Jiang Ming's struggle against the fake Crown Prince did not surprise Jiang Changsheng. Jiang Ming's obvious eagerness to win over experts showed that he was a man with ambitions.
Although Jiang Changsheng had received many gifts from Jiang Ming, he had no intention of taking action. Since the assassination attempt, Jiang Ming had not come looking for him again. Perhaps Jiang Ming had received a warning from Jiang Yuan.
After hearing Chen Li's words, Hua Jian Xin could not help teasing, "The Imperial Sons are fighting among themselves. Is your Chen family still refusing to pick a side?"
Chen Li said helplessly, "Can one still be called a loyal minister after picking a side? Though the Chen family may indeed choose one."
Hua Jian Xin asked curiously, "Who will you support?"
Chen Li trusted both of them greatly. One was a chivalrous person who had stepped forward for him; the other was a reclusive Taoist Priest he had watched grow up. He did not conceal it. "The Seventh Prince."
As expected!
The moment Jiang Changsheng had seen the Seventh Prince's True Dragon Qi, he had guessed as much.
He even suspected that Jiang Yuan and the Seventh Prince had both learned True Dragon Qi from the Great Vehicle Dragon Tower. The Great Vehicle Dragon Tower had the word "dragon" in its name—enough to set his imagination galloping.
"The Seventh Prince is deeply favored by His Majesty, while the Crown Prince has yet to move into the Eastern Palace. That is enough to reveal His Majesty's intentions. I truly cannot understand what His Majesty is thinking. Since ancient times, deposing the elder to establish the younger has been the beginning of rebellion."
Chen Li sighed, his face full of concern for the country and its people.
Jiang Changsheng did not comfort him, while Hua Jian Xin merely echoed him halfheartedly.
Half an hour later, Chen Li took his leave.
Hua Jian Xin asked curiously, "What are you still waiting for? Why have you refused to have a son all this time? Are you waiting for someone to become Crown Prince?"
Jiang Changsheng said, "That's right. I'm waiting."
Hua Jian Xin continued, "Why not choose Jiang Yu? You could support him."
Jiang Changsheng glanced at her and said, "Though we are related by blood, our different environments did not make us close enough. Supporting him would bring too much trouble. Fighting for the throne is merely one of my small goals. My true goal is to cultivate the Dao and attain immortality."
Hua Jian Xin seemed to understand, yet not quite. In her eyes, immortality was nothing but nonsense.
How could there be an undying person in this world?
"If you fear trouble, then once your son is born, won't it still be troublesome if he wishes to fight for the throne in the future?" Hua Jian Xin asked, a note of worry in her voice.
"Twenty-odd years from now, I'll make him ascend the throne. No one will be able to stop him, and there will be no need for so much trouble."
Jiang Changsheng looked toward the small sapling beside him. After a year of growth, the Earth Spirit Tree had reached thirty centimeters in height, though it had yet to emit spiritual energy.
The years were peaceful. Through the long, unhurried passage of time, perhaps only the Earth Spirit Tree and White Dragon would be able to remain by his side.
As for Hua Jian Xin, Meng Qiushuang, and the other disciples of the Taoist temple, after a hundred years, they would all return to dust and earth.
For the time being, Jiang Changsheng had no intention of teaching anyone else the methods of immortal cultivation. He owed nothing to those around him; there was no need to bare his heart and pour out everything he had. In this life, he lived only for himself.
Moreover, once he taught the methods of immortal cultivation, times would change. If they were ever spread one day, his advantage would be gone.
Once he stood invincible beneath heaven and became an immortal god, perhaps then he could consider leaving behind some inheritances.
Besides, even if he taught immortal cultivation to those he cared about, they had no survival rewards. They lived in a martial world—how could they possibly achieve immortality and longevity? When the time came to undergo tribulation, the rules of heaven and earth would reject them, and they would be struck by lightning, with no chance of reincarnation thereafter. That would only be worse.
Jiang Changsheng's words moved Hua Jian Xin. It was the first time she had heard him speak with such dominance.
That was right.
He was already this powerful, nearly invincible beneath heaven. After another twenty years, just how powerful would he become?
Hua Jian Xin did not dare imagine it, but her heart brimmed with anticipation.
If her son became emperor, would that not be the greatest glory for any mother beneath heaven?
This life would be enough!
The years drifted by. Spring went and autumn came, and five years swiftly passed.
