Disaster at Hand

Ren Yisheng's two books are lengthy works, and even with Zhang Xuezhou's language conversion, the amount of time required to express them is still considerable.

The explanation lasted until almost midnight before the new emperor left with a heavy expression.

He currently lacks a think tank and finds it difficult to assemble one that is both loyal and visionary.

Zhang Xuezhou was not the only person the new emperor questioned. He asked Wei Qing about military and political matters, had Sang Hongyang try to solve problems related to commerce, asked Xu Le about ancient matters, asked Yan Congqi about matters of all kinds, and also asked Sima Xiangru and others about many other matters.

Zhang Xuezhou was undoubtedly one of the most outstanding among these people. He didn't answer many questions, but the answer to each one surprised the new emperor.

The corruption issue involving the Northern Border Military Region eventually became a matter of national importance, even involving countless vested interests. The complex connections left the new emperor's mind in a complete mess.

"Go to Sima Xiangru's place!"

The new emperor boarded the carriage and gestured to Wei Qing, who was driving, that he did not need to return to the Marquis of Pingyang's residence now, but instead needed to go to Sima Xiangru's residence.

At this time, Chang'an City was under curfew, and there was no one on the streets or roads. Only a distant firelight proved that soldiers were patrolling.

Upon hearing the order, Wei Qing quickly hung a lamp in front of the carriage.

The new emperor could go wherever he wanted, and the curfew in Chang'an City only applied to ordinary people, not to someone of the rank of Marquis of Pingyang.

He gently cracked the whip, and the carriage began to speed away.

"That Li Shaojun a rather poor reputation in the Northern Border; some people seem to say he's a fraud!"

Li Guang, who was in charge of security, whispered something, and the new emperor then remembered Li Shaojun's judgment that "he was unaware of impending doom."

He gave a soft hum, his right hand touching the ' Red Empyrean Sword ' at his waist.

It is quite difficult to bring disaster upon an emperor.

The carriage he rode in was a top-of-the-line luxury carriage, capable of traveling at maximum speed in case of danger, making it difficult for ordinary people to catch up.

Although Wei Qing's cultivation level has only just entered the Divine Ability Realm and his personal combat strength is not among the best, Wei Qing horsemanship is excellent and few can match it, which is enough to handle most unexpected situations.

Li Guang was the ultimate bodyguard, making it extremely difficult for anyone to infiltrate and assassinate him.

He could leave the palace at will, and return to it just as freely, making it difficult to discern the pattern of his actions and making it virtually impossible to pose a risk to him.

At this time, he went to Sima Xiangru's residence, a journey he had never imagined before, and it was impossible for it to bring any trouble.

Given all these factors, the new emperor did not perceive any risk.

Let's wait and see!

The new emperor's mind was preoccupied with Zhang Xuezhou's explanation, and he almost forgot what Li Shaojun had said earlier. After recalling it for a moment, he didn't care.

He stopped Li Guang from mentioning Li Shaojun further, then closed his eyes in the carriage and pondered Sima Xiangru would analyze and respond.

Sima Xiangru's residence was not far from Old Tree Alley. Wei Qing drove the carriage very fast, and it took less than half an hour to travel through the streets.

After inviting Sima Xiangru from Suiyang City, the new emperor appointed Sima Xiangru a court official.

This was one of the few high-ranking positions he could fill. Whenever a high-ranking official in a prefecture or county became too old to perform his duties, the official could take over as the local chief administrator to manage the situation.

The future looks bright, but this position requires waiting for the right opportunity.

In general, Sima Xiangru's official position was quite leisurely at the time, as it did not hold a position with real power.

Because of the new emperor's high regard for him, Sima Xiangru patient and did not show any dissatisfaction despite the difficulty in advancing his official career.

When the new emperor arrived at Sima Xiangru, he could hear the sound of a zither, like a light drizzle, coming from the dimly lit house.

Sima Xiangru was not asleep at this time.

For Sima Xiangru, the difference between day and night wasn't that great. Even after his eyesight had recovered for several years due to the Technique Method from Zhu Jiuyin's magic, his visibility wasn't very high, and he had become accustomed to playing in the dark.

