Actually, not many were interested in going with him. It would be strange if they could have fun with their superiors, especially when the stench of blood was still lingering.
But they had no choice. They had to give him face even if they didn't want to. Who could say that they had matters to attend to and had to leave first?
"It's an honor!" the crowd responded in unison.
How many of them were sincere? Whether it was Qing Zhu, who was sitting high up on the throne, or the group of ministers standing below, everyone knew what was going on.
In short, no matter what, everyone seemed to be happy to go.
Qing Zhu returned to the rear hall to change out of his formal attire. When he appeared again, he was already dressed casually. Shangguan Qing followed him down the steps. The ministers parted to wait for Qing Zhu to pass before following him.
Outside the Universal Palace, the emperor's carriage was already prepared. Two giant golden dragons pulled a magnificent carriage that looked like a ship, protected by a group of Heavenly Guards in front and behind.
Qing Zhu boarded the carriage and entered the pavilion to sit high above. The ministers followed, but they stood on both sides of the steps outside the pavilion.
"Awooo …" The two golden dragons roared in unison. For a moment, the wind and clouds surged as they slowly dragged the emperor's carriage into the sky. They gradually picked up speed and soared into the starry sky, followed by thousands of Heavenly Guards.
Before they could move, Miao Yi in the Imperial Garden had already received a notice from his superiors. He hurriedly ordered a hundred thousand troops to escort the emperor. Actually, they weren't the ones to escort the emperor. They were only there to clear away the miscellaneous people. They were only qualified to stand by the side.
However, the Black Dragon Division personnel were a little nervous when they thought about the possibility of meeting the legendary Celestial Emperor. Most of them had never seen him before. Miao Yi was a little nervous as well. He urgently ordered the people in the other areas of the Imperial Garden to perform their duties. His Majesty might visit some places to check on them, so they couldn't afford to make any mistakes.
Unexpectedly, after the troops spread out around the vast farmland, they didn't see the Celestial Emperor's imperial carriage. Instead, they saw two colorful phoenixes pulling the carriage down from the sky, accompanied by a group of guards.
A group of beautiful women came down from the phoenix carriage. There were at least eight hundred of them, if not a thousand. All of them were dressed in coarse clothes. They surrounded an average-looking woman like a moon surrounded by stars. However, this woman's aura was as if she was sitting on the clouds. Her aura was indescribably noble.
Beside Miao Yi, Zhan Ruyi reminded him softly, "Milord, the Heavenly Empress is here. Those accompanying him should be His Majesty's concubines. "
Miao Yi had more or less guessed it as well. Otherwise, who would dare ride in a phoenix chariot and come all the way here?
However, with Miao Yi and the others' ranks, they could only watch from afar. They didn't have the qualifications to run over to greet them and curry favor with them.
Soon, the phoenix carriage flew away, and a group of women took out their farming tools. They were whispering to each other, but Miao Yi didn't know what they were talking about. Miao Yi felt a toothache as he looked at them. He raised his hand to scratch his forehead. Seeing his reaction, Zhan Ruyi tried to stifle his laughter. "My Lord, don't you think it's a little too horrible to look at?"
Miao Yi agreed with him in his heart, but he couldn't say it out loud. Instead, he glared at Zhan Ruyi and said, "If you dare spout nonsense again, don't blame me for punishing you according to military law!"
As soon as he finished speaking. Suddenly, a fairy flew over. She landed on the ground and looked around at everyone. She asked, "Who is the main town stationed here?"
Miao Yi immediately stepped forward to answer. He cupped his fists and said, "I am."
Xian 'e bowed slightly and said, "The Heavenly Empress has summoned the Chief Mayor to question him. Please follow me!"
"Yes!" Miao Yi immediately flew over with her.
He abided by the rules and didn't dare to make any big movements in front of the Heavenly Empress, afraid that he would startle the phoenix carriage. He landed a few dozen zhang away and quickly walked forward. He quickly looked at the group of women and realized that they were all staring at him as well. He quickly lowered his head, not daring to stare at the Sky Emperor's women in public.
