The King of Qi was carried away.
As he was being carried off, he passed right by Song Yu and Song Shihuan.
"Did the fourth brother drop dead?"
Song Yu pointed at the King of Qi as he spoke.
Even someone as seasoned as Wu Qi couldn't help but shiver. The Crown Prince truly had a way with shocking words.
"Your Highness, he is not dead."
"Oh." A hint of disappointment was audible in Song Yu's tone.
"Eunuch Wu, what happened?"
Facing Song Shihuan, Wu Qi's smile became much more sincere. Dealing with the lovely and clever little princess was far more reassuring.
"His Highness the King of Qi came to beg His Majesty to grant him his fiefdom. His Majesty then assigned the northern deserts to the King of Qi, ordering him to depart in three days, and then..."
"So, Fourth Uncle fainted."
Song Shihuan smiled brightly. "Baoxia, send people to escort Fourth Uncle and help Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt pack their belongings. In three days, personally see them onto their carriage."
"This servant will go at once."
While flies don't cause substantial harm, their constant buzzing before one's eyes is nothing but an annoyance.
It's more convenient to just shoo them away.
Hearing this, Wu Qi bowed. Among the several princes now, some were dead, some imprisoned, and others granted their fiefs. His Majesty was truly clearing all obstacles for the Crown Prince.
Song Yu's already good mood improved even further.
Cheerfully, he led Song Shihuan to the Zichen Hall.
"The twenty-sixth day of the fourth month is an auspicious day."
Emperor Yuanyou finally settled on the nearest suitable date. "We shall hold the Heaven Worship ceremony on that day."
"Excellent. I have no objections."
Song Yu curled the corner of his mouth. "After the Heaven Worship, it should be time to dispatch the troops, right? Gu Zheng has asked me numerous times when we will march."
"That old fellow, all he wants is to rush to the battlefield."
Emperor Yuanyou chuckled and cursed lightly. "Very well, we shall dispatch the troops after the Heaven Worship."
...
On the twenty-sixth day of the fourth month, a spring breeze caressed faces, and the sunlight was bright and beautiful.
The imperial sedans of Emperor Yuanyou and Song Yu emerged from the palace gates. Wherever they passed, the common people knelt and loudly proclaimed, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Crown Prince!"
Even more eye-catching was a relatively smaller sedan following behind the two.
Song Shihuan sat upright inside it.
She wore pearls and jade in her hair, dressed in brocade robes befitting a princess.
Long after the three sedans had passed, some commoners dared to speak up, "The person in the last sedan just now was..."
“That was the Princess of Fu'an, the Crown Prince's only daughter.”
The soldiers guarding both sides spoke up. "Today, His Majesty and His Highness have personally granted the princess permission to ride in a sedan and participate in the Heaven Worship."
Upon hearing this, the commoners were quite astonished.
Such treatment was almost on par with that of a prince.
Half an hour later, the sedans arrived at the Altar of Heaven.
The sacrificial offerings had long been neatly arranged. All civil and military officials knelt below, looking up at layer upon layer of steps.
Emperor Yuanyou raised his left hand, signaling for Song Yu to step forward and support him.
Then... he raised his right hand.
Song Shihuan was taken aback.
Even the assembled officials were stunned.
Song Shihuan supported Emperor Yuanyou's right hand. The three of them ascended step by step to the highest platform of the Altar of Heaven.
The prayer official recited the prayer text. Emperor Yuanyou raised high the wine vessel in his hand.
After the recitation was completed, he offered the wine and performed the ritual kowtow.
Song Yu followed closely behind, paying homage to the heavens in his capacity as the Crown Prince of Great Qi.
As for the third wine offering...
Emperor Yuanyou patted Song Shihuan's shoulder. "Ahuan, go offer the wine."
He wanted the heavens to witness that Great Qi's blessings were continuous, with worthy successors in every generation.
Even as she knelt, the shock in Song Shihuan's heart had not yet faded.
But at the moment of kowtowing, her mind was filled with only one thought:
Bless Great Qi's military expedition with smooth progress and invincibility.
The affairs of state lie in sacrifices and warfare.
As long as they could swallow Great Yue, a rival power on equal footing with Great Qi, it would ensure Great Qi's stability for centuries to come.
Therefore, Song Shihuan kowtowed with exceptional piety.
After the three rounds of kowtows were completed, an official from the Court of State Ceremonial read aloud the edict Emperor Yuanyou had prepared long ago.
A general amnesty was declared.
Taxes were reduced.
This was to share the celebration with the people.
With this edict, on the journey back to the palace, the voices of the kneeling common people were clearly much more fervent. The cries of "Long live!" seemed powerful enough to shake the mountains and rivers.
Emperor Yuanyou wore a smile throughout the journey. The successful completion of the Heaven Worship ceremony signified that heaven and earth had acknowledged Yu'er's position as Crown Prince and would bless their Great Qi to be invincible in war.
Emperor Yuanyou looked up at the sky.
War was coming.
...
A ray of sunlight pierced into a dungeon that rarely saw the light of day.
In the dungeon, Rong Lingchen instinctively raised his hand to shield his eyes. Accustomed to darkness, he found the sunlight blinding.
"Prince Min, it's been a long time."
Just hearing Shen Qingping's voice made Rong Lingchen feel pain shooting through his limbs and bones. The person before him was a devil through and through.
Rong Lingchen was brought out.
He wore tattered prisoner's garb, his body covered in scars, his hair dry, brittle, and disheveled. Nothing about him suggested the status of a Great Yue prince.
"What is it? Is Lord Shen going to torture me again?"
"Wrong. Not only will I not torture you, but I will also treat you to fine wine and delicious food."
Shen Qingping snapped his fingers. Immediately, someone brought in a large table laden with dishes.
For Rong Lingchen, who had been surviving on only steamed buns and water daily, this was an immense temptation.
Rong Lingchen pounced on the food, devouring it ravenously.
He ate for a full half hour.
"Full?"
Shen Qingping raised an eyebrow. "Since you're full, it's time to do some work for me."
Several days later.
Rong Lingchen was dumped on the busiest, most bustling street in the capital.
Just as curious onlookers surrounded Rong Lingchen in thick layers, they saw him kneel on the ground, kowtowing incessantly towards the direction of the imperial palace.
"It was my selfishness, my sinister and vicious nature."
"I used a secret technique unique to the Great Yue imperial family on the Great Qi Emperor, harming the Emperor's imperial health. I have wronged Great Qi."
With an almost frenzied demeanor, Rong Lingchen laid out the events of that time in full detail.
Inside a carriage in a corner.
Song Yu watched Rong Lingchen for quite a while before turning to Shen Qingping. "What method did you use to make him so obedient?"
"Just a minor trick. Would Your Highness like to hear the details?"
"No. Please shut up."
Song Yu pressed the book in his hand against Shen Qingping's face, rolling his eyes exaggeratedly. He shouldn't have asked.
The news that Rong Lingchen had used a Great Yue imperial secret technique on Emperor Yuanyou spread rapidly.
Many officials who had attended the palace banquet that night served as witnesses, adding vivid details to the tragic experiences suffered by Emperor Yuanyou. In no time, the people of Great Qi were furious to the extreme.
Last year, that so-called Prince Min of Great Yue had dared to attack their Emperor, and yet Great Yue people were still eating the grain they provided as relief?
No one could tolerate this.
Harnessing the immense public fury, an edict personally written by Emperor Yuanyou was issued from the palace, reaching every corner of Great Qi's territory:
Crown Prince Song Yu is appointed Commander-in-Chief, with Gu Zheng as Deputy Commander. Dispatch troops to attack Great Yue. Do not return without victory!
