"Holy crap, the young master is really something else! He's even made the Emperor bow down!"
The people looked at the newly appointed Prince of Xiliang with undisguised shock in their eyes. Such a young overlord of the north was about to change the world.
Some insiders found it extremely strange.
Logically speaking, although Lin Yi's achievements are impressive, they are by no means heaven-defying. Even the villainous Tu Ningkun was not made a vassal, so why was Lin Yi directly made a king?
This is very wrong.
Could it really be because of the Crown Prince's military strength that this is the reason?
Among the crowd, Zhang Ci and Hao Datong both looked completely bewildered. This was utterly illogical and made no sense. Ning Kun's achievements far surpassed Lin Yi's, so why was Lin Yi granted the title of king first?
"Prefect Zhang, have you noticed anything fishy? Something feels off." Hao Datong asked, somewhat suspiciously.
Zhang Ci nodded thoughtfully and said in a deep voice, "It is indeed a bit strange. The Emperor's fear of the Lin Clan father and son is almost open. This time, he actually made an exception and granted Lin Yi the title of prince. Perhaps it is because the large army under Lin Yi's command put pressure on the Emperor."
Previously, the Emperor preferred to upgrade Xiliang Commandery to Xiliang Province and appoint Lin Yi as its governor, precisely because he did not want Lin Yi to control military power. This shows how much the Emperor resisted Xiliang.
The Emperor never expected things to change so quickly. The entire Ningchuan Commandery was captured by the enemy, causing Lin Yi to rise to power overnight and become too powerful to control.
Perhaps that's the only possibility.
Hao Datong nodded, then frowned and said, "That makes some sense. Lin Yi Yi's 150,000 troops defeated Tuoba Yu and Tuoba Qingsong's army of over 100,000. No one can underestimate them!"
"Sir, what should we do if we leave now? Should we go see Lin Yi immediately?"
"Never mind!"
Zhang Ci shook his head, glanced at Tan Cheng with some disgust, and said in a deep voice, "Let's Tan Cheng leaves. That guy is a gossip; he loves to complain to the emperor and make his presence known. It's best not to let him see us."
Lin Yi was naturally unaware of their conversation.
In fact, he also felt there was something wrong, because this guy didn't cause any trouble and directly handed over the Prince of Xiliang to him, which seemed a bit too straightforward.
He hesitated for a moment, then accepted the imperial edict.
Why not take advantage of a benefit that's offered to you?
However, he thought he could test him, so he smiled and said, "Lord Tan, you must be tired from delivering the imperial decree. How about we go to the Prince's residence for a drink first?"
"Wait!"
Tan Cheng stopped him, then surprisingly produced another imperial edict, saying with a smile, " Prince of Xiliang, don't be in such a hurry. Here is another imperial edict concerning the appointment of the Prime Minister of Xiliang."
"The Prime Minister of Xiliang Liang?"
Upon hearing his words, Lin Yi suddenly realized why everyone had been so agreeable earlier; the problem lay here— Li Anlan had actually tried to reach in.
He smiled and said, "Lord Tan, who is this Prime Minister? Do I know him?"
"Haha, the young master knows this person too, and he's an old acquaintance of yours." Tan Cheng glanced at Lin Yi and said with a smug look on his face.
An old acquaintance?
Lin Yi was slightly taken aback. This "old acquaintance" was a problem. He rarely had contact with Great Ning, so where did this "old acquaintance" come from? This was clearly suspicious.
At that moment, someone suddenly appeared beside Tan Cheng.
Upon seeing this person, Lin Yi's pupils constricted, and he said strangely, " Ran Zijin, this guy really has healed his injuries. No wonder he impeached me in court earlier!"
I had almost beaten him into a vegetable before, but he still managed to be saved.
No wonder the people from Net said they were impeaching me; it turns out I've been cured and now I've even become their prime minister. That's interesting.
Li Anlan's move was a bit dirty; he'd thrown in someone who wouldn't betray him.
"Your Highness, how have you been?" Ran Zijin seeing Lin Yi.
Yoho!
Seeing his expression, Lin Yi immediately became interested. It seemed this guy wanted to have a match with him, so he came here specifically for this purpose.
However, little did this guy know that he was no longer the same person he used to be; he was now the powerful Prince of Xiliang, someone he could not afford to offend.
Seeing his confident expression, Lin Yi couldn't help but laugh, "So it's Patriarch Ran Clan! Didn't I hear you were injured by an assassin and were in grave danger? I didn't expect you to recover so quickly!"
Forehead!
Upon hearing this, even with his Ran Zijin couldn't help but twitch his face. Although he wished he could stab Lin Yi to death, he still had to smile and respond.
"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It is thanks to the imperial physicians that I was able to stand up again."
He sighed and gave a wry smile.
"It's good that you're alright!"
Lin Yi chuckled. "Since you've finally managed to stand up again, and you still dare to cause trouble, then you're just asking for it."
This isn't like before; when we say we'll kill you, we mean we'll kill you!
Tan Cheng the two engage in their verbal sparring, Tan Cheng smiled slightly. This was a way to prevent the Prime Minister and Lin Yi from getting completely involved; it was also a backup plan by the Emperor.
Inserting Ran Zijin Ningchuan Commandery is like planting a nail in Lin Yi's territory—a nail that will never betray him. This is exactly what the Emperor needs.
No need to worry about betrayal, and you can get news at any time—it's simply wonderful.
He took out the imperial edict and said in a deep voice, " Ran Zijin this edict. Your Ran Clan has rendered great service to Great Ning. Now you are hereby appointed as the Chancellor of Xiliang, to assist the Prince of Xiliang in governing Xiliang. There must be no mistakes!"
"Your subject obeys the decree!"
Ran Zijin glanced at Lin Yi and, seeing that the people behind him didn't like him, couldn't help but sigh.
In truth, he didn't want to come to this godforsaken place, but the emperor personally instructed him to come, so he had no choice but to come.
He accepted the imperial edict, then bowed respectfully to Lin Yi, saying, " Ran Zijin greets the Prince of Xiliang!"
"Haha, no need for formalities!" Lin Yi waved his hand, completely unconcerned.
He then had the rewards taken back before saying, "Your Majesty, you've had a long journey. Please rest at the Prince's residence; it'll be a welcome feast for you!"
Tan Cheng did not refuse, but he secretly sized up Lin Yi's men. Seeing that none of them were easy to deal with, his expression turned ugly.
These people are probably not simple; Lin Yi's wings have grown strong enough now.
"Hey, where's the White Horse General under the Prince's command? I haven't seen him here." Tan Cheng tentatively.
Lin Yi glanced at him and said with a wry smile, "Lord Tan, the White Horse Volunteers are men I borrowed, but they don't give me any face at all. They only care about money, and I can't control them!"