Chapter 1 The Last Night

Time flew by in the midst of intense preparations, and soon it was the last night before heading to Mount Tai.

At this moment, the Qin Zheng Hall was shrouded in dark clouds.

Jiang Chen sat upright, his expression stern as he gazed out the window, his eyes filled with a hint of gravity.

"Your Majesty, it's getting late, you should rest." Feng Jin stepped forward, his aged face etched with concern.

These past few days, His Majesty had been busy with government affairs, barely getting a good night's sleep. How could he not worry?

Jiang Chen withdrew his gaze and rubbed his brow wearily. "Yes, I know. Tonight, I will stay at Consort Shu's. Go prepare."

"Yes, this old servant will prepare immediately!"

A moment later, Jiang Chen left, surrounded by attendants, and boarded the dragon palanquin, heading into the inner court along the imperial road.

Just then, a towering figure suddenly burst into view, falling to his knees before the dragon palanquin with a thud, blocking Jiang Chen's path!

"Bold! How dare you block His Majesty's palanquin! Utterly presumptuous!" The lead eunuch's voice was shrill, his face panicked as he berated the man, seemingly afraid that the emperor would be angered.

As he spoke, the burly figure on the ground was surrounded by the Imperial Guards, as if they were about to behead him at any moment.

At this tense moment, the burly figure suddenly spoke, his voice choked with sobs, "Your Majesty, I, Prince Pingcheng, am your uncle!"

"For the sake of us belonging to the same imperial family, I implore Your Majesty to be lenient with my son, I beg you, Your Majesty!"

The desperate plea cut through the layers of guards and reached Jiang Chen's ears, causing him to frown and lift the curtain to look out.

He murmured, "Prince Pingcheng? Is that Li Zhiping's father?"

"So, Li Zhiping has been using an alias in the martial world. No wonder I've never heard any gossip about Prince Pingcheng. I thought this family was honest and upright." As he spoke, Jiang Chen's gaze towards Prince Pingcheng became more scrutinizing.

Judging by appearance alone, Li Zhiping and Prince Pingcheng shared almost eighty percent similarity. Their father-son relationship should be genuine.

However, thinking that he could get him to pardon Li Zhiping based on this relationship was wishful thinking.

Even if he didn't pursue the presumptuous words that fellow had spoken, the crimes he had committed were enough for Jiang Chen to throw his entire family into the imperial prison! He was already being merciful by only pursuing Li Zhiping alone and not implicating his family. And he still wanted to rely on his family ties to get him to release him? Ridiculous!

Jiang Chen curled his lips slightly and coldly lowered the curtain, preparing to have the Imperial Guards drag the man away, when Feng Jin suddenly spoke.

He reminded him in a low voice, "Your Majesty, Prince Pingcheng has been guarding the palace for three days. For the sake of being part of the imperial family, you should meet him, lest it damage your reputation among the imperial clan."

Jiang Chen didn't care about that and said indifferently, "Do you think I care about that?"

"The imperial relatives and clansmen can't shake my will. If they harbor resentment towards me because of this, then I will deal with them all together!"

Jiang Chen was already disgusted by those nobles who abused their power, but those people were, after all, his relatives, and they hadn't offended him directly, so he could only turn a blind eye.

But if these people dared to challenge his authority and make small moves in secret, then he wouldn't be polite!

Sensing the killing intent in Jiang Chen's words, a conflicted look flashed across Feng Jin's eyes. He stepped forward and whispered:

"Your Majesty, other imperial family members would be one thing, but Prince Pingcheng's situation is somewhat special. You might as well grant him an audience."

"Special?" Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow slightly. "What could be so special about a mere prince?"

Feng Jin lowered his voice and said, "Your Majesty, you may not know this, but this Prince Pingcheng was personally enfeoffed by the late Emperor and was greatly relied upon. He was extremely prominent among the imperial family back then."

"And the reason why he was able to catch the late Emperor's eye was ultimately due to Consort Lü!"

"Prince Pingcheng's principal wife is Consort Lü's direct younger sister. It was after he married into the Lü family that Prince Pingcheng stood out among the imperial family and was valued by the late Emperor!"

"Therefore, if you want to investigate the relationship between Consort Lü and the King of Jiangzuo, this Prince Pingcheng may be a breakthrough!"

A glint flashed in Jiang Chen's eyes, and he said with amusement, "So there's such a relationship. Why didn't you say so earlier?"

Hearing this, a trace of embarrassment flashed across Feng Jin's face, and he said with an apologetic smile, "Prince Pingcheng's family fell into obscurity after the late Emperor passed away, and this old servant didn't remember it for a while."

"Later, when I remembered this relationship, Your Majesty, you were preoccupied with the Fengshan ceremony, so this old servant didn't dare to mention it."

As Jiang Chen listened, he lifted the curtain and looked outside.

It seemed that because they hadn't received any orders, the Imperial Guards surrounding Prince Pingcheng hadn't made any moves, and the two sides were in a stalemate.

"No wonder Prince Pingcheng, an outsider, was able to enter the palace and even find out about my whereabouts. It seems he has received Consort Lü's favor... In that case, I shall meet him."

With that, Jiang Chen withdrew his hand and turned to instruct, "Feng Jin, take him to the side hall, be cautious, and don't let the news leak out."

"I don't want this matter to be known by other forces, understand?"

"Yes, this old servant will do it immediately!" Feng Jin nodded solemnly.

Half a cup of tea later.

Under the cover of Consort Shu, Jiang Chen quietly arrived at the side hall.

Prince Pingcheng was kneeling in the center of the side hall, his burly body hunched over, his expression full of fear.

After catching sight of the corner of a robe embroidered with dragon patterns, he knelt and crawled towards Jiang Chen, prostrating himself and wailing, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I beg you to forgive Zhiping for his foolishness!"

"This subject only has this one son. If something happens to this unfilial son, this subject, this subject's family will be without an heir, Your Majesty!"

Jiang Chen looked at the weeping Prince Pingcheng, and the arrogant appearance of Li Zhiping surfaced in his mind, and he couldn't help but fall silent.

Spoiling a child is like killing him.

Prince Pingcheng bore a great responsibility for Li Zhiping becoming such a scumbag.

His current predicament was entirely self-inflicted.

Jiang Chen sighed softly and said blandly, "Get up and speak. Since I have chosen to see you today, it means there is still room for redemption."

"Of course, all of this comes with conditions!"

"The crimes your son has committed require you to atone for them through meritorious service. When I deem it acceptable, I will release him from the imperial prison."

Hearing this, a bitter look flashed across Prince Pingcheng's eyes, but it quickly concealed itself, turning into a helpless expression.

Until the emperor deems it acceptable... didn't this condition mean that their family would have to work for the emperor forever?

But the situation was dire, so what could he do? He could only hope that the emperor would keep his word and not make him work in vain.

Having made up his mind, Prince Pingcheng said respectfully, "It is this subject's good fortune to serve His Majesty."

"This subject is willing to be Your Majesty's vanguard, at your disposal!"