You, a tyrannical ruler, roam the heavens; you cannot understand my joy.

Chapter 66 The Frustration of Song Que, the Simp (Please Subscribe)

In the afternoon, the sunlight was intense, shining brightly on the long street.

The willows along the roadside drooped low, motionless, and even the cicadas' chirping seemed muffled by the summer heat, their calls ending wearily.

Lu Zuo, emerging from Ren Zhong's residence, walked slowly along the bluestone street. The vermilion gates receded behind him, while the sounds of the bustling marketplace drifted towards him...

The peddler's cries, the bustling traffic, the children's play—it was a lively and vibrant scene, yet something seemed to separate them, preventing it from reaching his heart.

"The road ahead is bleak—"

Lu Zuo thought to himself, then strode forward.

At this point, there is no other choice but to do our best.

Zhu Yuyan's room was always filled with the aroma of tea and ink.

On the long table under the east window, a small plain kiln stove was warming water, with white steam rising from it.

Next to it lay an unfinished letter, with a jade paperweight pressed against its edge, the ink still fresh.

The bookshelves against the wall are sparsely filled with scrolls, and a painting of withered lotus flowers hangs on the wall, its brushstrokes serene and untouched by worldly dust.

She was dressed in pure white, her sleeves slightly rolled up to reveal a section of her fair wrist. She held a pen and wrote, exuding a serene and untouched air.

Every time Lu Zuo saw her, he was captivated by her calm and pure temperament, as if the person in front of him was not a martial arts master or a demonic witch.

Instead, she was a refined young lady who spent her life immersed in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

"Why has Your Majesty come to visit so suddenly?"

Lu Zuo walked to her side, his gaze sweeping over the paper, and said, "Let me see how your injuries are, and also—"

"For matters concerning the Imperial Advisor, you can consult Lihua."

"Is this a martial arts manual?"

Zhu Yuyan nodded: "Frequently reflecting on one's experiences can help in summarizing one's own strengths and weaknesses, which is very helpful in understanding the laws of the universe."

"How badly are you injured?" Lu Zuo asked again.

"The condition is no longer serious. With another half month of treatment, it should be fully cured."

He finished speaking and put down his pen.

She leaned slightly forward, her red lips parted slightly, and her breath, fragrant as orchids, flowed across the paper, causing the ink to dry at a visible speed.

Zhu Yuyan picked up the paper and presented it to Lu Zuo: "These are some insights I have gained, which I offer to Your Majesty. I hope you will not find them offensive."

The latter reached out and took it, glancing down at it: "This is the cultivation manual for the Three Elements Unity Realm. What are the key points?"

"Lihua came yesterday," Zhu Yuyan nodded with a smile.

This woman—

Lu Zuo put away his thoughts and didn't linger. After a few casual words, he left the courtyard.

The prison was dark and damp.

-

The passageway was narrow and deep, with dim yellow oil lamps hanging on the walls.

The air was filled with a damp, musty smell, mixed with a putrid stench that assaulted the nostrils.

From the cells on both sides, the ear-piercing sound of chains dragging on the floor could be heard from time to time, mixed with the groans of the prisoners.

Lu Qingyuan, dressed in plain white, arrived at a cell door under the guidance of a jailer.

"Madam, I will be waiting outside."

The jailer muttered something under his breath, turned and left, standing at the end of the passageway.

Upon hearing the sound, Shen An slowly opened his eyes from the withered grass.

His hair was disheveled, his eyes were sunken, and there were several dry, bloody cracks on his lips. As soon as he straightened up, the iron shackles on his hands and feet rattled.

"mother?"

"What brings you here?"

Lu Qingyuan looked at him with a face full of heartache and said, "An'er, your mother has already begged His Majesty to forgive your sins."

"But you have to honestly tell me who your die-hard supporters are in Nantong."

"We must also cooperate with His Majesty to subdue the officials, both high and low, in Nantong."

"real?"

Shen An's eyes lit up: "Mother, can I really live?"

"Um."

"impossible!"

"How could he possibly forgive me for the heinous crimes I committed?"

"Um?"

Shen An suddenly noticed that Lu Qingyuan looked tired, but her eyes were filled with a hint of spring water, and there were several red marks on her fair neck.

That is————

Boom!

When Shen An finally realized what had happened, it was as if he had been struck by a bolt from the blue, and he gritted his teeth in hatred!

Dog Emperor!

You! How dare you—

I am your sworn enemy, we will never share the same sky!

"An'er, His Majesty is only giving you three days to consider. If you do not follow His Majesty's instructions, even your mother cannot save you."

"Let him kill me or torture me, whatever he wants!" Shen An clenched his fists so tightly they cracked, gritting his teeth as he said, "I will!"

"Never! Surrender!

As evening fell, the setting sun shone through the window, casting warm rays of light into the courtyard hall.

Lu Zuo sat on the sandalwood chair, while Lu Qingyuan stood quietly behind him, her delicate hands gently massaging his shoulder line.

"Your Majesty, I, the guilty subject Shen An, pay my respects."

