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

Chapter 238 The Eastern Family Plans to Flee

The capital of the Great Xia Dynasty, the Imperial Palace.

The Imperial Study.

Emperor Xia was reviewing memorials when he suddenly saw the memorial submitted by Lu Chen.

He froze for a moment.

Aside from submitting a memorial to the court when the barbarians invaded from the south, Lu Chen rarely submitted memorials to the court under normal circumstances.

Especially after the Great Xia Dynasty declared that it would no longer provide any aid to the Northern Kingdom, Lu Chen never submitted a memorial to the court again.

What was the purpose of his submission of this memorial?

Out of curiosity, Emperor Xia opened Lu Chen's memorial and began to read it carefully.

Upon seeing the contents of the memorial, Emperor Xia's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

He sneered and said, "To swallow the entire North, what a grand ambition! Aren't you afraid of being choked to death?"

"It seems that Zhuge Chongguang's trip to the North has made him even more arrogant."

"Once we deal with the powerful families of Jiangnan, it's time to resolve this hidden danger as well."

Emperor Xia originally thought that even if Lu Chen had the support of a certain force, the development of the Northern Kingdom would not be too fast. However, as the reforms in the Northern Kingdom continued, he began to vaguely sense that something was wrong.

The development of the North was too fast, and the refugees absorbed by the North did not become a burden to the North. On the contrary, they helped the North increase its labor force by a large amount.

Furthermore, the fact that Huanyu Academy had publicly declared its intention to join the Northern Kingdom made Emperor Xia even more uneasy. Emperor Xia even suspected that the force that initially supported the Northern Kingdom was Huanyu Academy.

When Lu Chen went to the Northern Kingdom, he was just a useless prince. At that time, he had no support. Perhaps it was Huanyu Academy that took advantage of this loophole and seized control of Lu Chen.

The philosophy of the Universal Academy has always been disliked by various dynasties, especially the royal families of those dynasties. Emperor Xia has reason to suspect that Zhuge Chongguang wanted to bring the philosophy of the Universal Academy to the Great Xia, and that the strange reforms made by the Northern Kingdom might have been orchestrated by the Universal Academy behind the scenes.

When Situ Ce returned from the Northern Kingdom, he said that a Grandmaster had appeared there. Now that I think about it, that Grandmaster was probably Zhuge Chongguang.

The thought of Zhuge Chongguang darkened Emperor Xia's face. He muttered to himself in a cold voice, "There should be no Celestial Realm expert in this world."

The Celestial Realm, which is above the Grandmaster level, has always been a suffocating pressure on the Grandmasters in the martial arts world. In recent years, Grandmasters from all dynasties have kept a low profile and will not take action unless absolutely necessary.

This is all thanks to the Celestial Realm expert from Xuan Yue Palace back then. That Celestial Realm expert from Xuan Yue Palace killed many Grandmasters, including Grandmasters from various dynasties.

After that person returned to Xuan Yue Palace and went into seclusion, he never came out again. However, decades have passed, and what that Celestial Realm expert did back then still terrifies the Grandmasters.

The events of that year led all the Grandmasters of the Great Xia royal family to retire behind the scenes and not emerge for decades. People now basically only know that the Imperial Preceptor Situ Ce is suspected to be a Grandmaster, and few people know that the royal family still has Grandmasters.

A Celestial Realm expert is already enough to make the Grandmasters of the major dynasties afraid to raise their heads. If another Celestial Realm expert were to appear, the Grandmasters would probably never dare to show their faces again.

Most importantly, this Grandmaster who was about to break through to the Celestial Realm actually came to the Great Xia Dynasty, which made the Xia Emperor even more uneasy. He couldn't sleep at night for a while, and always dreamed of the scene when his royal family's Grandmaster was killed by a Celestial Realm expert from the Xuan Yue Palace when he was a child.

The Xia Emperor did not want another sword hanging over his head after dealing with those powerful families. If the Great Xia Dynasty wanted to become stronger, no force more powerful than the Great Xia royal family could emerge on its land.

At this moment, Emperor Xia turned to the eunuch beside him and handed him the memorial, saying, "Send this memorial to the Imperial Advisor for a look."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After the eunuch took away Lu Chen's memorial, a cold glint flashed in Emperor Xia's eyes.

