Liu Mian and Cao Jie naturally knew that the Marquis of Jiedu Pavilion mentioned by the attendants was their target on this trip—the emperor who was about to ascend the throne.

For a moment, both of them fell silent, each lost in their own thoughts.

Liu Mian felt somewhat comforted, after all, as a member of the Han imperial family, he naturally hoped that the Han Dynasty would once again have a great ruler who could lead the Han Dynasty to regain its former glory.

As for Cao Jie, he felt somewhat uneasy. Although he had not yet seen the new emperor, he had a vague sense of unease. If what he had seen and heard was indeed the work of this young man, then it would probably not be so easy for them to control him.

The welcoming procession continued towards Hejian, and within half a day, the city of Hejian came into view.

The appearance of such a large group in Hejian naturally attracted the attention of the local government. Although they did not know what the group was doing there, the governor of Hejian did not dare to be careless and immediately led all the officials in the prefecture to the city to wait and welcome them.

When the welcoming procession arrived at the city gate, Li Yu, the prefect of Hejian, hurriedly stepped forward to greet them.

"I am Li Yu, the Prefect of Hejian. I have met the angel. May I ask what brings you here?"

"I am Cao Jie, a palace attendant, and this is Liu Mian, a grand master of the palace. The late emperor has passed away, and we have come to welcome him on the orders of the Empress Dowager!"

Cao Jie explained their identities in a friendly tone. After all, this was the new emperor's fiefdom, and no one knew whether Li Yu had any dealings with the new emperor. Therefore, Cao Jie was quite polite in his words.

"The late emperor has passed away? Are we welcoming the new emperor?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yu was somewhat taken aback. He couldn't understand why no one had informed him in advance about such a significant matter.

"Please follow me!"

However, he quickly realized what was happening and hurriedly led Cao Jie, Liu Mian, and the others toward the Marquis's residence.

Along the way, Li Yu carefully recalled his actions since taking office to see if he had offended Liu Hong in any way.

The weather was fine and pleasant today, and Liu Hong and Xi Zhong went to the training ground in the backyard to watch the guards train.

"Zhicai, what do you think of these people?"

Liu Hong looked at the hundreds of teenagers undergoing obstacle training in the training ground, a satisfied expression on his face.

After several days of getting to know each other, Liu Hong discovered that Xi Zhicai was indeed very talented. The two could talk about anything. Xi Zhicai was also attracted by Liu Hong's extensive knowledge and vision, and regarded Liu Hong as a confidant. In his opinion, if Liu Hong were to gain power one day, he would surely soar to the top.

"They are physically strong, quick in their movements, disciplined and orderly, and their formations are perfectly synchronized. Moreover, their eyes are filled with an indescribable light. They can defend like an impregnable fortress and are invincible in attack. It's just a pity that this method is not suitable for widespread use in the army."

Xi Zhicai was full of praise for the young men before him. If the Han Dynasty had such a strong army, what would it have to worry about the barbarians on all sides? Thinking of the current situation in the court, Xi Zhicai couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.

"Oh? Why?"

"As far as I know, even the most elite Northern Army of our Great Han only trains once every five days. They can barely maintain a full stomach, and meat is a rare treat. How can they train every day like this?"

Xi Zhicai spoke very tactfully.

Liu Hong understood the unspoken meaning in Xi Zhicai's words: "The emperor is tyrannical, the court is corrupt and chaotic, military preparedness is lax, and the people are living in hardship."

"That day will come..."

Liu Hong looked up at the sky, which was very blue, with a hint of cyan in between.

Such weather is truly rare; I wonder if it is the same elsewhere in the world?

Xi Zhicai turned his head and saw the sunlight shining on Liu Hong's youthful face, giving him an air of elegance.

"Young master... young master..."

Chen Fu, panting, jogged from the front yard to Liu Hong.

"Uncle Fu, what's wrong? Why are you so panicked?"

Seeing Chen Fu's appearance, Liu Hong couldn't help but ask.

"Young master, the prefect has brought two people from the palace. They say they are here on the Empress Dowager's orders to welcome you to Luoyang to become the emperor."

This news was so shocking that Chen Fu initially couldn't believe it.

However, upon seeing the imperial edict held by Cao Jie and Liu Mian, along with the Imperial Guards, Tiger Guards, and a group of palace maids and eunuchs who followed them, they hurriedly ran to report this momentous occasion to Liu Hong.

"What? We're going to install you, my lord, as emperor?"

Xi Zhicai stood there dumbfounded. Just moments ago, the two of them had been lamenting their lack of success, but now Liu Hong, whom he considered a close friend, had risen to become the master of the country in one fell swoop. For a moment, Xi Zhicai's mind went blank.

Seeing Xi Zhicai's dazed expression, Liu Hong smiled slightly, then looked at the boys training in the training ground.

"Line up and assemble!!"

As Liu Hong shouted, more than a hundred teenagers immediately stopped their training and gathered from all directions, standing in neat rows of ten in front of Liu Hong. The whole process from gathering to lining up took no more than three minutes. Although it was far from a proper formation, it was enough to satisfy Liu Hong.

"Come with me!"

Liu Hong nodded in satisfaction, then walked towards the front yard, ready to embrace his new beginning.

Xi Zhicai followed closely behind the crowd. He couldn't understand why Liu Hong, who had suddenly learned that he had become the emperor, could be so calm. This was not the temperament of a boy who was only twelve years old.

And these guards he meticulously trained were even more loyal than death squads; were they really only there to protect the Marquis's residence?

Could it be that all of this was within his foresight?

Thinking of this, Xi Zhicai's gaze towards Liu Hong couldn't help but carry a hint of awe.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!