The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

Eunuch Sun knew that Chu Luren was an insider, and even the Emperor had asked him to cooperate with the matter, so he didn't hide anything and stepped forward to whisper, "It wouldn't be like this normally. Isn't it because we discussed the marriage alliance with Izumo Kingdom today?"

"I see... These Grand Secretaries are quite easygoing? I thought they would be unhappy to see a江湖人 (jianghu person, someone from the martial arts world) loitering around the palace gate." Although everyone pretended not to see him, Chu Luren felt that this was already "easygoing".

After all, the imperial court and the martial arts world have always looked down on each other...

Moreover, Chu Luren had just appeared with the princess, and now that she hadn't said anything, Chu Luren was quite surprised by the Song court's openness.

"Master Chu is too kind. The prime ministers... are all very nice people!" Eunuch Sun said with a smile, while looking at Chu Luren with a strange gaze.

Just then, Chu Luren saw Shangguan Haitang hurrying towards him from afar, seemingly having urgent business to attend to at the palace.

As a result, he accidentally bumped into someone's carriage. Chu Luren faintly heard a reprimanding voice coming from inside. Haitang also quickly apologized, her face showing anxiety, clearly wanting to get away as soon as possible—it seems that the lord of this "Number One Manor Under Heaven" doesn't have much status in the eyes of the ministers...

"That's strange. Why do the people from the Dragon Guard Manor seem to be less well-liked? Could it be that I have an extraordinary aura?" Chu Luren said, touching his face.

Seeing that he truly didn't understand, Eunuch Sun whispered a reminder: "The Grand Secretaries usually treat Marquis Shen with the same courtesy, but no one dares to easily offend Chief Supervisor Cao... wouldn't you agree, Lord Chu?"

After hearing this, Chu Luren thought about Cao Duzhu's temperament and realized that he and the old eunuch had nothing in common. He vaguely felt that Eunuch Sun's words had a hidden meaning.

But just then, Haitang finally broke free from the reprimanding official and ran over, saying, "Eunuch Sun, I... I have important business to discuss with my godfather. Is he still in the palace?"

“That’s right, Your Majesty, please have dinner with Lord Shenhou…” Eunuch Sun hurriedly said. Although he was a member of the Eastern Depot, he was also close to the Emperor and did not favor anyone. He also had no objection to the Dragon Guard Manor.

As for Shangguan Haitang, she already possessed a token that allowed her to enter and exit the Forbidden City in case of an emergency.

However, at that moment, another person who looked like a passerby rode up on horseback. The horse of the one who had just scolded Haitang was startled again and almost thrown off the carriage...

However, as soon as the person in the sedan chair spoke, the man on horseback was even more defiant: "What are you doing? I am the head of the Yin section of the Eastern Depot, working for Director Cao! Lord Tao, once you're off duty, hurry home and snuggle into your new wife's warm bed... I'm on official business, so don't delay!"

The driver of the car that was hit didn't dare utter a sound and wobbled back onto the road.

Chu Luren: ...

Well, the Dragon Guard Manor is no less powerful than the Eastern Depot, and Shangguan Haitang is not someone that a mere manager can compare to. However... a gentleman can be deceived by reason.

Now, no one can see through Shenhou's disguise as an honest gentleman, and no one has discovered Chu Taisui's hidden gentlemanly nature either.

Since that's the case, Chu Luren doesn't intend to remind them.

"Oh, is Master Shangguan here to report to the Emperor how audacious Duan Tianya is?" A junior manager from the Eastern Depot came over and sneered when he saw Shangguan Haitang.

Upon hearing this, Shangguan Haitang's face turned ashen...

Eunuch Sun glanced at the two of them. Although he didn't know what had happened, he still said in a way that wouldn't offend either of them, "Then please come in together! His Majesty and the Divine Marquis are together as well."

Chu Luren felt it wasn't really his business, so he said politely, "Then I won't go in! Don't see me off, don't see me off at all."

Grandpa Sun: ...

