Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

Chapter 137 What a huge pie!

After Lu Chen waited in the pavilion for a while, an elderly man with white hair dressed in coarse cloth followed the maid into the courtyard.

Lu Chen was stunned when he saw the white-haired old man in front of him.

The old man looked like an ordinary citizen, not someone with any special status.

However, Lu Chen wasn't stupid. Since Bai Qingqing had specifically sent her maid to inform him of the person he wanted to see, it proved that this old man was definitely not as simple as he seemed.

Lu Chen then used the system to identify it.

Name: Situ Ce

[Identity: Grand Preceptor of the Great Xia Dynasty, one of the pillars of the Great Xia Dynasty. His purpose in going to the Northern Commandery is twofold: to test the Northern King and to deliver a message on behalf of the Xia Emperor.]

[Strength: Grandmaster]

Loyalty: 50

Upon seeing the system's introduction, Lu Chen frowned.

Imperial Advisor?

Why is the Imperial Advisor, one of the pillars of the nation, not staying in the capital but wandering around Beijun?

At this moment, Situ Ce said to Lu Chen, "This humble subject greets Your Highness! Long live Your Highness!"

Hearing this, Lu Chen chuckled and then said, "Grand Preceptor, what are you doing here in Beijun pretending to be an ordinary citizen? You don't think I wouldn't recognize you, do you?"

Situ Ce was slightly surprised to see that Lu Chen recognized him at a glance.

Apart from the eldest prince, none of the Xia emperor's sons had ever met him. Logically, the Northern King should not have known that he was the Imperial Advisor.

Situ Ce smiled and then asked, "How did Your Highness recognize me?"

Lu Chen said calmly, "Although you concealed your aura, in front of a Grandmaster like myself, you are probably the only person in the entire Great Xia who can remain neither humble nor arrogant, and who can even make me feel threatened."

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Situ Ce was stunned once again.

Grandmaster!

The Northern King has actually become a Grandmaster!

How is that possible?

He remembered that when the Northern King left the capital, he didn't even have any internal energy; he was just an ordinary person.

Practicing martial arts is different from playing power games. When someone plays power games, they can hide their thoughts, but it's different when you practice martial arts. Whether you have internal energy or have practiced martial arts is easily seen by others.

Especially when facing someone of a higher cultivation level, it is difficult for a martial artist of a lower cultivation level to hide their strength.

Just as Situ Ce was wondering if he had misheard, he sensed the martial arts aura emanating from Lu Chen.

Lu Chen's martial arts aura was very weak. If it were an ordinary person, or someone at the same level as Lu Chen, they would not be able to sense Lu Chen's level.

However, Situ Ce is different. Situ Ce is a Grandmaster. Even if Lu Chen hides his aura and strength and tries to conceal his internal energy, he will still be detected by Situ Ce.

This is why Lu Chen took the initiative to reveal that he was a Grandmaster right away. There was nothing to hide in front of Situ Ce, a Grandmaster, and he had no way to conceal his strength from a Grandmaster for the time being.

Situ Ce quickly recovered and praised, "As expected of the Northern King who was able to defeat the barbarian army of 300,000, he has already broken through to the Grandmaster realm at the age of seventeen. It seems that it won't be long before Great Xia has a Celestial Realm expert in charge."

An hour ago, Situ Ce was still at the city gate doubting whether the Northern King's own strength could support his ambitions. Of course, the strength he was referring to was the military strength of the entire Northern Commandery, as well as the Northern King's own strength.

Now that he knew that the Northern King had reached the Grandmaster realm, Situ Ce instantly understood where the Northern King got his confidence to designate the entire Northern Lands as his personal fiefdom.

A seventeen-year-old grandmaster is extremely rare, or even nonexistent, in the world. At least, there are no known martial artists who have become grandmasters before the age of twenty.

Becoming a Grandmaster at the age of seventeen indicates that the Northern King possesses an extremely terrifying talent for martial arts. Given his rate of advancement, he may become a Grandmaster before the age of twenty-five, and he has great potential to become a Celestial Realm expert in the future.

This is even more terrifying than Emperor Xia's martial arts talent. Situ Ce always thought that Emperor Xia was the most talented martial artist he had ever seen, but he never expected that Emperor Xia's son would be even more talented than Emperor Xia.

Back in the capital, no one knew that the Northern King knew martial arts.

If the Northern King did not practice martial arts in the capital, but only began to learn martial arts after arriving in the Northern Prefecture, then the Northern King could be considered the most talented martial artist in the entire martial arts world in the past thousand years.

The word "genius" is no longer sufficient to describe him.

This is a monster!

Upon hearing Situ Ce's words, Lu Chen smiled and said, "I don't believe that the Imperial Preceptor traveled all the way to Beijun just to praise me."

"Please speak plainly, Imperial Advisor."

Upon hearing this, Situ Ce immediately said, "Before we get down to business, I would like to ask Your Highness a question: what is Your Highness's view of the world today?"

Upon hearing this question, Lu Chen immediately realized that Situ Ce was testing him.

Situ Ce is the Imperial Preceptor and a pillar of the Great Xia Dynasty. Even the Xia Emperor respects him greatly. He is indeed qualified to examine any of the princes.