Miao Yi was a little nervous. He didn't expect to meet the Heavenly Empress so soon after he arrived.
In the distance, Zhan Ruyi and the others were also staring at the commotion.
Miao Yi approached and maintained a distance of three zhang. He cupped his fists and said, "The Imperial Gardens' Chief Mayor, Niu Youde, pays his respects to the Heavenly Empress!" He stared at the ground, not daring to look at her directly.
As soon as he said this. The group of beautiful women around Xiahou Chengyu seemed to be in a slight commotion. Many of them were whispering to each other, but Miao Yi couldn't tell what they were talking about.
Xiahou Chengyu sized up Miao Yi with a dignified gaze that had been nurtured for a long time, before slowly asking, "You are the Left Commandant of the Suppressing Second Guard, Big Dipper Army's Black Dragon Division, Niu Youde?"
Miao Yi didn't let go of his cupped hands, his gaze still fixed on the ground. He replied, "That's me."
Xiahou Chengyu fixed his gaze on him, then looked around and asked, "Where is His Majesty?"
Miao Yi muttered to himself, 'You're asking me, but who should I ask?' He replied, "I don't know!"
Xiahou Chengyu coldly said, "His Majesty has come to the Imperial Gardens. As the Imperial Gardens' Chief Mayor, you actually don't know where His Majesty is?"
Miao Yi replied, "I received orders from my superiors to welcome His Majesty here. I really don't know anything else."
He really didn't know. He hadn't received any reports from his subordinates, so how could he know where the Green Emperor was?
However, as soon as this explanation came out, the group of concubines quickly exchanged glances. Those who understood Xiahou Chengyu knew that if this explanation fell into Xiahou Chengyu's ears, it would most likely be a rebuttal. This Niu Youde was probably going to suffer for it.
As expected, Xiahou Chengyu's eyes suddenly narrowed, and he berated, "You dare to quibble about your own dereliction of duty?! Men, drag him away and teach him a lesson! "
Miao Yi abruptly raised his head, his gaze piercing into Xiahou Chengyu's eyes like a sharp blade.
Two of the imperial guards accompanying the phoenix chariot immediately rushed over. With lightning speed, they grabbed Miao Yi's arms and dragged him into the forest at the back.
Xiahou Chengyu looked back and scoffed. If it weren't for this Niu Youde's resounding reputation, to the point where even His Majesty had mentioned him, she could have immediately dragged Miao Yi away and beheaded him with a single command. He was just a small chief mayor without any power or background. If she killed him, then so be it. It wasn't a big deal at all.
Turning back, Xiahou Chengyu waved his hand, and the group of concubines dispersed. They each took their farming tools and went to their own fields. Regardless of whether His Majesty was around or not, everyone had to put on a show. What if His Majesty came on a patrol?
The Sky Palace's internal guards were also part of the Imperial Guards. After two men dragged Miao Yi into the forest, they took off Miao Yi's armor and shook their heads. "Little Brother, we are all brothers of the Imperial Guards. We have also heard of your reputation. We don't want to make things difficult for you, but we are only following orders. We have no choice. Don't blame us."
Miao Yi turned back and gritted his teeth. "What crime have I committed?"
One of them smiled bitterly. "Don't you know you said the wrong thing? This is called offending the phoenix chariot. Why don't you take a look at who you are facing? If you don't go along with what you say, even the slightest bit of disrespect could result in your head rolling. You are already being merciful by only teaching you a lesson. "With a swoosh, he threw Miao Yi's armor to the side and pointed between two trees. "Just go over there and bear with it. It will all be over soon. Don't resist. Otherwise, you might anger the higher-ups and lose your life."
Miao Yi turned around and saw the other man casually taking out the Dragon Taming Whip. He immediately felt his scalp go numb. The taste of this thing was too intoxicating. He never thought that he would have the chance to taste it again after reaching his current position! However, he knew that this beating was unavoidable. He braced himself and walked to the space between the two trees, forming a '大' shape to brace himself. His expression twitched as he said, "I say, the two of you, please be gentler."
