Chapter 223: I Didn’t Expect Ye Ping To Be The Tenth Prince

　　The Great Xia Dynasty.

　　In the Heart-Nurturing Palace.

　　The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty seemed to be a little silent after hearing what Taishang Xuanji said.

　　According to what Taishang Xuanji meant, Su Changyu seemed to have already guessed something. He reckoned that he was his son.

　　At the thought of this, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty was both guilty and upset.

　　“What happened afterwards?”

　　The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty asked.

　　“What happened afterwards? I sent one of my servants to ask around. He said that Changyu is coming to the capital.”

　　Taishang Xuanji suggested.

　　His words further confirmed the suspicion that the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty had.

　　However, when he learned that Su Changyu was coming to the capital, he couldn’t help but be excited.

　　“Changyu is coming to the capital?”

　　“What is he coming to the capital for?”

　　“How many people are with him?”

　　“Is he coming alone?”

　　The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty asked several questions in a row, which was beyond Taishang Xuanji’s knowledge. The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty was losing his composure because of how anxious he was.

　　That was not the reaction that an emperor should be having.

　　If it were someone else, he might not be able to understand the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty, but Taishang Xuanji could understand.

　　After all, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty’s most beloved woman was the Tenth Prince’s biological mother. Besides, the Tenth Prince was quite pitiful too.

　　After all, a prince should have been born to enjoy a luxurious life, but he ended up being stranded among the people like an orphan.

　　Not only was he treated with disdain, but he also lived in harsh conditions and had to work everyday. Which father in the world could bear with that? Which father in the world wouldn’t feel guilty?

　　In Taishang Xuanji’s opinion, the reason that the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty doted on Su Changyu so much was because of the guilt he felt towards the Tenth Prince’s mother.

　　However, he also understood very well that the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty would not replace the Crown Prince just because of this.

　　That was the reason he taught the Crown Prince not to act rashly. The throne still belonged to Xia Qian for now, but if he acted brazenly without restraint, it might be hard to say.

　　“Your Majesty, Changyu is indeed coming to the capital.”

　　“Your Majesty, I’m guessing that he just wants closure. After all, even if you want to conceal this matter, I’m afraid Changyu won’t want to.”

　　“I heard from my servant that he’s here alone.”

　　Taishang Xuanji said.

　　“He came alone? Will he encounter any danger then?”

　　“Is the security tight in Jin Nation?”

　　“Will someone harbor ill intentions and plot against him? Xuanji, why didn’t you send anyone to protect him in secret?”

　　When the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty heard that Su Changyu had come alone, he immediately couldn’t help but holler at Taishang Xuanji.

　　He thought that Taishang Xuanji was too incompetent and had failed in his duties.

　　Taishang Xuanji was a little dumbfounded.

　　‘How can you blame me?’

　　‘How can you blame me for this?’

　　‘I didn’t know that Su Changyu is coming to see you.’

　　‘Besides, will he encounter any danger when he comes to the capital alone?’

　　‘When the Crown Prince wanted to take some generals with him to the frontier, you refused to let him do so and now that Su Changyu is coming, you want to protect him?’

　　‘Your Majesty, you’re really biased.’

　　The bewildered Taishang Xuanji dared not say a single word and had no choice but to hang his head low.

　　“Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I have failed to do a good job.”

　　Taishang Xuanji lowered his head and said so.

　　He couldn’t help it because he was the subject of the emperor. If the emperor wanted him dead, there was nothing he could do. The emperor would never be wrong.

　　“Hmph, Xuanji, you are really getting old. You didn’t even think of that. Hurry up and send people to escort Changyu.”

　　The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty was indeed somewhat angry as Taishang Xuanji could tell.

　　He didn’t say anything and hurriedly excused himself.

　　After Taishang Xuanji left, the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty couldn’t help but smile and mutter.

　　“I didn’t expect my son to have guessed his identity so quickly. What a bright boy.”

　　The emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty was overjoyed.

　　However, at this moment…

　　In the Crown Prince’s hall.

　　During this period of time, the Crown Prince had indeed been greatly restrained. He was sitting alone in the hall without moving, looking very much at peace.

　　However, at this moment, in the middle of the great hall.

　　A figure appeared in front of the Crown Prince.

　　He knelt before Xia Qian, looking extremely respectful.

　　“Your Highness, the matter has been settled. According to some insider news, His Majesty had indeed passed through the Baiyun Ancient City some days ago, and he ended up going to somewhere called Qingyun Dao Sect.”

　　The other party knelt on the ground and said so.

　　“Qingyun Dao Sect? Why does it sound familiar?”

　　Xia Qian frowned slightly. He was seated and reading the calligraphy in front of him.

　　“Your Highness, the Qingyun Dao Sect is only a sect that has recently been promoted to the third rank. However, they produced impressive talent.”

　　The other party replied.

