50: Emperor Qing's attitude! Fan Wujiu, the deadly scholar!

Chapter 50: Emperor Qing's Attitude! Fan Wujiu, the Life-Snatching Scholar!

Lai Mingcheng, of course, knew that His Majesty wanted him to admit that he had been wrong then, and that His Majesty was right.

Lai Mingcheng, who had been impeaching people his whole life, had no choice but to soften his stance in the face of facts, "Your Majesty's method of teaching Prince Yong is extremely brilliant; your humble servant is ashamed."

Emperor Qing was relentless, "After so many years, I didn't know you could feel shame!"

"When you usually impeach me, you speak eloquently. Today, you must clearly state why you are ashamed!"

Lai Mingcheng stammered for a long time before he managed to squeeze out two sentences, "Your Majesty is sagacious and far-sighted, something your humble servants are far from achieving!"

Emperor Qing, who was seated behind the gauze curtain, finally seized the opportunity. He said sternly, "As the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, you have actually learned to flatter! You are a scoundrel! Get out!"

Lai Mingcheng was rebuffed. No matter what he said today, it would be wrong. He knew in his heart that Emperor Qing just wanted to find fault and scold him to vent his anger.

Emperor Qing's attitude towards Li Chang'an had already changed.

When he had not yet ascended the throne and when his imperial power was newly established, he worried that his brother's prestige and reputation would surpass his own.

But after his imperial power and his Great Grandmaster Realm stabilized, he no longer feared Li Chang'an.

He was a Great Grandmaster. In his eyes, all Martial Artists below the Great Grandmaster Realm were ants.

The only threats in his heart were the other three Great Grandmasters, Wu Zhu, the box left by Ye Qingmei, and the Divine Temple.

After all, Li Chang'an was his own brother, and his literary fame was so great that he could be put to good use.

As a Great Grandmaster, the lives of these people in court were all within his thoughts.

Which prince would inherit the throne was also a matter of his will. No one could threaten his imperial power.

If Li Chang'an was loyal to him, his imperial brother, then Emperor Qing would certainly not stint on rewards and favors, and he could also use Li Chang'an to create a balance between the Crown Prince and the Second Prince.

In Emperor Qing's eyes now, Li Chang'an was growing exactly according to his plan, and it was absolutely impossible for him to have any disloyal thoughts.

After all, several princes had already grown up, Li Chang'an's maternal clan, the Liu family, was noble but powerless, and he himself did not associate with court officials at all.

In other words, at this stage, Emperor Qing believed that Li Chang'an posed no threat to him and would never have disloyal intentions.

Seeing Lai Mingcheng leave dejectedly, Emperor Qing chuckled, "I've been scolded by that old fellow for so many years, and I finally scolded him once! How satisfying!"

After the officials left the Imperial Study, Hong Sixiang emerged from the shadows.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Prince Yong has once again been assassinated by remnants of a fallen kingdom. Fortunately, his personal guards were effective and protected him at all costs."

"After several personal guards died, Prince Yong was furious and led his men to kill into the Gang where the remnants gathered, completely wiping out that Gang."

"In the past two years, Prince Yong has been subjected to twelve assassination attempts, and he has also destroyed fifteen remnant strongholds. The Secret Manuals of martial arts seized have already been sent to Your Majesty."

These matters, of course, were all carried out by Duan Shui, disguised as Prince Yong, and seventy Shadow Guards. They occasionally called upon a hundred soldiers from the manor.

The Qing Kingdom had risen rapidly in the past decade or so, successively destroying several countries, and the royal families of these countries were almost completely massacred.

However, some countries had loyal old retainers, and some had royal remnants, all hiding within the Jianghu.

If it weren't for a prince traveling, these people would not have been drawn out. This was also one of the reasons Emperor Qing agreed to Li Chang'an's travels.

Emperor Qing laughed, "Having money is truly good. Only Prince Yong can afford to hire so many experts."

"I have read his memorial. Every word and phrase expresses his desire to share my burdens and to unify the world for the Great Qing."

"My third brother has a scholar's mind; he's easily excitable. After being assassinated a few times, his temper flared up."

"However, my Great Qing currently needs such passion and impulsiveness!"

Li Chang'an was also changing his persona, from a romantic playboy to a passionate, indignant youth, all for the Great Qing.

This persona would certainly make Emperor Qing trust him more and feel closer to him.

Li Chang'an's cultivation had improved, and his wealth had accumulated. To continue feigning weakness would truly be weakness.

Hong Sixiang said, "Those Secret Manuals, Prince Yong has probably kept a copy of each."

Emperor Qing mused, "That's nothing. He has money to support experts, but unless they are top Martial Dao Geniuses, they cannot Cultivate to the Ninth Rank!"

"I even hope he gets lucky and raises a few Ninth Rank experts."

"Otherwise, that idiot Si Gu Jian always boasts about the dozen or so Ninth Ranks in Dongyi City, showing off for so many years!"

