You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 105 Tell me, how is Marquis Weiwu doing now?

"A great victory at Daizhou."

"General Lü captured Shangyang Prefecture in half a day, annihilated the rebel army of Prince Xiaoyao Zhou Qian, and quelled the rebellion in Daizhou."

A messenger rushed into Luoyang and headed towards the imperial palace.

……

The Hall of Nourishing Heart.

Zhou Chen had just finished the morning court session when he saw Cao Zhengchun hurriedly enter the Hall of Mental Cultivation with an urgent letter in his hand.

"Your Majesty, a great victory has been achieved at Daizhou."

"General Lü captured Shangyang Prefecture in half a day and wiped out the rebel army of Prince Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian."

"The carefree Prince Zhou Qian committed suicide."

"This is a report of victory sent by General Lü."

After Cao Zhengchun entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation, he immediately placed the letter in his hand in front of Zhou Chen.

Oh!
A great victory at Daizhou?

Zhou Chen raised an eyebrow, immediately took the victory report from Cao Zhengchun's hand, and opened it to read.

The report of victory was short, but its content brought Zhou Chen to a great delight.

The rebel army of Zhou Qian, the Prince of Xiaoyao, was wiped out by Lü Bu, and Zhou Qian also died. The rebellion in Daizhou was thus quelled.

In this sense, the rebellion in the four northern provinces has been quelled in two of them.

Lu Bu's army's mission to quell the rebellion can be considered basically completed.

However, the cause of death of the carefree Prince Zhou Qian mentioned in the report made Zhou Chen frown.

Death was caused by poisoning.

Was this suicide?
There is also the matter concerning King Kang, Zhou Qi, which should leave a clean reputation among the people.

It turns out that King Kang, Zhou Qi, did not join the rebels, nor did he follow King Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian, in their rebellion. He had been imprisoned by King Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian.

He was eventually poisoned to death by Zhou Qian, the carefree prince, with a cup of poisoned wine.

Therefore, it seems that the news previously relayed by the Imperial Guards about Prince Kang and Prince Xiaoyao surrendering to the Yellow Heaven Sect was deliberately leaked by Prince Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian.

The purpose was to drag King Kang and King Zhou Qi into the water together.

If that's the case, then why did the urgent message sent on the 800-li journey only mention that it was King Zhou Qian who rebelled, and not King Zhou Qi?
This seems to contradict the previous plan of Prince Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian, to drag Prince Kang, Zhou Qi, into the mess.

Zhou Chen put down the report of victory, tapped his fingers on the dragon table, and frowned as he pondered the problem.

In his report of victory, Lü Bu made a point of mentioning the matter of King Kang, Zhou Qi.

This made Zhou Chen sigh inwardly, feeling a little regretful.

It is a blessing for the royal family to have such a virtuous king.

Unfortunately, he died in the end.

He still died at the hands of his own imperial brother.

I have to say, this is sad.

A moment later, Zhou Chen looked up at Cao Zhengchun and said, "Send someone to inform the Imperial Clan Court that after the Kang Prince's body is sent back to Luoyang, the Imperial Clan Court will oversee a grand funeral."

"As for Prince Zhou Qian, let the Imperial Clan Court handle it themselves."

Regardless of whether Prince Xiaoyao Zhou Qian committed suicide or not, and regardless of why his attitude towards Prince Kang Zhou Qi changed so drastically before and after,

None of this matters.

The important thing is that the rebellion in Dai and Yan prefectures was quelled, and the Prince of Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian, who raised the flag of rebellion, died.

that's enough.

For Zhou Chen, this is the most important thing.

As for King Kang, Zhou Qining, who would rather die than leave behind a clean reputation, Zhou Chen could only feel a pang of regret.

All that could be done for Prince Kang was to have the Imperial Clan Court give him a proper burial.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Cao Zhengchun replied with a bow.

"besides."

"Tell the Imperial Clan Court to take better care of the Prince Kang's residence in the future."

"King Kang preserved some dignity for the Zhou royal family, and the Zhou royal family should live up to his expectations."

"When the body of Prince Kang is returned to Luoyang, you shall go and greet it for me!"