He will wipe all these powerful families, sects, and the Universal Academy from the land of Great Xia.

Even the Dongfang family is the same. To him, the Dongfang family is just a pawn. Once he has used this pawn, he will discard it.

Although the Dongfang family is a commercial family and is very different from traditional aristocratic families, their attempt to extend their influence into the imperial court has crossed Emperor Xia's bottom line. Although Emperor Xia outwardly agreed, he would never allow the same thing to happen again in the imperial court.

The more the Eastern aristocratic family tried to extend their influence into the imperial court, the more Emperor Xia felt that their ambitions were too great, and that they were no different from those ancient aristocratic families.

How could the Xia Emperor possibly allow a family with such great ambitions, and one that significantly impacts the economy of the Great Xia Dynasty, to stay?

Of course, the Jiangnan aristocratic families have not yet been wiped out, and other aristocratic families are still in the court, so Emperor Xia will not touch the Dongfang aristocratic families for the time being. At least, Emperor Xia will not touch the Dongfang aristocratic families until those ancient aristocratic families in the court are eliminated.

……

at the same time.

Su Fengcheng.

Wang family.

Today, the heads of the prominent families in Jiangnan have all come to the Wang family. Since Lu Shuyun came to the South, he has been staying at the Wang family. The main reason why the heads of the major families in Jiangnan came to the Wang family is because Lu Shuyun is there.

In fact, some families felt uncomfortable about Lu Shuyun living in the Wang family. Although the Wang family was Lu Shuyun's mother's family, Lu Shuyun had more than one family supporting him. Why should Lu Shuyun live in the Wang family?

Lu Shuyun's stay at the Wang family's residence instantly elevated the Wang family's status to a new level. The Wang family already held a high position in the Jiangnan region, but with Lu Shuyun staying there every day, their status was further enhanced.

After Lu Shuyun raised an army in Jiangnan, most of the generals in those armies were also from the Wang family.

Wherever there are people, there is a world of intrigue. Even though the Jiangnan aristocratic families outwardly support Lu Shuyun, they are inwardly dissatisfied with his actions. However, it is a critical time to deal with the imperial court, so no one will speak out at this moment.

In the hall, Lu Shuyun sat facing the main entrance. He glanced at the heads of the various families sitting on either side and then said, "I am very pleased that all of you family heads are on my side at this crucial moment."

"The main reason I've summoned you all today is that I received some intelligence. I've heard that the Grandmaster of the Imperial Family has emerged from seclusion. This news was sent by Prime Minister Zhao."

Upon hearing this, the people in the hall immediately began to discuss it.

"Grandmaster? This is troublesome."

"I doubt any of the prominent families in Jiangnan has produced a Grandmaster, right?"

"That's not necessarily true. The Wang family values ​​martial arts so much, they might even have a grandmaster in their family."

"Everyone, there's no need to worry. Our Qin family has a Grandmaster. Even if a Grandmaster from the royal family were to appear on the battlefield, there's nothing to fear."

"Have you forgotten the incident decades ago when a Celestial Realm expert slaughtered a royal Grandmaster? The royal Grandmaster has been out of contact all these years because they are afraid that the Celestial Realm expert will reappear. Even if the royal family sends out a Grandmaster, the Grandmaster doesn't dare to act rashly. Who knows if that Celestial Realm expert will strike again?"

"Patriarch Zhao is right. No matter what, that Celestial Realm expert has a lifespan of several hundred years. It's impossible for him to die so quickly. If he hears that the royal family's Grandmaster has made a move, he may very well reappear."

……

The reason why the major families have become increasingly unscrupulous in recent years is that they know that the royal family's grandmasters generally do not act rashly, or more accurately, they dare not act rashly. They even suspect that the royal family's grandmasters were all killed by that Celestial Realm expert decades ago.

Although they didn't know why the Celestial Realm expert killed the royal family's Grandmaster decades ago, they could tell that the Celestial Realm expert didn't want the Great Xia royal family to become stronger.

As for Situ Ce, the Imperial Preceptor, the powerful families were even less afraid of him.

Situ Ce was not a member of the royal family. At most, he was loyal to the Great Xia royal family, but he was not loyal to any particular emperor.

