The imperial city of Chenzhou was more than 10 miles away.
A female corpse adorned in red appeared suddenly. Her neck was twisted strangely. She hadn’t died in peace.
“Host, you died once again.”
In the System’s dimension, it spoke to her with its emotionless voice composed of electricity to relay this information.
She had been killed twice by the same person and in the same way. It was truly an insult.
The lady’s face turned pale when she arrived in the System’s dimension. She rushed to the main hall in exasperation and shouted furiously.
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“Shut up! I know I’m already dead. I don’t need you to tell me this news!”
After she vented her anger by shouting, she rebuked the System. “Was it also my fault this time? I followed your suggestion and did not use the [Level 9 Loyalty Talisman] on her. Why did I still die? Wasn’t it because the [Deity Crosses Thousands of Miles Talisman] you gave me had a defect and did not immediately transport me away? I’ve already activated it and torn it apart. Why was I still caught by Liu Xi, who twisted and broke my neck? Isn’t that your fault?”
Faced with the woman’s interrogation, the System was silent for a while. Then it used a ruthless tone to warn the lady in red.
“Host, I hope you can keep calm. It’s impossible for the System to do wrong. The [Deity Crosses Thousands of Miles Talisman] cannot go wrong either.”
With a cold smirk, she questioned it in return.
“If nothing went wrong, how could I have died?”
“The [Deity Crosses Thousands of Miles Talisman] is the product of the Dimension of Immortality Cultivation. It involves one’s spiritual power and the realm of Soul Fusion. Liu Xi’s mental power is immensely strong, comparable to that of a monk. She isn’t an immortal, and there is no spiritual force within her either, but she is able to use her mental power to disrupt the initiation of the [Deity Crosses Thousands of Miles Talisman]. This caused the teleportation to be delayed by one or two seconds. That amount of time was enough for her to snap the host’s neck.”
The lady in red listened and became dumbfounded. Only after a while did she question the System again.
“Why did you not tell me this earlier?”
If she had known this before, she wouldn’t have foolishly used the [Deity Crosses Thousands of Miles Talisman] in front of Jiang Pengji.
The System’s tone was still devoid of emotion.
“If you wish to purchase any information regarding Empress Chen, it will deplete a huge sum of your popularity points. You are my host, but as a fair and righteous System, I am not obligated to share this information with you. If the host possesses the ability, surely you could have depended on your own capabilities to discover it. Therefore, this matter is not the System’s responsibility but solely dependent on the host. You were too weak!”
With the System’s rational and convincing answer, she had no means to rebut. She could only swallow her grievances.
When she calmed herself down, she had to face another crueler reality—
She had died once again, and if she wanted to be resurrected, she had to pay the System one billion popularity points in installments.
Faced with increasingly high amounts of debt, she was filled with helplessness, but she had to tolerate it.
With menace, she clenched her teeth and said, “Hmph, it isn’t like I didn’t gain anything from this... Liu She, await your tragic death in your fight against your daughter!”
While the lady clothed in red awaited her resurrection, Jiang Pengji hummed a song. Feng Zhen witnessed this, and he was astonished.
“My lord is in a good mood.”
Jiang Pengji signaled with her hands, “A reunion and a joyous occasion has lifted my spirits. Your lord will be promoted very soon. How can I not be elated?”
Feng Zhen heard this. He knew that the Fourth Prince had been killed, and he immediately cracked a smile.
“Congratulations, my lord. It’s indeed worth rejoicing.” Feng Zhen somewhat sincerely and respectfully extended his congratulatory remarks to her. “If my lord gets promoted, is it possible to reward us with some bonuses? For example, seven days of rest like last year? Or quality wine, sumptuous food, and gorgeous ladies? Or even gold and precious treasures?”
Jiang Pengji’s smile dropped. “There will be rewards, but rest days, good wine, beauties... There will be none of those.”
Feng Zhen said nothing.
He had helped his lord with such a big favor, so why was he not granted these small wishes?
He revealed an expression where he no longer desired life. What was left was to organize his frivolous thoughts and continue to drown himself in endless work.
After all the rebel armies were wiped out, the entire city of Chenzhou was left in a messy state. Robbery, rape, and looting were not an uncommon sight.
