Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 368: Chapter 365: Proclaiming the Imperial Order

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No matter how gifted he is, in the eyes of the Court ministers, he’s still just a princely heir.

Forget being a princely heir, even as a prince or Prince Ying, overstepping bounds results in a heap of impeachment charges.

The Emperor’s decision will undoubtedly stir up immense dissatisfaction, causing an uproar and unbearable pain.

Chu Qingfeng said, ”Having the girl from Duke An Mansion as a concubine, you wouldn’t agree, and neither would Yao Yue Palace. Making the eighteenth Princess a concubine, Da Zhen wouldn’t agree either. So the only solution for my elder brother is to make them both official wives.”

”The Court ministers won’t agree.”

”My elder brother can suppress them. After all, it involves the Secret Land and concerns the Da Jing Dynasty’s fate, a precedent can be set.”

”It’s a tough spot for our Imperial Grandfather.” Chu Zhiyuan sighed.

He could imagine the storm it would cause, not knowing to what extent it would escalate.

The Emperor surely feels stifled.

He himself feels stifled.

More suffocated is Xiao Ruoling...

Originally the rightful heir’s wife, now there’s another official wife.

Whether personal or within the Prince Mansion, his power was halved.

No one would feel comfortable about this.

Moreover, it involves matters of the heart, making it all the more infuriating.

Even though Xiao Ruoling hails from the State Duke Mansion and is accustomed to such matters of polygamy, it’s still uncomfortable.

In fact, there is a way to resolve this.

Let the eighteenth Princess withdraw voluntarily, unwilling to marry him and leaving Da Jing.

Da Zhen couldn’t say anything then.

They couldn’t possibly swap her out for another princess to marry him.

But this matter still requires careful scheming, preferably with the eighteenth Princess.

The eighteenth Princess is evidently also in a predicament, a pitiable person.

He is forced to marry, and she is forced to wed. Both coerced, yet their situations are worlds apart.

Their stance is aligned: to sabotage this marriage alliance.

But it must be done with caution, testing the waters before deciding.

Else any more waves could cause Da Zhen to retract, not sharing the Secret Land, and he’d become a sinner of Da Jing.

At this thought, he shook his head.

One can’t seize full autonomy in life; destiny is not entirely self-controlled.

Even as a princely heir or princess, such noble stature does not guarantee autonomy.

To gain autonomy, he must strengthen his cultivation, becoming a Great Grandmaster to step out of the chessboard; even if not the player, at least not a pawn.

He must be strong enough to surpass a Great Grandmaster, so that no one, not the Emperor, Da Zhen, or Da Meng, could compel him!

Chu Qingfeng had been observing his expression. Seeing him sigh, he patted his shoulder: ”Treat the eighteenth Princess well; she’s quite decent, don’t bully her.”

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, ”Uncle, she is a princess. I’m not bullying her; she’s bullying me. Don’t forget there’s a Great Grandmaster by her side.”

Chu Qingfeng smiled, ”Indeed, this Great Grandmaster is with her and will always stay.”

Chu Zhiyuan remarked, ”Da Zhen is truly generous.”

Chu Qingfeng shook his head, ”This Great Grandmaster, Zhu Caifu, is the younger sister of the Concubine of Da Zhen and the biological aunt of the eighteenth Princess. She insists on accompanying her; nothing can be done.”

”She’s the Great Grandmaster from Wentian Cliff?”

”Yes, from Wentian Cliff.”

Chu Zhiyuan frowned.

Though he decided to find a way to ruin this marriage, what if it doesn’t succeed?

One must anticipate failure before victory in everything.

If there’s a Wentian Cliff Great Grandmaster in his residence, what could remain hidden from Wentian Cliff?

To guard against Wentian Cliff means to guard against the eighteenth Princess. Such married life with diverging dreams is truly sorrowful.

Seeing his frown, Chu Qingfeng said, ”Rest assured, once she’s in your mansion, she won’t divulge anything to Wentian Cliff.”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, ”Uncle, isn’t that a bit hard to believe?”

”Why not believe it?”

”Who can constrain a Great Grandmaster?”

”Once the eighteenth Princess marries you, this is her home, not Da Zhen. If Zhu Caifu reveals any news of your mansion to Wentian Cliff, the Princess wouldn’t want it.”

Chu Zhiyuan no longer argued.

If it were a Great Grandmaster from another sect, he’d be at ease; Wentian Cliff is different.