For Situ Ce, as long as one is of the Lu family bloodline and as long as the Great Xia Dynasty has not been overthrown, it makes no difference which member of the Lu family becomes emperor. This can be seen from the fact that Situ Ce did not interfere in the succession struggle of the previous generation of princes.

In order to become emperor, Lu Xingqiu secretly eliminated many of his own brothers. Situ Ce was already the Grand Tutor during the reign of the previous Xia emperor. If he had wanted to, Lu Xingqiu might not have been able to become the Xia emperor.

Listening to the discussions among the heads of various families in the hall, Lu Shuyun then said, "Everyone, this is a critical moment for the survival of the Jiangnan families. If any of your families has a Grandmaster, don't keep it a secret any longer."

"My father has already sent a Grandmaster south. If we don't have a Grandmaster to keep us in check, with only a few hundred thousand soldiers, we probably won't be able to enter the capital, let alone cleanse the court of corrupt officials."

"I went south for your sake. If anyone is unwilling to give their all now and has other intentions, don't blame me for turning my back on them once I find out."

Hearing this, Dongfang Yi, who was sitting in the hall, remained unmoved.

The Dongfang family has grandmasters, but it is absolutely impossible for a grandmaster from the Dongfang family to emerge.

Whether they side with the Xia Emperor or the Northern King, there's no need for them to send their family's Grandmaster out in this war.

Just then, Lu Shuyun spoke up and asked, "Patriarch Chu, your family has always been the strongest among the Jiangnan families. I've heard that your family has even clashed with the Xuan Yue Palace. To dare to challenge the Xuan Yue Palace, your family must have a Grandmaster, right?"

Upon hearing Lu Shuyun's question, Chu Liang smiled and said, "Of course, Your Highness, please rest assured. Our Chu family has always been on your side and would never play any tricks behind your back. If Your Highness needs to use a Grandmaster, our Chu family will definitely send a Grandmaster to protect Your Highness."

Lu Shuyun was very satisfied with Chu Liang's answer.

When he was gathering these family heads, he had people secretly inquire about which families in Jiangnan might have Grandmasters. The Wang family definitely had one Grandmaster, the Qin family also had one Grandmaster, and now the Chu family had also said they would send a Grandmaster to help. In this way, they would have three Grandmasters on their side.

If the royal family's Grandmasters were to actually appear on the battlefield, with these three Grandmasters present, the imperial army might not necessarily gain any advantage.

Most importantly, they also have the Cloud Piercing Bow. If a Grandmaster uses the Cloud Piercing Bow, he has a chance to kill a Grandmaster from the royal family. Their advantage is enormous.

Thinking of this, Lu Shuyun's lips curled up slightly. He couldn't help but think: My good father, you will soon regret letting me leave the capital. You've been sitting in that position for so many years, it's time for me to sit there.

After discussing the Grandmaster's matter, Lu Shuyun began to arrange the work.

Although they have assembled an army of hundreds of thousands, many of these soldiers are private soldiers of families. These family soldiers have not been fully integrated and are basically fighting independently.

Lu Shuyun never considered reorganizing these soldiers, because if he did so, it would be tantamount to affecting the interests of the powerful families.

He needs the help of these powerful families to rebel, so he dares not touch their interests at this time.

Since we cannot reorganize and reorganize the private armies of these aristocratic families, we can only assign them tasks.

Subsequently, based on the current situation, Lu Shuyun arranged for the private armies of the aristocratic families to be stationed in some important counties in the north, in order to prevent the imperial army from attacking.

At this moment, Lu Shuyun turned to Dongfang Yi and said, "Patriarch Dongfang, your family has been in business for generations and owns many merchant ships. Your family's private soldiers are also mostly skilled in naval warfare. Therefore, the defense of the southeastern coast is entrusted to you to prevent the imperial army from attacking from the sea."

Dongfang Yi immediately said, "Your Highness, please rest assured, the Dongfang family will definitely guard the southeast coast and prevent any imperial soldiers from coming from the sea."

Upon hearing Dongfang Yi's words, Lu Shuyun was very satisfied. However, he suddenly remembered something and said, "By the way, I heard that Longyue ran away to the Northern Kingdom and has not returned since?"

