Chapter 405 Choosing the Lesser of Two Evils
What a waste of time!
Just as Bigan was about to take a step forward to block the demon, Shang Rong quickly pulled Bigan back, reminding him that no matter how angry he was, he had to calm down.
The king is still young. Although he usually appears calm and composed, when it comes to matters of the heart, the more they oppose it, the more enthusiastic the king might become, just like the young people in his family.
Yuanshi passed by the two men without even glancing at them.
Bigan was furious. He had watched Di Xin grow up since he was a child. Do you know how difficult it was for the king to grow into a wise and powerful man despite the interference of the unreliable former king?
However, because of this sorcerer, the king refused to marry and take concubines, which tarnished his originally flawless reputation. This directly hit Bi Gan hard, and he was furious.
"Alright, look where you're standing. The King is inside." Shang Rong glanced at the demon with great restraint. "Let's go and take care of the important national affairs first. If we delay military operations, the King will not let us off easily."
Thinking of the increasingly imposing king, Bigan shrank back. "How could there be a delay? I remember it all, I dare not forget it for a moment." If there really was a delay, the king would not care that he was his uncle, he would still twist off his head and atone for his sins with his death, showing no mercy to even his own family.
"Prime Minister, why aren't you in a hurry?" Bi Gan asked suspiciously as he walked, "Do you have some kind of wicked plan? Tell me quickly!"
“As subjects, how can we arbitrarily interfere in the affairs of the King’s harem? But there is one person who is perfectly legitimate.” Shang Rong stroked his long beard, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.
"Who has such ability?" Bi Gan pondered to himself, then suddenly had a flash of inspiration, "You mean the Empress Dowager?"
“That’s right. As the King’s mother, the Empress Dowager has every right to interfere in this matter.” Shang Rong smiled with satisfaction. Bigan finally realized what was going on.
“His Majesty has always been filial and would certainly not be willing to disobey the Empress Dowager.” Bigan slapped his thigh. How could he have forgotten about the Empress Dowager? In this matter, of course, the Empress Dowager should be the one to play the card.
Bigan originally disliked the Empress Dowager, finding her extremely troublesome. So he joined forces with his clan to petition the king, finding various ways to send the Empress Dowager away from the palace so that the king would not be bothered by her presence.
Looking back now, there are no useless people, only people who don't know how to use them. A useful empress dowager is a good empress dowager.
"But..." Bi Gan hesitated, remembering how the Empress Dowager always took advantage of his kindness and never listened to reason. He had finally managed to "invite" the Empress Dowager away, but was he really going to "invite" her back?
"Between the evil Taoist priest and the Empress Dowager, choose the lesser of two evils. Bi Gan, you should weigh the options yourself." In fact, there is still much, much more that the Empress Dowager could do.
Shang Rong left the court office with his hands behind his back, leaving Bi Gan there in a dilemma...
………………
Chang Hao was playing the zither when his ears suddenly twitched. "You've come."
"Yes, I'm back." Yuanshi looked around. Good, it was still the same as when he left, with nothing that shouldn't have been added.
"Return?" Chang Hao's expression flickered slightly as he turned to examine Yuanshi Tianzun closely. "I have a question that has been on my mind for a long time."
"About me? Tell me, I'm all ears." Yuanshi began to take out the little trinkets he had brought, which, judging by their appearance, could only be contained on an extraordinary imperial desk.
Chang Hao stood up and circled Yuanshi Tianzun once, "Are you really Yuanshi Tianzun?"
"Didn't you already guess that?" Yuan Shi still couldn't figure out how he had given himself away.
"I've heard that the Primordial Celestial Venerable is the most aloof, cold, and arrogant. It seems the rumors are unreliable. Your gaze is clearly gentle, and your eyes are smiling." Chang Hao wondered how outrageous the rumors must be to describe a Celestial Venerable who was merely somewhat aloof and noble as a block of eternal ice.
