The Duke of Dai's mansion received a secret imperial edict.
A death warrant, as cold as a gust of wind, swept in, chilling the body and soul.
This is a secret decree issued by civil and military officials during court sessions, using a combination of command arrows and jade tablets, and activated through magical means to transmit information over a thousand miles.
In fact, the command arrows and jade tablets held by civil and military officials were all ritual implements.
Using the communication artifact between ruler and subject consumes a huge amount of magical power, and it is generally not used lightly unless there is a major event.
At the Fu family ancestral hall, direct descendants gathered together, kneeling to receive the secret decree.
The secret edict was triggered by the command arrow formation, and its contents appeared out of thin air, shocking a group of direct descendants of the Fu family.
With a thud, Fu Zhen collapsed to the ground, weeping, after reading the contents of the secret edict: "No... Your Majesty, spare my life..."
"Shut up! You want to kill the entire Fu family? You're such an unfilial son..." The old lady roared, rising to her feet in fury. Fu She sprang to his feet and threw punches: "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Ahhh!" Fu Zhen was repeatedly beaten by her clansmen, rolling around in the ancestral hall screaming in agony.
Fearing they might kill Fu Zhen and jeopardize important matters, the old woman sternly stopped them, saying, "Enough! Get out of here!"
“Mother, the Emperor Emeritus and His Majesty both know that this beast has committed the shameful act of colluding with the enemy and betraying the country, implicating our lineage of the Duke of Dai. It would not be enough to kill him…” Fu She stopped in anger and kicked him as he spoke.
Fu Zhen had already been beaten unconscious and was covered in blood.
The old lady laughed in anger: "You wretched child, killing him is easy, but if you delay the Emperor Emeritus and His Majesty's orders, you'll be responsible..."
"Ah, Mother, what secret decree? I didn't read the whole thing, I don't know..." Fu She turned and walked to the side, shirking responsibility.
Fu Zheng sneered and stepped back: "Brother, you are clearly coveting the position of Fu clan chief, trying to kill Fu Zhen and deceive everyone..."
"Second brother, you've been a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Works for eight or nine years and haven't made any progress. Instead, you've learned to spout nonsense."
"I'll submit a memorial to His Majesty tomorrow and ask him if it's the Ministry of Works' specialty to slander people with glib tongues..." Fu She retorted disdainfully.
Fu Zheng was so angry he jumped up and down, but the other disciples were not surprised and stepped aside to watch the show.
The old lady couldn't stand it anymore and angrily rebuked, "That's enough! This old woman isn't dead yet, who gives you brothers the right to be so insolent?"
She'er, you should nip those thoughts in the bud in the bud as soon as possible, or I'll never forgive you..."
"Mother's reprimand is correct. I should be strict with myself, reflect on my mistakes behind closed doors, and live a life of debauchery," Fu She retorted angrily.
The old lady remained unmoved and said, "If you want to reverse your fate, you should think about how to persuade Fu Ya to take the mantle of the Duke of Yong and go south to welcome the bride..."
"Mother, the Marquis of the Dai family in Jiangnan was also a meritorious official who followed the late emperor in conquering the country. The family has been passed down to the current Earl Dai, and there is a tendency to restore the glory of the Dai family's ancestors."
Therefore, my mother's maternal family, the Hu clan, a line of marquises, arranged a marriage between their daughters and our Fu clan to consolidate their military power.
"Daiyu, the eldest daughter of Earl Dai, was originally betrothed to Fu Ying. It is confirmed that Fu Ya's grandfather saved Earl Dai's life, but this was ruined in an instant. This is a great disgrace..." Fu Zheng spoke out indignantly, wanting to seek justice for his eldest son Fu Ying and uphold the dignity of the Fu family's direct line.
Fu She sneered repeatedly, and the old lady said with a headache, "Zheng'er, the secret decree only mentioned urging Fu Ya to go to Jiangnan to welcome his bride, but it didn't say who he would marry."
The secret decree bestowing honors upon Fu Ya, placing him on the shoulders of the Yongguo Duke's lineage, was actually a gesture of goodwill to win over the Qianyuan Immortal Sect behind Fu Ya, not a favor bestowed upon Fu Ya himself.
