Chapter 210: Broken, did I reward her? (Seeking subscriptions, seeking monthly votes)

Guo Guo Po Yun had already indicated that you could go to Li Xueying; she is now in the palace and has a close relationship with Li Chen, perhaps she can help you speak.

I am just a minister, how dare I say these things to Li Chen.

Guo Guo Po Yun couldn't say this kind of thing directly, so he could only say it from the side.

Li Ling suddenly realized, oh right, I have met Aunt Li Xueying, so why don't I just go and beg her.

After thanking him, Li Ling hurried away from the Great General's Mansion and went straight to the Imperial Palace.

According to Guo Guo Po Yun's hint, she also brought many gifts; she couldn't go empty-handed.

At the gate of the Imperial Palace, Li Ling unexpectedly met the Prince of Anxi, Li Ji, who also came to seek an audience with Li Xueying.

Although they weren't familiar, they were both of the Imperial Clan, so they could be considered to have had intersections.

Li Ji saw Li Ling and heard what Li Ling said to the eunuch, and was slightly stunned, then laughed: "Li Ling, you also came to seek an audience with Aunt?"

Li Ling nodded and said: "Yes, Imperial Brother, it seems we are on the same path."

Because Li Ji said "also," Li Ling could judge Li Ji's intention no matter how stupid she was.

Just didn't know what Li Ji's purpose was this time.

Even if they were of the Imperial Clan, they still had to report here; it wasn't that they could enter just because they wanted to.

After the eunuch returned again, he let them enter the palace first and wait for a while in the Eldest Princess's palace; the Eldest Princess was currently in another place, and they would wait until she returned.

The Imperial Palace was very large, which Li Ji, who had lived in the Imperial Palace, knew.

He was familiar with this place, but now his identity was a feudal prince, and he couldn't walk around the Imperial Palace at will; this was the rule.

Especially since he had things to beg Li Chen for, he couldn't make things that Li Chen felt were eyesores here.

Not to mention Li Ling; in the past, her father was the Prince of Jing'an with a very high status in the Imperial Clan, and she spoke relatively hard, but now her father was in prison, and she had no bottom.

And at this time, Li Xueying was in a special palace.

The person living in this palace was none other than Tuoba Zhen's mother, and Huyan Yu's beloved wife.

These two were captured by Huyan Lan, this northern traitor and loyal minister of the May Tian Ce Dynasty, and offered to Li Chen.

Li Chen was too busy, and at that time he was afraid of tricks, so he never had time to enjoy them.

Today Li Xueying came here, and also had certain thoughts.

Tuoba Zhen's mother was named Tuoba Anyu, following the surname of the Khan.

Li Xueying and Tuoba Anyu had certain contradictions.

When they were in Holy Shancheng, due to Tuoba Zhen's strong rise, his mother's status was also getting higher and higher.

Tuoba Anyu was a figure from the lowest-ranking concubine in the harem to the Empress Dowager level.

As the Empress Dowager of the Snow Eagle Royal Court at that time, she naturally wanted to establish prestige and fiercely suppress other women in the harem.

Tuoba Anyu actually didn't target Li Xueying, but suppressed comprehensively, so Li Xueying was certainly suppressed, and could even be said to have been bullied.

Now, the wind and water turned, and Li Xueying looked at Tuoba Anyu's expression, as if saying: Didn't expect it, you also have a day when you fall into my hands.

How you suppressed me back then, I will clean you up now! 【210-32

Li Xueying knew Li Chen liked this type of woman, so she used the excuse of helping Li Chen manage these women to bring her daughter here.

The moment she saw Li Xueying and her daughter appear, Tuoba Anyu was stunned.

During this time, she had been staying in the imperial palace, believing that the Emperor of the May Tian Ce Dynasty dared not touch her because he feared her son, Tuoba Zhen.

Being captured and brought to this place, her son must be very angry, and he might even attack.

When that time came, the Emperor of the May Tian Ce Dynasty would surely obediently send her back.

Therefore, she remained as arrogant as ever.

But now, the appearance of the two familiar faces before her gave her a bad premonition.

"Tuoba Xueying, Tuo Ba Yan, you two were captured too?" Tuoba Anyu was poorly informed and did not know the situation outside.

Li Xueying sneered, "My surname is Li. Here, you have no right to stand and talk to me!"

Saying this, she had the nearby palace maids bring out a leather whip, preparing to teach Tuoba Anyu a harsh lesson and let her know the rules of the May Tian Ce Dynasty's imperial palace!

"What are you doing? I am Tuoba Zhen's mother!" Seeing the palace maids approach, Tuoba Anyu was terrified.

There was no trace of the 'Empress Dowager' left; she was simply a terrified, grown woman.

