Rise of a Lonely City: From Exiled Prince to Ruler of the Nine Provinces

The aroma of Han Yuan's "life-saving porridge" wafted across the border, and the sounds of 100,000 refugees kneeling in gratitude still echoed in their ears. An invisible force called "the will of the people" was gathering and rising on the northern land at an unprecedented speed, and it was faintly showing signs of a convergence of fortune and the arrival of auspicious purple clouds from the east.

Such a scene naturally stung the eyes of some people and touched the sensitive nerves of others.

The capital city, the heart of the Great Xia Dynasty, though this heart has long been weakened and rotten inside, still possesses the last and most vicious "authority" due to its outward majesty and central position.

A secret letter bearing the personal seal of Prince Yong, Xiao Jing, was delivered through clandestine channels to Hu Wei, the "Smiling Fox," who was also a spy planted by Prince Yong and served as the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace.

The letter was extremely simple, yet extremely malicious: "Xiao Chen of the North has gathered refugees and bestowed favors upon them, but I fear he harbors rebellious intentions. We can spread rumors that he is secretly forging dragon robes, amassing armor and weapons, and plotting treason. My father has been in poor health lately and abhors such matters. We can make him cut himself off from the court and isolate himself from the world."

Soon, a detailed and seemingly plausible rumor, like a drop of boiling oil, exploded in the streets and alleys, teahouses and taverns, and even deep courtyards of the capital:

"Have you heard? That Prince Jingbei in the north has secretly established imperial palace regulations in Zhenbei City, and is even making dragon robes using the bright yellow brocade that is only permitted in the palace!"

"That's not all! My third aunt's son's brother-in-law works in the Ministry of War. He said that Han Yuan's soldiers are almost as well-equipped as the Imperial Guards, and their crossbows can shoot three hundred paces. Isn't this a rebellion?"

"Tsk tsk, even the refugees are calling him 'Long Live the Emperor'! Isn't this just Sima Zhao's true intention?"

The rumors quickly spread and were disseminated to all directions through traveling merchants and migrants.

Although it's obvious to everyone that this was most likely the work of Prince Yong or the Crown Prince, intended to smear and isolate Xiao Chen.

However, the eight characters "privately making dragon robes and plotting rebellion" were, in this era, a heinous crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family.

Once confirmed, Xiao Chen will become the enemy of the world, and everyone will have the right to kill him.

When the news reached Zhenbei City, Han Lie, Wang Dashan, and other important civil and military officials were all filled with righteous indignation.

"Your Highness! This is a frame-up! A fabricated charge!"

Han Lie, his beard and hair bristling, declared, "We must immediately submit a petition to defend ourselves and clarify the rumors!"

"Yes! Your Highness, we can also compile a picture book detailing the realities of the life-saving porridge and the work-for-relief program, as well as the gratitude of the displaced people, and distribute it throughout the land to set the record straight!"

Yang Shen made the suggestion.

Xiao Chen sat upright behind the desk, toying with a Jingbei Tongbao coin in his hand, his expression calm to the point of being indifferent.

Before him lay the latest secret report sent from the capital by Night Owl, which detailed the key points of the rumor's spread, the instigators, and even the time, place, and content of the conversations between "Smiling Fox" Hu Wei and several key figures from the Yong Prince's Mansion and the Crown Prince's Mansion.

"clarify?"

Xiao Chen slammed the copper coin onto the table with a soft "thud." "Why the need for clarification?"

"Huh?" The ministers were taken aback.

"They throw dirty water on us, so are we supposed to rush to take a bath to prove we're clean?"

Xiao Chen's lips curled into a cold, ruthless smile. "That's too passive. And too... boring."

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the crowd: "Don't they like spreading rumors? Then I'll play an even bigger game with them. Let them taste what it's like to be devoured by rumors."

"Zhao Tie." Xiao Chen looked at the Night Owl leader, who stood like a javelin in the shadows.

