He Hongluo escorted, or rather, guarded Qi Xiao all the way back to the capital, truly worried the entire journey. He was afraid that if he was careless for a moment, Qi Xiao would escape. He had been ordered by the Emperor to capture Bairen but failed, and if he also let the Crown Prince who had committed the "crime of colluding with the enemy" escape, then upon returning to the capital, even if he had ten heads, it would not be enough for the Emperor to chop off.

To He Hongluo's surprise, Qi Xiao was very well-behaved along the way, never panicking or scheming to escape. As Qi Xiao knelt in the middle of the great hall, He Hongluo looked at him and shook his head. It wasn't that Qi Xiao wasn't nervous, but rather, he was completely at ease the entire journey!

That day after they drew swords against each other, Qi Xiao was like a reborn Asura, holding a blood-stained long saber, confronting He Hongluo for three hours. When he estimated that Bairen had escaped back to the Lingnan capital, he actually put down his saber, gave He Hongluo a cold smile, and said, "No need to be afraid anymore, the Prince has left. This Crown Prince will not kill you."

At that time, He Hongluo nearly coughed up blood from anger at Qi Xiao's words. Qi Xiao had committed a heinous crime, yet not only did He Hongluo not intimidate him, Qi Xiao even had the audacity to mock him!

Afterwards, Qi Xiao became even more arrogant to the extreme. Since they were no longer in urgent pursuit, he said they could not continue to sleep outdoors and travel wearily. Along the way, he had to eat the best local dishes and stay in the best local manors, not allowing the slightest error. One night when the bedding was not fine silk, Qi Xiao directly tossed the quilt on the ground with a wave of his hand and ordered He Hongluo to go to the silk shop to get him quilt covers.

He Hongluo was driven to distraction by Qi Xiao's orders. When he couldn't bear it anymore, he occasionally said, "Who knows what will happen in the future, yet you still act so arrogantly now."

Before he finished speaking, Qi Xiao's personal guard slapped He Hongluo across the face with such force that he nearly knocked out He Hongluo's back teeth!

As for Qi Xiao, he smiled, took out a silk handkerchief to wipe the corner of his mouth, and said lightly, "The phoenix only perches on the wutong tree, only eats the finest grains, and only drinks from the clearest springs... General He, people are born different. This Crown Prince thinks you will never understand the principle behind this. So this Crown Prince will tell you something simple - this Crown Prince... is still the Crown Prince. However this Crown Prince wants you to act, you must act that way. Now, do you understand?"

He Hongluo was choked by Qi Xiao's words until his face turned purple, unable to speak, and left in a huff.

He Hongluo endured anger the entire journey. Now that they had finally returned to the capital, He Hongluo let out a big sigh of relief, inwardly sneering. If Qi Xiao was so capable, then he should exonerate himself! If he really escaped punishment this time, then He Hongluo would truly admire him!

After the Emperor quietly listened to He Hongluo finish speaking, he coldly looked at Qi Xiao and said sternly, "Crown Prince, is everything He Hongluo said true?"

Qi Xiao looked directly at the Emperor and said indifferently, "It's true."

The Emperor slammed the table and angrily rebuked, "Unfilial son!"

The ministers in the hall hurriedly knelt down and said in unison, "Your Majesty, quell your anger."

Only Qi Xiao did not kneel. There was not a trace of fear on his face. He turned his head and said to his personal guard outside the hall, "Bring the secret report."

The guard entered the hall, holding a blood-stained letter with both hands. The Emperor frowned and turned to look at Fu Hailu. Fu Hailu walked down the golden steps, took the secret report, and presented it to the Emperor.

The Emperor was full of doubts as he opened the letter. After reading it, his expression became solemn. He raised his head, frowned and asked, "Is this true?"

Qi Xiao said lightly, "The letter was given to me by Bairen. It was also because he received this that he was in such a hurry to return to Lingnan."