"What a joke. Tuoba Zhen has already been defeated by His Majesty twice. Holy Shancheng has been captured by His Majesty, and the entire north is now under the May Tian Ce Dynasty. Your son has already defected to the Tianluo Dynasty; no one here can save you!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Xueying ordered the palace maids to deal with Tuoba Anyu.

Using a whip requires expertise and technique. Considering that Li Chen would likely enjoy her, these whips were meant to make Tuoba Anyu feel pain worse than death without damaging her skin and flesh, ensuring Li Chen would have the most perfect enjoyment.

Not long after, screams began to echo from here.

While Tuoba Anyu suffered physical injuries, her heart was even more severely wounded.

She never expected that her invincible son would actually lose so miserably.

If it weren't for Li Xueying and Tuo Ba Yan being here, she wouldn't even believe it.

Li Xueying wasn't just torturing her for the sake of it; she was simply paying back all the suffering she had endured back then.

You used me to establish your authority and vent your anger back then; now it's my turn!

Tuoba Anyu was whipped until she was basically stripped of all her clothes, and her trembling appearance made even Li Xueying feel she was very alluring.

As she whipped her, Li Xueying noticed that Tuoba Anyu's screams were getting quieter and quieter.

She thought she couldn't handle the beating and had already fainted.

When she looked, she saw that Tuoba Anyu actually had an expression of enjoyment on her face.

Li Xueying: "."

Oh no, did I give her a reward?

This woman, could she have some special fetish? I never heard of her having such preferences when I was in Holy Shancheng. Did I awaken her?

But it's fine; developing a special way to play will likely be something Li Chen enjoys too.

Moreover, after the whipping, Tuoba Anyu's state and expression were excellent, full and charming to the extreme.

Li Xueying felt that if Li Chen saw this, he definitely wouldn't be able to resist.

But Li Chen was not in the palace right now; it wouldn't be too late to tell him when he returned.

Just at this moment, a palace maid came to say that someone outside the palace requested to see her. Li Xueying told the maid to bring those two people to her palace first, and she would come over later.

After finishing with Tuoba Anyu, Li Xueying returned to her own palace.

Seeing Li Ling and Li Ji, Li Xueying was slightly surprised, then smiled gently, "Why have you two come together?"

Li Ling spoke first, explaining her purpose for coming.

Li Ji also took the opportunity to make his own request.

Both were talking about participating in the Western Expedition; Li Ling didn't even dare to ask for mercy for her father.

Even if she had, it would have been useless; Li Xueying had already pleaded with Li Chen once, so how could she dare to speak again?

Don't let Li Chen's usual friendly demeanor fool you; when he puts on a stern face, even Li Xueying is terrified.

One was the daughter of the Prince of Jing'an, and seeing the Jing'an family suffer such a fate, Li Xueying felt some pity.

The other was the son of the late Emperor, also a Prince; Li Xueying had watched him grow up.

After listening, Li Xueying frowned slightly, but could only indicate she would try her best to help, telling them not to expect too much.

Regardless, they thanked Li Xueying repeatedly and expressed their congratulations that their aunt could return to the imperial capital.

After leaving the palace, Li Ling and Li Ji moved to a quiet place and chatted about their recent situations.

As soon as they mentioned their recent situations, Li Ji wanted to complain, saying, "My fief is simply a barren land where birds don't lay eggs; otherwise, I wouldn't want to participate in the Western Expedition."

To put it bluntly, Li Ji was doing poorly, which is why he thought about returning to the imperial capital for re-employment.

Li Ji was an honest man; his retainers told him he could come to the imperial capital to earn some military merit under Li Chen and then take some rewards back to live a better life.

Li Ling didn't expect the Prince of Anxi to be doing so poorly.

However, her father had also once said that some things shouldn't be fully believed; just listen to them.

When Li Ji heard that Li Ling's brother, Li Yang, had caused the Crown Prince's death, he was shocked and said repeatedly, "What? That's how the Crown Prince died? But he was my eldest brother!"

He said it very exaggeratedly, making it seem like they had a very good relationship.

In fact, Li Ji and the Crown Prince had a terrible relationship, one could even say it was very bad.

The reason he was a Prince in that godforsaken place was actually because of the Crown Prince's suggestion to the late Emperor when the titles were being granted.

As for why the second and third brothers didn't go to their fiefs.

It was because they wanted to be Emperor; if they went to their fiefs as Princes, they would certainly lose the qualifications to compete for the throne.

Li Ji didn't have a strong background and knew he couldn't compete, so he escaped from the dragon's den of the imperial capital early on.

Li Ji hated the Crown Prince to death and had cursed him to die hundreds of times in his heart.

When the Crown Prince died, Li Ji was still very surprised, thinking to himself at the time, "I only thought about it in my heart; this can't be blamed on me."

