The Emperor of the Three Realms

chapter 29

Qiao Baishi heaved a sigh of relief at Song Tianxing's stern demeanor. To be honest, he was a bit stressed with the decisions he had taken lately, and did so solely out of his own courage and determination.    

He knew that his choice was correct based on the attitude of the hallmaster master.    

“Number three, you were the one who started the relationship with Jiang Chen from the Jiang family. You will be in charge of maintaining the relationship. It seemed from various pieces of information, that the shadows of this young man had covered up all the major happenings in the capital lately. This young man is one to watch out for.”    

Song Tianxing had never seen Jiang Chen before, but was able to deduce an astonishing conclusion from the details of the various reports he had received.    

Even the normally stable second hallmaster, Yue Qun, exclaimed involuntarily, “Master, isn't this evaluation of Jiang Chen a little excessive?”    

Song Tianxing smiled faintly, “I have never met Jiang Chen, but I have met Jiang Feng of the rank of a duke Jiang Han. If the source of all the unexpected things came from Jiang's father and son, my money would belong to Jiang Chen and not Jiang Feng.”    

Qiao Baishi moved. He knew that the position of hallmaster master was very high, and his worldview was cynical. His standards were high, and he basically never made a mistake when judging people and problems.    

Until the hallmaster gave such high praise to a teenager he had never met before – Qiao Baishi was overjoyed that he had made the right choice.    

“Heh heh, I, old Yue, have always admired the eyes of the hall master in judging things. But this time, I was curious about the possibility that the hallmaster master was wrong? Yue Qun chuckled. With his status and position, it would not be superfluous if he were to throw out a few lines of benign jokes.    

The convention of senior executives ended with the conclusion of the hallmaster lord.    

Song Tianxing pulled Qiao Baishi aside for a private meeting afterwards and patted Qiao Baishi on the shoulder. “Baishi, you have handled this matter quite boldly. I'm proud of you."    

Although their relationship was one of the third hallmaster and hallmaster, Song Tianxing far surpassed Qiao Baishi in both age and experience, as well as status and standards.    

It could be said that Song Tianxing intended to appoint Qiao Baishi as his successor.    

Qiao Baishi was amazed and flattered, and he immediately said a few simple words.    

“Baishi, you must not underestimate Jiang Chen. Have you counted the number of amazing things happening around Jiang Chen?”    

“Your branch is solid, and waiting for the host's enlightenment.” Qiao Baishi was very humble.    

“First, this young man was flogged to death on the Rite of Heavenly Worship, but why was he whipped and still alive?    

For two people, the king had whipped this young man, but why would the king personally bestow a carved dragon medal on the young man?    

For the three of them, this young man was only the son of a duke – from where did he obtain the ancient pill recipe for the Heavenly Karma pill?    

Fourth, the martial dao level of this young man was not enough to pass even three basic exams, but why was he able to defeat Yan Yiming first with one punch, and then easily toying with Bai Zhanyun afterwards?    

Five, why is the royal princess of two generations so familiar with this young man?    

Six, this young man had absolutely no fear in front of the duke of Soaring Dragon, and was decrying the elite room. His appearance was completely incompatible with the character of a young man. Where is the certainty?”    

Qiao Baishi's expression became even more serious with every point Song Tianxing listed. He had more or less also considered these points.    

But, his considerations were not well thought out or as comprehensive as the hallmaster's considerations.    

Suddenly, Qiao Baishi connected the dots between the clues given by Song Tianxing. He exclaimed in amazement. “Does this mean the Jiang family is supported by the king? And the previous desperate and sad attitude was an act of humiliating the opponent? Could this father and son be pawns set in motion by the king? Maybe even a pawn with the ability to make changes in the bigger picture?”    

Song Tianxing said lightly, “If not this, what more reason do you think can explain everything that has happened so far?”    

To be whipped, but not to death, is enough to reveal the secrets of others. If not for the secret instructions from His Majesty, would the king's men really not have the ability to beat a young man to death?    

“No wonder, no wonder.” Qiao Baishi suddenly recalled the events surrounding the purchase of the Dragon Bone Sun Grass. Wasn't Jiang Chen telling him that he had made the right decision?    

Didn't Jiang Chen tell him back then that the Dragon Bone Sun Grass had been purchased for the royal family?    

Qiao Baishi had sensed the familiar spirit aura of the Dragon Bone Sun Grass from Princess Zhiruo that night at Duke Long's banquet.    

Then, the Dragonbone Sun Grass had indeed been purchased by the royal family. Jiang Chen did not think too much about this matter.    

Qiao Baishi reiterated the judgment of the hall master more firmly as his mind drifted to this point.    

It was no wonder that Song Tianxing concluded this point. Of all aspects, all of this could not be explained if not for the fact that the Jiang family had long reached an agreement with the royal family.    

And with Princess Gouyu's identity, how could she shamelessly praise the martial appearance of a young man?    

It was obvious to use Jiang Chen's performance as an excuse to offset the impact of Long Juxue's azure phoenix constitution.    

