Catching Monsters

Chapter 420 The Duke of Zhenguo has returned to the capital.
Five days later.

As evening fell in the capital, a rather large caravan returned along the official road. Many merchants along the roadside couldn't help but whisper among themselves, wondering what major event had occurred.

It should be noted that on ordinary days, when you see the Embroidered Uniform Guards out, there are usually only two or three people, and sometimes more than a dozen.

This team looks to have two or three hundred people.

Although most of the Imperial Guards wore flying fish robes, they were covered in dust and looked quite disheveled, and many of them were also injured.

"Finally back."

Jiang Yun took a deep breath and waved to Qi Da beside him, saying, "Let the seriously injured brothers go back to the East Garrison Office to get proper treatment first. Those whose injuries are not too serious can go home and rest for a couple of days."

"Leng Liuer and I must first return to the Northern Garrison Command to report to Lord Li Wangxin."

"Yes." Qi Da nodded, his gaze unconsciously glancing at Xiao Jingfu not far away, and whispered, "Lord Jiang, would His Highness the Fourth Prince have spoken ill of you to His Majesty?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun didn't seem to care at all, saying, "We just need to do our own jobs well."

Perhaps sensing Jiang Yun's gaze, Xiao Jingfu took a deep breath. Returning to the capital, he could finally hold his head high and straighten his back considerably.

He glanced at Jiang Yun with some dissatisfaction, snorted coldly, and, too lazy to communicate with Jiang Yun any further, rode his horse and quickly headed towards the direction of the palace.

He wanted to see his father, the Emperor, as soon as possible!

Of course, Jiang Yun's disrespect towards him along the way also needed to be thoroughly explained to his father.

……

The sky gradually darkened.

In Li Wangxin's study at the Northern Garrison Command, Jiang Yun and Leng Liuer sat inside, recounting the course of their mission to Li Wangxin.

After listening to Jiang Yun and Leng Liuer's description of the mission, Li Wangxin nodded slightly, fully aware of the difficulties and dangers involved.

He said in a deep voice, "Thank you for your hard work on this trip."

"I just didn't expect that this trip to Haiyan City would result in the loss of over a hundred of our Imperial Guards."

"Fortunately, we managed to rescue the Fourth Prince."

At this point, Li Wangxin asked Jiang Yun, "After all, you rescued the Fourth Prince from the rebels. Did you take the opportunity to repair your relationship with him?"

"Repair the relationship?" Jiang Yun was slightly taken aback, not expecting Li Wangxin to ask such a question. He shook his head and said, "It's actually made worse."

Li Wangxin frowned, glanced at Leng Liuer, and said, "You go out first."

Upon hearing this, Leng Liuer didn't think much of it. Since the mission was completed, she turned around and left the study.

After Leng Liuer left, Li Wangxin took a deep breath and said, "His Majesty greatly appreciates and values ​​the Fourth Prince's heroic performance in Haiyan City..."

"Now is another crucial moment to establish a crown prince."

"I'm saying that if His Highness the Fourth Prince is made Crown Prince, you'll be in for a lot of trouble later."

Jiang Yun simply smiled and then said, "If Your Highness the Fourth Prince wants to cause me trouble, I will accept it."

Of course, these words were only meant for Li Wangxin; Jiang Yun's true thoughts were...

If that's the case, then why don't I just prevent him from becoming the crown prince?
Li Wangxin was well aware of Jiang Yun's personality, and upon hearing his words, he merely glanced at Jiang Yun with some concern.

He knew that Jiang Yun was no pushover.

He just gave Jiang Yun a deep look, but didn't say anything more.

As the time for establishing an heir apparent approached, various factions in the capital harbored different thoughts.

……

Inside the Imperial Study, Xiao Yuzheng had finished his day's work and was drinking the ginseng soup that Feng Yu had brought him.

Just then, Feng Yu pushed open the door with a smile on his face and strode in, saying with great joy, "Your Majesty, good news, fantastic good news!"

"His Highness the Fourth Prince is back!"

It should be noted that ever since Xiao Jingfu chose to commit suicide rather than surrender to the rebels in Haiyan City, Xiao Yuzheng had been inquiring about Xiao Jingfu's safety every day, asking whether he had safely escaped from Haiyan City.

Now that Xiao Jingfu has finally returned, Xiao Yuzheng's eyes lit up, and he said, "Jingfu is back? Where is he?"

"They are waiting outside the Imperial Study."

“Jing Fu is back. Why keep him waiting outside? Let him in.” Xiao Yuzheng said, getting up to greet him personally.

That's quite a generous offer.