Nobody invited you in! Do you think you're at home?

……

The next morning, before Chu Luren had even had four hours of "sleep," he heard a series of "bang bang bang" knocks on the door.

"Chu Luren, Chu Luren, something's happened! Open the door quickly!" Princess Yunluo's voice came in.

After Chu Luren shed his Golden Immortal form and "woke up," he got out of bed, opened the door, and asked, "What's wrong? What's the Izumo Kingdom delegation up to?"

“It wasn’t Chuyun Kingdom, it was Duan Tianya… no, it shouldn’t be Duan Tianya either… it was… anyway, last night, Duan Tianya, the top-ranking secret agent of the Dragon Guard Manor, sneaked into the State Guesthouse, supposedly to assault Princess Lixiu, but he was caught by the Eastern Depot!” Princess Yunluo hurriedly said.

Upon hearing this, Chu Luren recalled that Shangguan Haitang and a head of the Eastern Depot had both been eager to enter the palace yesterday, presumably for the same reason.

"What did the Emperor and the Divine Marquis say?" Chu Luren pressed.

"Of course, my uncle pleaded Duan Tianya's case, but my brother is very angry and has already handed Duan Tianya over to the Eastern Depot for disposal." Although Yunluo respected her uncle, when comparing the Eastern Depot and the Dragon Guard Manor, she generally leaned towards the Dragon Guard Manor.

Chu Luren nodded, understanding that it would be difficult for the Dragon Guard Manor to explain this clearly, since Duan Tianya's nighttime visit to the state guesthouse was against the rules.

More importantly, he was captured by the Eastern Depot at the time. In the original work, Duan Tianya was drugged by the fake princess, and while he was confused and unable to move, the Eastern Depot insisted that Duan Tianya was too audacious and was stopped and captured by them before he could succeed!

Therefore, the Dragon Guardian Manor had no way of explaining it, and they couldn't even bring themselves to say that Duan Tianya had been drugged, otherwise, without evidence, it would be considered slander against the imperial concubine.

Of course, this is all just appearances. In the original work, at this seemingly critical moment, Shenhou directly ordered the Japanese to take action against the emperor, while "giving" credit to Duan Tianya, who had escaped from prison, and Guihai Yidao. This not only resolved the crisis, but also greatly enhanced the emperor's impression of the two secret agents and the Dragon Guard Manor!

This further highlights Cao Zhengchun's ugly face...

The only thing that Shenhou overlooked in the original work was Cheng Shifei's sudden appearance, which not only dragged the Fusang prince and Wuwan, who were supposed to escape, into the mess, but also took away most of the credit.

It's pretty much the same now. The Empress Dowager was rescued by Chu Luren, and Shenhou has already given most of his wedding dress to Chu Luren...

"What did the people of Izumo say? Did they take this opportunity to rebel?" Chu Luren asked.

"This morning, that Wuhuan hurriedly went to the palace to meet the emperor. Although he did not accuse us of failing to protect her, he told my brother that either we should bring Princess Lixiu into the palace immediately, or... they should return immediately, claiming that it was for the sake of Princess Lixiu's reputation. My brother and mother also felt sorry for Princess Chuyun and have already brought Princess Lixiu into Yuxiu Palace." Yunluo knew this clearly.

Then Yunluo asked worriedly, "Chu Luren, what if she harms my brother?"

"Then... we can only warn Cao Zhengchun to be careful." Chu Luren had no intention of getting involved.

Yunluo continued to look at him.

Chu Luren: ...

Chapter 271 Reminder

"This is your idea?" Chu Luren looked at his outfit with trembling eyebrows.

"Didn't you say yourself that you would never pretend to be a eunuch?" Yunluo said confidently.

Yunluo's personal maid, Xiaonu, was secretly laughing to herself—that's right, Chu Luren was wearing Xiaonu's clothes!

Xiao Nu was already quite tall. Although she wasn't as tall as Chu Lu Ren, she could still fit in after slightly shrinking her body.

