I am the snake demon!

After seeing Wei Xuanli off, Bai Xuan returned, where someone was waiting for him in the hall.

Princess Zhenbei, Duan Baiyu, Xu Yuhua, Li Daoyan, Leng Shihhu, Huangfu Xiongwen, and Lu Zhanqiu.

Apart from Xu Chengfeng, most of the high-ranking officials of the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion are here.

"I apologize for keeping you all waiting," Bai Xuan said.

"What do you mean? As your subjects, isn't it only natural for us to wait for you, the Prince of Zhenbei?" Leng Shih-hu spoke first.

"In terms of official rank, that's true, but in terms of seniority, apart from my eldest sister, who among you here isn't my elder?" Bai Xuan said.

"That's not how it works. Private matters are private matters, and official matters are official matters. Now that the Prince's Palace is holding a meeting, you are in charge," Leng Shih-hu said seriously.

In private, you can be more casual.

However, in public places, there must be a hierarchy of respect.

"Thank you for your guidance, Uncle Leng."

Bai Xuan nodded upon hearing this, then looked at Li Daoyan and asked, "Uncle, how much of what Wei Xuanli said do you think is true and how much is false? How will the court react?"

"It's basically true. He's here to make a name for himself and plan for further advancement, not to actually fight to the death with our Northern Territory. That's something the court doesn't want to see either. So when you go back this time, the current emperor will most likely agree to your request and then symbolically punish you, at most taking away a few counties from your fiefdom," Li Daoyan said.

"That's a good thing, eldest sister won't have to marry out." Bai Xuan smiled upon hearing this, hoping the emperor would be sensible; if he wasn't, then he couldn't be blamed.

"But this is just the beginning. The imperial court is deliberately trying to incite chaos in our northern territory. The military power in Bingzhou is in the hands of Xu Wenzheng, which is already difficult to control. Now that Young Master Yanheng has gone there, Bingzhou may no longer belong to the Prince of Zhenbei. The emperor in the capital is even more terrifying than we expected," Li Daoyan said.

"Once he becomes emperor and secures his throne, the vast Great Zhou will be at his mercy, and naturally, he is terrifying. However, although Xu Yanheng is a son of a military family, he is not necessarily very good at governing a region. I will write to my students and ask them to provide us with intelligence," Huangfu Xiongwen said.

He has always been an authority among the civil officials of the North.

"Thank you, teacher," Bai Xuan said.

"It's just my duty. What I'm more curious about is why you didn't show any surprise when you heard the emperor appoint Xu Yanheng as governor. What were you thinking?" Huangfu Xiongwen asked.

"Fortunately, he was only appointed Governor of Bingzhou. If he were to prioritize personal favors and believe that my father sacrificed himself for the country and made outstanding contributions, and want to treat all of my father's children well, and divide the northern border into several parts, appoint me as the Prince of Zhenbei, and then appoint my other brothers as princes as well, and dismantle the northern border, then we would really be in trouble," Bai Xuan said truthfully.

"Using personal favors?"

Upon hearing Bai Xuan's words, Huangfu Xiongwen and Li Daoyan's expressions changed simultaneously, and they looked at Bai Xuan in disbelief.

"That's right. They used personal favors and the pretext of doing what's best for their father to take care of their descendants and grant him his fiefdom to us," Bai Xuan said with a smile.

Jia Yi proposed establishing numerous feudal lords to weaken their power. After a feudal lord's death, his original land would be divided and distributed among all his sons. This was ostensibly a favor, but in reality, it weakened the feudal lord.

Emperor Wen of Han adopted this approach and took action against the descendants of his elder brother Liu Fei, dividing the largest vassal state at the time, Qi, into seven. Then Emperor Jing of Han targeted his beloved younger brother, the most powerful vassal king at the time, the King of Liang, dividing Liang into five. When Emperor Wu of Han came along, he went even further, treating all relatives equally and implementing the "Decree of Grace" to demonstrate the benevolence and righteousness of the Han Dynasty.

By repeatedly extending favors, they finally succeeded in getting Liu Bei, the imperial uncle, to sell straw sandals.

The method adopted by this emperor was undeniably brilliant.

However, it felt that something was missing compared to what Bai Xuan had seen in the history books of his previous life.

"It's called a favor, but in reality it's a deprivation. If this is truly done, the northern border will be in grave danger." Huangfu Xiongwen looked at Bai Xuan in surprise. Was this the legendary politically illiterate?

I think he knows more than anyone else.

Li Daoyan was also somewhat taken aback. He had spent many days with Bai Xuan and often noticed Bai Xuan's eccentricities. In terms of political views, Bai Xuan was sometimes as naive as a child and sometimes as shrewd as a monster.

"That means the one sitting in the capital is far less farsighted than our Prince." Leng Shih-hu, who had thought the least, burst out laughing.

The Prince of Zhenbei was meant to be this kind of person.

He possessed great talent and ambition, and had a broad and deep mind.

It's a minor matter that my cultivation level and array formation skills are not high now, as long as someone like him is there to protect me. But I must keep a clear head.

Everyone smiled upon hearing this.

The initial concerns that Xu Yanheng's appointment as governor of Bingzhou might lead to a de facto split between Liang and Bingzhou in the north suddenly seemed less daunting now, with an even more terrifying scenario as a reference.

After all, although the situation is bad, it's not so bad that it's beyond repair, is it?

"The one in the capital is cunning. This is a test of us, to find out our attitude. I don't think he will go any further. Next is the spring hunt in March, when all the generals of the northern border and the tribal leaders will be there. Father has just passed away, and this is the first hunt since my third brother ascended the throne. We must make sure to establish my third brother's authority," Xu Yuhua said.

