Daqian Night Emperor

Chapter 269 The golden dragon presents the pearl, I am the true dragon emperor appointed by heaven!
As the purple light in his eyes dissipated.

Zhao Qi'an retracted the power of his spiritual eyes and looked at Ji Yunrui in the center of the hall with a hint of fear in his eyes.

He couldn't understand the Third Prince's motives, so he had no idea whether the method he had given the Second Prince before would still be effective, and to what extent it would have any effect.

Fortunately, the one who has to face this matter this time is the second prince.

If an accident really happened, it would never be his fault.

The main purpose of Zhao Qi'an giving the Nine Brahma Pure Lotus to the Second Prince was not to help the Second Prince deal with the Third Prince, but to further break the close relationship between the Second Prince and Prime Minister Wu so that he could have room to intervene.

It would be a good thing if I could trick the Third Prince.

If not, it won't have much impact on him.

For this reason, although Zhao Qi'an noticed that there was something wrong with the dragon presented by the third prince, he did not try to remind the second prince. He just drank quietly and watched what happened in the palace.

"A true dragon has appeared in the world, great fortune for Daqian!"

Emperor Tianwu laughed loudly, and then ordered: "Pull the real dragon closer, so that I can take a closer look."

In the main hall, the elite soldiers of the Western Desert Army who were responsible for pulling the sedan chair naturally did not dare to disobey, and pulled the sedan chair closer to the emperor's throne in the main hall.

No one noticed that as the distance between the caged golden dragon and the emperor's throne shortened, the dragon's nostrils twitched as it greedily swallowed the fragrance of the Nine Brahma Pure Lotus. The vertical pupils in its eyes, which had originally been golden and bright, gradually took on a hint of red.

It was like a drop of blood dripping into the pupil...

When the bright red infected the entire vertical pupil, the golden dragon suddenly raised its head and roared:
"Roar!"

The dragon's roar was so deafening that it almost pierced through the dome of the hall.

Many old men in the hall were frightened by the dragon's roar. They fell to the ground in shock, their eyes filled with fear and panic.

"boom!"

"Boom!"

The golden dragon actually began to hit the iron cage, and the iron cage, which was as thick as an adult's arm, began to bend and deform under the impact of the strange force...

In the end, the seemingly indestructible iron cage was actually broken open by the golden dragon.

The golden dragon escaped from the cage, and its huge body stretched out in the hall. It straightened its upper body, stuck out its tongue, and stared at the emperor's throne with its ferocious red eyes, as if there was something in there that had a fatal attraction to it.

This sudden change was obviously beyond the expectations of Ji Yunrui and the Western Desert Army under his command.

"How can it be?!"

The leading general widened his eyes in disbelief.

Before he entered the capital, he had already bled the "dragon" as instructed. Logically speaking, it was short of blood and energy, so how could it have the strength to break free from the cage?
But the fact had already happened before his eyes, and he had no choice but to believe it.

The Western Desert general reacted very quickly and subconsciously reached behind him.

But when he entered the palace today, his gun had already been surrendered, and now he entered the palace empty-handed.

He gritted his teeth, stepped forward, leaped into the air, and punched the golden dragon's head hard.

However, this punch that was powerful enough to split mountains and rocks only made Jin Long tilt his head, shaking it for a while, and then he seemed to be fine.

It didn't even look at the general, its eyes were fixed on the throne on the high platform. Then it slithered around the hall at an extremely fast speed and climbed up the steps of the emperor's throne almost instantly.

"Escort, escort!"

From inside the hall, there were eunuchs' panicked shouts.

However, Ji Haoyu secretly clenched his fists, with a hint of excitement in his eyes.

In full view of the crowd, the golden dragon lifted the veil that concealed the emperor's true face, revealing the emperor's fat body that was as fat as a mountain in front of everyone.

Emperor Tianwu's mouth, face, and body were all covered in grease, and he looked extremely dirty.

He looked slightly surprised, as if he had not expected such a sudden change.

But at this moment, Ji Yunrui calmly took out a piccolo, put it to his lips and started playing.

"Beep——"

It was a strange flute sound, I didn’t know where the tune came from, but it sounded strangely pleasing to the ear.

What’s even more bizarre is that when the golden dragon heard the sound of the flute, its body froze and it stopped moving.

The next moment, the golden dragon faced Emperor Tianwu, lowered its head, and almost crawled on the ground.

Everyone in the hall held their breath, not daring to breathe, not knowing what the situation was.

Under the gazes of everyone, the golden dragon opened its mouth and spit out a golden bead.

Emperor Tianwu was stunned for a moment, then he stretched out his hand and the bead seemed to be summoned, floating over and hovering above his palm for a long time.

And then, the golden dragon that had been committing atrocities in front of the palace, in full view of everyone, began to petrify little by little starting from the head.

In just three breaths, the golden dragon that was full of vitality just now turned into a dragon-shaped stone statue visibly with the naked eye.

"Your Majesty, the real dragon presents the pearl, you are the real dragon emperor!"