Hong Sixiang's old back bent even lower, "Dongyi City is hailed as having the most Ninth Ranks in the world, and it is indeed very arrogant."

Emperor Qing said in a deep voice, "If Prince Yong truly has the ability, I can let him specifically suppress the Great Qing Jianghu!"

"How about this, you issue an imperial decree to Prince Yong, first giving him a Martial Suppression Order!"

"The Jianghu should either not exist, or it should respect the imperial family. Those who don't obey should all be killed!"

This imperial decree granted Li Chang'an the power to kill, which is the so-called law enforcement power, but the targets could only be Jianghu figures... Jiangnan Road, Suzhou Salt Fields.

It was the end of the second year of Qingli, and Li Chang'an had already been traveling for two years.

Among the stark white salt-drying grids, hundreds of salt workers moved back and forth. Li Chang'an, disguised as a merchant, was strolling among the salt fields.

He was accompanied only by Zhao Gao and ten Shadow Guards, including Xing Yusen. The other Shadow Guards were following a body double, moving openly.

Discovering talent among the lowest strata of society, such as beggars, porters, farmers, salt workers, and miners, was Li Chang'an's main task outside of Cultivating during these two years.

Because these people generally had no hope in life, if someone suddenly told them they were very talented and offered to train them, most would be very enthusiastic.

Knowing that their fate might change, these people were all very eager and proactive.

These discovered talents were now concentrated in various Nets for training.

While scanning the salt workers, Li Chang'an suddenly spotted a familiar face, a sturdy man with a full beard.

Name: Fan Wujiu (Fan Jin)

Age: 30 years old

Realm: Eighth Rank Lower

Talent: Martial Dao (Eighth Rank), Classics and History (Seventh Rank)

Abilities: Classics and History (Eighth Rank), Salt Drying (Sixth Rank), Poetry (Fifth Rank)

Affection: 50

Anyone in the world who liked poetry generally had an affection value for Li Chang'an around thirty.

Someone like Fan Wujiu, who went directly to fifty, was considered an ardent poetry enthusiast.

Classics and History refers to the ability in classic historical treatises, which in plain terms is the imperial examination system. Fan Wujiu was a contemporary academic.

After the Second Prince became a whetstone, he recruited eight generals: the four great generals Gan, Liu, Xie, and Fan, and the four great gentlemen He, Zhang, Xu, and Cao.

Among them, Xie Bi'an and Fan Wujiu were the strongest in cultivation and the most individualistic.

Accompanying Li Chang'an was a salt merchant named Liu, whose Net worth was probably around ten million taels.

Although Li Chang'an could obtain salt permits, he certainly wouldn't do business with him; it was merely for convenience to discover talent at his several salt fields.

Behind this salt merchant Liu, there were actually ten Seventh Rank experts, showing that the other party was heavily guarded.

"My sea salt, in Suzhou, ranks among the top three. It's well-known throughout Jiangnan Road!"

The group walked slowly, gradually passing by Fan Wujiu.

"Move aside!"

One of the salt merchant Liu's guards kicked Fan Wujiu, who was blocking the path, into the brine.

The moment Fan Wujiu fell, Li Chang'an keenly noticed Fan Wujiu's True Qi activate instantly.

A glint flashed in Zhao Gao's eyes, but Li Chang'an signaled him not to act rashly.

Li Chang'an and Fan Wujiu didn't know each other at all, and the Second Prince hadn't recruited him yet. His target should not be Li Chang'an.

Indeed, Fan Wujiu pulled a sharp short blade from the brine, and his figure, like lightning, stabbed towards the salt merchant Liu!

His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was ferocious, as if he harbored deep hatred!

The salt merchant's guards were all Seventh Rank and had no time to react to Fan Wujiu's attack.

Li Chang'an's group did not intervene, and Fan Wujiu was not obstructed. His swordsmanship was exquisite, and he darted out swiftly!

A blinding flash of blade light passed, and Fan Wujiu's short blade, wet with brine, easily slit the salt merchant's throat!

Blood spurted out, and the salt merchant Liu clutched his throat, falling heavily into the brine, beginning to writhe in agony!

At this moment, Fan Wujiu's figure had already floated to the edge of the salt field, and a furious roar erupted from his mouth.

"The one who kills salt merchants is the Life-Snatching Scholar, Fan Wujiu!"

This cry seemed to come from Hell, and coupled with the wealthy merchant slowly ceasing to writhe in the brine, it appeared extremely terrifying!

Just then, a dozen figures darted out from the nearby woods, and the wealthy merchant's guards immediately exerted themselves to surround him.

"The Life-Snatching Scholar who has already assassinated three salt merchants!"

"The failed scholar Fan Jin! We finally caught you!"

"The Jiangnan salt merchants offered ten thousand taels of gold for your life, it's truly not easy to find you!"