233: Ten Sons

Chapter 231: Ten Sons

Having already reached the twentieth child, Zheng Yi was long experienced in this.

After accepting greetings from a crowd of people, he sat heavily and imposingly in the main seat, waiting quietly.

"Your Majesty ~ Qing Consort has boundless fortune, she will be fine."

Empress Lu Liner, who was standing to the side, whispered. Over all these years, she had also vaguely heard some things.

His Majesty and several imperial concubines were all practicing cultivation.

For example, Consort Cui, Consort Chan, Consort Yu, Consort Yin, as well as Qing Consort who was currently in labor, and so on.

This gave her a sense of crisis.

Moreover, over the past few years, the inner palace had suddenly gained nineteen imperial princes and princesses, among whom there were nine imperial princes.

If Qing Consort were to give birth to another imperial prince, that would make ten imperial princes!

By then, the competition for her Ji'er would be immense.

She must find a way to win over several imperial concubines to form an alliance and gather support for her son's future.

The greatest threat to her at present was undoubtedly Consort Cui.

Consort Yang was a criminal bearing guilt and only had a daughter, posing little threat.

Moreover, over the past two years, His Majesty's visits to the chambers of those two had noticeably decreased significantly.

On the contrary, Consort Cui, Consort Chan, and Consort Yu were greatly favored by His Majesty.

Most importantly, all three of them also had an imperial prince.

Vaguely, the three of them grew extremely close and quickly formed an alliance.

There was also Consort Duan Xu Qingluan, who had a son and a daughter and had Xu Mujun behind her, having also won over Consort De Li Changle and others.

Consort Duan's prestige within the inner palace was not the least bit inferior to hers.

In the entire inner palace now, the only ones she could form an alliance with were unexpectedly just Consort Yin and Qing Consort.

"Mn."

Zheng Yi nodded, but his thoughts were not on Lu Liner's words.

As long as Qing Consort gave birth to an imperial prince, his Yin Yang Treasure Mirror could open the second three thousand worlds, and he wondered what kind of world it would be.

"Your Majesty, what do you think of the suggestion I raised?"

"Hm?"

Zheng Yi only then snapped back to his senses and asked, "What suggestion?"

Lu Liner said, "Now half of the concubines in the palace are recuperating and unable to take care of Your Majesty, and the rest of the women in the inner palace are all clumsy, which Your Majesty dislikes. Why not hold another nationwide imperial concubine selection?"

"What did you say, a selection?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, seven or eight years have already passed since the last selection, which is long enough."

Lu Liner said, "According to custom, the imperial selection is held once every three years. Although Your Majesty selected quite a few maidens during the first selection, chronologically speaking, it is about time for the second one……"

There were two reasons why she brought this matter up.

First, with more newcomers in the inner palace, His Majesty's visits to Consort Cui and the others would inevitably decrease.

Second, their Lu Family had also scouted many outstanding women. If they could all catch Your Majesty's Dharma Eye, her own influence and right to speak would naturally both increase.

Zheng Yi's heart stirred; if there was a selection, wouldn't that mean his lifespan would continue to increase?

Blood-sacrificing the Reincarnation Nine Infant Fruit and that Spirit-Devouring Insect obtained from the Zheng Clan Treasure Trove both required a massive amount of vital blood. If he were to…

After thinking for a moment, Zheng Yi still shook his head.

The top priority right now was the second three thousand worlds.

The matter of the selection could be delayed a bit longer.

Besides, with the south of the Great Yu currently fighting a war and the northern border threatened by Wu Country, how could he carry out a nationwide imperial selection activity at a time like this?

At the very least, he had to wait until the court affairs stabilized before talking about it.

"Let us discuss this matter another day. Right now, the south is still campaigning against rebels, and the Wu Country in the north is relentlessly entangling us. We will talk about it once the state is secure."

Lu Liner immediately said, "Your Majesty is wise, this concubine is terrified."

His Majesty did not consent?

It seemed she could only let them wait a little longer.

"Wuwuwu…~"

Just at that moment, a burst of weeping came from inside the bedchamber.

Zheng Yi instinctively stood up. "Qing Consort has given birth?"

"Your Majesty…!"

Right at that moment, Liu Chengen walked in with quick strides, his face brimming with an excited smile.

