Chapter 499: Begging the Old Ancestor to Emerge from Seclusion

"Li Li Liangcheng, you treat this palace as nothing. Good, very good! This palace cannot deal with you, but there will always be someone who can make you comply. I shall go invite the Old Ancestor to step forward. I want to see how you explain yourselves to the Old Ancestor!"

Noble Consort Gao dropped these words and hurried away with her people.

"Who is the Old Ancestor?"

"There's still an Old Ancestor in the palace?"

Some of the younger officials began discussing among themselves, all very curious about what kind of sacred figure the Old Ancestor in Noble Consort Gao's mouth actually was.

The slightly older officials all wore solemn and grave expressions. Clearly, the person known as the Old Ancestor placed immense pressure on them.

The officials who understood the inside information all looked toward Li Li Liangcheng, waiting for his next instruction.

Li Li Liangcheng's head was also throbbing.

A succession to the throne—who could have imagined it would cause so much trouble.

"Li Xiang, Noble Consort Gao has truly gone to invite the Old Ancestor. What shall we do about this?"

"Indeed! Please, Li Xiang, think of a plan quickly."

Yu Yu Zhaoan secretly came to Chen Chen Guanfu's side and whispered, "Who is the Old Ancestor?"

"You don't know?" Chen Chen Guanfu looked visibly surprised. The dignified Right Prime Minister actually didn't know who the Old Ancestor was.

"Should I know?" Yu Yu Zhaoan looked utterly innocent. The Yu family's roots were not in Jingcheng; they belonged to a regional powerful clan. They couldn't compare to the Hou Fu, which was deeply rooted in Jingcheng and could find relatives or connections in any government office, with eyes and ears spread throughout the palace as well.

Chen Chen Guanfu smiled knowingly and whispered to him, "The Old Ancestor, by generation, the late Emperor called him Great-Granduncle. His exact age may have already passed one hundred. A martial arts master, reportedly already at the Grandmaster realm. Now you know how important the Old Ancestor's weight truly is."

"High seniority, strong martial arts, and a Grandmaster at that, indeed... If Noble Consort Gao truly brings the Old Ancestor out, then on Prince Yan's side..."

Yu Yu Zhaoan understood at once in his heart.

But he still had one question: "The palace has been in an uproar lately. Why has the Old Ancestor never shown himself?"

"The Old Ancestor has not concerned himself with worldly affairs for many years, focusing entirely on pursuing the martial Dao."

"Can Noble Consort Gao really bring the Old Ancestor out?"

"I don't know."

Li Li Liangcheng, tormented by the officials, said decisively: "Whether Noble Consort Gao can bring the Old Ancestor out or not, everything proceeds as before. At this hour tomorrow, if Prince Yan has not awakened, another heir to the throne shall be chosen."

As the Prime Minister, one must possess the boldness to make decisions on the spot. One cannot change course at every little accident, reversing orders from morning to night.

The officials dispersed, privately discussing the Old Ancestor among themselves.

That night, Prince Yan's condition became critical, the situation urgent.

Everyone thought Prince Yan would not pull through, but unexpectedly, at the critical moment the Old Ancestor suddenly appeared and saved Prince Yan's life. However, Prince Yan remained in a coma and had not awakened.

The next day, the officials gathered in the imperial palace, preparing to vote once again on the heir to the throne.

The great hall doors suddenly slowly opened from outside. A beam of light shone in, and a young figure—seemingly motionless—in the blink of an eye was already inside the great hall.

Most of the officials present did not react, staring in astonishment at this stranger who had suddenly burst into the great hall.

Li Li Liangcheng alone was composed enough, and quick enough to react. He stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Greetings to the Old Ancestor!"

"Dispense with the ceremony!"

"He is the Old Ancestor?"

"How can he be so young."

Clearly just a young man in his twenties or thirties.

But when everyone tried to recall this person's features, they suddenly realized they could remember nothing—memory was a blur. Whether tall or short, handsome or ugly, they had no impression at all. Only then did they understand the person before them truly was the Old Ancestor, already at the Grandmaster realm.

