Family Rise: Beginning with Grandfather.

Chapter 652: The building is about to collapse and one tree cannot support it.

Now, there is only one person from the Yang family left in Chongshan Town, and that is Yang Chengye.

Ji Hai has a deep understanding of Liaodong and Chongshan Town.

In particular, he knew the Liaodong Yang family like the back of his hand.

It’s not that he was deliberately investigating the Liaodong Yang family, but that their Hengdao Sect had a lot of cooperation with the Liaodong Yang family, and the relationship between the two sides was very close.

Even in the eyes of outsiders, the Hengdao Sect can be attributed to the influence of the Liaodong Yang family.

If the Hengdao Sect is the strongest martial arts sect in Liaodong, then the Yang family is the overlord of Liaodong.

Compared with the Yang family, the Hengdao clan is really not that impressive.

Not to mention the people around Yang Chengye, just look at Yang Mingwu, Yang Chengze, Yang Chengxu and others, all of them are now powerful innate warriors.

The most terrifying thing is that Song Dashan, Yang Chengze, Yang Chengxu and others are now in Beiyuan Town.

In order to weaken the power of the Yang family in Chongshan Town, Emperor Yanping deliberately sent them all to Beiyuan Town. He probably did not expect that after the Yang family went to Beiyuan Town, they would turn Beiyuan Town into the same look as Chongshan Town.

Of course, Beiyuan Town is different from Chongshan Town, and the Yang family has not yet taken root in Beiyuan Town.

Ji Zhen stroked his snow-white horn beard and said, "Yang Mingcheng, Yang Mingzhi, and Yang Minghao are already innate warriors. This is no secret!"

"As for how many innate warriors the Yang family has now!"

At this point, Ji Zhen's eyes flashed with a gleam of brilliance, "I remember that Yang Zhengshan had quite a few followers around him, right? Did they all follow the Yang family to Xingyue Island?"

Ji Hai's face was suddenly filled with horror. "Master, are you saying that they are also innate warriors?"

Ji Zhen took a deep breath, "Han Fei has only followed Yang Zhengshan for a few years, and now he is already an innate warrior. What about those followers who have always followed Yang Zhengshan?"

Ji Hai couldn't sit still anymore and stood up quickly.

They all knew that the Yang family was strong, and they also knew that the Yang family had developed well overseas in recent years, but no one knew how powerful the Yang family was today.

"The old marquis has twenty followers around him, and the Yang family has three hundred guards. Many of these three hundred guards have followed the old marquis since Anyuan City. It has been thirty years now!"

"And Han Fei also followed the old marquis at that time."

"Twenty followers, three hundred guards. Even if only ten percent of them can become innate warriors, that would still be more than thirty!"

"But there are still many servants in the Yang family. It is said that the servants of the Yang family all need to practice!"

"Master! This~~"

He was completely confused.

Suddenly he seemed to have discovered a shocking secret.

Even he couldn't believe this secret. He even doubted whether his brain was broken. How could he come up with such an unreliable result?

Ji Zhen was also filled with horror. He had never thought about this issue before, but now after careful consideration, he felt that their guess might be true.

The Yang family may have dozens of innate warriors now, thirty? Forty? Fifty? Or even more!

Whether it is thirty or fifty, it is an extremely exaggerated number.

And their speculation is not without basis. Just look at the experiences of Yang Chengze, Yang Chengxu, Han Fei and others and you will understand that almost everyone who has followed Yang Zhengshan has become a martial arts master.

The longer you follow Yang Zhengshan and the closer your relationship with Yang Zhengshan is, the higher your cultivation will be.

Suddenly, Ji Zhen had an idea in his mind!
Their Hengdao Sect also seems to follow this logic!

What was the Hengdao Gate like back then, and what is it like now?

He was able to break through to the innate realm because of Yang Zhengshan’s wine!

Ji Hai’s breakthrough to the innate level might be due to the wine and tea.

Thinking of this, Ji Zhen's heart was in turmoil.

Many people know that the Yang family’s wine and tea have very good effects.

But few people would think that these two things can help warriors reach the innate realm.

One reason is that the effect of Lingquan Water is relatively slow, and only long-term and large-scale drinking will have obvious effects.

The second reason is that Yang Zhengshan did not hide the treasure completely and always gave it away as ordinary gifts.

During festivals, the Yang family would give out large amounts of wine and tea.

At that time, the Yang family opened a shop in Kyoto, exchanging wine for precious medicines. This led to the impression among people that although wine and tea were good, they were not as precious as precious medicines.

Therefore, most people now regard wine and tea as a kind of tonic medicine, the main effect of which is to strengthen the body and recover from injuries. However, they ignore the most important effect of Lingquan water, which is to improve potential.

