"Do you understand what I mean?"
After waiting a while, Jiajing saw that all three seemed to understand, so he asked bluntly:
"Speak!"
"What will it take for you to retrieve My 'immortal fate' from Jade Maiden Peak on Mount Hua?"
Yes, it was his.
"Under heaven, all land belongs to the sovereign; all who live upon it are his subjects." The entire realm belonged to him, and Mount Hua belonged to him as well. Naturally, everything owned by the Mount Hua Sect—which occupied Jade Maiden Peak and had been lucky enough to obtain "immortal arts" and "immortal fate"—belonged to him, too!
All he was doing now was sending people to retrieve what was rightfully his.
Besides, though the Mount Hua Sect had yet to be officially declared a band of rebels by the court, their actions were practically the same.
After all, so many soldiers had died at the hands of Yue Lingshan, a disciple of the Mount Hua Sect. The court and the realm would certainly need an explanation for that!
And because the Mount Hua Sect was a nest of rebels, Jiajing, as emperor, was far too exalted to go to Mount Hua himself—and naturally would not dare to. So having the three men before him devise a plan and bring back what he wanted was one of the few options available to him.
"..."
"..."
Yuhuatian and Cao Huachun exchanged a glance. Then Eunuch Cao took a cautious step forward, his face wreathed in a fawning smile as he bowed slightly and asked:
"Your Majesty..."
"This servant has heard that the Grand Secretaries and the Ministry of War plan to resume the campaign against Mount Hua after the New Year. Should we summon them here to discuss it as well?"
"Then we can all work together?"