"Boom!"
Cold rain fell from the skies, splashing onto the ground.
Lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the entire area. Xie Cheng Dong held onto an umbrella as he walked along the stone path, towards the inner hall.
Rainwater splashed onto the umbrella, causing it to splash everywhere. As he neared the hall, he could smell the stench of blood. Someone must've been killed here. Xie Cheng Dong thought to himself. It seemed like Xu Guang hadn't obeyed and had been killed.
Several soldiers carried seven or eight corpses out. Xu Guang's body was among them. Xie Cheng Dong glanced at it once before he entered the hall.
King Lu was seated, with eunuch Liao by his side. He had a look of anger on his face, as though he was speaking.
When Xie Cheng Dong saw King Lu, he let out a soft "Eh?", as though he had detected something amiss.
An eunuch stepped forward to receive the umbrella from Xie Cheng Dong and retreated to the side. As soon as he entered the hall, Xie Cheng Dong could smell the thick stench of blood.
There were many bloodstains on the ground, as several eunuchs were washing the floor.
"Daoist Xie, you're here."
King Lu was speaking to eunuch Liao when he heard Xie Cheng Dong's arrival. He then raised his head and smiled, "Mister Xie, you're here. Please take a seat."
King Lu's expression seemed different, which made Xie Cheng Dong curious. When he looked at him, he let out a soft 'eh'. In Xie Cheng Dong's eyes, King Lu had undergone a huge change. His Qi and energy seemed to be rising, as though he was blessed by the heavens.
Xie Cheng Dong felt strange, 'Eh, King Lu's Qi is indeed different from before. Could it be that the decision to rise up caused such a huge change?'
'This is very different from what the sect had predicted. Where did this extra Qi come from? ' Xie Cheng Dong thought to himself. He then heard King Lu ask, "Although I have control over three prefectures and fifteen thousand men, I'm not confident. Didn't Ji Bei Hou have control over three prefectures as well? I'm starting to feel uneasy. Mister Xie, what do you have to say to me? "
As King Lu spoke, he lifted his teacup and took a sip as he looked at Xie Cheng Dong.
Feeling King Lu's gaze on him, Xie Cheng Dong pondered for a moment before he laughed, "King Lu, this is different."
He cleared his throat and continued, "Your Highness, this is different. Ji Bei Hou is a subject, while you are the ruler. You have the right to rule over the lands."
"Moreover, Your Highness, do you still remember that we have been slandering the Crown Prince? They said that he seduced Imperial Father and even committed adultery with Imperial Mother. The death of the Empress was caused by this person. "Xie Chengdong looked at the bloodstains on the ground and said.
"This is a vicious scheme, I naturally remember it." King Lu had a strange look on his face. Although he wasn't the son of the Empress, he was still a prince. He then said, "But what does that have to do with what we're doing now?"
"Hehe!" Xie Chengdong laughed. "Your Highness, with these foreshadowing, some things will come naturally. Of course, there is a relationship between them. Your Highness must have a reason to start the army. The reason is — the Crown Prince's adultery with the Empress and the Imperial Harem has been exposed. In desperation, he has imprisoned the Emperor. Now, Your Highness is not only cleaning up the side of the Emperor, but also mobilizing the army to rescue the Emperor."
Hiss! Eunuch Liao, who was by King Lu's side, sucked in a breath of cold air. His eyes were filled with shock, as if Xie Cheng Dong had turned into a monster.
"His Majesty's ministers may not believe these words, but what about the others?"
"As long as your Highness's army is successful, even if it's fake, it will become real." Xie Cheng Dong raised his head and swept a glance across the room. Seeing that eunuch Liao was astonished, he didn't seem to mind. He then spoke to King Lu, "King Lu, what do you think?"
King Lu leaned forward and replied, "I've thought of this as well. But my Emperor father is still here. All he needs to do is to issue an edict."
Xie Cheng Dong looked at the change in King Lu's expression and laughed, "King Lu, when the time comes, we can say that this is a fake edict by the Crown Prince."
"King Lu, this title doesn't really matter if it's real or fake. In fact, apart from the ignorant commoners, most people don't believe it."
"But without this title, King Lu's army would be considered a rebellion. There's no room for negotiation."
"With this title, it doesn't matter if it's a county or a local army, as long as King Lu wins the war, they would have a reason to surrender."
"Furthermore, even if we fail, these officials would have an excuse. We're not traitors, it's just that we trusted King Lu wrongly."
King Lu stood up and paced back and forth, his expression was unreadable. Many things were easy to do, but when it came time to actually do it, it was extremely difficult.
Eunuch Liao stood there with his hands by his sides as he looked at King Lu, waiting for his decision.
"Boom!"
Outside the hall, a thunderous sound rang out. Xie Cheng Dong couldn't help but frown. The rebellion should be carried out sooner rather than later. He stared at King Lu for some time, and could tell what King Lu was worried about.
"Your majesty, the Emperor's health isn't good, and he might not be able to show his face in public. Besides, the arrow must be fired. If we kill Xu Guang, there's no way out for us."
"The most important thing is this. Forgive me for saying something disgraceful. The various towns have been dissatisfied with the removal of the vassal state for a long time. The problem is that they don't have a reason to do so. What we're doing now is giving them a title."
"Once we have a title, some of the towns would respond to King Lu's call to attack the Crown Prince."
"This is beneficial to King Lu, but also detrimental. If King Lu succeeds, you can take advantage of this opportunity to become a dragon. But if you fail, you'll ruin the world." Xie Cheng Dong then continued, "Hence, whether or not we have a title, and whether or not we use this plan, are two completely different matters. This concerns the fate of the world, and cannot be neglected."
