Chapter 1356: Peerless Emperor of Ten Thousand Ten Thousand Ages (Early Month Seeking Monthly Votes, Two-in-One)

"We live on land and eat wheat and rice; you dragon-folk dwell underwater — surely you don't eat those things too. I wonder what you usually eat?"

"To answer Your Highness, we mostly eat lotus root."

"Lotus root. Lotus root is only available in autumn, isn't it? What about spring, summer, and winter? Once harvested, you store it? Wouldn't it rot from soaking?"

In the Lan Prefecture Department Magistrate's garden, early summer, the weather was slightly warm, and flowers of every kind were blooming brilliantly.

Balsam flowers drooped in full bloom, a faint floral fragrance lingering in the courtyard. Maidservants lifted their skirts and followed at a measured pace; through the gaps in the clustered, intertwining orange-red pomegranate branches, the figures of the Empress and Long Eying flashed by now and then, making even the blooming flowers pale in comparison.

"Your Highness may not know this, but the lotus we cultivate is called the Great King Lotus," a special variety from the Jianghu Great Marsh, very cold-resistant, producing lotus root all four seasons.

"Among the Frog Clan there is even a Sky-Reaching Lotus — a mutant Great King Lotus the Frog Clan's Frog Duke found years ago, dug up, and nurtured. Its leaves span a hundred li, and like on land, both Great Demons and Demon Kings can stand on them."

"A hundred li? That vast?" The Empress was astonished.

"Yes, yes, Empress, it's exactly that wide — truly spectacular, and very special. Stepping on it feels soft and springy, great fun. Oh, and the Great King Lotus doesn't just have lotus root all year round — now in summer there are also lotus seeds to eat!" Long Yao interjected.

Long Li counted on her fingers: "Great King Lotus root can be brewed into lotus root wine, Great King Lotus seeds can be brewed into lotus seed wine. We used to brew and drink it ourselves; later sea merchants appeared and sold it to people — supply can't meet demand.

Besides food, Great King Lotus stems can be pulled for lotus fibers, spun into thread, and made into clothes that won't get wet even soaked in water. This robe I'm wearing is one — comparable to shark-silk gauze. Edible and usable, far more useful than growing wheat or the like."

The Empress smiled: "This palace has lived this long yet never been to Jianghu. I wonder if this trip will let me glimpse the Sky-Reaching Lotus scenery?"

"Of course. If Your Highness is interested, I'd be delighted to take you to our clan lands to taste lotus seed wine; our Second Elder's woven lotus-fiber garments are the most beautiful." Long Eying was surprised. "But the Empress has never been to Jianghu?"

"I'm a northerner — never mind the Great Marsh, even rivers are rare sights. After marrying His Majesty I've long resided in the capital, rarely going out. The few times I went south, it was only to Southern Zhili; I've never seen the colors of the Jianghu Great Marsh."

"Wow, what a real pity." Long Yao and Long Li were full of regret.

The Empress narrowed her eyes with a smile: "Now there's a chance — wouldn't that make up for the regret?"

"Right."

"What about sleeping? Do you have beds down there underwater?" The Empress was intensely curious about the dragon girls' life.

"It's a plant similar to pitcher plants that grows naturally—"

"Wuhu! Wuhu! Long live His Majesty, long live His Majesty, long, long live His Majesty!"

Cheers interrupted the courtyard conversation. From the front hall came faint shouts, followed by the phrases "Peerless Emperor of Ten Thousand Ages," "Peerless Emperor of Ten Thousand Ten Thousand Ages," "Peerless Emperor of Ten Thousand Ten Thousand Ten Thousand Ages," "Erect a statue," "Build an Imperial Rock."

Anyone unaware would truly think the Lan Prefecture Department Magistrate was keeping a monkey in the courtyard — and an extremely sycophantic monkey at that.

"What's happened?" The Empress looked up. "Ziyuan, why is it so noisy outside?"

The maidservant hurried over: "To answer Your Highness, it is—"

Long Yao and Long Li recognized it first: "Ah, it's the Elder, the Elder's voice! Why is he so happy?"

"Elder?" The Empress thought a moment, then looked at the maidservant. "Prince Huai?"

