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Chapter 287 Competition
"Sword maniac Murong Longtu is out in the martial arts world."

"Qin Wuhou's execution of the royal family was a brutal act."

"The Emperor's Autumn Hunt."

In the capital of Ying State, a handsome strategist with purple eyes kept silent. From these things, he smelled a hint of impending changes in the world, just like the damp smell when the wind and clouds gather and a storm is about to come.

"The time has almost come."

Po Jun said: "My Lord, there are three opportunities for great changes in the world. You are about to encounter the first one. Please allow me to complete the part of the world that I described for you that day."

Pojun finished drinking the wine. During this time, he had figured out Jiang Wanxiang and Jiang Su's strategy. So, the next step was to push the strategy forward one final time before they were about to succeed.

Pojun found the second prince Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan has restrained his arrogance and domineering attitude in Chen State more than a year ago. He has become tactful, gentle and kind, yet heroic. He is respectful to the wise and humble, not arrogant, and has a very good reputation in Ying State.

He also repeatedly stated that he would not fight with his eldest brother, and acted like a friendly and respectful brother. As a result, his popularity gradually increased. Many of the children of the aristocratic families were frivolous when they were young, but gradually matured.

Therefore, the aristocratic families were more likely to accept Jiang Yuan's changes.

Today, Po Jun came and Jiang Yuan came to greet him. The Second Prince was almost thirty years old and had great respect for Po Jun. He welcomed him to a pavilion in his mansion which was modeled after the Zhaixing Tower but was actually much shorter, and they drank together in the wind.

After drinking two cups of tea, Po Jun said:
"I have to take my leave now."

This sentence made Jiang Yuan's face change suddenly, and his hands trembled.

"Why did you say this, sir?"

"Could it be that I am not sincere enough to you, sir?"

Po Jun didn't answer. Jiang Yuan was naturally very nice to him.

But Pojun also knew that the better Jiang Yuan treated him now, the more cruel he would be in settling accounts with him when he became emperor. People like him could only share hardships but not wealth. They were vicious and cruel, but they could humble themselves.

A person like Jiang Wanxiang can actually have such a temperament.

Po Jun did not answer, but said regretfully:

"His Royal Highness is kindhearted and has a great reputation throughout the court. The noble families, civil and military officials, officials, and even the common people all support him. His Majesty also likes him. It is absolutely impossible for His Royal Highness to defeat such a person."

"The strategy I'm giving you now is just enough for you to protect yourself."

"When His Royal Highness becomes the emperor one day, given His Royal Highness's kindness, Your Highness can live out his days as a wise king."

Jiang Yuan's face suddenly changed, he felt unwilling, but Po Jun no longer gave him any strategy, he just kept drinking. Jiang Yuan changed his mind, pretending to go to get the wine, but actually directly chopped the stairs of the seven-story pavilion.

Amidst the rumbling sound, the highest point of the seven-story pavilion became a suspended place.

Pojun's martial arts skills are average, so he can't go down.

If you force yourself to get down, you will only fall to death.

So Pojun's expression changed drastically: "Your Highness, what are you doing?!"

Jiang Yuan flicked his sleeves, without any threats or inducements, but put aside his dignity, knelt on the ground, and saluted, saying: "Jiang Yuan is dull, but I am not willing to be in this situation. Please help me one last time, otherwise, Jiang Yuan will not let you go."

Pojun seemed helpless.

He said, "If your highness is like this, then I only have one plan."

Jiang Yuan was overjoyed: "Sir, please speak."

Po Jun said: "The Crown Prince is older than Your Highness, and has been the crown prince for so many years. Everyone in Ying State has high expectations of him. Your Highness, you are trying to correct your temper, but the Crown Prince's reputation is increasing every day. You still can't compare to him."

"Then there is only one way, to ruin his plan."

"It lowers his reputation."

"That way you have a three-point chance."

Jiang Yuan said: "Please give me some advice, sir."

Po Jun said: "Ordinary things are not enough to reduce Jiang Gao's reputation. There is only one thing that can make Jiang Wanxiang and Jiang Su disappointed in him, and that is the unification of the world."

"Now, there is indeed a way. Now that the autumn hunt in Zhongzhou has begun, the seven Turkic kings are detained here. What is the purpose? It is to allow General Yuwen Tianxian and the seven kings to return together when the world changes drastically."

