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

Chapter 234 The Storm That Sweeps Through Great Xia Arrives

Wang Qingci felt somewhat wronged. She had led Tingyulou in a fierce battle with the Qianhai Chamber of Commerce, trying every means to extract information from them, only to discover in the end that the president of the Qianhai Chamber of Commerce was Lu Chen's man.

Why didn't Lu Chen tell her sooner? She suddenly felt that Lu Chen didn't trust her, which was why he didn't give her a heads-up.

It's even possible that Lu Chen deliberately sent Qian Dahai to test him.

Seeing that Wang Qingci seemed a little unhappy, Lu Chen said with a smile, "Lord Wang, I only found out today that Chairman Qian is one of my people."

This……

Wang Qingci was stunned for a moment when she heard Lu Chen's words.

You only found out today?

This is ridiculous. Qian Dahai is one of his men. How could he only find out today?

At this moment, Qian Dahai said to Wang Qingci, "Lord Wang, what the prince said is right. I only learned today that the prince is my master."

"The main reason I asked you about the Northern Prince's Mansion before was to verify my suspicions."

Wang Qingci looked at Lu Chen suspiciously. Lu Chen said that Qian Dahai was his man, but then he said that he only found out today that Qian Dahai was his man. Doesn't this mean that Lu Chen and Qian Hai Chamber of Commerce had no connection before? Then how did Qian Dahai become Lu Chen's man?

Wang Qingci felt a bit confused, but she ultimately believed what Lu Chen said. She felt that Lu Chen really didn't need to send someone to test her, after all, there were Jinyiwei guards everywhere in Tingyu Tower, and her every move was under their surveillance.

Qian Dahai then tactfully said, "Your Highness, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave now."

Lu Chen said, "Okay, you go ahead and do your thing."

After Qian Dahai left the study, Lu Chen stared at Wang Qingci with a smile and said, "What, after you heard that Qian Dahai is one of my men, do you think I sent someone to test you?"

Wang Qingci pursed her lips and didn't say anything. That was indeed what she thought at first, but after thinking about it, she realized that Lu Chen really didn't need to send someone to test her.

She belongs entirely to Lu Chen; her body and soul have become his shape. What is there left to test?

Lu Chen then explained, "The situation with the Qianhai Chamber of Commerce is a bit special. I only learned today that Qian Dahai is one of my men. He wasn't sent by me to test you, so you can rest assured about that."

Wang Qingci asked curiously, "Why did Your Highness only find out today that Qian Dahai is one of your men?"

Lu Chen said with a smile, "You've been in the Prince's mansion for so long, you should know that I have a celestial master, right?"

The women in the inner courtyard of the Prince's mansion basically all knew that Lu Chen was a person with a predestined affinity with the immortals. Anyone who had slept with Lu Chen had experienced his so-called immortal healing techniques, so they firmly believed that Lu Chen had a predestined affinity with the immortals.

Not only the inner courtyard of the royal palace, but also the soldiers of the Northern Army firmly believed that Lu Chen was a chosen one blessed by immortals.

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Wang Qingci was momentarily stunned, then instantly came up with an explanation in his mind: "So Qian Dahai was someone that Your Highness's master prepared for Your Highness."

Wang Qingci thought to herself, "How did Lu Chen find out that Qian Dahai was one of his own? It turns out that Qian Dahai had never contacted Lu Chen before, so neither of them knew what relationship they had with each other. If Qian Dahai was someone that Lu Chen's master prepared for Lu Chen, then all of this makes sense."

After hearing Wang Qingci's words, Lu Chen smiled and said, "You're right. Qian Dahai is indeed a talent that my master prepared for me. There are many people like him."

Wang Qingci said, "I was wondering why Qian Dahai had been inquiring about you lately. I thought he was trying to extract information about the Northern Prince's Mansion, but now it seems he's trying to confirm whether you are his master."

After saying that, Wang Qingci felt much more at ease. As long as she was sure that Lu Chen didn't suspect her, that was enough. Lu Chen still trusted her.

