Guo Huan turned around a few times and said, "Brother Xian, what do you think of the current situation in the court?"
"My little brother is new here and has only been in the capital for a short period of time. I really have a dark eye on the affairs in the court. I would like to ask my eldest brother for your advice."
Guo Huan nodded slightly and said, "My dear brother, I don't know. Although I secretly serve His Highness the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince treats me with the courtesy of a scholar. Of course, Guo is not afraid of His Highness the Crown Prince's troubles. But now His Majesty is hiding in Taiji Palace to seek immortality and medicine." On the surface, he entrusted all state affairs to the prince, but in fact, he temporarily established a Xuanzhengyuan in Taiji Palace."
"Several important ministers from the court, headed by the Prime Minister of the Left, Huo Zheng, were accompanying him. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister of the Right, Cui Zi, sent copies of their daily memorials to the Xuanzhengyuan. All major military and state affairs must be announced by His Majesty today. Decide."
"The establishment of the Xuanzhengyuan is equivalent to the establishment of an internal dynasty in the Taiji Palace. The actual power is still in the hands of His Majesty today. If the Crown Prince handles government affairs a little carelessly, he will often get into trouble. Although His Highness the Crown Prince is very proud of overseeing the country, he is actually walking on thin ice and does not dare to make any mistakes. If something goes wrong, it’s really difficult to do!”
After hearing this, Mu Sheng said to himself that this was the specific situation that only a disciple of the prince like Guo Huan could understand. It was normal for the emperor to operate like this, and it was similar to what Wu Xie had analyzed with him before.
The old leaders are also afraid that their young successors will not be able to lose their weight, and daily beatings are certain. They are afraid that they will be sidelined before they officially retire, which would be a tragedy. Successors need to be trained and guarded against, especially in this era of imperial power. Not many kings have a happy ending when they lose their power.
Mu Sheng lowered his head and thought for a while and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has important responsibilities for the country. This may be due to His Majesty's painstaking care for the Crown Prince."
Guo Huan said, "Well, you are right. To be disrespectful, as long as the Crown Prince can survive His Majesty, the Crown Prince will be able to succeed."
Such treacherous words should be discussed in private, which shows that Guo Huan does have a lot of trust in Mu Sheng himself.
Guo Huan suddenly frowned and asked, "Brother Xian, I have a question. Brother Xian is a cultivator. Is there any magic that can lead to immortality in this world?"
Mu Sheng was stunned when he heard this, and understood that Guo Huan was actually afraid that if the emperor succeeded in attaining righteousness, he might be able to rule the world for eternity. His Highness the Crown Prince would never be able to succeed, and no one could win it. There is no way out for Dorian and his gang of chickens and dogs who are vassal to the prince.
Mu Sheng gave the answer after a moment's thought, and said, "What I know is that even if you reach the level of Heavenly Master in the Four Phases Returning to One Realm, it will only increase your lifespan by three to four hundred years. A few powerful elders Monsters can live to be around five hundred years old.”
"Even the old monsters at the Heavenly level can count them all on one hand. Their longevity is as long as the sky. Immortality is just a fantasy of foolish men and women. It is impossible. This goes against the heavenly law of reincarnation. , even this universe that accommodates all things will eventually be destroyed one day. It has a beginning and an end, not to mention that mere mortal flesh and immortality are just wishful thinking..."
Speaking of this, Mu Sheng's mind flashed to the strange pantheon of elixir that Zhang Daoling had refined for His Majesty, and he changed his words and said, "Perhaps it is possible for Your Majesty to practice immortality and take elixirs to extend his life for a few years, but it is absolutely impossible to live forever in this ancient era. It has been thousands of years now, and there are many kings and nobles in this world who are obsessed with cultivating immortality. Have you ever heard of anyone who can really live forever? If someone really did it, this world would still be the world of the Jin Dynasty. ?”
Hearing this, Guo Huan relaxed his brows and sighed and said, "What my dear brother said is true. In the era of all nations, our former lord of the Chen Kingdom, King Chen Wudu, was a heroic figure who dominated the world. He was also obsessed with cultivating immortality and immortality. As a result, he died of erysipelas poisoning at the age of 40." In the palace, if the late Lord Chen Wuyou really lives forever, even if he lives ten more years, this world may not belong to the Jin Kingdom."
