Become a king right from the start, beginning with receiving rewards from all the heavens.

Xia Zhaoyan sat up straight, his expression serious.

"Please speak, sir. You know my character!"

In the hearts of all the beings in the heavens, the Benevolent King is the most magnanimous lord they have ever seen in their past and present lives.

Of course, this applies to people like them.

"Your Highness, our long-term goal is to ascend the throne!"

"The immediate goal is to build a solid foundation so that when the time comes to reveal our hand, we will be qualified to sit at the table."

Xia Zhaoyan nodded, having to admit that he was indeed not qualified to sit at the table vying for the throne.

Because the Heavenly Punishment Bureau is not yet fully under its control, and there is no powerful political group behind it.

The two forces in the cultivation world alone are not enough to put him on the table for now.

Zhuge Zhengwo continued his analysis.

"Therefore, the short-term goal is to first completely take control of the entire Heavenly Punishment Division!"

"You can't have your cake and eat it too. It's clearly impossible to control the Heavenly Punishment Bureau while also accepting allies from various neutral factions within the court and the public!"

Ultimately, it was because of his own lack of innate talent. Xia Zhaoyan sighed inwardly. Otherwise, who would say that you can't have your cake and eat it too?

"Therefore, I hope you will temporarily abandon your plan to seek refuge with the Wang family of Xuzhou!"

"You only have a little over a year left before the deadline His Majesty gives you. If you accept the royal family's allegiance..."

"If the other princes obstruct you again, you won't be able to control the remaining branches for over a year!"

Giving up the opportunity to join the Wang family of Xuzhou is an easy thing to say...

But if you choose to do this, what about your reputation...?

However, Xia Zhaoyan knew that the Heavenly Punishment Division was far more important to him than the neutral faction at the moment!

"Your Highness, I know your concerns."

"To put it bluntly, those forces are, to put it nicely, neutral; to put it bluntly, they're self-serving sycophants!"

"Although the group is large, its strength and status ultimately do not reach the top level!"

This was a difficult decision, but Xia Zhaoyan was not one to hesitate.

Facing his future and with Zhuge Zhengwo's analysis, he understood what choice he needed to make.

Those who cannot plan for the whole cannot plan for a part. Compared to the future qualification to sit at the table, accepting the neutral faction now is indeed a greater loss.

"Alright, then let's abandon the Wang family in Xuzhou and pledge allegiance!"

Just then, Li Mochou's voice came from outside, requesting an audience.

"Greetings, Your Highness. Greetings, and greetings to Mr. Zhuge Zhengwo."

Zhuge Zhengwo quickly stood up to return the greeting, "Oh, oh, oh, Miss Mochou, there's no need for such formalities!"

Zhuge Zhengwo, who had just been giving pointers on the state of the country, was so frightened that he quickly stood up to return the greeting.

As a seasoned veteran, how could he not see that Li Mochou was now His Highness's woman?

She will be one of the future princesses, and even more so, a future imperial concubine.

How could he accept such a formal greeting so casually? Having lived two lives, he knew all too well that he must never offend a woman, especially one who could whisper sweet nothings in his ear at any moment.

"Your Highness, Li Yun has sent word that Blood Blade needs his help!"

After saying that, he handed Xia Zhaoyan the specific information.

After reading it, Xia Zhaoyan handed it to Zhuge Zhengwo.

"This Blood Blade Ancestor has learned how to utilize resources!" Xia Zhaoyan remarked with a smile.

Clearly, he didn't object to Blood Blade doing this.

At this point, Zhuge Zhengye had also finished reading.

"Your Highness, this is a good thing! Without revealing that the Underworld belongs to our forces, allowing your various factions to make reasonable use of each other will accelerate our strategic planning and development!"

Xia Zhaoyan nodded and then gave instructions to Li Mochou.

"Mo Chou, pass on a message to Li Yun and Xue Dao: I have agreed to this joint operation."

"But we must make thorough preparations and not reveal any trace of our involvement!"

...

Inside the palace, Xia Hongwu also felt a toothache. How could this Prince Ren be so troublesome?

What do you all think?

The people below looked at each other in bewilderment, and finally Gao Zhan stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, Prince Ni is in a very precarious situation this time."

"Now, it's up to him to make his own choice!"

"If you're greedy, everything will be for naught. He won't even be able to protect the neutral faction, let alone the Heavenly Punishment Division."

"If you're smart, you should refuse the offer of allegiance from the Wang family of Xuzhou now!"

Everyone nodded, including the Xia Emperor at the head of the table.

"So, how are my princes reacting now?"

At this moment, Wu Ji stepped forward, bowed, and reported.

"Your Majesty, as soon as this news reached the capital, all the princes made the same decision almost simultaneously."

"That means sending your advisors to the residences of other princes."

"As for what exactly they discussed, the Eastern Depot is currently unable to investigate!"

Xia Hongwu nodded. The Eastern Depot wasn't a god; how could it know the prince's core conversation? Did they really think the dukes and marquises behind the prince were just decorations?

"Hahaha... Interesting, so interesting!"

Emperor Xia suddenly burst into laughter, then got up and walked down the steps, saying as he went.

"Gentlemen, don't you all feel that this year's struggle for the throne is far more exciting than my own?"

Upon careful consideration, everyone realized that what His Majesty said was indeed true.

Not only was it more exciting than His Majesty's session, but in the entire history of the Great Xia Dynasty over the past 100,000 years, very few sessions could compare to this one.

Suddenly, everyone felt a tremor in their hearts as a proud yet dazzling figure appeared in their minds.

Nioh! !

It seems that ever since King Ren was bestowed the title, the competition for the throne has become much more exciting.

this...

At this moment, Emperor Xia's confidants couldn't help but look at His Majesty. You are truly amazing, to have given birth to such a group of sons with outstanding talent and wisdom.

"Now, let's just relax and enjoy the show!"

"This game is getting more and more exciting; the student has truly surpassed the master!"

Everyone rolled their eyes inwardly; who couldn't tell that you were subtly praising yourself!

...

When Li Yun, who was far away in Xuzhou, received the message from the Prince's Mansion, he broke out in a cold sweat and trembled all over!

Blood Blade immediately stepped forward and asked anxiously, "What's wrong?"

Snapped! !

Li Yun slapped himself across the face, and half of his face swelled up instantly.

The blood-stained knife next to it is terrifying. Dude, you don't seem to be from the world of self-torture, do you?

Could it be that his own request led to Li Yun being reprimanded by His Highness?

"Alas... I meant well but did something terribly wrong, almost putting Your Highness in a hopeless situation!"

"However, His Highness has agreed to our alliance!"

Having said that, he handed the intelligence in his hand to Blood Blade.

After reading it, Xue Dao breathed a sigh of relief, thankfully it wasn't because of him.

Then, he looked at Li Yun with a complicated expression!

Finally, he sighed, "His Highness obviously didn't blame you for this; on the contrary, he praised you."

"This shows His Highness's magnanimity towards us!"

"However!" Blood Blade said with a serious expression.

"From now on, think things through more carefully, and report any undecided decisions immediately!"

Li Yun nodded heavily, and then his internal energy surged, and the swelling on his face immediately disappeared.

"Someone, summon Wang Mo..."

...