At this moment, Wang Qingci said, "If there's nothing else, I'll head back now."

Lu Chen said calmly, "Okay."

Lu Chen was much more well-behaved today and didn't intend to do anything bad in the study. There was another person who was supposed to come to see him later, so he continued to sit in the study and wait.

Sure enough, not long after, the maid's voice came from the study door again, "Your Highness, Miss Dongfang wishes to see you alone."

Lu Chen said calmly, "Bring her to the study."

"Yes, Your Highness."

A short while later, a maid from the Prince's mansion appeared in the study with a woman dressed in plain white clothes.

When Lu Chen saw the woman in front of him, he immediately felt a dazzling light shining on him. The woman was very beautiful, and her body seemed to radiate starlight, which made Lu Chen's heart start to stir after just one glance.

Upon seeing Lu Chen, Dongfang Longyue immediately bowed and said, "This commoner, Dongfang Longyue, greets Your Highness! Long live Your Highness!!!"

Hearing Dongfang Longyue's voice, Lu Chen came back to his senses and said, "Get up."

Lu Chen then used the system to identify Dongfang Longyue's personal information.

【Name: Dongfang Longyue】

[Identity: Daughter of Dongfang Yi, the head of the Dongfang family; 26 years old; Grandmaster level.]

Rating: 98

【Favourability: 50】

Loyalty: 100

Upon seeing Dongfang Longyue's information, Lu Chen was stunned again. He hadn't expected that Dongfang Longyue's information was the same as Xuan Yuan Yunqi's, with favorability and loyalty being separate.

After regaining his senses, Lu Chen took another look at Dongfang Longyue.

A white belt was tied around Dongfang Longyue's waist, perfectly highlighting her curvaceous figure. Her temperament was very similar to Chen Wanrong's; both were ethereal and otherworldly women.

However, Dongfang Longyue gave Lu Chen a different feeling. If he were in front of Chen Wanrong and had not touched her body, Lu Chen would find it difficult to have even the slightest evil thought towards her.

But the moment Lu Chen saw Dongfang Longyue, he had the idea of ​​having a relationship with her and having her bear his child, and his heart became extremely restless.

Dongfang Longyue smiled, her face exquisitely beautiful, like an intelligent older sister, which reminded Lu Chen of the older sister next door in his previous life.

Of course, Dongfang Longyue was not his older sister from his previous life, but they looked very similar.

He recalled that the first time he felt impulsive towards a woman in his past life was because he saw his older neighbor and wanted to have something happen with her—something every man experiences.

Lu Chen couldn't help but think to himself that he was already a father of several children, yet he still felt such attraction.

It seems I've been under too much pressure lately and haven't been able to relax properly. If I had relaxed properly, I probably wouldn't have had this impulse.

After regaining his senses, Lu Chen coughed and said, "I've heard that the Dongfang family has recently been cooperating with my father. Is this true or not?"

Dongfang Longyue replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Your Highness, my father intends to bring the Dongfang family into the imperial court, so he has chosen to actively pledge allegiance to His Majesty and prepare to cooperate with His Majesty in eliminating other powerful families."

Hearing this, Lu Chen laughed and said, "Isn't your father afraid that my father, the Emperor, will discard you after you've served your purpose?"

Dongfang Longyue replied, "The Dongfang family has a Grandmaster and a number of merchant ships. In addition, the Dongfang family does not have much fixed land in the Great Xia Dynasty, so they can leave the Great Xia Dynasty at any time. In my opinion, it is not difficult for the Dongfang family to get rid of the Great Xia Dynasty."

Hearing this, Lu Chen was stunned for a moment.

The system hadn't mentioned that the Eastern family had a Grandmaster. If he were included, wouldn't that mean the Northern Kingdom already had three Grandmasters? Some dynasties didn't even have three Grandmasters on the surface. He never expected that his own fiefdom would have three Grandmasters so quickly.

At this moment, Dongfang Longyue asked, "Your Highness, is it necessary for the Dongfang family to relocate to the Northern Kingdom?"

