The eldest prince, Wang Shuo, clasped his hands in his fists, bowed deeply to Prince Xuan, and said: "Uncle Third Prince, I have to thank you for rushing back from the border this time. Shuo'er is very grateful..."
Before he finished speaking, Prince Xuan waved his hand, and a majestic spiritual power lifted him up, and hurriedly said: "Shuo'er, you don't need to be so generous. I know the importance of this matter, and I have to come back even if I am far away. .”
Prince Xuan felt like a mirror in his heart. Although he was fully supporting him, he could not be trusted by this. This was beyond common courtesy and he could not be allowed to bow to him anyway.
Although he seems to be sincere at the moment, people's hearts are unpredictable, and even the world will change. If one day he really succeeds as the emperor, then today's more than polite bow may bring trouble between the two of them. Come to estrangement.
The eldest prince was supported by this force and could not bow down for a long time. He could only bend down slightly and said: "Uncle Three Kings, you have traveled a long distance and the carriage and horse are tired. Please rest for a while. Shuo'er will arrange it for you in the evening." Here’s the reception feast.”
Prince Xuan shook his head, stroked his black beard and said: "I will wash up later and go to see the emperor brother. The establishment of a prince is a big event and cannot be delayed at all. According to what you said in your letter, except for the fourth child, the elders San and Xiaosi have already invited the forces behind them?"
Since the incident that happened to the Eighth Prince in the Tiangong Sect that year, the Third Prince's voice has been growing day by day, and some of the forces that originally supported the Eighth Prince have gradually moved towards the Third Prince.
The three princes who originally had the highest voices suddenly lost one person in the competition, leaving only the popular eldest prince and third prince, which also made the situation clear.
Some forces that did not take sides also began to make moves, but the good times did not last long. Until that day, the fourth prince, who had been excluded, was suddenly received by the emperor.
After that, the youngest fourteenth prince was received by the emperor one after another, and was often taken with him to appear on various occasions.
On the contrary, the third prince, who was often taken by the emperor, gradually became indifferent to the emperor after he offended a peerless woman from Zhongsheng Continent in Tianbao Pavilion.
At this time, many people smelled something unusual, and then they secretly hunkered down and re-examined it.
The fourteenth prince also received support from some forces one after another, especially many new forces. They wanted to break out of the original power framework and chose to support the youngest prince.
Originally, everything was fine, but until an alliance of casual cultivators named "Taiyi Alliance" appeared, it was said that it was formed just half a year ago by a casual cultivator of the third level of the Spirit King.
This "Taiyi Alliance" attracted the attention of countless casual cultivators as soon as it was established. Within just one month of its establishment, it attracted hundreds of members, including three old men at the pinnacle of the Lingzong realm.
These three people had been trapped at the peak of the Spirit Sect Realm for more than ten years, with no hope of breaking through. However, the alliance leader was proficient in alchemy. He spent several months practicing several batches of elixirs and helped the three old men break through to the Spirit King Realm.
This greatly increased the reputation of the "Taiyi League", and countless casual cultivators who had originally paid attention to it joined in. In just a few months, it had thousands of members, and its strength increased several times.
They suddenly became a pivotal force in the Wen Dynasty, and also became the leader among the many forces behind the Fourteenth Prince. They also attracted the attention of the royal family, and they appeared on many important occasions.
It was precisely because of their rapid rise that they broke the original balance and made the Fourteenth Prince suddenly become the most popular candidate.
The forces behind it even jointly submitted a letter half a month ago, strongly demanding that the emperor establish the fourteenth prince as the "prince" as soon as possible.
The visitor even revealed important news in his words. More people in the "Taiyi League" will break through to the Spirit King realm.
The emperor was shocked when he heard this, and immediately congratulated him with great joy, and said that according to the rules of the royal family, the matter of establishing a "prince" would be put into process as soon as possible.
Everyone thought that the emperor was full of joy, but he had his own plans and worries in his heart, but he did not reveal them.
He was not at ease with this new force. He had sent people to investigate secretly before, but they had not been able to enter the inner circle and could not find anything.
All I know is that the leader of the alliance said that he came from the Qi State in the north and came here to escape the war. This is why he wanted to unite the various cultivators so that everyone can take care of each other.
Although nothing was found, the emperor felt that there was something fishy about this matter. Qi State was a small country smaller than Zhao State, and it was difficult to think of a spiritual king, let alone a casual cultivator.
The Spirit King is like a heavenly figure in the Zhao Kingdom. Even if there is a war, no one dares to mess with him. Furthermore, with such a level of cultivation, one can practice in places with stronger spiritual energy.
Even though he came to the Wen Dynasty for some reason, casual cultivators generally liked Qing cultivators, so how could they form the "Taiyi Alliance", let alone interfere in the government affairs.
For all of the above reasons, it was difficult for the Emperor to let go of their power. After some thought, he decided to first see what the purpose of this force was, and at the same time, he informed several major forces in the capital about his concerns to see what their opinions were.
At the morning meeting on the second day, the emperor directly asked his father-in-law to read out the petition, and asked the ministers to discuss it at the court, which caused an uproar among the ministers.
As soon as this news came out, many forces could not sit still. The third prince and the forces behind him also went to court to meet the emperor and expressed their strong support for the third prince to be the crown prince.
There are many forces on the eldest prince's side who have met the emperor, but currently no force can compete with the "Taiyi Alliance", so they had no choice but to invite the three uncles in the army.
