Ten years of dormancy: Starting as a martial arts master at the pinnacle

"Haha, hahaha..."

Li Zheng laughed wildly.

He should have thought of this long ago; given his sixth son's filial piety, he would definitely have thought of this.

"Father, what are you laughing at? I'm serious."

King Li Yuanhao of Qin had no intention of joking.

"The plan you and Qing'er devised has eliminated a major threat to our Great Zhou royal family, enough to make you famous for generations. Shouldn't you give your son a chance?"

Upon hearing Li Yuanhao's matter-of-fact words, Li Zheng's smile vanished.

"You say you'll give me a chance, so I'll give you a chance? The rule for imperial succession is: if there's a legitimate heir, the eldest son should be chosen; if not, the eldest son should be chosen. You and the Crown Prince are both legitimate sons, but don't forget, the Crown Prince is the eldest legitimate son. How did it become your turn?"

Upon hearing Li Zheng's question, Prince Qin, Li Yuanhao, remained completely unconcerned.

"My son is supreme!"

Upon hearing this, Li Zheng was momentarily at a loss for words to refute.

After all, that's the truth.

In the past two weeks, some originally neutral ministers, and even Hoon-gyu who had never intervened before, have been involved.

They all secretly became supporters of the Prince of Qin's mansion.

Could it be because of the charm of King Li Yuanhao of Qin?

Of course not.

No matter how charismatic Li Yuanhao was, it wasn't enough to make those people submit.

Ultimately, it all comes down to Li Changqing's existence.

His son was the supreme ruler of the royal family, the person with the highest status in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

His importance surpassed that of Qi Yufan, the ancestor of the Duke of Qi, and even surpassed that of the Emperor of the Great Zhou.

After all, he was the legitimate supreme ruler of the Great Zhou royal family, a being in a class of his own.

In this situation, if those court officials still oppose the Prince of Qin's residence, it's basically like an old man drinking poison and thinking he's living too long.

"Qing'er has already said that he will not interfere in the struggle for the throne and the selection of the heir apparent."

Li Zheng spoke again, but his tone was already very unpleasant.

But Li Yuanhao seemed completely oblivious. He continued to raise his head, asking with a puzzled expression, "So what? Does that mean my son isn't a Supreme Being?"

Li Zheng was speechless again.

That hits the nail on the head.

Even if Li Changqing publicly declares that he will not interfere in the struggle for the throne and will not care who becomes emperor in the future?

Does anyone believe that?

It is estimated that, apart from the Crown Prince, the Prince of Yan, and the Fifth Prince, there are others.

No force will believe this nonsense.

There's a saying that goes, "Those involved are often confused."

From the perspective of the Crown Prince and the Prince of Yan, they would never give up unless all hope was lost.

Furthermore, given that Li Changqing is of supreme status, what reason would he have to deceive them?

They would naturally believe this and then continue to vie for the future imperial throne.

But other people certainly wouldn't think that way.

Qin King Li Yuanhao doted on Prince Qinghe, who should now be called Prince Yong.

Everyone can see it.

There was no discord between the father and son, so why wouldn't the son side with his own father?

They claim to be neutral, but who can truly remain neutral?

Even with your own parents, you can't treat them all equally.

Not to mention the relationship between Li Changqing, Li Yuanhao, and Li Yuanqian.

How could he possibly remain neutral?

Those are just some deceptive excuses. Anyone who believes them might as well just buy a block of tofu and smash their head against it.

Li Zheng clearly understood this principle, so his confidence was never truly solid.

"If I don't abdicate, what do you intend to do? Pull me off the throne?"

Hearing his father start acting like a rogue, Li Yuanhao felt utterly helpless.

"How dare you say that? Do you think I'm the kind of unfilial person?"

Li Zheng looked at Li Yuanhao with great suspicion. He'd already come all this way demanding the dragon throne. Didn't he know whether Li Yuanhao was that kind of person or not?

"Father, you've misunderstood."

Li Yuanhao looked hurt. "Your subject did this entirely for the sake of the Great Zhou royal family."

"Look, isn't our Great Zhou's first supreme ruler someone I supported?"

Li Yuanhao was extremely pleased with himself.

When Li Changqing came out of the Great Zhou Armory, he knew that Li Changqing had become the fourth elder of the royal family.

He naturally assumed that his son had already become a half-step supreme being at the age of seventeen.

Even if I'm not 100% certain that I'll achieve the supreme position in the future, I'm at least 70-80% sure.

At that time, the throne will be within easy reach.

Unexpectedly, the plan was brought forward. Li Yuanhao was not yet ready to succeed to the throne, but his son became the supreme ruler first.

Li Yuanhao's wish came true, and he was so happy he was practically dumbfounded.

After having an exciting time playing around with his princess, he ran to the palace, ready to show off to his father, the emperor.

Unfortunately, Li Zheng had already gone into seclusion at that time, so he had no way to show off.

Now that Li Zheng has emerged from seclusion, he has come running here.

"I know of your achievements. Even if you cannot become emperor, I will still appoint you as regent. Your status will be equal to that of the emperor..."

"Who wants to be the regent? I will be the emperor."

Upon hearing that he was to be appointed regent, Li Yuanhao immediately objected.

He has already planned out his future; how could he let it be interrupted by such a trivial matter?

"What, are you determined to sit on this throne?"

If it were any other prince facing this question from Li Zheng, they would probably have obediently knelt on the ground and begged for forgiveness.

The throne of the supreme ruler is not a place that just anyone can sit on.

Especially when the previous emperor was still alive, anyone who showed such thoughts would be guilty of a capital offense.

This is something that the imperial power can never tolerate.

Li Yuanhao, however, was completely unconcerned. "Your subject has already prepared his own path. Since your subject was able to elevate one supreme being, he can help my Great Zhou elevate a second one. A dynasty with two supreme beings is unprecedented and will never be repeated. At that time, my Great Zhou will surely make the four seas submit and rule the world alone."

Because of the ruling system.

Maintaining the current territory is almost the limit for the Great Zhou Dynasty.

It takes three to five years to travel from Kyoto to the most remote prefecture by horse-drawn carriage.

If the Great Zhou continues to expand its territory, then the newly expanded territory will at most belong to the Great Zhou in name only.

That's why Li Yuanhao said that he would rule the world alone in the future, rather than unify the world.

Because of his martial arts background, Da Zhou knew that the world was much larger than ordinary people imagined.

Ordinary people might never even leave their small town in their entire lives. But martial artists are different; they let the people of the Great Zhou know that, apart from the far north, there is no such thing as a martial arts world.

The Star Empire in the East, the Fifteen Kingdoms in the South, and the Sacred Mountain in the West.

Neither of them represents their respective limits.

Crossing mountains and seas, to places further east, further south, and further west.

There is an even more expansive world beyond.

Unifying the world is impossible; one can only dominate the scene.

"What is your path?"

"The Way of the Emperor!"

"What is your interpretation of the way of the emperor?"

"To follow the way of Heaven above, to hold power in the middle, to bring peace to the common people below, to subdue the feudal lords outside, and to control the officials inside, to be solitary yet not fallen, to be authoritative yet not tyrannical—this is the way of an emperor."

……