Lu Chen then countered, "When the Grand Preceptor speaks of 'the world,' does he mean the Great Xia Dynasty, or does he mean the world that includes other dynasties?"

Upon hearing Lu Chen's question, Situ Ce's mind went blank for a moment.

Clearly, all he wanted to ask about was the Great Xia.

Situ Ce never expected that someone would step outside his preconceived notions. The "world" that people usually refer to refers to is the Great Xia Dynasty, not other dynasties or countries.

After a moment, Situ Ce continued, "Does Your Highness believe that all the dynasties and countries in the world combined constitute the entire realm?"

Hearing Situ Ce's question, Lu Chen was somewhat confused. Why did the people of Daxia think that the world only referred to "Daxia"?

It's one thing for ordinary people to think this way, but Situ Ce is, after all, the Grand Preceptor of the Great Xia Dynasty. They clearly know that there are many dynasties and countries outside of the Great Xia Dynasty.

Lu Chen then said, "I find it hard to understand why the Grand Preceptor would ask this question. Are other dynasties not in the same world and under the same sky as Great Xia? The world should naturally include all dynasties and countries."

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Situ Ce smiled and suddenly bowed to Lu Chen, saying, "I have learned a great deal."

This……

Lu Chen was stunned for a moment.

So that's all I've learned?

He was just explaining his own understanding of the world.

Situ Ce continued, "Your Highness's level of thinking has far surpassed that of this old man."

The Northern King's vision of the world was not that of the Great Xia, but of the entire world.

The Northern King's ambitions are far greater than he imagined!

Even the Xia emperors of that era did not have such ambitions.

Lu Chen felt that Situ Ce's words were somewhat inexplicable. He couldn't help but think that perhaps it was because Situ Ce was getting old that his words were difficult to understand.

At this moment, Situ Ce continued to ask, "I would like to ask Your Highness another question. Since Your Highness has such insight and martial arts talent, why did you not choose to participate in the struggle for the throne when you were in the capital? With Your Highness's insight and martial arts talent, it would not have been too difficult for you to obtain the position of Crown Prince."

With Lu Chen's martial arts talent and knowledge, as well as the Chu family behind him, it would indeed be easy for him to obtain the position of Crown Prince. He would not need to go to a harsh and cold place like Beijun to develop.

Hearing Situ Ce's words, Lu Chen smiled and asked, "Does the Imperial Advisor think it's easier for a painter to achieve the desired effect by creating a painting on a blank sheet of paper, or by modifying someone else's work?"

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Situ Ce immediately understood his meaning. Then, Situ Ce said, "I see. No wonder you agreed without hesitation when His Majesty asked you to come to Beijun."

The Great Xia Dynasty is now controlled by various powerful families, and any reforms and the Xia Emperor's orders will be obstructed by these families. However, the Northern Prefecture is different. The Northern Prefecture is too poor and has no large powerful families, at most only some small families. The Northern King's decrees can be implemented without hindrance in the Northern Prefecture.

The Northern King can do whatever he wants in the Northern Commandery, just like drawing on a blank sheet of paper, drawing however he wants.

Lu Chen said, "What you said is not accurate. Whether I come to Beijun or not is not a decision I can make, but a decision made by His Majesty."

Situ Ce said, "Your Highness is right."

Lu Chen continued, "Alright, let's stop this small talk. The Imperial Advisor has come to see me, which must be His Majesty's intention. Imperial Advisor, please tell me directly what decree His Majesty has given me."

Situ Ce said, "His Majesty instructed me to convey to the Prince that he intends to make the Prince the Crown Prince. The Prince should encourage him and not disappoint His Majesty's expectations."

Upon hearing Situ Ce's words, Lu Chen chuckled. What a huge pie! He probably couldn't possibly eat it all.

Although that's what he thought, Lu Chen didn't say it to Situ Ce's face. Instead, he said, "Thank you, Grand Preceptor, for coming to Beijun to convey my father's words. Please tell my father that I will work hard and will never let him down."

Situ Ce said with a smile, "Yes, I will certainly convey the message to His Majesty on behalf of the Prince."

"However, before I leave Beijun, I would like to say something from my heart to Your Highness."

Lu Chen said, "Please speak, Imperial Preceptor."

Situ Ce said, "It is indeed not easy to achieve the desired effect when painting on someone else's painting, but if someone is willing to help Your Highness get a larger blank sheet of paper, I hope Your Highness will have enough patience to wait. I believe that Your Highness's brush will be able to more easily depict the world you envision on that blank sheet of paper."

Upon hearing Situ Ce's veiled reminder, Lu Chen glanced at Situ Ce's loyalty score and discovered that it had actually reached 85.

Kind of outrageous.

Just a few words were exchanged, and a grandmaster's loyalty to him increased so much.

Lu Chen then said, "Thank you for the reminder, Grand Preceptor. I will certainly keep it in mind."

Originally, Situ Ce wanted to find out more about those large pits, but he eventually gave up.

After hearing Lu Chen's answer, it no longer mattered what caused those huge pits.

(End of this chapter)