The Emperor was half-believing and half-doubting. The Prime Minister couldn't hold back anymore and stepped forward, saying, "Your Majesty, may I ask what the letter says?"

The Emperor handed the letter to Fu Hailu. "Read it."

After Fu Hailu read it aloud, the entire court was shocked.

Li Wenxing's face turned pale. "This letter... could it be that the King of the Western Barbarians wrote it to Dongling Wenyu?"

Everyone looked at Qi Xiao. Qi Xiao was still calm and shook his head. "I'm not certain."

If Qi Xiao had been absolutely certain, people might have been even more skeptical. But Qi Xiao also appeared doubtful, so they had to suspect that... it was probably true.

Qi Xiao slowly said, "I'm not certain, but this is undoubtedly the tone of the King of the Western Barbarians. Ever since the incident, I have been suspicious. Dongling Wenyu had just come to the capital three months ago. Everyone knows his temperament, so I don't need to say it. Does he have the courage to kill his father and seize the throne? If it weren't for the King of the Western Barbarians secretly instigating him and having the Western Barbarians as backing, would he dare to rebel?"

Qi Xiao looked at Zhou Deyi. "Lord Zhou was once the military governor of Lingnan Circuit. You should understand the situation in the south better than me. If the Western Barbarians join hands with Lingnan, wouldn't the two sides complement each other and become even more formidable?"

Zhou Deyi was suddenly called out and was startled. He hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, what the Crown Prince said about the south is not false. Lingnan and the Western Barbarians are poised against each other like the horns of an ox. If they join forces, it would indeed be troublesome."

Qi Xiao continued, "I don't know if this is really true or not. I only know that if this letter is real, if this great calamity is really being manipulated by the King of the Western Barbarians behind the scenes, then even if Your Majesty dispatches 30,000 troops, I'm afraid they would go out but not return."

"Bairen is different from Wenyu. He was personally conferred as the heir by Your Majesty. He could have succeeded the throne smoothly without having to bear the crime of treason against the country. So I believe what he says."

"I originally wanted to personally capture Bairen on the battlefield. Who knew he would keep avoiding me. At that time, I sensed something was wrong. When I subdued him under his horse, Bairen gave me the secret report and explained everything.

"After Wenyu rebelled, Bairen' former study companion Cen Chaoge risked his life to seize this secret letter from the civil official and brought it out, giving it to Bairen. Bairen immediately decided to return to Lingnan, determined to clean house before Wenyu could join hands with the Western Barbarians and kill this unfilial and unrighteous person. Only in this way could he comfort the King of Lingnan in the afterlife and spare the people of the southern frontier from the suffering of chaos and war. After weighing the options, I let Bairen go."

Qi Xiao looked straight at the Emperor, his brows clear and eyes bright. "This subject is willing to bear the crime of disobeying military orders, but absolutely refuses to allow the calamity of the Western Barbarians to be brought to our Great Xiang!"

Although the ministers usually formed factions for personal gain and schemed against each other, they all held the same stance when facing foreign enemies. As soon as Qi Xiao said this, many ministers who had only half-believed him now believed him fully.

He Hongluo knelt in the center of the great hall, almost dumbfounded. After a long while, he suddenly said, "No! Your Majesty, that's not right! What the Crown Prince said to this subject on the battlefield was not like this at all! The Crown Prince said he had long wanted to let the heir go, but was afraid that if he let him go too early, it would provoke Your Majesty to send people to pursue him again, so he only took action after reaching the southern frontier. He... he said exactly that! So many people heard it and saw it. This subject cannot be lying!"

The Emperor looked deeply at Qi Xiao. "Crown Prince, how do you explain what Official He said?"

Qi Xiao chuckled lightly and turned to look at He Honglu, "Such a secret, if I don't risk my life to keep it, should I shout it out loudly on the battlefield? Minister He, have you gone mad? We were less than 300 miles from Lingnan at that time! If we accidentally let the Westerners know that the secret was leaked, they would immediately send someone to kill Bairen and his group. At that time... Lingnan would truly fall into the hands of the Westerners!"

