Chapter 317: The Uses of a Treacherous Official

"The daughter of Haotian!"

Di Yi was secretly startled; he nodded slightly and said gravely, "Since that is the case, then summon Yin Qi to the palace."

This matter, he had to get to the bottom of it.

One hour later.

Yin Qi arrived at Zichen Hall.

He and Zhou Ji had just finished a halftime break and were preparing to press on with renewed efforts, but he had not expected to receive a summons from Di Yi, so he could only dress and rush over, secretly pondering in his heart.

In reality, he had basically already guessed the purpose of Di Yi summoning him.

"Eh!"

Yin Qi was startled and suspicious in his heart.

He had just subconsciously scanned Zichen Hall and unexpectedly discovered that someone was still hiding in the void nearby.

No need to think, it must be Wen Zhong.

Yin Qi naturally bowed, his arms spreading like a Xuan Bird spreading its wings, before joining them in front of him: "Your son pays respects to Father Emperor!"

"Rise!"

"Thank you, Father Emperor!"

Di Yi's voice was gentle: "My son, I summoned you here this time because there are some things I wish to ask you."

Yin Qi said respectfully: "Father Emperor, please ask; your son will certainly tell you everything he knows."

Di Yi nodded slightly and said: "Who is that Yang Daoren, and when did you get to know him?"

Yin Qi thought to himself, *as expected*, and already had a draft in his heart: "Replying to Father Emperor, I met this person when I was providing disaster relief in Hongzhou the year before last. He is not only profound in cultivation but also skilled in Artifact Refining, Alchemy, Array Formation, and more; he can be called an all-around talent.

Yang Daoren's full name is Yang Shen, and he is a rogue cultivator.

But he once had a great opportunity and obtained the Dao lineage of an ancient Golden Immortal.

When we first met, he said that purple Qi was soaring above my head and that I was a person of great fortune, so he wanted to emulate the Imperial Teachers of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors era and assist me in ascending to the position of Human Emperor."

Yang Daoren's background had to be explained clearly to dispel the concerns in Di Yi's heart.

Therefore, without waiting for Di Yi to ask, he stated it clearly.

"Oh!"

Di Yi was enlightened and did not harbor any suspicions.

Assisting a crown prince to ascend to the position of Human Emperor as an Imperial Teacher also allowed one to enjoy National Fortune.

Fortune—there is no cultivator who does not want it.

Just like Wen Zhong, who entered the court as an official to assist the monarch; that was also his purpose.

"Then that Immortal from Phoenix Mountain, do you know her background?"

Yin Qi nodded and said: "I know, she is the daughter of Haotian. I entered Qingluan Douque twice and had a very pleasant conversation with her; she even gifted me quite a few presents."

He did not explain his relationship with Longji Gongzhu, so as to avoid Di Yi letting his imagination run wild.

But some things could not be concealed.

Being evasive would only make people more suspicious.

Di Yi nodded slightly, then asked again: "That Warship, was it refined by Yang Daoren?"

Yin Qi nodded and said: "Yes."

Di Yi smiled kindly: "This Yang Daoren is indeed a True Immortal who has attained the Dao; my son must treat him with great courtesy. You did very well in this expedition against the Eastern Yi, displaying the might of our Yin Shang."

Yin Qi said modestly: "It was all thanks to the assistance of Yang Daoren and the dedication of all the soldiers."

Di Yi smiled and said: "You may go. You have been away from home for a year; spend some time with Zhou Ji at home. By the way, your third brother is already on his way back; I estimate he will arrive in five or six days."

Yin Qi said: "Father Emperor, your son has one more matter."

Di Yi smiled kindly: "Speak, my son."

Yin Qi reported: "Father Emperor, your son fell in love at first sight with Feng Yanran, the daughter of the Qingzhou Marquis, and wishes to take her as a consort; there is also Huang Feiyan, the daughter of Huang Gun, with whom I have also made a private vow of marriage."

For a prince to take a wife or concubine is never a small matter.

The Qingzhou Marquis is one of the Nine Provinces Marquises, with a deep foundation, not much different from the Four Great Earls.

The Huang Mansion behind Huang Feiyan has a powerful influence in the military.

If Yin Qi were to become the Human Emperor in the future, using marriage to unite these forces would certainly be excellent and could consolidate imperial power.

