Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 401 Yes! The Crown Prince wouldn't dare kill us! [Requesting monthly votes]

"Your Highness the Crown Prince—!"

Before Pei Xingjian and his men even rushed into the prison of the Three Departments, they shouted loudly, startling the officials and runners of the Three Departments who looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Who? Who's causing trouble outside!"

Liu Ji, who was already overwhelmed by Li Chengqian's antics, immediately came out upon hearing the commotion, wearing a cloak and looking solemn.

"Reporting to Lord Liu, he is a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard!" a constable reported cautiously.

"Jinyiwei?"

Liu Ji's gaze darkened: "What are they trying to do? Are they planning a prison break?!"

"this."

The constable hesitated, unsure how to answer.

At this moment, Pei Xingjian and his entourage rushed into the Three Departments' office, shouting loudly, "Where is His Highness the Crown Prince?!"

"presumptuous!"

Liu Ji flew into a rage: "This is the courtroom where the three judicial departments will jointly try the case! How dare you be so insolent? Are you trying to rebel?!"

He started with a scathing remark, which startled Pei Xingjian and the others.

However, a member of the Imperial Guard quickly drew his sword and stepped forward: "Who the hell are you? This is the Imperial Guard, get out of the way!"

"You, you—!"

Liu Ji was so angry at these words that he was completely dumbfounded. He kept saying "you" for a long time but couldn't say a word.

At this moment, Chu Suiliang and Dai Zhou also rushed out.

But Chu Suiliang spoke first: "Fellow members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, we are the presiding judges in charge of His Highness the Crown Prince's case. What has happened that you wish to see His Highness the Crown Prince?"

"It's a secret of the Embroidered Uniform Guard; I cannot disclose it!"

The Imperial Guards who rushed to the front showed no respect for Chu Suiliang, and instead asked coldly again, "Where is His Highness the Crown Prince?"

"Uh, this."

Chu Suiliang glanced awkwardly at Dai Zhou, then said helplessly, "In the temporary cell on the left!"

"go!"

Pei Xingjian's eyes lit up, and without saying a word, he led his men into the temporary prison on the left.

The officials from the Three Departments were left standing there awkwardly, at a loss for what to do.

"Outrageous! Outrageous! His Highness the Crown Prince's lackeys! They are utterly lawless! I will report this to His Majesty and impeach His Highness the Crown Prince!!" After Pei Xingjian and the others left, Liu Ji finally recovered from his anger and was furious.

However, Chu Suiliang, Dai Zhou, and the bailiffs from the Three Departments ignored him and instead walked towards the outside of the Three Departments' office.

Outside the yamen, there were many Imperial Guards holding torches, as well as two corpses that were clearly not government officials.

"This is."

Chu Suiliang looked at the two corpses with some surprise and asked, "What happened?"

“Based on my years of experience in handling cases, these two should be people from the martial arts world. Judging from their deaths, the one on the left was killed with a single blow, but the one on the right, I can’t tell what caused his death. It seems like he’s not dead!” Dai Zhou said with some surprise.

"not dead?"

Chu Suiliang was shocked: "His chest has collapsed, and he's still not dead?!"

Dai Zhou shook his head but didn't say anything more, because what happened tonight had exceeded his expectations.

Although he still doesn't understand why Li Chengqian would voluntarily stay in prison, he thinks it must be related to what happened tonight.

Could it be to deal with Li Ke?
He didn't actually have much contact with the Prince of Shu, whom Li Shimin praised as "as brave and decisive as I am," but everyone had witnessed what Li Ke did in Chang'an.

You can't say he only cared about power and didn't care about the lives of ordinary people. After all, the smallpox in Chang'an was indeed brought under control because of the "Qingwen San" (a traditional Chinese medicine).

Although the power struggle was extremely brutal, Dai Zhou still hoped that Li Chengqian would spare Li Ke's life.

All of this is based on the premise that Li Ke's actions have not yet been exposed.