"Xiao Nu, you stay in my palace today and don't go out. I'll take him to protect my brother!" Yun Luo said, patting Xiao Nu's shoulder.

"Oh? Princess, you're going too? Won't it be too dangerous? Hero Chu, why don't you go by yourself..." Xiao Nu then became worried.

"By myself? Can I go to Yuxiu Palace by myself? And then have the Eastern Depot arrest me to keep Duan Tianya company?" Chu Luren shook his head repeatedly.

"No, no, I'll be with you! I'll be the first to disagree with anyone who dares to call you a lecher!" Princess Yunluo immediately patted her chest and promised.

“But… do you think your brother is blind? Are we just going to accompany him to Yuxiu Palace like this?” Chu Luren pointed to his face.

Yunluo couldn't help but laugh: "Pfft... cough cough, of course not. You dressed like this just to make it easier for us to move around in the palace. If we need to enter Yuxiu Palace, we also have to hide. We won't let you appear openly in front of the Emperor."

Chu Luren rolled his eyes, but still agreed to the plan for the time being, with only one condition...

"I won't sleep in your palace tonight; it would be bad for my reputation if word got out in the martial arts world," Chu Luren emphasized.

"You wish..."

Chu Luren's thoughts are now similar to Cao Zhengchun's—the more unhappy the Marquis is, the happier he is!

After all, when the Divine Marquis holds great power, he will definitely not let Chu Luren go. Of course, he should take advantage of the fact that Chu Luren's power is not yet established and hinder him as much as possible.

Yunluo took Chu Luren to the Capital Affairs Hall to pay her respects to her imperial brother. At present, for important political affairs, the Grand Secretaries of the Inner Cabinet would consult the Empress Dowager, who had not yet completely returned power to the Emperor, so the Emperor was relatively free.

Of course, it was Yunlu who went in to pay her respects, while Chu Luren waited outside, lest her face startle the emperor.

Eunuch Sun clearly saw Chu Luren, but immediately looked away and invited Yunluo inside.

After a while, Cao Zhengchun also came to ask the emperor something. When he got to the door, he specifically looked at Chu Luren and said, "Oh ho, little palace maid, which room are you from?"

"Lord Cao, look carefully. Don't try to flirt with any of the palace maids you see. It's me." Chu Luren said, gesturing to his waist before sighing.

It's really not used to not having salted fish readily available.

Cao Zhengchun was furious—which eye of yours saw me adjusting the palace maid's breathing? Am I being sarcastic that you don't understand?

"I know it's you! Don't you think your behavior is inappropriate? The princess is young, and you're acting so naive? What crime is it to enter the Forbidden Palace without permission... Do you know Duan Tianya? I'm going to castrate him in a moment!" Cao Zhengchun threatened in a low voice.

"No need for Supervisor Cao to trouble himself. I entered with a warrant. It's just that my taste in clothing changed drastically after I came in." Chu Luren did indeed have a warrant, which was given to him by the Empress Dowager and the Emperor. It didn't have the same level of authority as a secret agent of the Imperial Palace, but it wasn't a big deal for him to enter and exit the palace government area during the day.

"Hehe, don't say I didn't remind you. This time, Princess Lixiu was frightened, and the Emperor is quite angry with those who criticized Izumo!" Cao Zhengchun was obviously referring to Chu Luren, who had previously targeted the Izumo delegation.

Upon hearing this, Chu Luren stepped closer and whispered, "Eunuch Cao, your Eastern Depot knows best that Duan Tianya has definitely fallen into a trap. It's good that you can take the opportunity to play dumb and strike at the Dragon Guard Manor, but don't actually turn yourself into a fool. Are you really so comfortable putting someone who can outwit Duan Tianya by the Emperor's side? Once he's brought into the palace, the Eastern Depot will be responsible for his safety!"

After Chu Luren finished speaking, he looked at Cao Zhengchun's puzzled expression and was also puzzled in his heart - what did this old eunuch mean?