"Don't worry. We are all brothers of the Left Commandant. We have no grudges against you. We won't purposely torture you. You know what you are doing. Bear with it. Just ten lashes. " As soon as the man finished speaking, the whip in his hand let out a loud crack. The afterimages of the whip were extremely loud. However, he controlled his strength when it hit Miao Yi's back. It was obvious that he was being merciful. It was just that the commotion caused was a little frightening. Even so, the whip still ruthlessly tore a piece of flesh from Miao Yi's back.
That feeling was indescribable. "Ugh …" Miao Yi let out a muffled groan. He trembled in pain and his face instantly paled.
A large piece of flesh was torn from his body. Only those who had tasted it would know how it felt.
From afar, the expressions of the Black Dragon Division troops who witnessed this scene changed drastically. They didn't know what Miao Yi had done. They had only just met, but he was already being punished. Yan Xiu's expression darkened. He clenched his fists and took half a step forward. Beside him, Yang Qing quickly reached out and grabbed his arm. At the same time, he slightly shook his head at Yang Zhaoqing.
Yan Xiu understood Yang Qing's meaning. In a place like this, it was impossible for him to save Miao Yi with his own strength. If he dared to act recklessly, he would only be throwing his life away. Not only would he not be able to save Miao Yi, he might even harm him.
He could only tense his body and endure, watching helplessly.
In the forest, after the ten lashes of the whip, the executioner shook off the flesh and blood on the barbs of the whip. He waved his hand towards the distance, signaling for those who had come.
Zhan Ruyi and the others quickly rushed over and rushed into the forest. They saw that Miao Yi's back was badly mutilated. It was so bloody that they could see the white bones and the internal organs inside his body. Miao Yi's four limbs, which were propped up on the tree trunk, were trembling like a sieve. In the end, he couldn't take it anymore and knelt on the ground.
The executioner put away the whip and said happily, "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and carry your lord away for treatment."
If he didn't speak, who knew what would happen? Who knew if they could intervene. Hearing this, Yan Xiu and the others naturally rushed forward and helped Miao Yi up. A robe was draped over Miao Yi's body, and they carried him away for treatment. Someone else helped clean up the armor that Miao Yi had thrown on the ground.
Some things were just so coincidental. The Heavenly Palace was actually not far from the Imperial Garden. It only took the emperor's carriage a blink of an eye to get there. Perhaps Master Qing felt that it was a little inappropriate to get off the carriage right after getting on it, so he ordered the carriage to make a round in space.
Normally, Master Qing wouldn't act like this. When he went to the Imperial Garden, he would just fly there with a few attendants. He wouldn't ride the emperor's carriage either. Today, because he had a group of ministers with him, he played a little extra.
In the end, because of this detour, Miao Yi, who lacked experience in dealing with the nobles in the palace, immediately suffered.
At this moment, the emperor's carriage had turned around and was flying towards the Imperial Garden's planet. Standing beside it, Head Steward Shangguan Qing put away the Star Bell in his hand. He lowered his head and whispered something into Master Qing's ear.
"Oh! Something like this happened? Looks like he's met with a show of strength as soon as he took office! " Master Qing chuckled. His eyes flashed, as if he had thought of something. He teased, "Then let's go straight to the Imperial Garden's main manor. I don't think I've been there before."
"Understood!" Shangguan Qing accepted the order and quickly relayed it to the person driving the emperor's carriage.
The ministers standing outside the emperor's carriage also received the news one after another. It wasn't without reason that they sent a group of beauties to the palace as a tribute.
One of the ministers, Xiahou Tianweng, Xiahou Tuo, furrowed his brows when he heard the news. Xiahou Chengyu didn't know about the news from the Pavilion of Faithfulness, and he wouldn't let her know either. However, as the Family Head, he knew. He didn't expect something like this to happen.
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