"As for the specifics, I'll leave it to King Lu to decide."
These words caused everyone present to be moved.
King Lu paused before he raised his head. His eyes were bloodshot as he spoke, "Good, let's use this banner. Also, didn't Ji Bei Hou say that he's following my orders?"
"Then let's officially appoint someone as the Ji Country Duke. Let's see if he accepts it." Once he made his decision, King Lu acted decisively.
"That's great!" Xie Cheng Dong clapped his hands as he spoke. Many people didn't know the power of a title. Thinking back to when Han Xin was hailed by Xiao He as the 'Unparalleled Scholar of the Nation', Liu Bang commented, "Every battle is a victory, and every attack is a victory. I'm not as good as Han Xin."
After pacifying Wei, he defeated Dai and Zhao. He then proceeded to the north to subdue Yan. He led his troops to attack Qi, and took down Lin Zi. He then annihilated Long at the Wei River. He then led 200,000 Chu soldiers to surround and annihilate the Chu army. He even forced Xiang Yu to commit suicide. However, such a person was stripped of his military authority, and even his entire clan was wiped out.
This world didn't have a Han Xin, but there were dozens of people who were similar to him.
Once Ji Bei Hou received this title, he would be treated as King Lu's subordinate. In the future, if anyone wanted to fight against King Lu, they would have to bow down to him.
This was needless to say.
Capital City, Imperial Palace
It was early summer, and the afternoon sun shone down upon the land. The trees were green, and the roof tiles were yellow. The clouds were white, and the walls were red. Birds flew past, and left their shadows behind. The entire place was filled with life, and the trees were green. The palace maids had changed into thin dresses, and the eunuchs were bustling about.
Sleeping Quarters
Several rows of Imperial Guards were patrolling and changing shifts. Several eunuchs stood by the door, waiting for orders.
The Crown Prince led a few officials to the West Hall to receive their meals. Gu Xun didn't speak a single word during the meal. The few eunuchs served the Crown Prince attentively, but none of them had the mood to do so. After a few mouthfuls, they were done.
The Crown Prince then brought his men to the outer chambers. The bookshelves were arranged in a picturesque manner, and there were layers upon layers of yellow curtains. The corridors were filled with palace maids and eunuchs.
The Crown Prince didn't look at the outer chambers, and entered the sleeping quarters to serve the Emperor. The Emperor was lying on his bed, and his face was pale. He coughed from time to time.
The Crown Prince served the Emperor carefully, and spoke softly, "Emperor Father, Yuan An County and Peaceful Lake County have been pacified. The rebel army has been weakened, and will be eradicated in a matter of days. Please rest and recuperate. The Imperial Court and your son still depend on you!"
Looking at the old Emperor, the Crown Prince felt a sense of sadness in his heart. He picked up some good news and told it to the Emperor. However, this was the truth. He then told the Emperor everything that had happened in Ying Prefecture. He then bowed down and waited for the Emperor's orders.
"Cough cough" The Emperor stood up, and the Crown Prince hurriedly helped him up. The Emperor then sat up and said, "This news is not bad. I am old, and my body is getting weaker and weaker. My energy is getting weaker as well. You shall stay by my side and manage the government affairs. In the future, if there's any military situation, and my energy is getting weaker and weaker, you can make your own decisions. However, you have to discuss it with the other officials."
"Crown Prince, although these officials are not pure officials, they are people who have been through thick and thin. There's no harm in listening to their opinions."
"Yes, your son understands." The Crown Prince agreed.
The Emperor thought for some time before saying, "It's just that Pei Zi Yun is a Daoist, and should not be placed in an important position. Daoists are outsiders after all.
Hearing these words, the Crown Prince paused, as if he didn't know how to explain himself. He then said, "Yes, your son understands."
The Crown Prince had his doubts, but didn't probe further. Seeing this, the Emperor understood his son's personality. He then sighed, "Crown Prince, I know that you are kind and compassionate. If a Daoist doesn't have any Dharmic powers, you can talk about the Dao in his spare time, and treat it as entertainment. However, these people have real abilities. They can't be harmed by knives or axes, nor can they be burned by fire or drowned by water.
They also have all sorts of special skills. "" Although they don't mention the nobles, it's not just their skills. There's also the scheming and scheming of the people, causing them to unknowingly fall into a trap. "
"Just look at the incident with the Supporting Dragon Court. Although it seems like it's a win-win situation, the truth is that there's a lot of evil within. It's no wonder the ancestors of the previous dynasty used this as a reference, and executed ten Daoists as a warning to the future generations." The Emperor sighed deeply and said, "After I've conquered the world, I flipped through the records of the previous dynasty. I'm afraid that although the previous dynasty had learned from the mistakes of the previous dynasty, they were still at a disadvantage in this aspect."
"At the end of the previous dynasty, there was a plan to slay the hidden dragon. The Daoist who was in charge of this plan and the officials were indeed loyal to the country. However, there were traces of a Daoist within."
"Although they managed to slay the hidden dragon, they also took away the last bit of the previous dynasty's blessing. The outcome was tragic."
"Daoists have special skills, and are hard to control. If they were to wield power and authority, it would be even easier for them to cause chaos. Pei Zi Yun's military strategies and strategies, I don't have the strength to look at them in detail. However, I can feel that they are strange and unpredictable. It's good that they can help you, Crown Prince, but what if they have other intentions?"
"Do you have any way to control them, or even to deal with them?"
The Emperor stared at the Crown Prince, and saw that the Crown Prince was sweating profusely. He wanted to say something else, but suddenly felt his heart palpitate. He then leaned against the pillow, "Crown Prince, think carefully about what I'm saying. This isn't just my own understanding, it's the lessons of the previous Emperors.
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