But if he were to lose, and yet be unwilling to accept it, it could potentially threaten the stability of the realm.

Di Yi's expression was slightly solemn.

He looked at Yin Qi with burning eyes, seemingly weighing something.

After a long time, he finally said: "Granted!"

"Many thanks, Father Emperor; your son takes his leave!"

Yin Qi was overjoyed.

This was actually a test for him, a test of Di Yi's intentions.

If he had refused, then he would be in danger.

If he had agreed to only one of them, then the situation would be uncertain.

But since he agreed to both, it was highly likely that Di Yi favored him as the successor.

He bowed and exited Zichen Hall.

Not long after Yin Qi left, the light in the hall fluctuated, and Wen Zhong revealed his figure.

Di Yi said with a smile: "It seems there should be no problem."

Wen Zhong chuckled: "Great King, as for this Yang Daoren, you actually need not worry. With this old minister sitting in the court, he cannot stir up any trouble. Even if he has someone behind him, can they compare to the Jie Sect?"

Di Yi thought for a moment and laughed: "It is I who was too nervous; what you say is correct, Minister."

In the current Honghuang, of All Sects, the Jie Sect is the strongest.

With the backing of the Jie Sect, Wen Zhong truly does not worry that Yang Daoren has ulterior motives.

………

Over the next few days, the Qi Wang Mansion was exceptionally lively, with people constantly coming to pay their respects.

The second trial had already been clarified, and there was no longer any dispute over the position of Crown Prince, so the civil and military officials and the powerful nobles naturally had to seize the time to come to the Qi Wang Mansion to pledge their loyalty, even Fei Zhong and You Hun were among them.

They were previously die-hard loyalists of Yin Shou, but now they were also busy switching their allegiance.

Although they were the two great treacherous officials from the original work, Yin Qi still received them, and he acted very enthusiastically, which made the two of them incredibly excited, and on the spot, they revealed quite a few of Yin Shou's secrets.

In truth, there was nothing shameful about them; it was just a reminder for Yin Qi to pay attention to which die-hard loyalists Yin Shou had.

Loyal officials have the uses of loyal officials, and treacherous officials have the uses of treacherous officials.

Yin Qi does not have moral squeamishness; as a qualified monarch, the most basic ability is to know people and assign them to the right roles.

Although he was busy expanding his influence, Yin Qi did not neglect the Beauty.

On the second day after returning to Zhaoge, he had people send several carts of gifts to Huang Feiyan, all of which were specialties of the Chi Yi, and also included a High-level Human Shaman Meat Body Cultivation Crystal.

One must know that among the one hundred and forty-five allied armies of the Dong Yi, there were hundreds of High-level Human Shamans, and they were basically all slaughtered.

Yin Qi did not waste their corpses either.

If he were not worried about being exposed, he would not even want to let go of those millions of barbarian Witch Corpses.

No matter how one puts it, utilizing corpses is considered the Leftist Path.

……

This day.

Four Sky Patrol Warships arrived across the sky and hovered to the east of Chaoge City.

Yin Shou had returned.

Yin Shou's return to the city drew the attention of the entire city, because this meant that the results of the second trial had also been announced.

This also meant that the position of Crown Prince was about to be settled.

…………

The fifteenth of the fourth month, the Grand Court Meeting.

The Golden Throne Hall.

"Enter the ranks!"

"Pay respects to the Great King!"

"All officials, rise!"

"Thank you, Great King!"

After the monarch and subjects exchanged greetings, the Grand Court Meeting proceeded according to procedure.

Compared to usual, the fixed procedures of this Grand Court Meeting were clearly accelerated by a lot; it was obvious that everyone was looking forward to today's main event, which was the situation and results of the second trial.

In less than half an hour, it reached the final reporting segment of the morning court.

Di Yi was dressed in a white Black Bird Imperial Robe, wearing a Twelve-Tassel Crown, his face full of majestic aura; he sat upright on the Dragon Throne, and just as he was about to announce the results of the second trial, he saw someone in the hall step out.

"Ahem!"

"Great King, this humble subject has a matter to report."

Looking at the person who stepped out to report, the expressions of the assembled officials changed slightly, because the person was the Grand Historian Chen Xu.

This person was a die-hard loyalist of Yin Shou and also a firm opponent of Yin Qi.

For him to come out and report at this moment, it certainly was not for anything good.