Ji Zhen had naturally drunk a lot of Baicao Wine. Even during the festivals now, the Yang family would send people to deliver some festival gifts. Among the Yang family's festival gifts, wine and tea were the most important gifts.

Perhaps it is because they have gained too much, or perhaps it is because they are used to the existence of wine and tea, so they have ignored the value of wine and tea.

Ji Zhen couldn't help but take a deep breath again, "It seems we have no choice!"

What the hell is there to choose!

The future of Hengdao Sect lies in the Yang family!

Not to mention how much wine and tea the Hengdao Sect had received from the Yang family in the past, if the Hengdao Sect wanted to continue to be strong, it could not do without the Yang family's wine and tea!

The only way for the Hengdao Sect to have a way out, more opportunities and a better future is to follow the Yang family.

The master and disciple looked at each other, and both showed a sense of relief despite being shocked.

"You should go to Chongshan Town and ask for an audience with the Marquis. Ask him if he has any arrangements for our Hengdao Sect!" Ji Zhen's face returned to calm and he said casually and easily.

Ji Hai bowed and said, "Disciple, I understand. I will pack up and leave today!"

"Well, take your junior sister with you! She has some friendship with Madam Yang. If possible, let her go to Xingyue Island!" Ji Zhen said.

"Yes!"

Ji Hai responded and quickly left the tea room.

……

When a tree falls, monkeys scatter and birds fly back to their own forests.

For the Darong court, the situation will only get worse and there is no chance of easing.

The moment Jian Chengfeng escaped from the Three Valleys, Pandora's box was opened.

The Sanshan Valley and Cuixia Valley were disbanded one after another, and Kyoto was about to fall apart.

It’s not that the Darong court is too fragile, but that the people are against it.

The corruption of the court of Darong did not happen overnight, but had begun more than 20 years ago. Emperor Chengping was a paperhanger, and he spent 35 years repairing the old and rotten ship of Darong so that it could continue to sail.

But Emperor Yanping was a captain holding an axe. He played with balance and division, chopping here and splitting there. He thought he could control everything, but in fact he was always swinging the axe at the keel.

The struggles in the court became more and more intense, making it impossible for civil officials and military generals to focus on state affairs, and they were either actively or passively involved in the struggles.

This made civil officials lose interest in governing state affairs, military generals unable to command and train troops, and nobles could only band together to protect themselves or stay away from the court.

Duke Ningguo Zhou Mao retired, Marquis Changping Liang Chu returned home and lived in seclusion, Marquis Jianchang Zhang Luan went out to travel and never returned, Marquis Nanyang Lu Baishu also retired to the mountains, and Marquis Jing'an Yang Zhengshan took the Yang family overseas.

When Emperor Jianxing Chen Zhaojun took over the position of captain, he was shocked to find that the ship had begun to sink.

The building will collapse and it will be difficult to support a single tree.

He wanted to repair the hole in the bottom of the boat, but found that it was impossible to repair it. There was no hole in the bottom of the boat, but there was no bottom.

The administration is corrupt and the people have lost their faith in the government.

The Imperial Merchants' Office became a fat piece of meat in the eyes of corrupt officials and unscrupulous businessmen.

Shangwu Temple has become a tool for underworld forces to seek personal gain.

Even the Martial Arts Pavilion had become a channel for the noble groups to seek official positions.

Is Yang Zhengshan wrong?
The Imperial Commercial Bureau, Shangwu Temple, and Yanwu Pavilion were all new government offices he proposed to establish, but now they have become the cause of the collapse of the court.

No, what does this have to do with Yang Zhengshan?
Although the Imperial Merchants Bureau, Shangwu Temple, and Yanwu Pavilion were all proposed by Yang Zhengshan, his original intention was good and the policies he formulated were also correct.

The problem lies with the people who implement the policies, not with Yang Zhengshan who formulates the policies.

The Martial Arts Pavilion is in the hands of Yang Zhengshan. It is a holy place of martial arts with countless talented warriors.

The Shangwu Temple was in the hands of Zhang Luan, and it was an imperial government office that suppressed all the underworld forces so much that they dared not raise their heads.

When Luo Shang and Zhen Yangshi were in the Imperial Merchants Bureau, they were the purse strings of the imperial court, providing tens of millions of taels of silver to the court every year.

But the problem was that Yang Zhengshan was forced to leave by Emperor Yanping, and Zhang Luan had to give up Shangwu Temple. Luo Shang and Zhen Yang became outliers in the Imperial Merchants Department.

After Emperor Jianxing ascended the throne, not only did he fail to save the situation, but it made it worse and worse.

Instead of rebuilding the Imperial Merchants Bureau, he killed the goose that laid the golden eggs by confiscating the property of all the imperial merchants in the Imperial Merchants Bureau. Although this brought him a large amount of silver and money, it also made him completely lose the Imperial Merchants Bureau, which was his money bag.

