Longzang

Chapter 1015 Grand and Imposing Power
Before the grand chessboard of the world, Wei Yuan finally sat down at one corner of the chessboard.

Now he controls eight prefectures in southern Shanxi, where he will have to contend with the powerful Xu and Lü families. While the State of Ji has just established itself, the State of Zhao has opened up its entire market and is poised to become a major source of raw materials.

After pondering for several days, Wei Yuan finally settled on an overall strategy: first, add people to the large territories already occupied, then train their bodies and awaken their intelligence, thereby generating a continuous flow of manpower.

Once the flow of people is overwhelming, the momentum will be established. At that time, no matter what kind of person Zhang Sheng is hiding after his massacre, Wei Yuan is confident that he can crush them with overwhelming force.

With the strategy set, the details still needed to be considered. At this point, no carelessness was allowed. Wei Yuan meticulously considered each step, ensuring everything was foolproof, before finally deciding on the tactic: seemingly slow but actually urgent.

Currently, only Zhao Li, the Immortal, has some understanding of Qingming's production capacity, but not entirely. The other immortals are likely completely unaware of Qingming's terrifying production capacity and the resulting rapid accumulation of human fortune. Wei Yuan intends to exploit this, establishing a dominant position before they can react.

With the plan finalized, Wei Yuan handed the task over to Renjian Yanhuo, then got up and went to Zhang Sheng's side, saying, "I have some arrangements to make and need to leave for a few days. I will return as soon as possible."

Zhang Sheng opened his eyes and said, "Fine, I'll go then. Why did you have to tell me? I never knew you were so clingy."

Wei Yuan said, "I was young and didn't know any better before."

Zhang Sheng got up and left the bed, saying, "Go ahead and get busy. I'll handle the daily affairs here."

Wei Yuan hesitated for a moment, and Zhang Sheng noticed this expression. He smiled and asked, "What, are you afraid I'll mess things up?"

Wei Yuan said, "What I need to do now is to feign weakness and stabilize them first. So we can't build that boundary stone domain behind us too quickly. The real base should be built at the exit of the secret realm. As for the war, we need to hold back a bit on the Ji Kingdom side and not beat them too badly. Sometimes we have to suffer two defeats, which may be a bit difficult for you."

Zhang Sheng smiled slightly and said, "Okay, I understand."

She then raised her profile, but Wei Yuan circled around her and gently kissed her lips before leaving.

At this moment, Wei Yuan's five grotto-heavens exerted their power simultaneously, and the vast human world slowly transformed, advancing day by day. The boundary between the Dharma Form and the Imperial Realm had long been blurred. Only the Heavenly Demon, facing the sea and only seeing spring flowers blooming, stubbornly tried to prove that Wei Yuan was still the Dharma Form.

Wei Yuan would tell everyone he met that he was a Dharma Image.

After leaving Ji State, Wei Yuan returned to Qingming, and from Qingming went to Jin Capital to begin the first step of his plan.

……

The capital of the State of Ji.

The weather was gradually warming up, but it was still chilly in the mornings and evenings. This year's weather was very strange, with particularly cold mornings and evenings, while midday was scorching hot. Everyone was secretly discussing the strange sight of the sun shining brightly in the sky at midnight that night, but naturally, they dared not let Prince Ji know these things.

Prince Ji rose early today, but was in no mood for court, and dismissed the court session early. Upon returning to the inner palace, several alluring concubines escorted a slender beauty to greet him. This was Prince Ji's current favorite concubine, named Xu Shang, from the Xu family.

"Your Majesty, why are you in such a bad mood? Are you still worried about what happened that night? Didn't the Director of the Imperial Observatory already say that it was caused by the immortals fighting, not a celestial omen?"

Hearing this, Prince Ji's mood improved somewhat.

Xu Shang seized the opportunity and said, "They've choreographed a new dance; would Your Majesty like to see it?"

"Now?" Prince Ji rubbed his sore lower back, but Xu Chang had already taken off her outer robe, revealing only a few light gauze garments covering her body.

Prince Ji's spirits were immediately lifted.

A moment later, the music began, and Xu Shang began to dance gracefully. With just one step and a turn of her waist, she made all the concubines who were dancing with her look like wooden statues.

The music suddenly intensified, and Xu Shang's movements became more and more intense and unrestrained, but the few pieces of gauze seemed to be stuck to her body, even if they only clung to the last bit, they just wouldn't fall off.

Prince Ji finally couldn't resist and pounced on him.

Xu Shang's series of light laughs, like silver bells falling to the ground, made Prince Ji's breathing seem particularly heavy.

At this moment, a young man in gray appeared and sat down in the seat that Prince Ji had previously occupied, admiring the spring scenery before him. Xu Shang saw him first, and was startled at first, then one leg rose higher and higher...

Prince Ji struggled to his feet, his clothes soaked with sweat. He was about to call a palace maid to help him change when he looked up and saw the young man. He was startled at first, then calmed down and asked, "Are you from that side?"

