Sheng Fu

Chapter 1121 The Mighty King of the South
Three nights later.

There are three days left until the North-South talks.

In the Lingyun Mountains, bonfires blazed brightly, echoing the starlight in the distant sky.

The supply wagons continued to arrive in an endless stream. In reality, there wasn't that much treasure that required such a long time to excavate; Xie Yiming was simply deliberately delaying the process.

Because transporting treasure is inherently a refreshing and invigorating activity.

In particular, this batch of treasures will enter the national treasury and make up for many shortcomings in the internal affairs of the human race.

A simple square tent is set up under a towering sycamore tree.

Although the tent was simple, the people inside were anything but.

There is Li He, the head of the Li family; He Jin, the head of the He family; Tian Jun, the head of the Tian family; and Su He, the head of the Su family.

The four major families are all second-tier aristocratic families in the southern region. However, the Tian family is at the top of the second-tier aristocratic families and is only one step away from becoming a first-tier aristocratic family. Tian Jun is a powerful expert at the peak of Lingxiao. If the opportunity is right, he may be able to enter the Wuji realm.

Li He, He Jin, Tian Jun, and Su He stayed in their tent, rarely venturing out. They kept their daily meals simple. They should have brought many attendants, but the Lingyun Mountains were currently transporting treasures, and if the four of them brought many attendants, His Highness the Southern King would inevitably have some doubts.

Therefore, these four people had no choice but to keep everything simple.

Out of respect for His Highness the Prince of the South, the four of them did not dare to eat hot pot or play mahjong in the simple tent. They had enough people, but dared not do anything.

"Brother Li, do you think His Highness the Prince of Nan will pay any attention to us?" Tian Jun was slender with dark skin, a prominent facial structure, and bright, piercing eyes. He asked Li He in a serious tone.

Li He is tall and handsome. Although he is middle-aged, he still has sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and has a youthful air about him.

Upon hearing "Brother Li," Li He was completely stunned.

"Brother Tian, ​​please don't flatter me. I really can't handle you calling me 'brother' like that," Li He said, both amused and exasperated.

In terms of strength, Tian Jun is the strongest, while Li He is only at the late stage of the Returning Origin Realm.

The reason he is called Brother Li is because this tent was set up by Li He after he arrived here, and it was also set up by Li He himself.

Secondly, Li He was also the first person to arrive here.

To some extent, Li He can be considered a guiding light for the other three.

Even here, Tian Jun dared not put on airs of being at the peak of the Lingxiao realm. He spoke to Li He in a friendly manner, saying, "You arrived the earliest, so you should have some idea of ​​His Highness the Southern King's thoughts."

Su He and He Jin also stared longingly at Li He.

Su He was tall and robust, with a fair complexion. At first glance, he had a slightly androgynous appearance and was at the peak of the Returning Origin Realm.

He Jin was obese, with short limbs and small eyes. No matter how you looked at him, he did not look like the head of a family. However, he was the head of the He family and also had the cultivation level of the early stage of Lingxiao.

Li He paced back and forth, saying, "According to my speculation, the reason why His Highness the Southern King ignored me at first was to see who else would be willing to come to the Lingyun Mountains besides me."

"Then the three of you came, so now there are four of us in total."

"There are three days left until the North-South talks."

"And for the next three days, it is unlikely that anyone else will come."

"Because after tonight, all the treasures will be transported out."

"Tomorrow morning, no more smoke will rise from the Lingyun Mountains, and everything will return to peace."

"If His Highness the Prince of Nan is willing to see us, it will be tonight. If he is still unwilling to see us tonight, then we should just slink home."

In short, let's see what fate has in store.

Having said all this, Tian Jun and the others knew perfectly well that if the Southern King was unwilling to meet with the four of them, it meant that after the new government came to power, their four major families would also suffer a great loss of strength.

This time, they are determined to target the powerful families.

Moreover, seeing the treasures of the Purple Gold Alliance being transported to the capital was not only a deterrent to these four great families, but also a fear that could not be described in words.

Because they were genuinely afraid that their own family's treasury would be opened, and all their years of savings would be swept into the national treasury.

If even a behemoth like the Ji family of the North has collapsed, what are they, a second-tier aristocratic family, compared to them?

For aristocratic families, the new policies involved too many things, such as numerous unreasonable interests, and the means by which some aristocratic family members obtained their official positions.

Some things, once investigated in detail, can go on and on.

If everything is implemented according to the new policy, then the entire human officialdom will not only be wiped out, but at least 80 or 90 percent of the officials will lose their heads. Of these 80 or 90 percent of officials, at least 60 percent will come from powerful and influential families.

"Just wait and see," Li He said with a look of utter despair.

Tian Jun, Su He, and He Jin could only silently lower their heads.

Suddenly, footsteps came from outside the tent. Li He, being quite perceptive, quickly stepped forward and lifted the curtain, while Tian Jun, Su He, and He Jin followed closely behind.

Inside this tent, Li Hezhen truly became the eldest brother of these three family heads!
After pulling back the curtain, a burly armored warrior with his face covered in armor came into view.

"His Highness the Prince of Nan requests your presence in the main tent," the burly armored soldier said in a cold voice.

Unfortunately, his face was covered by a mask. In reality, this burly armored warrior, who was not bad-looking, had already bitten his tongue to prevent himself from laughing out loud when he saw the heads of the four major families looking so ridiculous.

"Yes, yes, we'll go right away," Li He said, bowing and scraping to the burly armored soldier. Led by the soldier, the four family heads hurriedly made their way to Xie Yiming's tent.

