My Princess and Crown Prince Are Revived
Chapter 331 Taking the Initiative

Chapter 331: Chapter 331 Taking the Initiative

Zhu Liqun’s expression was complex, but in the end, he still followed Chu Baihan’s instructions.

"The meaning of your statement just now wasn’t just that Dongli Country and Beihai Country have only a hundred thousand troops, was it? I’m afraid you’re implying... there are their people in the city, right?"

Yan Lin quickly walked over to Chu Baihan’s side and then spoke these words.

Chu Baihan turned her head and nodded in approval.

"Little Yanzi, you did well." She raised her hand and patted Yan Lin’s shoulder, then began to praise him.

Little Yanzi?

Yan Lin’s face darkened.

His Princess Consort really liked to come up with all sorts of random nicknames for him.

However, because of her teasing, the oppressive atmosphere had lightened quite a bit.

"Magistrate Zhu, take this princess to see those three magistrates," Chu Baihan said, looking at Zhu Liqun, who had just arrived from not far away.

"Yes, Your Highness." Zhu Liqun had just ordered his people to deploy troops, and when he heard what Chu Baihan said, he quickly led the way.

"All three magistrates are injured and currently arranged in the Zhu Residence. Does Your Highness wish to travel by carriage?" he asked quietly.

"No need."

As soon as Chu Baihan’s words fell, her guard brought over the horse she had been riding.

She got up nimbly and then mounted the horse.

"Magistrate Zhu, you’ll trouble you to lead the way," Yan Lin said after uttering these words, he swiftly mounted his horse, then grabbed Zhu Liqun by the hand.

Zhu Liqun had just roughly pointed in a direction when they rode off towards it.

Along the way, being lifted by the scruff of his clothes by Yan Lin, Zhu Liqun was so frightened he felt like his soul was about to fly away.

He really feared he’d be thrown to his death if the man’s hand were to let go.

Luckily, the Zhu Residence was not far, and they reached it quickly.

When Zhu Liqun’s feet touched the ground, they felt unsteady.

"Master, you’ve returned." The servants immediately came to greet him.

"This is the Princess Consort." Zhu Liqun quickly scolded.

The servants were startled and quickly knelt down.

"Your Highness, this way please," Zhu Liqun said, shaking his head to clear it, and then quickly led Chu Baihan into the residence.

The Zhu Residence was orderly and looked modest yet elegant.

The courtyard for those three magistrates was arranged to be in a very quiet place.

"Considering it would be convenient for taking care of them, this official arranged for all three to be housed in the same courtyard."

Upon hearing the noise, the doors to all three rooms opened, and three figures emerged simultaneously.

They were each suffering from varying degrees of injury.

"Brother Zhu, who is this?"

Sensing Chu Baihan’s distinguished air, they directed their inquiring gazes towards Zhu Liqun.

"This is the Princess Consort." Zhu Liqun spoke in a lowered voice.

The Princess Consort?

Surprise showed on the three’s faces, and then they quickly knelt down.

"Magistrate Xu Ming of Linzhou pays his respects to the Princess Consort."

"Magistrate Qi Ping of Pingzhou pays his respects to the Princess Consort."

"Magistrate Deng Tu of Xiangzhou pays his respects to the Princess Consort."

"Your Highness, we failed to protect the citizens and the three city towers; we have let down the Emperor’s trust."

They spoke sorrowfully, then began to kowtow to apologize.

"The three of you need not feel guilty. Dongli and Beihai Countries are collaborating with Prince Xu, and their plan is meticulous. Your lack of preparation is not to be blamed on you. Please rise, for there are some matters I wish to ask you about."

Upon hearing what Chu Baihan had to say, the three men looked at each other and eventually stood up, "Thank you, Princess Consort."

"How are your injuries?"

"Reporting to the Princess Consort, we have been seen by the doctor. The injuries are not serious, all minor issues," Qi Ping quickly responded.

"That’s good. Gentlemen, you must recover quickly. Resisting the foreign enemy will need your strength."

"This is what we should do. Whatever the Princess Consort wishes to know, we will withhold nothing."

"Good," Chu Baihan nodded, then directly asked, "This time, who personally led the troops from Dongli Country and Beihai Country?"

"The Crown Prince is the one from Dongli Country."

The Crown Prince of Dongli Country?

When Chu Baihan heard this, a cold look quickly flashed through her eyes.

She had heard of this person, Dongli Bo.

He was cruel and lacked humanity.

He often liked to flay people and was particularly fond of the eyeballs of beauties, frequently abducting them to gouge out their eyeballs for steeping in alcohol.

His brutal methods were horrifying to hear about among the various countries.

"If Dongli Bo himself has led the troops, then our people are more likely to face misfortune than fortune."

Chu Baihan murmured in a soft, heavy tone.

With such cruelty, he would indeed harm innocent civilians.

As she spoke, the expression of the people around her grew extremely solemn, and the atmosphere became oppressively tense.

"Now, tell me about the situation with Beihai Country."

"It is the third Prince of Beihai Country. However, we have not seen him appear."

The third Prince of Beihai Country?

Hearing this, Chu Baihan hesitated a bit.

After all, she didn’t know much about Beihai Country.

"The third Prince of Beihai Country is the child of the Beihai king and a Han woman. He was wandering outside from a young age and was only found and brought back a few years ago. This person is well protected by the Beihai king, and the outside world cannot glean much news about him," Yan Lin explained in a moderated voice to Chu Baihan.

I see.

"If the Beihai king treasures his third Prince so much, he shouldn’t have sent him to lead the troops into battle," Chu Baihan continued to murmur softly.

"That can only mean a few possibilities... One, this so-called favoritism is false, and the Beihai king doesn’t care about his life or death. Two, the news is false, and the third Prince of Beihai Country didn’t come at all. Three, Dongli Country and Beihai Country are both very confident, thinking that defeating Nanduan Kingdom will be effortless," Yan Lin explained gravely.

The three explanations made everyone’s faces darken.

Especially the last one, which was infuriating and frustrating.

"We cannot just sit and wait for death. Who was originally in charge of Tongzhou?" Chu Baihan quickly asked.

"Reporting to the Princess Consort, it was my son," Zhu Liqun quickly answered.

Hearing this response, Chu Baihan then remembered that she had learned a little about Tongzhou before setting off.

It was said that the son of Zhu Liqun was the Martial Arts Top Scholar from a few years ago.

But he declined to stay in the capital and instead chose to return to Tongzhou to serve as the General of the Tongzhou army.

"Ziyi, go and find General Zhu. Tell him to send a message to the enemy that the Princess Consort has arrived, and that we will negotiate tonight before sunset," Chu Baihan instructed Ziyi in a soft voice.

"No, Princess Consort, that villain is heartless and ruthless. Going there could be dangerous for you," Zhu Liqun and the others became extremely anxious upon hearing Chu Baihan’s words.

But Chu Baihan’s expression remained very calm.

"Gentlemen, I am not a delicate flower. I am a General of Nanduan Kingdom, the chief commander sent here from the capital city. So many civilians are in the hands of the enemy; I must rescue them. Without negotiating with the enemy troops, we will continue to be at a disadvantage," she asserted with a firm tone.

Zhu Liqun and the others exchanged looks and quickly bowed their heads, "We apologize, Princess Consort. It is our folly."