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Chapter 598: Strike first to gain the upper hand

Zhou Chang woke up early the next day, and after breakfast he couldn't wait to interrogate Sun Xiang.

He was stopped by Zhong Yu halfway through his journey: "Your Highness, we should not be anxious at this time, especially since Sun Xiang is not awake yet."

After being reminded, Zhou Chang understood and went back to the study with Zhong Yu.

After Gao Yuan sent a message saying that Sun Xiang had woken up, Zhou Chang and Zhong Yu "leisurely" walked to the courtyard where Sun Xiang was placed.

They are not in a hurry, it is the other party who is in a hurry.

Sun Xiang said he came to surrender, so there must be conditions to be negotiated. There will be a lot of things to deal with next.

When Zhou Chang entered the room, Sun Xiang had not only woken up, but had even eaten, taken medicine, and confirmed where he was. He was leaning against the pillow and subconsciously supporting his abdomen with his right hand.

He looked as if he was waiting for Prince Yi to ask questions.

Zhou Chang glanced at Sun Xiang's face. Although his face was pale, he seemed to be in good spirits. There was no need to worry about him being seriously injured or dying, so he sat down opposite him calmly.

Zhong Yupei sat at the head, with the skinny monkey standing beside him.

Gao Yuan closed the doors and windows, and then stood guard by Sun Xiang's bed.

Zhou Chang picked up the teacup and took a sip before saying leisurely, "If you have anything to say, just say it."

Sun Xiang's face was pale due to excessive blood loss. His eyes rolled around before he could even open his mouth. After a pause, he made an excuse: "I don't know where to start."

"Tell me from the beginning..." Zhou Chang felt that he was too calm now, "Who are you, what have you done, and why do you want to surrender to me?"

Sun Xiang began to narrate: "My name is Sun Xiang. I was originally in the Chushan Garrison Camp. Later, I was promoted step by step to serve under His Royal Highness King Xian and became an adjutant beside His Royal Highness King Xian. After the assassination and arson incident at the Hunting Palace, His Royal Highness King Xian did not do anything at first, but later he expelled us one after another..."

"Expel?" Zhou Chang picked out this word.

Sun Xiang further explained: "I used the wrong words, but it was a promotion in name only and a demotion in reality. King Xian, apart from Yin Xu and Han Hui, who had been his companions since childhood and were the most trusted, all the other deputy generals, especially those of us who were present at the time, were sent to various places."

"Present? Where?" Zhou Chang asked again indifferently.

Although Sun Xiang's voice sounded a little weak, it barely affected his speech, and he answered without hesitation: "On the night when the Hunting Palace caught fire, His Royal Highness Prince Xian first tracked down the assassin to Prince Rong's residence but to no avail. Then he remembered that His Majesty was still in the Imperial Study, so he led us all to the Imperial Study. At that time, His Royal Highness Prince Duan had already arrived but was trapped in the sea of ​​fire. He kept calling for help, but His Royal Highness Prince Xian hesitated to move forward. It was not until His Royal Highness Prince Rong arrived that His Royal Highness Prince Xian rescued Prince Rong before he did. All of us, the deputy generals standing by, saw all of this."

This is roughly consistent with what the witness, Sixth Eunuch, said, and also roughly consistent with what Concubine Qin Sun said, but there is a problem with both.

How did Prince Duan get trapped in the fire?

Since Prince Xian arrived later, how did Prince Duan get trapped in the fire?

Zhou Chang had doubts in his heart, but he didn't show it on his face. He asked calmly, "Where were the guards around Prince Duan at that time?"

Sun Xiang answered without thinking: "Some of the guards around His Royal Highness Prince Duan must have been killed by the assassin, and the rest are missing. It's time to go find help."

"Hmm..." Zhou Chang nodded and asked, "Then do you know if the assassination and arson at the Hunting Palace was related to these two people?"

Sun Xiang was stunned for a moment, then replied, "I don't know."

This reaction actually contains a lot of information.

First, if Sun Xiang was telling the truth, it meant that he did not know that the mastermind behind the assassination and arson in the Hunting Palace was one of the Prince Duan or the Prince Xian, or a conspiracy between the two.

Second, if Prince Duan was the mastermind, how could the guards around him be killed by the assassin and trapped in the fire in the imperial study with no one to rescue him?

Third, after this elimination, it seems that only King Xian is left, and King Xian is indeed the beneficiary of the assassination and arson in the Hunting Palace.

Zhou Chang quickly sorted out his thoughts, but the most important thing today was not to dwell on this matter, so his face remained calm: "Very good, continue."

Sun Xiang continued very cooperatively: "Not long after I came back from the hunting palace, I was sent to the East Garrison Camp. Although I was the deputy commander of the Garrison Camp, my rank was two levels higher than when I was with His Royal Highness Prince Xian, but in fact it was a promotion in name only and a demotion in reality. It is not as comfortable as being with His Royal Highness Prince Xian."

"Why were you sent away?" Zhou Chang asked again, knowing the answer.

Sun Xiang was really willing to tell everything he knew: "According to my guess, it's probably because His Royal Highness Prince Duan had some suspicions and started to investigate His Royal Highness Prince Xian in private. Naturally, His Royal Highness Prince Xian suspected that there was a traitor around him, so he simply sent everyone away."

This was beyond Zhou Chang's expectation.

She originally thought that Sun Xiang was going to say that they were transferred away because they saw Prince Xian deliberately not saving Prince Duan.

Unexpectedly, Sun Xiang's answer was that King Xian suspected there was a traitor around him.

Then we have to ask another question: "Why did Prince Duan begin to suspect Prince Xian, and why did Prince Xian suspect that there was a traitor around him?"

Sun Xiang shook his head: "I'm not very clear about this aspect."

Zhou Chang knew some inside information, so he nodded again, motioning him to continue.

Sun Xiang pressed harder on his abdomen. Perhaps it was because of the pain in his wound, his voice became low and rapid. "The Garrison Battalion is nominally the imperial city garrison, directly under the emperor, but I am still a subordinate of His Royal Highness Prince Xian in private, and I lived a peaceful life for a while. Until my father passed away, I had to return home to mourn, and His Royal Highness Prince Xian found me again and asked me to go to Beiji."

"You admitted yesterday that you participated in the kidnapping of Yuan Yu?" Zhou Chang finally asked the question he wanted to ask most.

However, Sun Xiang seemed unable to bear the pain from his wound and cried out “Ouch, ouch” in pain.

Zhou Chang gestured to Gao Yuan to give him a glass of water.

Gao Yuan turned around and poured a glass of water for Sun Xiang.

Zhou Chang watched Sun Xiang pretending to drink water, and he was already prepared in his heart. For someone like him who said he would surrender, he must have thought of the conditions in his mind. All he had to do was wait patiently for the other party to speak.

After Sun Xiang finished his glass of water, he seemed not ready to speak.

Zhou Chang leaned back in his chair and asked, "Have you heard of my reputation?"

Sun Xiang didn't know why Prince Yi suddenly changed the subject, and was a little confused: "Of course I know His Highness Prince Yi, otherwise I would not have surrendered."

Zhou Chang raised his lips in a beautiful arc: "They all say that I am a 'wind that leaves traces, wild geese that pluck feathers', why do you think I would save you in vain?"

This is the strategy of striking first and gaining the upper hand, and it is also the strategy we discussed with Mr. Zhong in the study just now.

"Uh..." Sun Xiang was really confused this time.