　　“Who’s that impressive talent?”

　　Xia Qian asked curiously.

　　“Your Highness, that person’s name is Ye Ping. He’s a student of the Jin Academy, and this time, he even came in first place in the Ten Nations Grand Tournament. He even became a great Confucian of heaven and earth by writing a supreme essay.”

　　“However, Ye Ping somehow chose not to enter the Ten Nations Academy despite having clinched first place in the Ten Nations Grand Tournament. Instead, he went back to his sect. The timing happens to be the time that His Majesty went to Baiyun Ancient City.”

　　As soon as he said that, Xia Qian’s gaze became menacing.

　　“Ye Ping? It’s actually him?”

　　‘He clinched the first place in the Ten Nations Grand Tournament, wrote a supreme essay, and became a great Confucian of heaven and earth. Yet, he didn’t join the Ten Nations Academy?’

　　‘There’s obviously something wrong with this.’

　　‘He ran into the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty as soon as he returned to the Qingyun Dao Sect?’

　　‘Father has obviously found the Tenth Prince a long time ago.’

　　Besides, to his surprise, he actually knew the Tenth Prince and even tried to poach Ye Ping.

　　‘This is really… ridiculous.’

　　“Go check up on Ye Ping. I want the information about him within an hour’s time.”

　　Xia Qian told them to investigate Ye Ping.

　　“Yes.”

　　The latter disappeared right on the spot.

　　An hour later, some information indeed appeared in front of him.

　　Xia Qian looked carefully at the information, which was obtained not only through the powerful intelligence agencies of the Great Xia Dynasty, but also some of the power of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion.

　　However, Xia Qian did a good job at keeping it a secret. He did not recruit people using his personal name and instead got his subordinate to send their subordinate to do it.

　　Even if others discovered that it was him, he would at most mention the matter of the non-poisonous pill.

　　Although Taishang Xuanji told him not to continue to participate in this matter, how could he not?

　　He would never forget everything that happened on the day that the Tenth Prince was born.

　　All these years, he had been diligent, and regardless of how his father reprimanded him, he had no complaints.

　　The reason being he knew that his father was doing it for his own good and wanted to raise him to be the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty.

　　However, at this moment, Xia Qian felt that things were not that simple.

　　His father had always been thinking about the Tenth Prince.

　　If he had learned of this matter ten or twenty years ago, Xia Qian would have nothing to say.

　　However, things are different now.

　　He had worked hard for decades and was about to succeed the throne very soon.

　　Who could accept the sudden appearance of the Tenth Prince if they were in his place?

　　Who could stand it?

　　He was indignant.

　　He really was.

　　Xia Qian scrutinized the information on the table.

　　Fifteen minutes later, Xia Qian fell completely silent.

　　Most of the information about Ye Ping was recorded on it.

　　At the mere age of 24 years old, he had the ability to suppress the elites of the Ten Nations and even write a supreme essay.

　　He was obviously the Tenth Prince.

　　Rumor had it that the Tenth Prince had unparalleled luck and could bring about endless fortune to the Great Xia Dynasty.

　　Of course he would be able to suppress the elites of the Ten Nations at the age of 24 years old.

　　Thinking about what happened before, Xia Qian couldn’t help but smile at that moment.

　　He smiled.

　　“Uncle, I didn’t expect you to have hidden this.”

　　At this moment, Xia Qian was already sure that Ye Ping was the legendary Tenth Prince.

　　Not only was he the Tenth Prince, but he also had unparalleled aptitude and luck.

　　Even he was a little inferior to Ye Ping.

　　‘If Ye Ping isn’t the Tenth Prince, why would he choose not to go to the Ten Nations Academy despite having trumped the elites of the Ten Nations?’

　　‘Why did he insist on returning to the sect? It’s obviously because Father doesn’t want Ye Ping’s identity to continue being exposed.’

　　‘Besides, why did Ye Ping run into Father as soon as he returned to the sect?’

　　‘Clearly, the two of them met long ago and everyone is just kept in the dark.’

　　‘Uncle obviously knew about this, but he chose not to tell me because he’s scared that I might do something I shouldn’t.’

　　At the thought of this, Xia Qian couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

　　Immediately afterwards, he could not help but fall into deep thought.

　　He did not say anything. The person who came to report dared not say anything either.

　　He could only wait quietly.

　　After a long while, Xia Qian spoke up.

　　“Make a trip to the Qingyun Dao Sect and ambush nearby. Find out everything about their sect and the origin of each and every member. Do you understand?”

　　After saying that, Xia Qian fell silent.

　　“Yes.”

　　The latter dared not ask any more questions, nor did he want to ask anything more. Hence, he turned around and left.

　　After he left, Xia Qian fell into deep thought.

　　He knew that his father favored the Tenth Prince. Otherwise, he couldn’t have concealed the Tenth Prince’s identity.

　　It was because his father was scared that the Tenth Prince would be assassinated once his identity was exposed.