"Your Majesty! A great victory, a great victory…!"

"Oh?"

Zheng Yi smiled and asked, "What joyful event is there?"

"Your Majesty!"

Liu Chengen said, "A battle report has come from Qingzhou. General Xu has already led troops to annihilate the White Lotus Sect, personally beheaded the Holy Mother of the White Lotus Sect, and killed over three hundred thousand members of the White Lotus Sect."

"The remaining members of the White Lotus Sect either routed or surrendered to the imperial court's army…."

"Over three hundred thousand…"

Upon hearing this number, Zheng Yi's heart could not help but violently twitch.

The vast majority of these three hundred thousand people were ordinary commoners.

Yet because of the nation's turmoil, they were swept into the torrent of history and unfortunately perished.

Among this, part of the reason was because of himself!

If not for his own stubborn insistence, prematurely tossing a bunch of firewood onto the Great Yu's pile of flames, they wouldn't have died so quickly.

But…

The longer it dragged on, the more people would die!

Only by cutting through the chaos swiftly with a sharp knife could an entire golden age be ushered in as soon as possible!

These thoughts merely swirled through Zheng Yi's mind before he quickly cast them to the back of his head.

"What were our army's casualties? What about General Xu?"

Liu Chengen said, "Because our army possesses the power of firearms, our casualties were less than twenty thousand. We have already occupied Guangqing City and are currently recuperating."

"As for General Xu, he was not injured and is currently presiding over various affairs in Qingzhou."

"Good!"

Zheng Yi laughed heartily, "Hahaha… Today is truly a double blessing."

Liu Chengen smiled and said, "Your Majesty, there is yet another joyful event~"

"Oh? What is it?"

"Didn't General Meng Guang kill a Cultivator in Yunmeng Marsh a few days ago? The corpse of that Cultivator has already been secretly escorted back to the capital. Look, Your Majesty…"

Zheng Yi's eyes flashed as he said, "Oh? The corpse of that Middle Stage Qi-refining Cultivator from the Tuoba Family?"

In this great battle, several Cultivators had already died at the hands of the Great Yu Dynasty's army.

Regarding the Nanyue County Cultivator that Xu Mujun killed in Yunzhou, Zheng Yi had specifically ordered Xu Mujun to dispose of it as he saw fit.

After all, as long as a Martial Artist was willing to consume vital blood, they could also use a Cultivator's Magical Artifact.

As for now, the corpse of the Yunmeng Marsh Cultivator who died at the hands of Meng Guang's army had been transported to the capital.

"Good! A triple blessing, hahaha…"

Just at that moment, the door of the bedchamber was opened by the wet nurse, who came out holding a small infant.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty, felicitations to Your Majesty! Qing Consort has given birth, and it is an imperial prince!"

"Gasp…~!"

In an instant, the concubines and palace attendants present were all so shocked they could not speak.

An imperial prince.

Another imperial prince.

In the past few years, the concubines of the inner palace had successively given birth to ten princesses.

At the time, everyone thought the fengshui of Great Yu was wrong and that it couldn't produce boys.

Who would have thought that after the world fell into chaos, within a mere three years, the inner palace would unexpectedly give birth to ten imperial princes all at once!

For the entire imperial court, this was undoubtedly a great joy.

Zheng Yi laughed heartily, "Rewards! Rewards for everyone!"

"Many thanks, Your Majesty!"

Zheng Yi teased the child for a moment before getting up and entering the bedchamber to check on Qing Consort.

"Your Majesty~"

Although Qing Consort's complexion was somewhat pale, her spirit was undoubtedly very good.

She was only seventeen years old now, exactly the time when her Physique was at its best; childbirth did not place a very heavy burden on her.

"Beloved Consort, quickly sit properly, there is no need to get up to pay respects."

Zheng Yi supported Qing Consort and let her lean against the quilt.

"This concubine has not failed the mission entrusted to her, and has given birth to an imperial prince for Your Majesty…"

"Beloved Consort has worked hard."

Zheng Yi stroked Qing Consort's small face, his eyes full of heartache, and spoke many words of care.

He had already said these words more than a dozen times and was incomparably familiar with them.

But for Qing Consort, it was undoubtedly the first time hearing them, making her even more moved as she hugged Zheng Yi's large hand and refused to let go.