Now that the chosen one has appeared, their family should also follow their mission and assist the chosen one.

The Dongfang family is currently located in Sufeng City, which is quite far from the Northern Kingdom. If Lu Chen needs anything, they cannot immediately mobilize all the family's resources to help him. Therefore, it would be best to move the entire family to the Northern Kingdom.

Of course, if they really did that, they would likely offend a lot of people, including several powerful families and the Xia Emperor.

Lu Chen thought for a moment, then said, "Not for now. By the way, since the Dongfang family is cooperating with my father, you should have a general idea of ​​when my father plans to make his move, right?"

Dongfang Longyue replied, "I know. The date is set for the ninth day of next month. His Majesty plans to first force the Crown Prince and others to Sufeng City, forcing them to rebel, and then take action against them."

"His Majesty has already deployed tens of thousands of elite troops to the southeast coast through the merchant ships of the Eastern aristocratic families. Once the Jiangnan aristocratic families and the Crown Prince rebel, His Majesty will send troops immediately to attack from both sides. If the Jiangnan aristocratic families do not have the support of other vassal kings, they will most likely not last more than half a year."

Hearing this, Lu Chen smiled. He really didn't expect that his father had already prepared to this extent. It seems that he had underestimated his father.

Lu Chen glanced at Dongfang Longyue's flawless face, then continued, "Is it possible that those aristocratic families also have Grandmasters? If a Grandmaster does appear, what does my father plan to do?"

"I don't know either, but I heard that in order to completely eliminate the major families in Jiangnan, His Majesty not only sent people to Sifang Mountain and Dingfeng Mountain, but also sent people to Peach Blossom Valley."

Upon hearing the three place names mentioned by Dongfang Longyue, Lu Chen had a pretty good idea of ​​what his father, the emperor, was planning.

Rumor has it that there are Grandmasters in these three places. His father sent people to these three places, obviously wanting to cooperate with the Grandmasters in these three places. If the Grandmasters in these three places help his father, it will be much easier for his father to destroy the Jiangnan aristocratic families.

Of course, if the grandmasters of these three places do not help each other, it would also be a good thing for his father.

At this moment, Lu Chen fell into deep thought. If the Jiangnan rebellion were to occur and the other vassal kings did not take any action, then his father, the emperor, should have no problem wiping out the Jiangnan aristocratic families.

But the key issue is that those vassal kings have been suppressed too much, and some of them have long wanted to rebel. Once the Jiangnan aristocratic families and the crown prince rebel, will those vassal kings also jump out? If these two forces come together, their father's wishful thinking may fall through.

As Lu Chen pondered, his gaze swept over Dongfang Longyue.

Being stared at so intently by Lu Chen, Dongfang Longyue felt a strange sensation in her heart.

Her loyalty to Lu Chen was 100%, but that didn't mean she particularly liked him. She had long heard that Lu Chen was a lecherous man who especially liked beautiful women, and that he even slept with his own aunt.

Although Lu Chen is no longer the good-for-nothing he was rumored to be, it doesn't mean he's not lustful anymore. Dongfang Longyue couldn't help but wonder if Lu Chen was staring at her so intently because he was after her body.

When she was in Sufeng City, those men were like that; they wanted to marry her after just a few glances at her.

At this moment, Dongfang Longyue thought to herself, Lu Chen is the chosen one. If Lu Chen really wants her body, the entire Dongfang family would probably agree. So, should she marry into the Northern Prince's Mansion and become Lu Chen's concubine?

Although she wouldn't say she hated Lu Chen, this arranged marriage still made her feel somewhat uncomfortable.

At this moment, Dongfang Longyue glanced at Lu Chen. Lu Chen's face was very handsome, with distinct features, and his brows seemed to exude an aura of emperors, making people want to submit.

If it were just about Lu Chen's appearance, marrying him wouldn't be a problem. However, she was used to being free and didn't really want to marry into an imperial family.