Dongfang Yi sighed and said with a helpless expression, "Your Highness, it's all my fault for not teaching her well since she was little, which has led to her developing such a willful personality. I have sent people to try to bring her back many times, but she has escaped every time. She refuses to go home no matter what. Please forgive me, Your Highness. After the war is over, I will definitely send people to tie her up and bring her back to kowtow and apologize to Your Highness."

Lu Shuyun said, "It's alright. There's going to be war in the south soon, so it's better for her to stay in the north for the time being."

Lu Shuyun mentioned Dongfang Longyue mainly to remind Dongfang Yi that they were already married, so he wanted the Dongfang family to wholeheartedly help him.

night.

Dongfang Yi returned home.

As soon as he arrived home, he heard from his servants that the core members of the Dongfang family had come to the council hall to wait for him.

Dongfang Yi then proceeded to the council hall.

At this moment, an elderly man with white hair sat facing the main entrance. Seeing Dongfang Yi return, the old man asked, "Yi'er, what do you plan to do next?"

Upon hearing the old man's address, Dongfang Yi pursed his lips, feeling somewhat unhappy.

He's already so old, yet the old man still calls him "Yi'er".

However, these were all minor matters. Dongfang Yi then spoke up, "The Crown Prince intends for our Dongfang family to guard the southeast coast to prevent the imperial army from attacking from the sea. I plan to take advantage of the defense of the southeast coast to send some of my clansmen on merchant ships directly north to the Northern Kingdom."

Although the Dongfang family were Emperor Xia's inside agents in the Jiangnan region, the war was highly unpredictable, and Dongfang Yi did not want to get involved. He planned to flee directly to the Northern Kingdom and seek refuge with the Northern King, the chosen one.

As for the war between the imperial court and the powerful families of Jiangnan, they need not interfere.

The Dongfang family has already secretly helped the imperial court transport a considerable number of elite soldiers to the southeastern coastal area. If there are no major surprises, once the war begins, the rebels will be attacked from both sides, and Lu Shuyun and his men will most likely suffer a crushing defeat.

As for whether the Grandmasters of the Jiangnan aristocratic families can turn the tide, that's uncertain. Emperor Xia has been preparing for so long, he couldn't possibly be unaware of the existence of Grandmasters among the Jiangnan aristocratic families. Therefore, Emperor Xia probably already had a plan on how to deal with those Grandmasters.

After listening to Dongfang Yi's words, the old man Dongfang Qi stroked his gray beard and then said, "Now that the Chosen One has appeared, we really shouldn't continue to get involved in the war between the court and the aristocratic families."

The main reason they chose to cooperate with the Xia Emperor and stand on the side of the court was because they had their own mission.

Rebellion involves too many uncertainties; if they want to survive, they have to hedge their bets.

Now that the chosen one has already appeared in the North, why are they still hiding? They should just run away to the North. Why are they still serving the court and the powerful families of Jiangnan?

The Dongfang family is a business family, and the mission of a business family is to make money for the chosen one. They will continue to stay in Sufeng City and get involved in the war between the imperial court and the Jiangnan families. When will they be able to fulfill their family mission?

Seeing that the old man had said so, Dongfang Yi said, "Since you have said so, then it's decided. Let's make preparations so that once the war begins, we can take a merchant ship and sail to the Northern Kingdom."

This era was still the era of land power, and people did not pay much attention to the sea. Only the Eastern aristocratic families built some large merchant ships. If they were to travel to the Northern Kingdom by sea, the Jiangnan aristocratic families would most likely not be able to detect them, unless the Jiangnan aristocratic families kept people watching them.

However, the Imperial Guards of the North have already infiltrated the Jiangnan region. The Eastern family can basically detect any moves made by those aristocratic families in advance through the Imperial Guards, so there is no need to worry too much about being discovered by the aristocratic families of Jiangnan.

As for how to resupply the merchant ships en route north, that was no problem at all. The Dongfang family had already reached a cooperation agreement with the Xia Emperor, and their merchant ships were able to stop at the docks managed by the imperial court.

I've been having some health issues, so updates might be less frequent lately. Please forgive me.

(End of this chapter)