Yan Lin and the rest employed a strategy that could stabilize the revolt in the shortest time frame possible. They fervently sought out the officials’ family members and helped them settle down. They also strove to protect the imperial family.
“The previous crown princess and some of the imperial grandsons have been found. However, the previous crown prince’s concubines and illegitimate daughters have unfortunately met their ends.”
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Amid the military chaos, it wasn’t an easy feat to protect the crown princess and the imperial grandson. Who cared about the concubines and illegitimate daughters?
Yan Lin laughed coldly as looked down.
“It is good that they have been found. Where are the third and fourth princes?”
The servant replied, “I’ve sent men to search for them. I believe news of their whereabouts will come soon.”
Yan Lin furrowed his brows. He had a vague sense that this was a bad omen.
Although they had found the imperial grandson, the officials were more interested in the whereabouts of the third and fourth princes.
All other matters could be put aside. At least these two princes were of age. The other imperial grandsons were too young.
After countless rounds of pressure was put on them, they finally found two corpses at dawn.
The third prince’s corpse had been soaked in well water until his body became bloated. He had also stabbed in the heart. The sword belonged to Prince Changshou’s soldiers.
It was rather easy to find the third prince, but more difficult to find the fourth prince. An unexplained spiritual force prevented them from stepping into his mansion.
The presence of this force seemed rather strange. It also suddenly dissipated. When the people entered, they discovered the fourth prince lying flat on the ground. His head had been smashed to pieces by a strong force. He had died a very unsightly death. Feng Zhen secretly looked at his lord. He felt rather cold and trembled in fear.
The fourth prince’s head couldn’t have been trampled by the lord until it broke apart, right?
After a few days, the people prepared for the funeral of the Emperor and the princes.
“Two princes have met with a mishap, and the remaining imperial grandsons are still too young. Who do you think is worthy to ascend the throne?”
The Emperor had passed on. Based on protocol, they should conduct nationwide mourning.
However, this was a precarious period. Thus, they were not particular about enforcing it.
The people only needed to be careful about the color of the clothes they wore. They also tied white cloths around their waists.
Feng Zhen was clothed in solemn and respectful ash-gray garments, and a white cloth was tied around his waist. It made him look less wanton, more serious and disciplined.
Yang Si also wore similar attire. It made his entire appearance more sinister and ruthless.
He sneered, “No matter who it is, besides Prince Changshou or Shanghai County’s county chief Wuma Shang, anyone is fine. What are your thoughts?”
“I agree with your views,” Feng Zhen said. “Prince Changshou’s heart is filled with ambition and greed, while Wuma Shang is a tiny, ruthless moth. I agree that the imperial grandson is a better choice.”
A young person would be more obedient and considerate.
They only came of age at 20 years old. They had yet to build their families. This meant that the young emperor could not wield his own power.
The eldest imperial grandson was 11 years old, and the youngest was not even two years old.
Based on the practice of crowning the legitimate eldest, there was none more worthy than the eldest imperial grandson.
He wasn’t only a legitimate grandson. More importantly, he was the eldest grandson. His identity was legitimate, and his blood was pure.
“I’m only afraid that Wuma Shang will be displeased.”
Feng Zhen gave a sinister smile. “So what if he’s dissatisfied? The alliance army is full of old folks. Unless their minds undergo massive transformations, they’ll never support him.”
What were the advantages of supporting Wuma Shang?
Those who supported Wuma Shang ascending the throne would be rewarded, but those who supported the imperial grandson would likewise be rewarded.
In comparison, those who supported the elder and scheming Wuma Shang, if they were not careful, would be robbed of their military might because of fear, and they would have to be prepared to lose their titles.
What if they supported the young imperial grandson ascending the throne instead?
If the imperial grandson wished to secure his position as emperor, he could only choose to confer power to the alliance army and his marquis. Before he came of age, they could not have evil intentions against him. Only then would the advantages he possessed be more.
Judging by the stance of the majority of marquis who only took their own interests into consideration, Wuma Shang was evidently not the ideal choice.
Both briefly exchanged their views. They looked at each other and communicated with their eyes.
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