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

-

Shen An knelt on the blue bricks, his hands supporting him on the ground, his head bowed low, looking extremely apprehensive.

Lu Zuo glanced around and said, "Tell me about the situation in Nantong."

"Your Majesty, Nantong is 279 li from east to west and 313 li from north to south. It has five county towns under its jurisdiction and a population of about 1.2 million."

"The martial arts forces in this area are deeply intertwined, among which the strongest are the Four Seas Gang and the Golden Saber Sect."

"Among the officials at all levels, Wei Changfeng, the commander of Jingjiang Guard, Du Mingli, the prefectural magistrate, and Cao Ruzhou, the military commander—are all confidants of the disgraced official."

He held both military and political power in his hands, truly a local tyrant ruling over his own territory.

"but--.."

After a pause, Shen An continued, "In Nantong County, there are many powerful families. They outwardly pledge allegiance to the disgraced official, but in reality, they all have their own agendas."

Lu Zuo: "How strong are the Nantong aristocratic families?"

"Your Majesty, let's not mention some of the smaller families."

"Only the Zhou family of Hanshan, the Zhao family of Yuexi, and the Lin family of Qingli are not to be underestimated. Most of their family members have already entered the Innate Realm, and their soldiers are also quite elite."

"When the rebels caused trouble before, without the assistance of these three families, the 30,000 troops in Nantong alone would not have been able to quell the rebellion."

Lu Zuo nodded, having gained a general understanding of the forces in Nantong.

He secretly decided that after settling things properly, he would lead his troops to Nantong to consolidate power there and make it the base for development.

"alright."

Lu Zuo pulled Lu Qingyuan into his arms, causing the beautiful woman to let out a soft cry.

Upon hearing this delicate cry, Shen An's body trembled violently, and he lowered his head even further.

Lu Zuo raised his hand and touched Lu Qingyuan's pretty face, sliding it down her neck, and said, "You can go out now. I want to have some fun with your mother."

what?

Shen An felt a sudden jolt in his heart, and gritted his teeth in silent hatred: "You damned emperor!"

"You have insulted me far too much!"

"Yes."

Thinking this to themselves, they still had to agree verbally, putting on a smiling face, not daring to show the slightest dissatisfaction.

"Also, call the rest of them in."

Shen An went out, and Hua Xiangrong, Gu Yanran, and Zhang Youyuan's wives came in.

Soon, the hall was filled with silvery laughter and various coquettish voices.

"Your Majesty, you are so biased! I want some too!"

"Ouch, it's so hot!"

"Madam Lu, you need to put your hair up in a bun—"

"Sister Yanran's skills are getting better and better."

well----

Shen An sighed softly, his face full of sorrow as he slowly moved his feet. He had not gone far when he saw Kong Fan standing at the foot of the wall.

His face turned a deep red, his fists clenched tightly, and his eyes were fixed intently on the hall where the door had already closed.

How————

Why does he seem so excited?

For some reason, he suddenly remembered his conversation with Kong Fan.

"My only family member in Beijing is my mother."

"He can't possibly be after my mother too, can he?"

now----

Not only has his mother fallen into the clutches of that scoundrel emperor, but he's also afraid he won't be able to protect his wives in Nantong either.

But what can be done about it?

The Shen family suffered a complete defeat. If they did not submit to this dog emperor, they would be subjected to slow slicing and death!

Shen An didn't want to die at all.

He didn't care about the hatred of his family's massacre or the pain of losing his mother!

He just wanted to live!

The next day, early in the morning.

Something's fishy!

Looking at the notification in front of him, Lu Zuo muttered to himself, "I didn't touch Zhang Lihua yesterday, yet my cultivation level increased by 1266?"

He carefully recalled yesterday's events, and his gaze suddenly darkened: "It was Consort Wan!"

"This woman is definitely not from a scholarly family!"

"He's a martial arts master!"

"Hey----"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"What kind of people are I keeping in my harem?"

After thinking it over, Lu Zuo decided to go to the city gates to meet Chu Yunlong and the others during the day, and then return to the palace at night to torment Li Qingmei and test her true colors.

"Your Majesty, you're awake?"

Lu Qingyuan slowly opened her eyes, her pretty face full of weariness, yet a hint of spring light and a blush appeared on her cheeks.

"Um.

""

"I have some business to attend to today, so I won't be staying here."

"You and Shen An should go back to your residence. I'll come to see you when I have time."

what?

Not today —

Lu Qingyuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief; finally, she could rest.

She got out of bed, knelt on the floor to help Lu Zuo get dressed and put on his shoes, washed him up, and then personally saw him out.

The woman's slender waist was so small that Lu Zuo could easily wrap his arms around it.

As soon as he stepped out of the room, he put his arm around her slender waist, ignoring Shen An's sorrowful gaze from not far away, and left the small courtyard while chatting and laughing with Lu Qingyuan.

For someone like Shen An, Lu Zuo felt that no amount of humiliation was too much.

As for Lu Qingyuan—

Ha, she's not exactly a good woman either!