In the hall, someone shouted excitedly.

Afterwards, the civil and military officials seemed to react, and they all knelt on the ground, shouting loudly: "Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty!"

Emperor Tianwu held the dragon ball in his hand, feeling the warmth coming from it. He was stunned for a long time, and suddenly burst into laughter: "A true dragon presents a pearl. I am the true dragon emperor appointed by heaven!"

"Long live my emperor! Long live!"

As everyone in the hall shouted in unison, the entire Qilin Hall seemed to be in an uproar.

Zhao Qi'an held his forehead with his hand.

He figured out some things.

What Ji Yunrui wanted to offer was not a dragon, what he wanted to offer was... a legend!
Just like in the myths of previous lives, Fuxi met a dragon horse and presented the River Map to him, and Dayu met a divine tortoise and presented the Luoshu to him.

The baggage cart in the inner city overturned, and a real dragon appeared in front of everyone... Now I think it might have been intentional, just to create momentum.

And the means left on the golden dragon was probably used to control the golden dragon to spit out pearls as gifts at critical moments.

Ji Yunrui would not let this fake dragon fall into the hands of Emperor Tianwu, so naturally he was not afraid that he would find out that the dragon was fake.

Even if the secret is discovered by Emperor Tianwu, it doesn't matter. Your Majesty will definitely not take the initiative to expose it. After all, which emperor doesn't like to add a little mythological color to himself?
Zhao Qi'an glanced at Ji Haoyu and saw that the second prince was on pins and needles, sweating profusely and wiping his sweat with a handkerchief.

In the end, he seemed to have made up his mind. He gritted his teeth and stood up. When the ministers in the hall shouted "Long live the emperor", he made a different sound:

"Father, since ancient times, there have only been legends of real dragons in Kyushu, but no one has ever seen one. Now my third brother has just happened to present a real dragon as a blessing. Don't you think it's strange?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the originally lively atmosphere in the hall suddenly cooled down.

The entire hall became silent.

The change in atmosphere made Ji Haoyu's heart tremble, and he glanced at the ministers behind him.

But he found that everyone was looking at him as if he were a fool.

Ji Haoyu subconsciously looked at Zhao Qi'an, but this time, even Zhao Qi'an looked at him with a hint of pity.

What, what happened...

Didn't Hai Qing tell me about this plan? Why does he look at me like this?

Moreover, before the birthday banquet, he had already made an agreement with many of his trusted ministers that they would support him as soon as he raised his hand.

But why is no one moving now? Why is no one agreeing with me?

As he panicked, he heard a faint angry voice coming from the emperor's throne:

"Oh? So, I, the true dragon emperor, am also fake?"

Ji Haoyu was so frightened that he stood still like a fool, and looked like an idiot, not knowing what to do.

Zhao Qi'an watched this scene and couldn't help but sigh.

He didn't know what to say to Ji Haoyu. Doesn't the Second Prince see that the situation has changed?

Originally, the contradiction was just about whether the dragon was real or fake, but now anyone with a discerning eye can see that the Third Prince intends to build momentum for Emperor Tianwu, and the contradiction has shifted to Emperor Tianwu himself.

It doesn't matter whether the dragon is real or fake.

The important thing is, no one dares to say that Emperor Tianwu is not the true dragon emperor!
So this dragon...is both fake and real.

Ji Haoyu's forehead was dripping with sweat, and he lowered his head deeply: "Your son... I dare not."

At this moment, the voice of the national teacher sounded from the hall: "This dragon ball is real."

hiss……

Zhao Qi'an hissed softly and looked at the throne on the platform in surprise.

What did the Imperial Master mean by this? Could it be that the fake dragon spat out the real dragon ball?
Or did she just want Emperor Tianwu to save face?
No matter what the result was, the moment the Imperial Master spoke, the matter of the Golden Dragon offering the pearl was settled.

Emperor Tianwu said angrily, "Why don't you retreat?"

"This this……"

Ji Haoyu obviously did not expect this result and instantly became at a loss.

He looked at the people behind him, but the officials who had always expressed their loyalty to him in the past lowered their heads when they met his gaze.

And his maternal grandfather, the left prime minister Wu Yong, just lowered his head and drank, ignoring him when he looked at him for help.

In the end, Zhao Qian'an secretly made a gesture to him, indicating that he should step back first.

Ji Haoyu's face darkened immediately, and he bowed and apologized, "It is my fault. I will take my leave now."

He returned to his seat, and became visibly depressed.

He made a huge fool of himself at this birthday banquet!
But no matter what mood the Second Prince is in now, the birthday banquet has to go on.

After the third prince, comes the fourth prince Ji Qingkong.

However, after the incident of "True Dragon Offering Pearls", the minds of the people in front of the hall had become a little distracted. They were talking to each other in low voices from time to time, and not many people paid attention to what gift Ji Qingkong presented.

Ji Qingkong came up and knelt down to pay respect. After kowtowed three times, he said in a loud voice: "Father, I wish you a long life. Although the gift I present today is not a rare treasure, it is full of my sincere filial piety and deep respect for you."