The struggle between the Crown Prince and the Second Prince had become known throughout the land. Outside the capital, disciples from both factions were frequently assassinated, throwing the situation within the capital into increasing chaos. The emperor had never intervened. He was now overwhelmed with anxiety: Great Jing's army had driven straight into Gu Han, only to become exhausted. Gu Han seized the opportunity to counterattack, and after several years of consecutive defeats, the battle line was nearly pushed back to Great Jing's borders.
This was the twenty-eighth year of Kaiyuan. Talents emerged one after another in the martial world, as the old gave way to the new. Within literary circles, gifted scholars gathered like clouds, and fine works fell like rain.
"The Seventh Prince's power is growing greater and greater. His Majesty actually handed the White-Clothed Guard to him. It may look like he is using him to check the Crown Prince and the Second Prince, but I think he is actually helping the Seventh Prince grow stronger. There are simply too many experts around the Seventh Prince. Each of those Thirteen Heavenly Lodestar Assassins has the ability to assassinate a Peerless Expert. I have no idea where the Seventh Prince recruited them from."
Chen Li sighed with emotion. He did not feel much resistance toward the Seventh Prince, simply because the Chen family had already pledged itself to him.
Jiang Changsheng asked curiously, "The capital has recently become crowded with experts. Could it be that a great battle is about to break out?"
Chen Li frowned and sighed. "That's right. Both the Crown Prince and the Second Prince are frantically recruiting experts. Once His Majesty personally leads the army on campaign, I fear a vicious battle will begin. One of the two Imperial Sons is bound to die."
Personally leading the army?
Heh. This was giving the Seventh Prince an opportunity, was it not? With the Great Vehicle Dragon Tower helping him, how could the Crown Prince and the Second Prince possibly compare to the Seventh Prince?
Jiang Changsheng sneered inwardly. Jiang Yuan's favoritism was truly something else. They said even a fierce tiger would not eat its cubs, yet he would tolerate his favored son clearing away every obstacle in his path.
Chen Li asked curiously, "Where is Hua Jian Xin? Why don't I see her?"
Jiang Changsheng said, "She went into the city for a stroll."
Chen Li did not think much of it. He knew that the emperor was willing to promote Hua Jian Xin. She was merely practicing martial arts here, not hiding away.
This time, Chen Li had brought some precious medicinal herbs. As always, he brought gifts every time he came. Jiang Changsheng refused no one who came bearing gifts; all he needed to do in the future was preserve Chen Li's life.
After Chen Li left, Hua Jian Xin emerged from the room, her belly already greatly swollen.
She came before Jiang Changsheng and said, "The day of delivery is approaching. I should go down the mountain to give birth, lest the child's cries alarm the Taoist temple and cause a flaw in the plan."
Jiang Changsheng nodded. "Mm. Leave late tonight."
Hua Jian Xin was now a Tongtian Realm expert. Protecting herself would certainly be more than easy.
Hua Jian Xin then asked, "Will the Seventh Prince's consort be giving birth soon as well?"
Jiang Changsheng said, "I went to take a look last night. She is expected to give birth several days later than our child. It won't be a problem."
He was an immortal cultivator with an exceptional body. So long as he wished to have a child, he could. The Seventh Prince possessed powerful martial arts and was the same, which was why Jiang Changsheng had waited until the Seventh Prince's wedding night to act.
An imperial son's marriage was a major event. Jiang Changsheng did not need to keep watching the Seventh Prince at all times.
Unfortunately, the Seventh Prince already had an eldest son. The eldest son was illegitimate, and only after his mother became pregnant had the Seventh Prince brought her into his prince's residence, causing Jiang Changsheng to miss his chance.
After marrying, Imperial Sons all moved out of the palace. By sheer coincidence, the Seventh Prince's residence was very close to Dragon Arising Mountain.
Hua Jian Xin stroked her belly, her face filled with tenderness and anticipation.
Jiang Changsheng silently watched her. Though he had not fallen for Hua Jian Xin, he was someone destined for longevity. Accompanying her through a portion of her life was, at least for Hua Jian Xin, a complete fulfillment.
This had always been mutually willing. Since becoming pregnant, Hua Jian Xin had clearly grown much more cheerful, as if her life had found meaning.
That night, Hua Jian Xin quietly descended the mountain alone.
Jiang Changsheng stood atop the mountain gate of Dragon Arising Temple, silently watching her.
He began examining his incense value.
Current incense value: 381
Three hundred and eighty-one people.
He wondered how many days of Heavenly Might this little incense value could offset during his next breakthrough.
Jiang Changsheng was drawing ever closer to the sixth layer of the Dao Follows Nature Skill. Over the past five years, he had focused on cultivation and taken Spirit Enhancing Pills every month. His cultivation had grown rather quickly.