When Mu Sheng heard this, he sighed, "Brother is right! Back then, Chen State was the number one overlord among the vassal states in the east. Chen State was the hegemon, but even with the ferocious power of the Jin State, the tigers and wolves did not dare to advance in the east for decades. In the Central Plains, King Wu died, and the Chen Kingdom was in chaos. King Wu did not establish a prince during his lifetime, which caused the princes to compete for the throne. Civil war continued. Later, it turned into civil strife in the Chen Kingdom that lasted for decades. The Chen Kingdom also missed the opportunity to rise. , It’s such a pity and such a shame!”
Hearing this, Guo Huan felt the same and sighed, "My dear brother is right. The most unjust thing for the fall of our Chen State was that when the Jin State saw the civil strife in our Chen State, they took advantage of it and came in. In the battle of Suishui, they destroyed our Chen State's 300,000 elites." , ceding land and paying compensation has hurt our vitality. If we could delay for a few years, we might not be able to revive our hegemony, alas!"
When Guo Huan mentioned what happened back then, his tone still showed resentment.
Mu Sheng changed the subject and said, "But please don't worry, brother. Now that the crown prince has been established early and his title has been determined, the crown prince will always have his day. Time is on our side. We disciples can just be careful and wait." As soon as the prince succeeds to the throne, we will achieve great success sooner or later."
Hearing this, Guo Huan smiled and said, "Hahaha, okay! I feel reassured by the words of a wise brother. Now that His Majesty is blocked by Right Prime Minister Cui Yan, the Crown Prince is actually quite able to handle it. The Ninth Prince, Young Master Xiu, has given us a lot of trouble in private." Less traffic."
Mu Sheng recalled the dashing and heroic appearance at last year's winter hunting conference, where the arrows were all in vain.
"Master Xiu?"
Guo Huan said, "Yes, Young Master Xiu, this person is very ambitious and has great ambitions. He has secretly won over many courtiers. Even though His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had already established his position fourteen years ago, these nine princes did not dare to tell us openly." Struggle, but it did cause a lot of stumbling blocks in private."
"Actually, both of us understand that Young Master Xiu is just a chess piece that His Majesty intends to support to balance the power of His Majesty the Crown Prince. After fighting privately for so many years, both sides know their cards. At the moment, what we are most worried about is not the Ninth Prince, but His Majesty's recent past. The fourteenth prince who was suddenly granted the title of Prince Sheng, Lord Changping!"
Mu Sheng was suddenly shocked. He didn't expect to go around and around, but it actually ended up on him? What this person fears most is not knowing his opponent. Fear comes from the unknown...
Mu Sheng could only pretend to be surprised and asked, "Brother, what's so special about Mr. Changping? I've never heard of this person before."
Guo Huan said, "My dear brother, I don't know. Since Your Majesty has been cultivating immortality in Taiji Palace and the Prince has been in charge of the country for three years, six or seven out of ten courtiers have already joined His Majesty, either explicitly or covertly. The power of these nine princes' cultivation is completely insufficient." Check and balance the prince."
"Your Majesty must have known this in his heart, so he suddenly decreed that these fourteen young masters should be crowned Lords of Changping. Our analysis may be that your majesty wanted to focus on supporting the young master Sheng to balance the situation where the prince's family was dominated. This young master Sheng was the emperor's favorite at that time. The prince born to Madam Zhao Ji, we still don’t know the details of this Prince Changping, but Prince Changping has just been enthroned, and it will take time to cultivate his own team. Don’t rush, right now I have something that I need some help from. Brother, go and do it."
Mu Shengxin said okay, it seems that he is going to receive a certificate of voting.
"Brother, please give me your orders. Little brother, don't dare to disobey me."
Guo Huan handed Mu Sheng a portrait and said, "This man's name is Wanjiu. He is a local tycoon from Qinwu, Lu County, Hedong County. He relied on his martial arts skills and secretly colluded with the local government to swallow several of my Guo's body." Salt mine, you know that my eldest brother used to make a living by selling private salt. In order to work for the prince these years, I have been protected by the prince, so this private salt business has never stopped."
"It is said that it is difficult for a rich man to be a man without money. Whether it is working for the prince or for my own private affairs, as long as you do things, you need money. You should understand this."
Guo Huan paused and said, "It's not easy to bring this matter to the table. This Wanjiu is a master of the ninth level of hard kung fu and martial arts. He is quite difficult to deal with. I have sent several groups of people but no news. See if you are sure." Get rid of him?"