"General Yuwen Tianxian has just defeated the eleven Turkic kings. If he goes back now, there will definitely be another conflict. When the seven kings and the Great Khan of the Turks fight, the Central Plains will be free of worries and the emperor can realize his ambitions."

"As long as the seven princes return early and there is no army from Ying State to escort the bride, the grassland will not immediately start fighting. Then Ying State will have to pay some attention to the grassland and will not be able to devote all its strength to fighting Chen State."

"Now that the emperor is away, the prince is in charge of all these matters."

"As long as the Seventh Prince and the Princess leave together and return to the grassland, the Crown Prince will not be able to escape his crime."

Jiang Yuan's face was full of struggle: "This is my biggest strategy."

Po Jun said with emotion: "Yes, if he succeeds one day, the world will be unified."

"Then His Majesty the Great Ying Kingdom is the Emperor Taizu."

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince will become Emperor Taizong Wen of Ying State."

The struggle on Jiang Yuan's face disappeared.

If the throne is not his, what is the point of unifying the world? !
With a determined heart, he said, "Please teach me, sir!"

Pojun stretched out his hand and pressed it on his fist, saying, "That's not necessary."

“This is also for my Lord.”

Jiang Yuan suddenly realized, and said: "It is also for the Seventh Prince."

Po Jun conspired with Jiang Yuan. That night, Jiang Yuan held a banquet at home and invited his brother, Crown Prince Jiang Gao, to attend the banquet. The crown prince gladly went, and the two brothers talked about what they were like when they were young and had a very pleasant conversation.

Jiang Yuan drank too much without realizing it, and burst into tears. He said that he was confused in the past and had often gone against his elder brother, and hoped that his elder brother would forgive him for the past. Jiang Gao sighed in his heart, and Jiang Yuan cut his palm with a dagger and made a blood covenant that he would never betray his brother.

Then they danced with swords in the courtyard, singing along with the dance.

Finally, Jiang Yuan respectfully went to see his brother off, saying that he had never had such a happy banquet in the past. He was very happy today, but he couldn't help but think of his mother who passed away early, and felt sad.

Now my mother has passed away, my father is not around, and my brother is the only one here.

I wonder if my brother could give me something personal to remember me by.

Jiang Gao was drunk, and he was always kind. How could it be normal for his younger brother, who had the same father and mother, to ask his elder brother for a gift? So he took off a sword and handed it over directly, saying:
"This sword was used by my father when he was young. He also used it in the battles for the throne and the coup d'état in the palace. My father gave it to me when I was six years old. Today I am giving it to you, my brother."

That night, Jiang Gao went back to the East Palace, and Jiang Yuan looked struggling.

He held the sword that everyone in the court knew was the prince's sword, and an intense struggle appeared on his face. For a moment, he thought of his childhood when his brother took him around to play, but he didn't want to study and ran out to climb trees.

Jiang Gao also gave up his books to play with him. At that time, he sat on the tree and shot birds with a slingshot. His brother was sitting on a rock watching him. Jiang Yuan asked him worriedly, is it okay not to study like this?

Jiang Wenwen replied warmly: "Books are endless, and you can't finish reading them every day. If you can't read a book today, you can read it tomorrow. But you are my only brother."

"We will all grow up eventually, and the time we can play with you will decrease day by day."

At that time, Jiang Yuan was touched and felt that his brother was the most important person in the world.

At this moment, Jiang Yuan had a complicated expression and relaxed. He held the sword and was about to put it down, but he heard a series of voices coming from the other side. It was an official passing by. When he saw Jiang Gao, he hurriedly got off his horse, bowed deeply, and called him "Your Highness".

Jiang Yuan's expression was slightly tense.

I thought about kneeling down and kowtow to that person.

Then his expression hardened.

"No wonder my brother, brother."

"I only have one brother from the same father and mother."

"But that is the dragon throne that rules the world."

"There's only one!"

He said, "I don't want a brother anymore."

The sword that was passed down from Jiang Wanxiang to Jiang Gao, and from Jiang Gao to Jiang Yuan, fell into Pojun's hands. One day, the Seventh Prince was chatting with the Princess of Ying State, when suddenly an eunuch came in a hurry and said to the Princess of Ying State:
"Your Highness, it's not good."

