Aunt, please don't chase me. I don't want to be the emperor.

Faced with Su Luoxue's question, Kong Mingliang actually pushed the problem back.

Kong Mingliang then added, "I'm asking what's in your heart, Xue'er, what you really think."

Su Luoxue was startled again after hearing this, but after thinking for a while, she opened her mouth and said, "I..."

"slow."

Before Su Luoxue could finish, Kong Mingliang reached out and interrupted her. He then took out a pen and paper from his sleeve and said to Su Luoxue with a smile, "Let's write on paper and see if what we think is the same."

Su Luoxue didn't say much, nodded and took the paper and pen.

They both wrote something and then showed the page to each other simultaneously.

The contents on the paper are exactly the same, and there are only two words: follow your heart

"Hahaha." Kong Mingliang laughed happily, but then his tone was filled with regret: "If I hadn't already accepted Wei'er as my apprentice, I would have wanted to take you in before Junior Brother did."

Kong Mingliang's master Zhang Ziliang set the rule that Wen Tianlu would be passed down to only one person. Kong Mingliang had already accepted Jiang Wei, the national god, as his apprentice, so he could not accept Su Luoxue.

"Uncle Master, why did you make such a choice?"

Su Luoxue felt confused, because when they wrote "follow your heart", it meant that they wanted Ji Xian to follow their own wishes and let him go out to explore the world for the time being.

Since my uncle asked me what I really thought, I wrote down what I thought.

Su Luoxue couldn't bear to see Ji Xian suffer any longer, so since Kong Mingliang asked her the truth, she told him the truth. But Su Luoxue didn't understand why her uncle's thoughts were the same as hers. Could it be that her uncle, as the Grand Tutor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, could tolerate the Emperor not returning to the court and wandering around outside every day?

Although this uncle-master was approachable, gentle, and friendly, he probably had more than a hundred ideas in his mind. No one in the Great Zhou could guess how many ideas and thoughts he had.

Su Luoxue wrote down what was in her heart, and Kong Mingliang also told her the truth, but first he talked about a past event: "Xue'er, do you know why the last emperor of the Shu Dynasty, Gongdou, was regarded as a piece of mud in the eyes of the world?"

Liu Gongdou, the last emperor of the Shu Dynasty, was truly mediocre and incompetent. The phrase "mud cannot be helped up a wall" was originally used to describe him, and was later used by people in later generations.

The one who educated Liu Gongdou was none other than the then Prime Minister and Imperial Preceptor of the Shu Dynasty, Kong Mingliang.

Kong Mingliang's question reminded Su Luoxue of this incident, and she was also puzzled. With her uncle's ability, how could he have raised such an emperor? If Liu Gongdou had been more capable, why would Shu be defeated by Yi State, leading to the final demise of the Shu Dynasty?

Kong Mingliang smiled and shook his head, his tone reminiscing: "My master once taught us that if we follow our hearts, we will live freely. If we do not follow our hearts, we will hurt others and ourselves."

"Back when I was teaching His Majesty Gongdou, I discovered his true nature and also saw his innate talent. In this situation, even if I force him to study politics and cultivate, it won't necessarily improve the Shu Kingdom's political situation. On the contrary, it might make him hate this country and the people around him, causing unrest in the court, which would be detrimental to the current situation."

"So, in the end, my choice was to let him follow his heart and do everything according to his will. All I could do at that time was to take care of this country for the late emperor and do my best until the very end."

"Although the Great Shu finally perished, I still don't think I was wrong. The demise of the Great Shu was truly God's will..."

Kong Mingliang sighed and shook his head, as if he had finished speaking.

And Su Luoxue understood.

It's useless to force someone to do something they don't like, because forcing others to do things is the most inefficient and will only harm themselves and others in the end. That's why Kong Mingliang chooses to do what he wants, not only to make himself happy but also to make others happy. Only in this way can he achieve twice the result with half the effort and live a comfortable life.

This is how Kong Mingliang treated Liu Gongdou, and also how he treated Ji Xian.

Since Ji Xian wanted to leave the government behind and wander the Jianghu, then let him go. The Great Zhou had ministers like them, as well as the Seven Great Generals and Eighteen Protector Gods, even the Emperor and Empress Dowager, and the support of foreign vassal states.