No matter what, Prince Kang, Zhou Qi, was Zhou Chen's seventh brother.

Although their relationship was lukewarm, King Kang, Zhou Qi, wanted to preserve his reputation and would rather die than join King Xiaoyao, Zhou Qian, in raising the banner of rebellion.

They preserved a shred of dignity for the Great Zhou royal family.

Therefore, whether from a personal or official perspective, Zhou Chen, as the elder brother of Prince Kang, Zhou Qi, should have sent someone to welcome Prince Kang's remains.

Upon hearing Zhou Chen's words, Cao Zhengchun bowed again and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

After finishing his story, Zhou Chen looked at Cao Zhengchun and asked, "Have there been any news from Marquis Weiwu these past few days?"

Previously, the Imperial Guard had sent back news to Marquis Weiwu, saying that things were progressing smoothly on his end.

The rebel rioters in Youzhou have been wiped out, and Youzhou has been pacified.

They even entered Yongzhou and defeated the Huangtian Sect, forcing them to retreat to the four northwestern prefectures.

This eased Zhou Chen's unease about Marquis Weiwu considerably.

"Your Majesty, there is still no news from Marquis Weiwu." Cao Zhengchun shook his head.

Cao Zhengchun had just finished speaking.

at this time.

A shout echoed into the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

"Urgent dispatch."

As the sound came, a messenger from the Divine Martial Guard rushed into the Hall of Mental Cultivation, holding an urgent letter, and knelt on the ground, saying, "Your Majesty, Marquis Weiwu has sent an urgent letter from eight hundred li away."

Marquis Weiwu's urgent dispatch, covering 800 li?
Zhou Chen was taken aback. When he saw the Divine Martial Guard messenger kneeling below, his heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition immediately welled up inside him.

"Send it up."

Zhou Chen uttered three words.

Upon hearing this, Cao Zhengchun immediately stepped forward, took the letter from the Shenwu Guard messenger, and presented it to Zhou Chen.

Without saying a word, Zhou Chen immediately opened the urgent letter sent by Marquis Weiwu and began to read it.

The letter contained little information, but it immediately darkened Zhou Chen's expression.

After Zhou Chen finished reading all the contents of the letter, he slammed it down on the dragon desk.

Zhou Chen raised his head and looked down at the Divine Martial Guard messenger kneeling below; "Tell me, how is Marquis Weiwu now?"

"What are the losses of the army?"

"Is this how you lost?"

Zhou Chen looked at the messenger from the Divine Martial Guard and asked in a gloomy tone.

That's right.

Marquis Weiwu's urgent letter, delivered by express courier, was a plea for help from the imperial court.

The letter stated that Marquis Weiwu had fought against the Yellow Heaven Sect, suffered a crushing defeat in the four northwestern prefectures, and was seriously wounded.

We hope the imperial court will immediately send troops to provide support.

Zhou Chen never expected that Marquis Weiwu would be defeated, and defeated so thoroughly, that he actually sent an urgent message to the imperial court for help.

Didn't the Imperial Guard send back a message saying that Marquis Weiwu was making good progress and had already forced the Yellow Heaven Sect rebels to the four prefectures in the northwest?
How could we have lost so badly that we have to ask the imperial court for help?
Moreover, with 100,000 elite Divine Martial Guards, and Zhou Rushan, a half-step Celestial, and several first-rank Grandmasters accompanying the army, how could they possibly be defeated? Zhou Chen looked directly down at the Divine Martial Guard messenger kneeling below. The urgent letter from 800 li did not describe the specific details of the defeat.

Therefore, Zhou Chen needed to find out from this messenger how Marquis Weiwu, leading 100,000 elite Divine Martial Guards and with a half-step Celestial being on the expedition, could have been defeated by a group of demons from the Yellow Heaven Sect.

Faced with Emperor Zhou Chen's question, the Shenwu Guard messenger kneeling on the ground had tears in his eyes; "Your Majesty, the army has suffered heavy losses. Of the 100,000 Shenwu Guards in the Northern Camp, more than half have been killed or wounded."

"The Marquis of Weiwu is seriously injured and remains unconscious."

