Chapter 495: The Last Return to Changjing
After hearing that General Chen had successfully marched south to restore order, bringing the Crown Prince and the Emperor back to Changjing, Song You no longer felt the need to rush.
The wind fox had been right.
Had Prince Shun emerged victorious, his rule would have been inherently illegitimate. This was something all those with political insight in Great Yan understood.
Given the empire’s complex state—rife with internal strife yet still strong and beloved by its people—even if the Crown Prince had died, countless so-called righteous armies would have continued to rise in rebellion against Prince Shun, all under the banner of restoring the rightful heir. Such uprisings would have been relentless.
Unless Prince Shun had been able to swiftly prove his capability, securing the throne through sheer force and crushing all dissent, his rule would have been precarious.
And even if he had succeeded, it would have set a dangerous precedent for the future.
But with the Crown Prince’s victory...
As the rightful heir, the Crown Prince had the support of the scholar-official class and the recognition of most regional governors. As long as Prince Shun’s rebellion was quelled and the Crown Prince took the throne, stability would likely last a while longer.
With that, Song You resumed his usual pace.
Just like in Yangzhou, Bozhou, Yuzhou, and Luozhou, supernatural disturbances in Luzhou had noticeably increased over the past year. At first, people did not connect these strange occurrences to the broader turmoil.
But once news of Prince Shun’s rebellion spread from Changjing, fear swept through the land.