With them around, the Great Zhou will not perish.

To put it bluntly, even if the crisis really came, Ji Xian would not really abandon the country. Kong Mingliang understood Ji Xian, and he had his own bottom line in his heart, knowing the importance and the overall situation.

Kong Mingliang may have given up hope in defeating Liu Gongdou at that time, but to some extent, his efforts were the best he could do.

But Kong Mingliang has confidence in Ji Xian.

This is what Kong Mingliang wanted to convey to Su Luoxue.

Su Luoxue thought about these, understood these, and also agreed with these.

"Xue'er, perhaps His Majesty should take a good rest. Forcing someone to do something is the most inefficient. Let His Majesty live freely. At least for the time being, that should be the case."

At this time, Kong Mingliang reached out his hand again and patted Su Luoxue's shoulder: "Master also hopes that you can live freely, Xue'er. Live according to your wishes. Master supports you."

Su Luoxue nodded vigorously: "Thank you, uncle."

Although Su Luoxue was taught by Pang Yuanchu, she is more like her father Yin Longshuai in personality, and she gets along better with her uncle Kong Mingliang.

"But..." Kong Mingliang then added, "Let Your Majesty live as he pleases. This is a huge matter and I can't make the final decision alone. Therefore, I will have to send a message to the others later and discuss it with them before making a final decision."

"Until the final decision is made, Xue'er, you should stay with His Majesty."

The so-called other people by Kong Mingliang are none other than the other seven marshals of the Great Zhou, as well as military advisor Pang Yuanchu, national advisor Zhang Mengxuan, prime minister Di Qingtian, several princes of the Great Zhou and national gods, and perhaps even the retired emperor and empress dowager!

Although Kong Mingliang was the Grand Tutor of the Great Zhou Dynasty and Commander of the Sky Fox, he could not act beyond his authority and could only discuss it with them first.

But before that, Kong Mingliang told Su Luoxue to live her life to her heart's content. In other words, he told her to stop caring about the Great Zhou Dynasty and do whatever she wanted. He believed that no matter what choice Su Luoxue made, she would not let everyone down.

Because she is Su Luoxue, this reason is enough!

"Yes." Su Luoxue nodded vigorously: "Thank you again, Uncle Master."

"Go."

Then, Su Luoxue bowed to Kong Mingliang and turned to leave the underground palace, preparing to go find Ji Xian alone.

That figure looked so happy and so determined.

Looking at Su Luoxue's quickly departing figure, Kong Mingliang seemed to be lost in thought. He tilted his head slightly and said, "Master, I think he hasn't decided not to take in an adopted daughter. I'll discuss this with Silver Dragon Marshal later."

He and Su Luoxue got along very well, and although he couldn't accept her as his apprentice, Kong Mingliang had the idea of ​​taking her in as his adopted daughter. Of course, this matter still needed to be discussed with her father, Yin Longshuai.

Of course, the most important thing is to go back to Chang'an first, call all the important officials in the court together, and discuss the matter about Ji Xian.

2.51 The Emperor's ministers have learned to form cliques

Ji Xian escaped during the rainy night and headed to Shenbing Valley in the northwest of Yangzhou.

Although Su Luoxue chased after him, she had no specific direction and could only act according to her intuition. However, her direction was also the Divine Weapon Valley. After all, if Ji Xian wanted to escape, she would not be able to do so without the treasure that could conceal the secrets of heaven.

As for Kong Mingliang, after arranging the investigation and garrisoning in Yaowang Valley, he immediately returned to the capital, Chang'an. At the same time, he issued the Heavenly Fox Order, summoning several Great Zhou guardian gods to the capital to discuss important matters.

Before Emperor Xingzong abdicated, he established these two rules.

In the event of an extremely urgent or difficult matter, the decision would be made by Grand Tutor Kong Mingliang, Military Advisor Pang Yuanchu, Prime Minister Di Qingtian, and the Great Zhou Silver Dragon Commander. Another rule was that if the situation was complex but not urgent, but still required a quick resolution, the decision would be made by at least ten Great Zhou Yang Gods.

