With wives as numerous as clouds and soldiers as numerous as a million, you say he's a useless

Zhao Xuefu hesitated for a moment, then followed Ye Chengan's footsteps.

She knew that to prove she hadn't colluded with the court to plot against the northern border, she had to take some concrete actions.

Therefore, during the subsequent meeting with Crown Prince Zhao Ji'an, Zhao Xuefu always stood on Ye Cheng'an's side.

The two men looked at each other, scrutinizing one another.

Their eyes met, and the tension was palpable.

"Ninth Sister, you've been away from the capital for many days, and Father misses you dearly," Zhao Ji'an said first.

Zhao Xuefu said, "Didn't Father Emperor already agree to my choice of marriage and even give me a decree to choose my consort? I've chosen Ye Cheng'an, and I won't be returning to the capital."

Seeing his younger sister clinging to Ye Cheng'an like a little bird, Zhao Ji'an was suddenly shocked. How could the two of them seem so close?

Ninth Sister's letter didn't mention her marriage to Ye Cheng'an; it was just a pretense...

But now?

He immediately pulled Zhao Xuefu aside and whispered, "Ninth Sister, what's going on? Didn't you write that your relationship with Ye Cheng'an was just a pretense? How could you..."

Zhao Xuefu chuckled lightly, "Second Brother, things are different now. At first, I used that imperial marriage decree to bind Ye Cheng'an and go to Liuzhou with him to test his intentions and to secure benefits for the court."

"But later, you wouldn't believe how amazing he was..."

As Zhao Xuefu spoke, her eyes sparkled, and two blushes rose to her cheeks, making her look shy.

Zhao Ji'an took a deep look at his sister, who was clearly in love, and then at Ye Cheng'an, who was calm and composed beside him. He decided to see just how capable this kid really was!

Even my proud and arrogant ninth sister has been won over!

He snorted coldly and walked up to Ye Cheng'an, saying, "Ye Cheng'an, my ninth sister said you are very capable. I would like to see for myself."

"Along the way, I heard that you are now the king of the North. But I don't know if you are promoted by the old ministers and subordinates of the former king of the North, or if you have earned it through your own talent and ability. How about this, you and I will have a few matches. If you can win, I will acknowledge you as my brother-in-law and speak well of you in front of my father."

"On the contrary, if you lose, then you are utterly unworthy of my sister, and I will have to take Xue Fu away."

Ye Cheng'an rolled his eyes inwardly. Whether she was good enough or not, he had already made it a fait accompli.

What else can the crown prince do?

However, in order to find out the other party's intentions, he agreed.

The contest that the Crown Prince wanted to have with Ye Cheng'an was nothing more than horsemanship and archery.

As expected, Ye Cheng'an deliberately let the Crown Prince win in horsemanship, while Ye Cheng'an used a repeating crossbow to wreak havoc on all sides.

On the surface, the two were evenly matched, but in reality, the Crown Prince was unaware that Ye Cheng'an had held back against him.

Therefore, he also felt a sense of joy at meeting a worthy opponent.

He was still fantasizing that he could crush Ye Cheng'an and win against him through other means.

"The King of the North truly lives up to his reputation; his archery skills are indeed exceptional. In that case, let's have a contest of chess. Horsemanship and archery are minor skills, but chess can reveal a person's intelligence, shrewdness, and strategy, and even includes military tactics..."

"If you can beat me in chess, I will be completely convinced."

Zhao Ji'an was quite confident in his chess skills, which were personally taught by a master of the Great Qian Dynasty, making him unmatched in the capital.

He was always very proud of it, and even carried a chessboard with him wherever he went.

Seeing him take out a package from behind his back and produce a specially made chessboard, Ye Cheng'an frowned. "Your Highness, is this Go?"

Zhao Ji'an nodded. "That's right, it is Go."

Ye Cheng'an chuckled, "Forgive my bluntness, but Go is child's play. If Your Highness really wants to compete, why don't we play chess instead?"

"Chess?" Zhao Ji'an frowned. "Go is more common in the Great Qian Dynasty. I've never even heard of chess before. How dare you call Go a minor game?"

Ye Cheng'an said, "Your Highness may not have heard of chess, but it is extremely popular in Bei'an City. Moreover, I have a feeling that it won't be long before the capital city will also be shaken by it."

"Chinese chess is divided into the Chu River and Han Border, which can realistically simulate battles between two armies, making it much more interesting than Go..."

As Ye Cheng'an explained the rules of chess one by one, Zhao Ji'an gradually became interested.

Seeing that the other party agreed to his proposal, Ye Cheng'an had someone bring out the chess set he had made and started playing with Zhao Ji'an.

Zhao Ji'an was killed and lost game after game, but his spirits remained unusually high.

"Damn it! How did I lose again! Ye Cheng'an, did you cheat?"

Ye Cheng'an helplessly spread his hands. "Your Highness, with so many people watching our game, and with no way of predicting your next move, how could you possibly cheat?"

"Or, I'll give you a chance to cheat. If you can beat me, then it will be considered that I cheated just now, and the games I just won won't count."

"..." Ye Cheng'an is right. Even if the other party gives him a chance to cheat, Zhao Ji'an still can't beat Ye Cheng'an.

How could he, the crown prince of a nation, lose?

Seeing his brother-in-law's unconvinced expression, Ye Cheng'an could only say, "It's already quite impressive that the Crown Prince has played chess this well on his first try. There's no need to be upset."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ji'an felt slightly better.

But then Zhao Xuefu said, "Second brother, you don't know this, do you? Actually, this chess game was invented by Ye Chengan, and it became very popular in the Northern Territory as soon as it was introduced."

"Also, do you know why he beat you in archery just now? Actually, he's never studied archery at all, but he invented a crossbow. That crossbow is amazing; it's equipped with a winch, a coil mechanism, and a scope, allowing even complete beginners who've never touched an arrow to hit the target every time!"

"What? He invented chess? And the crossbow..." Zhao Ji'an's gaze towards Ye Cheng'an instantly changed from initial disbelief to shock.

Zhao Xuefu retorted arrogantly, "Otherwise, do you think he could have defeated 100,000 Xiongnu cavalry in just a few months in Liuzhou? How could he have recruited over 200,000 soldiers? How could he have fought his way back to the royal court and become the King of the Northern Territory?"

"Therefore, he is the only husband I have ever chosen in this life! Your Majesty, please don't even think about him."

Zhao Xuefu had made her intention to protect him perfectly clear.

Zhao Ji'an sighed softly, "Actually, I really had no intention of attacking the Northern Border. The reason I led this army to the Northern Border was initially to see you and to relieve the urgent crisis in Liuzhou. But we had only been away from the capital for three days when we heard..."

"My father has been imprisoned by three powerful factions in the court, and treacherous officials are in power. The dynasty is about to change."

"I came to the Northern Territory to seek reinforcements, but considering that the Northern Territory has just undergone a transition between the old and new regimes... I was also worried that the Northern Territory lacked the strength, so I did not reveal my intentions."

Three treacherous officials plotting rebellion?

Ye Cheng'an narrowed his eyes slightly. "If the Crown Prince has come for this matter, then I'm sorry, but I cannot use the lives of the Northern Border soldiers to help you quell the rebellion."

"However, I might be able to provide you with some weapons and strategic guidelines, and become your strategist."

"However, there's no such thing as a free lunch. If this succeeds, what benefits will the Crown Prince bring to the Northern Territory?"