Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Kong Yuan and Wang Siqi heard this and both showed the same astonished expression.

Ji Bochang curled his lips into a faint smile: "Our clan, although we have pledged allegiance to the Xiongnu, has not done anything to betray the Central Plains."

The Eighth Prince continued, "Bochang’s grandfather and father orchestrated the split of the Xiongnu tribes, each proclaiming their own kingship."

"What?" Wang Siqi and Kong Yuan exclaimed simultaneously.

Ji Bochang humbly smiled and said, "Initially, the leaders of the Xiongnu tribes all wanted to break away from the Royal Court and proclaim themselves as kings. My grandfather and father merely took advantage of this desire, stoking their ambitions into action."

Ji Bochang’s words sounded light and insignificant, as if he were speaking of trivial matters, but they allowed the Xiongnu tribes to each claim kingship for decades, causing internal strife among them for years.

This was why, during the tumult of the previous dynasty, the Xiongnu did not seize the opportunity to invade the Central Plains.

At that time, the seven Xiongnu tribes were fiercely embroiled in conflict. They were too preoccupied and had neither the time nor energy to invade other nations.

Wang Siqi and Kong Yuan immediately stood up and solemnly bowed to Ji Bochang.

"Brother Ji’s family’s righteousness is commendable."

Content orıginally comes from 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹•𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖•𝗇𝗲𝘁

Ji Bochang hurriedly stood up and extended his hand to support Wang Siqi and Kong Yuan.

"Mr. Wang, Brother Kong, you flatter me."

"Brother Ji, this honor is well-deserved." If it weren’t for Ji Bochang’s family navigating among the Xiongnu, during the previous dynasty’s chaos, the Xiongnu might have invaded south, and at that time, the entirety of the Central Plains would have been flattened by the Xiongnu’s Iron Cavalry.

"Mr. Wang, Brother Kong, it was what our family had to do."

The Eighth Prince smiled and said, "Alright, you all may sit down now."

The three of them obediently sat back down.

Kong Yuan hesitated for a moment but eventually decided to ask, "Brother Ji, are the Xiongnu really planning to invade the Great Zhou from the south?"

Ji Bochang composed himself and said, "Currently, within the Xiongnu Royal Court, half of the people support a southern invasion of the Great Zhou, while the other half oppose it. The new Modu wants to lead an army south to attack the Great Zhou."

Upon hearing this, Wang Siqi and Kong Yuan’s expressions turned grim.

"So, the Xiongnu do plan to move south to attack the Great Zhou?"

"According to the new Modu, there is definitely an intention to attack the Great Zhou, but whether or not they will move south is uncertain." Ji Bochang did not keep them in suspense, "This mission to the Great Zhou is not for the new Modu Chanyu to test the Great Zhou’s attitude, but rather to test the attitude of the Xiongnu Royal Court."

Kong Yuan and Wang Siqi didn’t quite understand, their faces showing confusion as they asked, "Test the Xiongnu Royal Court’s attitude?"

"As I mentioned earlier, half of the Xiongnu Royal Court does not support moving south to attack the Great Zhou, and this half is led by the Left Virtuous King," Ji Bochang continued, "The other half that supports moving south to attack the Great Zhou is led by the Right Virtuous King."

The Eighth Prince added, "Bochang is one of the Left Virtuous King’s people."

Ji Bochang said, "I represent the Left Virtuous King in coming to the Great Zhou to investigate the situation."

Kong Yuan said, "I remember that in the Xiongnu, the left holds higher status, and thus the Left Virtuous King should be more influential than the Right Virtuous King, correct?"

"Yes, the Left Virtuous King holds a very high status in the Xiongnu Royal Court and wields significant power. The new Modu Chanyu is very wary of the Left Virtuous King." Ji Bochang continued, "The new Modu Chanyu and the Right Virtuous King want to move south to attack the Great Zhou for a simple reason, which is to plunder wealth and grain here to use against the Han Clan and several other tribes."

Kong Yuan pondered for a while and said, "Brother Ji, is it through your mediation that the Left Virtuous King does not support attacking the Great Zhou?"

"Not entirely, the Left Virtuous King does not wish to see the new Modu Chanyu’s power grow too strong." Ji Bochang said, with a suddenly meaningful smile on his lips, "The reason the new Modu Chanyu has not succeeded in attacking the Han Clan’s several tribes is precisely because the Left Virtuous King is secretly supporting them."

Kong Yuan and Wang Siqi, hearing this, gasped in shock.

The Eighth Prince saw Wang Siqi and the others in this state, and laughed, "Without the Left Virtuous King’s covert assistance, the three tribes of the Han Clan alone could not resist the new Modu Chanyu’s annexation."

"Actually, the Right Virtuous King also secretly helped."

Kong Yuan and the others were confused by Ji Bochang’s words, and they asked in puzzled disbelief, "Isn’t the Right Virtuous King supposed to support the new Modu Chanyu? Why would he secretly aid the Han Clan’s several tribes?"

Ji Bochang said, his tone ambiguous, "The Right Virtuous King agrees with the new Modu Chanyu’s invasion of the Great Zhou, but he doesn’t completely support the new Modu Chanyu. Like the Left Virtuous King, he does not wish for the new Modu Chanyu to become overly powerful." However, the new Modu Chanyu believes the Right Virtuous King is entirely his supporter.

Wang Siqi and Kong Yuan inwardly marveled: Who would have expected the power struggle within the Xiongnu to be so fierce?