"A bunch of scum. If they dare to misbehave, I'll wipe them out." Leng Shih-hu sneered.

Neither the Northern Wilderness nor the Demon Kingdom is a monolithic entity.

In the area where the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion and their opposing forces were located, many demons and northern wilderness tribes chose to submit to the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion, and the mansion granted them official positions and salaries.

The Northern Wilderness tribes were led by the Three Guards of Mola.

The demon tribes are led by the deer of the wilderness.

These tribes are always playing both sides, trying to please everyone.

But Leng Shih-hu didn't take it to heart. He couldn't destroy the Demon Kingdom and the Northern Wilderness, so he couldn't destroy these tribes either.

However, these things are like weeds; once you cut one crop, another grows back, so you leave them.

If you're not happy, then destroy us.

"My third brother has just ascended the throne, so it's best to prioritize peace. Otherwise, if they side with the Northern Wilderness and the Demon Kingdom, it will only cause more trouble," Xu Yuhua said.

Leng Shih-hu chuckled lightly, not taking these people seriously.

After a brief discussion, the group dispersed.

Bai Xuan took a step forward, intending to head to the library to read more books and learn some new skills so he could compete with Li Daoyan.

Before he could leave, he saw Xu Yuhua waiting for him on the way.

Seeing this, Li Daoyan's expression became subtle. He chuckled and said he had something to attend to and would take his leave first, leaving space for Bai Xuan and Xu Yuhua.

"Big sister, is something the matter?" Bai Xuan asked Xu Yuhua.

"It's nothing, I just want to thank you for helping me earlier. Otherwise, I really would have married someone from the capital." Xu Yuhua smiled sweetly.

"What are you thanking me for? As long as I'm alive, no one in this world can force you to do something you don't want to do, not even the King of Heaven himself," Bai Xuan said with a light laugh.

Looking at Bai Xuan's carefree and spirited expression, Xu Yuhua felt a surge of warmth in her heart. Since her father's death, the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion had been like a small boat in a storm, on the verge of capsizing and drowning. Planning for Bai Xuan to impersonate Xu Shi'an was even more risky, yet there was no one to share it with. Only today did she realize that it wasn't she who was sheltering Bai Xuan from the storm, but rather Bai Xuan who was sheltering her from the storm.

"I told you, if you're in trouble, I'll solve it. No matter what the trouble is, or what you want to do, you can come to me, and I will definitely help you," Bai Xuan said.

"I understand, thank you, Third Brother." Xu Yuhua smiled gently, a smile as pure as ice and snow, like plum blossoms in bloom, her white dress as white as snow, like a fairy descending to earth.

Bai Xuan was slightly taken aback and said, "No need to be so polite. Just call me if you need anything. Of course, it would be best if you didn't need me, since that would show that everything goes smoothly for you, Big Sister."

After saying this, Bai Xuan set off for the library.

Xu Yuhua smiled knowingly, a faint joy appearing in her eyes.

Li Daoyan, who was silently observing from the library, revealed a joyful smile.

As Bai Xuan walked back to the library, trying to calm his inexplicably rapid heart, he saw Li Daoyan sitting at the chessboard. He obediently sat down on the opposite side and was about to make his move when he heard Li Daoyan speak: "You acted impulsively today, perhaps you've fallen for Yu Hua?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Xuan immediately cried out, "Uncle, what are you talking about? Incest is a crime!"

"There's a formation here, just the two of us, why pretend? You and Yuhua aren't related by blood, so even if you can't marry now, it doesn't mean you can't have children. If you like her, then go for it. That way, Yuhua can manage domestic affairs, and you can handle external affairs, paving a bright future for your future son," Li Daoyan said irritably.

Don't think I'm old and my eyesight is failing; I can see everything clearly from the top floor.

"Uncle, I'm still a child. How could my son be gone?" Bai Xuan said.

I'm just a 100-year-old child.

"Stop interrupting. Your mother wants you to marry Liu Ruyi of the Taibai Sword Sect, but I don't agree with it. Of course, you should marry the person who will accompany you for life, and in the end, it's your decision. But your mother hasn't met Liu Ruyi much, and neither you nor I have. On the other hand, you've spent some time with Yuhua. She's incredibly beautiful, elegant, and poised. If I were fifty years younger, I would be tempted too. Aren't you tempted?" Li Daoyan said.

Upon hearing this, Bai Xuan's expression shifted. He hadn't expected Li Daoyan to have been planning this all along. Xu Yuhua's face inexplicably flashed into his mind, and his heart, which had just calmed down, suddenly raced again. He cursed Li Daoyan's damned greedy fate inwardly, for disrupting his Dao heart. Instead of giving a direct answer, he joked, "Being fifty years younger would be fine. Uncle, how old are you now?"

"You little brat, you're changing the subject again. Fine, it's your own life's big event, whatever you want." Li Daoyan rolled his eyes at Bai Xuan, annoyed.

"Thank you for your magnanimity, Uncle." Bai Xuan smiled with relief upon hearing this. Well, I can say that I am greedy and lustful. Not to mention Yu Hua, I also like Xu Yu Shuang and even Leng Qing Han.

I simply lust after their bodies.

But I entered the Prince's mansion in order to leave this world. Why flirt if I'm not going to marry?

If you can't promise someone a lifetime commitment, then don't hold them back.

He could control himself with others, but with Yu Hua…

Could it be that my cultivation involves some kind of emotional tribulation?