Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 714: Chapter 350: Unfit to be the Crown Prince

Mount Wuhua is not very far from the Western Garrison, but it’s still over a hundred miles away. The terrain here is rugged, with mountain peaks stretching continuously and forests dense. Without a local guide, it’s easy to get lost, or even encounter danger and die.

The group accompanying Prince Chu disguised themselves as merchants and successfully infiltrated Yunshui Prefecture at the foot of Mount Wuhua.

Yunshui Prefecture is the only prefecture of Mount Wuhua, but because it isn’t far from the Western Garrison, it’s quite strict with checks on outsiders. However, Prince Chu and his entourage had long been prepared, and their arrival did not attract much attention.

At this moment, Prince Chu’s group is staying at the only inn in Yunshui Prefecture.

Prince Chu stood by the window, gazing into the distance at Mount Wuhua. The mountain was shrouded in a thick fog at night, and only its silhouette could be seen.

This was when a few knocks came at the door. Then, the voice of Wei Mian sounded outside. However, Wei Mian’s voice was somewhat different from usual. Now his voice was somewhat low and husky, unlike the usual shrill tone.

"Master, it’s me."

Without turning his head, Prince Chu said, "Come in."

Wei Mian entered, respectfully reporting to Prince Chu, "Your Highness, we went out to gather information, but didn’t find any useful clues."

Prince Chu turned around and then sat down by the table.

"As expected." Prince Chu had already anticipated they wouldn’t easily find useful clues.

Wei Mian picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for Prince Chu.

"Your Highness, we have been at Mount Wuhua for several days, but haven’t found any clues. What should we do?" Wei Mian said worriedly, furrowing his brows, "We can’t spend too much time at Mount Wuhua, or else the Crown Prince might notice we’ve already left Peng City."

However, Prince Chu wasn’t anxious. He lifted the teacup and leisurely sipped the tea.

"We won’t be left without any clue."

Hearing Prince Chu’s words, Wei Mian’s eyes immediately lit up, showing an expectant look.

"Your Highness, do you have a solution?"

Prince Chu put down the teacup and gently said, "Lin Geng should be bringing back some clues." Lin Geng was Prince Chu’s most reliable guard.

Hearing this, Wei Mian’s heart calmed down.

"Then let’s wait for Lord Lin’s good news."

After finishing the tea, Prince Chu spread out the map of Mount Wuhua on the table.

Worried that Prince Chu wouldn’t see clearly, Wei Mian adjusted the lamp on the table to make it brighter.

"Your Highness, Mount Wuhua consists of five main mountains, each densely forested. These forests are very dangerous, even the locals dare not easily enter. I believe the copper missing from Peng City is hidden within these five mountains, but I have no idea which mountain specifically."

Prince Chu had a suspicion, but whether it was correct or not, he would have to wait for the information Lin Geng would bring back.

A moment later, Lin Geng returned after gathering information outside.

"Your Highness, I found something unusual about Guihua Village, fifty miles from Yunshui Prefecture."

Prince Chu asked, "What is unusual?"

"A few years ago, an epidemic suddenly broke out in Guihua Village, killing everyone in the village," Lin Geng said with a slight frown, "No one survived."

Hearing this, Prince Chu immediately furrowed his brows, and asked with a serious expression, "Epidemic? When did this happen?"

"I don’t know what kind of epidemic it was, only that it killed the entire Guihua Village," Lin Geng replied, "It happened in the autumn four years ago."

"Was the epidemic only in Guihua Village, or were there outbreaks elsewhere too?" Prince Chu had a bad premonition.

"The epidemic was only in Guihua Village, nowhere else."

Prince Chu asked again, "Are there any other villages near Guihua Village?"

"No, Guihua Village is near the fifth mountain of Mount Wuhua, and there are no other villages around there."

Upon hearing this, Prince Chu lowered his head and carefully examined the map on the table, then pointed to the fifth mountain and asked Lin Geng, "Are you saying it’s here?"

Lin Geng stepped forward, looked, and said, "It should be here."

Wei Mian also leaned over to look, and realized there was no village marked near the fifth mountain where Prince Chu pointed. He expressed doubt, "There is no Guihua Village on this map."

Prince Chu looked at Lin Geng and said, "Continue speaking."

Continuing from before, Lin Geng said, "After the epidemic in Guihua Village, no one dared to live there anymore. It’s said to be haunted, and no one dares go there, not even near the fifth mountain."

"Haunted, that must be a trick." Wei Mian didn’t believe in ghosts.

"Your Highness, I suspect the Crown Prince’s people have hidden the stolen copper there."

