping his thigh.

"Good, good, good!"

"Reward them! Give them a reward from this Palace!"

Lying flat.

What did it mean to lie flat?

He felt that he was the one truly lying flat now! While Xie Ling was running everywhere, soliciting influence and courting the wealthy, he had just stayed here in the Eastern Palace watching plays.

And then, when Xie Ling was beaten bloody by Liu Zheng, he was still here watching plays.

His most formidable rival was just gone like that?

How comfortable!

To have no faults is to have merit?

This Prefect Liu—befriending him was simply the greatest stroke of luck! Thinking back to how he used to frequently make things difficult for him, he felt a lingering fear for a moment.

"Where have they reached? Where has Prefect Liu reached? This time, I must get drunk with him!"

"Get drunk together!"

Thinking of this, he could hardly contain himself.

The group of advisors and Strategists nearby looked at each other upon hearing this. Many of them fell into a strange, deep contemplation.

"What is it?"

"Did you not hear the question I asked?"

Xie Fang said excitedly, "This time, the Prefect Liu has done me a great favor. Invite him, invite him properly!"

"This..."

It was still that white-haired Strategist, who at this moment stroked his beard and chuckled, "Your Highness, this subordinate believes that this matter should be considered carefully."

Xie Fang looked stunned: "Consider carefully? Consider what carefully?"

Should he and Prefect Liu not continue to deepen their friendship? If he had Prefect Liu as a strong reinforcement right now, would his succession to the throne not be secured?

The white-haired old man had a sinister look flash in his eyes and continued, "Your Highness, you must think of it this way... This time, Prefect Liu has brought the Longyang Princess to the capital. I hear that this Longyang Princess is quite infatuated with Prefect Liu. Looking at the current situation, it is only a matter of time before this Prefect Liu becomes the Imperial Son-in-law."

Xie Fang was a bit confused: "Wouldn't that be a marriage between relatives?"

A group of advisors all rolled their eyes.

Could this be considered a marriage between relatives?

The old man continued, "Your Highness... if Xie Ling had the slightest bit of competitiveness, then naturally one could have a marriage between relatives with Prefect Liu. But now, the Third Prince has already lost all his trump cards. Your Highness, think about it: after removing Xie Ling, who becomes your direct opponent?"

Only then did Xie Fang's expression change.

An opponent?

He had always thought that without Xie Ling, he could sit back and relax. But hearing this, it was not right... In this Longyan Dynasty, there has never been a change of imperial power that allowed one to truly rest easy. Without Xie Ling, other princes would naturally emerge. This is inevitable. Why? Because once Xie Ling is defeated, what will happen to the Scholar-official class that previously supported him? What about those merchants in the south?

They had already offended the Crown Prince's side severely in the previous struggle for the throne.

Could it be that if they surrendered to the Crown Prince, they would end up well?

Clearly.

They could not.

Every time an emperor takes the throne, the first thing they do is purge their political enemies.

Therefore, at this time, they must support another opponent for the Crown Prince.

Either the Fourth Prince, or the Seventh Prince, or perhaps even the Thirteenth Prince.

This cycle will continue until Xie Tianyao truly dies and a new emperor truly takes the throne; only then will all of this naturally come to an end.

Xie Fang felt a chill run down his spine: "You mean..."

The old man chuckled, "Your Highness, since others can support others, why can they not support the Longyang Princess? Your Highness, do not forget, our Longyan has had a Female Emperor before..."

Xie Fang's expression changed drastically: "This, this, this, is that possible? Impossible, Prefect Liu, he..."

Before he could finish his sentence, cold sweat was already streaming down his cheeks.

The Longyang Princess!

The powerful Liangzhou!

If these two aspects were combined, what kind of concept would that be?

Would it directly shake his own position?

Does that even need to be asked?

His body instantly became rigid, and for a moment, he felt the melon seeds in his hand were no longer tasty.

"Your meaning is..."

"This time, no matter what happens at Yang'an Pass, we should not go to save them?"

Xie Fang said, trembling.

Everyone nodded one after another.

Why should they go to save them?

They did not even know what would happen at Yang'an Pass.

If Xie Ling could really kill Prefect Liu and Xie Chan, would that not be something they would be happy to see?

If he did not succeed.

Xie Ling would surely die!

And as for Prefect Liu's side, they could come to welcome him later, and they would not offend him.

The best of both worlds!

Borrowing a knife to kill!