"Your subordinate is here." Zhao Tie stepped forward, his voice like the scraping of metal.

"Order the Night Owl Capital Branch of the Capital Garrison to activate the counter-espionage plan."

Xiao Chen's voice was not loud, but it carried a resolute and unquestionable decisiveness.

"Give one of the gifts we have prepared to the Crown Prince and the other to Prince Yong. Remember, it must be a coincidence, an unintentional leak, so that they discover it 'accidentally'."

"Yes!" A cold glint flashed in Zhao Tie's eyes. He bowed, accepted the order, and silently retreated into the shadows.

Three days later, late at night.

Crown Prince Xiao Heng was in a secret chamber in the Eastern Palace, impatiently flipping through several reports about refugees in the northern border.

The more powerful Xiao Chen became, the more unstable his position as crown prince became, and his anxiety and fear grew day by day.

Suddenly, his trusted eunuch, Xiao Anzi, rushed in, his face ashen, clutching a muddy oilcloth bag tightly in his hand.

"Your Highness... Your Highness! Something terrible has happened!"

Xiao Anzi's voice trembled, "This servant just found this in the cracks of the artificial rockery in the back garden!"

"What's the panic!"

Xiao Heng said unhappily, and took the oilcloth bag.

Upon opening it, I found several letters and a domino with strange patterns engraved on it.

He casually picked up a letter, glanced at it a few times, and his face turned even paler than Xiao Anzi's!

The letter was written in a special cipher, but a translation was attached to it.

The content read: "...A secret agreement has been reached with the eldest prince of Northern Yan. If he helps me ascend the throne, I am willing to cede the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun..."

The signature was a name that sent Xiao Heng's soul flying—his maternal uncle, the Marquis of Wuwei, who commanded a portion of the Imperial Guards!

"This...this is a frame-up! It's a fabrication!" Xiao Heng's hands trembled like leaves falling in the autumn wind.

"Your Highness, there's also this..."

Xiao Anzi pointed tremblingly at the domino, "This is...this is the identity token of the Golden Wolf Guard of the Northern Yan Royal Court! Only the most core members have it!"

"boom!"

Xiao Heng felt as if his head had been struck by a heavy hammer. Colluding with an enemy state, ceding territory… this was irrefutable evidence far more deadly than the unauthorized manufacture of the imperial robe! If it were leaked, even before Prince Yong could act, his father would be the first to execute him!

"Investigate! Investigate for me! Who! Who wants to harm me!"

Xiao Heng appeared like a mad tiger, but he already knew the answer in his heart—who else could it be but his beloved younger brother, the Prince of Yong?

At almost the same time, Prince Yong, Xiao Jing, also received a great gift.

The gift was delivered by another spy he had planted by the Crown Prince's side. He had also accidentally discovered a draft of the imperial edict in a hidden compartment in the Crown Prince's study.

The draft boldly stated: "...After my death, if the Crown Prince is incompetent, the throne may be passed to the Seventh Prince, Xiao Chen... Prince Yong, Xiao Jing, is violent and unfit for the position. If he makes any moves, the various regional princes may be ordered to jointly suppress him..."

The draft of this will was written in a style that imitated the old emperor's handwriting, bearing a striking resemblance of seven parts. It was written on special gold-flecked paper supplied by the palace and stamped with a blurry but remarkably similar seal to the emperor's imperial seal.

"Xiao Heng! You piece of trash! How dare you... how dare you..."

Xiao Jing's eyes turned red as he looked at the imperial edict.

He had coveted the throne for many years, and what he feared most was that his father would change his mind before his death, or that the crown prince would make some underhanded moves.

This draft of the "will" struck at his most sensitive and fearful nerve!

"This is a forgery! It must be that good-for-nothing Crown Prince forging it, trying to get rid of me ahead of time!"

Xiao Jing roared, "Guards! Investigate! Find out how this thing came about! Also, keep a close watch on the Eastern Palace! Report any unusual activity immediately!"