But after so many years, the person was already dead, and Li Ji didn't have much resentment left.

Seeing that Li Ling seemed frightened by his words, Li Ji said earnestly, "Li Ling, your brother's affair has already caused a huge uproar, and the old Prince is already in prison. Take my advice: if you know where your brother is, tell His Majesty immediately. Do not get involved with your brother. You can still be spared because you have military merit. I must also warn you: within our royal family, interests are complex. If you help Li Yang, you might be the next one to get into trouble."

Hearing this, Li Ling felt a mix of emotions.

She knew well that what Li Ji said was true, yet she found it hard to let go of her affection for her brother.

But she understood even better that she had to make a wise choice right now, also for the sake of her father being released from prison sooner.

She looked at Li Ji gratefully and said, "Thank you, Prince of Anxi, for your guidance. I understand what I should do."

Li Ji waved his hand to indicate it was nothing; he was an older brother, after all, so he just said a few words.

However, the Crown Prince's affair was of great importance, and he didn't dare to get too involved with Li Ling, so he took his leave when the time came.

On the way back, Li Ji also sighed that he hadn't been back to the imperial capital for a long time; it was still prosperous, and his fief couldn't compare at all.

But as he walked, Li Ji was startled and frozen in place as if he had seen a ghost.

Because this area was inhabited by the royal family, there weren't many people, and the person in front of him made Li Ji feel it was unbelievable.

This person didn't 'recognize' Li Ji, but Li Ji recognized him.

!

And this person noticed Li Ji, 'looked' over, and said, "Do we know each other?"

Li Ji swallowed and said, "Fifth brother? It can't really be you, can it?"

Hearing this voice, Li Ran frowned and replied, "Eh, this voice, could it be the fourth brother? Why have you returned to the imperial capital?"

"Damn, it really is you. You... what is this?" Li Ji stammered, unable to speak.

Li Ji was certainly clear about the Fifth Prince's fate; in his view, even if Li Ran wasn't dead, he should have been in the cold palace.

The struggle for the throne was already so bloody back then that it scared Li Ji into running to his fief.

He didn't want to end up like Li Ran, and yet Li Ran was appearing here now, which truly scared him, no less than seeing the late Crown Prince here.

Seeming to sense Li Ji's panic, Li Ran said casually, "Don't be nervous. It was His Majesty who let me out; I don't have the ability to run out on my own."

Hearing this, Li Ji finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He had just gotten rid of the Princess Li Ling and didn't want to get involved in the Crown Prince's case. As a Prince with no status, he was also afraid that Li Ran had stolen away and someone would report him, saying he was colluding with Li Ran in secret; that would be the end of him.

"That's good. Where are you going now?"

"I'm going to find His Majesty. How about you?"

"I have nothing to do, so I'm just strolling around the imperial capital."

Even though they were blood brothers, they didn't have much to talk about; that's how royal children are.

So after exchanging a few pleasantries, they said goodbye.

Li Ji didn't seem to want to get involved with Li Ran and also felt this was just a chance encounter.

But sometimes, the gears of fate are strange, and he couldn't escape it.

At this time, it was already late, and Li Chen and Wu Nanzhi left the Wu family on Changqing Street and returned to the palace.

On the way back to the palace, Li Chen and Xiao Ming brushed past each other again, but Xiao Ming was drunk at this time, his eyes blurry, and he didn't see the people around him clearly.

And Li Chen had only met Xiao Ming once; he saw too many people, and not everyone was qualified for Li Chen to remember.

After a while, Wu Nanzhi remembered that the constable just now seemed to be Xiao Ming, who had once helped her block some trouble before.

Wu Nanzhi felt a bit familiar at the time, but only just remembered now.

As soon as Li Chen returned to the palace, his aunt Li Xueying enthusiastically brought some soup for his health to his sleeping quarters.

Wu Nanzhi immediately went up to take it and said softly, "How can such a small matter trouble the Grand Princess? Let me do it."

Li Xueying also gently indicated it was fine and kept praising Wu Nanzhi, making Wu Nanzhi feel a bit embarrassed.

Li Xueying had heard that this woman was very favored, so building a good relationship with her was definitely the right thing to do.

She was just helping Li Chen train those ordinary harem members, and she was also very kind to these popular consorts.

Li Xueying also remembered there was someone named Chu Ruoyan who was also deeply favored by Li Chen.

She had to slowly get to know all of Li Chen's women.

Incidentally, Li Xueying and the Empress Dowager did not have a good relationship.

When they saw each other, they were too lazy to even greet one another; their eyes seemed to be saying: Why aren't you dead yet?

There was no help for it; every Empress Dowager, in order to establish prestige, had to intimidate the harem.

