Buying His Help

"It failed to hold up again!"

In the King of Huainan's Household, Princess Liu Ling received a message delivered by A Qiao.

Looking at the words on the message, Liu Ling felt speechless.

He was lucky enough to become a high-ranking official in the imperial court, but just two days after leaving the King of Huainan's Household, he was dismissed from his post and forced to wear a gray robe like a eunuch, a stark contrast to his previous treatment.

If Zhang Xuezhou was a promising young talent in the past, the other party has now faded into obscurity.

"Is there any chance this guy can turn his luck around?"

Liu Ling pondered for a few seconds, and for a moment she even regretted sending A Qiao away.

But the thought that Zhang Xuezhou had a strangely powerful cultivator backing him made her heart sink.

Regardless of Zhang Xuezhou's official rank, the fact that the other party is consistently lucky means that he still possesses significant value.

For Princess Liu Ling, she only hesitated for three seconds before sticking to her previous judgment.

It took Zhuang Qingdi Zhuang Qingdi full hours to figure out the whole thing, but he acted with lightning speed.

"I beg Lord Dongfang to save me!"

Zhang Xuezhou seemed to have climbed over the wall from the neighboring house, but that wasn't the point, and Zhuang Qingdi had no time to consider why Zhang Xuezhou was at the neighboring house.

He was politely welcomed in by Zhang Xuezhou, and then he immediately revealed the purpose of his visit.

"Lord Zhuang, your words have truly frightened me!"

Upon hearing Zhuang Qingdi's words, Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but look surprised, feeling that Zhuang Qingdi's words had been too harsh.

"You've escaped your identity as a member of Anle Palace, but we can't," Zhuang Qingdi said bitterly. "Our good days are over too!"

Having guessed the truth from Xu Chang, Zhuang Qingdi Dowager's position at Anle Palace was now hopeless.

Without the Empress Dowager's suppression and deterrence, Xu Chang, Zhuang Qingdi, and others would not have been able to support the court, nor would they have been able to maintain it.

Leaving aside others, even Li Guang, who was close to the new emperor, would pose a significant threat to them. Cheng Bushi and others maintained a distant relationship with Anle Palace, and did not choose to take sides in the court while protecting Anle Palace.

They're like a paper tiger right now; they'll collapse if you really try to touch them.

"If you don't want to be an official, then don't be one," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"I can resign, but I still want to cling to the Great Han," Zhuang Qingdi said bitterly. "When we were officials, we offended many people. If we can't retire safely, there will be many who will kick us when we're down, and we'll be brought down sooner or later!"

"You also have the status of a hereditary marquis; even if you didn't become an official, no one would dare to offend you!"

Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand, indicating that Zhuang Qingdi was fine. Even without the official title of Imperial Censor, no one would dare to look down on this Marquis of Wuqiang.

As a hereditary marquisate, the Zhuang family's power was extremely stable, unlike Han Anguo, a lone great cultivator.

Moreover, Zhuang Qingdi's cultivation level is not weak, as he is able to stand on the front line of the imperial court.

As long as he isn't targeted by top-tier experts, Zhuang Qingdi will be safe.

"Have you offended Commander Li?"

After belatedly realizing what was happening, Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but take a closer look at Zhuang Qingdi.

"I don't have much of a relationship with Commander Li, so I can't help you with this," Zhang Xuezhou quickly waved his hand.

I didn't offend Li Guang!

Seeing that Zhang Xuezhou had almost guessed the general situation, Zhuang Qingdi's heart couldn't help but skip a beat.

Zhuang Qingdi was nearly fifty years old and had gained a lot of experience, which gave him such a sharp reaction. When he was in his twenties or thirties, Zhuang Qingdi was far from being able to reach Zhang Xuezhou's level.

He was momentarily surprised by Zhang Xuezhou's perceptiveness, and at the same time, he felt he needed to quickly explain the relevant matters in order to resolve the real problem.