"Even the two Grandmasters sent by the royal family to accompany the army were killed in battle. The Yellow Heaven Sect used a feigned defeat to lure us into pursuit, and then..."

The messenger from the Divine Martial Guard recounted the events of that time, his voice choking with emotion as he finished speaking.

Clearly, this crushing defeat left an indelible and tragic mark on the heart of this messenger of the Divine Martial Guard.

After listening to the messenger from the Divine Martial Guard, Zhou Chen had already crumpled the urgent letter into a ball.

Zhou Chen slammed his palm on the dragon table and stood up abruptly; "Well done, Huang Tian Sect."

"First, my Great Zhou's 30,000 Divine Martial Guards were completely wiped out, and Grand Tutor Wen Zhong died in battle in Xi'an Prefecture."

"Now, half of our imperial army has been killed or wounded in the campaign to quell the rebellion, and even the commander of the army, Marquis Weiwu, is seriously injured and unconscious."

"That's really great."

"Does the Great Zhou Dynasty really think it's weak and incompetent, with no one to suppress them?"

Zhou Chen paced back and forth with a murderous look on his face, his malevolent aura palpable to everyone in the hall.

Also.

The Yellow Heaven Sect first caused the annihilation of the 30,000 Divine Martial Guards led by Grand Tutor Wen Zhong in the four northwestern prefectures.

Now, the 100,000-strong army led by Marquis Weiwu has suffered a crushing defeat in the four northwestern prefectures.

No wonder Zhou Chen exuded such a violent aura.

Most importantly, both Grand Tutor Wen Zhong and Marquis Wei Wu were loyal veterans of the Great Zhou Dynasty and important pillars of the court.

Now, because of the Yellow Heaven Sect, one has died in battle, and the other has been defeated and is in a coma.

This is undoubtedly a major blow to the face and prestige of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

If the Great Zhou Dynasty cannot quickly regain its lost ground and eradicate the Yellow Heaven Cult...

Then the imperial court's prestige will be completely destroyed.

Especially those rumors that have been spread, such as the death of the Azure Heaven and the rise of the Yellow Heaven, and the end of the Great Zhou Dynasty's fate, might actually succeed.

As Zhou Chen paced back and forth, these thoughts kept flashing through his mind.

After pacing back and forth a few times, Zhou Chen looked up at the Divine Martial Guard messenger kneeling below and asked, "Where is Zhou Rushan?"

"The army suffered a crushing defeat, with such heavy losses that even the commander-in-chief, Marquis Weiwu, was seriously injured and unconscious. What was he doing?"

Zhou Chen looked at the Divine Martial Guard messenger kneeling on the ground and asked in a gloomy tone.

Zhou Chen sent Zhou Rushan, a half-step Celestial, to accompany the army on the expedition in order to prevent the same thing from happening to Grand Tutor Wen Zhong.

But unexpectedly, this still happened in the end.

Marquis Weiwu was seriously injured and fell into a coma; more than half of the 100,000 Divine Martial Guards were killed or wounded.

Such a loss is indeed devastating.

This fueled Zhou Chen's barely concealed anger.

The messenger sensed Zhou Chen's dissatisfaction with Zhou Rushan in his words and immediately said, "Your Majesty, Ancestor Zhou Rushan has also been injured."

"If it weren't for Ancestor Zhou Rushan, Marquis Weiwu might not have been saved, and the 100,000-strong army would have suffered even greater losses."

"Among those demons of the Yellow Heaven Sect, there are also half-step Celestial Realm experts, and more than one of them."

Upon hearing this, a glint of light flashed in Zhou Chen's eyes.

Does the Yellow Heaven Sect also have half-step Celestials?
And not just one?
Zhou Chen's expression was rather unpleasant.

Throughout the entire Great Zhou Dynasty, there were only nine experts who had reached the half-step Celestial Realm.

Previously, Cao Zhengchun killed one person at the General's Mansion, leaving only eight.

I've never heard of a half-step Celestial being among the Yellow Heaven Sect, and there's more than one.

Could it be that Huang Tian has cultivated a new half-step Celestial Realm expert?
Or perhaps one of the other eight half-step Celestial Realm experts is helping the Yellow Heaven Sect to fight against the imperial court.
Even so, Zhou Rushan, a half-step Celestial Being, has been able to support the royal family for so many years without falling, which is no small feat for a half-step Celestial Being.

