After all the sacrifices have been made to speed pass, who is still practicing hard skills?

Chapter 384 I have a plan! It can defeat Jiang Che!

After Lu Jieyun said this, Jiang Che quickly understood.

This seems to be the case.

After all, the battle in the martial realm almost represents everyone's impression of them. Jiang Che is the first, the undisputed first, and there is a huge gap between him and Lu Jieyun, who is ranked fifth.

Once Lu Jieyun can defeat Zagumu, outsiders will only think that Jiang Che is more powerful. He doesn't even need to make a move. A fifth place who is far inferior to him can defeat the opponent.

Is there any need to think more about his strength?

"So, if Brother Lu can win this time, then Jiang will actually benefit more. I hope Jiang can take advantage of Brother Lu's help this time, haha."

If he could get the Wind Spirit Pearl without taking any action, that would naturally be the best. After all, the agreement between him and Chen Qingfang was that the Wind Spirit Pearl must be given to him regardless of whether he took any action or not.

Not a loss at all.

"If I can win this battle by chance, you, Brother Jiang, have to treat me to a drink afterwards. It has to be the top ten spiritual wines, not ordinary ones." Lu Jieyun said righteously.

"These are just trivial matters, but what puzzles me is why Brother Lu was suddenly recruited by the court?" In fact, this question had already arisen as soon as Jiang Che learned about this.

With Lu Jieyun's reputation, if he had been willing to join the court earlier, he could have actually gained greater benefits. It is really strange that he is being recruited by the court now.

The corners of Lu Jieyun's mouth twitched, his eyes flickered a little, thinking about how to answer Jiang Che's question, but his hesitation was seen by Jiang Che, who continued:
"It's just curiosity, Brother Lu, don't take it too seriously."

“To be honest with you, Brother Jiang, the reason why I am willing to join the imperial court is just to find a backer for myself. With my qualifications, I may be favored by the immortal sect, but with my age and status, I will never be trusted.

Only the imperial court can ignore this. In fact, this is my advantage. The realm of divine appearance seems to be enough to gain a foothold in the world, but that only refers to one state.

If you want to make a difference in the Central Plains, without the support of a powerful force, every step you take will be very difficult."

"Brother Lu's difficulty is also Jiang's difficulty."

Jiang Che didn't believe Lu Jieyun's words at all, but since the other party explained it this way, he didn't want to expose him, so he just went along with what he said.

As for secrets, everyone has secrets.

"Dong dong."

While they were talking, there was a knock on the door.

Jiang Che scanned with his spiritual sense, and looked at Lu Jieyun with a strange look in his eyes:

"Is the person outside the door Brother Lu's guest?"

"Today, I have only invited Brother Jiang." Just as Lu Jieyun finished speaking, a voice rang out in the private room again: "I am Ji Changsheng. I heard that the Marquis of Guanjun is here, so I came here to bother you."

Jiang Che's eyes moved. He was familiar with the name Ji Changsheng.

The third son of Emperor Yuankang Ji Wenhao and the legitimate son of the empress, he is one of the three most promising candidates for the throne. He has a great reputation in the capital and was one of the people who had sent him a visiting card before.

"Please come in, Third Prince."

Lu Jieyun stood up, walked to the door and opened it himself.

Ji Changsheng, who was dressed in a brocade robe and had an outstanding temperament, stood outside the door with several followers and a woman in a white dress. When he saw that it was Lu Jieyun who opened the door, he bowed and said:
"Sir Lu, sorry to bother you."

"Your Highness the Third Prince is too polite. Please."

Guests are welcome. Although Lu Jieyun knew that Ji Changsheng would not have a good end in the future, that was in the future after all. It had nothing to do with him, so he would not show a cold face to others.

Directly invite the other party into the private room.

Ji Changsheng nodded slightly, still very reserved in front of Lu Jieyun. After a simple response, he walked past Lu Jieyun and walked straight towards Jiang Che in front of him with a smile on his face:

"Marquis Guanjun, I hope you can forgive me for coming here without authorization."

"Your Highness is too polite."

Jiang Che stood up and said something polite with a faint smile on his face.

Not to mention that Chen Qingfang had specifically reminded him of this before, even if he hadn't, Jiang Che had no interest in participating in any fight for the throne, because it would not bring any benefits to him.

"Although I have lived in the capital for a long time, I have long heard of the great name of Marquis Guanjun, especially his victory over all the heroes in the world in the Martial Realm Battle, which made me admire him very much. It's a pity that I couldn't spare the time for Marquis Guanjun's wedding last time."

"It's okay. Your Highness is very busy. Jiang can understand."