"The grassland and my Great Ying Kingdom are about to fight. His Majesty is furious and wants to imprison you and kill the Seventh Prince. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said that there must be a villain behind this. He couldn't bear to lock you up, and he also knew that you were in love with the Seventh Prince."

"If you kill the seven kings, not only will Your Highness be sad, but it will also cause great suffering to all the people."

"Your Highness cannot bear this."

"He delayed the envoy sent by His Majesty to kill the seven kings."

Princess Jiang Yujing naturally didn't believe it, but the eunuch from the Crown Prince's Mansion took out a sword and said, "Your Highness is also worried that you don't believe it, so he brought this sword as evidence."

He took a quick look at the sword.

Jiang Yujing's face turned pale.

Jiang Wanxiang is a man of such arrogance and domineering character that he could do such a thing.

She also knew about the conflict between Ying State and the Turks and the Turks' acquisition of war materials. In addition, Ying State's Crown Prince Jiang Gao was a brother who cared for his younger siblings. This sword was given to her father by the Queen when she was young, and then to the Crown Prince.

This token is of great value.

She stumbled, momentarily flustered.

The eunuch said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said that you and the Seventh Prince should leave here quickly and go to the grassland to avoid the limelight. When he persuades His Majesty and calms down, it will not be too late for you to come back with him."

"If the Seventh King had not been killed, then I, Da Ying, would not have gone to war with the Turks."

Jiang Yujing was panicked and went to look for the Seventh King.

Po Jun was having a secret conversation with the Seventh Prince, and told him part of the plan. Finally, he said, "Later, Your Highness and the Princess will leave Ying State alone, relying on the Crown Prince's sword, and rush to the grassland, avoiding the Great Khan's troops and rushing to your own territory."

The Seventh King's expression changed several times: "I still have thousands of brothers and men here."

Po Jun yelled, "Stupid!" "If you leave safely and go to the grassland, then these soldiers will be safe; if you insist on staying here, when Jiang Wanxiang asks Yuwen Tianxian to take you back to the grassland, do you want to fight the Khan now?!"

"Are you going to let these warriors on the grassland fight against the strongest iron pagodas under the Great Khan and kill them all?"

The Seventh Prince's expression changed several times, and he asked, "Where is the sir?"

Po Jun said, "You and the princess should just say you are going out hunting. I will be here to keep them safe. If I am not here, they will definitely become suspicious."

When the Seventh Prince saw this, it seemed to him that Po Jun was the one who was covering the retreat.

So he was moved, thanked him profusely, gritted his teeth, took Princess Jiang Yujing, rode two war horses, and a lot of silver, and said he was going out hunting. Because his troops and Pojun were there, and with the sword that the prince always carried with him, no one suspected him.

Yuwen Lie, Jiang Su and Jiang Wanxiang are not here.

The last general among the top five, He Ruoqinhu, was from Jiang Yuan's faction.

Once this plan was implemented, no one could stop it.

Po Jun fulfilled his promise of the day here lightly. Today, the ginkgo forest in Ying State is in full bloom, and golden leaves are falling gracefully, but he does not know that the roots of future disasters have been deeply planted. He stretched out his hand with a calm expression.

Pojun star is the auxiliary star under the command of the White Tiger clan.

I came to this troubled world in this life to start the war and turn this already chaotic world into a battlefield. Then I will assist the White Tiger Sect to bring peace to the world again.

When something has accomplished its purpose.

He got the leverage over Jiang Yuan, created a weakness for Jiang Gao, and gained favors from Jiang Gao and the seven Turkic kings. Everyone thought that this counselor was helping them, and no one knew what his real purpose was.

Po Jun picked up a fallen leaf, his purple eyes were calm and indifferent:
"So, the seeds of chaos in Ying State and the division of the world have already been sown. The agreement drawn up that day has now been fulfilled. It is time for me to return to my original self. The world is divided, the emperor has lost his power, and all the heroes are chasing him."

"Three hundred years of strife and chaos."

"Eighteen states in the south of the Yangtze River, under the command of Qin Wuhou, the commander of the Qilin Army."