Prince Chu slightly nodded, "It’s very possible it’s in Guihua Village."

Wei Mian asked, "Your Highness, do you think the Crown Prince’s people caused the epidemic in Guihua Village to drive the villagers away?"

Prince Chu collected the map on the table and coldly said, "To them, what’s killing a village’s people to hide the copper."

"The lives of a village!" Wei Mian exclaimed in disbelief, "The villagers are innocent, the Crown Prince’s men could have just driven them away, there was no need to kill them, right?"

"The dead can never speak," Prince Chu said with a steely expression, "In the eyes of the Crown Prince’s people, what’s the life of a village worth?"

"Your Highness, everyone here is very evasive about the issue of Guihua Village," Lin Geng, adept at information gathering, said, "Anyone who mentions Guihua Village disappears."

Wei Mian was terrified upon hearing this and looked at Lin Geng with curiosity, "Lord Lin, how did you gather information about Guihua Village?"

"I got it from a beggar, who said he has relatives living in Guihua Village."

Wei Mian looked at Lin Geng admiringly, "No wonder you’re Lord Lin."

"Your Highness, considering the Crown Prince’s tactics, he must have set up a trap at Guihua Village. Approaching Guihua Village might not be easy for us," Lin Geng speculated that the area around Guihua Village was already heavily guarded by the Crown Prince’s people, not allowing anyone close.

"Tomorrow night, we’ll go test the situation, and then plan in detail." Since they already knew where the stolen copper was, they couldn’t return empty-handed.

"Your Highness, I should lead the team tomorrow night to scout the situation first." Lin Geng thought it would be too dangerous for them to rashly go to Guihua Village. If something happened to them, it didn’t matter, but if something happened to the Prince, it would be a big mishap. "After finding out the situation, you can make plans."

"I must go check personally tomorrow night, so I know what to do."

"Your Highness..." Wei Mian and Lin Geng were both against Prince Chu personally risking going to Guihua Village.

Prince Chu cut them off, "You go and prepare."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Lin Geng, gather more information about Guihua Village, especially about the village itself if possible."

"I’ll go immediately."

After arranging the matters for the next day, Wei Mian returned to attend to Prince Chu. Seeing Prince Chu’s gloomy face, he asked concernedly, "Your Highness, what’s troubling you?"

"Just the thought of killing an entire village’s villagers just to hide stolen copper. I dread to think how many more they’ve killed."

Wei Mian knew that by "he," Prince Chu meant the Crown Prince.

"Those who helped him steal copper, those who helped him forge weapons..." Prince Chu couldn’t bear to think further, "I always believed he was a gentle and good-natured person from the beginning, thought he would be a benevolent ruler one day, so I never considered competing for the position of Crown Prince." This was why Prince Chu, after coming of age, left the capital immediately for his fief in Liangzhou.

"Father sent me to recover Shu lands, I understood his intention, but I didn’t want to be involved. After recovering Shu lands, father summoned me back to the capital. I told him I didn’t want to stay in the capital but wanted to return to Liangzhou, yet he didn’t agree."

"Your Highness, whether to return to the capital isn’t something you can decide."

"At that time, I still thought he was the best Crown Prince, but I couldn’t defy father’s orders, so I stayed in the capital." Speaking this, Prince Chu revealed a mocking smile, "Only now do I understand father was right, he is unworthy of being Crown Prince." Father once told him, "The Crown Prince is not the Crown Prince of Great Zhou, but the Crown Prince of the Xie family," and Great Zhou needed a Crown Prince who cared for the world, not just the Xie family’s Crown Prince.

"Your Highness, how wise the Emperor is. He likely knew it was the Crown Prince behind the copper theft when he assigned you to investigate," Wei Mian comforted Prince Chu, "Your Highness, to prevent the Crown Prince from further wrongdoing, we must quickly uncover the truth behind the copper theft and report to the Emperor. Then, the Emperor certainly won’t spare the Crown Prince."

Prince Chu recalled the Western Garrison’s proximity to Mount Wuhua, and he thought of Xie Shi being at the Western Garrison. An ominous feeling rose in his heart.

Seeing Prince Chu’s expression grow heavier, Wei Mian felt a pang of anxiety, cautiously asking, "Your Highness, did I say something wrong?"

Prince Chu ordered, "Write a letter back to the capital immediately, send Lin Xu to the Western Garrison, have him investigate if there’s anything unusual at the Western Garrison."

Upon hearing this order from Prince Chu, Wei Mian showed a horrified expression, "Your Highness, you suspect the Western Garrison..."