Many people in Chang'an, like Dai Zhou, believed that this dispute was a power struggle.

"Your Highness, are you alright?!"

When Pei Xingjian and the others arrived at the prison, they saw Li Chengqian stretching and yawning, and their faces lit up with joy.

"What, do I look like something's wrong?"

Li Chengqian glanced at him sideways and asked with amusement.

"No, Your Highness, that's not what I meant, it's more that..."

As he spoke, Pei Xingjian glanced at the chains on the cell and immediately frowned.

Wang Haibin, standing beside him, immediately understood and severed the chains with a single stroke.

Pei Xingjian immediately opened the prison door, strode inside, and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, when I came to find you just now, I encountered the guards. They were preparing to assassinate me!"

"Oh?"

Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow, then pressed on, "What was the result?"

"result."

Pei Xingjian hesitated for a moment, then glanced somewhat embarrassedly at Yang Nannan outside the cell, and said with his head down, "I was almost killed by them. Fortunately, Yang Nannan arrived in time. However, the person I should thank the most is that first generation of Bad Leader!"

Li Chengqian was taken aback: "The first generation of Bad Leader? What do you mean?"

"Your Highness, I do not know his specific identity. I only heard him say that the first leader of the Bad Guys is waiting for your arrival at Bad Guy Mountain!"

"Furthermore, he also said that the little brat of the guard should not disturb the Emperor Emeritus's peace and quiet!"

"Bu Liang Shan? The first Bu Liang Shuai? The retired emperor?"

Li Chengqian carefully summarized Pei Xingjian's report, then frowned and asked, "Where are the guards who killed you? Did they escape?"

“No, they were all killed by that first generation of Bad Leader! Moreover, it was the same Wu Bing we had been looking for, and a Lang Jiang who was appointed as the next Guardian by the Guardian Envoy, whose name is Liu Yun!” Pei Xingjian explained, shaking his head.

Li Chengqian narrowed his eyes: "Hearing you say that, I'm a little confused. Why would Wu Bing and Liu Yun come to kill you?"

"Yes! I also find it incredible. Although it may sound treasonous to say this, I believe that Your Highness should be their target."

"Ah!"

Li Chengqian smiled, then stood up from his seat and said calmly, "They probably won't kill me now, because there's someone more important than me!"

"Your Highness is referring to Prince Li Ke of Shu?"

"Hmm, how's he doing?"

"Your Highness, Xi Junmai has already led his men there. It seems he has found the key evidence," Pei Xingjian said, then suddenly seemed to remember something and slapped his forehead, saying, "Speaking of Xi Junmai, I almost forgot. When I was searching for Li Ke's accomplices, I encountered Xi Junmai, who was searching 'Wang's General Store.' He told me that they had just caught a group of people smuggling an enhanced version of 'Qingwen Powder,' and then they encountered, uh, they encountered Your Highness!"

"You ran into me?"

Li Chengqian was immediately bewildered: "What do you mean? Aren't I in prison? How could he have run into me?"

"Yes! I also find it strange! But he did say he encountered His Highness the Crown Prince. And I believe he wouldn't lie to me!"

Pei Xingjian nodded, then continued, "Furthermore, he also said that His Highness the Crown Prince wanted to kill him, which makes me even more puzzled!"

"Because it's simply impossible!"

"Yes, there is something fishy about this."

Li Chengqian pondered for a moment and said, "Perhaps it's a disguise technique."

"Disguise?"

Pei Xingjian was also taken aback, then turned to look at Yang Nannan.

But then Yang Nannan said in a deep voice, "Your Highness is right. I also suspect it's a disguise technique. I've heard of this strange art before when I was in the guard post!"

"Heh, this is getting more and more interesting."

Li Chengqian laughed: "What do they want to do by impersonating me? Replace me? Or use my identity to commit murder and arson, damaging my reputation?"

"this."

Pei Xingjian and the others were speechless.