However, he treated Shangwu Temple and Yanwu Pavilion indifferently and ignored them, allowing them to be corrupted by the martial arts sects and the noble groups.

In fact, in the current court, the Imperial Commercial Bureau, Shangwu Temple and Yanwu Pavilion are the three government offices that are easiest for Emperor Jianxing to control, because they were established only a short time ago and their internal bureaucratic systems are not deeply rooted.

As long as Emperor Jianxing could make up his mind, he could take control of the three yamen in one or two years.

Having these three yamen is equivalent to having his own purse and his own trusted military force. If Emperor Jianxing can be patient and take it slow, perhaps this dilapidated and corrupt dynasty can continue for a few more decades.

Unfortunately, Emperor Jianxing did not have such ability. Instead, his control made the court even more chaotic and unmanageable.

Faced with the departure of the innate warriors from Sanshan Valley and Cuixia Valley, Emperor Jianxing felt only a pale sense of powerlessness in his heart.

Imperial City, inside Fengxian Hall.

Emperor Jianxing sat in the hall with a pale face.

Prince Yu Chen Wansong stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the ancestral tablets lined up in the hall.

"Mingxi greets uncle!" Chen Mingxi, wearing a crimson purple narrow-sleeved pleated skirt, walked into the hall slowly and bowed.

Calculating her age, Chen Mingxi is now nearly ninety years old, but her face still looks like she is about forty years old, with a pretty face, a slim figure, and a graceful demeanor.

"Please sit down!" Chen Wansong said in a flat tone.

As the strongest warrior of the current royal family and also the eldest elder in the royal family, Chen Wansong also felt heavy pressure.

The empire is about to collapse, how should the royal family cope with it?
Should he try his best to support the court, or jump out of the chess game and find another way out.

Chen Zhaojun looked up at Chen Wansong and said, "Great-uncle, if you have something to say, just say it. No matter what it is, I can accept it!"

At this moment, Chen Zhaojun's only feeling was that he was powerless to save the situation!
Bandits were wreaking havoc in Shanhe Province. Although the imperial army was powerful, they were unable to completely wipe out the bandits. Instead, as time went on, the number of bandits increased.

By now, there are already three to four hundred thousand bandits in Shanhe Province, and the only area that the court can truly control is Shuntian Prefecture.

Although the Imperial Guards had been winning battles continuously, they had also suffered heavy casualties. Of the 100,000 Imperial Guards, only 60,000 are left. Moreover, because the war had lasted too long and the frequency of the battles was too high, the morale of the Imperial Guards was low.

Although today's imperial guards can still be considered elite, they are no longer as powerful as before.

Due to the heavy casualties, the imperial guards were on the verge of collapse.

Chen Zhaojun felt powerless and was in a desperate mood.

Chen Wansong turned around and stared at Chen Zhaojun with his deep eyes.

Is Chen Zhaojun bad?
Not bad actually!

Perhaps Chen Zhaojun could not be considered wise and brave, but he was also an average person.

Moreover, Chen Zhaojun was not arrogant and extravagant, nor did he act arbitrarily. Since he ascended the throne, he had always been diligent and hardworking.

If it were two hundred years ago, Chen Zhaojun would definitely be able to maintain the situation in the court and even make some achievements.

But now, Chen Zhaojun does not have the ability to save the collapsing empire, so naturally he seems somewhat incompetent.

"Don't you have any solution?" Chen Wansong asked.

He did not blame Chen Zhaojun because he himself was helpless.

For so many years, he has been living in seclusion in Fengxian Hall. Except for the time when Emperor Yanping came to ask for advice twenty years ago, he has never interfered in state affairs.

To be honest, it was not until Chen Zhaoxuan died in battle last year that he began to pay attention to the court, but he only paid attention and did not interfere.

In his opinion, bandits, traitors, and rebels were all just a mob, and Darong had the ability and strength to deal with them.

However, reality slapped him hard in the face.

It seemed to be saying, don’t sleep anymore, get up quickly, if you don’t get up, Darong’s world will fall.

This cannot be blamed on him, because the royal family has its own rules, and the royal family's innate warriors cannot interfere in state affairs at will, so he has been concentrating on practicing and has never paid attention to state affairs.

In his heart, Dayong should still be the powerful Dayong, and should be the same as when Emperor Chengping was in power.

He really didn't expect that Dayong had become so corrupt.

Chen Zhaojun was silent for a while, then he said, "There is a way, but this method may very well lead to a wolf in the house!"

"What method? Tell me about it!" Chen Wansong said.

Chen Zhaojun said with a complicated expression: "Please invite Yang Zhengshan back!"

(End of this chapter)