The fifth layer of the Dao Follows Nature Skill was already comparable to the Divine Human Realm. How strong would the sixth layer be?
Jiang Changsheng did not know, but he greatly anticipated it. He had yet to encounter a Divine Human Realm expert. In the present capital, Tongtian remained the sky.
Only after silently watching Hua Jian Xin enter an inn did he turn away.
Hua Jian Xin kept a low profile and was also a Tongtian expert, so naturally she would face no danger. When the day of delivery came, he would protect her in secret and ensure that nothing could go wrong.
Within the Imperial Garden.
Jiang Yuan and the Seventh Prince were drinking tea in a pavilion. The Seventh Prince was no longer a youth. He looked like Jiang Yuan in his younger days, already showing the first signs of imperial dominance.
"Yu'er, does the Dragon Tower have any experts capable of facing Zong Tianwu?" Jiang Yuan asked casually.
The Seventh Prince, Jiang Yu, answered, "Yes. A Grandmaster is already on the way and will reach the capital in two months at the latest."
Jiang Yuan nodded in satisfaction.
Jiang Yu asked, "Father Emperor, Zong Tianwu was someone you recruited. How dare he refuse to heed your words? Why keep him around?"
Jiang Yuan said, "A martial man has his own principles. Who told Yu'er to get there first and gain his approval? In the future, you can simply drive Zong Tianwu away. Though he is arrogant, he truly possesses a chivalrous heart, and he can protect your Fourth Brother for the rest of his life."
Jiang Yu nodded.
Jiang Yuan set down his teacup and said meaningfully, "Yu'er, I have already paved the road for you. Apart from the Crown Prince and the Second Prince, you must spare the lives of your other brothers. Otherwise, how will our Jiang family gain a foothold in history?"
Jiang Yu smiled. "Father Emperor, rest assured. Your son will never harm his own brothers."
"By the way, when you have time, visit Dragon Arising Temple and befriend the Changsheng Taoist Priest. Is your consort not about to give birth? In the future, have the child take the Changsheng Taoist Priest as his master. The Changsheng Taoist Priest is certainly no ordinary Tongtian expert, and he is indifferent to fame and gain. Such an eminent person can teach my little grandson many things."
Jiang Yuan changed the subject.
Jiang Yu said with emotion, "The Changsheng Taoist Priest is indeed remarkable. However, your son offended him before. Once your grandson is born, why not personally bring him there? After the Changsheng Taoist Priest agrees, your son can visit him later and repair our relationship."
Jiang Yuan stroked his beard and smiled, nodding slightly.
He felt that his arrangements were perfect. Apart from the false son who had to be eliminated, he would preserve all his children while also consolidating the Jiang family's imperial power for the future.
Ten days later, under Jiang Changsheng's secret protection, Hua Jian Xin successfully gave birth in a small courtyard within the capital. Jiang Changsheng had discerned several months into the pregnancy that it was a son, so he no longer needed to wait. He had mother and son stay in the courtyard for the time being.
Another five days passed. It was a moonless, windy night.
At the Seventh Prince's residence, the consort gave birth. The Seventh Prince was not present tonight, but he had dispatched two Tongtian Realm experts to stand guard.
Jiang Changsheng held his swaddled son in one arm, standing atop the Taihang Sword amid the clouds as he looked down at the courtyard below.
The infant, only half a month old, did not cry or fuss. He was asleep, his tiny fists tightly clenched. Two faint lines marked his forehead—the Daoist markings Jiang Changsheng had cultivated when he broke through to the fifth layer of the Dao Follows Nature Skill. Unless they were compared side by side, it would be difficult to connect the two. The infant's faint lines looked more like birthmarks, or like a tightly shut third eye.
"To think they could send two Tongtian experts. They must be from the Great Vehicle Dragon Tower. No wonder it can control changes in imperial power. The Great Vehicle Dragon Tower truly is powerful. Fortunately, I did not act rashly."
Jiang Changsheng thought silently. Naturally, he did not regard the two Tongtian experts as threats.
His Illusory God Eyes had become extremely powerful. Altering the memories of two Tongtian experts would not be difficult.
Jiang Changsheng's senses were exceptionally strong. His divine consciousness could penetrate rooftops and peer into the room. Once the child was born, he would act.
My beloved Father Emperor, and the Great Vehicle Dragon Tower.
Since this throne was given to me in the first place, then I should be the one to decide who sits upon it—and my son will inherit it!
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