A few years ago, because of a small mistake, he almost crippled a maid in the Shen household.

Lu Zuo treated this kind of bad woman the same way he treated Yu Qiandai, Hua Xiangrong, and Gu Yanran: he wouldn't let her go, but he wouldn't fall in love with her.

Use it purely as a tool!

Thinking about this, Lu Zuo suddenly realized something: he didn't seem to have many good women around him.

Outside the city, in Da'an Village.

In the village, wisps of light blue smoke rose from the chimneys, mingling with the mist.

The dirt road winds its way through several fenced courtyards, and the old locust trees by the roadside stretch their branches silently. Under the trees, an idle stone roller, its surface worn smooth by the years, lies.

"Hey, haha~~!"

In the open space at the village entrance, dozens of teenagers, with their belts tightly tied, stood in a horse stance, chanting work songs and swinging their fists one after another.

Chu Yunlong sat on the ground not far away, a blade of grass between his teeth, his body wrapped in bandages. He would occasionally shout out to correct their mistakes.

"Old Chu, when will this practice end?"

A gentle male voice suddenly came from behind.

Chu Yunlong straightened up and quickly stood up, turning to look into the distance.

Lu Zuo walked alone across the grass without any guards and stopped in front of him.

Even Shangguan Jing and Gu Han were unaware of his dealings with Chu Yunlong and others.

Before arriving at Da'an Village, Lu Zuo had ordered these guards to stay at a distance.

"Greetings, Young Master Lu."

He quickly bowed deeply, then explained helplessly, "Young Master Lu, there's nothing I can do—..."

"These children from ordinary families often go hungry and cold, their foundation is too weak, so they can only start from the basics and can't be trained too much—stop looking, keep practicing!"

He turned around and shouted, continuing, "The poor study literature, the rich study martial arts. If you can't eat your fill and have meat, you'll never achieve anything in your life."

Money has always been a headache for emperors.

In particular, since Lu Zuo also needed to cultivate armed forces outside the imperial court, it was difficult to extract money from the aristocratic families from the Ministry of Revenue, so he could only use the imperial treasury.

These few dozen people are nothing at the moment —

The difficulty lies in the fact that as the scale expands in the future, the financial expenses will be considerable!

Food alone can bankrupt a person!

We need to think of ways to make money in advance.

"Go to the palace tomorrow, and I'll have someone give you 50,000 taels in advance."

"How are Miss Huangye and Lin Ruhe's injuries?"

Chu Yunlong grinned: "Thank you for your concern, Young Master Lu. I'm much better now."

"That's good."

"Old Chu, I have something to discuss with you, it's about Shen An."

A short while later.

Chu Yunlong clenched his fists so tightly they cracked, and said in a deep voice, "Since he is still useful to Young Master Lu, then let's spare his dog's life for a while."

"Um."

"Don't worry, after things are resolved in Nantong, I'll give you the chance to kill this beast with your own hands!"

Chu Yunlong nodded: "I will listen to you, young master."

Then, Lu Zuo discussed the development details with him, and they talked until noon before he took his leave.

Near Qixia Temple, along the winding ancient road.

"Miss Fan."

A man in a blue robe followed closely behind Fan Qinghui and said softly, "I, Song, have already donated ten thousand taels of gold to repair the Buddhist hall at Qixia Temple."

"oh."

"I know."

Fan Qinghui didn't even glance at him, saying indifferently, "Why did Young Master Song need to specifically tell me about this?"

this----

Song Que was slightly taken aback. Wasn't this what you said about the dilapidated state of the Qixia Temple's Buddhist hall, where someone would be happy to donate ten thousand taels of gold?

Why do you still act so coldly after I made the donation?

"Oh, it's nothing—"

"I was quite happy after doing this, and I wanted to share it with the girl."

Fan Qinghui glanced at him and said indifferently, "Ten thousand taels of gold is for appearances, repairing the Buddhist hall is for reputation."

"Young Master Song's joy is an attachment to appearances."

"If you truly see the merit, you should know what the Diamond Sutra says: 'This is merit, but it is not the nature of merit. Therefore, the Tathagata says that merit is abundant.'"

"Only when there is no giving or receiving in one's heart, and no such thing as this Buddhist temple, can one be truly pure and joyful."

Song Que asked, somewhat puzzled, "I have never read Buddhist scriptures, so I don't understand what Miss Fan means by this."

"Then let's wait until Young Master Song has read a few Buddhist scriptures and gained some understanding of Buddhism before he meets with Qinghui."

"it is good."

"I'll go back to school."

"By the way, Miss Fan, there's a newly opened restaurant in the city that serves very authentic vegetarian dishes."

"Mr. Song requests your attention—"

Just then, a woman in a blue dress walked towards us, holding a letter.

"Senior sister?"

Fan Qinghui immediately abandoned Song Que and rushed forward, asking, "Senior Sister, has Master sent a letter?"

"Well, see for yourself."

Bi Xiuxin handed over the letter, and after Fan Qinghui opened it, she saw eight large characters written on it!

The saintess was destined for calamity and offered herself to the demon.

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