So the artful political game was never merely about seizing a position. Huang Cao had no intention of wasting time on meaningless struggles for power.
Controlling Victoria didn't mean I had to manage it myself.
Victoria had now become his tool, but he absolutely couldn't spend too much time and energy maintaining that tool.
Putting the cart before the horse was out of the question.
That was why King Aslan couldn't die. At least, not yet.
If he died, other dukes would surely take advantage of the chaos and launch a civil war.
And the other nations certainly wouldn't let a fertile land like Victoria off the hook.
By then, the War of the Four Emperors would be fought over Victoria instead of Gaul.
The key was that Victoria was already in his pocket. It would take only a few years to completely digest the country, so there was no need to create more trouble for himself.
This had nothing to do with mercy. Leaving this defeated lion alive was merely a way to save himself some trouble.
After all, he had come here to enjoy himself, not to increase the difficulty of clearing the game.
So he might as well let go. Someone else could be the emperor while he took the benefits.
He believed these new nobles would gladly manage everything for him. Although they were easily swayed by their emotions, becoming new nobles also meant they possessed a certain level of education and learning.
"Your lives are worth nothing to me, but for the time being, you will remain this country's king."
"So, to repay me for sparing your life, what do you think you should give me?"
"Oh, right. My councilors have already dealt with all the traitors who wanted to rebel tonight. What's chilling is that every one of those traitors was related to you by blood..."
My blood relatives...
The Lion King froze slightly and collapsed limply onto the throne.
For this man to say such a thing to his face basically meant that the Aslan bloodline in Londinium had been completely wiped out.
The only surviving member of the bloodline was the duke stationed at the border—his own biological uncle...
No! He absolutely couldn't let his uncle know about his current predicament!
As another inheritor of the Aslan bloodline, the current King of Victoria understood the people around him all too well.
Once he had been utterly defeated and begged his uncle for help, even if Victoria ultimately won, the throne would no longer belong to him.
He might even be killed after serving his purpose. By then, even his children could find themselves in danger.
Struggles within a royal family had always been brutal. Completely eradicating one's enemies was practically considered a good outcome.
The young king could not even tell whether his uncle truly wanted to help him.
That was also why he had not immediately sought aid from outside.
Perhaps, deep down, he had already sensed that his life would not be in danger tonight.
Moreover, in King Aslan's view, his uncle had never been someone worthy of trust. At least, that was what the previous King Aslan had warned him before passing the throne to him.
Huang Cao was helpless as well. He could only marvel at how quickly the new nobles had acted. In the blink of an eye, they had chopped down the entire Londinium Aslan bloodline.
Before he had even reacted, the old nobles' gathering place had already been swept clean.
The once-glorious villas had still been bustling with people a few days ago, but after tonight, there probably wouldn't be a single living creature left.
The reverence this land held for bloodlines exceeded his expectations. So did its hatred.
"I understand what you mean, Your Excellency."
King Aslan was still young and therefore did not understand human nature very well, but he was at least somewhat capable of managing a country.
In truth, he wasn't particularly stupid. Wasn't this simply a matter of using the emperor to command the vassals?
Fine, I'll play along.
As long as the country remained in Aslan's hands and its ultimate heir was still of his bloodline, the sky could not fall!
Since things had come to this, he would first lower his head. As the old saying from Yan Country went:
As long as the green hills remain, there will be no shortage of firewood.
73
Please Call Me the Duke Protector of Victoria While I'm Working!
As long as he lived, there would be opportunities in the future.
"I like clever people like you, so you should know how to explain what happened tonight, shouldn't you?"
King Aslan drew a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the grief in his heart.
"My blood relatives plotted a rebellion tonight. Thanks to Your Excellency leading your loyal ministers into the palace to rescue me, Londinium was spared a conspiracy. I wonder whether this explanation satisfies Your Excellency?"
"Excellent! It's just missing a little reward."
"From today onward, Your Excellency will be the Duke Protector of Victoria, the ninth grand duke currently in office. You will also possess a portion of my territory."
Huang Cao pulled a map from his pocket and used a small knife to mark off a large area beside Victoria's borders.
King Aslan frowned slightly. It wasn't because the territory Huang Cao had marked was especially vast, though in truth it was quite large—it accounted for fifteen percent of Victoria's total area.
It was merely that this territory bordered Kazdel and was sparsely populated.
Although it suffered far fewer catastrophes than Kazdel, it possessed practically no resources and was a place no one wanted.
It was also territory guarded by the Windermere family, so it had almost no economic value.
"Take as much as you want. What right do I have to choose now?"
The young King Aslan spoke without the slightest hesitation.
Tonight, even if this man had demanded Londinium itself, he would have had to agree.
Huang Cao nodded in satisfaction. This fellow seemed even more sensible than he had imagined.
By territory, this land accounted for a full fifteen percent of Victoria, making it the largest holding among all the dukes. Yet it would not arouse anyone else's suspicion.
That was because it bordered Kazdel, while his other lands were far from Eden. His people had yet to mature, and even if he took more territory, he might not be able to manage it all.
He might as well use the land he couldn't manage to buy people's loyalty. In any case, not a single penny of what the new nobles owed him would be forgiven in the future.
Of course, Huang Cao had chosen this land for a reason. Although the area he had marked off looked barren on the surface, quite a few rare mineral deposits and Pre-Civilization machines lay buried beneath it.