Li Li Liangcheng looked at the Old Ancestor before him—still the same appearance as decades ago, not changed in the slightest.

But in Yu Yu Zhaoan's eyes, the Old Ancestor was clearly a young man just past twenty, his expression calm, without a ripple. The moment one's gaze met those eyes, it felt as though one had been cast into the depths of the ocean, sending a chill down the spine.

He hurriedly withdrew his gaze, his forehead covered in cold sweat, his whole body trembling with cold, his heart pounding wildly.

In that instant, he felt a great terror! A terror from the abyss!

"This old man already knows the matter!"

When the words "this old man" came from the young man's mouth, no one felt it was out of place. Everyone shared one feeling: it was only right.

Every single person listened to the Old Ancestor's instruction with utmost respect and proper bearing.

"Such a mess—it really is unseemly."

"Please, Old Ancestor, give us your instructions." Li Li Liangcheng requested with great reverence.

The Old Ancestor turned his head, looking outside the great hall. An utterly unremarkable face, a pair of wise eyes that had seen through everything in the world: "Some people have gone too far, and made too much of a ruckus."

"What does the Old Ancestor mean?"

"How Your Majesty passed, this old man already knows. Why Prince Yan and Prince Zhong fell into a coma, this old man also already knows. Come in!"

As his words fell, Grandmaster Wei Wubing walked into the great hall with perfect propriety.

"This servant greets the Old Ancestor!"

The dignified Grandmaster Wei Wubing, like a powerless little eunuch who had just entered the palace, performed a grand bow to the Old Ancestor with exceptional piety and reverence.

"Xiao Wei, you have failed in your duty!"

"The Old Ancestor's rebuke is correct. This servant failed in his duty, causing Prince Zhong to be plotted against. Please, Old Ancestor, punish me!"

"The rest of you, come in as well."

At the Old Ancestor's word, Grandmaster Zhou Zhou Mobai walked into the great hall, no longer his usual arrogant self, appearing especially obedient and well-behaved.

Immediately following, a bald old monk also walked in.

"Master Liaocheng?" The officials were very surprised. Master Liaocheng of the Wuxiang Temple—why had he also come to the palace?

Walking at the very back was Noble Consort Gao.

Noble Consort Gao wept silently, holding a handkerchief in her hand, dabbing at her tears while sobbing: "Please, Old Ancestor, seek justice for my son!"

At these words, all the officials present felt their hearts tighten at once.

Could it be that the Old Ancestor truly intended to stand up for Noble Consort Gao and let the comatose Prince Yan inherit the throne? Too absurd!

But no one dared to make a sound at this moment, even their breathing was softened.

There was no need for anyone to explain how formidable the Old Ancestor was. One only needed to approach the great hall, feel the solemn atmosphere within, and look at the expressions on Li Li Liangcheng and the others' faces to know just how terrifying the Old Ancestor's weight truly was.

When the Crown Prince was deposed back then, if the Eastern Palace had had the ability to summon the Old Ancestor, the late emperor might not have been able to depose the Crown Prince. The only thing to blame was that Zhongwangdian's birth mother had died too early. Wei Wubing was only in charge of security and did not meddle in worldly affairs, and the Eastern Palace's subordinate officials had no idea the Old Ancestor existed at all.

The Yan King had a good birth mother. At the critical moment, she summoned the Old Ancestor to decide matters on his behalf. On this single point alone, he surpassed Zhongwangdian.

When the Old Ancestor spoke, there was always only one tone — flat and waveless.

"Consort Shu, please accept my condolences. The Yan King was poisoned too deeply; he will not be able to wake up."

Upon hearing this, Noble Consort Gao let out a wail and burst into loud weeping.

The officials were dumbfounded: the Yan King had truly been poisoned. Who administered the poison, and when? What a vicious mind, what a hidden method.

The Old Ancestor paid no heed to the crowd's reaction and continued: "Fortunately, Zhongwangdian's poison has been lifted. Unless something unexpected happens, he should have woken by now."

"Zhongwangdian is awake?"

"Zhongwangdian actually woke up at a time like this?"

"Zhongwangdian's fate is great indeed!"

"Out of the depths of misfortune comes fortune!"