I meet all the requirements for becoming a god in this world!

Chapter 248 Gao Heyun's Dowry

When Cheng Laiyun came out of the Imperial Study, it was already completely dark.

The palace lanterns on both sides of the passageway swayed slightly in the night breeze, their orange light flickering on the blue brick floor.

He stood on the steps and took a deep breath. The night wind filled his lungs, cool and refreshing, dissipating some of the enthusiasm he had felt while offering his advice in the imperial study.

The matter of the iron rulers has been settled. Ten thousand iron rulers will be delivered within half a month. Tiered contracting, encouragement of application, and cross-blind verification—all five hurdles have been overcome in one go.

The last words of Emperor Jianye, "Implement this throughout the country without error," were still echoing in his mind.

This represents the court's trust in him, and it also means that his contributions to the people have finally taken a solid step forward.

He straightened his clothes and was about to walk towards the palace gate when a familiar voice came from behind him.

"Cheng Laiyun".

He turned around. Zhang Lin was walking out of the side door of the Imperial Study. His moon-white scholar's robe gleamed faintly under the palace lanterns, and the barely visible patch on the cuff was still faintly visible.

He walked slowly, but each step was steady. He stopped in front of Cheng Laiyun, stood with his hands behind his back, and looked at him with his extremely dark and deep eyes.

A smile, rarely seen on the face of this prime minister known for his stern demeanor, appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Prime Minister Zhang," Cheng Laiyun said, bowing respectfully.

"Today in the Imperial Study, you single-handedly filled in all five obstacles."

Zhang Linzheng opened his mouth, his tone as usual calm, as if he were talking about something insignificant.

But Cheng Laiyun noticed that he used the phrase "you alone"—Zhang Linzheng never wasted any extra words in his wording.

These four words were deliberate, meant to tell him: I have witnessed the entire audience in the Imperial Study today.

"It is all thanks to Your Majesty's wisdom and Prime Minister Zhang's excellent guidance."

Zhang Lin waved his hand, clearly unmoved by such polite formalities in officialdom.

He took two steps forward and stood side by side with Cheng Laiyun on the passageway, looking up at the bright moon in the sky above the imperial city, and remained silent for a moment.

Then he suddenly asked a question that left Cheng Laiyun completely stunned.

"Aren't you interested in the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Regent's Office?"

Cheng Laiyun thought he had misheard.

Commander-in-Chief of the Regent's Office—that was Zhang Linzheng's own position, the most powerful official post in the entire Great Yuan Dynasty besides the Emperor. He subconsciously looked up at Zhang Linzheng's face, trying to find a trace of joking on that perpetually calm and collected expression. But Zhang Linzheng was not joking.

He withdrew his gaze, looking at the lights of the imperial city in the distance, his voice still as calm as ever, as if he were talking to Cheng Laiyun about something he had thought about long ago.

"The Chief Regent of the State Affairs Bureau serves a ten-year term."

"It's not that I don't want to sit here for a few more years, but this position is crucial to the lifeline of the court. It involves supervising all officials, overseeing criminal cases, and controlling the four major inspectors. The power is too great, so great that one cannot sit in it for long."

"This is a rule set by the founding emperor, and it is also a kind of protection for those in power—if you sit in power for too long, you will make too many enemies and accumulate too much resentment. Even if His Majesty trusts you, those people in the court will not tolerate you."

"Therefore, the commander-in-chief must be replaced every ten years."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Laiyun's heart suddenly stirred.

He did the math—Zhang Linzheng had been serving as the Chief Supervisor of the State Affairs Bureau since the year Emperor Jianye ascended the throne, and it seemed to be exactly ten years now.

He opened his mouth, his voice a little dry: "Prime Minister Zhang, then when the time comes..."

Zhang Linzheng did not answer.

He simply turned around, reached out, and gently patted Cheng Laiyun on the shoulder. The pat was so light, as if he were brushing a fallen leaf off his shoulder.

But Cheng Laiyun clearly felt that hand linger on his shoulder for a moment. It wasn't an elder's encouragement to a younger person, but an entrustment, a man who had stood in the court for twenty years handing over the heaviest thing in his hand to another.

Then Zhang Linzheng withdrew his hand and turned to walk towards the other end of the passageway.

His pale silhouette was stretched long under the palace lanterns, the hem of his robe fluttering slightly in the night breeze. He walked slowly, each step steady, as if measuring the path he had walked for ten years.

As Cheng Laiyun watched his retreating figure, he suddenly understood everything.

Today in the Imperial Study, Zhang Linzheng did not say a word from beginning to end, not because he did not want to speak, but because he was watching—watching how Cheng Laiyun would solve the problem, watching how Emperor Jianye would respond, and watching how the civil and military officials in the hall would react.

He was confirming whether the person he had chosen long ago could truly shoulder the responsibility of overseeing the state.

He has now confirmed it.

Am I the successor chosen by Prime Minister Zhang?

Cheng Laiyun took a deep breath, suppressing the surging emotions in his chest that he couldn't quite define as either excitement or bitterness, and then bowed deeply to the pale figure that was about to disappear at the end of the passageway.

