I play the role of Jiajing in Zongwu: What crime have I committed?

It was as if a blazing sun exploded within his dantian, and the surging true energy, like a torrent bursting its banks, instantly broke through his blocked meridians.

The true essence, which was originally like a trickle, has now transformed into a monstrous wave, surging and roaring through the eight extraordinary meridians.

"Ugh!"

Chen Chun grunted, and the bottleneck between the fifth and sixth ranks was easily torn apart like thin paper.

The drug's potent effects continued to rise.

Click!

The sound of a second shackle breaking came from inside the body.

Chen Chun's eyes were bloodshot, and hot white breath spewed from his seven orifices, making his eunuch robes flutter loudly.

Yan Song, who was standing to the side, stared wide-eyed and took a few steps back in shock.

Could this mean he has broken through two realms in succession?

Zhu Houcong nodded, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.

As the surging true energy within the hall gradually subsided, the white mist rising from Chen Chun's body slowly dissipated.

He slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint seemingly emanating from his pupils.

Zhu Houcong stood with his hands behind his back, his dragon robe swaying slightly in the residual fluctuations of true energy.

"how?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Chun immediately knelt down, pressing his forehead against the gold brick.

"Reporting to Master, this servant has broken through to the seventh rank!"

His voice trembled slightly with excitement, but it was several times deeper than before.

"Your Excellency's kindness in saving me is something I could never repay, even with my life!"

Zhu Houcong nodded in satisfaction: "Seventh rank...not bad."

He paused, then continued, "Having received such an immense opportunity, one should perform one's duties diligently."

"I intend to establish a new Imperial Horse Stable in the inner court to raise the finest horses of the realm for me."

"From this day forward, you shall be the Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Horse Stables."

Raising horses?

Why raise horses?

Chen Chun was stunned for a moment, and a second later, he came to his senses and quickly slammed his forehead heavily against the gold brick.

"This servant kowtows in gratitude to Your Majesty for Your boundless grace. I am willing to sacrifice my life, even unto death!"

"Yes, since it's about raising horses, you naturally need skilled grooms."

“Select five thousand men from the Xishan Camp soldiers who returned from the Prince of Jing’s rotation to serve as grooms and raise horses for me. They will be called the Tengxiang Four Guards.”

Five thousand people?

Is this still the government office that raises horses?

Who would be so kind as to need five thousand grooms to raise horses?

Chen Chun was instantly dumbfounded, her mind filled with question marks.

Zhu Houcong saw Chen Chun's expression but didn't explain. Instead, he continued speaking to himself.

"Raising horses is extremely expensive."

"Alright then, you will be temporarily in charge of managing the income and expenditure of the imperial treasury. But remember, every expense must be recorded, as I may check it at any time."

Upon hearing this, Chen Chun was startled, and his mind suddenly cleared.

Five thousand elite troops, and control over the imperial treasury.

They have both manpower and money; this is clearly a way to train his troops!

She quickly composed herself and respectfully replied, "This servant understands. This servant will certainly raise the finest horses for my master."

"Alright, stop trying to curry favor with me. What do you intend to do?"

Zhu Houcong waved his hand, and seeing that Chen Chun already understood his intention, he continued to ask.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the most important aspect of horse breeding is selecting the right people. We must choose strong, healthy young men between twenty and thirty years old, as they are capable of taming wild horses."

He glanced at Zhu Houcong's expression and continued.

"Daily riding practice is also necessary so that the horse and the coachman can be in sync and the coachman won't get hurt."

"Go on."

A hint of approval flashed in Zhu Houcong's eyes.

"Furthermore, to prevent petty thieves from coveting the imperial horses, I believe the grooms should be equipped with swords and bows and arrows, in case of any unforeseen circumstances."

"You're quite meticulous; you even thought of theft. In that case, shouldn't we also arrange for some armor for self-defense?"

"My master is wise."

Yan Song, standing to the side, broke out in a cold sweat, his whisk trembling slightly.

This is hardly what you call raising horses.

It's clearly a training exercise.

Five thousand elite troops equipped with armor and weapons—the Imperial Horse Administration is clearly trying to build a personal army that only obeys His Majesty's orders.

On the surface, it's an organization that raises horses, but when the two of them talk like this, it suddenly takes on two major functions: military and financial.

The Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs was in charge of issuing imperial edicts, while the Directorate of Imperial Horse Administration held military power.

The heavy reliance on eunuchs is unprecedented in history!

At the same time, he also understood that Cao Zhichun and Chen Chun were of equal or higher status than himself.

Zhu Houcong smiled meaningfully.

"Remember, what I need is a steed that can travel a thousand miles a day, understand?"

"This servant understands!"

Chen Chun kowtowed deeply, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

"I will certainly live up to my master's trust!"

