Douluo Continent: Transmigrating to the Star Palace of Yuhao

Chapter 208 What would you do?

Xiao Hongchen managed to maintain some semblance of rationality, only muttering curses under his breath. However, his words were completely useless against Meng Hongchen, who was already blinded by love. "That just proves none of them are my official girlfriends. I still have a chance!"

"I!"

One sentence left Xiao Hongchen speechless. He covered his face and simply turned his head away, as if he didn't know this guy at all.

"Beibei, look at 'Laughing at the World.' It's hilarious."

Bei Bei, walking alongside Xu Sanshi, raised an eyebrow and looked at him with a strange expression. She said, "Let's not talk about this 'Laughing at the World.' I'm more curious about what's going on between you and Nan Nan."

Xu Sanshi scratched his head, his face looking like he was constipated. After holding it in for a while, he said, "I'm not really sure. Anyway, they don't seem to be chasing me away as much anymore."

Beibei patted Xu Sanshi on the back and said with satisfaction, "That's already pretty good, a lot of progress! After the competition, when you have time, try to ask him out. For example, let's go see Aunt Jiang together."

Xu Sanshi hesitated for a moment, then, as if he had made up his mind, said, "I understand. I'll give it a try."

Seeing this, Beibei didn't say anything more. Since Xu Sanshi had taken this step, Jiang Nannan would most likely agree now, and their relationship was gradually getting back on track. As a brother, Beibei was happy for Xu Sanshi.

The Shrek Academy students and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy students arrived at Star Luo Square one after the other. Following them were other teams that arrived one after another.

Perhaps because the Star Luo Empire had allowed in more spectators today, the Star Luo factory was unusually crowded. The place was a sea of ​​people, a truly breathtaking sight.

In stark contrast was the competition's rest area. The vast majority of participating teams had already been eliminated; the remaining sixteen teams would represent the strongest academies on the continent, vying for the top eight spots.

Today, both Shrek Academy and Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy will be playing in all four matches. However, Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy's match is in the afternoon. The reason they still chose to come is clearly for the match between Shrek Academy and Douling Royal Advanced Soul Master Academy.

At this moment, atop the imperial city, Xu Jiawei was chatting idly with Dai Hao, who had just arrived.

"My dear brother, today's matches are going to be quite exciting. There's a Shrek Academy match this morning, and another one from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy this afternoon. One represents the pinnacle of traditional Soul Masters, and the other represents the pinnacle of Soul Masters. Each has its own characteristics and advantages. To be able to see both teams compete on the same day, I must say, today is truly a good day."

"Your Majesty is quite right. In the previous matches, neither of these teams used their full strength. I wonder if they will reveal some of their trump cards in the round of 16?"

Xu Jiawei looked at Dai Hao with a half-smile and said, "I don't think it's easy for either of them. The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy mainly relies on their soul tools. Before they bring them out, we have no idea how much they've prepared. As for Shrek Academy, the disciple of the Phoenix Douluo hasn't even made an appearance yet. The other Soul Emperor with the ice-attribute martial soul hasn't used his full strength either. The most unpredictable one is that little guy named Huo Yuhao. His abilities are truly unpredictable and hard to fathom."

As he spoke, Xu Jiawei glanced at Dai Hao again, his expression slightly grave, and said, "But speaking of which, brother, I remember those two kids of yours made enemies at Shrek Academy and framed the adopted sons of the two deans of the Soul Guidance Department, which led to their expulsion... Could this person be Huo Yuhao?"

Upon hearing Xu Jiawei openly dredge up his wounds, Dai Hao's face stiffened, and he hurriedly apologized, "Your Majesty, I deserve to die! I have raised two such unfilial children! Please forgive me!"

Xu Jiawei glanced at him indifferently and said, "He does indeed need some discipline. However, a few days ago, I specifically sent someone to contact this little monster, and he's a good person. He didn't hold a grudge against the entire empire because of your two sons. But Dai Hao, you should understand that because of your two sons, the relationship between the empire and Shrek Academy is indeed in danger of breaking down. I won't say much more today, after all, you've guarded the border for the country for many years, and even if you haven't made any great contributions, you've still worked hard. You just need to remember to discipline him properly when you get back."

"Your Majesty, I thank you!"

"Alright, I invited you here today to watch the game, not to settle scores. Come sit next to me."

Xu Jiawei sat in the first seat, and Dai Hao followed suit, sitting to his right.

"My dear brother, before the competition starts, I've recently heard something interesting. How about I tell you about it?"

Dai Hao nodded respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, please speak freely."

"I heard from Jiu Jiu before that there's a wealthy merchant in a small town on the southern coast. This merchant is ostensibly in the luxury goods business, but secretly he's colluding with local corrupt officials to smuggle rare metals. For many years, thanks to the protection of local nobles, it hasn't been exposed. Of course, I just cracked down on some traitorous forces recently, and these nobles just happened to be among them." As he spoke, Xu Jiawei smiled and glanced at Dai Hao, his eyes seemingly observing Dai Hao's reaction out of the corner of his eye.

"We've digressed a bit. Let's get back to the story. This wealthy merchant had three sons. The eldest and second sons were both very shrewd in business and had considerable connections with various local nobles and officials. But as we all know, nobles and officials inevitably have different factions and interests, and there will always be relationships of enmity and closeness. When the merchant was young and vigorous, he was able to maintain a balance among these forces by leveraging his ability to navigate these complexities. But now that he is old and in poor health, his eldest and second sons are at odds with each other, so they have each brought in nobles and officials to vie for control of the entire family business."

"The two sides fought to the death, completely unaware that a powerful force from outside the city had already slowly reached out. By the time they realized their crisis, it was already too late."

Dai Hao felt a strange sense of déjà vu about the story, as if Xu Jiawei was talking about his two rebellious sons...

Suddenly, as if grasping a key point, he took a deep breath and cautiously asked Xu Jiawei, "Your Majesty, didn't you say this wealthy merchant has three sons?"

Xu Jiawei lightly slapped his thigh and said with a smile, "Look at me, I forgot an important detail. But that's what I'm also curious about. My dear brother, if you were that third son, what would you do?"

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