The voice wasn't loud, but every word rang out clearly and steadily through the night wind, landing behind Zhang Linzheng:

"Congratulations in advance on Prime Minister Zhang's promotion!"

Zhang Linzheng didn't turn around. He simply raised his right hand and waved it casually twice, as if to say he understood, or as if to say stop talking nonsense.

The movement carried a rare air of casualness, a relaxation that could only be shown in front of the closest people.

Cheng Laiyun straightened up, watching the figure disappear at the end of the passageway, and a slow smile curved his lips.

…………

In the back hall of the Regent's Office, the duty room was filled with the aroma of tea.

Liu Yundu sat by the window, holding a teacup in his hand, his gaze fixed on the old locust tree in the courtyard outside the window, as if he was looking at something, or as if he wasn't looking at anything at all.

Tang Lu sat opposite him, legs crossed, the toes of his boots tapping the ground, a blade of grass he'd picked from who-knows-where dangling from his mouth. He chewed it a couple of times and then spat it out.

"Liu Yundu, do you think that kid Cheng Laiyun—shouldn't he be called Inspector Cheng now?"

"How long has this kid been back from Qingzhou? Less than a year, and he's risen from an eighth-rank inspector to a fourth-rank patrol inspector, on par with us."

"I spent more than ten years in the Regent's Office to get this position, and he caught up in just one year."

Tang Lu tossed the grass stalks onto the table, leaned back in his chair, shook his head, and chuckled.

"It's not that I'm unconvinced, it's just that this kid is too much of a troublemaker." "A seventh-rank soldier killing a fourth-rank soldier, a fifth-rank soldier breaking through a fourth-rank soldier, breaking through on the eve of battle like it's water. Do you think he's His Majesty's illegitimate son?"

"You already asked this question last time."

Liu Yundu did not turn around, his tone remaining as calm as ever:

"Whether he was born out of wedlock or not is unimportant. What matters is the merit he earned by risking his life to save the emperor on the Chengtianmen city wall—do you have that?"

Tang Lu was momentarily speechless and was about to retort when a series of unhurried footsteps came from the doorway.

Geng Yan walked in, fanning himself with a folding fan. He wasn't wearing his official robes today; instead, he was dressed in a moon-white long gown. He didn't look like an inspector from the Regent's Office, but rather like a wealthy young master traveling and enjoying the scenery.

Xun Meng followed behind him, still with that stern and unsmiling demeanor, a long sword hanging at his waist, his steps steady, exuding a chilling aura just by standing there.

"Are you talking about Cheng Laiyun?" Geng Yan closed his folding fan, sat down on the chair next to Tang Lu, picked up the teapot and poured himself a cup of tea. His movements were fluid and graceful, as if he were enjoying tea and flowers in his own backyard.

He blew away the foam on the tea, took a sip, then looked up with a faint smile on his lips: "Being promoted to Inspector is a good thing. With one more capable person in the Regent's Office, we can save ourselves a lot of trips."

"However, he did rise a bit too quickly."

"Tell me, what makes this kid so capable? He's certainly good at investigating cases, and he's implemented the new policies quite well, but the position of inspector isn't something you can just sit on because you're smart."

"A fourth-rank inspector—there are only four in the entire Regent's Office, and now with him, there are five." "Which of us didn't risk our lives for this position? He, Cheng Laiyun—"

As he said this, he narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint appearing in them:

"Moreover, it's at this critical juncture."

As soon as those words were spoken...

Everyone fell silent instinctively.

Zhang Xiang is about to step down from his position.

The next commander-in-chief was originally to be chosen from among these four people.

But... now there's another Cheng Laiyun out of nowhere.

What does this mean?

Is this His Majesty's intention?

Or was it Zhang Xiang's idea?

But at this point, regardless of whose intention it was, it wasn't fair to any of the four of them.

No one could answer him.

After a long silence, Liu Yundu's voice rang out:

"Cheng Laiyun charged alone into the poisonous cloud of a fifth-rank snake demon outside Qingzhou City, sacrificing his life to save the lives of all the people in the city."

Liu Yundu's tone remained as calm as ever, but he pronounced each word very clearly.

Geng Yan paused for a moment, his fan still twirling. Liu Yundu didn't look at him, continuing to gaze at the old locust tree outside the window, as if recounting a long-forgotten case:

"When he was piloting the new policies in Changle County, he was ambushed and killed by three seventh-rank assassins at a pass. He single-handedly held them off and even killed his attackers."

"He was the first to see through Yang Shi'en's blockade of the capital, and he personally went to the Xie residence to invite Grand Tutor Xie."

"Geng Yan, you just said we all know about his contributions—how much do you know about them?"

Geng Yan's smile froze for a moment, then returned to its usual nonchalant expression. He unfolded his folding fan and waved it twice, his tone carrying a hint of half-serious teasing:

"Liu Yundu, have you been bribed by him? Why are you speaking up for him in every word?"

