Chapter 97
Upon hearing this, Xiao Minghuang fell silent, lost in thought for a moment.
The King Wu'an was right. He had cultivated his power in the officialdom for many years and was deeply entrenched in his influence. Even if she could defeat the Second Prince and seize the throne, she would be powerless in the face of the stagnant political situation.
She was indeed powerful, but she couldn't possibly kill all the ministers she had recruited; otherwise, no one would work for her.
If the King Wu'an truly and sincerely pledges allegiance to her, then her actual power will instantly increase several times over!
Xiao Ming[&*
"Then why should I believe you?"
"That's also my concern!"
King Wu'an said in a deep voice:
"I have very little contact with the princess and do not know her well, so there will inevitably be a lack of trust when we cooperate. If things go wrong, it will be a bad thing for both of us!"
Xiao Minghuang nodded slightly in agreement.
At this moment, as if suddenly remembering something, she looked at King Wu'an and asked:
"Your Highness has specially invited Miss Xiu'er out for a meeting. May I ask what brings you here?"
Upon hearing this, the King Wu'an smiled and said:
"The princess must have guessed it as well."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Minghuang remained noncommittal. She had indeed sensed the King Wu'an's intentions, but she was not yet clear on what they were, so she did not elaborate.
"Oh?"
The King Wu'an said:
"Our cooperation requires a mediator to act as a bridge between us, to convey information and facilitate communication. This person must be fully trusted by both parties; otherwise, cooperation will be difficult to establish."
Xiao Minghuang said calmly:
"So, Your Highness wants Miss Xiu'er to act as the middleman?"
King Wu'an laughed and said:
"Good!"
119. Break ties, mortgage; I trust you to handle things.
"From today onwards, Xiu'er will live in the Princess Mansion. If there is anything, the princess can consult with Xiu'er."
King Wu'an laughed.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Minghuang glanced at Xu Xiuer, who was sitting obediently to the side, and slowly said:
"Xiu'er Xiuer is the Prince's only granddaughter, and countless eyes are on her. To let her move into my residence like this, does the Prince intend to openly break with the Second Prince?"
King Wu'an nodded and said:
"The princess is exceptionally intelligent, and what she says is true. The grand competition will begin soon, and it is time to confront the Second Prince. There is no need for me to continue to feign compliance with him."
As they were talking.
King Wu'an knelt down and bowed with utmost respect:
"Previously, without proper investigation, I mistakenly believed the Second Prince's words and sent thugs to assassinate Your Highness. I deserve to die a thousand deaths. I beg Your Highness's forgiveness!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Xiuer was startled. She never imagined that her grandfather had actually sent someone to assassinate Princess Ziwei!
She immediately knelt down, not daring to utter a sound.
Xiao Minghuang looked calmly at King Wu'an. She already knew the whole story of the assassination attempt in Beiyang City a few months ago.
From that time on, King Wu'an harbored the idea of putting his eggs in two baskets.
The King Wu'an, to put it nicely, is someone who is pragmatic and knows when to advance and retreat.
To put it bluntly, they're like a weather vane, swaying from side to side with the wind.
Xiao Minghuang couldn't possibly trust him; she was just trying to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Once she takes over power, she will definitely start to reduce the power of King Wu'an, otherwise she won't feel at ease.
If King Wu'an is sensible at that time, then letting him retire to his hometown wouldn't be out of the question; if he is not, then she shouldn't blame her for being ruthless.
While pondering, Xiao Minghuang spoke calmly:
"Your Highness's actions that time were indeed heinous, but considering that Your Highness was misled by a villain, this will not be allowed to happen again!"
King Wu'an breathed a sigh of relief, stood up, took out a storage bag from his pocket, and pushed it in front of Xiao Minghuang.
"Your Highness, this is a gift from your humble servant to soothe your nerves and apologize for your loss. Please accept it!"
Seeing the King Wu'an's uneasy expression, Xiao Minghuang did not refuse and accepted it directly.
If she doesn't accept these gifts, King Wu'an won't feel at ease, and might even cause trouble out of nowhere.
After accepting the gift, Xiao Minghuang's expression softened, and the King Wu'an finally felt relieved.
"This princess knows that Your Highness cherishes the fate of the Great Xia Dynasty and its people, and that you will faithfully assist His Majesty from now on. You must not repeat this mistake!"
"Your subject obeys!"
The King Wu'an became even more respectful, his imposing figure standing before Xiao Minghuang like a naughty child being disciplined.
After giving King Wu'an a warning, Xiao Minghuang prepared to leave.
"It is getting late, so I, the princess, will not allow Your Highness to rest any longer. I will take my leave now."
Upon hearing this, King Wu'an quickly pulled Xu Xiuer along and pushed her to stand in front of Xiao Minghuang.
"From now on, I entrust Xiu'er to Your Highness. I earnestly hope that Your Highness will treat her well! She is my only granddaughter!"
Seeing Xu Xiuer standing there timidly, looking like a timid young wife.
Xiao Minghuang sighed softly. She knew that in order to protect himself, King Wu'an had essentially sold the young girl to her.