He was already convinced that the Crown Prince, seeing Xiao Chen's growing power in the Northern Border and his own unstable position, was desperately trying to use the charges of "the imperial edict" and "colluding with Northern Yan" to get rid of him and secure his own position.

In the following days, the capital was in complete chaos.

The Crown Prince faction and the Prince Yong faction no longer cared about the rumors of "privately making dragon robes" and began a frenzied attack and tearing at each other.

The Crown Prince instructed the Imperial Censor to impeach the Prince of Yong for colluding with border generals and plotting to force him to abdicate.

Prince Yong then mobilized his military forces to spread irrefutable evidence that the Crown Prince was secretly colluding with Northern Yan and attempting to betray the country for personal gain.

The two sides' factions argued fiercely in the court, and several brawls even broke out outside the palace gates.

The emperor was so enraged that he vomited blood several times, worsening his condition and further weakening his ability to control the court.

The person who was initially splashed with dirty water—Prince Jingbei, Xiao Chen—was forgotten by both sides.

After all, how could a brother far away in the North, who posed no immediate threat, compare to the good brother beside him who could take his life at any moment?

The rumor of the unauthorized manufacture of the dragon robe quickly lost its luster and became ignored in the face of the even more explosive and deadly drama of "the crown prince betraying the country and the Prince of Yong forcing the emperor to abdicate".

Zhenbei City, Jingbei Prince's Mansion.

Night Owl's secret reports arrived like snowflakes, detailing the daily chaos in the capital.

"Your Highness is incredibly resourceful!"

Han Lie looked at the secret report, clapped his hands in admiration, and exclaimed, "Without losing a single soldier or uttering a single word of explanation, the enemy has been thrown into disarray, fighting amongst themselves, and has no time to look north! This is the highest level of 'subduing the enemy without fighting'!"

"It's just an example of using their own methods against them."

Xiao Chen said calmly, "They use rumors, and so do we. It's just that our rumors are more 'real,' more 'ruthless,' and hit their sore spots more hard."

"But Your Highness,"

Wang Dashan was somewhat worried, "What if they find out that we were the ones who did it..."

"aware?"

Xiao Chen laughed. "They're already on the verge of firing. The Crown Prince and Prince Yong are already bitter enemies, just waiting for a fuse. What we've given them is merely a stick that looks like a fuse. Even if they realize the stick is fake afterward, the fire has already started. Can it be extinguished?"

"Moreover," Xiao Chen's gaze deepened, "the imitation of the handwriting on that 'Imperial Edict,' and the forgery of that 'Golden Wolf Guard' talisman, were both masterpieces of Night Owl's 'Divine Craft Workshop.' They couldn't find any flaws."

"Send word to Zhao Tie," Xiao Chen said, his smile fading, "the 'counter-espionage' plan is entering its second phase."

"Keep adding fuel to the fire. On the Crown Prince's side, leak some more information about Prince Yong's plan to take action during the autumn hunt; on Prince Yong's side, send some more secret letters from the Crown Prince to Northern Yan, requesting advance payment of a deposit."

"Let them bite harder and fight more fiercely."

"yes!"

"Furthermore," Xiao Chen walked to the window, looking at the southern sky, "the more chaotic the capital, the more advantageous it is for us. Order all armies to intensify their preparations for war. Order the Imperial Workshop to accelerate the production of the Yan horses, Hanyuan crossbows, and Mingguang armor."

"Wait until they're both severely weakened, until the Great Xia Dynasty breathes its last breath..."

"That will be the time for me, Han Yuan, to draw my sword and claim the throne!"

The backlash from the rumors not only averted their own crisis but also served as a perfect example of "using someone else's knife to kill" and "watching the fire from across the river."

It gave Hanyuan valuable time to develop, and it also allowed the world to see the corruption and infighting within the imperial court.

Unconsciously, another "luck" flowed quietly from the chaotic capital to the north, to the Zhenbei City, which was full of vitality and hope.