The path wasn't long, only twenty or thirty steps. The tent was brightly lit with candles, and the tent itself was quite simple. When Li He arrived, he had intended to set up a tent that could at least be considered somewhat elegant, but seeing how simple Xie Yiming's tent was, Li He naturally lost the courage to try and take the lead.

Soon, the four of them arrived at the entrance of the main tent.

The burly armored soldier pulled back the curtain, and Li He took a deep breath before leading Tian Jun and the other two into the tent.

Xie Yiming sat upright behind his desk, his fingers interlaced on the table, his eyes looking at Li and the other four who entered with an air of authority.

"Li He, Tian Jun, Su He, and He Jin pay their respects to His Highness the Prince of the South!" The four bowed deeply and said in unison.

Xie Yiming's eyelids twitched slightly. To be honest, Xie Yiming had never seen these four people in a big setting, but he had occasionally heard of their names.

"No need for formalities, please sit down," Xie Yiming said in a deep voice, his attitude subtle.

Upon hearing this, Li and the others moved cautiously to the left and right, and sat down on the rough benches.

Xie Yiming wiggled his fingers slightly, then raised his right hand, picked up the teacup, and took a sip. He was somewhat disappointed; he had thought that at least six family heads would come here to curry favor.

Only four people showed up, but that's fine too, every little bit helps.

"I've been busy with official duties these past few days and have neglected the heads of the family for a while. I apologize for any shortcomings in my hospitality!" Xie Yiming said, emphasizing his words with a deeper meaning.

Upon hearing this, Li and the others immediately stood up.

Tian Jun even cast a desperate plea to Li He for help.

Li He knelt down with a thud, and Tian Jun and the other two followed suit.

“Your Highness the Prince of Nan is extremely busy with state affairs, while we are but insignificant people. It is an immense honor to be summoned by Your Highness tonight, and we are deeply grateful for Your Highness’s courteous treatment,” Li He said, kneeling at the front with a sincere expression.

Xie Yiming sighed softly, squinted at the four people, and said with a playful smile, "You should sit on the bench and talk to me. I'm not used to people kneeling before me. I wasn't used to it before, and I won't be used to it in the future."

Since becoming the King of the South, this was the first time a head of a powerful family had ever paid such a grand salute to him.

Upon hearing this, Li and the others were filled with fear and dared not make any rash moves.

Xie Yiming coughed helplessly and said, "Hurry up and get back to your benches."

Seeing Xie Yiming give the order again, Li and the other four quickly sat back down on the benches they had been sitting on.

"The top-tier wealthy families aren't here because they have their own style and dignity. But I remember there shouldn't only be four of you second-tier wealthy families. Why aren't the others here?" Xie Yiming asked with a suspicious look.

Upon hearing this, Li He looked at Tian Jun, whose family was the closest to being a top-tier aristocratic family. However, Tian Jun, Su He, and He Jin all turned to look at Li He.

In the hearts of these three people, at this moment, Li He is their elder brother.

Moreover, Li He was the first family head to arrive at Lingyun Mountain Range, which also means that Li He is the most perceptive among the four, thus qualifying him to be the eldest brother of the three.

Li He was also extremely anxious and helpless at this moment. He had no choice but to force himself to bow to Xie Yiming and reply, "Perhaps my interests are too deeply intertwined with those of the first-class aristocratic families, making it inconvenient for me to come and see His Highness the Prince of the South."

Upon hearing this, Xie Yiming laughed heartily, his smile becoming somewhat unrestrained. "So, among the second-tier wealthy families, only your four families have a clean background."

"Or rather, only the four of you are not constrained by the top-tier wealthy families, and can make your own decisions on many important matters without having to consider the opinions of the other big shots?"

Upon hearing this, Li He turned back to look at Tian Jun and the other two, but they were still staring at him expectantly.

In such a situation, saying the wrong thing could have unimaginable consequences.

Li He replied cautiously, "In essence, there may be some flaws, but we can indeed make our own decisions regarding matters large and small within the family. We hope Your Highness will understand."

Xie Yiming scoffed, "What do you mean by 'maybe has flaws'? Does it have flaws or not?"

Li He suddenly felt his legs go weak, as did Tian Jun and the other two.

"Uh... Our family has a long and prosperous history, and perhaps some branches have some flaws that we haven't noticed," Li He stammered, his face flushed.

Xie Yiming cursed the old fox in his heart, then said leisurely, "Gentlemen, you should know that it is already a rare treat for me to meet with you. The affairs I am currently burdened with are far more heavy and complicated than you can imagine. Since you are here, let's speak the truth."

"If there isn't a single truth in your story, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to continue this conversation with you."

Li and the other four realized something was wrong with the tone of the voice, so they got up from the bench again and knelt down in front of Xie Yiming with a thud.

"Get back on the bench, don't give me that nonsense!" Xie Yiming shouted without any politeness when he saw this.

This time, the four of them remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to move an inch.

"What's going on?" Xie Yiming asked, his beard bristling and eyes wide.

Li He quickly pulled out a stack of gold notes from his pocket, and Tian Jun and the other two followed suit.

"This is a small token of our appreciation from the four of us. We hope Your Highness will accept it with a smile. Once the new policies are implemented, we hope Your Highness will be lenient with us." Li He presented the gold notes with both hands, his voice trembling.

Xie Yiming slammed his palm on the table, but the table did not shatter; the slap was clearly just a bluff.

Xie Yiming shouted, "You four are trying to bribe me! Don't you know that under the new political system, officials are absolutely not allowed to embezzle? Accepting a bribe of five hundred taels of silver will get you beheaded. The gold notes you have are enough to make the executioner chop my head off for hundreds of thousands of lifetimes!"

"What deep-seated hatred do I have for you that you would resort to such vicious methods!"