[Establish the Imperial Horse Administration, play the role of Emperor Jiajing +1, reward: Vajra Elixir]

Chapter 15 Nothing Can Resist the Entangling Love Threads in Consort Yue's Hands

[Golden Light Divine Pill: This pill is made by extracting the supreme essence of the "Golden Light Mantra," the foremost of the eight great Taoist mantras, and is refined for forty-nine days with Samadhi True Fire. Those who take it will gain the supernatural power of "golden light protecting the body."]

Zhu Houcong looked at the message that suddenly appeared and exclaimed, "Awesome!"

I suppressed my excitement and trembling hands for the time being.

After a moment of contemplation, he suddenly handed the military tally to Chen Chun.

"You shall personally deliver this half of the military tally to Prince Yu's residence."

Chen Chun quickly accepted it with both hands.

"A decree was drafted, appointing Prince Yu, Xiao Jingting, to command the troops formerly under Prince Jing."

Tell all soldiers that without this other half of the military tally in my possession, no one has the right to mobilize troops. Anyone who privately mobilizes troops will be punished according to the laws of Liang, and those who respond will have their entire family wiped out.

Chen Chun agreed repeatedly upon hearing this.

Zhu Houcong did this in order to prevent the abuse of military power.

In the original work, the control of military power in the capital region does indeed present many illogical aspects.

Throughout history, the control over the troops stationed in the capital has always been the strictest, so how could they be allowed to be mobilized at will?

Even during the An Lushan Rebellion, the Shence Army required three seals of authority to be mobilized.

This ridiculous military system is more like a plot that could be written in a female-oriented online novel.

Realistically speaking, the moment the first order to mobilize troops was issued, someone should have apprehended the traitor on the spot.

Now, Zhu Houcong, imitating the ancient dynasties, divided the military tally in two, keeping one half for himself and giving the other half to Prince Yu.

In this way, neither side could mobilize troops without authorization if they held the tiger tally alone. The two halves of the tiger tally had to be accurately matched and verified to fit perfectly before the troop mobilization order could take effect.

In this way, the power to mobilize troops is always under dual control, reducing the risk of military separatism.

"Also, choose two clever and reliable eunuchs to serve as supervisors."

Zhu Houcong added meaningfully, "Prince Yu has never commanded troops before. You lackeys must know how to assist Prince Yu in managing military affairs."

Chen Chunxin understood and kowtowed deeply.

"This servant understands, and will certainly make the arrangements properly."

After arranging everything, Zhu Houcong couldn't wait to extract the Golden Light Divine Pill.

Golden clouds appeared on the cinnabar, and the patterns on the cinnabar faintly resembled the shape of the Eight Trigrams.

Without hesitation, he put the golden pill into his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it down with a quick swallow.

The golden elixir melted upon entering the throat, instantly transforming into a warm current that flowed into the limbs and bones.

Not long after swallowing, he felt a jolt throughout his body, as if a powerful force was surging out from his dantian and instantly flowing through his meridians.

This power was incredibly pure, and Zhu Houcong could wield it with ease, as if it were his own arm, without the slightest resistance.

He closed his eyes and focused his mind, carefully sensing the changes within his body.

Based on the information we just obtained, this Golden Light Divine Pill is extraordinary, possessing two miraculous effects.

One of them is "mysterious light spontaneously emitted".

When in danger, it emits a three-foot-long golden light, its quality as clear as glass yet as hard as black iron, capable of withstanding a full-force attack from a peak ninth-rank martial artist.

The second is "transformation at will".

The user can control the golden light at will, which can be condensed into armor, swords and shields, or even various weapons, all at their discretion.

As soon as Zhu Houcong had a thought, a faint golden halo appeared on his body.

This halo, though seemingly thin, contains astonishing defensive power.

He didn't know what he was thinking, but he unleashed the Crimson Sky Sword Qi and stabbed it into his own arm.

Use your own spear to attack your own shield.

Fortunately, the Golden Light Divine Pill worked its magic, otherwise the Great Liang would have had another one-armed emperor.

Upon reaching this conclusion, Zhu Houcong was overjoyed.

The effects of this Golden Light Elixir are indeed miraculous.

Now, with the Crimson Sky Sword Qi for offense and the Golden Light Protecting Body for defense, I can be considered a master in my own right.

However, he estimated that with these two abilities, he still couldn't defeat Meng Zhi, after all, Meng Zhi was the number one grandmaster of the Great Liang.

The imperial decree was quickly issued to Prince Yu's residence, and Zhu Houcong seized military power from Prince Jing without bloodshed.

Meanwhile, Mei Changsu returned from Yingfeng Tower wrapped in a fox fur coat.

Today he witnessed the struggle between the Crown Prince and Prince Yu, and he was certain that the two sides would fight to the death.

This gave him even more confidence in his plan.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, Li Gang handed him a secret letter.

"Sect Master, Commander Meng has sent word."

"News from Meng Zhi?"

Mei Changsu frowned slightly and quickly took it.

The moment the letter was unfolded, his usually calm face suddenly froze.

Prince Jing returned to the capital for less than half a day, and his military power was completely stripped away.