“Baishi, if the Jiang family is a pawn that has long been set by the royal family, what does this mean? That is, the royal family had already started its preparations long ago.    

The Duke of Soaring Dragon was extremely ambitious, but his strength was shining more and more by the day.    

“Except what?” Qiao Baishi could not help but ask.    

“Unless the heavyweights of the hidden sect appear in person and interfere in the power struggle between kings. However, with such heavyweight status, it would be degrading if they were to involve themselves in the power struggle in the common kingdom. Moreover, the Eastern family had ruled the kingdom for at least a thousand years, and kept many aces, as well as a rich and unknown legacy. Other than the wildcard Long Juxue, I can't think of any other advantage that Duke Long might have in the fight between the people and the king?    

Therefore, no matter if it is from a profit or political point of view, your decision today is a very wise one!”    

Song Tianxing once again praised Qiao Baishi.    

A similar sleepless night passed in the inner courtyard of the palace.    

The news of Princess Gouyu also made Eastern Lu drown in her thoughts.    

“Brother, duke Soaring Dragon no longer bothers to hide his ambitions.” Princess Gouyu was the only one who dared to speak like that to Eastern Lu.    

“It is understandable that he would be bored with his position as the first duke in the country after so long being there. This is a natural progression if he strives to take another step forward.” Eastern Lu's tone of voice sounded calm, but it was overwhelmed by killing intent that made the heart palpitate.    

“Thank God, he tried to dictate the terms to Jiang Feng's formidable old bird today. If it was another duke with weaker will, they would most likely have already given up by now.”    

Princess Gouyu was also very unhappy with the Duke of Soaring Dragon when she recalled how everything had happened at that moment. He had conspired against the other duchies in front of the royal representatives. This looked like a clash between dukes, but it was in reality an insult to the noble face.    

Eastern Lu sighed lightly. “All things change. Even a few days ago, who would have thought that the Jiang family would become my lucky general?”    

Eastern Lu did not know whether to laugh or cry when thinking about the current situation in the capital. “Maybe now many powers will think that the Jiang family is one of the members of my Eastern clan, and the pawn that I have been moving for a long time?”    

Princess Gouyu also laughed with a smile. “Gouyu would probably have thought the same if I didn't know the internal process.”    

“Have you found that every change, every change of situation in the capital, is closely related to the shadow?”    

“Jiang Chen?” Princess Gouyu's beautiful eyes slightly shifted as she spoke involuntarily.    

“Did you also find her, royal sister?” Eastern Lu smiled meaningfully.    

Come to think of it, the current situation in the capital had indeed evolved from Jiang Chen's fart during the Rites.    

From then on, every event that happened in the capital seemed to be tied to the shadow of the person.    

“I initially believed without a doubt that he got a divine visit in his dreams. But after tonight, inevitably I suspect that maybe this young man has mis-borrowed the names of the gods since the beginning?”    

To be honest, Eastern Lu felt quite dizzy when he thought about this matter.    

Logically speaking, the son of a duke should not be too outstanding. Caned, but not dead, identifying the root source of Zhiruo's disease, handling the Hall of Healing, defeating opponents of the advanced realm of true qi with the power of early nature…    

Various abnormal circumstances have occurred in the same person. Saying that there are no secrets about this young man – there is no way Eastern Lu would believe this.    

Of course, as the ruler of a country, he wouldn't mind this – at least for now.    

After all, Eastern Lu would not only avoid a thorough investigation of the valuable assistance from the Jiang family that had inadvertently affected Duke Long's influence, but he would instead reward them!    

“Gouyu, visit Jiang Han's palace on my behalf tomorrow.”    

A visit to Jiang Han's residence was of course to reward Jiang's father and son. He could also declare their intentions at the same time, and of course, bring the Jiang family to the royal camp.    

It was really easy for Eastern Lu in terms of power.    

Moreover, you must guarantee that Jiang Chen can pass the Hidden Dragon Trials. Eastern Lu's attitude changed slightly from before.    

Previously, his thoughts regarding Jiang Chen had only stopped at the idea that this young man could cure Eastern Zhiruo's illness. Therefore, Eastern Lu did not think too much about the possibility that the Jiang family would lose the rank of a duke. Living in the capital as a wealthy official without power would actually be beneficial to Zhiruo's illness.    

But now, after the events of tonight, the strategic importance of Jiang's father and son had increased a hundredfold in an instant. Now, the matter of whether the Jiang family maintained the rank of their duke or not was a small matter that could have a huge impact on the bigger picture.    

If the Jiang family lost the rank of a duke, then it was possible that Soaring Dragon could encroach on Jiang Han's land with spirit veins, let alone anything else.    

This was exactly what Eastern Lu did not want to see.    

The fact that a duke could seize another duke's land without leaving it meant that trouble had developed within the royal family's control of power.    

And the Jiang family's vow to fight Soaring Dragon to death was actually an indirect way to protect Eastern Lu's power over the kingdom!    

Therefore, the rank of a duke of the Jiang family must be maintained!