Flourishing Heaven Dou Empire

Outside Heaven Dou Imperial City, the three of them followed the crowd and slowly walked into the greatly transformed great city.

Jiang Mian looked at the notices filling the streets and laughed, "Qian Renxue truly has a thunderous approach."

This imperial succession was carried out without any fanfare that would harm the common people. Therefore, all it took was to gradually correct the existing operational methods of the Heaven Dou Empire.

Qian Renxue issued imperial decrees to inform all subjects under heaven that everything would remain as usual throughout the country. Furthermore, to celebrate the ascension of the new king, taxes on all land nationwide would be waived for one year.

The national treasury's grain reserves were sufficient to last for three to four years, which was why Qian Renxue could afford to make this move to win over the people's hearts.

While this move benefited the common people, it was not good for the various official cliques. To stabilize these cliques, Qian Renxue also implemented a series of policies and regulations.

Qian Renxue had always wanted to eliminate these cowardly parasites, but her authority was not yet stable, making it difficult to act.

Many members of the former Heaven Dou imperial family were scattered throughout the empire. Qian Renxue primarily used appeasement tactics, such as bestowing high positions and generous salaries with hereditary succession. This had managed to stabilize the situation to some extent.

Although the military authority was now in Jiang Mian's hands, many members of the former Heaven Dou imperial family still held considerable influence within the army. They were constantly restless.

As for these military officers, Qian Renxue's method was to kill. Those who disobeyed were killed. After all, strength was paramount in the military, and killing to stop chaos was a last resort.

If you want to reason with these burly martial men, you first need to let them witness the power of your fists.

The entire Heaven Dou Empire was now flourishing, showing signs of ushering in a golden age.

In reality, Qian Renxue's ability to quickly control the entire empire was greatly related to her having been the crown prince for over ten years. Many cities, as well as the areas inside and outside the imperial city, were places where Qian Renxue had promoted people, and they were extremely loyal to her.

Over the past decade, the former emperor's faction had been gradually dismantled and replaced with Qian Renxue's own people. Emperor Xue Ye was completely unaware of this, which showed that the transfer of power had long been a foregone conclusion and an inevitable event.

"Qian Renxue has a lot of talent for being an emperor," Jiang Mian praised. "It's fortunate I only hold nominal positions. If I were actually put in charge of such a vast empire, the people would revolt within three days."

Xie Yue asked curiously, "What is your official position in this Heaven Dou Empire?"

"It seems I was granted the title of Duke, concurrently holding positions like Grand Pillar and Regent King," Jiang Mian replied. "They are actually just empty titles, sought for their high status and pleasant sound."

Xie Yue exclaimed in surprise, "Then you must have a dedicated ducal mansion in Heaven Dou Imperial City!"

"There should be. I don't know if Qian Renxue has built one for me, but I don't care." Jiang Mian hummed a tune. He suddenly looked at Xie Yue and smiled, "How about I get you an official position too?"

"Me?" Xie Yue laughed heartily and waved his hands repeatedly. "I'm not cut out for being an official. Jiang Mian, don't make things difficult for me."

"It's just an empty title like mine, how good is that?" Jiang Mian teased. "That way, you'll have a place in the imperial city, and it'll be a place for you and Miss Lingling to enjoy yourselves."

"Get lost." Xie Yue kicked Jiang Mian good-naturedly, laughing and cursing, "Do you think everyone is like you?"

"You say one thing and mean another," Jiang Mian rolled his eyes at Xie Yue. "You're thinking about it but don't dare admit it. You've really disappointed me, Xie Yue."

"Buzz off." Xie Yue raised his fist and swung it at Jiang Mian. As they were playfully brawling, they accidentally bumped into someone.

"Are you blind?" The person didn't even look at Jiang Mian and Xie Yue. He spoke rudely, "What kind of place is this? Is it a place where riff-raff like you can fight and cause trouble?"

Jiang Mian was about to retort, but when he saw the person's face, he burst into laughter. "Yu Tianheng, have you gotten too big for your britches after a few days?"

Yu Tianheng looked at Jiang Mian in surprise. In his haste, he hadn't clearly seen it was Jiang Mian, which led him to speak rudely and offend him.

"Brother Jiang, I apologize." Yu Tianheng quickly apologized. "I didn't recognize you. I was in a foul mood elsewhere just now and had nowhere to vent."

"Where did you get so upset?" Jiang Mian patted the dust off his clothes dismissively. "You still need to take it out on someone else?"

"My sect sent a letter asking me to visit Aunt Liu Erlong and Uncle Yu Xiaogang," Yu Tianheng said helplessly. "When I got there, I hadn't even said a few words before being provoked and pushed out by two effeminate fellows."

Two effeminate fellows? They must be those two whose 'tools' were confiscated by Nana.