It’s not a rare treasure, but it’s really not.

Originally, the birthday gift that Ji Qingkong prepared for the longevity banquet was a magic weapon prepared for him by Zhao Qian'an.

There are only 36 magic weapons recorded in the Daqian Jiuzhou Tiangangpu. The value of a magic weapon can be imagined, and it is not too shabby as a birthday gift.

Zhao Qi'an didn't intend to default on his debt, but ever since the incident with Ruan Yu, he thought that Ji Qingkong would come to his house like a scabby dog ​​to ask for his "reward", but he didn't expect that after that day, Ji Qingkong simply didn't show up in front of him.

During this period of time, he actually stayed obediently in the palace, in his own Taihe Palace, and did not go anywhere.

This is really strange. Is this still the Fourth Prince who is addicted to pleasure?
The birthday gift that Ji Qingkong presented was indeed not something valuable, but a painting of a hundred women that he had drawn himself.

It must be said that although the brother and sister born to Concubine Zhen did not follow the right path, they both had their strengths, one of them was a master of calligraphy and painting, and the other was a famous singer and dancer in Kyoto.

However, the women in the painting, although lifelike, are all in coquettish poses, and their charm can be felt through the paper.

As soon as this painting was taken out, many people in the hall laughed out loud.

Emperor Tianwu laughed and scolded, "Nonsense! But considering your kindness, I accept this painting. Don't allow me to do it again next time!"

He had always been tolerant towards the brother and sister, and he was in a good mood, so he waved his hand to signal Wu Hou Qiansui to accept the painting and did not mention the matter any more.

After the prince, several guardians of the country sent gifts through others, and then came the two princesses.

But although these gifts are valuable, they are nothing special before the emergence of such rare treasures as the Nine Brahma Pure Lotus and such miraculous events as the Golden Dragon Offering Pearls today.

It was not until Princess De Ling presented her birthday gift that Zhao Qinan straightened his clothes, stood up and came before the emperor.

"Your Majesty, today is your birthday, and I have come to offer you a small gift. I wish your Majesty great fortune, good health, and a long-lasting rule."

After saying this, Zhao Qi'an bowed deeply.

At the same time, several eunuchs carried boxes and placed them carefully in the hall.

A quick glance at the box showed that there were more than a dozen items.

The dignitaries in the hall, who had originally lost their minds, couldn't help but look over at this moment.

The birthday gift prepared for Your Majesty by the Zhao family of Donghai, the richest family in Daqian... is worth seeing.

There are so many boxes, what on earth has the Zhao family prepared?
Under the curious gaze of everyone, the eunuchs opened the box brought by Zhao Qi'an.

But as the box was opened, everyone in front of the hall was disappointed.

Those more than ten boxes were actually filled with books!
This book...even if all of them are rare and precious copies, how much are they worth?

Everyone was disappointed and felt that the Zhao family was too stingy. Aren’t they afraid of angering His Majesty?
However, Ji Haoyu felt mixed emotions when he saw the boxes of books Zhao Qi'an presented to him:

"Hai Qing must have given me the original finale gift. Where can he find a suitable birthday gift in such a hurry?"

"But I still messed it up, damn it!"

He felt touched and blamed himself at the same time, and just thought that if his father got angry, he would definitely speak up for Haiqing.

Emperor Tianwu was not angry, but when he saw that Zhao Qi'an had sent boxes of books, he asked curiously, "Zhao Haiqing, what books did you send? Could it be some martial arts secrets that are not included in the Heavenly Book Pavilion?"

After hearing this, everyone in the hall nodded secretly.

That being said, it makes sense.

If there are so many martial arts secrets that are not even included in the Heavenly Book Pavilion, it can be considered a valuable gift. Although it is of little use to dignitaries like us, His Majesty will like it, right?
It seems that the Zhao family is planning to start with your Majesty's preferences and cater to his wishes?
Zhao Qi'an smiled slightly and kept it a secret: "Your Majesty, why don't you come and see it with your own eyes? I bet your Majesty will like it."

Emperor Tianwu was somewhat suspicious and ordered the Fifth Marquis to bring a few copies over.

When the book was brought in, an eunuch took it and prepared to read it to Emperor Tianwu, but when he opened it, he looked embarrassed: "Your Majesty, this..."

"What's the matter? Is the content above difficult to understand?"

Emperor Tianwu was somewhat dissatisfied, and then ordered someone to bring it to him personally to show him.

But when he lowered his head to read the contents of the book, he let out a light exclamation.

Immediately afterwards, the hall fell into a dead silence.

Zhao Qi'an stood in the hall, smiling slightly, not in a hurry.

After a moment, Emperor Tianwu's deep voice sounded: "These books...where did you get them from?"

Many people in the hall could hear that something was wrong with His Majesty's tone.

It was not joy, nor disgust, but——

Be cautious as if you are ready for battle!

(End of this chapter)