It simply had not been developed yet. Even during the future main storyline, Victoria had never developed it.
It also bordered Eden, allowing him to control Victoria's situation directly through multiple routes in the future. There would be no need to sneak around anymore.
This served two purposes at once. It also allowed him to reinforce the image that he had no intention of fighting for power and seize the moral high ground.
Furthermore, through the hands of the new nobles, he could spread his Power of Abundance across even more of Victoria's vast territory.
"Of course, that isn't all. From today onward, the king's authority will be distributed entirely among the Lower House. No law or decree may be issued or implemented without the approval of the Speaker of the Lower House."
What difference was that from making you king? You might as well put me on the chopping block. That would be more satisfying.
He wanted both the benefits and the reputation. This fellow was utterly shameless!
King Aslan cursed inwardly, but he could do nothing to change the situation. For the sake of his life, he could only nod silently.
"Fine, but you must guarantee my safety."
"How could we ever dare to harm our honored king? The councilors are all among Victoria's most loyal ministers."
"So the councilors also need a little tangible compensation."
Huang Cao marked off another large section on the map, dividing up nearly all of the land King Aslan possessed and leaving him only a tiny portion.
Huang Cao had no intention of keeping this land for himself. He gave it all to the councilors who had participated in tonight's operation.
A horse couldn't run without being fed. Huang Cao was far better than King Aslan at winning people's hearts.
This would also allow his "soil" to spread more quickly. He estimated that he could completely occupy the country by next year.
"Come, I'll help you draft an edict. Just read it aloud at tomorrow morning's meeting. Don't worry—the members of the Lower House are all outstanding loyal ministers."
They were rebel leaders, if anything!
What loyal minister went around shouting that he was a loyal minister every day? What good person went around shouting that he was a good person?
No one knew how nerve-racking King Aslan's night had been.
The land had clearly been given away by him, yet the edict claimed that Huang Cao had persuaded him to give it away.
Huang Cao had taken all the credit for himself. Although King Aslan would never have surrendered all his territory without Huang Cao's threats and inducements, the fact remained that the credit had been snatched away.
After finishing the edict, Huang Cao even stuffed a Seed into the lion's mouth to use as a means of surveillance.
The butcher held the knife, and I was the meat.
When the first ray of sunlight entered the silent palace that morning, Victoria would no longer belong to its master.
"Honored Speaker, it has been only five years since your reputation began spreading throughout Victoria. Regardless of what methods you used, how did you manage to seize Victoria's national foundation so quickly...?"
King Aslan was baffled. He had already heard of the Speaker of the Lower House three years ago.
After all, this fellow had caused quite a bit of trouble for his blood relatives and his country, so he had tried to send people to find and capture him.
When they had found nothing, he assumed the fellow had fled and stopped taking him seriously.
He had never expected that his momentary negligence would bring Victoria's national destiny to ruin.
"You spent the entire night chatting with me, so you must be hungry. I've prepared breakfast for you. After eating, you should go meet your subjects."
Huang Cao clapped his hands. After the sound, a pair of chefs rushed in through the main doors.
The chefs carried a huge fried egg on a tray. After respectfully saluting the Speaker rather than the king, they quickly ran back out.
"Please, Your Majesty. Once you've finished breakfast, proceed to the assembly hall on your own. Your loyal ministers are waiting for your instructions."
Huang Cao gave an elegant gentlemanly bow, then left the palace hall with an unconcerned stride.
It was as if he had just met the most ordinary person in the world.
King Aslan said nothing. After a night of struggle, he was indeed a little hungry.
But when he put the exceptionally appetizing fried egg into his mouth, the intense pepper made him choke violently.
"Who made this fried egg? Why did they put in so much pepper?"
That morning was undoubtedly a celebration for the new nobles.
Huang Cao had never been one to hedge his bets, so he intended to crush every old noble except King Aslan.
Even if he did nothing, the new nobles would voluntarily deal with the remaining threats for him.
After all, once these people had raised their butcher's knives and stormed the palace, their position had to be tied to his.
Even if Border Duke Windermere had not wanted to get involved, he had still let Huang Cao in, and the family's direct heir had also participated in this coup.
The moment he let them in, the Windermere name was destined to leave a heavy mark in the history books of the future.
Yet this brought not only negative consequences but also unimaginable tangible benefits.
The dukes of Victoria were currently divided into two factions.
One faction consisted of King Aslan's blood relatives, namely the uncle stationed at the border mentioned earlier.
The other consisted of Windermere and the other Border Dukes who had unclear ties with the new nobles.
Their respective strength was roughly divided six to four, with the king's side holding four. This ratio was considerable and perfectly reasonable.
After all, without Huang Cao's maneuvering, the new nobles could never have united without reservations.
But because Huang Cao had divided all of King Aslan's territory among the new nobles, most of the border nobles could no longer remain uninvolved after this incident.
Since the deed was done, they could only accept with smiling faces every inch of land Huang Cao had given them.
Having taken the food, the dukes had to do some actual work!
Thus, once news of the coup in Londinium reached the borders, every Border Duke except those belonging to King Aslan's faction tacitly supported the Lower House's administration of Victoria.
They also organized a coalition army to forcibly blockade the Aslan Duke's territory, preventing the king's uncle from leading troops into the city.
After all, how could anyone possibly give up the fat meat that had already reached their mouths?
Before you continue