Seeing that Jiang Che was quite polite to him, Ji Changsheng couldn't help but feel a little happy. He felt that it was indeed a good decision to come here before his other two brothers.

He immediately stood up and said to the people who followed him:

"This is the famous champion Hou Jiangche. I think you are all familiar with his achievements, so I won't introduce him in detail."

"I have long heard of the great name of Champion Marquis. Seeing him today is indeed extraordinary."

"Yeah yeah."

Several others immediately echoed.

Then, Ji Changsheng said:

"Brother Jiang, this is the son of the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Master Yan Zhou. This is Brother Hu Yang, the son of the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. He is studying at the Bailu Academy. This is the daughter of the Doctor of the Ministry of War, Xu Qiuyue, and also my princess consort."

Jiang Che glanced at Ji Changsheng and frowned slightly.

I don't understand where this guy gets his confidence from. He is so warm and friendly. He brings all kinds of people to his side. Don't mention that these people are just sons of officials, they even think their fathers are here.

Although his official position was not as high as his, he still had to bow to him when they met.

However, Jiang Che did not turn hostile directly. He just nodded slightly, then calmly poured himself a cup of tea and started drinking it.

Lu Jieyun, who was standing aside, was inadvertently ignored by Ji Changsheng and stood aside without saying a word.

In fact, Ji Changsheng also wanted to win over the upstart Lu Jieyun, but after meeting Jiang Che, he greatly reduced the importance of Lu Jieyun.

After all, Lu Jieyun had just arrived in the capital and had no foundation. Although his strength and potential were extraordinary, he was still far behind Jiang Che, so he naturally developed some arrogance as a prince.

"Brother Jiang, I came here this time to invite you to my house tomorrow for a chat. I will invite some officials from the court, so that you can make more friends."

Seeing that Jiang Che was not interested in the person he introduced, Ji Changsheng raised his eyebrows unconsciously. Realizing that Jiang Che seemed a little unhappy, he quickly changed the subject.

The young masters who were left aside just smiled awkwardly and didn't dare to speak.

"The Northern Barbarian envoy will arrive in the capital tomorrow, and I still have to prepare for war. I really can't spare the time, so forget it."

"The day after tomorrow is fine."

Ji Changsheng continued.

Jiang Che glanced at Ji Changsheng. He really didn't understand at the moment why Ji Changsheng, as one of the three princes most qualified to compete for the position of crown prince, behaved so badly.

It somewhat overturned his previous ideas.

Any child of aristocratic family would not be so tactless.

What Jiang Che didn't know was that Ji Changsheng's original ability was very ordinary, and the reason why he had a chance to succeed was because he had the queen of the dynasty behind him and was a legitimate heir. In addition, Jiang Che was very important now and was valued by several princes. After Ji Changsheng got the first chance, he naturally didn't want to miss it and wanted to establish a relationship with Jiang Che first.

This was one of the reasons why he still tried hard to invite Jiang Che to the banquet even after he clearly saw that he was unhappy.

In his opinion, the main reason why Jiang Che was unhappy was that among the people he brought with him, except for his princess consort, the rest were not up to standard.

Once he actually brings some of his team members and invited guests to meet them, Jiang Che will surely change his mind.

"Then I will not bother you any more. The day after tomorrow, I will be in the palace, waiting for Brother Jiang to arrive. Oh, by the way, if Lord Lu is free at that time, he can also come. I will certainly welcome him."

After quickly settling the matter, Ji Changsheng felt that Jiang Che would not give him this face, so he stood up to say goodbye. Just as he reached the door, he suddenly turned around and said:

"Brother Jiang, Lord Lu, I have already ordered everyone to pay for today's expenses. Apart from that, no matter how much Brother Jiang and Lord Lu drink today, I will cover it all."

After finishing speaking, Ji Changsheng bowed and turned away with a few people.

Only Jiang Che and Lu Jieyun were left speechless.

"Don't blame me, Brother Jiang. I didn't know the news would leak out, so..." Lu Jieyun smiled and apologized to Jiang Che. After all, he was the one who invited Jiang Che to a banquet today.

Jiang Che waved his hand, indicating that it was okay, and just sighed:

"This Third Prince is really a wonderful person."

"Haha, I guess he's afraid that Brother Jiang will lose face if he continues to refuse, so he's so eager to settle this matter." Lu Jieyun and Jiang Che actually saw through the Third Prince's poor thinking.

It’s just that I didn’t point it out just now.

"Brother Lu, what do you think? Should I attend this banquet or refuse it?"

Jiang Che looked at the other person and said with a smile.

"Looking at the way this person handles things, if I don't attend this banquet, I will definitely be in conflict with him. After all, the prince personally invited Brother Jiang and has already put him in a difficult position. But if I attend the banquet.