"Alright, Beloved Consort, I have already chosen a name for our child. Don't you want to know?"

Zheng Yi rubbed Qing Consort's head. Qing Consort shyly raised her head and asked, "Your Majesty, I wonder what name you have chosen for our child?"

"Tai."

Zheng Yi said concisely, "Tai means peace and stability, the communion of heaven and earth, and the thorough circulation of all things."

"Internal yang and external yin, internal strength and external compliance, internal gentleman and external petty person—the way of the gentleman grows, while the way of the petty person wanes."

"At the time this child was born, General Xu of Qingzhou broke through Guangqing City of the White Lotus Sect and annihilated the White Lotus Sect, and our Great Yu is on the verge of pacifying the south. This is truly a double blessing."

"Therefore, I have named this child 'Zheng Chengtai'. I wonder what Beloved Consort thinks?"

"Chengtai, Chengtai…"

Qing Consort murmured a few times, then hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, the character 'Tai' could possibly be the same as 'Crown [Prince]', wouldn't there be a taboo conflict with the name of the Crown Prince?"

"Hehehe…"

Zheng Yi smiled faintly, "Beloved Consort need not mind. I have thought of this matter before, but so what?"

"I have ten sons; who will be the Crown Prince is not yet certain."

"Perhaps in the future, there will be even more imperial princes, hahaha…"

"Or perhaps, there would only be a Crown Prince for a hundred, or even a thousand years!"

Qing Consort's heart stirred, and she immediately lowered her head submissively, saying, "This concubine will obey Your Majesty's commands in everything."

"Good!"

Zheng Yi stroked her head again and said attentively, "Beloved Consort, rest first. I still have other matters to process."

"Respectfully sending off Your Majesty!"

After leaving Changqing Palace and dismissing the Empress, Zheng Yi walked toward White Jade Capital.

He did not notice the strange look in Lu Liner's eyes behind him.

"'Tai'? Doesn't this conflict with my Ji'er's position as Crown Prince?"

"Is His Majesty doing this unintentionally, or on purpose?"

"Qing Consort's maternal family is merely a minor official in the Ministry of Rites. What on earth does His Majesty mean?"

Zheng Yi paid no attention to the speculations of the people in the palace. Instead, he arrived at White Jade Capital and saw the corpse of Tuoba Qingtong sent back by Meng Guang.

Inside the grand hall, a huge stone coffin was placed.

A naval envoy carefully attended by the side and said, "Your Majesty, this is the Cultivator's corpse that General Meng ordered us to deliver."

"Along the way, we used lime, dark salt, and other items to ensure the corpse did not decay. Please inspect it, Your Majesty."

Zheng Yi said calmly, "Open it."

"Understood!"

Several Imperial Guards walked over and joined forces to open the coffin.

A pungent smell immediately wafted over. Zheng Yi waved his hand to disperse the odor and walked over.

Inside the stone coffin lay the corpse of a young man around thirty years of age.

The young man was dressed in a cyan robe with a look of shock on his face, and his body was densely covered with a thick layer of lime and dark salt.

Zheng Yi carefully inspected it and discovered a Storage Pouch at his waist.

Aside from that, there was nothing else.

"Your Majesty."

The envoy cautiously pulled a wooden box from his bosom and respectfully handed it up.

"What is contained in this box is that Cultivator's Flying Sword. When that Cultivator was killed, the Flying Sword he used accidentally fell into Yunmeng Marsh. Our soldiers spent a full three days and nights salvaging it."

"Otherwise, we would have sent this corpse back a few days earlier."

Zheng Yi nodded and said, "Present it."

"Understood!"

Liu Chengen walked over quickly, took the wooden box, and then respectfully handed it to Zheng Yi.

Opening it to take a look, a faint mist dissipated.

Looking closely, sure enough, a Flying Sword about three inches long, entirely blue and crystal-like, was lying inside the wooden box.

"Flying Sword… This Spiritual Qi fluctuation doesn't seem to have suffered much loss."

Zheng Yi murmured, but quickly thought of something.

This Tuoba Qingtong had been killed by the Blood Moon Gu with extreme speed, and he hadn't had time to resist.

Naturally, this Flying Sword wouldn't have suffered much loss.

He wondered what grade this Flying Sword actually was.