"Master of strategy, destroy the army."

........................

The Seventh Prince brought along Princess Ying, and the two of them rushed to the grassland. At this time, the Emperor of Zhongzhou started the autumn hunt. The Emperors of the Red Emperor's lineage all had the habit of hunting in autumn. This seemed to be a custom from the era of conflict among the various vassal states thousands of years ago.

In order to make the descendants of the princes respect the great emperor of the central government, and also to remind the great emperor's lineage not to forget bravery, Zhongzhou naturally has its own hunting grounds, which have been operated for hundreds of years and cover a large area.

A great deal of manpower and material resources were spent on finding all kinds of rare and exotic animals from all over the world and putting them in this place. People were also specially hired to take care of them. Normally, this place is locked up and no one is allowed to enter unless the emperor goes on the autumn hunt.

There was a drought one year, and a hunter's few acres of thin land had no harvest. He gritted his teeth, took his bow and came here, intending to shoot a few wild animals and take them back to nourish his old mother and children, but he was discovered by an excellent hunting dog.

In the end he was beaten with thirty sticks and died before he could even walk back.

But the officials who were used to the royal hunting grounds took him as a joke and released the dogs to bite him. However, those beasts were very good at biting people, as if they enjoyed chasing and biting people on a daily basis.

But even so, those officials were not punished.

Instead, the hunter was hung up as a warning to all, and his several acres of land were confiscated and turned over to the royal hunting ground as a punishment.

Ordinary people are not allowed to come to this place.

Usually very quiet.

But today was different. The quiet hunting ground was bustling with flags of different colors and battle patterns fluttering in all directions. The tallest was the red dragon flag. Below the red dragon flag were the Jiang flag with an ink-black tiger perched on it, the Chen flag with a green dragon pattern, and the Li flag with a red unicorn pattern.

After this, there are other families and clans.

Even if one's ancestors were dukes, they still have to be under these three flags.

They looked at the people over there with fear.

There was a stone table and four people. The leader was Ji Zichang, who was wearing an imperial robe and a jade belt. On the left and right were Chen Dingye, Jiang Wanxiang, and Li Guanyi. They were all wearing hunting clothes, which were modified by a king named Wu a thousand years ago.

However, that king had been brave all his life, wearing Hu clothing and riding and shooting, but in the end he was locked up in the house by his own son and starved to death. The hero was the leader, and he lived a ridiculous life until he was old. The four of them chatted casually, and the other nobles and clan members did not dare to approach them.

Before, they were afraid of Jiang Wanxiang’s tyranny and Chen Dingye’s cruelty.

But now, Qin Wuhou, who wore a wooden sword on his waist, was not inferior to them.

Just three days ago, after the battle with the sword maniac, Qin Wuhou, who had been somewhat gentle and youthful before, became calmer day by day. When he drank, his eyes swept around, and he already had the demeanor of a hero.

Li Guan glanced over and the nobles who were visiting him lowered their heads subconsciously.

After lowering his head, he felt extremely humiliated and angry.

I feel that if I bow my head, I will bring shame to the family.

But if they were asked to raise their heads and look at the young man, they dared not do so.

I could only say in my heart that other people were doing the same thing, so I should just give this powerful official some face. My family has been a prominent family for 800 years, so there is no need to say anything to this killer who was just born out of swords and guns.

Li Guanyi put down his glass: "The weather is nice today."

Jiang Wanxiang laughed:
"Yes, in the autumn, when everything is harvested, many prey come out at this time. Animals think that at this time, all kinds of seeds are ripe and fruits are everywhere. When they are greedy, they don't know that they are also prey."

"It looks like the prey has been released."

"It's a rare autumn hunt. Chen Dingye, you and I don't have to wait for these warriors to go hunting. Let's go and have a look." Jiang Wanxiang grabbed a bow and said with a smile: "How about you and me hunting by ourselves?!"

A big deer was released from the royal hunting ground over there. The deer was raised to be very tall, with antlers reaching up to the sky, even a bit gorgeous. Initially, it was used to hunt Qilin. After being rescued by the first generation Master, the Master said that Qilin was a sign of good fortune and it was wrong to hurt it.

So they changed their focus to hunting this large deer which was somewhat similar to the Qilin.

