Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

Seeing Zhuang Wei bow to the carriage, Pei Zhan, who was kneeling on the ground, was stunned.

He looked up, a few faint streaks of sweat running down his forehead. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he just pursed his dry, cracked lips.

Is the Prince of Zhennan really inside the carriage? How could that be?

Could Zhuang Wei have mistaken someone for someone else?

Although he wanted to remind Zhuang Wei that the carriage couldn't possibly contain the Prince of Zhennan, Pei Zhan wisely remained silent, wanting to see what Zhuang Wei planned to do next.

Regardless of whether the other party is the Prince of Zhennan, forcibly breaking into the palace is definitely not acceptable. Moreover, Pei Zhan believes that Zhuang Wei, as a royal attendant and a person on the side of the Empress Dowager, would absolutely not allow the people in this carriage to enter the Wanshou Hall.

At this moment, the deep voice of the Prince of Zhennan came from inside the carriage again, "Zhuang Gongfeng, it seems that the royal family has valued you highly over the years and given you a lot of resources. You have now broken through to the mid-stage of the Earth Realm."

Zhuang Wei straightened up and said with a smile, "Your Highness Zhennan is joking. The royal family treats all of us servants equally."

Zhuang Wei then continued, "Prince Zhennan, His Majesty is currently focused on his cultivation and does not allow anyone to disturb him. If you have come to see His Majesty, then please leave."

Upon hearing Zhuang Wei's words, the Prince of Zhennan said calmly, "Devoted to cultivation? Is it his own choice to cultivate, or is he forced to cultivate?"

It was common knowledge that the Zhou emperor was under house arrest. Normally, no one would say it outright, not even the imperial faction. They would not say that an emperor being imprisoned would damage the emperor's dignity.

Zhuang Wei was surprised that the Prince of Zhennan would point it out directly. His brows furrowed, and the vertical lines between his brows appeared even deeper. The fact that the Prince of Zhennan directly pointed out that the emperor was under house arrest proved that he was indeed on the side of Emperor Zhou and that he had already considered changing the status quo. Otherwise, he would not have pointed it out directly.

In political struggles, both sides will maintain a semblance of civility until they completely break off relations.

At this moment, Zhuang Wei directly reminded him, "The Zhennan Prince's Mansion is not in a good situation right now. The Zhennan Prince should focus his attention on the Zhennan Prince's Mansion." His voice was very low, as if it was squeezed out from deep in his throat.

Hearing the threatening tone, the Prince of Zhennan sneered. The next moment, a fierce aura surged out from the carriage, and a black spiritual aura rushed straight towards Zhuang Wei.

Zhuang Wei did not dodge. He pushed off with one leg, cracking the blue bricks beneath his feet. Then he raised one hand and unleashed a palm strike. The spirit energy in his hand collided with the black energy of the Prince of Zhennan. In an instant, the spirit energy exploded, sending the surrounding soldiers flying. Several soldiers fell to the ground, their helmets rolling off, revealing their sweat-drenched foreheads.

Zhuang Wei couldn't help but take a few steps back, then spat out a mouthful of black blood. The blood splattered on the blue bricks and quickly seeped in. The moment the black evil touched his body, it began to erode his body. At this moment, he vaguely felt that the spiritual evil in his body was showing signs of backlash. His right hand trembled slightly, and a piece of his sleeve was shattered, revealing his thin wrist.

After regaining his balance, Zhuang Wei looked at the carriage in disbelief. How could the Prince of Zhennan, who had suffered a backlash from the spiritual evil, still possess such strength? His breathing became rapid, and his chest heaved noticeably more violently than before.

However, judging from the aura alone, the person sitting in the carriage is indeed the Prince of Zhennan.

Just as Zhuang Wei was puzzled as to why the Prince of Zhennan was so powerful, the carriage door opened, and an old man slowly stepped down from the carriage.

The old man wore a black and gold robe with dark gold thread embroidered on the hem. His hair was completely white, neatly combed and tied into a bun at the back of his head. His face was covered with deep wrinkles, especially the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes, which looked as if they had been carved by a knife. His eye sockets were slightly sunken, but his eyes were exceptionally deep and unfathomable.

Upon seeing that it was Prince Zhennan himself, Zhuang Wei was stunned again. It was indeed Prince Zhennan, and judging from his appearance, he did not seem to be a dying man as rumored.

Although he was surrounded by an aura of death, the fact that he could walk showed that he was still far from death. His steps were steady, and he made almost no sound when he stepped on the blue bricks. He would only cough softly from time to time, and his shoulders would shrug slightly when he coughed.