“The rumors aren’t entirely wrong.” Yuan Shi frowned. He only said this to Chang Hao. “I’m not popular.”
There were those who coveted Chang Hao and offended him to death, the most notable being his master Hongjun—who was dedicated to killing Chang Hao without implicating him in his love of the prehistoric world, a truly deadly figure.
There are those who were deeply offended by his sharp tongue in his early years, both verbally and personally, such as Nuwa, who was dedicated to breaking him up with Chang Hao and was happy to see him suffer. She was not fatal but disgusting.
There are those who coveted Chang Hao, and who were extremely venomous and verbally and personally attacked him, making them the most notable figures... Who would have thought that Di Jun was actually the little ancestor's father god, almost costing him his life?
Yuanshi glanced at Chang Hao with a hint of resentment. It was rumored that Chang Hao was the natural enemy of the demon race. Everyone knew that Yuanshi Tianzun disliked creatures born from eggs and covered in fur and horns the most.
But seeing Chang Hao's clear eyes and gentle smile, Yuan Shi's lifelong arrogance vanished like smoke. What could he do but indulge and pamper him, clinging to a sliver of hope that spring would return one day?
Chang Hao saw that Yuan Shi remained silent, but kept placing some rare and precious materials on his desk that he did not recognize, but which he could tell at a glance were of extraordinary quality.
"Is the not-so-likable Primordial Celestial Venerable trying to please me?" Chang Hao lightly tapped a set of array flags with his fingertip; he had taken a liking to it at a glance.
"Then are you happy?" Yuanshi asked instead of answering.
"Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I find you quite pleasing." Chang Hao didn't even bother with his self-reference anymore; the fact that Yuanshi Tianzun liked him was enough.
Yuanshi Tianzun smiled and said, "With Chang Hao's words, this trip to the mortal realm has not been in vain."
Even if they still have no future after Chang Hao's return, Yuan Shi is content just knowing where Chang Hao's true feelings lie.
“Yuanshi Tianzun, you can just say what you want.” Chang Hao thought that Yuanshi was doing this to redeem Tongtian Jiaozhu from him. It was a true display of brotherly affection that was the envy of others.
Chang Hao looked at the treasures on the table, but couldn't immediately estimate their value.
"Hmm?" Yuan Shi looked up, something about his words was off. "What do you think I want to do?"
"Didn't you intend to use these treasures to redeem the Tongtian Sect Leader from me?" Chang Hao asked, puzzled. Had he simply thrown away those two bamboo slips for nothing? Didn't Yuanshi Tianzun see them? Or was Yuanshi Tianzun not at Kunlun Mountain at the time?
Chang Hao reached out his hand, intending to lead Yuanshi Tianzun to the place where he imprisoned Tongtian Jiaozhu, but Yuanshi subtly avoided him.
Chang Hao missed his chance, glanced back at Yuan Shi, and said helplessly, "I understand," meaning he wouldn't touch it.
A jade flute appeared before Yuanshi. "Come, hold one end of the jade flute." Is that alright?
Holding one end in Chang Hao's hand, Yuan Shi raised his hand without thinking and grasped the other end of the jade flute, sharing a jade flute with Chang Hao. Their hearts seemed to draw infinitely closer, and a unique sweetness gradually filled their hearts.
"I need to explain. I'm not offering these treasures to redeem Tongtian from you. He's not worthy of them." Yuanshi let Changhao lead him to use his escape technique.
As soon as Yuanshi finished speaking, he and Chang Hao appeared outside the layers of illusion arrays.
Tongtian, who was inside the formation, heard the voices that had entered the formation with perfect accuracy. His eyes lit up at first, realizing that it was the voices of Di Xin and his second brother. Then he flew into a rage. What did he mean by saying that he was unworthy?
"Why did you place so many magical treasures on my desk if not to redeem the Tongtian Sect Master?" Chang Hao felt a pang of heartache at the thought that those treasures on the desk might just be things that the Primordial Celestial Venerable had lent him for a look.
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