"Yes." The maidservant bowed. "His Majesty has disembarked from the barge and, together with the various ministers, inspected Lan Prefecture's accounts and cases; it seems to have reached a conclusion, and they are preparing to depart for Pingyang. Right now they are heading to the garden together — His Majesty and Prince Huai both seem in high spirits."

Long Eying, unaware what could make Liang Qu act like this, was slightly embarrassed: "My husband has been unrestrained since youth; when his spirits run high, he speaks without thinking."

"No matter." The Empress smiled lightly. "His Majesty always tells me Prince Huai has a sincere heart; he loves talking with Prince Huai to relieve boredom. I remember the first time I heard His Majesty mention Prince Huai was over a decade ago; recalling it now, the memory remains fresh."

Long Eying thought: "Was it when my husband entered the tiger hunt?"

The Empress shook her head: "Earlier. It was when Prince Huai managed flood control."

"Flood control?" Long Eying blanked, had no impression, didn't remember at all.

"You wouldn't necessarily know; perhaps you hadn't met him yet. At the time he was a local gang leader who breached the Huazhu County dike, flooding several counties. Your husband's disaster relief was outstanding; the local official helped him petition for merit, and the news reached His Majesty's desk.

At that time His Majesty pointed at the memorial and said Prince Huai's name was interesting: a 'Liang' and a 'Qu'. 'Liang' as in roof beam or bridge beam — the bone of a house, the spine of a bridge; 'Qu' as in irrigation canal — watering farmland.

Simple, solid, two characters put together, both good omens, a good name. He gave him an office then, never expecting real ability — perhaps he could become a pillar of our Great Shun, a flood-control prodigy.

I said, since Your Majesty thinks so, why not encourage the young man more, pass down a verbal edict, give him a push. His Majesty then followed the name and granted 'build bridges, dig canals.'

Within a couple of years he truly stirred up a major commotion — I witnessed it myself. A seventeen-or-eighteen-year-old arriving in the imperial capital, younger than the Fourth Imperial Prince, a green youth, yet clever and pure with a touch of petty cunning."

As it turned out, not even two years later, something big really happened—I saw it myself. He came to the imperial capital when he was only seventeen or eighteen, younger than the Fourth Imperial Prince, just a greenhorn kid, but clever, innocent, and a little sly.

"Don't rush." The Empress patted Eying's hand. "I'm not saying it's bad — it's good precisely because he was a green youth. Whatever the matter, he speaks plainly, says it straight — that's a good thing. How relaxed his speech is. Even the Sixth Imperial Prince, at ten-odd years old, is always deep and brooding, as if someone wants to harm him — who knows who he learned it from.

His Majesty likes reading history, likes drawing lessons, and likes confiding in me. Once he enthusiastically criticized Great Huang to me, saying Great Huang three times appointed regents, always adding extra ones to check and balance each other — Great Huang fell precisely because of that, giving Great Qian the chance to usurp."

His Majesty enjoys reading history, likes to draw lessons from experience, and also enjoys confiding in me. Once, he was in high spirits as he criticized the Great Huang with me, saying Great Huang had three times established regents to oversee the young emperor, always liking to appoint a few more so they could check and balance each other, and that Great Huang's downfall came from this very practice—only later did Great Qian get the chance to usurp the throne.

"I asked the same as you then: mutual checks to prevent ministers from growing too powerful — isn't that good?

Who knew His Majesty would say this so-called emperor's art is really just petty cleverness, not candid. To entrust an orphaned heir, there must be a clear core, letting the core legitimately seize power, letting the young ruler and the minister establish a proper personal relationship — master-disciple or surrogate father.

If you play petty cleverness and make them fight like raising venomous insects, the eventual victor is a vicious Gu King who has offended too many; for a good end, usurpation becomes inevitable.

Though the former may misjudge, it is far more stable than the latter's seeming checks and balances that make the outcome inevitable.

An emperor playing petty cleverness denies the regent a chance at a good end, so the regent naturally won't give the young ruler a good end either. Anyone can scheme and use tactics, but the emperor cannot — at least not as his primary method."

The Emperor plays petty tricks, denying the regents a peaceful end, so naturally the regents won't give the young ruler a peaceful end either. Anyone can scheme and play tricks, but the Emperor cannot—at least he cannot make this his main method.

The Empress patted Eying's hand: "Saying all this, I just want you to know His Majesty has practically watched your husband grow up. At ten-odd he gave a verbal edict, at twenty bestowed marriage — very close.