It should be noted that among the people who usually come to the Imperial Study, only the older generation of the royal family, Xiao Yuzheng's elders, would receive such treatment. Feng Yu's eyes flickered slightly; he knew perfectly well that Xiao Jingfu now held considerable weight in His Majesty's eyes.

Soon, Xiao Jingfu strode into the imperial study, and his appearance at that moment was not exactly pleasing.

He was disheveled and looked as if he had begged his way into the capital.

There were also many post stations along the way, and Jiang Yun and the other Imperial Guards had all washed up and changed into clean clothes.

Xiao Jingfu, however, did not wash up the entire way, enduring the stench on his body.

It was so that her father could see how difficult it was for her to come back alive.

Sure enough, upon seeing Xiao Jingfu's appearance, Xiao Yuzheng slowly said, "Jingfu, you've suffered on this trip."

Xiao Jingfu hurriedly knelt on the ground and said, "Father, I should have washed up before coming to see you, but I was afraid that you would continue to worry about my safety, so I came here in disheveled clothes. I hope you will not take offense."

“Only those who can endure hardship are true men of our Zhou Kingdom.” Xiao Yuzheng looked at Xiao Jingfu’s appearance and said with emotion, “Tell Father Emperor about this.”

"Yes." Xiao Jingfu nodded, then took a deep breath and said, "Your subject was careless."

"When I learned that Haiyan City had been captured, and Haiyan City was an important salt-producing town in our Great Zhou, I summoned troops to try to take it back."

"But the rebels are cunning and will not come out of the city. I have no choice but to attack the city."

"The city gates are incredibly strong, and we have been unable to breach them after a long siege. Morale is low, which is why I have risked my life to personally lead the Imperial Guard to attack the city and boost morale!"

"As a result, he was captured."

Hearing Xiao Jingfu's embellishment, Xiao Yuzheng frowned slightly. He had seen the battle reports from the front lines with his own eyes, and he knew very well what had happened when Xiao Jingfu was captured.

Of course, Xiao Yuzheng could understand, so he changed the subject and asked, "How did those rebels coerce you?"

Xiao Jingfu took a deep breath: "Those rebels are vicious. They used torturous poisons to torture me repeatedly until I was in unbearable pain."

“But I refuse to surrender, no matter what. I am the fourth prince of the Great Zhou. If I surrender to the rebels, how can I face my ancestors?”

"At that time, in my despair, I wanted to commit suicide, but alas..."

Xiao Jingfu recounted the events in great detail. After finishing, he took a deep breath and said, "Fortunately, Father Emperor dispatched the Embroidered Uniform Guard in time, which allowed me to escape danger."

"only."

At this point, Xiao Jingfu frowned and sighed.

"What?" Xiao Yuzheng asked.

Xiao Jingfu respectfully said, "It's just that Jiang Yun of the Eastern Garrison Command might still be blaming me for sending men to ambush him..."

"They were only concerned with fighting the rebel villains and didn't care about my safety at all."

"It gives me the feeling that he is just going through the motions, and whether I will die in Haiyan City is none of his business."

"Your son was fortunate enough to escape from Haiyan City later."

"Well, it's not Jiang Yun's fault. After all, I made a mistake before, so it's understandable that he holds a grudge against me."

This is a euphemism for something trivial, avoiding the main point. It's true, but not entirely accurate.

For example, if Jiang Yun were here and heard this, he would definitely be furious and shout: "If I hadn't risked my life to restrain Sun Wuji, would you have been able to escape alive?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuzheng frowned slightly: "Is that so?"

"Father, please don't blame Jiang Yun for this." Seeing this, Xiao Jingfu quickly said, "Perhaps it's just that I'm overthinking it."

"Moreover, Jiang Yun is now highly valued by the Emperor and has been appointed as the Commander of the Eastern Garrison. He is a capable assistant under the Emperor."

“If he still holds a grudge against what I did back then, I don’t want to make things difficult for Father.”

"How about this, Father Emperor, let me guard the imperial mausoleum for a while, to avoid Jiang Yun."

Xiao Jingfu was using a feigned retreat to advance; he simply didn't believe that his father would really ask him to avoid Jiang Yun after he had already said so much.

Perhaps, the Emperor will transfer Jiang Yun away from the Embroidered Uniform Guard and give him a sinecure outside.

Thinking of this, Xiao Jingfu was also delighted.

“Jingfu is thoughtful, and what he says makes sense.” Xiao Yuzheng nodded and said, “Feng Yu, make arrangements for Jingfu to go to the imperial mausoleum to guard the tombs and keep the ancestors company for a while.”

Xiao Jingfu looked up in surprise: "Huh???"

Feng Yu then added a reminder: "The Duke of Zhenguo has already returned to the capital!"

(End of this chapter)