Chapter 248: To resist external enemies, we must first stabilize the internal situation
The capital of Southern Tang.

After receiving a series of news, the emperor felt indescribably sad. He had schemed against his father, his brothers, and even his children and grandchildren, but he did not expect that in the end, he would end up being a lonely man.

Now, except for the prince who is still in Wengcheng, all his other sons are gone.

The cause of death is unknown, so it is obvious that someone must have poisoned him! But wasn't the poison cured long ago? Why did it suddenly break out, and why did so many people get poisoned!
When he thought of the scene of coffins everywhere in the prince's mansion, he couldn't help but smile bitterly three times.

"Well, well, the eagle trainer got his eyes pecked by the eagle. I really underestimated the prince's ability. He usually looks arrogant and ambitious, but I didn't expect that he was doing it for me! Now that he has won the position of prince and killed the father and son of the Lu family, there is no prince left in the court who can compete with him. I am afraid that he will besiege the capital and force me to abdicate. Haha, it's ridiculous!"

He sat on the dragon throne, looking very lonely at the moment.

He had never hesitated on this path to becoming a king, but only when his son performed the same thing again did he understand what his father's state of mind was like.

Thinking of this, the danger of Feicheng and the death of the old general became insignificant. His eyes gradually cleared up from confusion. So what if his son died? He still had a favorite concubine, he still had opportunities, and thousands of possibilities.

But those who followed the prince should pay the price for standing on the wrong side.

"Order General Yang to come see me."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Soon, a grand purge against the prince's forces was launched in the royal capital, with the prince's Eastern Palace as the main force, the imperial concubine's family as the secondary force, the prince's wife's maternal family, and all parties who had clearly expressed their support for the prince, all suffered.

Because the emperor's attack came suddenly, many of them were slaughtered in blood while they were still sleeping. Even the prince's own children could not escape from this catastrophe.

Both Wangdu and Wengcheng suffered a thorough bloodbath.

When the news once again reached back to Wengcheng, the prince was completely stunned. How could he be assassinated and his father not only did not stand up for him, but also wanted to massacre his family!

However, those lieutenant generals who had managed to survive understood the situation before him.

"Your Highness, it seems that the father and son of the Lu family are so rampant because of His Majesty's order. Perhaps it was a big conspiracy to appoint you as the crown prince from the beginning. Even if you return to the court victoriously this time, I'm afraid what awaits you is the butcher's knife, not the throne."

The words of the deputy generals made the prince feel even more disappointed.

After planning for so many years, he always thought that his opponent was his third brother, but he didn't expect that the one who gave him a heavy blow in the end was his father. Now, when he closed his eyes, his mind was filled with the scene of his family being slaughtered.

Although I didn't see it, the imagined scene was more terrifying than the reality.

He was exhausted, with a scruffy beard. He was a man of honor who had fought for his master a few days ago, but now he was a homeless dog. For a moment, the strength in his heart was dispersed. But he could fall, but the lieutenants following him did not want to fall. Their families were also on the purge list, and they knew there was no turning back.

Rather than waiting to die, it is better to rebel against the capital.

Anyway, they still have an army of more than 100,000 at their disposal. If they promise huge benefits to these people, it will be a powerful weapon for them!
So there was a rumor that the deputy generals instigated the prince to divide the city into separate parts and openly confront the Emperor of Southern Tang.

The matter was originally still under discussion, but for some reason the news had already spread like wildfire outside, and Pei Zisu and Fang Jie were certainly involved.

Since it had come to this, the Crown Prince of Southern Tang no longer cared and directly summoned his staff to write a "letter to the world", in which he described in detail how the Emperor of Southern Tang had killed his father and brother, and was now harming his descendants.

Not only was the news widely publicized within the Southern Tang, but even neighboring countries such as Dasui also received it. For a time, the Southern Tang was plagued by internal and external troubles.

The city lords who originally wanted to fight to the death, seeing that the emperor and the prince were fighting to such an extent, no longer cared about their lives. What was the point of fighting? They simply opened the city gates and surrendered.

If there is a first, there will be a second. Therefore, after Feicheng, the Pei army was unstoppable and reached Wengcheng on the 11th day. Looking at the dark mass of Dasui troops stationed not far away, the Prince of Southern Tang was really scared.

He was willing to fight against his father and his ministers, but he was somewhat afraid to fight against Pei's army, so he quickly issued a second "letter to the world". The general idea was to recruit wise men from all over the world. If there was anyone who could solve the crisis in Wengcheng, after the Dasui army was driven away, he would be immediately appointed as prime minister, or general of the country, and his descendants would enjoy the title!
When this news spread, talented people came from all directions.

For a moment, it seemed to have frightened the Pei family army. Therefore, after seeing them retreat ten miles, the prince felt a little relieved.

On this day, the city lord's mansion received counselors and generals from all over the country. Each of them boasted of his extraordinary ability. Some of them started talking nonsense and bragging about others, while others gave advice and suggestions, but no one's words impressed the prince.

Just when he was feeling depressed and distressed, an immortal with a pure and elegant appearance came. He said that he was a Taoist practitioner on Xuncheng Mountain, and came down the mountain after hearing that the Dasui army had captured Xuncheng.

This man looked to be over fifty years old, but he exuded a sense of indifference to the hustle and bustle of the world.

He stepped forward and attracted the prince's attention, and then he heard his calm and composed analysis.

"I have a concern. Now that His Majesty is holding us back internally and Da Sui is causing trouble externally, which side do you plan to take care of first, Your Highness?"

Which one should I take care of first? If the prince could think of it, he would not have summoned these people. So he snorted and didn't even bother to say anything more. He wanted to signal his subordinates to kick the Taoist out, but the man was not afraid and continued to speak calmly.

"I will leave immediately after I finish speaking. There is no need to trouble you."

Perhaps it was his calmness that made the soldiers who were about to take action stop, and then they heard him speak.

"As the old saying goes, to resist foreign aggression, one must first stabilize the internal situation. The terrain of Wengcheng is easy to defend but difficult to attack. Moreover, the Dasui army has been fighting for months. Even if the morale of the army is high, it needs to rest for a while before launching an attack. Otherwise, it would not have retreated ten miles. It is this God-given pass that gives Your Highness the Crown Prince an opportunity. If you can return to the court and seize the capital in one fell swoop, then even if Wengcheng is lost, you will have a place to turn around."