More children, more blessings, starting from marrying a wife to fight for world hegemony

Ji Yunmeng sat at the tea table, picked up the tea that Fan Yaodong had personally poured, and took a sip. Today she was wearing a moon-white long dress, and her hair was adorned with only a white jade hairpin, which made her look somewhat aloof.

After tasting the tea, she looked up at the person opposite her and said in a nonchalant tone, "When I came to the Zhengui Division before, Commander Fan never brought out such good tea."

Fan Yaodong stood across the tea table, smiled awkwardly upon hearing this, and stroked his short beard.

"This tea was just purchased by me a few days ago from a merchant in the Western Wilderness."

Ji Yunmeng put down her teacup, which landed on the table with a soft sound.

She looked up at Fan Yaodong and said directly, "I heard that the Prince of Zhennan is about to take up a post in the Zhengui Division. I wonder what Commander Fan plans to do?"

Upon hearing this question, Fan Yaodong's face twitched slightly, and his fingers, which were hanging in his sleeves, unconsciously curled up.

They really came for Lu Chen.

The news that Ji Yunmeng gave her sword to Lu Chen had already spread like wildfire in the capital. Because of this, Ji Yunmeng was placed under house arrest by the Empress Dowager, but the Emperor Zhou responded by issuing an imperial edict to lift the house arrest order.

Fan Yaodong had been most afraid of seeing Ji Yunmeng these past few days, but she still came, and the first thing she did was mention Lu Chen.

Fan Yaodong lowered his eyes, gathered his thoughts, and then asked, "I wonder what the princess thinks is the best course of action for me?"

Ji Yunmeng sat there expressionless, her moon-white skirt draped over the chair. She gently stroked the rim of her teacup with her fingers and said, "I am not the commander of the Zhengui Division. How things are arranged is up to Lord Fan, not me. Besides, I have no relation to the Prince of Zhennan. I was just curious, so I asked casually."

Fan Yaodong raised his head, a hint of helplessness in his smile: "Your Highness is too kind. Everyone in the capital knows that Your Highness and the Prince of Zhennan have a close relationship. You even gave him the sword you had used for many years. Since Your Highness has come today for Prince Lu, I presume Your Highness has any suggestions on how to arrange his position?"

Ji Yunmeng's eyes were indifferent, and she stopped stroking the teacup with her fingers. She said, "It's not a suggestion. I just want to remind Lord Fan that although the Zhennan Prince's Mansion has declined, there may still be just as many Earth Realm experts as the Zhengui Division."

Fan Yaodong nodded slightly, "Your Highness, rest assured, I am aware of this."

At this point, Fan Yaodong suddenly remembered something and continued, "Your Highness, you should be aware of my current situation. In the past few days, you are not the only one who has come to the Zhengui Division."

Upon hearing this, Ji Yunmeng frowned slightly. She understood what these words meant. Clearly, the Empress Dowager had also sent people to the Zhengui Division to put pressure on Fan Yaodong.

Fan Yaodong sighed, raised his hand to rub his temples, and then said, "As you know, that person is very powerful now. If I don't obey her orders, I'm afraid my time as commander will be over."

Ji Yunmeng frowned slightly and remained silent. Of course, she understood that in order to get rid of Lu Chen, Pei Shuhua would replace those who did not obey her with a more obedient commander.

The teapot on the tea table emitted wisps of steam, and the room was so quiet that only the faint sound of breathing could be heard.

Seeing Ji Yunmeng remain silent, Fan Yaodong gave a wry smile, tucked his hands into his sleeves, and said, "It seems that Your Highness has no good solution either. In that case, I have no choice but to abdicate and yield my position."

Fan Yaodong knew that in the current situation, the best way to have a good outcome was to leave the Zhen Gui Si and pass the buck.

This pot is too big for him to carry.

Ji Yunmeng snapped out of her daze, looked up at him, and asked, "I wonder who Lord Fan intends to give this position to?"

Fan Yaodong asked, "Your Highness, you must have heard about He Dongqi's breakthrough to the Earth Realm, right?"

Ji Yunmeng nodded: "It is said that He Dongqi fought with you right after breaking through. It seems that he really wants your position."

Her gaze fell on Fan Yaodong's face. "Could it be that you're planning to give this position to him?"

With a smile, Fan Yaodong picked up his teacup, took a sip, and slowly said, "It was just a casual exchange."

"However, he really wants this position."

At this point, Fan Yaodong shifted the topic back to Lu Chen.

He looked up at Ji Yunmeng, his expression thoughtful: "Your Highness, I have already sent someone to the Zhennan Prince's Mansion to tell Prince Lu to come to the Zhengui Division to report in half a month later."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "What He Dongqi does in half a month is up to him."

Ji Yunmeng sneered inwardly.

She looked down at the teacup in front of her, the tea rippled slightly, reflecting her features.

This old hand is really good at making non-stick pans.