Ji Xian's current situation meets the second requirement. Kong Mingliang has no way to make the decision on his own, so he can only order the Yang Gods of the Great Zhou Dynasty who are closest to Chang'an to return to Chang'an immediately to discuss important matters.

So, a few days later...

In the imperial palace of Chang'an City, in the Golden Throne Hall, a total of ten Great Zhou Yang Gods gathered.

"What did you say!"

Cheng Banshan, the Prince of Lu and one of the Eighteen Protector Gods of the Great Zhou Dynasty, cried out in disbelief, pointing at Kong Mingliang in front of him and saying, "Marshal Kong, tell me again what you mean. You want His Majesty to go and roam the Jianghu?"

King Cheng Banshan of Lu was one of the founding heroes of the Great Zhou Dynasty, one of the eighteen national gods, and a prominent figure in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Facing Cheng Banshan's questioning, Kong Mingliang smiled and nodded, his tone calm as if he was talking about a trivial matter: "Don't worry, Prince Lu, I have just said it very clearly, you did not hear it wrongly."

"Are you fucking crazy?"

Cheng Banshan cursed out in a very uncultured manner. He was born into a bandit family and had always been free-spirited like this. "You let that stinky boy Ji Xian not be the emperor, and hang out outside all day long. What's the point? There's no need for a tutor like you. No wonder your Great Shu was destroyed back then."

Cheng Banshan looked at the others around him and said, "You guys should all speak up. It's no use for me to curse alone. Let's curse this old man Kong to death together!"

During the Three Kingdoms period at the end of the Shu Dynasty, Kong Mingliang was often insulted by his enemies as a common man or a villager. Kong Mingliang himself never expected that after more than a thousand years, he would still be insulted like that. He almost wanted to laugh.

The other people around were the national teacher Zhang Mengxuan, the white horse commander Qin Yuanfang, the prime minister Di Qingtian, the director of the Imperial Hospital Sun Miaoying, the deputy commander of the Sky Fox Guard Lu Xunyan, the third commander of the Sky Fox Guard Zhao Yunlong, the national protector Po Zhenzi, and the national protector Jiang Wei.

These people are all the Eighteen Guardian Gods of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and some are even Yangshen masters at the level of the Seven Marshals of the Great Zhou Dynasty!

Except for Zhang Mengxuan, Di Qingtian and Sun Miaoying who were originally staying in Chang'an, the others received messages from Kong Mingliang in the past few days and hurried back.

All the others ignored Cheng Banshan and looked thoughtful.

Cheng Banshan looked left and right, and found that no one was paying attention to him. He felt very embarrassed: "You are all mute. What are you thinking about when you speak?"

After Cheng Banshan said this, someone started talking.

The person who was speaking was wearing a white Taoist robe and had white hair tied in a ponytail. He looked to be around twenty years old, with a handsome and delicate appearance. His every move was both majestic and amiable.

This person is Kong Mingliang's junior brother, Su Luoxue's second uncle, a top master who is not inferior to the Seven Marshals of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and the national teacher Zhang Mengxuan.

"Prince Lu, be quiet." Zhang Mengxuan glanced at Cheng Banshan, then looked at Kong Mingliang: "Big Brother, does Xue'er know about your decision?"

Zhang Mengxuan is also Su Luoxue's uncle, so he is naturally very concerned about Su Luoxue's decision.

Kong Mingliang nodded seriously: "She knows, I told her."

"What did she say?"

"She acknowledged and accepted my statement. She's probably going to see His Majesty now."

Hearing Kong Mingliang say this, Cheng Banshan couldn't sit still anymore: "What the hell, Su girl is also going to run away with us, isn't this a mess, everyone is going crazy!"

However, Kong Mingliang and Zhang Mengxuan ignored him and talked to each other.

Zhang Mengxuan asked: "In other words, this was also Xue'er's decision, right?"

Kong Mingliang replied: "Yes."

Zhang Mengxuan was pensive: "Since that's the case... then I choose to accept it."

"Huh?" Cheng Banshan suspected he had misheard and stepped forward to yell at Zhang Mengxuan, "Master Zhang, are you okay? Do you really think that old man Kong's idea will work?"

