You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 162 Do you think I would joke about something like this?
Runan Prefecture.

The provincial capital.

It was an unremarkable villa, which on the surface looked just like the other villas around it, with nothing special about it.

However, the villa was heavily guarded.

In the main hall of the villa, two figures sat facing each other.

One of the figures was a middle-aged scholar, while the other was a woman with an effeminate appearance.

These two men were none other than Jia Xu, who had left Luoyang on imperial orders, and Cao Zhengchun, who had previously been ordered to exterminate the Fan family of Jiexiu.

Jia Xu picked up the teacup beside him, took a sip of tea, and looked at Cao Zhengchun; "Chief Supervisor Cao, how is it?"

"Has the situation inside the Yuan family been thoroughly investigated?"

Jia Xu asked.

Cao Zhengchun nodded; "Mr. Jia's guess is correct. Most of the experts in the Yuan family are no longer with the Yuan family, and the Yuan family is now empty."

"If nothing unexpected happens, the experts from the Yuan family have already gone to Luoyang."

"Furthermore, the younger generation of the Yuan family has also decreased significantly. It is likely that the Yuan family made two preparations in advance and secretly sent some of the younger generation away."

Cao Zhengchun's expression was rather unpleasant.

The Eastern Depot had been sending people to monitor the Yuan family, but they hadn't been able to detect these things happening inside the Yuan family.

This made Cao Zhengchun, the chief supervisor of the Eastern Depot, feel ashamed.

If Cao Zhengchun hadn't received Jia Xu's imperial decree and rushed to Runan to personally investigate the Yuan family, the Eastern Depot would probably still be unaware of these circumstances within the Yuan family.

"It was expected. These powerful and wealthy families never go all in; they always make several preparations in advance, just in case."

"If I'm not mistaken, the younger generation of the Yuan family who were secretly sent away should have gone south."

Jia Xu was not particularly surprised by the situation within the Yuan family.

All of this was within Jia Xu's expectations.

Jia Xu put down his teacup and said calmly.

Southward?
Cao Zhengchun frowned and his eyes flashed.

"Someone is coming."

Cao Zhengchun immediately shouted.

"Factory manager."

A guard from the factory walked in and bowed.

"Immediately send men south to search; we must ensure that no one from the Yuan family leaves the pass."

Cao Zhengchun said sternly.

"As ordered."

The guard bowed and accepted the order, then left the hall.

After the imperial guards left, Jia Xu glanced at Cao Zhengchun and said, "Chief Supervisor Cao, just proceed according to the plan. General Lü has already led the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry to Shu."

"I must also set off for Sichuan."

As he spoke, Jia Xu stood up.

Jia Xu has received Zhou Chen's decree.

Shu was the fiefdom of King Zhou Zhi of Shu. Since the King of Shu had such intentions, he must have considerable power in Shu.

Therefore, as soon as Jia Xu received Zhou Chen's order, he sent a message to Lü Bu, instructing Lü Bu to lead the Bingzhou wolf cavalry to Shu.

In Jia Xu's view, the situation in Shu was more difficult to handle than the situation here.

After all, that was the fiefdom of the King of Shu, which involved the royal family.

Jia Xu had to make the trip himself.

Hearing Jia Xu's words, Cao Zhengchun also stood up; "Don't worry, Mr. Jia, I'm here, along with General Zhang and Deputy General Wei, nothing will happen."

"Mr. Jia can handle matters in Sichuan directly; there's no need to worry about this area."

Cao Zhengchun said in a feminine tone.

Most of the Yuan family's experts have already gone to Luoyang, and the Zheng family probably has too.

In this situation, it would be unacceptable if anything went wrong.

Jia Xu nodded and then left.

……

Luoyang, the capital of China.

The Palace of the King of Shu.

Zhou Zhi sat in the main seat.

Standing below is San De, the steward of the Prince's mansion.

"Your Highness, this was just secretly sent by the Prime Minister."

San De took out a slip of paper and handed it to Zhou Zhi.

"Oh!"

Zhou Zhi's spirits lifted, and he immediately took the note from San De's hand, opened it, and glanced at it.

There were only four words on the note.

Everything is ready.

Upon seeing these four words, Zhou Zhi's eyes gleamed.

Zhou Zhi understood the meaning behind those four words, of course.

That means the people from the three great families have already arrived in Luoyang.

Furthermore, they had already established their presence in Luoyang and were just waiting for Zhou Zhi to arrive.

Zhou Zhi closed the note, pondered for a moment, and looked at San De; "San De, have we set up our forces in Luoyang?"

San De nodded; "Your Highness, everything is arranged."