The new emperor stretched out his hand, and only after Sima Xiangru finished playing his song did he let Wei Qing step forward and knock on the door.

Before anyone inside could respond, Wei Qing easily pushed open the door to the Sima family residence, causing Wei Qing eyes to widen in surprise.

He reached out and pressed down on the sword at his waist, and then he heard a mournful zither tune rising from the courtyard, its sound like weeping and lamenting.

"Begging for mercy is useless. Someone's coming outside. Quickly tell us what happened, so you two won't suffer!"

A low voice echoed throughout the courtyard, making it difficult to pinpoint its location.

The music continued, but then a string snapped in the darkness, followed by a muffled groan from a woman.

"How dare you!"

The newly appointed emperor, who was also listening intently, suddenly jerked his head up. He shouted, Wei Qing had already grabbed the lantern, drawn his sword, and pushed open the door.

"Whoosh!"

On the carriage, Li Guang drew his bowstring.

Li Guang's bowstring had no arrows on it, yet it still emitted a piercing shooting sound.

A slight knocking sound was heard, Li Guang fell silent, remaining firmly beside the new emperor without moving.

Who is it?

"A master!"

The new emperor asked a question, and Li Guang responded in a low voice.

Li Guang frowned slightly.

Lacking the Dragon Horn Bow and the Heaven-Shaking Arrow, Li Guang's weakness in not having divine weapons was difficult to overcome when encountering equally skilled opponents, causing his attack strategies to become more conservative.

After a simple test, Li Guang remained firmly on the carriage.

Sima Xiangru and his wife are cultivators at the Divine Ability Realm; the level of trouble these two cause is unlikely to be low.

If Wei Qing hadn't entered the residence, he would have preferred Wei Qing to drive the carriage away, since his duty was to protect the new emperor of the Weiyang Palace, not to pass by Sima Xiangru's residence in the middle of the night to settle personal grudges.

"How high is it?" the new emperor asked quickly.

"He was able to trap two cultivators at the Divine Ability Realm, meaning his cultivation level was either at the Sole Self Realm or among the best at the Divine Ability Realm; he might also possess extraordinary techniques!"

Li Guang's response greatly displeased the new emperor.

What he needed was an accurate judgment, not a list of all possibilities; Li Guang's answer made no difference whether he said it or not.

The new emperor drew his sword, and countless clanging sounds of swords being drawn echoed throughout the courtyard. The previous drizzle turned into a violent storm, while the sobbing sounds resembled the wails of countless wronged souls.

"Playing tricks!"

The new emperor stormed into the house with his sword, only to see a figure dressed in white with a skull face rushing towards him in a flash.

He swung the fake Red Empyrean Sword with all his might, and the skull-faced figure was struck, its body twisting and falling to the ground.

Before the new emperor could feel any joy, he suddenly felt a lightness in his body.

When he came to his senses, there was no skull-faced figure in front of him; all he could see was Wei Qing, wielding his sword and slowly moving forward, sweeping it left and right.

He was pulled out of the gate by Li Guang behind him.

"Unable to even avoid the influence of aura, he seems to be a pathetic wretch who hasn't even reached the Divine Ability Realm. Truly ignorant and fearless!"

The low voice drifted around, as if echoing in the new emperor's ears, causing his face to flush and his head to feel like it was about to explode.

"Please stop now, sir!"

Li Guang stood in front of the new emperor, and a feathered arrow flew from his longbow.

As if it had collided with something, Li Guang's arrow fell limply to the ground.

The mournful wailing in the courtyard suddenly stopped, replaced by the sound of a string snapping. But in just a moment, the wailing transformed into the howling of a fierce ghost.

Li Guang grunted.

His body shifted slightly in the darkness, and a purple light flashed across his arm, followed by a bloody welt.

As if remembering something, Li Guang was greatly alarmed.

He turned his head to look behind him and saw countless rays of light of various colors emanating from the new emperor's body, and the power of many talismans that had been set up in advance was activated at the same time.

"His Majesty has been attacked!"

Li Guang felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that tonight truly was the night Li Shaojun had predicted would bring 'imminent disaster'.