I see His Majesty nearly treats Prince Huai like half a son; he doesn't dote on the Imperial Princes that much. It's precisely this fearless, say-whatever-he-wants personality that suits His Majesty's taste — changing it would be boring instead."

Long Eying adopted a serious expression, bowed deeply: "Many thanks, Your Highness."

"!" The Empress caught her hand. "You just said your Second Elder's lotus-fiber garments are well-made; if you truly want to thank me, how about sending me two more?"

"!" The Empress grabbed him, saying, "You just said your Second Elder's lotus-silk robe is well made. If you truly want to thank me, why not send me two more instead?"

"Eying! Eying!"

At the corridor's end, the Sage Emperor and Liang Qu appeared in succession.

Seeing Eying in the courtyard, Liang Qu's eyes instantly brightened; he laughed three times, calling her name, his figure flashing as he landed beside her. He first said "Greetings, Empress," then hurriedly encircled her waist and lifted her up.

Seeing Eying in the courtyard, Liang Qu's eyes lit up at once. He laughed three times, called out her name, flashed forward, and stood beside her. First he greeted, "Empress, good day," then quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up.

"What good news?" Long Eying cupped Liang Qu's face, crescent-moon eyes smiling.

"This good news can't be told to you now — anyway it's a good thing, a great thing!"

"Let me guess — is it because of His Majesty?"

"Let me guess — is it because of Your Majesty?"

"Clever, but no reward!"

"So have you thanked His Majesty?"

"Of course I've thanked him — from the start it was climb the knife mountain if I must, descend the fire sea if I must; if I, Liang Qu, so much as furrow my brow, write my name backwards."

"Hahaha!" The Sage Emperor laughed heartily. "Why would We make you climb knife mountains and descend fire seas?"

"Your Majesty!"

Long Eying broke free and, together with the Empress, bowed in greeting.

"Princess Consort of Huai need not stand on ceremony." The Sage Emperor raised a hand. "Empress, I've reviewed the Juan Sect case files from Lan Prefecture; broadly there's no issue — leave the rest to the Grand Secretaries. Let's board quickly; Liang Qing said he's prepared a surprise for Us in Pingyang Prefecture."

"A surprise?" The Empress was curious. "What surprise?"

"Hey, it's called a surprise — if I tell you, can it still be a surprise? If it's told, is it a surprise? Your Majesty, Empress, just go to Pingyang and see for yourselves!"

Banners blotted out the sky; long halberds pointed askew.

The Sky Feather Guards slowly gathered and stepped onto the deck.

The assembled gangplanks were dismantled piece by piece and successively stowed in the hold, like a giant bird folding its wings.

The imperial carriage halted in Lan Prefecture for half a day, then set off again — this time with no stops or resupply along the way, heading straight for Pingyang Prefecture!

Standing at the bow, the river wind vast and rushing, Liang Qu suppressed his excitement and engaged the spirit link.

"A Fei, ready? It's coming, it's coming, over."

"Xiong Ya Jiang receiving, Xiong Ya Jiang receiving, all preparations complete, over!"

"Good. Remember, not a word must leak."

"Received, over!"

Chest expanding, Liang Qu drew a deep breath and let out a long, satisfied exhalation.

Requesting the immortal to refine pills!

Refine immortal pills!

This damn — what do you mean Sage Ruler! What do you mean capable minister!

Back when he returned from the East Sea, having Pill Refining Grandmaster Fu Shuo and the others help refine Small Root Sea Pills, he had already glimpsed the leopard through a tube — witnessed immortal methods.

It seemed immortals could directly extract medicinal properties, ignoring conflicts between properties, just like Time Worms, directly condensing them into pills, achieving a near-perfect dosing state.

Furnace pill refining and refining beneath the furnace.

The two are entirely a dimensional difference, fundamentally incomparable.

Beneath the furnace, ants climb mountains and cross ridges on wrinkled paper, searching for crumbs, piling them up, all kinds of planning for the shortest path, the easiest climbing method. An immortal need only pick up the paper and give it a gentle shake — all the crumbs automatically fall onto the table.

He raised his head to the sky.

Now the sixth month, soon another Bing Fire Day — quite a mutual reflection.