She raised her head and looked at Fan Yaodong, saying, "Once you lose the position of Commander of the Zhengui Division, it won't be easy to get it back. You should know that in the capital now, whether it's those two or the princes, they all have their eyes on this position."

Fan Yaodong naturally understood. The Zhengui Division was primarily responsible for suppressing strange and evil spirits and monitoring all spiritual warriors in the land. These two functions granted the Zhengui Division immense power—if they claimed you possessed a strange or evil spirit, they could immediately send people to break into your residence and exorcise the demon; if they claimed you were about to become a strange or evil spirit yourself, they could kill you without reporting it. Of course, the biggest reason why various forces wanted to control the Zhengui Division was because it had too many powerful members.

Controlling the Zhengui Division is equivalent to possessing a powerful force.

Whether it was the emperor, the empress dowager, or the princes, they all wanted to control the Zhengui Division.

However, due to the rampant strange and evil spirits in the Great Zhou Dynasty in previous years, all parties maintained a tacit understanding and did not recklessly extend their reach into the Bureau of Suppressing Evil Spirits.

People also understand that if they recklessly plant pawns in the Zhengui Division and make it the center of the struggle, the strange and evil spirits of the Great Zhou will only become more rampant.

Upon hearing Ji Yunmeng's reminder, Fan Yaodong waved his hand dismissively and said, "This humble official naturally understands, but this humble official is well aware that this position carries great responsibility, and this humble official has spent most of his time on cultivation over the years, and has not fulfilled his duties as the commander of the Zhengui Division."

Upon hearing Fan Yaodong's words, Ji Yunmeng understood that he was determined to shift the blame to someone else.

She said no more, stood up, and her moon-white skirt swayed gently with her movements.

She glanced down at Fan Yaodong and said, "In that case, I will not disturb Lord Fan any longer."

Fan Yaodong quickly stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "This humble official respectfully sees Your Highness off."

Ji Yunmeng turned and walked out, paused at the threshold, and finally stepped out.

Fan Yaodong didn't want to take sides or take the blame; he was determined to run away, so continuing to talk to him about Lu Chen was pointless.

Let her come after the new commander of the Town of Ghosts takes office.

a few days later.

The night was as still as water, and the moon was hidden behind the clouds, only letting out a hazy light.

In front of the Liu family mansion gate, two stone lions squatted quietly on either side of the steps, and the lanterns on the lintel swayed slightly in the night breeze.

A large, dark figure appeared from the street corner and walked step by step toward the gate of the Liu residence.

The dark figure was at least three meters tall, and the ground trembled slightly as it moved.

The servant on night watch was dozing off by the gatehouse when he suddenly felt the ground shake and groggily opened his eyes.

The next instant, he saw the dark figure in front of him clearly. It was a monster with a wolf's head and a human body, covered in gray-black fur, and its eyes glowed with an eerie green light in the darkness.

The servant was immediately terrified, his face turned deathly pale, his legs went weak, and his lips trembled. It took him a long time to finally cry out, "An evil spirit!!!"

Before the words were even finished, the wolf demon's sharp claws had already lashed out.

The claws slashed through the night, bringing with them a stench. Several servants at the entrance of the Liu residence didn't even have time to escape before their bodies were instantly torn to pieces, their blood splattering onto the door panels and stone lions.

The next moment, the wolf demon swung its claw again. With a loud "boom," the gate of the Liu mansion was instantly smashed open, the door panels shattered, and wood chips flew everywhere.

The wolf demon charged straight into the Liu residence. Immediately afterwards, terrified cries, screams, and the sound of objects falling to the ground came from inside. The cries carried far in the night and echoed throughout the entire street.

Before long, a group of demon-suppressing guards dressed in black robes and carrying demon-slaying knives at their waists surged in from all directions, completely surrounding the Liu residence.

The torchlight flickered in the night, illuminating the tense faces of the Zhengui Guards.

Fan Yaodong stood on the rooftop opposite the Liu residence, his robes fluttering in the night wind. His gaze fell on the three-meter-tall wolf demon with a wolf's head and a human body in the square inside the residence, and a solemn expression flashed across his face.

Moonlight shone through gaps in the clouds, illuminating his furrowed brow and the hand gripping the hilt of his knife.

At this moment, several commanders of the Zhengui Division, wielding demon-slaying swords, launched a flanking attack on the wolf demon from different directions.

The blade flashed in the night, but in just one exchange, several commanders from the Xuanjing were sent flying by the wolf demon's giant claws, their bodies crashing heavily against the courtyard wall, shattering the bricks and sending dust flying.

Fan Yaodong's gaze sharpened, and he gripped the hilt of his sword with his right hand, slowly drawing the Demon-Slaying Blade. The blade, once unsheathed, gleamed with a cold, sharp light under the moonlight.

He shouted, "All of you, step back!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Fan Yaodong leaped down from the rooftop, his figure swooping down towards the plaza like a falcon. His Demon-Slaying Blade traced an arc in the air as he slashed at the wolf demon. (End of Chapter)