Jiang Mian glanced at Yu Tianheng without speaking. If he could call that disgusting fellow Yu Xiaogang 'uncle,' then Yu Tianheng wasn't any better.

"Be more careful in the future." Jiang Mian left directly with Xie Yue and Bear Lord, completely ignoring Yu Tianheng. Jiang Mian didn't want to waste more words on him, as he found him annoying.

Yu Tianheng, thick-skinned as he was, didn't care about Jiang Mian and the others' attitude towards him. He looked at Xie Yue and smiled, "This must be Brother Xie Yue, right? Lingling misses you a lot lately."

"I understand," Xie Yue responded indifferently and left the spot without looking back, following Jiang Mian.

Yu Tianheng scratched his head, wondering why Jiang Mian and his group seemed even more hot-headed than he was.

"What are we doing next?" Xie Yue asked.

"Go to the Spirit Hall in Heaven Dou Imperial City and find Platinum Bishop Salas. Have him come with us to handle some business," Jiang Mian said, taking out a Spirit Hall Elder token and handing it to Xie Yue.

This token was originally left by Chrysanthemum Douluo for Xie Yue and the others to facilitate their travel. After several transfers, Jiang Mian had kept it. He hadn't expected it to be useful again today.

"What business?" Xie Yue asked.

"Do you remember when someone tried to assassinate us after our match at the Suo Tuo Great Spirit Arena?" Jiang Mian said with a serious expression. "Those people are within Heaven Dou Imperial City. We're going to deal with them."

"Interesting." Bear Lord put his arm on Jiang Mian's shoulder and laughed heartily, "You really don't know how to sit still, kid."

"I'm happy to do this kind of thing," Jiang Mian chuckled. He also wanted to see what tricks Tang San had up his sleeve this time. After all, the pig he had raised for so long was being kept for slaughter during the new year.

And that "Yu Xiaogang," the thought of him made Jiang Mian sick. Yu Tianheng actually associated himself with them.

Xie Yue took the token and went to receive his orders. Jiang Mian and Bear Lord casually found a place to sit and waited quietly for Platinum Bishop Salas to arrive with his people.

"Old woman, I'm telling you, hurry up and give me the money, or my fist won't be polite!"

Continuous curses could be heard from a distance. Jiang Mian and Bear Lord looked over and saw a burly middle-aged man arguing with a white-haired, hunched old woman, pulling at something.

"Son, you can't gamble anymore. This is your wife's life-saving money." The old woman tightly clutched the money wrapped in rags in her arms, tears streaming down her face.

"If I take this money to gamble, I can make money from money. What do you know, you old hag!" The young man tried to forcefully snatch the money from his mother's embrace. The old woman held on tightly, and as a result, the beastly son dragged the old woman across the ground.

"What is this!" Jiang Mian slammed the table and cursed angrily, "Bear Lord, let's go check it out."

Jiang Mian was already feeling angry, and seeing this infuriating situation only stoked his rage further.

If you can't find the book by its title, maybe try searching for the author. They might have just changed the name!

As the old saying goes, filial piety comes first. How can children treat their parents like this!

"Stop!" Jiang Mian shouted, "Let that old person go!"

"Who do you think you are!" the young man retorted rudely. He casually dropped his cloth bag, and the elder fell to the ground with a thud, looking utterly pathetic.

Jiang Mian quickly stepped forward to help the elder up, asking with concern, "Are you alright, elder?"

"I'm, I'm fine," the elder replied, disheveled. Her eyes darted away, as if embarrassed by her appearance.

The young man glared at Jiang Mian, spewing insults, "What kind of stray dog is this, trying to play the hero?"

"And who do you think you are?" Jiang Mian handed the elder over to Bear Lord before turning his attention back to the young man. "As a child, how can you treat the parents who gave you life and raised you like this? Where is your conscience, your shame!"

"Get lost!" The young man tried to push Jiang Mian away, but Jiang Mian stood firm like a mountain. Instead, the force of his own push sent him staggering back several steps, nearly falling to the ground.

"I'm a level 23 Spirit Master, so get out of my way if you don't want to die!" The young man swung his arm, and a phantom image of a Werewolf suddenly appeared behind him.

"Spirit Master?" Jiang Mian slowly walked up to the young man.

A crisp, clear slapping sound echoed, and the young man cupped his face, looking at Jiang Mian with disbelief.

Another slap.

The young man could no longer contain his rage. He raised his arm and brought it down with full force, using his spirit ability on the street. This was strictly prohibited.

However, Jiang Mian simply raised his hand and blocked, preventing the young man's arm from landing. "A mere Great Soul Master? There are more creatures like you in the river than there are turtles. How dare you put on airs here?"