After hesitating for a long time, Cao Zhengchun finally asked, "What does the Eastern Depot know best? Duan Tianya is blinded by lust, what does this Grand Eunuch know?"

"Ahem, Eunuch Cao, I'm not trying to be sarcastic that you can't understand the feeling of being 'blinded by lust'..." Chu Luren realized that Cao Zhengchun's expression really didn't seem like he was pretending to be stupid.

Before Cao Zhengchun could get angry, Chu Luren whispered, "That Duan Tianya, Eunuch Cao, you tortured him quite a bit, didn't you? He's even trained to become a 'Jonin' in Japan, so ordinary torture probably wouldn't have much effect. Do you think someone like that would be blinded by lust? If I were you, I would investigate thoroughly whether he was really drugged, and whether the people from the Eastern Depot who were present at the time... reported the truthfully!"

After hearing Chu Luren's words, Cao Zhengchun calmed down a bit, clearly having thought about many things.

Chu Luren finally understood why Cao Zhengchun was so useless in the original work—it's not surprising that he followed Princess Lixiu's scheme to frame Duan Tianya, but... later Cao Zhengchun actually believed that the Izumo Kingdom's delegation was innocent.

When reading the original work, viewers initially thought that Cao Zhengchun and the assassins were in cahoots!

However, in retrospect, although Cao Zhengchun was not a good person, as a eunuch, he had to rely closely on the imperial power. Moreover, the assassins who impersonated the Chuyun delegation were ordered by Shenhou and had nothing to do with Cao Zhengchun...

Thinking about it this way, wasn't Cao Zhengchun incredibly stupid?

Did he deceive himself in order to frame Duan Tianya?

In retrospect, it wasn't that Cao Zhengchun was too stupid, but that he was also misled. Indeed, that's how it was in the original work. When the agents of the Eastern Depot arrested Duan Tianya, Cao Zhengchun wasn't present. It was only later, in order to frame Duan Tianya, that Cao Zhengchun claimed that he had personally subdued him...

This raises a question—should Cao Zhengchun know that Duan Tianya was drugged, which means he knew that Princess Lixiu was plotting something?

However, judging from Cao Zhengchun's reaction, he probably didn't know the real situation on the scene, and because he was too angry with Shenhou, he didn't think too rationally.

Well, not too stupid, but just average stupid!

Finally, after Chu Luren's reminder, Cao Zhengchun vaguely sensed something was amiss. He glanced at the Imperial Household Department, then at Chu Luren, hesitated for a moment, and instead of immediately seeing the emperor, said, "This governor thanks Master Chu for his reminder." He then turned and left, clearly to investigate the matter further.

Cao Zhengchun will not clear Duan Tianya's name, but... even if he wants to frame someone, he has to do it when Duan Tianya is fully aware of the truth!

"Eh? Chief Supervisor Cao, what's going on... Should I inform you?" Eunuch Sun asked, puzzled as to why Cao Zhengchun was leaving.

"No need. There are still some things that haven't been investigated. I will report to His Majesty later." Cao Zhengchun walked away in a hurry.

After a while, Yunluo also came out, still looking somewhat angry.

"Hmph! My brother must be attracted to Princess Lixiu's beauty. He actually told me not to speak ill of her!"

Clearly, Duan Tianya's failure had cleared Princess Chuyun of suspicion in the emperor's mind...

Chapter 272 The Wardrobe Should Be Bigger

"What kind of behavior is this? What kind of behavior is this? Have they officially gotten married? Has the Empress Dowager officially conferred titles on them? How dare they come to Yuxiu Palace in the middle of the night... Our nation of etiquette! They've disgraced us!" Yunlu slapped the thigh of the Chu Luren next to her.

At this moment, Yunluo and Chuluren were hiding on the outer wall of Yuxiu Palace. They watched as the emperor did not return to his own palace in the middle of the night, but instead moved to Yuxiu Palace. Yunluo then began to righteously and sternly denounce him.