Could it be that the Prince of Zhennan had been faking his illness all along?
Or did the Prince of Zhennan take some miraculous medicine, or find a highly skilled doctor, which turned the situation around?
Just as Zhuang Wei was lost in thought, the deep, hoarse voice of the Prince of Zhennan came again, "May I see His Majesty now?"

Upon hearing this, Zhuang Wei frowned. If the Zhou Emperor and the Prince of Zhennan were to unite, it would be troublesome.

at the same time.

At the Imperial Palace, on the Star Gazing Platform, Pei Shuhua, dressed in a long black robe, stood by the stone railing, her gaze fixed on the Prince of Zhennan alighting from his carriage. A gentle breeze lifted the hem of her robe, revealing a deep red lining beneath. Her hair was piled high, with a jade hairpin inserted horizontally, its tip carved with a blooming peony. Her face was expressionless, except for her thin lips pressed into a thin line.

The observatory is the tallest building in the entire palace, and even in the entire capital city. Standing on the observatory, one can see almost all the courtyards of the palace.

After leaving the Council Hall, Pei Shuhua went straight to the Star Gazing Platform. She did not expect that as soon as she stepped onto the platform, she would see Zhuang Wei and the Prince of Zhennan fighting each other.

What surprised her even more was that the Prince of Zhennan's move directly repelled Zhuang Wei. Her fingers rested on the stone railing, her fingertips exerting slight force, the ancient patterns on the stone railing pressing against her fingertips.

Although the Prince of Zhennan at his peak was indeed far more powerful than Zhuang Wei, the Prince of Zhennan is now suffering from the backlash of the spiritual evil and is on the verge of death. How could he still possess such strength?

So she immediately suspected that the person inside the carriage was not the real Prince Zhennan, but someone else. However, just as she had this thought, she saw the Prince Zhennan come out of the carriage.

Upon seeing that it was indeed the Prince of Zhennan, Pei Shuhua's face turned icy cold. At that moment, the surrounding air became unusually cold, and the stone railings of the observatory seemed to be covered with a layer of frost. Her breath condensed into a thin white mist in front of her, which was quickly dispersed by the wind.

Just then, the Prince of Zhennan seemed to sense something and looked up at the location of the Star Gazing Platform. They were far from the Star Gazing Platform, but for a Spirit Warrior of the Earth Realm, this distance was nothing.

The Prince of Zhennan's gaze met Pei Shuhua's.

Seeing that the Prince of Zhennan had noticed her, Pei Shuhua snorted coldly and turned to leave the observatory. As she walked, she said to the maid beside her, "No one is to be allowed to prevent the Prince of Zhennan from seeing His Majesty." Her voice was not loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.

As she descended the steps, her skirt brushed against the stone steps, making a soft rustling sound. The maid beside her lowered her head and followed quickly behind, not daring to say a word.

Although Pei Shuhua was worried that the Zhou Emperor and the Prince of Zhennan would join forces, she did not believe that their alliance would immediately change the political landscape.

Most importantly, in her opinion, the Prince of Zhennan was already a dying man and could not possibly recover suddenly. Moreover, the death aura emanating from the Prince of Zhennan and the black demon he used when he made his move could not be faked.

The Prince of Zhennan had been bedridden for months, but today he was suddenly able to get out of bed and walk around, and even came to the palace on his own initiative. There was only one possibility: either he had taken some kind of medicine to temporarily suppress the backlash of spiritual energy in his body, or he was burning his life force.

Regardless of the reason, the Prince of Zhennan is not far from death.

Perhaps after the Prince of Zhennan returns, he will suffer an even more severe backlash from the evil spirits. Since he is risking his life to see the Emperor Zhou, then so be it.

She didn't need to argue with a dying man. If she prevented the Prince of Zhennan from seeing Emperor Zhou at this moment and pushed the Prince of Zhennan to the brink, he might then turn against her with the intention of mutual destruction, which would be troublesome.

She doesn't possess the dragon aura that Emperor Zhou had.

A dying Earth Realm Spirit Warrior who recklessly burns his life force might unleash power approaching that of a Heaven Realm expert, a gamble Pei Shuhua dared not gamble on.

At this moment, Zhuang Wei wanted to find other royal retainers to help stop the Prince of Zhennan from going to the Wanshou Hall. However, just then, a maidservant next to Pei Shuhua came to Zhuang Wei and said, "Her Majesty has ordered that no one is allowed to stop the Prince of Zhennan from seeing His Majesty."

This……

Upon hearing the maid's words, Zhuang Wei and the soldiers present were all stunned.

Zhuang Wei quickly realized that since it was the Empress Dowager's order, he naturally had to obey.

Zhuang Wei then voluntarily stepped aside. (End of Chapter)