　　Hence, the Tenth Prince was his father’s weakness.

　　He was extremely clear about it.

　　If the Tenth Prince did not die, he would never be able to sit firmly on his throne.

　　Although his uncle, Taishang Xuanji, had said a lot of things, there was only one sentence of his that Xia Qian kept thinking about.

　　“I will support the Crown Prince.”

　　Although that sentence didn’t sound problematic, it was actually the most problematic thing that Taishang Xuanji said.

　　The reason being he was now the Crown Prince, but it would be hard to guarantee if he could continue being the Crown Prince in the future.

　　What would happen if his father really removed him from the throne and let the Tenth Prince replace him as Crown Prince?

　　If that happened, his uncle would support the new Crown Prince.

　　Besides, Taishang Xuanji was his uncle and the chancellor of the Great Xia Dynasty. He was subordinate to the emperor, not him.

　　The battle for the throne of the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty was not a trivial matter.

　　It was something that the other four dynasties would pay attention to.

　　Initially, he was supposed to ascend the throne in the earliest, by ten years, and the latest, by twenty years. He was set to become the youngest emperor to rule the Great Xia Dynasty and the youngest emperor in the world.

　　Being a young emperor was also a type of honor.

　　However, the Tenth Prince’s appearance had ruined his plans and made him flustered.

　　Time passed bit by bit.

　　In the blink of an eye, it was late at night.

　　The sky was as dark as ink.

　　Xia Qian was sitting cross-legged in the main hall with an ancient lamp in front of him.

　　The light was red and it seemed extremely peculiar.

　　When the ancient lamp was lit up, Xia Qian closed his eyes immediately.

　　Next, in a space of voidness, he opened his eyes.

　　Xia Qian opened his eyes.

　　Soon, a figure appeared in this space.

　　“Brother Xia, what is it that you are looking for me?”

　　The figure that appeared was rather majestic and his face could not be seen clearly, but his presence alone gave off an indescribable sense of oppression.

　　He was the crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty and the most famous crown prince of the five dynasties.

　　The crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty was known as a talent with the aptitude of the True Dragon whose literary and martial arts proficiency was the best in the Great Ze Dynasty. He was the best elite in the Great Ze Dynasty whose tactics were also top-notch.

　　Hence, Xia Qian was obviously subservient when facing the Crown Prince of the Great Ze Dynasty.

　　“Greetings, Brother Ji.”

　　Xia Qian first bowed to him slightly.

　　He then said, “Brother Ji, to be honest, I might have encountered some trouble.”

　　Xia Qian cut straight to the chase.

　　“Trouble? You must be joking, Brother Xia. You’re the crown prince of the Great Xia Dynasty, what kind of trouble can you encounter?”

　　The other party asked curiously.

　　“The Tenth Prince has appeared.”

　　The other party was stunned by Xia Qian’s words.

　　The legend of the Tenth Prince did not exist only in the Great Xia Dynasty, but also in the other four dynasties.

　　Those who had higher statuses and greater authority knew more.

　　In particular, the crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty was told that there was a prince who, if still alive, was probably on par with him when he became the best elite of the Great Ze Dynasty.

　　That person was the Tenth Prince.

　　Hence, the crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty had always been curious about the Tenth Prince.

　　However, rumors had it that the Tenth Prince had died a long time ago, so how could he appear again?

　　“Brother Xia, you must be joking. The Tenth Prince died more than 20 years ago. How could he suddenly appear?”

　　The other party obviously did not believe him.

　　“What would I stand to gain from lying to you?”

　　Xia Qian’s words made him fall silent.

　　Indeed, there was no need for Xia Qian to lie to him about that because it was simply pointless.

　　“What do you want to do?”

　　The other party did not continue saying things that were beside the point and instead just asked Xia Qian what he wanted to do.

　　“A person who shouldn’t appear, should never appear.”

　　Xia Qian revealed his intentions.

　　“Do you want to kill him?”

　　At this moment, the crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty frowned and couldn’t help but ask.

　　However, Xia Qian did not say anything but it was clear what he meant.

　　“If the Tenth Prince of the Great Xia Dynasty is really still alive, the emperor must cherish him like a gem. If I intervene and anyone finds out, it might lead to a war between the two dynasties. I can’t agree to your request.”

　　The crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty was not foolish either as he simply refuted.

　　However, at the next moment, Xia Qian slowly spoke up.

　　“What if I give you the non-poisonous pill formula in exchange?”

　　The latter immediately fell silent.

　　However, he didn’t agree right away.

　　At this moment, Xia Qian spoke up again.

　　“If I ascend to the throne, I am willing to give up 108 Hemimorphite ores at the border. How does that sound?”

　　Upon hearing his words, the crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty was stunned.

　　“Is that true?”

　　The crown prince of the Great Ze Dynasty was tempted.