The Great Seminary

Chapter 246 New World

Li Yunbo initially held the position of prime minister in the "Dragon and Tiger Secretariat".

When Zhang Gui, who spends nine out of ten days wandering around, is not in office as the Shogun, he takes charge of the overall situation.

He became an obstacle to Prince Zhen's control of Zhihai Town, which is why he died inexplicably.

As the saying goes, "I did not kill Bo Ren, but Bo Ren died because of me."

Although Zhang Gui knew that the fault did not lie with him, he couldn't help but feel a strange sense of guilt about Lao Li's death.

Therefore, he was particularly friendly towards Li Zhende, who was Li Yunbo's adopted son.

Li Zhende also seemed to have great respect for Zhang Gui.

After sitting down beside him at eye level, he said decisively:
"Your Highness's great kindness and virtue will surely be repaid in the future!"

The two chatted sincerely for a few minutes.

Li Zhende suddenly lowered his voice.

"Your Highness, you know that even the most aristocratic families in the Dongyuehai Province, no matter how noble they are, do not engage in maritime trade."

Especially in the last two years.

As a "trendsetter," you pioneered a new path in the Outer Wilderness Islands, opening up trade with Western merchants.

This sparked a local uproar.

Following the instructions of my family elders, I have recently been doing business with Westerners, attaching myself to their interests.

On my previous voyages, we passed by one of the giant islands in the outer ring of Luanya, namely Giant Snake Head Island.

I stumbled upon a new port city with a rather unique name: 'New World'.

They actually claimed it was established by the other Imperial Censor besides you, one of the two outstanding members of the 'Pingyang Zhang Family'."

He stopped there.

Zhang Gui frowned, then waved his hand dismissively.
For a long time, my only trips to sea were to Xianrong Island.

I've never heard of anything like this 'New World' Haicheng, but it's not impossible that the city was built by a family.

After all, the Zhang family of Pingyang is very familiar with Giant Snake Head Island.

Now, Kuroki Town has been taken over by King Zhen, and it's in a state of limbo, neither fully recovered nor truly gone, with no one knowing if it will ever be returned.

It's quite normal for the clan leaders to start their own businesses when they're short of money.

But I don't believe that this was orchestrated by my cousin Jiuqing.

He could stir up trouble in the imperial court with ease.

Building cities and opening ports overseas is another matter entirely.

The emphasis is on "establishing bonds of gratitude, planning for the long term, being generous with wealth, and making friends from all directions".

More importantly, one must either have a powerful family background or possess strong enough fists.

"In fact, I'm more suitable than him."

"exactly.

So now our friends at sea say that the 'New World' was created by you under the guise of the Zhang family of Pingyang.

Li Zhende craned his neck and whispered in Zhang Gui's ear:
“Some people have even fabricated stories about this, saying that you rebuilt the ‘Stone Corpse Kingdom’ on the Giant Serpent Head Island.”

This so-called "New World" Haicheng is actually the "window" of the True Dragon Kingdom to the outside world, which was built on the original site after Zhang Gui destroyed the "Ancient Well City" of the Yingri exiled nobles.

To this end, they even fabricated a lot of rumors and gossip.

However, rumors like "Zhang Gui rebuilt the Stone Corpse Kingdom on Giant Snake Head Island" are absolutely unfounded.

Because it's so close to the truth.

Although it sounds absurd, what if some high-ranking idiot actually believes it, or some powerful person who is good at calling a deer a horse takes the opportunity to make a fuss?

That would be a huge loss.

"The fact that such rumors can be fabricated proves the saying 'three men can make a tiger' is truly undeniable!"

Zhang Gui felt a little flustered, but his face showed a wry smile.

Li Zhende nodded in deep agreement, "That's exactly right."

When this 'New World' sea city was built, someone witnessed it being the work of Prince Zhen's wondrous artifact, the 'Heavenly Craftsman Flying Man.' It must be inextricably linked to Prince Zhen's 'Imperial Palace,' and moreover…

He stretched his head out even further, almost reaching Zhang Gui's ear.
"Currently, three or four of Song Mingguo's nine 'fish-dragon warships' are patrolling the coast of Giant Snake Head Island."

I think it must be because after the current emperor moved the capital to Jinling, he was too harsh on the princes who had previously 'inspected the southern kingdoms on behalf of the emperor'.

King Zhan was suddenly subdued by his eunuchs in Jingchu and was sent to Jinling for confinement overnight.

He is now said to be seriously ill and on the verge of death.

The Prince of Feng in Xiyuehai is said to have become a disciple of the ancient lineage and abandoned everything in the mortal world.

But who can prove such a thing? They've probably already met with some misfortune.

The other princes, along with their 'colleagues' subordinates, weren't fools; none of them could believe they would have a good outcome.

Who knows, they might all join forces and pledge allegiance to the Prince Zhen, who is far away overseas, and build a new world city on Giant Snake Head Island.

To implement the strategy of "a cunning rabbit has three burrows".

However, rumors that are unfavorable to you are now circulating in the market, and it seems that someone has designs on the Crown Prince.

Even though you're not afraid, it's still best to be careful.

There are plenty of smart people in this world. When you create a fact, don't just keep quiet about it.

Even if we reveal the whole story in detail, truthfully and clearly, we still won't be able to tell the whole story.

There are also many people who insist on drawing up other 'truths' according to their own ideas.

Moreover, this kind of 'truth' is sometimes more reasonable than the facts.

Because fiction requires logical support, but reality does not.

Therefore, upon hearing this, Zhang Gui opened his mouth, a strange expression that was neither a smile nor a frown appearing on his face.
"This makes a lot of sense."

So, Young Master Zhende, you came to see me not only to express your gratitude, but also to offer a reminder.

I'll remember this favor.

"What are you saying, Your Highness? The world in the South seems to have returned to peace."

But everyone can see that any slight change will inevitably lead to another period of turmoil.

Our Mu Xiangchuan Li family head, Haoran, has always felt that at this moment, we, these close and powerful families, should support each other.

For example, before Zhihai Town was opened to the public, it was granted to the Crown Prince by the current emperor as a fief.

It was built by the combined efforts of your Zhang family of Pingyang, my Li family of Muxiangchuan, the Tao family of Zhehai, and the Zhao family of Xiongsen Island.

Our ancestors set a precedent, a lesson learned from the past.

How can we, the younger generation, emulate them?

"It's such a waste of my emotions."

It turns out that when this grandson came to me to kowtow and express his gratitude, it was just a casual gesture. His real intention was that a powerful figure in the Li family of Muxiangchuan wanted to establish a "local joint guarantee" to weather the storm together.

They included me as one of their own factions.

Let him sound out their opinion.

Zhang Gui instantly understood Li Zhende's true purpose in coming to see him, and silently thought to himself:

"However, this matter did me no harm."

Unity is strength.

So he nodded slightly, "That's exactly what I was thinking too."

However, this only represents myself and has nothing to do with the 'Zhang family of Pingyang'.

“Zhen De understands.”

Having received a satisfactory answer, Li Zhende was naturally overjoyed.

"The young master is truly a hero of our time, handling matters with effortless ease."

Make a decisive decision!

He offered a few flattering words and then hurriedly took his leave, clearly eager to return to his family to report.

(End of this chapter)