"Not bad." Zhang Mengxuan's reaction was quite calm. He smiled and shrugged, then replied to Cheng Banshan slowly: "Xue'er grew up under my care. She is my niece. I trust her choice."

Su Luoxue is Pang Yuanchu's proud disciple. Whether it is her cultivation talent or her interpersonal skills, there is almost no flaw to be found in her.

She is not only Pang Yuanchu's pride, but also the pride of their Wen Tian lineage.

To some extent, compared to their senior brother Kong Mingliang, whom they had known for over a thousand years, everyone was more willing to trust Su Luoxue's choice. Since this was Xue'er's choice, it couldn't be wrong.

Zhang Mengxuan was so convinced that he chose to believe Su Luoxue without hesitation.

Cheng Banshan's brow trembled, the corners of his mouth twitched, and he looked at the others around him in surprise. He didn't expect that the opinions of the others around him were surprisingly consistent.

Prime Minister Di Qingtian said, "Grandmother Xue'er will not let us down."

Jiang Wei, the Protector of the Nation, said, "Luoxue is also my junior sister from the same sect. I trust her."

"Are you two crazy?" Cheng Banshan pointed at Kong Mingliang and said to them, "Didn't you hear that Su was completely persuaded by that old bastard Kong!"

"Xue'er isn't someone who can be easily persuaded. If she can be persuaded, it means she also thinks it's right."

Zhang Mengxuan answered Cheng Banshan in this way, and his speed of answering was almost so fast that he didn't even think about it.

Zhang Mengxuan and Di Qingtian were the two people who had stayed in Chang'an the longest. They had watched Ji Xian and Su Luoxue grow up, so they naturally trusted these two children, especially Su Luoxue.

If Su Luoxue was persuaded, it means that Su Luoxue also thinks that what Kong Mingliang said is right!

Since Su Luoxue thinks it is right and Kong Mingliang also thinks it is right, then it cannot be wrong!

Baima General Qin Yuanfang didn't say anything, but he nodded after Zhang Mengxuan and Di Qingtian finished speaking, expressing his agreement and support.

When Cheng Banshan saw this, he almost pointed at these people's noses and cursed their ancestors.

Good man, you Wen Tian lineage are all forming gangs, right? If Zhang Ziliang saw his disciples and grandchildren being so united, he would probably laugh himself to death!

Of course, Cheng Banshan didn't dare to actually curse their ancestor Zhang Ziliang. If he dared to curse, these guys from the Wentian lineage would definitely beat him to the point where he couldn't take care of himself.

Cheng Banshan then looked at the other two, Lu Xunyan, the deputy commander of the Sky Fox Guard, and Zhao Yunlong, the third commander of the Sky Fox Guard. But after just one glance at Cheng Banshan, he looked away, not even wanting to speak.

Do you still need to speak?

These two people are both Sky Fox Guards and are Kong Mingliang's subordinates, so naturally they are in the same team with him.

Finally, his gaze turned to the other two, namely the director of the Imperial Hospital, Sun Miaoying, and the national protector, Pozhenzi.

Sun Miaoying smiled bitterly and shook his head.

Pozhenzi smiled bitterly and shrugged, saying to Cheng Banshan, "Prince Lu, I understand your feelings and I support you, but we are in a meeting and voting now. Is there any point in us standing on your side?"

Yes, it's completely meaningless.

The ten Yang Gods' meeting had unknowingly turned into a vote. Seven Yang Gods now stood on Kong Mingliang's side, while Cheng Banshan only had three, even with Sun Miaoying and Po Zhenzi on his side.

And look at the seven people on the opposite side. Two of them are from the Seven Generals of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and the rest are also figures of the level of the Imperial Master and Prime Minister. In comparison, what can Cheng Banshan use to compete with them?

At this moment, Cheng Banshan suddenly realized something.

Damn it, this meeting was a trap from the start. More than half of the people attending the meeting were from Wen Tian's lineage, and Cheng Banshan had only called them over to make up the total to make up ten people.

"I'm going to complain to General Silver Dragon and the Emperor!"

Cheng Banshan licked Zhang's old face and acted like a child who was going to complain to his parents.

"It's up to you. Remember to ask Silver Dragon Marshal if he's willing to take Xue'er in as his adopted daughter."