Chapter 161: Receiving the Marquises

The news of the marquises' arrival was reported to Liu Bian by the Shadow Guards every day. With the arrival of Liu Yu, all the marquises returning to the capital had now arrived.

The day after Liu Yu arrived, they received a summons from Liu Bian.

"The Imperial Edict has arrived! Will the Inspectors and Prefects of each province please receive the edict!"

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately came to the main hall, knelt down respectfully, and shouted in unison:

"We, your subjects, receive the edict!"

"The Emperor decrees: Inspector of Youzhou Liu Yu, Inspector of Xuzhou Tao Qian, Inspector of Yuzhou Kong Zhou, Inspector of Jizhou Han Fu, and Chancellor of Beihai Kong Rong are to enter the palace immediately to see the Emperor!"

Eunuch Chief Steward Li Liangcheng arrived at the post station to personally proclaim Liu Bian's imperial edict.

"We, your subjects, obey the edict!"

After everyone stood up, Li Liangcheng looked them over and said to them:

"My lords, please follow this servant."

"We have troubled you."

Seeing that Li Liangcheng's attitude was quite decent, Kong Rong immediately spoke to him politely.

Afterwards, the group followed behind Li Liangcheng, heading toward the Imperial Palace.

However, they also discovered something unusual about this Eunuch Li.

With their physical stamina, they were actually unable to keep up with his pace, and he looked completely relaxed and at ease.

Moreover, the aura Li Liangcheng exuded felt similar to the aura of the soldiers they had encountered at the city gate.

The group exchanged glances, and Han Fu quickly walked to Li Liangcheng's side and asked in a low voice:

"May I ask, Eunuch Chief, have you also cultivated the Martial Dao?"

The marquises were all aware that the people under Liu Bian's command cultivated the Martial Dao.

It was just a pity that they did not know the method of cultivation. Back then, they had arranged for many spies to investigate, but those people had all gone missing later on.

They had stopped paying attention to this matter afterwards, but now, seeing this eunuch's skills, they felt that this person must have cultivated the Martial Dao.

Otherwise, his temperament was too different from the eunuchs they had seen in the past.

Therefore, the first thing they thought of was the Martial Dao.

"Hmm..."

Li Liangcheng, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked at Han Fu with sharp eyes.

Instantly, Han Fu felt as if he had been targeted by a wild beast; the hair all over his body stood on end, and cold sweat covered his forehead in an instant.

Li Liangcheng looked him over, withdrew his aura, and warned him:

"Lord Han, it is better to know less about things you shouldn't be asking about. When the time is right, you will naturally know!"

As Li Liangcheng withdrew his aura, Han Fu immediately began to pant heavily, and the look in his eyes when he looked at Li Liangcheng was filled with fear.

He hurriedly said to Li Liangcheng in a trembling voice: "I beg the Eunuch Chief to forgive me; it was this humble one who was impolite!"

At this moment, terrified, he did not even refer to himself as 'this Inspector' to Li Liangcheng, instead referring to himself directly as 'this humble one'.

"Lord Han, what has happened to you?"

Tao Qian, who was beside Han Fu, was terrified upon seeing his state and hurriedly asked with concern.

The others were also looking at Han Fu with concern, not understanding why he had suddenly appeared as if he were about to die.

"Many thanks to you all for your concern; this humble one's old ailment simply flared up, it is nothing!"

Seeing everyone asking, Han Fu waved his hand at them and said with a smile that suggested nothing was wrong.

It was clear that everyone did not believe what he said, but since Han Fu did not want to talk about it, they could not press him further.

They simply followed behind Li Liangcheng, constantly observing Li Liangcheng and Han Fu.

Linking this to the fact that Han Fu's reaction occurred only after he had questioned Li Liangcheng, and looking at Li Liangcheng's expression at the end, it was clear he was not surprised at all; they speculated that this matter might be related to Li Liangcheng.

For a time, everyone followed Li Liangcheng into the Imperial Palace with their own varied thoughts.

At this moment, in the Court Hall, Liu Bian was discussing the final details of the wedding with the Cabinet Ministers, the Six Ministers, and the Generals of the Six Great Legions.

Also present were Tian Feng and Ma Teng, who had rushed back from Liangzhou, and the Inspector of Bingzhou, Cheng Yu, was also notably here.

"Your Majesty, Inspector of Youzhou Liu Yu and the others have arrived!"

After Li Liangcheng entered the Court Hall, he said respectfully to Liu Bian.

Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions shifted.

"Proclaim them!"

Liu Bian looked at Li Liangcheng and said with authority.

"Proclaim: Inspector of Youzhou Liu Yu, Inspector of Xuzhou Tao Qian, Inspector of Yuzhou Kong Zhou, Inspector of Jizhou Han Fu, and Chancellor of Beihai Kong Rong to have an audience!"

The five people waiting outside the hall, upon hearing Li Liangcheng's voice, walked into the Court Hall.

When the five stepped into the hall, everyone's gaze converged upon them.

For a moment, the five felt as if they were sweating profusely—a feeling they had not experienced since they became Inspectors of a province.

When the five arrived at the center of the Court Hall and looked at Liu Bian on the high platform, wearing the dragon robe and the imperial crown, they could not help but tremble all over.

With just one glance, everyone felt as if their souls were trembling, as if they were being watched by an ancient Emperor.

The rich Imperial Aura on Liu Bian's body made their souls tremble.

They immediately knelt down before Liu Bian, prostrating themselves, and shouted loudly:

"We, your subjects, pay our respects to Your Majesty! Long live, long live, long long live Your Majesty!"

"My beloved subjects, rise!"

Liu Bian said to the five with authority.

"We, your subjects, thank Your Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, the five thanked him, stood up, and wiped the sweat from their foreheads.

"That you five beloved subjects could come, I am very gratified. It seems that our Han Empire still has loyal ministers!"

Looking at the five after they stood up, Liu Bian also said to them with a smile.

He believed that after the show of force just now, they would certainly not harbor any other thoughts.

Among these five, Liu Yu, Tao Qian, Kong Zhou, and Kong Rong were absolutely loyal to the Han Dynasty; the only one who was somewhat wavering was the Inspector of Jizhou, Han Fu.

However, after today's deterrence, he believed that he would certainly see the strength of the Imperial Court and would not harbor any other thoughts.

Sure enough, after everyone heard Liu Bian's words, they immediately said with solemn expressions:

"We, your subjects, swear to serve Your Majesty to the death!"

Seeing this, Liu Bian nodded with satisfaction, and afterwards, he introduced everyone to the five.

"This time, I summoned you five beloved subjects, firstly because I wanted to see you, and secondly because I see that you are all getting on in years, yet you still guard a region for my Han Empire; I find it somewhat unbearable."

"Therefore, I am taking the opportunity of my wedding to ask you to serve in the Imperial Court. What do you think?"

After everyone had been introduced, Liu Bian immediately explained the purpose of summoning them.

He also knew that this matter was somewhat rushed, but for the sake of the system quest, he had to speed up the progress.

Moreover, with his current strength, he feared no one! ===== CHAPTER 162 =====