The Long Journey to Immortality

With a minimum guarantee, Wen Er Ya, who always strives for the best, still hopes to do her best within five days to fulfill her father's dying wish and hand over this beautiful land to a trustworthy monarch.

Taking a deep breath and gathering her thoughts, Wen Erya asked the Empress a series of other questions. Together with Han Lu, they disturbed the Empress for a full half hour late at night before leaving.

Back at Wen Erya's home in the capital, the two Golden Core cultivators, who had been busy all day, were still full of energy and high spirits.

Wen Erya and Han Lu gathered together and exchanged their views on the matter.

Although this was her own private matter, and a very important one at that, Wen Erya was still willing to ask Han Lu for help, hoping that her junior sister could act as an outsider in this matter, help her sort things out, point out mistakes, and make the most correct choice possible.

Sitting face to face, Wen Erya couldn't wait to ask a question, hoping that Han Lu would say a few more words.

Logically speaking, given Han Lu's personality, she wouldn't pry into other people's private affairs.

But Wen Er Ya was not just anyone; she was her best friend, her closest confidante.

As long as Wen Erya speaks, she will have no scruples and give it her all.

In fact, while Wen Erya was talking to the Empress, Han Lu was listening attentively and thinking hard, using some of the "methodologies" she had learned from Qiu Peng to analyze the problem.

In less than half an hour, through the Empress's series of suggestions, Han Lu was certain that she had grasped the key to the problem and was able to provide Wen Erya with some assistance at this time.

"I've summarized a few points, senior sister, listen to them and see if they make sense."

Han Lu said, "First of all, no matter what level of cultivation, character, or ability the person you choose is, they must be in their prime and have at least forty or fifty years of lifespan. They cannot be chosen to ascend the throne and then exhaust their lifespan in just a few years. You will need to make another decision."

"This is not conducive to the political stability of the Southern Dynasty, and may even lead some ignorant people to have bad associations, causing social unrest."

Upon hearing this, Wen Erya nodded and said, "In that case, eldest brother and second sister have no chance."

“They are all in their eighties or nineties, and the day when their lifespan ends is not far away.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than Wen Erya recalled the Empress's earlier recommendation and said, "Junior Sister, it seems that Guan Ling's recommendation does have some merit."

Han Lu scoffed dismissively and said, "Madam Guan's recommendation may make sense, but her ulterior motives are quite obvious. You can't believe her completely."

Wen Erya gave a soft "hmm" and pressed on, "Anything else?"

“Then there’s appearance,” Han Lu said, then quickly added, “I mean when two candidates are similar in character, morality, and ability, we need to pay attention to their age and appearance, not just their faces.”

Han Lu's overreaction made Wen Erya laugh out loud. "I understand, I understand, junior sister, don't be nervous, I get it."

Most people don't want to be associated with the term "judging by appearance," not even a Golden Core cultivator like Han Lu.

"I don't expect him to be handsome, with striking features or a face that could eclipse the moon and shame the flowers, but at least he should have regular features and be able to represent the country at various occasions so that he won't be secretly pointed at and gossiped about by others."

"Of course, physical disabilities that cannot be cured by magic or elixirs are also included."

That made sense, so Wen Erya wrote it down.

Is there a third point?

Han Lu said, "Of course."

Han Lu sat up straight and continued, "Senior sister, you must also remember that the Southern Dynasty is currently ruled by the Wen family. No matter who is chosen as the successor, we need to pay attention to whether his spouse is a virtuous person."

“A spouse with questionable character, regardless of gender, will bring chaos to the government.”

"After advancing to the Golden Core Realm, you will occasionally go into seclusion for half a year or a year."

"If someone seizes the opportunity to usurp the throne at that time, by the time you emerge from the pass, it will be too late, and no matter what you do, you will not be able to achieve a good outcome."

Han Lu's words caused the smile that was originally on Wen Erya's face to fade considerably.

