4: The enemy is at the gate, Prince Zhenyang!

"Prince Zhenyang?"

Suddenly, the image of that defeated general who couldn't withstand a single blow flashed into Meng Yun's mind.

It can't be... Is he the mastermind behind all this?

Meng Yun had a sudden realization.

In this world, martial cultivators are divided into the Acquired Realm, the Innate Realm, and the legendary Earth Immortal Realm.

An expert in the Acquired Realm could easily break through a formation of a hundred ordinary people without suffering a scratch;

An expert in the Innate Realm could face a thousand ordinary people simultaneously and still retreat unscathed;

As for the Earth Immortal...

To this day, no one has reached that Realm. However, it is said that an Earth Immortal, even when facing a hundred thousand Innate experts, could easily defeat them. Against ordinary people, they would be a true match for ten thousand!

Martial Universe Qiankun, as an Innate expert, absolutely has the qualifications to be this mastermind!

If not for his own anomaly of possessing Innate Divine Power, Martial Universe Qiankun alone could have made all the Prodigies hang their heads in shame. With his army, the world would be within his grasp!

Meng Yun frowned: "What is Martial Universe Qiankun's current strength?"

"The Peak of the Acquired Realm," Wu Yinyao's voice came through.

"We can't wait any longer. We must take the initiative and strike..." Meng Yun made up his mind.

Without his Innate Divine Power, given time, if Prince Zhenyang achieved a Breakthrough to the Innate Realm, even if Prince Zhenyang stood there and let him hit him, he wouldn't be able to inflict the slightest harm.

Moreover, Prince Zhenyang also commanded the iron-blooded army stationed at the border, defending against Yao Beast invasions!

[Year 661 of Martial Country, the first Five-Year Plan you drafted received the emperor's attention, and you were promoted to Left Vice-Minister of the Ministry of War. Over the following year, the court implemented multiple strategies. Though seemingly unrelated on the surface, they were all part of a high state of vigilance against Prince Zhenyang's potential counterattack and retaliation.]

[That same year, due to your national policies, Martial Country showed signs of a mid-dynasty revival. Several rebellions that should have occurred vanished before they even appeared.]

[Your reputation increased. Some began calling you the White Cloud Virtuous Minister.]

[You went out and tripped and fell.]

[You stayed indoors and didn't go out.]

[Wu Yinyao's secret meetings and visits became more frequent. Rumors spread that the emperor seemed to intend to bestow Wu Yinyao's hand in marriage upon you.]

[The next day, the emperor clarified that it was not a rumor. The grand wedding was set for the third day of the third month next spring. It was already autumn, leaving half a year until the marriage.]

"This time, Wu Yinyao won't slit my throat, right?" Meng Yun stood in his home, facing a sand table he had ordered to be made.

On the sand table was a detailed map of the capital.

Under his arrangements, several waves of rebel forces were about to approach the capital. When the time came, the capital's defensive forces would be dispatched, leaving the city's defenses empty. Then, Prince Zhenyang would surely march his troops to the city gates under the banner of 'rescuing the emperor'!

Autumn leaves spiraled down from the trees in the courtyard. Wu Yinyao, holding a long pole, was knocking down dates in the yard.

"Master! Come quickly and knock down dates with me!" Wu Yinyao's silvery voice rang out.

Nearly sixteen years old, Wu Yinyao had almost fully blossomed. Compared to the previous simulation, though she was two years younger now, she had grown even more breathtakingly beautiful.

"Coming." Meng Yun swatted over the small flag representing Prince Zhenyang and walked into the courtyard.

Whenever Wu Yinyao referred to herself as 'Ben Gong' (this palace), it meant she didn't want Meng Yun to refuse.

He understood this all too well.

Wu Yinyao wore a light red palace dress. As she raised her arm to knock the dates, her flowing sleeves fell down, revealing her fair, jade-like arm.

Meng Yun's gaze momentarily froze. In the previous simulation, this very arm had held him tightly countless times.

"Aren't you cold?" Meng Yun chided, pulling Wu Yinyao's sleeve back into place, only for it to slip down again as soon as he let go.

"Give it to me, I'll do it!"

Meng Yun took the pole.

[You activated Qimen Dunjia. Your hit rate increased.]

He swung the pole hard. A date flew off with a sound, arcing through the air before landing with a *thwack* directly on someone who had just entered the courtyard.

Good grief, so that's the kind of 'hit rate'!

Meng Yun looked towards the sound. It was Luo Mian.

At eighteen, Luo Mian was tall and sturdy. Under the training of the imperial experts, his spear skills had long reached a level of perfection.