Just then, a report came from outside the door: "Your Highness, news has come from the Prince of Shu's residence that Commander Xi has led troops to surround the Prince of Shu's residence, but Prince Li Ke of Shu refuses to confess and is organizing people inside the residence in an attempt to resist Commander Xi's army!"

"Humph!"

Li Chengqian snorted coldly, then said in a deep voice, "Didn't Xi Junmai tell them that those who resist to the bitter end will be killed without mercy?!"

"Your Highness, Commandant Xi has informed you, but Prince Li Ke of Shu and his men are still ignoring the matter, saying they want to see you! They claim they were framed!"

"absurd!"

Li Chengqian scoffed: "Don't they know what they've done? If the evidence wasn't conclusive, would Xi Junmai have led people to arrest them? They still have the nerve to cry foul!"

As he spoke, he turned to look at Pei Xingjian and the others, and said coldly, "Has the chaos in Chang'an been quelled?"

"Your Highness, apart from that guard named Plague Doctor, the rest have been basically eliminated, including those 'miracle doctors' from the Shu Prince's mansion. They have all been captured. It was Yang Nannan who found the secret hideout through the clues provided by the military!"

"Hmm, well done!"

Li Chengqian nodded in satisfaction, then turned to the bailiffs outside the prison gate and said, "Go and inform the three officials that I am about to be released from prison!"

"what?"

The constable outside the door was startled for a moment, thinking to himself, "Is the Three Departments' prison a canteen? Can you come and go as you please?"

I reckon only His Highness the Crown Prince would dare to do something like this!
If it were someone else, they might be accused of disrespecting the law and committing treason!
"Why, didn't you hear?"

Seeing the constable standing there dumbfounded and at a loss, Li Chengqian asked again in a cold voice.

"Oh, I heard you, I heard you, I'll go right away."

The constable was terrified and fled in panic, heading straight for the Three Departments' office.

Before long, the three presiding judges, Liu Ji, Chu Suiliang, and Dai Zhou, arrived outside the prison gate.

"Your Highness, what is the meaning of this?"

Liu Ji spoke first, his voice tinged with annoyance. But Li Chengqian ignored him completely and instead said directly to Dai Zhou, "Minister Dai, I am going to arrest Prince Li Ke of Shu. You were once the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, and now that Sun Fujia is not here, you will go to the Prince of Shu's residence with me!"

"What!?"

As soon as Li Chengqian finished speaking, Dai Zhou and the other two were taken aback.

What's going on here?
How could Prince Li Ke of Shu have become a criminal in less than a night?!
"No, Your Highness, what exactly is going on? What has His Highness the Prince of Shu done?" Dai Zhou asked, somewhat puzzled.

Li Chengqian replied without room for doubt: "You'll find out what you've done when you get to the Prince of Shu's residence!"

After saying this, he didn't bother with any more words and led Pei Xingjian and the others out of the prison.

"stop--!"

Liu Ji suddenly spoke up, his anger reaching the heavens: "Does Your Highness the Crown Prince intend to defy the imperial decree?!"

"What imperial decree are you defying?"

Li Chengqian frowned.

But Liu Ji said indignantly, "We are acting on His Majesty's orders to investigate the case of you sending someone to assassinate the Prince of Yan. Now, the case is not yet closed, how can you leave the prison without permission? Moreover, you entered this prison by yourself! How can the laws of the court be broken so easily?!"

"Very well! Then let me ask you, do you have conclusive evidence that I sent someone to assassinate the Prince of Yan?"

"Even without conclusive evidence, we are investigating."

"Then let's wait until you've investigated thoroughly before we talk about it!"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince."

"Noisy!"

Li Chengqian impatiently raised his hand and slapped her across the face, then coldly retorted, "Do you think you're the Crown Prince's tutor? Too bad, I'm not my father, and I don't need loyal ministers!"

After saying this, he left the prison without another word, leading Pei Xingjian and the others.