From the perspective of outsiders, it was equivalent to that Brother Jiang had a disguised bond with the Third Prince, and it was very likely that he would be misunderstood as standing on the side of the Third Prince.

As for whether to go or not, it all depends on Brother Jiang’s own consideration.”

"Brother Lu, do you think that the Third Prince has a chance to become the Crown Prince?"

"Well, until the last moment, no one knows who will win. After all, I am not a prophet, so how can I predict what will happen in the future?"

Lu Jieyun replied with a smile.

"If it was Brother Lu, would you go to the banquet?"

"Brother Jiang, the person the Third Prince invited is you."

"But the one who invited me today is you."

Jiang Che continued.

The corner of Lu Jieyun's mouth twitched. He didn't understand why Jiang Che insisted on asking him what he thought. If the other party misunderstood his meaning, would Jiang Che blame him if the Third Prince lost power in the future?

After thinking for a while, he still said:

"If it were Lu, I wouldn't go."

"Why?"

"Judging from today alone, the Third Prince is too impatient and behaves badly. His hope of winning the throne is not that great, so I will not bet on him."

After Lu Jieyun finished speaking, Jiang Che leaned back slightly, lowered his eyes, and thought about Lu Jieyun's words. In fact, he didn't have any other intentions, so he asked that.

I just wanted to test whether Lu Jieyun was arranged by Ji Changsheng.

After a moment, Jiang Che stood up:
"Let's stop here today. We'll talk again when we have time tomorrow."

"it is good."

Although Ji Changsheng said that he had already paid the bill and made a bold statement that he would take responsibility for everything today, when leaving, Lu Jieyun still insisted on settling the bill and asked the people in the restaurant to return Ji Changsheng's share.

The main reason is Jiang Che's persistence.

He really had no interest in standing up for Ji Changsheng and using his hard-earned reputation to help others, so naturally he would not accept the other party's favor.

At the same time, he used a tactful way to tell Ji Changsheng his intention and refused to attend the banquet.

On the other side, Ji Changsheng, who had just returned to the mansion and had not yet had time to be happy, quickly learned that Jiang Che and Lu Jieyun rejected his kindness and directly paid the bill for the wine.

His face suddenly looked a little ugly.

He felt even more unhappy in his heart. In order to make friends with Jiang Che, he had tried his best to get ahead of his other two brothers, and he even humbled himself and went there in person.

He even put away all his momentum. In the entire court, except for those powerful bigwigs, who was worthy of his sincerity? But Jiang Che still refused in this way.

This immediately made him somewhat dissatisfied.

"This Jiang Che is so arrogant that he doesn't take the Third Prince seriously at all. Humph, he is indeed a person from a poor and remote area, without any manners at all."

Yan Zhou, the son of the Minister of Rites who had been ignored by Jiang Che before, immediately vented his dissatisfaction.

Hu Yang frowned and said nothing.

Xu Qiuyue on the side said:
"Your Highness is indeed a little too hasty in doing this this time, and Jiang Che probably doesn't want to get involved in the fight for the throne. If you want to win him over, you'll have to put in some effort.

Your Highness, please do not be angry about this, or it will get out and cause trouble."

"I am so anxious, but there is nothing I can do. I finally got him. What should I do now? I can't chase him and invite him again, right? What if he refuses again?"

Ji Changsheng frowned and thought.

"Your Highness, this matter requires long-term consideration."

Xu Qiuyue whispered.

"Your Highness, I have a plan that will allow Your Highness to successfully invite Marquis Guanjun to the banquet."

As they were discussing, a soft voice suddenly sounded, and a middle-aged man in a Confucian robe walked out from behind the pavilion, holding a feather fan, with wisdom shining in his eyes.

Ji Changsheng's eyes lit up immediately when he heard this, and he immediately bowed and said:
"Please teach me, Mr. Guo."

Guo Tu smiled faintly, walked up to Ji Changsheng, stood with his hands behind his back, and immediately began to talk:

“Although Champion Marquis Jiang Che used this method to politely decline Your Highness’s advances, he did not directly refuse to attend the banquet. This way, things will take a turn for the better.

As long as His Highness pretends not to understand and spreads the news that he has agreed to attend the banquet, Jiang Che will be set up. With His Highness's status, Jiang Che will definitely not dare to confront him directly, and he can naturally lead him to the banquet."

"Don't talk nonsense, you corrupt scholar. Your Highness wants to make friends with this Champion Marquis, not to make enemies with him. If you do this, won't Jiang Che resent your Highness?"

Xu Qiuyue snorted coldly.

(End of this chapter)