"Inside the palace!"

Zhou Zhi asked again.

"The palace is all set up."

San De said.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhi didn't say anything more, but muttered to himself, "Then only Ji Wusheng is left."

"According to what we discussed before, Ji Wusheng should be arriving soon!"

Zhou Zhi's gaze wandered.

San De quietly slipped out, leaving Zhou Zhi alone, somewhat distracted.

……

The Hall of Nourishing Heart.

Zhou Chen sat on the dragon throne, looking at the hazy sky outside the hall in silence.

"The rain is coming and the wind is blowing all over the building!"

Zhou Chen sighed inwardly.

Zhou Chen had been considering how to deal with Zhou Zhi, the King of Shu.

That's right, it's about handling.

Before King Zhou Zhi of Shu even began, Zhou Chen was already thinking about how to deal with him afterwards.

It must be said that if King Zhou Zhi of Shu knew about this, he would definitely be furious.

Before Zhou Zhi even started, Zhou Chen was already certain that Zhou Zhi would fail.

This is contempt.

Blatant contempt.

"Your Majesty, Commander Cao Shaoqin requests an audience."

At this moment, a palace eunuch came in to report.

"Let him in."

Zhou Chen withdrew his gaze and said.

The eunuchs and guards withdrew upon hearing this.

Before long, Cao Shaoqin entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

"Your Majesty, this is a message sent back from Runan by the Grand Governor."

After Cao Shaoqin entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation, he directly presented a message to Zhou Chen.

Zhou Chen didn't say much, took the message from Cao Shaoqin, and started reading it.

After reading the message sent back by Cao Zhengchun, Zhou Chen smiled coldly: "These powerful and wealthy families are indeed cunning, taking precautions to the extreme."

"They actually sent some of the younger generation away secretly in advance."

"The idea is that even if we fail, the entire clan won't be wiped out, and some of our bloodline can still be preserved!"

Zhou Chen sneered.

The message Cao Zhengchun sent back said that most of the Yuan family's experts had gone to Luoyang, and the Yuan family had secretly sent away some of their younger members.

Zhou Chen already knew about the former.

As for the latter, Zhou Chen didn't care.

Where can these powerful and wealthy families send their younger generation away in secret?
Is it outside the Great Wall?
Once the internal affairs of the imperial court are resolved, the area beyond the Great Wall will also be conquered by Zhou Chen.

In the end, these people will suffer the same fate. Besides, Cao Zhengchun has already sent men to intercept them; whether they can escape beyond the Great Wall is still uncertain.

Zhou Chen put down the message Cao Zhengchun had sent back and looked at Cao Shaoqin; "Any other news?"

"Is there any movement from the Prime Minister's residence?"

Zhou Chen asked.

"Your Majesty, the Zheng and Fan families have also arrived in Luoyang."

"However, the Eastern Depot has not yet found out exactly where they are hiding."

"The people in the Prime Minister's residence are very cautious. I was afraid of alerting them, so I didn't dare to keep too much eye on them."

Cao Shaoqin said.

"Oh!"

"Have the Zheng and Fan families' people arrived as well?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chen raised an eyebrow.

The three major families have secretly sent their people to Luoyang, so it seems that their move is not far off.

Zhou Chen pondered for a moment, then said to Cao Shaoqin, "Immediately summon Liu Ye, Du Ruhui, the Minister of War, the Marquis of Weiwu, and the Eighth Prince to the palace to see me."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Cao Shaoqin turned and left.

"Hehe, Yuan family, Zheng family, you've both gotten caught in Luoyang's web, so don't even think about getting out."

After Cao Shaoqin left, Zhou Chen smiled coldly, his eyes flashing.

……

Half an hour later.

Liu Ye, Du Ruhui, the Minister of War, Marquis Weiwu, and Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation one after another.

Zhou Chen summoned the five of them to the palace at once.

The Minister of War, unaware of the situation, frowned, wondering what had happened to warrant Emperor Zhou Chen summoning all five of them to the palace at the same time.

You should know that ever since the incident involving General Wu Jin...

Emperor Zhou Chen had never before summoned these important court officials to the palace together like this.

Both Marquis Weiwu and King Zhou Xian of the Eighth Prince had the same guess about this issue.

Could it be that something terrible has happened again?
Zhou Chen sat on the dragon throne, glanced at Liu Ye and the other four standing below, and said, "I have summoned you here today because there is a very important matter I want to discuss with you."

"This matter concerns me, and it also concerns the Empress Dowager."

"I am truly undecided and would like to hear your opinions."

Zhou Chen looked at Liu Ye and the other four and said.

