You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 426: Your Mu family is so bold that they dare to collude with the demons

The next day.

Early morning of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Civil and military officials entered the Golden Palace in turn along both sides of the imperial road.

After all the civil and military officials returned to their positions, Zhou Chen, the emperor of the Great Zhou, ascended the throne.

"Long live your majesty."

All the civil and military officials knelt on the ground and shouted in unison.

Now that the emperor's authority is supreme and imperial power has almost reached its peak, no civil or military official in the court dares to have any other thoughts. They all respect the imperial power from the bottom of their hearts.

Zhou Chen sat upright on the dragon throne, looking down at the kneeling civil and military officials below, and slowly said, "All of you, rise."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Only after receiving permission did the civil and military officials dare to raise their heads and stand up.

Compared to the past, the emperor's majesty was even more pronounced. Even though Zhou Chen did not deliberately show it, the ministers felt a sense of oppression.

Cao Zhengchun stepped forward and, as usual, shouted in a shrill voice, "Speak if you have something to say, otherwise the court may adjourn."

No sooner had Cao Zhengchun finished speaking than Li Si, the Right Chancellor of the Cabinet, stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, I have something to report."

Li Si cupped his hands in greeting.

"What does the Right Chancellor wish to report?"

Zhou Chen looked at Li Si.

With the Left Chancellor Xiao He absent, all matters, large and small, in the cabinet and the court are now being handled by the Right Chancellor Li Si.

"Your Majesty, although our Great Zhou has won the war against the Imperial Dynasty, the armies of other major dynasties that our Great Zhou summoned suffered heavy casualties."

"Will these soldiers who were killed or wounded receive compensation?"

"If we are to provide compensation, how should it be provided? Your Majesty, please decide."

Li Si began his report.

Upon hearing Li Si's words, Zhou Chen frowned slightly.

In this great battle with the imperial dynasty, apart from the top-tier combat forces, the Great Zhou had gathered troops from other major dynasties to form its army.

In other words.

The casualties in this great battle with the imperial dynasty were all soldiers from other dynasties; the Great Zhou itself suffered very few casualties.

Zhou Chen pondered for a moment and then said, "These soldiers all died for my Great Zhou. They are the heroes of my Great Zhou. If it weren't for them, the imperial army would probably have already reached the doorstep of my Great Zhou."

"Moreover, my Great Zhou has now unified nine dynasties. From now on, there are no people from other countries. They are all subjects and soldiers of my Great Zhou."

"Therefore, all soldiers who died for our Great Zhou will be treated equally in terms of compensation, and will be compensated according to the compensation standards for soldiers of our Great Zhou. Those heroes who died for our Great Zhou will be compensated in the same way."

In the past, the Great Zhou Dynasty would not have needed to care about these wounded and killed soldiers.

But now that all the other major dynasties have become part of the Great Zhou's territory and have been conquered by the Great Zhou, the compensation for the deaths and injuries of these soldiers must be arranged by the Great Zhou.

Perfect opportunity! The Great Zhou can take this chance to win over the hearts and minds of these dynasty's subjects.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Li Si withdrew from the ranks.

"Your Majesty, although our Great Zhou has now unified nine dynasties, the administrative systems of each dynasty are quite different."

"Furthermore, many people in various dynasties and regions have been affected by the war, and these are problems that our Great Zhou urgently needs to solve."

After Li Si stepped back into the ranks, Du Ruhui, the Minister of Rites, stepped forward and spoke.

"That's a problem."

Zhou Chen nodded upon hearing this.

"Since my Great Zhou has unified the nine dynasties, the original administrative systems of the various dynasties will all be abolished, and officials will be appointed and local governments will be governed in accordance with the administrative system of my Great Zhou."

"As for the civilians affected by the war..."

At this point, Zhou Chen looked up at Li Si and said, "Li Si, your cabinet should come up with a disaster relief plan as soon as possible. This matter cannot be delayed."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Li Si bowed and responded.

...Dynasty.

The emperor stood with his hands behind his back in front of the dragon throne.

An elderly man in brocade robes stood below.

"Meet the Emperor."

The old man in brocade robes bowed to the emperor.

The emperor looked down at the old man in brocade robes, his gaze calm; "Patriarch Mu, do you know why I summoned you to the palace?"

That's right.

This elderly man in brocade robes was none other than the head of the Mu family, the family behind the Mu Clan Chamber of Commerce.

"This old man is unaware; please enlighten me, Your Majesty."

The head of the Mu family shook his head.

He was also puzzled as to why the emperor would suddenly summon him, the head of the Mu family, to the palace. Was there something that the Mu family needed to do?

"Your Mu family has quite the audacity to collude with the demons, to be on the same side as them, to betray my Azure Dragon Dynasty, and to betray the human race."

what?
The Emperor's words struck the head of the Mu family like a thunderclap.

The Mu family patriarch's expression changed slightly, and he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

"Your Majesty, my Mu family has always been loyal to the dynasty and the human race. How could we possibly collude with the demons and join forces with them!"

"Has Your Majesty made a mistake?"

The slight change in the expression on the head of the Mu family's face flashed by, but he instantly regained his composure.

"Your Majesty, please speak freely if you have any needs. My Mu family will do our utmost to assist you."

“But if Your Majesty wants to use such means to slander my Mu family, then my Mu family will not agree to it.”

The head of the Mu family said in a deep voice, his tone filled with anger and righteous indignation.

"is it?"

Without saying a word, the emperor struck the head of the Mu family with a palm.

The head of the Mu family never expected that the emperor would directly attack him.

The head of the Mu family's expression changed, and a sense of life-or-death crisis arose in his heart.

At this moment, under the shadow of life-or-death crisis, the aura of the Mu family patriarch exploded completely, and the wisps of black demonic energy could no longer be concealed.

"puff."

With a single palm strike, the head of the Mu family knelt on the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood.

The head of the Mu family had never imagined that the Emperor's strength would be so formidable.

He had already broken through to the Saint realm, but he still couldn't withstand a single move from the Emperor.

The head of the Mu family didn't know how the emperor knew about the matter between his Mu family and the demon race, but that was no longer important.

The important thing is that the Mu family has been exposed, and he must escape immediately.

otherwise.

He must die.

The head of the Mu family immediately used a secret technique to try to escape, but he found that he was completely unable to move under the suppression of the national destiny.

moment.

A deep sense of despair rose in the heart of the Mu family patriarch.

I can't fight, I can't escape, I can't escape.

He finally broke through to the realm of sainthood, is he going to perish in this world today?
"Patriarch Mu, what else do you have to say now?"

The head of the Mu family thought he was doomed, but to his surprise, at the crucial moment, the emperor withdrew his hand and did not attack him again.

The emperor stared at the head of the Mu family with an extremely cold gaze.

The Emperor showed no surprise at the demonic black aura emanating from the head of the Mu family, as if he had known about it all along.

"How did the Emperor find out?"

Seeing that the emperor did not attack him again, the head of the Mu family's eyes flickered inexplicably.

(End of this chapter)