His own strength had also surpassed his Master's, reaching the Peak of the Acquired Realm.

"Meng Yun, you fight dirty! I came to bring you wine, and you ambush me!" Luo Mian clutched his head with one hand, holding fine wine with the other, muttering complaints until he noticed the princess was also present.

"I pay my respects to Your Highness the Princess!" Luo Mian hurriedly bowed.

"No need for formalities." With an outsider present, Wu Yinyao also shed her casual demeanor, adopting a dignified posture that made one dare not look directly at her.

"Since it is a reunion between brothers, it is not fitting for Ben Gong to linger. I am also rather tired." Wu Yinyao glanced back, secretly winking at Meng Yun. That backward glance held a hundred charms.

"Prepare the carriage, I return to the palace!"

"We respectfully send off Your Highness the Princess!" Meng Yun and Luo Mian stood side by side, bowing in farewell.

As soon as Wu Yinyao left, Luo Mian reverted to his usual self: "Hey, does that little lady come running to your house every day?"

"Tsk, she's the current princess. Watch your mouth, show some respect..." Meng Yun said helplessly.

"Bah, I'm just a country bumpkin with no father or mother. I'm not afraid even if the sky falls!" As he spoke, he patted Meng Yun's chest, the force nearly causing the latter to end the simulation prematurely: "Besides, if the sky falls, won't you be there to hold it up?"

"Be mindful in front of others. You are, after all, a famous expert in the capital."

"I know, I know." Luo Mian placed the wine on the stone table and plopped down on a stool: "Sigh, ever since that day when we were nine, it feels like everything changed."

"At least it's for the better, isn't it?" Meng Yun poured wine for both of them and clinked cups.

"Good wine!" Luo Mian laughed heartily: "Such fine wine, who knows when we'll get to drink it again next time!"

Then a thought occurred to him. He slapped Meng Yun's shoulder, making the latter grimace: "On your wedding day, we brothers will get thoroughly drunk again!"

"Better not. I'm looking forward to my wedding night, you know. Haven't you heard? When you're drunk, you can't get it up..." Meng Yun, a bit tipsy, began to ramble.

"Oh, come on. Wedding night? With your frail body... tsk tsk." Luo Mian shook his head, pursing his lips.

He was genuinely worried his good brother wouldn't be able to get out of bed.

"Speaking of which, in at most half a month, news of the capital's empty defenses and being attacked from both sides will reach Martial Universe Qiankun's ears. Old Luo, are you ready for the battle?" Meng Yun sounded somewhat worried.

With the experience from the previous simulation, he clearly knew just how invincible that Martial Universe Qiankun appeared in the eyes of others.

But Luo Mian in this life had also reached the Peak of the Acquired Realm. It wasn't necessarily a fight he couldn't win.

"Bah, when soldiers come, we have generals to block them; when water comes, we have earth to dam it. At worst, we die with our faces to the sky." Luo Mian didn't seem particularly concerned.

In his heart, someone like him was born with a life as cheap as grass. It was only by catching the tailwind of his brother's rise that he had come all the way to the capital, achieved success, and gained respect.

Taking a knife for his brother's plans was a death not to be regretted. These years of glory, wealth, and honor had already left him completely satisfied.

"Bottoms up." Meng Yun said no more and drank heartily with him.

With a brother like this, what more could one ask for?

At this moment, Meng Yun could no longer distinguish between what was simulation and what was reality.

For him, everything he experienced was real.

[Half a month later, six bands of bandits assaulted the capital gates. Under your arrangements, news of the capital's empty defenses had long since spread far and wide. For a time, everyone feared for their safety, and the imperial family seemed on the verge of collapse.]

[You remained calm in the face of danger. Your unparalleled wisdom and strategies, combined with Qimen Dunjia, allowed you to repel the bandits' attacks multiple times with minimal troops and resources. It seemed as long as you were there, the capital was as solid as a fortress.]

[You had undoubtedly become the number one person under the imperial authority.]

[The emperor seemed to develop suspicions about you, but under the joint guarantees of the crown prince and princess, you remained unharmed.]

[Three days later, Prince Zhenyang led a hundred thousand troops to the capital's gates.]

"I am the emperor's younger brother, the current Prince Zhenyang, Martial Universe Qiankun. I have come specifically to quell the rebels and rescue the emperor! Open the city gates at once!"

Martial Universe Qiankun sat alone on his horse, with a hundred thousand troops behind him.

Meng Yun stood on the city wall, his gaze meeting that of Martial Universe Qiankun, who sat astride a date-red demonic horse, across the distance.

No words were exchanged, but the silence held weight.

We meet again, you fool waiting to be killed.