Upon hearing Zhou Chen's words, the Minister of War and the others were all taken aback.

Is it related to the emperor?

Is it related to the Empress Dowager?

What is this?
The expressions of the Minister of War and the others became solemn.

You must understand that anything concerning the emperor and the empress dowager is no small matter.

"Your Majesty, what is it that concerns both Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager?"

The Minister of War couldn't help but ask.

The Eighth Prince Zhou Xian and the Marquis of Weiwu also looked puzzled.

What could possibly concern the Emperor and Empress Dowager?

Only Liu Ye and Du Ruhui remained silent, knowing full well what was going on.

Zhou Chen glanced at the Minister of War, then at the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian and the Marquis of Weiwu, and said calmly, "The Prince of Shu has taken a fancy to the chair I sit in and has secretly colluded with the Prime Minister and others to try to replace me as emperor."

"What do you think we should do about this?"

As soon as these words came out.

The atmosphere inside the hall instantly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The expressions of the Minister of War, Marquis Weiwu, and Prince Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, changed drastically.

Is the King of Shu plotting a rebellion?

How can this be?

The Minister of War and his colleagues could hardly believe it was true.

They never expected that the matter Emperor Zhou Chen would discuss with them today would be such a momentous event.

This concerns not only Emperor Zhou Chen and the Empress Dowager, but also the entire Great Zhou Dynasty.

"Your Majesty, is there any solid evidence for this?"

"This matter is of utmost importance!"

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, immediately spoke with a solemn expression.

King Zhou Zhi of Shu was no ordinary man; he was the ninth brother of Emperor Zhou Chen and the most beloved son of the Empress Dowager in Cining Palace.

If anything goes wrong, it could have serious consequences.

Moreover, this also involves important court officials like Prime Minister Yuan Bo.

This has quite a few implications.

The Minister of War and Marquis Weiwu both had extremely solemn expressions, and their hearts had lost their usual composure.

They knew the magnitude of the impact this would have.

If this is true, then it will be very difficult to handle.

Because the Empress Dowager of Cining Palace was also involved in this matter.

Zhou Chen glanced at the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian indifferently; "Do you think I would joke about something like this?"

"There are some things I've been keeping hidden from you."

"I have always hoped that this would end here and not come to this."

"Unfortunately, there are some things that even I cannot control."

"Take a look, everyone!"

Zhou Chen gestured to Cao Shaoqin, who was standing beside him.

Cao Shaoqin immediately presented a memorial from the Eastern Depot to Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince.

This memorial is the result of Cao Zhengchun's previous investigation into those matters within the palace, and it records all the details of those events.

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, took the document from Cao Shaoqin regarding the Eastern Depot and began to read it.

Upon seeing the contents, Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, narrowed his eyes and took a step back.

"this……."

The Eighth Prince Zhou Xian almost dropped the memorial in his hand.

The two men standing nearby, Marquis Weiwu and Minister of War, immediately realized upon seeing Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, lose his composure that the contents of the memorial were probably no small matter.

The two men also took the memorial from the hands of the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian and took turns reading its contents.

As they expected, things turned out just as they thought.

The contents of the document caused the Minister of War, Marquis Weiwu, and Prince Zhou Xian, to lose their composure.

Zhou Chen glanced at the three men's flustered expressions and calmly said, "You've all finished reading the contents, haven't you?"

"I really didn't expect that, besides the fourth prince, the ninth prince also wanted me dead."

Zhou Chen's tone was calm.

But when Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, and his companions heard this, it sent chills down their spines.

Is this the calm before the storm?

"Your Majesty, this matter has absolutely nothing to do with the Empress Dowager."

"I dare to guarantee that the Empress Dowager would never do such a thing."

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, knelt down and said firmly.

Zhou Chen glanced expressionlessly at the kneeling Eighth Prince Zhou Xian; "I know."

"She is my mother, how could she possibly harm me?"

"You get up first!"

"There's some more news, take a look at it together!"

As Zhou Chen spoke, he glanced at Cao Shaoqin again.

Cao Shaoqin once again presented a memorial prepared by the Eastern Depot to Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, and his entourage.

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, stood up and, after reading the message delivered by Cao Shaoqin, sighed softly.

"Little Jiu, Little Jiu."

"You've followed in the footsteps of Xiao Si and Jun Xian."

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, had a solemn expression and appeared quite heavy-hearted.

The Minister of War and the Marquis of Weiwu also read the news one after another, which made them feel a little relieved.

As long as it's not the one from Cining Palace, that's fine.

Otherwise, this would really be a tricky situation.

(End of this chapter)