Mu Sheng looked at the big man with a sinister face in the portrait and thought to himself, a ninth-level master? He was still barely able to deal with it. The highest level of Wu Kung Fu was 12th level. The strength of these 9th level was enough to walk sideways in the world. It was a pity that he was not lucky enough to meet a practitioner like him.
Mu Sheng's current strength is almost comparable to that of a ninth-level master. It can be said that he is on par. This does not include the magical weapons and various auxiliary spells in his hands. Mu Sheng secretly calculated in his heart that he should be able to cope with it. , even if you can't fight and run, it's still no problem.
If Mu Sheng cultivates to the realm of Qi Vein Source and reaches the high-level Heavenly Master level monk, then the heroes of the world, even the top masters of twelve levels of Gang Qi body protection, will be the targets of random manipulation, his opponents There are only monks who are fellow practitioners.
Mu Sheng bowed and said, "Brother, I will definitely fulfill my mission."
"Okay! Okay! If brother can remove this thorn in my heart, I will definitely recommend a good brother to the prince."
Guo Huan suddenly clapped his hands and saw a well-dressed young samurai who appeared to be about 27 or 28 years old flash out of the door of the lobby.
Guo Huan introduced, "Brother Liu Xian, this Yao Ji is from Jin. He has followed me for ten years and is considered my right-hand man. His martial arts skills are barely good but his mind is sharp. I will give you a start in this operation. At the same time, I will send twenty Five masters of seventh-level martial arts are here to help you. The strength of these Wanjiu men cannot be underestimated. I hope I can be of some help."
Mu Sheng turned around and saluted Yao Ji, cupping his fists and saying, "Brother Yao, please give me some advice."
Yao Ji also cupped his fists and saluted, "Brother Liu, I really admired you for your sword dance that day. I was doing errands for my elder brother, and I am determined to fulfill my mission."
Guo Huan waved his hand and said, "Okay, Yao Ji, you go and prepare first. If you believe me, I will join hands with my good brother and go to Hedong County to deal with this thief Wanjiu."
Yao Jiyingnuo turned and left
Guo Huan turned around and said, "Brother Xian, do you think this arrangement is okay?"
Mu Sheng cupped his hands and said, "Brother's arrangements are very appropriate!"
Guo Huan smiled and said, "Okay! Okay! Then I will wait for the good news in the capital."
After bidding farewell to Guo Huan, Mu Sheng returned to the inn and prepared some changes of clothes. He took out the magical sword and touched its smooth blade. He murmured to it, "It seems that you are going to be in my hands for the first time." Drinking blood..."
In fact, I was only 60% sure of dealing with the ninth-level master Mu Sheng. Although Mu Sheng's actual combat ability was not bad under the abuse of his senior brother, after all, it was his first mission out of Novice Village and he had too little experience in fighting with others. Even if some of my palms are sweaty and nervous, I have to get involved sooner or later. I can't avoid it!
The next morning, Mu Sheng sent a message to Guo Huan's men and then rode his horse to wait by the river on the outskirts of the city. After waiting for about a quarter of an hour, he heard the rumble of horse hooves in the distance and knew that they were coming.
Mu Sheng took a quick look and saw that the leader was Yao Ji. Behind him were twenty warriors, but they were disguised as merchants. Seeing them coming, Mu Sheng got on his horse and went to meet him. He nodded to Yao Ji and said hello. Got it
Ji Yao gave the order "Let's go."
The knights pulled the reins and took the lead.
Along the way, people didn't take official roads very much. They mainly took small roads, fearing that someone would trace them after they finished their work.
Mu Sheng had been observing Yao Ji and the others along the way. Looking at their behavior, he felt that these people under Guo Huan were probably the black gloves secretly working for His Highness the Crown Prince.
The so-called black gloves are those who are mainly responsible for gathering information for the master, and occasionally carry out assassinations and other things that are not on the stage. The prince is a figure on the stage, and he still has to rely on these people for matters that are not convenient for him to come forward.
Needless to say, everyone had a hard time going all the way to Hedong County without following official roads. It took more than ten days just to get to Lu County, Hedong County. In this day and age, with the traffic conditions, there was nothing we could do.
A few days later, dozens of people finally saw the tall Luxian city wall in the distance. The journey was not easy. Everyone pretended to be merchants at the city gate and exchanged customs clearance documents and successfully sneaked into the city. Mu Sheng also I followed Yao Ji to an inn to stay and rest.
