Evil of all ages

Chapter 182 The Arrival of the Fake Sister

The Grand Prince's Residence

Is the news true?

Upon receiving news that his father's days were numbered, Li Wukong felt not only excitement but also extreme caution.

He was deeply afraid that this was a false message from the Third Prince, intended to lure him into making a mistake.

Now that he saw Shen Zhonghe return from the investigation, he couldn't wait to ask.

He hoped it was the former, that his father's days were truly numbered.

“Your Highness, every night, His Majesty’s coughing can be heard from the Palace of Eternal Life, and it gets worse each time.”

"Starting a month ago, the Imperial Pharmacy has been gradually increasing the amount of medicinal materials sent to the Hall of Eternal Life for alchemy. Now it is five times the amount used before."

"All signs indicate that His Majesty's health is indeed nearing its limit."

Shen Zhonghe replied.

Upon hearing this, Li Wukong clenched his fist, his excitement barely concealed.

But the thought that he had a strong competitor helped him calm down.

"Mr. Shen, doesn't this seem like someone deliberately let us know this news?"

"What is his purpose?"

"Did he only tell us, or did he tell the Third Prince as well?"

Li Wukong immediately launched into a three-question barrage.

"Your Highness, there are only a few possibilities."

"First, someone wants to take advantage of the chaos and rise to power by stepping on our corpses and the Third Prince's corpse."

"Second, some people hope that the capital will fall into chaos so that they can take the opportunity to get what they want."

"Third, someone..."

"..."

Shen Zhonghe suggested several possibilities, but he couldn't immediately guess who had specifically told them this news.

Li Wukong pondered for a while, regardless of who told them this news.

This was all an open conspiracy; as princes, they had no choice but to prepare.

"How did the talk with Minister Xu go?"

Li Wukong asked.

"He didn't agree."

Shen Zhonghe replied.

"what?"

"If he doesn't agree, does that mean he's already sided with the Third Prince?"

In order to rise to power, Li Wukong would have Shen Zhonghe negotiate with him on anything that could help him.

The Xu family wields great power, and he hopes they can support him.

Therefore, he asked Shen Zhonghe to convey his message: as long as the Xu family supports him, he guarantees that he will not touch the Xu family once he becomes emperor.

Let the Xu family rest easy, and when the four-dynasty veteran Prime Minister Gao passes away, Xu Yushu will immediately be appointed Prime Minister.

Xu Yushu refused these conditions, which made him fear that the Xu family had chosen his competitor.

"He did not choose the third prince, saying that the Xu family would remain neutral."

Shen Zhonghe replied.

"neutral?"

"Humph~"

"Nobody would believe them."

Li Wukong felt that the Xu family could not remain neutral, because whether he or the Third Prince came to power, they would eliminate the Xu family.

The fact that the Xu family didn't side with him and the Third Prince suggests they might already have someone else to bet on.

He wasn't afraid that the Xu family would rebel, because the Xu family didn't have any Grandmaster-level experts.

If their princes stage a coup or rebel, the supreme master of the Li imperial family will not intervene.

Because they all share the surname Li, and following the principle of survival of the fittest, as long as the emperor's surname is Li, it's acceptable.

If it were anyone else, the Li royal family's grandmasters and supreme experts would probably be the first to jump out and crush all the ambitious ones.

"We have already sent people to keep a close eye on the Xu family. As long as they make any moves, we will know which prince they are supporting."

Shen Zhonghe said.

Li Wukong nodded upon hearing this.

"What about those sects?"

"How many are willing to help this prince?"

Li Wukong continued to ask.

"The two masters, Qiding, could not be persuaded by Shaolin Temple and Wudang, and Qiding was unwilling to come either."

The Shushan Sect refused, citing the long distance.

"The Misty Pavilion said they are women and don't like fighting and killing."

"The Beggars' Sect has a new leader who has just taken office, and he says he's very busy."

"Divine Sword Manor is..."

In short, they each have their own reasons.

"As for the other sects, only the Wind Blade Sect and the Broken Moon Sect are willing to send people to the capital to assist Your Highness."

"The others who want to come but dare not are all because Ye Wuji, the director of the Zhenwu Division, is currently in the capital."

Shen Zhonghe replied.

Upon hearing this, Li Wukong's face darkened. He had put in so much effort, and only two sects came to help him.

"What is Ye Wuji's attitude?" Li Wukong asked.