A chosen one like Lu Chen is destined to become emperor, and not just any emperor. If you become his woman, not to mention the intrigues and power struggles in the harem, you'll probably only be able to stay in the palace until you die of old age.

After pondering for a moment, Lu Chen spoke up, "Miss Dongfang, I've heard that you are engaged to the Crown Prince?"

Dongfang Longyue replied, "Yes, the main reason I came to the Northern Kingdom is to escape my engagement with the Crown Prince."

When Lu Chen brought up the matter of the engagement, Dongfang Longyue became even more certain that Lu Chen was interested in her.

Lu Chen continued, "Miss Dongfang doesn't want to marry the Crown Prince. Is it because she already has someone she loves?"

Dongfang Longyue replied, "This humble woman currently has no one she desires."

At this point, Dongfang Longyue continued, "Your Highness, you may simply call me Longyue."

The entire Dongfang family is now a vassal family of the Northern Prince's Mansion, so Lu Chen has no need to be so respectful to her. The fact that Lu Chen is too respectful to her makes her feel pressured.

Lu Chen said, "Alright then, from now on I will call you Longyue."

"Longyue, when you get back later, write a letter to your father and tell him that I have placed the Embroidered Uniform Guard in Sufeng City. If he needs anything, he can contact the Embroidered Uniform Guard directly, or he can keep in touch with me through the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

At this point, Lu Chen took out a Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) badge and placed it on the desk. "This is the Jinyiwei's identification badge. Send it to Su Fengcheng as well."

Upon hearing this, Dongfang Longyue glanced at the identity plaque on the table, then walked over to it and picked up the Jinyiwei identity plaque.

This identity tag is blank; its main purpose is to allow Dongfang Yi to identify the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and it has no other function.

"I understand."

Lu Chen nodded and said, "Well, if there's nothing else, you can go back now."

"Yes, Your Highness, I will take my leave."

Dongfang Longyue bowed again, then turned and left. Watching Dongfang Longyue's graceful figure as she departed, Lu Chen smiled self-deprecatingly.

He has fallen too far; he wants to possess any beautiful woman he sees. Is this the kind of change that power brings?

Lu Chen then rubbed his temples and stopped thinking about it.

at the same time.

The capital of Daxia.

The Eastern Palace.

The Eastern Palace was not as lively as usual today. A while ago, many officials came to the Eastern Palace, but recently there have been far fewer people.

On the one hand, the officials in the court had realized that Emperor Xia was thinking of deposing the crown prince. On the other hand, Lu Shuyun sensed what was about to happen, so he asked the officials who had a good relationship with him to meet with him as little as possible.

At this time, most of the people in the main hall were from prominent families in Jiangnan.

Lu Shuyun sat on the throne in the main hall and glanced at everyone. At this moment, Wang Chengshuo, the Vice Minister of War, spoke up: "Your Highness, His Majesty's dispatch of troops is a foregone conclusion. No matter how we try to stop it, it will be useless."

"Some time ago, the Huanyu Academy and some people from Daqian entered Daxia, bringing the plague from Daqian to Daxia as well. Regardless of whether the plague has spread or not, His Majesty will use this as an excuse to send troops."

"We need to prepare in advance."

After hearing Wang Chengshuo's words, Lu Shuyun fell silent.

He certainly understood that his father, the emperor, was planning to take action against the Jiangnan aristocratic families, but his position was somewhat awkward. First, he was the son of the Xia emperor, and second, the Jiangnan aristocratic families had a very close relationship with him.

If he hadn't joined the Jiangnan aristocratic families in their rebellion, his position as crown prince would certainly have been revoked after the Jiangnan aristocratic families were destroyed; there was no doubt about that.

The reason he was able to become the crown prince was entirely due to his father's compromise with the powerful families of Jiangnan. If he lost his backing, how could he possibly hold onto his position as crown prince?

However, if he joins the Jiangnan aristocratic families in rebellion, not only will his unfilial behavior be condemned, but their chances of success are also very small. Moreover, if they fail in the end, his fate will not be good either.