Qi Xiao looked at the Emperor, "If it wasn't to conceal the information, I would have wanted to accompany the heir to kill all the way to Lingnan! It's just that firstly, I thought we shouldn't casually interfere in Lingnan's affairs, so as not to make it difficult for Your Majesty in the future. Secondly, I thought... after all, this is the family matter of the Dongling clan. If we rashly help, it will inevitably leave a handle for the future, so I didn't make a fuss."

Qi Xiao turned his head to He Honglu's face and asked, "If I let Bairen go out of personal considerations, why didn't I go back with him to fight?"

He Hongluo was speechless, and stammered, "I... I still have a thousand soldiers in my hands, you know you can't beat me..."

"Minister He, watch your words!" Zhang Yushi from the Censorate sternly rebuked, "In the great hall, it's simply confusing right and wrong, how can you say that to the Crown Prince?!"

He Hongluo quickly lowered his head, not daring to say another word.

Qi Xiao continued, "This secret letter, from the paper, to the ink marks, to the handwriting, are all evidence. If someone doesn't believe it, they can send it to the Court of Judicial Review and let them thoroughly investigate to see if I'm lying! I let Bairen go back because he can uphold righteousness, take charge of Lingnan, and draw a clear boundary with the Westerners. Only in this way can we avoid a great disaster! More than ten days have passed now, whether it's right or wrong, there will be a conclusion in the future!"

Qi Xiao knelt down and said coldly, "Although I have a clear conscience this time, I know I am guilty of acting before reporting. I ask Your Majesty to punish me!"

Zhou Deyi hesitated for a moment before stepping out, "Your Majesty, although the Crown Prince was a bit reckless, there was a reason for it after all. I hope Your Majesty will think twice."

Zhou Deyi had stayed in the south for most of his life, and no one was clearer than him about how great a threat it would be if the Westerners and Lingnan joined hands.

Many senior officials also came out to plead for Qi Xiao. Slowly, the hall was filled with kneeling people. Although the Emperor was half believing and half doubting in his heart, he couldn't severely punish Qi Xiao at this juncture. Moreover, the Emperor was very flustered in his heart.

Just now, Fu Hailu had already taken the secret letter to the side hall to find someone to examine it, and it was indeed flawless. The Emperor feared war the most in his life. At this moment, he was secretly hoping that Bairen would successfully take the throne. In that case, he could punish Qi Xiao slightly and let it go, as long as they don't really fight...

The Emperor looked at Qi Xiao. He didn't dare to use force, not only because he was not good at it and had no trusted generals under him, but also because... the Emperor was afraid that the imperial city would be empty, giving Qi Xiao a chance to directly usurp the throne. He was also afraid that after a great battle, the soldiers in the army would still remember the benefits of Emperor Wu back then, and they would not return with their troops, but would force him to pass the throne to Qi Xiao!

Moreover... would Qi Xiao really be willing to take such a big risk for Bairen?

The Emperor didn't believe it.

Seeing that almost everyone in the hall had knelt down to plead for Qi Xiao, the Emperor had no choice but to wave his hand and say, "Enough! First, confine the Crown Prince to the Crown Prince's Manor, and the rest will be discussed later!"

He Hongluo slumped to the ground. Just... letting it go so lightly? With a few words, Qi Xiao overturned the case against himself and also cleared Bairen's crime of escaping. They... had become meritorious people?

Qi Xiao glanced at He Hongluo from the corner of his eye, sneering in his heart. Back then, when Emperor Wu was on a northern expedition against the Di people, he made decisions in the command tent and won victories thousands of miles away. He never fought a battle without preparation. As for Qi Xiao, the son of the God of War Emperor Wu, he was even better.

As for the secret letter that was already prepared in the imperial city, Qi Xiao smiled faintly in his heart. He was confident that no one could find any flaws in it. If they had the ability, they could go and confront the Western King themselves.