"I'm not denying his contributions, I'm saying—" "You mean he was promoted too quickly, and I'm worried his foundation is unstable."

Xun Meng spoke, his voice not loud, but each word sounded as heavy as if it had been struck by an anvil:

"I share this concern. The position of Inspector of the Regent's Office is no trivial matter; it involves supervising all officials, inspecting the entire realm, and acting first and reporting later."

"Can a young man who has been in the Imperial Household Department for less than a year handle such power?"

Tang Lu couldn't help but roll his eyes when he heard Xun Meng's words.

He braced his two thick arms on the table, leaned forward, and shouted at the top of his lungs:

"Old Xun! You and Geng Yan are playing good cop and bad cop, but in the end, isn't it just that you're worried about the sudden appearance of an inspector... affecting your ambition to seize Zhang Xiang's position?"

"You!" Geng Yan really didn't expect that this guy surnamed Tang would bring things out into the open.

He stared intently at Tang Lu, took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, and tried to speak calmly:

I didn't mean that.

"I just think Cheng Laiyun is... too young, and inevitably acts rashly."

"Come on, you!" Tang Lu rolled his eyes. "When I was promoted to Inspector, some people said I was too reckless, but I'm doing just fine now, aren't I?"

"You guys are just being sour!"

"Inspector Tang." Geng Yan closed his folding fan and tapped the table slowly, his tone still nonchalant, but his words were even more infuriating than Lawyer Tang's voice:

I don't deny what you said.

"But sour as it may be, the reasoning is the reasoning."

"I acknowledge that Liu Yundu was meritorious in saving the emperor; I also acknowledge that the new policies were effectively implemented."

"But what I care about is his cultivation level."

"This time, the killing of Yang Shi'en was another joint effort by Grand Tutor Xie and the man in gray robes. He was merely making a breakthrough in the battle and taking advantage of the situation to reap the rewards."

"How much of that is genuine skill of his own?"

"An inspector is someone who leads troops into battle and guards a region; he can't hold his position just by relying on his brains and luck."

Just as Tang Lu was about to slam his fist on the table in rebuttal, a sudden burst of noisy carriage sounds came from outside the window.

The sound came from the direction of the Regent's Office gate, growing clearer and clearer as it approached—it wasn't the sound of an ordinary carriage rolling over a flagstone. It was the rhythmic rumble of more than a dozen carriages moving simultaneously, interspersed with the metallic clang of armor clashing and the heavy thud of cargo boxes hitting the ground.

Geng Yan was closest to the window, and subconsciously turned his head to look outside, his folding fan stopping in mid-air.

More than a dozen horse-drawn carriages were parked outside the gate of the Imperial Household Department.

Each one was a two-horse carriage, with the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion emblem inlaid on the shafts. The horses pulling the carriages were not ordinary packhorses, but iron-hoofed steeds, a specialty of the northern border, with shoulders nearly ten feet tall and manes that gleamed with an oily sheen in the sunlight.

The escort was not ordinary servants, but a whole squad of black-armored knights, each with a long sword at their waist, their armor engraved with the frost patterns unique to the northern border, and even the horses' steps were perfectly synchronized.

A crowd of onlookers had already gathered at the entrance of the Regent's Office, and several inspectors on duty were busy trying to maintain order.

But the armored knights didn't need anyone to command them; they split into two teams on their own, one guarding the sides of the carriage, and the other starting to unload things from the carriage.

Tang Lü also leaned out of the window, and after just one glance, he gasped in shock:

"My goodness—the Cloud Pattern Black Iron Armor!"

"That's the standard armor worn by the elite guards of the North; a set costs at least this much!"

He held up five fingers, felt it wasn't enough, so he held up five more, but still felt it wasn't enough, so he simply spread out both hands.

The smile on Geng Yan's face had completely vanished, replaced by a serious astonishment that was rarely seen on his face. His gaze passed over the black iron armor and landed on the carriages behind them—several guards were carefully lifting a large and heavy sandalwood box from the carriages, which took four black-armored knights working together to barely keep it steady.

One of the boxes had its lid slightly ajar during transport, for a very brief moment, but enough for Geng Yan to see what was inside.

That's a whole box of top-grade spiritual materials!!

They are in excellent condition, each piece is about the size of a fist, and has a deep, dark golden luster in the sunlight.

Normally, you'd be lucky to find a few pieces of this grade of spiritual material in the Imperial Household Department's warehouse, yet the Prince of Zhenbei's Mansion used a cart to transport it.

"Top-grade spiritual materials? Transported by vehicle?"

The folding fan in Geng Yan's hand fell to the ground with a "thud," but he didn't bother to pick it up. He just turned to look at Liu Yundu in disbelief.

Liu Yundu remained seated by the window, holding a teacup, his gaze fixed on the bustling scene of unloading outside.

His expression remained as calm as ever, except that his hand holding the teacup paused slightly.

Then a smile crept onto his face: "Hehe."

"This is the dowry that the Prince of Zhenbei is preparing for his granddaughter."

"What? Are you jealous?"