"Who exactly are you?" The young man retracted his arm as if he had been electrocuted. He stumbled back several steps, believing he had put a safe distance between himself and Jiang Mian, and then said, "No matter who you are, you can't interfere in my family's affairs. This is Heaven Dou Imperial City. If you dare to make a move, someone will teach you a lesson."

"Trying to scare me with the Heaven Dou Empire's patrol guards?" Jiang Mian acted as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. He approached the young man step by step, and the young man couldn't help but retreat.

"What are you two doing?"

Just then, a voice filled with righteousness suddenly came from behind the young man. A small squad of patrol soldiers in armor appeared before them, led by a stout, burly tank officer who looked formidable in combat.

"Officer, this fellow attacked me on the street and tried to kill me," the young man fawned as he approached the officer. "Officer, you must uphold justice for me."

"Don't you know the rules of Heaven Dou Imperial City?" The officer, with one hand on his saber and the other on his hip, said, "Spirit Masters are forbidden from engaging in private duels on the street."

"This person not only bullied his mother but also spoke rudely to me and made the first move, while I did not retaliate," Jiang Mian stated calmly.

"No matter what grievances you have, you absolutely cannot fight. Otherwise, I'll have to arrest you!" The officer was quite reasonable. He shouted, "These are the new Emperor's regulations. Do you want to test them?"

"We wouldn't dare," the young man said, bowing and scraping like a dog. Jiang Mian couldn't be bothered to even look at him, afraid of dirtying his own eyes.

"General," Jiang Mian said, cupping his hands. "It's alright that you don't recognize me. You are acting according to the law, and that deserves a reward. Come to my residence later to collect it."

"Who exactly are you?" The officer asked the same question as the young man. He had a feeling that this young man before him was no ordinary person.

Jiang Mian replied, "My name is Jiang Mian."

The officer trembled all over. Without hesitation, he dropped to his knees with a thud and said loudly, "Greetings, Duke Who Guards the Nation."

"D-Duke!" The young man's eyes went black, and he collapsed to the ground. He never imagined that this young man before him was the recently renowned young Duke!

"Rise," Jiang Mian said, patting the officer's shoulder. "You don't need to worry about this matter here. I can handle it myself, and I assure you I won't break the new Emperor's rules."

"Of course," the officer said, repeatedly bowing in agreement. He wiped the sweat from his brow and quickly led his men away from Jiang Mian's sight.

"Now, can we have a chat?" Jiang Mian slowly walked up to the young man who was now slumped on the ground. He stepped on the man's chest and said coldly, "Your mouth seemed quite foul just now, didn't it?"

"This humble subject didn't know it was the Duke's esteemed presence. I truly deserve death," the young man pleaded desperately. "I hope the Duke will overlook my petty offense and spare me this once."

"Spare you? Easy," Jiang Mian sneered. "Go kowtow to your mother until I'm satisfied!"

"Yes," the young man grabbed onto this lifeline. He scrambled to his mother's side and began kowtowing without a word. The sounds were loud and clear, indicating he wasn't slacking off.

He wouldn't dare slack off.

"What's going on?" Xie Yue had returned, accompanied by Platinum Bishop Salas and a group of people from the Spirit Hall.

"Greetings, Elder," Salas said, cupping his hands and bowing respectfully to Jiang Mian.

"E-Elder?" The young man suddenly felt dizzy. He gasped for air and finally collapsed to the ground.

"What happened to him?" Jiang Mian walked over to the fallen young man and gently checked his breathing. "How did he die so suddenly?"

"He was scared to death by you," Bear Lord said calmly, supporting the old woman.

"You are too kind, Lord Bishop," Jiang Mian returned Salas's bow. "I'm afraid I've troubled you to make another trip."

"You are too polite, Elder," Salas quickly replied. "This is all within my duties."

"Have your people handle this fellow," Jiang Mian sighed. He walked over to the elder and said, "I'm sorry, elder."

"He deserved to die!" The elder's emotions were complex. She bit her lip, tears streaming down her face. "Please forgive my showing you such a sight, sir. I shall take my leave now."

"There's no need for that, elder," Jiang Mian quickly supported her. "You mentioned money for saving a life just now. What happened?"

"This beast sold my daughter-in-law to that sort of place. This money was meant to buy her freedom," the elder cried uncontrollably as she recounted the painful story.

"Such places still exist in this world?" Jiang Mian's eyes widened. He gritted his teeth and said, "Grandmother, take us there. We will help you rescue your daughter-in-law."

"Lord Bishop, please find someone to inform His Majesty the new Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire and have him send a detachment to assist us," Jiang Mian instructed. "Everyone, let's put aside our personal matters and go handle something important!"

[A little secret: two unexpected people will appear in that place]

If you find this book enjoyable, be sure to add it to your bookshelf to avoid losing it next time.