"Neither our men nor the Third Prince's men saw him; they were all driven away by his men."

Shen Zhonghe replied.

Although Li Wukong was full of disappointment, Ye Wuji did not choose the Third Prince, which was undoubtedly the best answer.

"It's not enough; we still don't have enough resources."

“Mr. Shen, you have the ability to contact the Demonic Sect. As long as they are willing to help this prince, they can name their terms.”

Li Wukong knew that to win, he needed more power.

He doesn't care about any kind of "demonic sect" now, because if he loses, he will not only lose everything, but also his life.

"We have already contacted them, but no matter what conditions we promise, they refuse to come to Beijing."

Shen Zhonghe replied.

"why?"

Li Wukong was curious. The Demonic Sect was supposed to be fearless, so why did they refuse to come to the capital? Was there something in the capital that they were afraid of?

"They say that Di Qingtian might invite Li Xunhuan to the capital when he gets married."

Upon hearing this, Li Wukong understood; it turned out that the Demonic Sect feared Li Xunhuan.

"It seems that I, Your Highness, must be present on the day of Di Qingtian's wedding."

Li Wukong didn't know if Li Xunhuan would come to Di Qingtian's wedding banquet.

If he comes and makes contact, and Li Xunhuan is willing to help him, then things are settled.

Even if Li Xunhuan didn't come to the wedding banquet, you should know that Di Qingtian has many friends.

Winning over more of Di Qingtian's friends would also be a powerful force.

"Mr. Shen, whether they are wanted criminals or scoundrels of the underworld, recruit them all if you can."

"As long as it helps me achieve great things, I don't care who they are or what their status is."

When Shen Zhonghe heard that the eldest prince wanted even wanted criminals wanted by the imperial court and scoundrels from the martial arts world, he had no objections.

He bowed slightly and then went down to recruit people.

The Third Prince's Residence

"What did the people of Blackwater City say?"

Li Yanliang asked his subordinates.

"Your Highness, they have agreed. They have agreed to send strong warriors to help us."

The subordinate bowed his head and reported.

"Good, good... With their help, we have a much better chance."

Just as Li Yanliang was feeling happy, another subordinate ran over and knelt on one knee.

"Your Highness, someone requests an audience. They claim to be an envoy of the White Lotus Sect, representing the sect."

The subordinate reported.

"White Lotus!"

Upon hearing that the White Lotus Sect had come looking for him, Li Yanliang's brows furrowed.

But he still met with them.

"Hahaha……"

After meeting the person and chatting for the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Li Yanliang couldn't help but laugh after the person left.

"Tell me, isn't this prince destined by heaven? Even the White Lotus Sect has come to help him?"

Li Yanliang asked his subordinates.

Seeing that His Highness was happy, his subordinates naturally fawned over him, saying all sorts of nice things and flattering him.

"Your Highness, the White Lotus Sect is a remnant of the previous dynasty. They dream of restoring the country every day, and what they want most is to see our Great An collapse."

"Now they're coming to help us. Could there be a trap here?"

The one who dared to say this at this time was naturally not one of those sycophantic subordinates, but an old man behind Li Yanliang.

"Of course I know they have ill intentions, but since they are willing to help, why not take advantage of them?"

"As for their real purpose, who cares?"

"Once I sit in that position, I will decide everything."

When Li Yanliang saw that it was Elder Huo speaking, he patiently answered his questions.

Seeing that His Highness had said this, Huo Lao stopped talking.

South City Prison
Old Fu came looking for her, saying that the lost young lady had returned.

When Huang Taichu saw how excited Fu Lao was, he followed Fu Lao out of the prison and back to the mansion to see his fake sister.

Grand mansion

When Huang Taichu met the fake sister, she was not alone; there was a little girl with her.

Whether it's a fake younger sister or a little girl, they're all dressed as beggars.

"Brother~"

When Wei Qianlan saw Huang Taichu, she tried to squeeze out tears and ran towards him, wanting to hug her brother for comfort.

"thump"

Then something awkward happened.

She tripped and twisted her ankle while running over, and fell to her knees in front of Huang Taichu.

Huang Taichu blinked his eyes and immediately performed a grand salute, proving he was no ordinary person.

"Woo~"

Perhaps because her knee hurt from the fall, Wei Qianlan's tears, which she had been trying to squeeze out, turned into real tears.

(End of this chapter)