Zhao Lisu looked around. Although everyone there was from Fu's faction, there were still some things he dared not say too loudly.
"We are investigating. The old King Ling has been ill recently and has been bedridden for half a year."
"This..." Scholar Han was startled, somewhat incredulous: "Really?"
"Yes, it seems that they encountered the 'Black Catastrophe' while exploring the Black Tide of Psionic Energy. Their life force is being constantly stripped away by the disaster. Several princes are getting restless. However, the Tenth Wall is keeping it very secret. I lost fifty or sixty people there before I risked everything to find out this news."
Han Xueshi's pupils contracted: "What did the princelings do?"
"With the princes taking the stage to vie for regency, the old King Ling's sons are unreliable. The third and fourth princes have both sided with the princes' faction, and the eldest prince has been traveling north for many years and has not returned. The second prince and the princess have secretly formed an alliance and are trying their best to maintain the current situation, but I think they can't hold on for much longer."
Han Xueshi leaned closer and whispered in Zhao Lisu's ear, "Do you think... the Awakening Department was established for the princelings?"
Zhao Lisu looked at him with surprise: "Don't make things up without evidence."
Scholar Han sneered: "Old Fu has always been a loyal follower of the Wang faction. He was originally the old Ling King's right-hand man and served as a powerful prime minister in the Tenth Wall for a period of time. How could he be easily abandoned by the old Ling King? I think they are all putting on an act, an act for those other six old men."
"Could that be?" Even Zhao Lisu had some doubts.
"Just a guess," Han Xueshi shrugged.
Neither of them spoke.
But they probably have the same thoughts in their hearts.
—If the Awakening Department is established by the princelings, then one day the royal family will gain extremely terrifying power.
Qin Che, the Black Knight (Black Soldier), and Li Xin—three extraordinary beings—that would be a catastrophe!
So far, all the talk about two-party cooperation, reform of Lingbi, and the centralization movement has been a hoax. Fu Lao's real purpose was to strengthen royal power. He was not centralizing power for Lingbi City, but for the royal party.
However, such a conjecture is too bold.
Suddenly, Zhao Lisu said, "I just reviewed it, and you know what, it's really possible. The extraordinary don't care which party is in power. Centralization means stripping the city council of most of its power, letting it be ruled by a minority, and even... such a bloated council of elders will have to be partially abolished, or simply elevated to the sky and made into a powerless tablet to be worshipped."
"Both the Yin and Su factions are members of the Prince's faction, while only Elder Fu is a royalist. He will stand by the Second Prince and Princess from beginning to end until the old King Ling passes away and the Second Prince successfully inherits the throne. With the Awakening Department, this process will be much easier."
"Let me tell you about our current bargaining chips. First, there's medicine. I control a huge industrial chain within the entire Lingbi territory. Second, there's the Royal Court's armored guards. Like Old Man Fu, they are thoroughly loyal to the King. They are direct descendants trained by the old King many years ago and won't easily change their ways. You see, even though the old King has been ill for half a year, the guards are still listening to Old Man Fu. That speaks volumes."
Scholar Han: "So, the current escalation of internal conflicts within the royal armored army is also an act?"
"It's very possible that they deliberately created a false impression to make people believe that Elder Fu has lost the trust of the royalists and the old King Ling..."
"There's also the highest institution of learning, including the several educational institutions directly under its jurisdiction. Initially, you and I both believed that the Awakening Department was established to better control the highest institution of learning, because only by getting all graduates into the Awakening Department could it be fully utilized by us. Over the past ten years, you and I have been working hard, and every graduation season, six or seven out of ten students will enter the Awakening Department to work for the Fu Party."
Zhao Lisu counted on his fingers: "Medicines, armored troops, talent... and superhumans. As our power grows, not only are those financial groups unable to stand by and watch, but even the Yin and Su factions, who are also royal families, can't stand by and watch."
Scholar Han nodded in agreement: "So the Yin faction and the Su faction, which should least be enemies, were the first to attack us. It's possible that Number Two was involved in pushing us along." After saying that, he looked at the seat of the Seven Elders and stared intently at the Number Two Elder, Yu Linfeng.
Zhao Lisu nodded: "Old Fu probably feels the same way as us, because none of us expected that the Yin Party and the Su Party would make the first move. But considering that the old Prince Ling is bedridden, the ultimate goal of all this should be a battle for the throne. The princes will not give in, and the Crown Prince Party has no way out."
After they finished speaking, both of them fell silent.
...
At the seat of the seven elders, Yin Mu closed his eyes slightly, pretending to take a nap, and remained silent. Su Pei, the leader of the Su Party and the fourth elder, had a deep look in his eyes, glancing at Fu Xian from time to time, and exchanging glances with the second elder, Yu Linfeng.
The hammer struck five times.
The elders and high-ranking officials who had been relentlessly criticizing Fu's faction gradually quieted down and fell silent.
Fu Xian then looked up at the seats of the elders in front of him. In addition to the legitimate and benevolent financial group, there were also more than a dozen high-ranking officials from the Yin and Su factions who had also taken advantage of the situation to impeach him.
Today's topic,
—The Awakening Department was abolished.
The first act of the performance has now ended.
Fu Xian sighed, and the three elders beside him, who had made their identities public as peacemakers, spoke up one after another.
Liu Baicang: "Alright, alright, let's put this matter on the agenda for now. It's hard to say in a day or two."
Zhang Kejian: "Old Fu, please calm down. Prime Minister Yin and Prime Minister Su are both doing this for your own good. You are both from the same clan of the Western Kings, why make things so tense?"
Su Pei sighed in exasperation, "The extraordinary is a nuclear weapon, a double-edged sword. It needs regulation, but even more so, it needs control."
Xu Linshu said angrily, "Tell me how to control them? Considering the nature of the Awakening Department, this is already the mildest method. How many years has it been since the desert has seen three extraordinary beings standing side by side? If we anger them, Lingbi will be in danger!"
Everyone looked at Yin Mu, who had remained silent, and Su Pei asked, "Prime Minister Yin, what do you think?"
Yin Mu yawned: "I have faith in Elder Fu's abilities. Today's topic is a bit too radical, and there's not much room for discussion."
Finally, Fu Xian spoke calmly: "The Awakening Department can retain its original positions for the time being and undergo review. We will cut some resources first. I have already informed the highest academy and hope that Prime Minister Yin will cooperate. The Awakening Department will not need this year's graduates. Heh, in terms of the nature of the work, it is indeed somewhat dangerous there. They are all the future talents of the city. It is not right to waste them in my hands."
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Fu Xian in surprise.
One by one, they shut their mouths...
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