Such events as plotting to usurp the throne will inevitably result in death and injury. The dead cannot be brought back to life. Indeed, whether she returns and manages to turn the tide or is powerless to do so, it is inevitable that some members of the Wen family will die in the turmoil.

“Junior sister is right. After all, I certainly won’t be staying in the palace for long.”

"It is indeed important to pay attention to the situation of the people around the heir."

"After all, people change, and they are influenced by the people around them and their spouses."

Wen Erya also noted this down.

"Finally..." Han Lu drawled, "besides character, morality, and ability, the most important thing is diligence..."

Using "diligent" to describe a monarch is somewhat inappropriate, so Han Lu hesitated for a moment and changed it to "diligent in governance".

Diligence can make up for lack of talent. Even the most brilliant monarch cannot govern such a large territory as the Southern Dynasty well with the help of civil officials if he does not do practical work.

After explaining the selection criteria, Han Lu patted Wen Erya on the shoulder and comforted her, "Senior sister, there's no need to be too anxious. Your father has many children, and there must be one among them who is the most suitable candidate."

"All you need to do is find it."

"This is much easier than having few options and having to choose the best among the worst."

Amused by Han Lu's somewhat strange analogy, Wen Erya nodded slightly and said, "Junior Sister is right."

"Then tomorrow morning, I will exercise the right my father has given me to examine my brothers, sisters, nephews and nieces, and select a few suitable ones from among them."

"I'll ask my senior sister for advice then. She can't refuse."

"But junior sister, you shouldn't be idle these next few days."

"I'll investigate openly, you'll investigate covertly."

"With cooperation and collaboration, we will definitely be able to get this done."

Han Lu didn't mince words and readily took on the responsibility, saying, "My senior sister's affairs are my affairs."

Only with mutual trust could Wen Erya delegate the decision-making power of such an important matter to Han Lu without any pressure.

Only with mutual trust would Han Lu willingly get involved in this troublesome matter, without worrying that the outcome would affect her relationship with Wen Erya.

The next day, Wen Erya announced the news of her father's death and, using the authority her father had given her, made arrangements for the next few days.

The Queen governs the country together with the cabinet, and she publicly states that she will "select" the next monarch from among her many siblings, nephews, and nieces.

Han Lu, on the other hand, took a covert approach, going deep into the community and gathering information from unofficial sources to comprehensively examine the specific circumstances of more than a dozen potential candidates.

Chapter 772 A Two-Pronged Approach

The news of the death, which had been kept secret for almost three days, finally broke out. As expected, the royal family members and officials in the capital, who were unaware of the matter at the time, were in an uproar, and the entire city was instantly shrouded in an atmosphere of grief.

Some members of the royal family, who considered themselves worthy of succession, outwardly wore expressions of sorrow, but inwardly they were secretly delighted, almost bursting into laughter.

Many people have begun to try various means to actively approach Wen Erya and show themselves off, or simply use back channels and give gifts, hoping to gain Wen Erya's favor and the opportunity to sit in that position above millions of people.

Most officials were simply shocked.

After all, whoever sits in that position has little impact on civil officials, both high and low.

Everyone needs to continue to rely on them to govern the world in this new era.

Of course, there are also those who are frustrated or speculators who start to work secretly, hoping to guess the new king, place their bets in advance, and win a bright future.

Everyone has their own ideas and covets power. Even the Grand Secretary in the cabinet may have a close relationship with a prince or princess. If Wen Erya wants to find out who she should choose, she will definitely encounter a lot of brothers and sisters wearing masks and a lot of biased recommenders, just like the advice she received from the Empress the day before.

However, while overt plots have their advantages and disadvantages, covert plots also have their own.

The disadvantage of using overt surveillance cameras is that it can be visually and aurally disruptive, while the advantage is that it allows for better access to information.

The information the Empress shared last night was not something Han Lu could have obtained from ordinary people.