In the past, ministers and princes would ride on horses with flags flying behind them, and hold spears, bows and arrows to chase away the big deer, which would eventually be killed by the emperor himself. This was the biggest, most important, and most ceremonial event in the emperor's autumn hunting.

But today, Jiang Wanxiang and Chen Dingye both took up their weapons to chase the deer.

The deer seemed to sense a hint of evil spirit, broke free from the hunting ground officials, and started running wildly. Jiang Wanxiang laughed, "Deer, don't run!" He rode on a war horse and chased after it with a large bow in his hand.

The same is true for Chen Dingye.

Ji Zichang looked at the excitement there. The two kings were chasing the divine deer that symbolized the honor of the emperor. Behind them, soldiers wearing armors of the two countries were following closely, with flags flying. In a trance, there was some of the style and demeanor of the glorious past of the Red Emperor.

Ji Zichang smiled bitterly, picked up the wine, and said self-deprecatingly:

"It is said to be a deer, but it is the majesty and glory of the emperor."

"Qing, why don't you go?"

Li Guanyi was wearing a scarlet battle robe and a golden hair crown. It was not that he did not want to prepare the corresponding hunting clothes. On the night when Li Guanyi killed Ji Yunqing's grandfather and grandson and "asked for his crime", Ji Zichang asked for the reason. The young man just said confidently: "It's too expensive, I can't afford it!"

That night Ji Zichang laughed so hard that his stomach hurt and he was about to cry.

At this moment, facing Ji Zichang's question, Li Guanyi did not answer, but just said:

"I should leave Zhongzhou."

Ji Zichang was stunned, he just sighed, and forced a smile, "You are also going to the world, yes, but without the academy, even if King Gongyang Su is willing to stay here, it will be much more lonely after all."

Li Guanyi said, "Those people you talked about when you were drunk three nights ago."

Ji Zichang looked at Li Guanyi.

That was when Li Guanyi killed Ji Yingqing's two evildoers and asked for forgiveness.

Ji Zichang got drunk and named the names one by one. They were all members of the royal family. His eyes were red and he almost cried. At this moment, Li Guanyi suddenly mentioned these names. Ji Zichang's expression changed and he said:

"Qing, Pharmacist, what are you going to do?"

He subconsciously reached out and grabbed Li Guanyi's arm, staring at Li Guanyi, and said:

“Don’t be impulsive.”

Li Guanyi just smiled, took Ji Zichang's hand away, then opened his mouth, drank, and said:

"Have they already begun to guide public opinion, saying that I, Li Guanyi, am an unforgivable villain and a powerful official who holds the power of the monarch? If I don't continue to satisfy them, wouldn't it be that I don't understand the atmosphere?"

Ji Zichang was dazed and looked miserable.

Li Guanyi said calmly: "Let me do this for you one last time."

"I will kill those people you dare not touch, and I will do those things you dare not do."

"you said so."

"A king who has lost his country should behave like a king who has lost his country."

"Then a powerful official should also behave like a powerful official."

Li Guan put down the wine glass, and when he stood up, his sleeves fluttered like a unicorn, and his hair was tied up with a golden hair crown. He smiled and lowered his eyes, and stretched out his hand with his back to Ji Zichang. Strands of golden light gathered and turned into a magic bow in his hand.

Li Guanyi suddenly laughed and sighed, like the carefree young man he was back then, and said:

"But, Brother Chang Wen, I don't know what the history books of the future will say about the two of us. They will talk about the last emperor and his arrogant ministers, the killings, the debts, the grudges, and the heroic spirit."

Ji Zichang didn't know how to answer this question.

At this time, the autumn hunting has reached its climax.

The sound of horse hooves was deafening and the flags were waving.

Chen Dingye and Jiang Wanxiang on the other side shot arrows together. The arrows were flying and almost killed the divine deer, but suddenly there was a sharp sound of breaking through the air. An arrow was flying and changed, and it was the last to be shot and arrived first, and it directly defeated the two arrows!

Everyone was shocked.

Suddenly there was a loud laugh.

Qin Wuhou had already mounted his horse, holding his bow, and said, "Gentlemen, don't worry!"

He smiled, his brows sharp, bold and fiery.

"Li Guanyi is here!"

(End of this chapter)