All that remained were Liu Ji, his face covered in handprints, and Dai Zhou and the others, all utterly bewildered.

"Ah! I must petition His Majesty! I must petition His Majesty—!!"

After a long while, Liu Ji rushed out of the Three Departments' office with a strange cry.

Dai Zhou and Chu Suiliang exchanged a glance and silently followed Li Chengqian.

Meanwhile, at the Shu Prince's residence, the atmosphere was extremely tense.

In particular, the "Five Tigers and One Tai Sui" led by Li Ke had fine beads of sweat on their foreheads and their faces were slightly pale.

After all, they are not very old.

The older Chai Zhewei was only around twenty years old.

The youngest, Li Zong, was only eleven years old.

The reason they followed Li Ke in rebellion was that they wanted to emulate the civil and military officials around Li Er and achieve merit by following the emperor.

Unexpectedly, their "great cause" collapsed before it could be accomplished.

"Third Brother, I'm scared." The youngest, Li Zong, couldn't help but get nervous and looked at Li Ke with a trembling voice.

Li Ke coldly glanced at him and said, "We're innocent, what are you afraid of? Even if Li Chengqian is slandering us, there's no evidence. Those who were killed have already been dealt with by the guards."

"Besides, we've all been in the manor tonight and haven't gone anywhere. What do those things they're saying about what's happening outside have to do with us? It's just someone framing us!"

After speaking, he glanced at the other members of the "Five Tigers and One Tyrant": "Besides, what are your identities? Have you forgotten? Does Li Chengqian dare to kill you?"

"this."

Upon hearing this, the "Five Tigers and One Tai Sui" were slightly taken aback, then seemed to realize what was happening and breathed a sigh of relief.

But Chai Zhewei spoke first: "Your Highness the Prince of Shu is right. The men we sent out are all loyal soldiers. I believe they won't betray us. Moreover, we can deny that they are our people. As long as our testimonies are consistent, and given our identities, what can Li Chengqian do to us?"

"But Li Chengqian is the Crown Prince, the heir apparent. He's always been domineering, even daring to defy His Majesty. I'm afraid."

"Hey Chuliang! Why are you boosting others' morale while diminishing your own?"

Before Cheng Chuliang could finish speaking, Chai Zhewei interrupted him somewhat displeasedly: "Li Chengqian is domineering, but even the most domineering person has to know his limits! Does he really intend to offend all the meritorious officials in Chang'an?"

“That’s right! I don’t believe Li Chengqian would dare to kill us!” The playboy Yuchi Huan echoed arrogantly.

Cheng Chuliang was about to say a few more words when Li Ke raised his hand to interrupt him: "Alright, it's settled then. Don't admit it even if you kill me. When my father, the Emperor, returns, everything will be back to square one!"

"Yes!"

Everyone responded in unison, but Cheng Chuliang was the only one who seemed distracted.

Just then, Qin Huaiyu suddenly seemed to remember something and said out of the blue, "Speaking of tonight's events, I've always had a question: how did Li Chengqian know in advance that we were going to distribute the enhanced version of 'Qingwen San'? And how did he manage to evacuate those civilians and settle the Jinyiwei in advance!"

Wow!
As soon as this statement came out, the whole audience was in an uproar!

Li Ke, in particular, immediately turned pale.

If Qin Huaiyu hadn't suddenly reminded him, he wouldn't have realized that something was amiss.

Yes!

Not many people knew about the distribution of the enhanced version of 'Qingwen San'. Apart from the plague doctor and himself, only Chai Zhewei and Cheng Chuliang knew.

Although the plague doctor has disappeared, he would never betray himself.

Because they have planted a Gu worm in me, I am forever one of their own.

Then
Thinking of this, Li Ke's eyes turned cold and shot towards Cheng Chuliang: "Chuliang, shouldn't only we know about this?"

