The King of Huainan Came to Court

The King of Huainan has arrived in Chang'an City.

The other party even broke the current rule of Anle Palace that cultivators at the Body Transformation Realm were not allowed to come, and went to Anle Palace with a large number of followers to offer their congratulations.

The new emperor sat in the Weiyang Palace, also gazing at the deserted hall after the King of Huainan and his ministers had left.

"Your uncle went from Chang'an City to Ba Shang to welcome the King of Huainan. He has said everything that needed to be said and has performed all the royal courtesies. My son, you need not worry that the Empress Dowager will reprimand you for not being proper in your manners!"

The area below the imperial court was deserted, but there were still people inside.

Behind the screen was the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager also participated in the banquet welcoming the Prince of King of Huainan and did not leave at this time.

She looked at the solemn-faced new emperor and kept comforting him.

"The King of Huainan is a man of exceptional talent. Even when the late Emperor was alive, he spoke highly of him, considering him second only to the Prince of Liang in ability. If he weren't ten years younger than the late Emperor, his evaluation might have been even higher," the Empress Dowager said. "Among your many uncles, his abilities are the strongest."

"Indeed very powerful," the new emperor nodded after a moment of silence. "We are still following in the footsteps of our predecessors, King of Huainan has already led the way in innovation and even authored this book, 'Honglie'!"

Zhang Xuezhou's fictitious biographies are extremely long, but "Honglie" is even longer, more than twice the length of the fictitious biographies.

The vast and complex content is integrated into more than sixty thick bamboo scrolls.

This is a summary of the insights gained from the Huang-Lao philosophy, and it also introduces new ideas on the subject of imperial rule. The comprehensive content is so extensive that even a new emperor would find it overwhelming.

But the new emperor still insisted on reading this book.

As an emperor who cultivates magical arts, he may not innovate, but a new emperor cannot remain silent and unlearn from others' innovations.

The emperor's fortune is the strongest of all the dynasties. If he were to become corrupt and his dynasty's fortune were to fall below that of a local vassal king, it would undoubtedly be a joke.

Under normal circumstances, if the new emperor practices cultivation techniques appropriately, he will gradually grow to the point of mastering them.

This is a secret technique for minor studies, far from being something the new emperor would use as his primary focus.

But the King of Huainan's skill in maneuvering gave the new emperor a sense of urgency.

"The King of King of Huainan mentioned that cultivating the 'Honglie' technique can strengthen his aura and enhance the control of his magic. Does this mean that he has the ability to resist magic, and that he might use the aura and aura of a prince to counter me, the legitimate emperor?" the new emperor asked in a low voice.

Your guess was correct!

The Empress Dowager nodded.

The Prince of King of Huainan, Jingxian, was very loyal and submitted his own creations, but this could undoubtedly lead to a statement regarding Anle Palace.

Compared to the new emperor, the King of Huainan was clearly more suitable to be emperor.

The King of Huainan was inferior to Emperor Jing, but such a comparison between the two is a thing of the past.

If the King of Huainan is currently stronger than Emperor Jing of the past, this is not impossible.

Furthermore, the other party's contribution, "Honglie," was meticulously crafted using Huang-Lao principles, clearly indicating an intention to curry favor with the Empress Dowager.

This inevitably caused the Empress Dowager great concern.

Because of her son's status, her position as Empress Dowager was not without its struggles, but in the end she still had to rely on the new emperor for support.

If the King of Huainan were to ascend the throne, she would inevitably be left alone in the cold palace.

"How do you plan to deal with the King of Huainan?" the Empress Dowager asked. "This scroll is so long, and we don't even know if he presented it in its entirety. Even if you want to learn it, it will be difficult to master quickly, and it might even distract you from your normal cultivation. But if you don't understand the intricacies of this Honglie, how will my son deal with it if the King of Huainan uses his magical abilities to fight against you?"

"This matter can only be left to fate!"