Among the only nine half-step Celestial Beings in the world, Zhou Rushan's combat strength is undoubtedly the greatest.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible for the royal family to remain in power for so many years and deter other forces.

With Zhou Rushan's combat strength, even if the Yellow Heaven Sect had two half-step Celestial Realm experts, they wouldn't be able to injure him!

Zhou Chen thought to himself, then sat back down on the dragon throne and said to the Divine Martial Guard messenger kneeling below, "You may go and rest now!"

This messenger from the Divine Martial Guard probably didn't rest like this along the way in order to deliver this urgent message.

Zhou Chen could see that he was exhausted and listless.

I've asked everything I needed to ask and learned everything I needed to know.

Therefore, Zhou Chen had nothing more to ask and let the Divine Martial Guard go and rest.

The Divine Martial Guard acknowledged the order and then took his leave from the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

After the messenger from the Divine Martial Guard left, Zhou Chen pondered for a moment, then glanced at Cao Zhengchun, who was standing to the side, and said, "Cao Zhengchun, immediately send an imperial edict to Lü Bu."

"The Marquis of Weiwu is seriously injured and unconscious. Let Lü Bu take over from the Marquis of Weiwu and lead the Northern Camp Divine Martial Guard to quell the rebellion. He wiped out the Yellow Heaven Sect for me."

"As for the Southern Camp Divine Martial Guard's army for suppressing the rebellion, it will be temporarily handed over to Zhang Liao for command."

"If the Northern Camp of the Divine Martial Guard is short of troops for suppressing the rebellion, Lü Bu can be transferred from the Southern Camp of the Divine Martial Guard for suppressing the rebellion."

Marquis Weiwu is now seriously injured and unconscious, and can no longer lead the army to quell the rebellion and eradicate the Yellow Heaven Sect.

Therefore, Zhou Chen had no choice but to send a new general to replace Marquis Weiwu.

Zhou Chen can only send out two generals: Lü Bu and Zhang Liao.

Between Lü Bu and Zhang Liao, Zhou Chen decided to send Lü Bu to take command of the Northern Camp's army to quell the rebellion and eliminate the Yellow Heaven Sect.

Because Lü Bu was strong enough.

Isn't the Yellow Heaven Sect arrogant?

Did he kill Wen Zhong, the Grand Tutor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and then seriously injure Marquis Weiwu?

So this time, Zhou Chen sent Lü Bu, this fierce tiger, to wipe out the Yellow Heaven Sect.

Let's see if the Yellow Heaven Sect can still stir up any trouble.

Zhou Chen believed that with Lü Bu going to replace Marquis Weiwu, there wouldn't be much of a problem in wiping out the Yellow Heaven Sect.

Fortunately, Lü Bu had already annihilated the carefree king Zhou Qian and pacified the two provinces of Dai and Yan.

Otherwise, Zhou Chen wouldn't know who to send to replace Marquis Weiwu and wipe out the Yellow Heaven Sect!

As for Zhang Liao, Zhou Chen felt it was best to let him temporarily replace Lü Bu and take command of the Southern Camp Shenwu Guard's army to quell the rebellion, helping Fang Xuanling to guard the two prefectures of Dai and Yan.

After all, Zhang Liao's strength is not great. If he were sent to replace Marquis Weiwu and wipe out the Yellow Heaven Sect, he would probably be somewhat incapable.

"This old servant obeys the decree," Cao Zhengchun said immediately, bowing deeply.

Zhou Chen glanced at Cao Zhengchun again and said, "Tell Lü Bu that I have only one request, and that is to exterminate all the members of the Yellow Heaven Sect."

"I need neither prisoners nor survivors."

"I want the world to see what price they will pay for daring to rebel against the court and challenge its authority."

Zhou Chen's voice was calm, but anyone could hear the overwhelming killing intent beneath that calm tone.

Even Cao Zhengchun couldn't help but shiver, feeling a chill run down his spine.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Cao Zhengchun nodded again in acceptance.

(End of this chapter)