Li Xueying had also stayed in the imperial palace at the time and naturally had been intimidated by the Empress Dowager.

Even if they hadn't come to blows, it was true that their relationship was bad.

Li Xueying seemed to have a bad relationship with the Empress Dowager wherever she was.

"Aunt, is there something the matter?" Li Chen asked while drinking the soup.

He felt that since Li Xueying came here late at night, there must be some reason.

Li Xueying smiled and told him about Tuoba Anyu's situation, which made Li Chen quite excited; he really wanted to go and see if such a woman truly existed.

This was Tuoba Zhen's mother; Li Chen had seen her when she was captured, and that figure, which was very full even when lying down, was indeed exceptionally alluring.

But he was also a bit afraid that there might be some problem with these two women; even if he guessed there might not be, there was still a slight misgiving in his heart.

Just at this moment, Eunuch Cui came over and said that Li Ran requested an audience.

This surprised Li Chen; had this kid found the remaining "Imperial Dragon Holy Scripture"?

Li Chen told Wu Nanzhi and Li Xueying to withdraw first and met Li Ran alone.

Li Ran knelt down as soon as he entered and said, "Your Majesty, I have searched the entire imperial capital and only found this one volume. I suspect there is another one that is not in the imperial capital."

Saying this, Li Ran handed the fourth volume of the "Imperial Dragon Holy Scripture" to Li Chen.

According to him, he had walked through the entire imperial capital during this time, and the fifth volume was likely in the west of the May Tian Ce Dynasty, which was where the remnants of the previous dynasty had fled.

Li Chen also understood what he meant; he had worked so hard for so long just because he wanted to participate in the Western Expedition.

Now that he hadn't found the fifth volume, and the Western Expedition was about to begin, he could only come to beg Li Chen for a chance.

"No matter. You can be considered to have merit. I will take you with me when the Western Expedition begins."

"Thank you, Your Majesty! This subject will definitely serve you until death!"

Saying this, he didn't continue to disturb Li Chen and took his leave from the palace.

Li Chen liked such subjects who didn't delay things and knew when to leave on their own.

After he left, Li Chen began to study the "Imperial Dragon Holy Scripture" he had offered.

Li Chen now had four volumes in his hands; to a certain extent, he could already cultivate, just not completely.

Li Chen had already practiced the first three volumes, and now it was time to look at this fourth one.

Normally, such a technique wouldn't show results without several years of contemplation.

But Li Chen's comprehension was excellent; he basically understood it after reading it, as he had his own way of understanding.

However, after reading four volumes, Li Chen was guessing what the cultivation method of the fifth volume would be like, and how one could achieve the breaking of all laws.

Then he followed his own guesses and cultivated for about three hours. Li Chen didn't know if he was practicing correctly, but he felt his body was somewhat hot.

Coincidentally, just as Li Chen was considering whom to favor, the Princess of Zhennan and Ji Lianyu happened to come to request an audience.

Li Chen let them in, and before they could even speak, they were already unable to speak, or rather, they couldn't put together a complete sentence for the whole night.

Xu Zifeng, who had returned to the Zhennan Prince's Mansion, knew nothing about this and thought his mother and aunt had returned to the Ji family mansion; drunk, he fell asleep as soon as he hit the bed.

The next morning, the court session was held as scheduled.

Li Chen appeared in the court after a long absence, his 'majestic' gaze sweeping over the ministers.

Li Chen's own gaze was very lazy, but in the eyes of others, it was incomparably majestic.

A very unexpected person came to this morning court: the Prince of Anxi, Li Ji. With his status and title, he was indeed qualified to attend the morning court.

Li Chen also felt a bit surprised when he saw him.

However, Li Chen first commended the soldiers who had fought bravely in the Northern Expedition, among whom the Grand General Guo Guo Po Yun had made the greatest contribution.

Guo Guo Po Yun receiving an award was well-deserved.

His coordination ability and military achievements were top-tier among all the military generals.

Next, Pang Jin reported the recent situation of the Crown Prince's case.

When he announced that the son of the Prince of Jing'an, Li Yang, was rebellious and that the Prince of Jing'an himself was already in the Ministry of Justice prison, the court was in an uproar.

Many people had already known the news in advance, but they were still shocked by Li Chen's trigger.

Everyone thought: His Majesty is truly decisive; even the Prince of Jing'an cannot be spared.

Li Chen nodded in approval of Pang Jin's ability to handle matters.

And he ordered Pang Jin to capture Li Yang as soon as possible to pay tribute to the Crown Prince's spirit in heaven.

As the Minister of Justice, this was Pang Jin's duty.

After receiving the order, he retreated to the side.

At this moment, it should have been the Minister of War reporting, but the Prince of Anxi, Li Ji, suddenly stood out!

(End of chapter)