”Still uneasy? Zhu Caifu has probably fallen out with Wentian Cliff.”

”Hmm—?”

”Do you know the eighteenth Princess is the Concubine’s child, and this Concubine also has a son, the Seventeenth Prince, who eventually apprenticed to Wentian Cliff? But initially, the Concubine opposed the Seventeenth Prince joining Wentian Cliff.”

”Why oppose it?”

”That’s unknown. The Seventeenth Prince ultimately chose to join Wentian Cliff, with the Concubine unable to oppose her son, yet remained displeased with Wentian Cliff.”

Chu Zhiyuan nodded, anyone in her position would be displeased, feeling that Wentian Cliff incited her son.

”This time, once again, it was Wentian Cliff who insisted on sending the eighteenth Princess over, leading to another fallout with the Concubine... Over the matter of the eighteenth Princess, Zhu Caifu also had a major fallout with Wentian Cliff, ultimately claiming she’d never return to Wentian Cliff.”

”...”

”You’ll be a Great Grandmaster in the future, no need to overly concern yourself with her.”

”That’s true,” Chu Zhiyuan laughed, ”Since she’s fallen out with Wentian Cliff, this Great Grandmaster Zhu is quite formidable.”

Whether Zhu Caifu truly fell out with Wentian Cliff or not, it would be easy to find out.

Moreover, Heavenly Hidden Sect watches silently in the shadows.

——

He left Zhiqiu Hall, exited the Emperor’s South Palace Gate, and strolled leisurely down the street.

From afar, he spotted Huang Shiron amidst the crowd.

The two encountered each other among the crowd once more.

Wen Qianqian and Xu Mengyu, still clad in snow-white garments, followed behind Huang Shiron, smiling at him.

...

”The owner of that blade?” Huang Shiron gently shook her head, ”It’s said that it was retrieved by one of our Patriarchs from elsewhere, said to be the blade of a Great Grandmaster, possibly a thousand years old. No one ever touched it since we don’t practice sword techniques.”

Chu Zhiyuan nodded.

The White Cloud Sword Palace had no tradition of sword techniques.

Hence, naturally, there was little interest in swords, leaving it in a corner to gather dust was unsurprising.

”I heard this time you sought out a Great Grandmaster’s blade, and Elder Guo remembered this blade.”

”This blade’s material is ordinary, yet it contains the Sword Intent of a Great Grandmaster, greatly beneficial to me.”

”That’s wonderful then.”

If it’s been a thousand years, that Patriarch should have long passed away, making it hard to trace its owner.

So be it.

Reaching perfection in the Spirit Transformation Realm, I should be able to subdue the Sword Intent within the blade. Then I might be able to use the Spirit Summoning Talisman.

If I can invoke the Spirit Summoning Talisman, I might unravel the true history of this blade.

”Oh, Hall Master Zhao asked me to apologize on his behalf.”

”What’s to apologize for,” Chu Zhiyuan smiled, ”The decision was made by the Flying Sky Sect Master.”

”He feels that his sect was rather inconsiderate,” Huang Shiron smiled, ”feeling embarrassed, hence too ashamed to face Your Highness.”

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, ”Tell him not to worry, I’m not one to be petty. The Heavenly Blade belongs to Flying Sky Sect. Whether to show or not is Flying Sky Sect’s prerogative, no one can force it.”

Huang Shiron nodded gently.

In her heart, however, she shook her head.

The princely heir possesses exceptional insight and unparalleled talent, but to say he is magnanimous would be a lie.

The princely heir displays an appearance of magnanimity, but in truth, is one to repay grievances.

The Flying Sky Sect has thoroughly offended him this time and will suffer in the future.

The Flying Sky Sect Master, clueless about the princely heir’s disposition, made a direct refusal, which was particularly unwise.

This has laid the groundwork for significant hidden dangers, truly perplexing how Flying Sky Sect came to such a decision.

Couldn’t any of the elders in the sect offer sensible advice or have a clear perspective?

She silently shook her head repeatedly, smiling, ”Congratulations, Your Highness, on marrying the eighteenth Princess Your Highness.”

”Mocking me.”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled bitterly and waved his hand, clasping his fists in farewell.

He walked on, pondering in his mind how to visit Flying Sky Sect.

The next day presented the opportunity, as the Court issued a commendation to Flying Sky Sect.

He took up this assignment, to announce the decree to Flying Sky Sect.

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