The Strange Yongping Emperor

"The military seals of the Marquis of Courage and Resolve, the Count of Awe and Reach, and the Count of Eternal Prosperity were confiscated and handed over to the local Prefect."

"These three will be detained for now to reflect on their actions. They may come to see me again when they have come to their senses."

Seeing Yongping Emperor punish the three men, Lister immediately recognized the connection to his own memories.

No wonder that although Jiangling Prefecture was the fiefdom of the Marquis of Courage and Resolve in the first act, no one had ever actually seen the Marquis of Courage and Resolve.

So, this Marquis of Courage and Resolve has been imprisoned in the Imperial City all along?

After dealing with the three men, Yongping Emperor's anger quickly subsided, and his expression became indifferent again. At the same time, he raised an eyebrow and glanced at Chief Eunuch Chief Steward Xia beside him.

"Bring the Crown Prince back to the Eastern Palace immediately. He is not to step out of the Eastern Palace without my order."

Having read this far, Lister had a better understanding of the whole situation.

It must be that this crown prince crossed a line in Yongping Emperor's mind and had some dealings with several nobles in the border region.

In fact, this was a common occurrence in Lister's view; the crown prince and several other princes would all be eyeing the spot under their father's buttocks.

Take advantage of this time to strengthen your power and make connections with ministers; in the future, it will be common for brothers to fight each other.

However, this crown prince probably didn't realize that associating with the nobles of the border states meant associating with military power.

This is probably what Yongping Emperor feared most.

So he made this scene to teach his son a lesson.

The three pseudo-treasures were just a starting point; even Yongping Emperor had been quite frank in reminding his son.

There's something fishy about this secret treasure, and the fact that the Brocade Guard, the emperor's secret bodyguard, directly framed three nobles who had dealings with him is unbelievable.

The point was to make the Crown Prince understand that this was a deliberate tactic he had orchestrated behind the scenes.

For several months, the Crown Prince has dragged this out without ever confessing to Yongping Emperor or pleading for leniency.

Today, the fact that this matter was brought up in front of the assembled officials during the morning court session shows that Yongping Emperor's patience had long since run out.

As for the Crown Prince, he was probably even more utterly disappointed.

No wonder the ministers didn't dare to say anything; they probably found out the truth as soon as they investigated.

Knowing that this was the Emperor instructing the Crown Prince, and given Yongping Emperor's current good health, no one dared to say anything more.

However, the outside world sees the whole different story.

The discussion revolved entirely around how audacious the three noblemen were and how they coveted the Imperial Court Secret Treasures.

These three secret treasures sparked a bloody storm in the martial arts world.

Who knew that all that work turned out to be fake treasures?

Even Lister himself was completely fooled!

Indeed, even in this world of "Divine Revelation," the closer one gets to the center of power, the clearer things become.

Only in this way can he achieve his own goals more efficiently.

"Which one of you is Count Merrick from the Kingdom of Lucian?"

On the dragon throne, Yongping Emperor still wore a nonchalant expression, but his voice sounded more vibrant than before.

"Your Majesty, this is Count Merrick."

Vice Minister Qi, who was standing to the side, introduced the situation and led Lister to the front of the main hall.

The elaborate ceremony we discussed yesterday was completely unnecessary.

"Your Majesty, my name is Lister Merrick, and I am an envoy from the Kingdom of Lucian who has come to the Great Chu to establish diplomatic relations."

Looking at Yongping Emperor up close now, his wrinkles appear more pronounced. Of course, as a fourth-tier Class Holder, he is in excellent physical and mental condition, and his lifespan is far from over.

"I've heard that Count Merrick's swordsmanship is superb, that he single-handedly killed the Bloodmane Spirit Bear. Is that true?"

Yongping Emperor leaned back on the dragon couch once more, his eyes slightly narrowed as he carefully examined Lister.

"That is indeed true, but it wasn't just me who helped; General Zou from Jiangxia Prefecture and Assistant Commander Li also contributed."

"Oh? I didn't expect that you, Assistant Commander Li, had contributed so much to Jiangxia Prefecture!"

Seeing Yongping Emperor looking at him, Assistant Commander Li's face lit up with excitement, and he felt deeply grateful to Lister.

This time, he stepped out from behind Commander Qiu again.

"Your Majesty, General Zou and I only fought the Bloodmane Spirit Bear at the beginning, but we were no match for this beast."

"In the end, it was Count Merrick's astonishing swordsmanship that saved the entire population of Jiangxia City."

Lister had given him such face, Assistant Commander Li naturally returned the favor by once again taking credit for Lister.

"Hmm... it seems that Count Merrick has indeed rendered a great service to our Great Chu!"

"We can discuss the matter of bestowing titles later. I still have some questions, and I hope Count Merrick can enlighten me."

"Your Majesty, may I ask?"

"Ever since Yang Jie of Jiang Province informed me of your miraculous intervention, I have also ordered officials from the Court of State Ceremonial to investigate the Kingdom of Lucian."

"However, according to the historical records of the Court of State Ceremonial, including inquiries made by officials in some small kingdoms in the Southern Territory, there has never been a kingdom like this around the Great Chu."

"Is the Kingdom of Lucian newly established? And located in the Northern Territory?"

Beyond the Northern Territory of the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty lay deserts, and the small tributary states were usually located in the Southern Territory.

Life wasn't easy; they had to fend off the monster tides while also paying tribute every year.

"Your Majesty, the Kingdom of Lucian, to which I have come, is not within the currently known territory of the Great Chu."

"Oh? Tell me more."

Upon hearing this, Yongping Emperor's expression grew even more interested. He took the soup offered by Chief Steward Xia and began to drink it with relish.

"In fact, if you go north from Jiang Province in the Great Chu Kingdom and cross a desert, you will see a huge canyon."

"Our Kingdom of Lucian calls this the 'Lost Lands.' Only by traversing the Lost Lands and heading north can you find the Kingdom of Lucian."

"Of course, it's also possible to find the Kingdom of Tyrande and seven other duchies."

"Clang!"

Yongping Emperor abruptly put down the bowl of soup in his hand and sat up straight, his body no longer leaning against the wall.

"You mean there's another continent to the north of the Great Chu Imperial Dynasty?"

"Your Kingdom of Lucian is just one of the countries on this continent?"

"That's right!"

"Is the Kingdom of Lucian as large as my Great Chu Imperial Dynasty? How many experts of your strength are there?"

The Yongping Emperor's eagerness to ask further questions revealed his intense interest.

"The Kingdom of Lucian alone is probably seven or eight times the size of Jiang Province, and there are many strong individuals like me, and even a few stronger than me."

Lister answered calmly, but the mechanical face of Kavin Deer involuntarily flashed through his mind.

The next moment, Yongping Emperor suddenly laughed.

Hehe~!

"Haha~... Haha~!"

From initial soft chuckles to bursting into laughter, Lister was somewhat bewildered.

But the look in Yongping Emperor's eyes after he laughed made him feel even more uneasy.

It didn't seem like the curiosity and exploration that an emperor would typically feel upon hearing about a new continent.

The joy on Yongping Emperor's face was not the usual kind; rather, it was an uncontrollable excitement and restlessness, and an undisguised fervor in his eyes.

The intent to invade and plunder was obvious, but after observing it up close, Lister strangely sensed a sense of relief in Yongping Emperor.