316: Martial Arts Exchange Conference

Pingyang Palace.

This was the place where the Emperor of Great Qian usually reviewed and approved memorials.

The Emperor of Great Qian sat on the Dragon Throne, carefully examining the memorials submitted from various regions, while the Second Prince, Li Dongyun, stood below.

The current Great Qian Empire was not a place where the corruption started from the top.

On the contrary, the entire Empire's strength was incomparably solid; the Emperor of Great Qian possessed supreme intellect, and many of the princes were remarkably clever as well.

Take the Second Prince, Li Dongyun, for example; he had been extremely sensitive to government affairs since childhood and held his own unique insights, so the Emperor of Great Qian would occasionally bring Li Dongyun along to discuss state affairs.

Li Dongyun bowed and said, "Father, the banditry in Xinyang is severe. I specifically sent people to investigate, and these bandits are actually raised by the Prefect of Xinyang for the purpose of extorting the people's wealth."

"It is precisely because of the Xinyang Prefect's secret tip-offs that they have been able to escape every time during the government troops' suppression campaigns."

Xinyang was located on the edge of the Great Qian Empire, where the Emperor's authority had little reach, so the local officials acted as recklessly as little emperors themselves.

Over the years, the people in Xinyang had lived in utter misery, and they had petitioned the capital more than once.

The imperial court had also sent troops to suppress them, but unfortunately, those bandits were as slippery as loaches; they could never be completely wiped out, and they even suffered heavy casualties.

After listening to Li Dongyun, a flash of coldness appeared on the majestic face of the Emperor of Great Qian.

"Then, according to your opinion, Yun'er, how should this matter be handled?"

Li Dongyun immediately replied, "Our Great Qian Empire has strong troops and sturdy horses; as for mere Xinyang, I believe we should simply send men to arrest the Xinyang Prefect and bring him to the capital for interrogation."

The Emperor of Great Qian heard this, looked at him silently, and then said, "Let it be done as you say."

Just then, a figure approached quickly and whispered into the ear of the Emperor of Great Qian.

"What?" The Emperor of Great Qian frowned, his tone laced with anger. "What on earth is he trying to do? I’ve turned a blind eye to all the unsavory things he usually does, but is this something he can get involved in too?"

"Tell Li Chengqian to get over here immediately!"

Seeing the Emperor of Great Qian enraged, the eunuch was terrified and hurriedly accepted the order, leaving the great hall.

News had just arrived that Li Chengqian had signed up for the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting with the Great Han Empire in three days, an event jointly hosted by the Great Qian Empire and the Great Han Empire.

It was held once a year, with both Empires sending ten people from their younger generation. The final winner would not only be directly appointed as a Cavalry General but would also receive a large reward.

Martial Dao was flourishing in the current Xuanhuang Realm, so such competitions naturally attracted a lot of attention.

The Fifth Prince, Li Chengqian, was a recognized failure—good for nothing in both literature and martial arts. For such a failure to participate in the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting would simply smear the reputation of their Great Qian Empire.

He usually couldn't be bothered to ask about the reputation-damaging things Li Chengqian did, as they weren't very serious.

But the nature of this Martial Dao Exchange Meeting was completely different.

Seeing his father somewhat angry, Li Dongyun couldn't help but ask, "Father, what has the Fifth Prince done?"

The Emperor of Great Qian sighed, the anger on his face shifting into a faint killing intent. "He participated in the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting and used the special Imperial selection quota to become one of the ten members. Now that the participant list has been released, it's too late to withdraw."

Ah? Li Dongyun was instantly dumbfounded. Was the Fifth Prince actually such an idiot? How could he do something like this?

One had to know that this was the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting; the participants from both sides were almost all the strongest of the younger generation from the two Empires.

As far as he knew, there was even a young Prodigy who was a half-step Martial Dao Grandmaster from the Great Han Empire participating this time. Of course, the Great Qian Empire had one too.

No wonder his father was so angry. The foolish things Li Chengqian usually did didn't hurt the foundation, but this matter truly damaged the reputation of the entire Great Qian Empire.

He could already imagine the scene of Li Chengqian being defeated on the arena stage. He would certainly be subjected to endless ridicule! This bad reputation might even implicate his father; after all, Li Chengqian was a prince, and his father was the reigning Emperor.

Li Dongyun immediately said, "Father, I have a plan that can turn this scandal into a good thing."

"Oh? Let's hear it," the Emperor of Great Qian said indifferently.

Li Dongyun spoke with a serious expression, "Although I don't know why the Fifth Prince wanted to participate in the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting, I believe he must have wanted to win face for the Great Qian Empire. His starting point was good, he just didn't consider his own strength."

"Although the quota cannot be adjusted, there is still room to maneuver regarding the order of appearance. We only need to arrange for him to appear last, and then promote the idea that the intense Martial Dao atmosphere of our Great Qian Empire influenced the Fifth Prince, which is why he actively participated in the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting. If we publicize it this way, even if he loses in the end, it won't have any negative impact."

"At the very least, outsiders won't think that Li Chengqian was overestimating his own capabilities."

The Great Qian Empire almost always won the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting, so Li Dongyun instinctively assumed that placing Li Chengqian last would still result in a win. The main combat strength was all there; it didn't matter if Li Chengqian was involved or not.

The Emperor of Great Qian thought for a moment and then nodded, "Fine. Someone come, tell Li Chengqian he doesn't need to come."

The Emperor of Great Qian disliked this Fifth Prince intensely; he couldn't even be bothered to see him, and he didn't even care to lecture him.

Now he was just waiting for the Martial Dao Exchange Meeting to end, and then he would find some random excuse to lock him away in the cold palace.

"That's all, Yun'er, you may go as well." Li Dongyun bowed and respectfully said, "I will take my leave."

After Li Dongyun left, only the Emperor of Great Qian and the eunuch beside him remained in the great hall. The eyes of the Emperor of Great Qian were filled with coldness.

"Have you found out clearly?" Eunuch Liu hurriedly and respectfully replied, "Reporting to Your Majesty, this servant has already ordered the secret guards to investigate clearly. A portion of the banditry in Xinyang is indeed related to the Xinyang Prefect."

"However, another portion is not the work of the Xinyang Prefect, but rather..." Halfway through, his tone paused slightly, and he seemed afraid to continue.

"Speak!" The voice of the Emperor of Great Qian rang out, and an aura of imperial might rushed forth, causing Eunuch Liu to tremble uncontrollably.

"Your Majesty, among those remaining people are the retainers of the Second Prince."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor of Great Qian narrowed his eyes. "What a classic case of a thief calling 'stop thief'. This Second Prince, to think he would resort to such crooked means just because he was short on money."

He had felt some doubts before; how could a mere Xinyang Prefect have the ability to do something of this scale? He hadn't expected it to be Li Dongyun behind the scenes, using the Xinyang Prefect's reputation to do his own business. No wonder the banditry in Xinyang was so severe.

The Emperor of Great Qian's gaze shifted. With a look of anger on his face, he finally said, "Calculate the casualties and losses of the people in Xinyang, and send it to the Second Prince. Make him think carefully about how to appease them."

He would not go so far as to punish the Second Prince; after all, this was considered a scandal. But for such matters, a warning was necessary. If anything similar happened again, the Emperor of Great Qian would definitely not be lenient.