We'll have you impersonate the Crown Prince and create a prosperous era for the Great Qian Dyna

The morning assembly ended, but the people did not leave.

On the contrary, the Qiankun Palace has never been this lively before.

Shi Cheng shouted at Sun Tong.

"Brother Sun, I won't let you off this time!"

Hou Feng, who was standing to the side, also sneered.

"When it comes to training troops, I'm miles ahead of you!"

Although the group has a good relationship in private, it's only because they share the same plight.

After retiring from the battlefield, they became watchdogs in Kyoto. The people of Kyoto did not accept them, and they could not squeeze into the circle of civil officials. So they had no choice but to band together.

Now that an opportunity to go to the battlefield is right in front of them, how could they possibly let it go?

Several people immediately signed up to participate.

The two names at the very top are Crown Prince Zhou Tiancheng and the Third Prince Zhou Tianze!

In a corner of the main hall, Qin Zhi'ang instructed several officials from the Ministry of Rites to register the information. He then quietly slipped out of the hall and waved to Zhou Qingyang, who was not far away.

"Now that the Crown Prince has agreed to participate in the military training, you may go and prepare."

"Spend more money these next few days to find out where the Crown Prince plans to recruit men. Spend money to bribe a few assassins and you can take action on the day of the battle."

Zhou Qingyang nodded slightly.

That was his plan too.

But the next moment, Qin Zhiang leaned close to his ear and spoke in a low voice.

"Make sure the beginning and end are handled cleanly, let the crown prince die directly in the chaos of battle. Only success is allowed, failure is not an option."

Zhou Qingyang's hand suddenly trembled.

He was scared!

Zhou Qingyang's true purpose was to find a way to make the Crown Prince fall off his horse, or to take the opportunity to beat him up.

After all, he didn't want to make a big fuss. If he were discovered, murdering the crown prince would be a capital offense!

But now Qin Zhi'ang is actually planning to use him to get rid of the crown prince?

How could Zhou Qingyang not be afraid?

Qin Zhi'ang merely glanced at him indifferently.

"What? Now you're scared?"

"It's too late!"

"Zhou Qingyang, you must understand, plotting against the Crown Prince means death, and murdering the Crown Prince also means death. You have no choice!"

Zhou Qingyang broke out in a cold sweat.

The sunlight shone on him, but he felt no warmth at all.

What can he do?

This world will belong to the Third Prince Zhou Tianze sooner or later.

If he doesn't take action today, it will be Qin Zhi'ang's turn to cause him trouble in the future.

"You son of a bitch, Qin Zhi'ang, you are so cruel!"

"You treat me like a pawn, while you reap the benefits from behind the scenes. Do you really think I'll listen to you so easily?"

Zhou Qingyang grew angrier the more he thought about it, but after much deliberation, he decided to do as Qin Zhiang said.

After all, he also had his own principles.

The Crown Prince is utterly hopeless. If he sides with the Crown Prince, he will only suffer a more miserable death in the end. It would be better for him to follow Qin Zhi'ang to the bitter end.

Upon returning to his residence, Zhou Qingyang immediately dispatched his trusted confidants to the Eastern Palace to gather information.

What was Chou Tien-cheng doing at this time?

Buy people.

There's nothing I can do!

When Shi Chenghou and others went out to recruit soldiers, they waved their hands and a large number of ambitious young people were waiting for them to choose from.

But when they heard that it was the Crown Prince recruiting soldiers, not a single person signed up.

So he turned around and took Steward Liu to the brokerage to buy people.

You don't know until you buy it, and only after buying it do you realize that something is wrong.

Not enough money!

There wasn't much money on the books to begin with, but the slaves in the brokerage firm, strong and healthy men who met the standards for soldiers, cost ten taels of silver each.

Do we need to collect five hundred men like that?

It will cost a full five thousand taels of silver!

There was only a small amount left in the accounts. After distributing a portion of the salaries to the palace maids, eunuchs, and guards of the Eastern Palace, the cash in the treasury was less than a thousand taels of silver.

How do I buy 500 qualified soldiers?

"I'm not buying any more! Not a single one! This is all my money!"

Zhou Tiancheng began to feel sorry for him.

Manager Liu whispered words of comfort from the side.

"Your Highness, the money should be spent where necessary!"

"If all else fails, how about we sell another batch of ferocious beasts from the Classic of Mountains and Seas?"

Zhou Tiancheng shook his head.

"I have another way, without spending a single copper coin!"

Manager Liu was stunned for a moment.

Are they planning to steal someone?

It should be noted that, for the sake of fairness, Zhou Rui had already given an order that no one, except for those at the centurion level, was allowed to be selected from the army.

But now, if they need to capture five hundred people at once, the only way is to snatch them from the army. Chief Steward Liu can't think of any other way.

But Zhou Tiancheng didn't think that way at all!

He leaned close to Steward Liu and whispered something.

"Am I not the Prefect of the Capital now? I remember the Capital Prefecture holds quite a few prisoners, doesn't it?"

"We'll choose from this group of prisoners!"

"If they win, we'll give them a reward and some favors; but if they lose, I'll take their heads!"

"At that point, it will be difficult for us not to win!"

Manager Liu was stunned.

How could someone even come up with such a method?

His Majesty's order was that people could not be selected from the army, but he never said that people could not be selected from prisons.

Now there is only one major problem left: whether the Jingzhao Prefecture has enough prisoners!

The two hurriedly arrived at the Jingzhao Prefecture, went directly to the Vice Magistrate to ask for the roster, and then counted them.

very good!

There are quite a few people who steal chickens and dogs, and cheat and swindle!

"Choose! Choose the strong one!"

"Also, Lao Liu, quickly send someone back to the East Palace and have them summon all the guards there."

"A group of criminals, without the use of force to suppress them, I don't know what kind of trouble they would cause."

Manager Liu was somewhat worried.

"Then what about your safety, Your Highness?"

Zhou Tiancheng waved his hand.

"I won't be living at the Eastern Palace anymore; I'll be staying at the military camp until the training is over!"

Manager Liu felt that this was somewhat risky.

But they simply couldn't find anyone.

To save those five thousand taels of silver, I'll take the risk.

He found a clever young eunuch and quickly sent him back to the East Palace to gather manpower.

On the other side, Zhou Tiancheng and Steward Liu began selecting people one by one in the prison cells.

In the end, the result could only be described as barely acceptable.

Not everyone is physically strong, but at least they have some redeeming qualities in terms of bravery and aggression.

When the young eunuch returned with his men, he brought along an unexpected person.

Zheng Ye'er!

Upon receiving the report, Zhou Tiancheng walked out of the prison with a blank expression.

"What are you doing here?"

Zheng Ye'er was somewhat dissatisfied.

The Crown Prince's attitude towards her is terrible. Couldn't he be a little nicer?

She gave a disgruntled snort.

"My father has already had the armor-piercing spikes made overnight, and he wants you to take a look and see if there are any shortcomings."

Zhou Tiancheng shook his head.

"Let's wait a while, I'll be very busy right now."

Zheng Ye'er looked at him suspiciously.

Is the Crown Prince very busy?

Are you busy playing around with women?

"What kind of look is that?"

Zhou Tiancheng glared at her back, annoyed, but considering that Zheng Ye'er might be the future Crown Princess, he still offered an explanation.

"Haven't you heard about the important events that happened in court today?"

"The imperial court is preparing to have all departments sign up for military training, and the winner will be allowed to lead troops to the northern frontier. I'm busy training troops!"

It would have been better if these words hadn't been said; once they were out, Zheng Ye'er's eyes lit up!