Fu Ya was too troublesome, offending many civil and military officials. It is likely that two emperors were dissatisfied and deliberately issued a secret edict to push Fu Ya to go south to marry his bride, thus provoking assassination attempts by some ambitious people.
This is a system of checks and balances between two generations of emperors…
"Mother, wouldn't that mean we could murder Fu Ya and take his place?" Fu Zheng asked excitedly, leaning forward to offer his opinion. Seizing the title of Duke of Yong and becoming the head of the household was something he had always dreamed of.
As the second son of the Duke of Dai, he has been suppressed by Fu She since birth, making it difficult for him to stand out.
This was a golden opportunity to abolish the title of Duke of Yong, and Fu Zheng was so excited that he almost shouted out his true feelings.
Even his eldest son, Fu Ying, was so excited that he could hardly contain himself, his eyes fixed intently on the old lady, longing for an answer that would grant him the title.
Fu She, unable to contain his anger, intervened: "Hmph, even if Fu Ya dies a violent death in Jiangnan and loses his right to carry on the lineage of the Duke of Yong, the title of Duke of Yong should still be inherited by a son of a concubine from the Duke of Yong's lineage..."
"That's enough. We'll discuss this later."
The most urgent task is to seize the power of the Fu clan patriarch from Fu Zhen and the secret weapon of the ancestors for preserving the Fu clan, then welcome back Fu Ya, and facilitate Fu Ya's journey to the south of the Yangtze River to marry his bride, thus fulfilling the secret decrees of the two emperors.
Otherwise, if His Majesty were to punish them, the Fu family would be branded as traitors and executed along with their entire clan! The old lady interrupted their argument in shock and anger, setting the tone.
Just then, Zheng Ya got to the third point when Wu Wei called: "Zheng Ya, you win, stop talking?"
I just don't understand why I always lose. Why is that?!
A drone buzzed down from the sky and hovered low between Zheng Ya and Liu Qingyun, conducting a live video conversation.
Liu Qingyun had long been captivated by the allure of technological products, mistakenly believing them to be methods of immortality from the upper realm. Zheng Ya said disdainfully, "You are too competitive, which has caused you to lose sight of the essence of cultivation. A calm mind leads to far-reaching goals, and you have gone astray."
Furthermore, you're trying to outsmart me by using outdated, high-tech products I've already mastered. Little do you know that I've developed products and systems that are ten or even a hundred times more advanced than yours. You lost because of your ignorance.
Do you really think I can cause trouble without any rules or protections? How ridiculous..."
And indeed, Zheng Ya did not boast.
Before Zheng Ya fully activated the Sihelou Psionic System by consuming 100,000 units of Psionic Energy, it instinctively assisted Zheng Ya in his actions, enhancing his thinking and judgment several times over.
Zheng Ya initially mistakenly believed that this was due to his ability to cross realms, undergo spiritual energy baptism, and advance his supernatural abilities to the second level, which gave him this heightened cognitive sensitivity.
When Zheng Ya consumed 100,000 units of spiritual energy to activate the Sihelou Spiritual Energy System, he realized a fact: the spiritual energy system had already merged with his body, mind, and soul when he was on the verge of advancing to the second-tier ability user.
At that time, Zheng Ya was negotiating with the mysterious person and facing the crisis of being devoured by the sea anemone, so he ignored the changes in his mind and body caused by the integration of the spiritual energy system.
At present, Zheng Ya can be certain of the auxiliary performance of the psionic system. Taking the calculation mode as an example, it is tens of thousands of times more powerful than personal thinking, which is why it has the ability to enable Zheng Ya to establish an invincible persona and easily resolve crises.
Act decisively, proceed cautiously step by step!
Their behavior, including their actions, is characterized by unconventional and illogical approaches.
Wu Wei suddenly realized: "So, you still have resources from the Upper Realm, like hand grenades and melons, how many...?"
"Hmph, keep your people in check, don't play with fire and get burned."
"When the time is right, I will personally provide you with a batch of powerful tools to conquer the world. You may leave now!" Zheng Ya dismissed him unhappily.
Wu Wei was so angry that her teeth ached, but she had no choice but to admit defeat: "Fine, I will do my best to spread your fame and create opportunities for you to cultivate your skills."
By the way, be careful when you go south of the Yangtze River...
"What the heck..." Zheng Ya was dumbfounded. Who wants to go to Jiangnan?
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