Many secrets and the actions of princes and princesses in officialdom are known only to these civil officials with their different stances.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the common people gathering intelligence through clandestine channels?

The benefits naturally come from the opinions of many bystanders, whose opinions are not based on any particular stance and can mostly serve as a reference.

However, information from the public is not necessarily accurate, and may even be misleading due to limited access to information, providing intelligence that is completely contrary to the facts.

Printing technology had long been popular in the Central Plains, and families that were not worried about food and drink would subscribe to a newspaper to enrich their spiritual lives.

These ordinary people's information about the royal family naturally came from newspapers.

A newspaper editor's pen can influence the thoughts of the people and their evaluation of a particular prince or princess.

Of course, ordinary people may hear some rumors that are hidden by the authorities.

However, Han Lu needs to carefully analyze the truth of these claims before deciding whether to adopt them, so as not to remove a wise ruler from the list simply because of the phrase "unfounded accusation".

Both light and dark have their advantages and disadvantages. That's why Wen Erya thought of splitting up with Han Lu into light and dark, working together, and complementing each other's strengths to find a satisfactory solution.

On the first day, in addition to gathering the cabinet ministers to seek their opinions, Wen Erya also sent out countless paper swords to the candidates who were on the so-called list.

She asked the candidates for princes and princesses to prepare themselves for her interview.

The tricks Han Lu learned from Qiu Peng were adopted by Wen Erya and used at this moment.

Because they had already learned of the old emperor's death through the empress, the cabinet ministers had foreseen Wen Er Ya's series of actions, and many of them had even thought of two or three names in advance.

Therefore, when Wen Er Ya convened his cabinet ministers to discuss the future monarch, most of them came prepared, and the candidates, reasons, and intelligence they provided satisfied Wen Er Ya.

However, the cabinet ministers are different from the empress.

Because the Empress had a direct blood relationship with the candidates, Han Lu and Wen Erya could easily tell that the Empress was speaking well of her daughter and offspring.

Cabinet ministers may be completely neutral and devoted to the country, or they may be completely the mouthpiece of a prince or princess in the cabinet.

Furthermore, the cabinet ministers were far better able to conceal their thoughts than the empress.

Without using his cultivator abilities, Wen Erya had no way of knowing whether the opinions put forward by the cabinet ministers were sincere or impartial.

Fortunately, it was a gathering to brainstorm and discuss ideas. If a cabinet minister made a mistake in his statement, someone would naturally point it out, or even debate it with Wen Erya.

These debates, though mostly fruitless, ended with each side backing down.

But ultimately, it could provide Wen Erya with some reference, allowing her to figure out which information was credible and which candidates were indeed capable and good candidates to be heirs.

After three hours, the cabinet ministers were exhausted, but Wen Erya had made great progress, narrowing down the original list of twenty people to fifteen and identifying seven of them as key candidates for further investigation.

Wen Erya is doing relatively well, and Han Lu is doing well too.

Han Lu was well aware of the drawbacks and disadvantages of conducting undercover investigations in the countryside, so from the very beginning, she tried every means to avoid them.

Thanks to Wen Er Ya's public announcement, the public discussion about the future monarch was incredibly intense. In almost every teahouse, ordinary people were discussing the matter, expressing their own opinions as if they held Wen Er Ya's power and could dictate the fate of the kingdom and decide who would ultimately inherit the throne.

However, Han Lu did not choose to order a cup of tea. Instead, she patiently listened to the opinions of ordinary people, using this as the target of her undercover investigation.

As always, she chose to pave the way with money, using intelligence brokers in the capital to gather information about the candidates on the list.

It must be said that businessmen are the most shrewd, especially those with good connections and intelligence.

After the news of the old emperor's death was announced, information about these princes and princesses suddenly became a hot topic, and the price for inquiring about or buying such information rose by nearly 50%.

Fortunately, Han Lu's family is wealthy and powerful; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to completely pave the way with money.