Although the army cannot directly interfere with government affairs, the forces involved in the army are complicated and limited to rules. If forced to do so, there will be many other workarounds.
For example, entering the palace to protect the royal family, such as assisting the emperor to capture treasonous enemies, etc., etc., there are countless experiences in history.
In the army at Bianguan, every soldier under his command has experienced bloody battles. They are strong and their combat power is far better than those of the same level. This strong deterrent force is something that all parties must consider.
Even leaving aside the military, as a member of the royal family, the prince can still express his personal position.
The eldest prince nodded and replied respectfully: "That's it. My father has been a little depressed in recent days. I am afraid that due to the pressure of the 'Taiyi Alliance', I went to Lietianbao Pavilion yesterday to meet with Pavilion Master Chen had a secret conversation for a while, and then went to Tiangong Sect."
"Well... what is the current attitude of the two sects? Have they made it clear who they want to support?"
"Back to Uncle Wang, the attitude of the two sects has become very strange since the First World War. In addition to expressing their full support for my father, they have not yet supported any of our princes, especially the Tiangong Sect. Later, they even came to visit us. Visits were rejected one by one.”
After hearing this, Prince Xuan's eyes were full of sorrow. He stroked his black beard and stood up and walked around the main hall. "Although the strength of Tiangong Sect has been greatly reduced, it should not be underestimated. In addition to having the Spirit King sitting in charge, it still has many With so little appeal, it’s easy to hire a few spirit kings as foreign aid.”
Having said this, he looked towards the direction of Tianbao Pavilion and said in deep thought: "This Tianbao Pavilion is in full swing, especially its young master, who can be called a monster. There are many forces in Xiling Continent that are fawning over. If I can get their support, I can Said to be superior to all powers.”
The eldest prince smiled bitterly, "Hey, I have visited Tianbao Pavilion countless times over the years. I brought enough etiquette and may have made many promises, but I failed to get their support. I even heard that my third brother went to visit At that time, they didn’t even let the door in..."
"He will have to pay the price for his actions after all. It is impossible to get the support of Tianbao Pavilion after thinking about it." Prince Xuan suddenly stood still, a bright light flashed in his eyes, "I will visit Tianbao Pavilion in person tomorrow."
The eldest prince was full of surprise when he heard this. He raised the corners of his mouth and said hurriedly: "Thank you, Uncle Third Prince. If Shuo'er can become the prince, you should be the first to contribute."
"You are the eldest son of the Emperor's brother. You should be ranked number one in terms of qualifications. I have watched you grow up since you were a child. You are pure in character and talented. This is impeccable. I have silently supported the Emperor's brother in these years and have established a good reputation. You have a lot of merits, especially in the past few years, you have won many battles in the army. This outstanding merit is enough for anyone to find fault. If the emperor's brother was not still young and strong, I would have wanted to write a letter to support you as the crown prince. "
When Prince Xuan entered Shangtian City, many people got the news. This news reached the ears of the empire immediately. He secretly shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Third brother, I didn't expect you to be involved. You are not in the palace all year round. "You must not be able to understand the situation here. It seems that as an elder brother, I must have a good chat with you."
The eunuchs in the palace were responsible for delivering this news. At this moment, in a remote palace, more than a dozen eunuchs were gathering together, and they were also discussing in low voices what had happened these days.
These eunuchs were brought up and promoted by Eunuch Nie from childhood. They were all children from poor families. They shared the same ideals and had been silently supporting the fourth prince from behind.
After discussing for a while, an older official said openly: "We have already passed the news to the Fourth Prince, and it has been so long. Even if the news is not successfully transmitted, the Fourth Prince will definitely hear the rumor."
"As long as we do what we should do, we don't need to worry too much. The remaining four princes have their own sense of proportion. Although that person is not in the Wen Dynasty now, everyone must not forget the power behind him. We can go up the mountain if forced to do so. If you go ask for help, they won’t ignore you.”
"Well, that's right. As long as they can stand up and support, I don't think the 'Taiyi Alliance' is anything to worry about. Now it just takes time. I hope the eldest prince and the third prince can delay this situation as long as possible."
Soon after, most of the dozen eunuchs left, leaving only a few young eunuchs stationed in the side hall. They were nostalgic.
After Prince Xuan washed himself, he hurried into the court to meet the emperor's brother. However, the emperor's brother prepared a celebration banquet for him. The banquet was accompanied by many ministers.
During the banquet, he opened his mouth several times to mention the matter of supporting the crown prince, but he was interrupted by the emperor's brother, who secretly winked at him and said that he had important matters to discuss with him secretly after the banquet.
As soon as his heart moved, he stopped mentioning the matter and started talking about the recent border wars.
The emperor also told him what had happened in the capital in the past two years, specifically talking about the development of Tianbao Pavilion in the past two years, and pointed out that they were the number one force in the Wen Dynasty.
He has said this to the outside world several times, and the implication is very clear. The largest force in the Wen Dynasty is on his side, and he must think carefully before doing anything.
After the banquet, the emperor took the third brother to the study and then entered the secret room. He talked to him about the current situation in the capital and revealed some secrets unknown to outsiders.
After a confidential conversation, Prince Xuan sighed deeply, his face full of solemnity and helplessness, and frowned slightly: "Now that he is not here, what should the emperor do next?"
The empire turned its head slightly and looked towards the north of the city where the "Taiyi Alliance" was located, and said solemnly: "Let's see what they plan to do first. If they want to use my son to do evil, they must be killed."
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