One Thing

Besides, even if the imperial family refrained from acting against Jing Hongchen for the time being out of consideration for his status, according to the terms of His Highness the Crown Prince Xu Tianran's deal, he would sooner or later become the other man's puppet.

So Jing Hongchen could not wait. Within the limited time he had, he needed to delay matters as much as possible while seeking another way out.

And in the short term, he could not think of a better partner than Shrek Academy.

To say nothing else, Shrek's reputation, accumulated over ten thousand years, was still worthy of trust. Even as an opponent, he had no choice but to admit that.

Jing Hongchen loved his country, but that was premised on the safety of himself and his family. Circumstances were stronger than people now. If he could not even protect those he cared about most, what was the point of giving his life for the Sun Moon Empire?

Ye Chen could see it as well. The old man had been driven into a corner and was looking for a way out for himself.

As for Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen leaving and hiding on their own, that intention would be far too obvious. As long as Xu Tianran was not a fool, he would naturally notice it with ease.

But if they were instead taken away by Shrek Academy in retaliation, it would be far more believable.

Jing Hongchen had indeed made a fine calculation, but Ye Chen had never done anything that brought him no benefit.

Since the old man had brought this escape route to him, given Ye Chen's personality, Jing Hongchen was destined to pay a heavy price today.

After giving it some thought, Ye Chen said, "I understand what you mean. You