"What does Your Highness, the Prince of Shu, mean by this?" Cheng Chuliang frowned. "Does he suspect that I have betrayed everyone?"

"Hmph, we all know who betrayed us!"

Chai Zhewei snorted coldly.

Cheng Chuliang slammed his fist on the table and stood up: "Chai Zhewei! What do you mean? Do you think I'm the only one who knows what happened tonight? You don't know?!"

"I"

Chai Zhewei was stunned for a moment, feeling several gazes directed at him, especially Li Ke's gaze, which was particularly piercing. He couldn't help but feel angry and embarrassed, and said, "What the hell are you talking about? How could I possibly betray His Highness the Prince of Shu!?"

"Since you won't betray me, why do you suspect me?!" Cheng Chuliang roared back.

"enough!!"

Li Ke slammed his fist on the table and stood up: "What's the point of arguing when disaster is imminent?! Are we going to start an internal conflict?"

"This"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

Just then, an announcement came from outside the door: "His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived!"

Wow!
In an instant, everyone in the Shu Prince's Mansion, including Li Ke and his group, became extremely alert.

But then Li Ke shouted urgently, "Quick! Form the formation!!"

"No need! My foolish brother! With so few of you, you wouldn't even last me a quarter of an hour!"

As Li Ke finished speaking, a slightly mocking voice suddenly rang out.

At the same time, a familiar yet chilling figure slowly stepped into the main hall of the Shu King's mansion, looking at them with a half-smile: "Oh, everyone's here! Looks like one pit is just enough to bury them!"

Boom!

Upon hearing this, the "Five Tigers and One Tai Sui" were struck dumb as if by lightning.

What's the meaning? !

Li Chengqian really dares to kill us?!
"Li Chengqian! Stop spreading alarmist rumors! We haven't broken any laws! How dare you make decisions for us?!" Li Ke was the first to react, shouting in a mixture of fear and alarm.

"Ah!"

Li Chengqian laughed: "With your disrespect for your elder brother and the crown prince, I can punish you for a grave offense of disrespect!"

"you"

Li Ke's eyes widened, and he was speechless.

But then Li Chengqian said impatiently, "Alright, make a long story short, do you plead guilty?"

“We are innocent!” The youngest member, Li Zong, somehow found the courage to be the first to stand up.

Li Chengqian glanced at him, then swept his gaze over the other 'Five Tigers and One Grand Duke', and said indifferently, "You also refuse to confess your crimes?"

"I, we."

The five tigers and one Tai Sui who were caught in Li Chengqian's gaze felt a chill, but none of them spoke.

"Fine! Since none of you plead guilty, then..."

"Your Highness! I confess my guilt!"

Before Li Chengqian could finish speaking, Qin Huaiyu spoke first: "I admit to all the crimes, and I can testify to all their crimes!"

"What!?"

Apart from Qin Huaiyu, the other members of the "Five Tigers and One Tai Sui" were dumbfounded.

"Huaiyu! What are you saying!?" Yuchi Huan scolded Qin Huaiyu with a look of astonishment.

But then Qin Huaiyu chuckled awkwardly and said, "I'm sorry, Ah Huan, I betrayed you. I originally wanted to incite you to fight amongst yourselves, but I didn't expect... uh, Third Brother truly lives up to his name."

"You! How could you betray us?"

"Has Ah Huan forgotten? I'm from the Military Academy! Although I lied to you guys and said I infiltrated the enemy, I only realized how narrow-minded I was after I got in. So, the 'Five Tigers and One Tai Sui' stuff... well, let's not mention it again, it's kind of embarrassing."

"I'll kill you!!" Chai Zhewei suddenly roared.

Li Chengqian delivered a side kick.

With a loud thud, Chai Zhewei was kicked away by Li Chengqian and slammed heavily against the wall, spitting out blood, his bones shattered, and even the wall itself cracked.

"You ignorant fool! Even my uncle doesn't dare to yell at me, who do you think you are?"

(End of this chapter)