The number one rebel of the Great Wu

Upon hearing this, Shen Qingci pursed her lips tightly.

Clearly, she had already made up her mind.

"However, even so, there's no need to depose the crown prince!"

Shen Qingci knew that the matter of deposing the crown prince had dealt a huge blow to Xiao Lie.

He fell ill after returning from the palace today, and even now that he's awake, he's listless and won't see anyone.

"If the crown prince is not deposed, he will be in great danger even if he doesn't go out to lead troops into battle."

"I estimate that His Majesty will find an excuse to leave the capital for a tour next."

"As for the affairs of the court, they will be handled by the Third Prince."

"Let Xiao Ce oversee the country?"

Shen Qingci gasped in shock.

"You should know that His Majesty has been on the throne for so many years, and he has always kept the affairs of the court in his own hands."

"Even though the Crown Prince has never had the power to oversee the country all these years, how could he so easily hand it over to Xiao Ce?"

Chen Changgeng shook his head.

"Do you know how many troops we'll need to send on this expedition against the Di tribes and the Japanese, and how much food we'll need to prepare?"

Although this matter still needs to be discussed in detail by the senior officials and the three prime ministers before a decision can be made, past experiences can be used as a reference.

"If we really have to go to war with the Di people and the Japanese, then my Shen family and the Jiang family on the frontier will definitely have to take action."

"There are 150,000 troops here, and the imperial court will also send another force, which will be at least 200,000."

"Based on the minimum standard, it consumes at least one million taels of silver per month, and the total cost of grain and fodder is also a staggering one million taels."

As expected of someone from a military family, Shen Qingci was very knowledgeable about the events that followed.

Once a war of this scale is launched, even if it's just a brief encounter, the opposing side will collapse within six months.

If we really needed to raise food and money, we would at least prepare for a year's worth first...

"Preparing tens of millions of taels of grain and silver with the full strength of the nation is no easy task."

"Moreover, this is under the current circumstances of the Great Wu Dynasty."

"This battle is enough to empty the Third Prince Xiao Ce's personal savings completely."

"Tell me, if we ask the Third Prince Xiao Ce to pay such a high price, would he agree without offering him some reward?"

Chen Changgeng smiled and asked in return.

Shen Qingci took a deep breath, a hint of fear in her eyes.

"Right now, I just feel that His Majesty's thoughts are terrifying."

"And you, to have foreseen this far, is even more terrifying!"

Chen Changgeng grinned.

"Thank you for the compliment, Your Highness!"

With Chen Changgeng's words, Shen Qingci was finally completely relieved.

"Oh, by the way, the Jiang family is leaving the capital tomorrow to go back home."

"A few days ago you returned to Jiangxia with me, and the Jiang family came several times but did not see you."

"Why don't you go and pay a visit on my behalf later, so that the Jiang family can also feel at ease?"

The Crown Prince lost face in the main hall today, so Chen Changgeng naturally needs to appease the Jiang family.

Otherwise, the Jiang family would be used by the Third Prince Xiao Ce to fight against the Japanese pirates. The Third Prince Xiao Ce would take the opportunity to send them a large amount of grain and silver, thus winning over the hearts of the people.

That would be extremely disadvantageous for the Crown Prince.

She believed that Chen Changgeng's words were worth a thousand armies!

Chen Changgeng smiled slightly, agreed, cupped his hands in greeting, and withdrew.

As soon as Chen Changgeng left, Ru Shuang came up to him.

"Your Highness, I didn't expect this young Gengzi to be so capable!"

Ru Shuang also realized that Chen Changgeng's words had saved Shen Qingci's unborn child.

After all, this is the bloodline of the Shen family. If something goes wrong, both she and Ruyi will be implicated.

"Yes, when I took him out of prison, I never expected him to be so capable."

"He is not only talented in literature, but also knowledgeable in military, political and national affairs."

"He's an absolute genius. It would be a waste to keep such a talent for the Crown Prince."

Shen Qingci didn't say anything more after that.

She and the Crown Prince had already developed a rift, and what followed speaks for itself.

Just then, Steward Lin rushed in in a panic.

"Your Highness, the Third Prince has sent a servant with a letter."

"It's for you!"

Shen Qingci frowned and beckoned.

Ru Shuang immediately went over, took the letter, and respectfully handed it to Shen Qingci.

Shen Qingci's face turned pale when she saw the words "Qingci's Personal Address" written in large, beautiful characters. She immediately sensed something was wrong.

He immediately tore open the envelope and glanced at it.

"You bastard!"

Shen Qingci glanced at it and instantly crumpled the letter into a ball!

Startled, Ru Shuang quickly waved her hand, telling Steward Lin to get out of there.

"Your Highness, what's wrong? Why are you so angry?"

"Xiao Ce, this..."

Shen Qingci's beautiful eyes flashed with anger, but she didn't say anything for a long time.

He said that the crown prince had been deposed and that the situation was hopeless, and told me to leave the crown prince and join his faction.

"He will definitely treat me well..."

Ru Shuang was dumbfounded.

No matter what, Shen Qingci is his sister-in-law.

This second brother is still alive, yet he's already so concerned about his sister-in-law, openly sending her letters.

That's way too outrageous!

"Should we tell the Crown Prince about this?"

Ru Shuang made a foolish move.

Shen Qingci frowned and glared at her.

"What are you saying?"

"Do you really think he came for me?"

"He did it for the Shen family!"

"If this angers the Crown Prince and he does something outrageous, wouldn't that give him leverage against us again?"

Ru Shuang nodded meekly.

"Let him be smug, let him be smug all he wants!"

"Once this matter is over, I will settle things with him properly!"

Shen Qingci clenched her fists and suddenly turned her head.

"Ruyi, reply."

"Just say that I am pregnant with a child of the Xiao family..."

"No, let's forget about it."

Shen Qingci almost ruined the plan by a hair's breadth, but fortunately she was much smarter than the Crown Prince and immediately came to her senses.

……

The Jiang family was admitted to the hospital.

The Third Prince walked out with a leisurely expression.

He had just finished visiting General Jiang when he saw a familiar figure walking towards him.

"Master, it's that little eunuch!"

Li Guang, who was standing next to the Crown Prince, immediately whispered a reminder.

The Third Prince's eyes narrowed.

Today is His Majesty's birthday, and the Crown Prince has brought Chen Changgeng with him again.

The Third Prince Xiao Ce was all too familiar with this face.

In his attempt to assassinate him, he lost Ziyuan, whose whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

He also ordered his spies planted in the Crown Prince's residence to search for them, but the spies simply vanished into thin air, which was truly bizarre.

Could it be that this kid has a powerful protector in secret?

"Li Guang, are you sure this kid doesn't know any martial arts?"

The Third Prince asked a question.

"Last time I fought him, I was just a hair's breadth away from killing him."

"His expression was panicked, and he didn't fight with the younger one, so he probably doesn't know martial arts."

Li Guang answered cautiously.

Xiao Ce frowned and pondered for a moment.

Since this person enjoys the trust of Shen Qingci and the Crown Prince, it is not impossible that Shen Qingci would send someone to protect him.

It seems that Shion is truly broken.

Xiao Ce felt a pang of heartache, but was also a little worried.

"Let's go up and test the waters!"