"Before Anle Palace collapses, our resignation would be tantamount to desertion," Zhuang Qingdi said in a deep voice. "We only have one chance to resign!"

"Well?"

"But we need to be able to live to that time normally," Zhuang Qingdi said.

What do you mean?

"If the Empress Dowager is buried in the future, it will likely attract attention and visits," Zhuang Qingdi said. "Our abilities are limited, and we are unable to handle the overall situation. We hope that Lord Dongfang will lend us a hand!"

"My cultivation level is so low, it wouldn't even be enough to fill a tooth gap!"

Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand repeatedly after hearing this.

He came here unaware of Zhuang Qingdi's ulterior motives and had no intention of falling for Zhuang Qingdi's tricks.

Secondly, Zhang Xuezhou's abilities are indeed limited, making him unable to participate in top-level confrontations.

He refused decisively, and even got up to see the guest out.

"Lord Dongfang, please wait!"

Zhuang Qingdi reached out and took out a piece of silk cloth from his bosom.

"I don't need Lord Dongfang to send anyone," Zhuang Qingdi said. "I only ask Lord Dongfang to help me find someone to assist me!"

Zhuang Qingdi unfolded the silk cloth and pointed to the pattern drawn on it.

"I observe that Lord Dongfang's residence is of ordinary condition and extremely far from the Imperial City District. If Lord Dongfang can help me contact Master Li Shaojun, I will gladly gift this small residence of mine to Lord Dongfang!"

Zhuang Qingdi pointed to the silk cloth.

His piece of silk cloth depicted a house, bore a double red seal, and also contained numerous handprints, clearly indicating it was a contract.

For Zhang Xuezhou, his house is not enough to live in.

But for Zhuang Qingdi, he already owned Zhuang Qingdi's mansion, the official residence of the Grand Censor (one of the Three Dukes), and other properties. This land deed was also part of his property.

He offered land deeds and properties as gifts, demonstrating his utmost sincerity and earnestness, and this was merely the price he paid for contacting Li Shaojun.

"Master Li Shaojun?"

Zhang Xuezhou hesitated for a moment.

He felt that Zhuang Qingdi was praying to the gods and Buddhas in the wrong direction, and that Li Shaojun was even less capable than him and had no chance of protecting Zhuang Qingdi.

"Master Li possesses the cultivation of the True Self Realm cultivator. Even if his Technique Method are slightly inferior, he can still withstand any unforeseen events," Zhuang Qingdi said sincerely. "We don't need Master Li to fight against top experts alone. As long as he can hold on, we can provide support from the flanks and join forces to repel the enemy!"

"Let Li Shaojun fight head-on, he..."

Zhang Xuezhou felt that it was better to invite himself than Li Shaojun. At least Zhang Xuezhou could take a direct hit, while Li Shaojun would die in a single direct attack.

He did like Zhuang Qingdi's land deed, but even if he invited Li Shaojun, the matter would still be ruined, thus getting Zhang Xuezhou into trouble.

"Master Li has fully recovered from his injuries and has been practicing his Technique Method at Anle Palace these past few days. I believe that the strength Master Li has demonstrated is sufficient to stabilize the situation, so it's impossible for anything unexpected to happen," Zhuang Qingdi said. "My judgment has always been sound, and I would never harm Master Li. Even if Zhu Jiuyin himself came to Chang'an City, that old demon would definitely not come out unscathed!"

"Practicing Technique Method at Anle Palace!"

Zhang Xuezhou originally thought that Zhuang Qingdi had invited Li Shaojun, but he didn't expect that Zhuang Qingdi's real target was Divine Lord Zhenyuan.

Li Shaojun couldn't handle this kind of trouble, but Divine Lord Zhenyuan was indeed fine.

Zhang Xuezhou was also curious: Zhuang Qingdi could bribe him with a land deed, but what could the other party offer to bribe Divine Lord Zhenyuan to cooperate?