He looked inward at his own body.

The small sun floated high; the earth remained cracked.

King Su's words gave Liang Qu a wake-up call.

Right now it's only an embryo, a "sprout" — not a positional fruit, not an authority, fundamentally unstable. Long-term failure to satisfy the thousandfold Root Sea — who knows what accidents might occur. Absolutely cannot, at this critical final step, fall short because of time.

Yet this time constraint, conventional methods simply cannot bypass.

"The treasure medicines I've earned are enough to push me to a thousand; raw materials are no worry — the key is the swallowing time is too long, at minimum a year needed. If an immortal can truly act, the problem will naturally be solved the moment the blade meets the knot!"

A huge favor.

Immortals are above the nine heavens; every mortal round trip is an enormous cost.

The upcoming performance — absolutely not a single mistake allowed.

Pingyang Prefecture.

The Hedgehog coordinated all directions, commanding the monkeys and river otters in orderly fashion for the final cleanup.

Xu Shi entered the traveling palace to check for any other improprieties — after all, she was the daughter of Xu Siqing Xu Rongguang; by osmosis she was far more professional than Liang Qu this layman.

Outside the traveling palace, on the mountain body, a huge hemp cloth fluttered in the wind; every zhang a massive iron nail was driven into the rock so it wouldn't blow away.

Ever since Liang Qu created a mountain from nothing, this peak was forbidden to outsiders; not long after, the entire mountain face, directly facing the Jianghuai Great Marsh, was covered with a huge yellow-brown hemp cloth, its length and width at least several tens —

zhang.

Everyone was curious what lay beneath the hemp cloth, but Liang Qu was mysterious and revealed nothing to anyone.

The fish fin cupped its belly.

Three months building a traveling palace — time extremely tight; the fat fish felt it had grown thin from exhaustion, yet amid the bustle it still delivered quality and quantity, completing another major task for the Heavenly God.

Twin fins embracing, chest out, head raised, facing the marsh, spring warmth and blooming flowers.

The so-called humerus — that is a humerus!

"Ready?"

"Roar!"

The Monkey King roared.

On every iron nail embedded at each zhang crouched a golden-furred monkey, feet gripping the nail, arms raised in cheer.

"Voice too quiet — such a quiet voice, how to open the treasure ship for the Heavenly God?"

"Roar!!!"

"Good, full of spirit!"

The fat fish raised its large fin; on the other side, Fist hurriedly hopped over.

The fat fish started, turned its head north.

Great waves surged; banners obscured heaven and sun.

The continuous fleet cleaved through waves, vast and mighty, coming!

The fat fish immediately climbed down the hilltop, and with a command, all the monkeys grabbed the iron nails, crawled into the burlap, bent their knees, and pushed their feet against the nail heads.

Misty waves stretched far and wide, the Kui Pavilion stood tall in the pale green haze, and the wind chimes swayed gently.

June was precisely the plum rain season, the air was humid, and even at noon, the hilltop was shrouded in water mist just the same.

At the mouth of the Pingyang River, the Poyang dock was crowded with commoners.

"Your Majesty, that is Mount Pingyang! To the left is the Pingyang Temple, that tower is the original Kui Pavilion, and this year the Ming King will also come; to the right is the hot spring, in the middle, right at the front, is where Your Majesty's temporary palace stands—my surprise for you, prepared beneath the palace and upon the mountain body!"

"Oh?"

The Holy Emperor and the various enfeoffed kings ascended the bow of the ship, yet they saw only a piece of brown burlap draped over the mountain body.

Fortunately, everyone's attention had been drawn in.

Now!

Liang Qu linked the transmission.

The fat fish gave the order, and the monkeys beneath the burlap shoved hard, causing the steel nails embedded in the mountain body to pop out and fall off the cliff; the burlap, flapping wildly in the wind, could no longer cling, and the river wind caught it, sending it soaring into the sky.

"Whoosh!"

The burlap twisted and writhed in midair, and the shadow it cast shrank rapidly.

Sunlight pierced through the clouds and mist without obstruction, forming a clear beam of light that draped a slanting shadow over the three-dimensional facial features on the mountain body, giving the figure deep-set eyes gazing toward the Yangtze and Huai rivers.

"Ding ding!"

"Your Majesty, look quickly—Imperial Emperor Rock!"

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