The gray-clad youth said calmly, "I will take over from Liu Miao and continue your path."

Prince Ji hesitated for a moment, seemingly reluctant to approach. The gray-robed youth didn't seem to mind, saying, "My name is Cangwu. Silently recite my name, and you will find me. Also..."

He glanced at Xu Shang, who was slowly putting on his outer robe, and said, "Only by cultivating more and watching less singing and dancing can you hope to ascend to the throne. Every day you waste now is three or four days of the throne."

King Ji's expression darkened. Although the person opposite him was an immortal, as the rightful king of Ji, he didn't take immortals seriously. After all, even an immortal couldn't dethrone him, let alone commit regicide, let alone indirectly plot it.

Cangwu seemed oblivious to King Ji's displeasure and continued, "Liu Miao is dead, and that self-appointed military governor in the west will soon be pressing in with his army. You'd better attend court more often these next few days, deploy troops to guard key locations, and implement a scorched-earth policy. Remember, only defend, don't attack. Bring everyone back and withstand this wave of his offensive. He'll run out of steam and will surely retreat. Then I'll give you a million soldiers to wipe him out in one fell swoop."

King Ji nodded and hummed in agreement, but didn't really listen. The gray-robed youth opened his hand, revealing the military tally of the Ji Kingdom for mobilizing its army, and said, "If you find it troublesome, I can mobilize the troops for you."

After many years, Prince Ji's imperial nature finally awakened, and he said, "I can do it myself, but can I have this returned to me?"

The young man in gray smiled, tossed the military tally to Prince Ji, and said, "Keep it safe. Find the next Duke of Long, and kill him later. Otherwise, it will have to come back to me."

The gray-clad youth vanished. Prince Ji's face turned ashen, and he let out a heavy snort, but dared not say anything.

……

The capital of the Western Jin Dynasty.

Wei Yuan stood in a warm pavilion, admiring the artifacts on the antique shelves. The items on the shelves were all rare and valuable.

An official dressed in the robes of a third-rank official hurriedly entered the warm pavilion, bowed deeply, and said, "Sun Chaoen greets the Realm Lord!"

Wei Yuan went over to help him up, saying, "No need for that. We've already said we'll always address each other as brothers. Hehe, Lord Sun, your career is going very well, and your wealth is increasing!"

The antiques on this one shelf alone are worth ten thousand taels of silver, not even counting the gold and silver jewelry in the mansion.

Sun Chaoen laughed and said, "Since I was transferred to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, people have been lining up to give me gifts every day. I can handle it, so I accept all of them; if I can't, I'll say so clearly. So I've actually gained a little reputation during this period."

Wei Yuan shook his head, quite helpless. Sun Chaoen must have taken at least 100,000 taels of silver, yet he still managed to gain a small reputation. It seems these scholars in the court don't care about right or wrong, they only care about factions.

Wei Yuan said, “Brother Sun must have already seen through the officialdom of the Western Jin Dynasty. There is a major matter that requires your help. This matter is quite time-consuming and laborious, and will require us to give up everything here, and it will also bring disgrace. Only when we succeed can we restore our good name, and at the same time, we will have done a good deed for heaven and earth and for all people. We will be blessed with merit and good fortune, and we will have the hope of breaking through to the Yujing realm.”

Sun Chaoen gave a wry smile and said, "I owe my current position to your prior reminders and your early support on the Crown Prince's case, which earned you great merit. As for my reputation, with all the bad things I've done, what reputation do I have left? But Yujing, since you've brought it up, I'll hold onto a sliver of hope. Tell me, what do you need me to do?"

Wei Yuan said, "Go to the State of Ji and serve as an official, and find a way to become a treacherous minister for all time."

“Prince Ji…” Sun Chaoen stood up and paced back and forth, pondering as he walked, and then said, “To enter officialdom, one does indeed need a tarnished reputation.”

Wei Yuan said, “I have already prepared the stigma for you. The Left Prime Minister’s niece is known for her beauty and is very suitable. You pretend not to know anything, rush into the mansion, and make it a fait accompli. The Left Prime Minister will be furious, but in the end, he will only be dismissed and exiled. On the way, you take her with you and escape. After arriving in Ji State, you can get married openly and make a big fuss about it.”

"...and then find a way to offer her to Prince Ji?" Sun Chaoen interjected.

Wei Yuan gave a thumbs up and said, "Brother Sun truly has the bearing of a hero!"

Sun Chaoen sighed, "Having been in the Western Jin officialdom for so long, I've long since learned everything, and figuring out the emperor's intentions is an essential skill. Besides, who doesn't know that Prince Ji is fond of other men's wives, especially the wives of his ministers?"

"If he accepts the women I offer, his pleasure will be halved if I don't promote him to some official position. The higher my rank, the happier he will be."

(End of this chapter)