Iron Dynasty

Chang'an, Chengqing Hall.

Facing the court officials and generals, Xiao Wenxuan angrily threw the memorial scroll at the feet of the Third Prince.

"Look at this. This is the memorial just submitted by the Wei King. This is the Chu King you've been so desperately defending. Your uncle has embarrassed me like this," Xiao Wenxuan said furiously.

The Third Prince's face paled. He crouched down to pick up the memorial, but just one glance at its contents made his expression change drastically.

The Fourth Prince glanced at the Third Prince with a mocking smile. Now that the Second Prince was gone from court, the Crown Prince's position was stable, and the Fourth Prince could only compete against the Third Prince.

Even if he could never become emperor, he still hoped to perform well enough so that Xiao Wenxuan would grant him a prosperous fief.

"Father, although Uncle lost to the Dutch, he did so for the dignity of the Great Yu Empire. He fought against the Dutch, and though defeated, his honor remains intact," the Third Prince said urgently.

He knew very well that his current smooth sailing in court was entirely because the Chu King backed him up. Now that the Chu King was defeated by the Dutch, his standing among the ministers had certainly diminished.

Especially since the memorial reported that hundreds of warships lost to a mere ten Dutch warships—this was particularly embarrassing.

After this official spoke, the Fourth Prince smiled. The northern and southern vassal kings had always been at odds because they understood the Chu King's shady dealings over the years and secretly wished for unrest in the north.

Now that the Chu King was defeated by the Dutch, they were naturally delighted and took the opportunity to mock him.

The Third Prince's face darkened like pig liver upon hearing this, but he also knew he was in the wrong this time. However, he was not one to be bullied and retorted angrily, "Zheng Hongwen, don't spout your cold remarks. At least the Chu King dared to fight the Dutch. You all just hide behind and watch the show. If you have the ability, which one of you dares to face the Dutch in battle?"

At these words, the court fell into silence. Seeing this, the Third Prince sneered, "What? No one dares?"

Xiao Wenxuan frowned. The Great Yu Empire had never really had a formal navy. If there was a navy at all, it was only those of the Chu King, the Wei King, and the Yan King.

Among them, the Wei King and Chu King were the strongest coastal lords. Now that the Chu King had been defeated, only the Wei King remained with a fleet of considerable scale, as far as he knew.

But he also understood that what the Chu King couldn't accomplish, the Wei King could not either. The Third Prince's accusations left all the ministers speechless, and Xiao Wenxuan himself was embarrassed.

"Is there really no one in the entire Great Yu Empire who can fight the Dutch?" Xiao Wenxuan also asked.

The Third Prince then said, "Father, the Qi King's fief is also by the sea. Since the Qi King has been able to drive away barbarians, he may be able to drive away the Dutch as well. Why not let the Qi King try?"

"How ridiculous. The Qi King's fief has only been stable for two years. Where would he get warships to fight the Dutch?" Fei Ji said.

"Third Prince, the issue now is the unfair treaty proposed by the Dutch after the Chu King's defeat," Fei Ji continued.

"Exactly. The Dutch are using the Chu King to demand from the emperor that the Great Yu Empire exempt Dutch ships from taxes, open six coastal cities as trade ports, and forbid any taxation on Dutch goods. This unfair treaty is all the Chu King's fault."

"Exactly. Third Prince, what do you propose we do?"

"…"

The court immediately descended into chaos.

The Third Prince's face grew increasingly grim. Now that the Dutch had defeated the Chu King and demanded that the entire Great Yu Empire be treated as the Dutch's most favored nation—just like Chu—this was no longer a matter concerning only Chu but the whole empire.

The court had just shaken off the barbarians' annual tributes. Now it had to face such a humiliating treaty. Naturally, the blame centered on the Chu King.

"Father, for now, the only option is to temporarily accept the Dutch demands. The Great Yu Empire has no navy capable of defeating the Dutch. If we refuse, the Dutch will continue to harass our coastal regions," the Third Prince hesitated.

Hearing this, Luo Quan immediately shouted angrily, "Your Majesty, absolutely not! The Great Yu Empire has just defeated the barbarians and avenged past humiliations. How can we suffer such disgrace again? The Chu King lost only one-tenth of his ships and still has the strength to continue fighting. We should let the Chu King keep battling the Dutch and have the Wei King cooperate to attack the Dutch together."

Xiao Wenxuan frowned. Looking at the Third Prince and then the ministers who were all enraged, he said, "Enough arguing. I will think over this matter before making a decision. Any other business? If not, court is adjourned."

At this moment, Fei Ji stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have some good news."

"What good news? Speak," Xiao Wenxuan's expression softened a little.

Fei Ji said, "Your Majesty, recently something called 'potatoes' has been brought from the Qi King's fief. This thing tastes quite good. Now many merchants in Chang'an are selling it. I wonder if Your Majesty has tried it."

"Hahaha, I've been eating it these past couple of days. The Qi King sent me some and even instructed how to prepare it. I had never tried this before, but these potato fries suit my taste quite well," Xiao Wenxuan said, his mood lightening. Among the princes, only the Qi King could bring him some joy.

Fei Ji smiled, "I have also tasted some. The flavor is indeed extraordinary. However, it is said these potatoes come from overseas and that the Qi King took them from barbarians."

"Took them by force?" Xiao Wenxuan was surprised.

"Yes, Your Majesty. It is said the Qi King dispatched three warships to the Southern Seas, sank the foreign barbarians' warships, and seized the potatoes. It is said these barbarians and the Dutch come from the same place," Fei Ji said.

"Oh? I didn't know about this," Xiao Wenxuan said.

Fei Ji nodded. "This was a curious story my daughter told me in her letter. I didn't expect the Qi King to be so brave and fierce at sea."

"So you mean the Qi King can defeat the Dutch?" the Third Prince scoffed.

"Not necessarily impossible. But Your Majesty, Qi has always lacked shipyards. If the court can help the Qi King build more shipyards, who knows, the Qi King might be able to make a name for himself at sea as well," Fei Ji said.

Indeed, Fei Yue'er had sent this letter, but its content was instructed by Xiao Ming.

When Xiao Ming learned of the Chu King's defeat, he had Fei Yue'er send this letter to Chang'an, using this opportunity to request court support for shipyards in Qingzhou.

It was for this reason he brought this matter up now.

Xiao Wenxuan's expression shifted slightly. He no longer trusted the Chu King, and the Wei King was also untrustworthy now. Only Xiao Ming gave him confidence.

So he said, "Fei Zhongshu makes a good point. No matter what, we must never compromise with the Dutch this time."

TN: The term"Zhongshu" (中书)historically refers to a central government office or secretariat in imperial China, often translated as"Central Secretariat"or"Secretariat."