The new emperor pursed his lips.

He followed his own words and answers with the old man, treating the King of Huainan with the utmost courtesy, even having Tian Fen pledge his loyalty, in order to lower the other party's guard as much as possible and to lull the King of King of Huainan into a false sense of security, causing him to make a misjudgment.

If the Prince of King of Huainan changes his mindset, the other party is likely to make a mistake, which would displease the Empress Dowager and others.

But that's not the point. The point is the conversation between the new emperor and Zhang Xuezhou.

He had already decided in his heart to make a fake Crimson Sky Sword.

If he can make the fake seem real, the threat posed by the King of Huainan will be greatly reduced.

This fake imperial sword will not only grant the new emperor a legitimate right to succession, but will also deter the King of Huainan from easily resorting to magical combat.

Even if the King of Huainan is stronger in terms of magical skills, his opponent will still fear the unpredictability brought by the Crimson Sky Sword.

But this was a secret the new emperor couldn't share with anyone, not even his own mother.

Unless he can one day truly master the Crimson Sky Sword, this might be presented as a remarkable story.

His expression was calm, and he planned to take action immediately after the events involving Zhao Wan, Wang Zang, and others were resolved, and after the King of Huainan left Chang'an City.

"You are an emperor, Heaven is surely on your side," the Empress Dowager comforted her.

She offered words of comfort to the new emperor, but inwardly she was deeply troubled, and couldn't help but cough a few times.

As Emperor Jing's former empress, the Empress Dowager was by no means a weak person, but in this palace, she was undoubtedly inferior to the Grand Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager's lingering influence had accumulated over several reigns and was deeply entrenched. Even when the Empress Dowager was currently ill, the Empress Dowager dared not challenge her authority, and the same was true for the former Emperor Jing.

She glanced helplessly at the new emperor, hoping he would minimize the possibility of making mistakes and not disappoint the Empress Dowager.

"Mother, please take it easy and make sure you get better!"

The mother and son in the Weiyang Palace did not use titles such as "Your Majesty" or "Empress Dowager," but rather used kinship terms.

The new emperor patted the Empress Dowager's back, trying to soothe her cough.

He couldn't help but notice the gray hairs in the Empress Dowager's hair, realizing that his own mother had also grown old.

This saddened the new emperor, who felt that those who should have grown old were still alive, while those who shouldn't have grown old were gradually entering their twilight years.

"I'm getting old, I can't protect you for many more years," the Empress Dowager said softly. "My son, if you are forced into a corner, don't forget that there is still a force you can borrow!"

"Which one are you referring to, Mother?" the new emperor asked, puzzled.

The Empress Immortal Court replied in a low voice, "They also desperately want the orthodox Daoist tradition, and they have irreconcilable conflicts with the Grand Empress Dowager!"

"The Immortal Court!"

The new emperor nodded, indicating that he was aware of the information.

The new emperor didn't know where the Immortal Court was, but he did know how to contact Immortal Court people.

There must be people from the Immortal Court in the imperial court. If he makes even the slightest hint, the new emperor believes that the people from the Immortal Court will definitely contact him within a few days.

If Confucian School is a tiger in the open, then the Immortal Court is a venomous scorpion lurking in the shadows.

If the Immortal Court finds an opportunity to infiltrate, this force will not hesitate to overthrow the dynasty.

This is an extremely dangerous force, and the new emperor would never use it unless in a critical situation.

He accepted the Empress Dowager's request, but remained completely calm.

Compared to seeking control from a highly dangerous force, it would be much easier for the new emperor to fabricate a story.

"I don't know how Dongfang Shuo's brain works, to actually come up with such a method. But considering he was able to travel to the Xiong State to trade and make a profit, he must have seen the world and can handle things on a whim..."

As he respectfully escorted the Empress Dowager back to the palace, he couldn't help but think of the scholar-official at the Golden Horse Gate who had given him the terrible idea.