They said she was there as a liaison between the two parties, but in reality, how could they possibly go through a clueless young girl when there were truly important matters at hand?
In reality, they simply sent Xu Xiuer to her as a hostage to put their minds at ease.
Xiao Minghuang smiled gently and said:
"Your Highness, rest assured, I will naturally treat her well."
Upon hearing this, King Wu'an breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Xu Xiuer, and quickly said:
"Have you not thanked Her Princess Your Highness yet!"
Xu Xiuer quickly bowed and said:
"Thank you, Your Princess Your Highness!"
Xiao Minghuang nodded and turned to walk out the door.
Seeing this, Xu Xiuer quickly followed.
As Xiao Minghuang stepped out of the courtyard, she saw two dark figures standing under the corridor. Upon closer inspection, she realized they were the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince.
Sensing her presence, the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince immediately stepped forward.
"Princess!"
"Princess!"
The two spoke in unison.
A look of surprise appeared on Xiao Minghuang's face. He had a feeling that these two people seemed a little worried about her.
Although the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince were nominally her siblings, they hadn't seen each other for many years and had no sibling affection for each other whatsoever.
From the moment they met until now, they have never addressed each other as brother and sister, and are not much different from ordinary strangers.
"Thank you for waiting here. What can I do for you?"
She still remembered that the Sixth Prince lost to her a Xuan-rank magic weapon and a Xuan-rank sword technique.
As expected.
With a wave of his hand, the Sixth Prince sent a storage bag flying out and hovering in front of Xiao Minghuang.
"My skills are inferior, and I have lost to the princess. Here are a Xuan-rank magic weapon and a sword technique; please accept them, princess."
Xiao Minghuang accepted the storage bag without hesitation, knowing that the Sixth Prince was a swordsman.
If she doesn't accept these things, it would be disrespectful to the Sixth Prince.
The Fifth Prince spoke:
"Princess, the Sixth Prince and I have discussed it, and we wish to stay in the capital."
"Oh."
Xiao Minghuang responded indifferently. What did it matter to her if these two stayed in the capital?
Seeing that Xiao Minghuang did not react, the Fifth Prince continued:
"We have no connections in the capital and would like to ask the princess to provide us with a place to stay. In return, we can become the princess's guards for three years!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Minghuang smiled faintly. Did she, the dignified Princess Ziwei, really need two mere youths at the Spring Gushing Realm as her guards?
However, the Fifth Prince and Sixth Prince were princes after all, and they could not possibly say such things aloud.
"Both of you are princes, how could you condescend to serve as my guards? This matter need not be mentioned again."
Having said that, Xiao Minghuang, fearing that the two might have some strange ideas, turned and left immediately without lingering.
Upon seeing him leave, Xu Xiuer immediately followed.
Watching Xiao Minghuang's hurried departure, the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince exchanged bewildered glances.
"I told you, the princess definitely wouldn't agree to that."
The Fifth Prince complained.
"I didn't expect this either. Saying that to my junior sister back in the sect was quite effective..."
Upon hearing this, the Fifth Prince scoffed:
"Who is this princess? Do you think your junior sister is worthy of being compared to her?"
The Sixth Prince did not refute this. He also felt that even if all ten junior sisters were tied together, they would not be as valuable as a single hair of Princess Ziwei.
"Forget it, the competition is approaching anyway, we'll definitely see each other again. Then we won't hide it anymore, we'll just say we want to become the princess's followers."
"Um."
They had already reached a consensus while Xiao Minghuang was in the living room.
Princess Ziwei's talent is unparalleled in the Southern Border. If they want to achieve greater growth and not be limited to just the Southern Border Territory, choosing to follow her is the best option.
The Fifth Prince turned and glanced in the direction of the Training Ground, then looked back and said:
"We'll part ways here. On the day of the grand competition, you must strive to join the princess's ranks. As for you... are you alright?"
The Fifth Prince was clearly referring to the Spirit Sword Sect.
The Sixth Prince is an inner disciple of the Spirit Sword Sect. If he leaves the sect quietly and stays in Great Xia without returning, most of the powerful members of the Spirit Sword Sect will harbor resentment, and it is possible that other troubles may arise.
The Sixth Prince frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and then said:
"I'll write a letter to the sect myself, explaining the whole story. That should be enough."
He remembered the sect's rules: if an inner disciple wanted to leave the sect, they only needed the consent of any inner elder.
He only needed to write a letter to Elder Xuanjian, explaining what had happened, and given how much Elder Xuanjian valued him, there was no reason for him to disagree.
Upon hearing this, the Fifth Prince felt that things might not go so smoothly, but he and the Sixth Prince were not close, so he found it difficult to offer words of advice.
"... I hope you won't cause trouble for the princess."
The Sixth Prince frowned and said:
Do I need you to remind me?
Upon hearing this, the Fifth Prince gave the Sixth Prince a deep look, said nothing more, and turned to leave.
After parting ways with the Fifth Prince, the Sixth Prince left the Wu'an King's Residence and headed straight for the inn where he was staying in the capital.
He Feng Yi traveled together down the mountain this time.