After much deliberation, Lu Shuyun finally made up his mind. The Jiangnan aristocratic families were now completely tied to him, and he could not back down at this time. If he could not rise to power, his fate would only be more miserable.

Seeing that Lu Shuyun remained silent for a long time, Wang Yong said from the side, "Your Highness, His Majesty is forcing you to rebel. We have no way out. If the powerful families of Jiangnan are gone, your position as Crown Prince will also be abolished."

Emperor Xia did not send troops south directly, but instead kept putting pressure on Lu Shuyun, trying to force him to go south. It was clear to everyone that Emperor Xia wanted to find a legitimate reason to eliminate the powerful families of Jiangnan.

The conflict between Emperor Xia and the Jiangnan aristocratic families is now out in the open, and war is inevitable. Even if the Jiangnan aristocratic families do not rebel, they will only face execution.

The plague in Daqian was the perfect excuse. Emperor Xia could not only use the plague to mobilize troops to the south, but also use the plague infection to wipe out the powerful families in Jiangnan. Emperor Xia could then claim that those families were destroyed by the plague.

Even if people know that the plague is just an excuse, it won't have much of an impact. After all, the powerful families of Jiangnan have already been wiped out, which serves as a good example to deter others. It's uncertain whether any powerful families will dare to oppose Emperor Xia in the future.

Even if a powerful family were to step forward, the Xia Emperor could still wield his prepared blade once more. Now that the major dynasties all have their own matters to resolve, and the Great Xia Dynasty has no external conflicts, the Xia Emperor can do whatever he wants.

After listening to Wang Yong's words, Lu Shuyun stood up from his seat and said, "I will request Father Emperor to allow me to lead troops south to control the plague at the morning court tomorrow."

Hearing Lu Shuyun's words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The Crown Prince had finally made up his mind. What they were most worried about was that Lu Shuyun would back down at this time.

Lu Shuyun was the son of the Xia Emperor, so he certainly had a way out. If he didn't rebel, at most he would be deposed as crown prince and then placed under house arrest.

However, the aristocratic families of Jiangnan are different. Without the Crown Prince as their leader, they cannot win the hearts of the people even if they rebel.

With a crown prince, they can then use the pretext of "purging the court of corrupt officials" to march north, remove Emperor Xia from his position, and then support Lu Shuyun to ascend the throne.

The next morning at court, Lu Shuyun took the initiative to propose to the Xia Emperor that he should lead troops south to help the people in the south fight against the plague.

The Xia Emperor agreed without hesitation.

Most officials already knew what was going to happen next, and some officials associated with prominent families in Jiangnan submitted their resignations, citing various reasons for leaving office.

These officials were merely the heads of powerful families; Emperor Xia did not directly target them, as they were just minor figures. Emperor Xia was waiting for Lu Shuyun to raise an army.

Once Lu Shuyun raises an army, he will have a valid reason. As for how much suffering the war will bring to many people and how many homes it will destroy, these are not things that Emperor Xia considers.

At this moment, Emperor Xia was more than happy for Lu Shuyun to drag a few more powerful families down with him so that he could deal with them all at once.

The current situation is that Lu Shuyun knows that his father's move of troops south is to force them to rebel, and Emperor Xia also knows that Lu Shuyun and the Jiangnan aristocratic families have guessed that his move of troops south is to force them to rebel, but Lu Shuyun and the Jiangnan aristocratic families still have no choice but to rebel.

If they don't rebel, the Xia Emperor's sword will fall directly.

As officials from prominent families in Jiangnan left the imperial court one after another, the storm that would sweep across the entire Great Xia Dynasty finally arrived.

The Xia Emperor had no way out, and neither did Lu Shuyun and the Jiangnan aristocratic families.

Most of the officials who remained in the court were not in a hurry to take sides. To them, it didn't matter whether Lu Shuyun or Lu Xingqiu was the Emperor of Xia.

This chapter has 6,000 words; this is the first update today.

(End of this chapter)