Chapter 1004: Father Has Arrived

The sky had already slowly darkened.

Somewhere in the Capital.

A few people were moving about, leaning against an inconspicuous spot at the base of a wall.

They were heading in the direction of the south.

"Quick, quick, quick, this way!"

"Be careful, everyone, don't make a sound!"

"Watch your step!"

Very soon, these people arrived at the barracks of the Qi Du Wei.

A man in military uniform standing in the shadows watched all of this quietly.

This person was the Deputy Commander of the Jinghua Qi Du Wei, Cheng Hua.

This time, the sudden change of commander for the Qi Du Wei had made the agreement between him and Zhao King Xie Sheng tense. Thus, he decided to take a risk; today, before the Vice Minister Liu arrived to take up his post at the Qi Du Wei, he would seize the first opportunity to arrange for the Youzhou Assassins, whom the Zhao King had organized, to be placed inside the Qi Du Wei.

Three hundred people.

A total of three hundred people.

But he knew that at a critical moment, these three hundred people could have the effect of turning the tide.

"Is it finished?"

He watched quietly as these people were arranged inside, and then his own brothers inside changed their clothes and came out.

"General, the exchange is complete!"

A deputy general said.

Cheng Hua nodded slowly, a thick murderous intent flashing in his eyes.

He was someone who had long been bought off by the Zhao King; to be precise, he had been bought off by the Zhao King's son, Xie Chen, who was a eunuch in the palace. Cheng Hua was already over forty years old this year, and he had worked diligently in the Qi Du Wei for over twenty years, yet because he had no background, he had never been able to climb up from the position of Deputy Commander.

Commander!

What he wanted was to be the Commander-in-Chief!

Why did those people in Jinghua with family backgrounds get promoted so much faster than him? Even this Vice Minister Liu, how old was he this year? Only in his twenties, and he had already become his direct superior!

He was resentful!

He was unwilling!

He had given all his youth to this unit, the Qi Du Wei; the position of Commander should have been his!

Three hundred people...

He took a deep breath; these were the three hundred most elite assassins from Youzhou!

If they made a move, Liu Zheng would likely be unable to escape his fate!

"You mean to say, the Emperor summoned Vice Minister Liu into the Yangxin Hall, and after he came out, he was the Commander of the Qi Du Wei and the Duwei?"

At this moment.

The Shangshu Mansion.

Zhu Zhen's cloudy eyes continued to stare at his incense burner, enjoying the agarwood from the Southern Barbarian Lands.

"Yes, Teacher."

Someone immediately replied.

Someone immediately became anxious: "Old Minister, the Emperor's intention is already very obvious!"

"Indeed, my lord..."

"Lord Zhu, this is clearly meant to push the Female Emperor onto the throne!"

These people were all extremely anxious.

Zhu Zhen, however, shook his head slowly: "Something is not right."

Huh?

The group looked at each other in dismay.

Wasn't this obvious enough? What was not right?

Zhu Zhen said indifferently: "I always feel that something is not quite right. Given the Emperor's character throughout his life, he is always incomparably cautious in his actions, yet he has given the Tiger Tally of the Qi Du Wei and the Duwei to Liu Zheng at this time; this does not fit his character..."

Hearing this, the crowd suddenly realized.

That's right.

Jinghua at this time was already tense to the extreme.

For the Emperor to suddenly do this, wasn't he just pouring oil on the fire?

Pouring oil?

Suddenly.

A flash of brilliance appeared in Zhu Zhen's eyes. Why would the Emperor want to pour oil? What was he plotting? Was he intentionally trying to stir up panic among these people?

A purge!

He then took a deep breath and understood in an instant!

Xie Tianyao wanted to stir up trouble!

To stir up trouble through Liu Zheng's hands!

He wanted to purge some of the less obedient Feudatory Kings!

But...

To let Liu Zheng handle such a thing? This was not right, it was not right again! This also did not conform to the imperial way of checks and balances...

At least.

This does not fit Xie Tianyao's style of doing things!

Zhu Zhen fell into deep contemplation.

"Pass the order down: as long as they are our people, no matter what the outcome is this time, remain still for now!"

Suddenly, Zhu Zhen opened his eyes and said.

"What?"

"My lord..."

"Many of our people have already been arranged."

"Remain still!"

Zhu Zhen said firmly once again.

"Yes..."

One after another, the Feudatory Kings from various regions began to arrive at the Capital.

This also caused the atmosphere of the entire Jinghua to become increasingly treacherous and unpredictable.

The next day, Liu Zheng took the Tiger Tally and, leading the Duqi Duwei, began to take serious responsibility for the security work of the Capital. After all, this time, every Feudatory King had brought three thousand elite soldiers with them; how to arrange these elite soldiers, how to ensure no conflicts occurred, and how to guarantee the safety of these Feudatory Kings—these were all things the Duqi Duwei had to do.

One must know.

These Feudatory Kings were none of them easy to deal with.

To put it simply, Youzhou and Bingzhou were mortal enemies among mortal enemies; because of border issues, they would spark friction at the slightest provocation.

Jingzhou and Chuan Shu had never been particularly friendly.

Jingzhou and Jiangdong were also parties who frequently greeted each other's ancestors.

With these people arriving in Jinghua, one had to ponder carefully. Consequently, this kept Liu Zheng busy enough. Fortunately, the others had long admired this Vice Minister Liu in spirit, and seeing that he was in charge of the security work, they all gave him some face. Even the Feudatory Kings who had not met him before did not do anything excessive.

Time passed day by day.

Until Liu Dahao also arrived, and Liu Zheng came out personally to receive him.

"Father!"

Seeing his father, who was getting fatter and fatter, Liu Zheng could not help but laugh out loud.

"Oh my, oh my, my dear Zheng! Quick, let your old man take a look at you!"

Liu Dahao practically sprinted down from the Horse Carriage; having become as fat as a ball, he looked comical when he ran.

"Hahahaha! Old man, you need to lose some weight!"

Liu Zheng was held in Liu Dahao's embrace and almost couldn't catch his breath; he enjoyed this genuine family affection and couldn't help but laugh.

"Sigh, your mother nags me every day, and now that I've come to the Capital, you're nagging me too!"

Liu Dahao patted his son's shoulders hard a few times before letting him go.

Jiang Xuan had also followed along long ago. Seeing Liu Zheng, this young man who was already a general of a region, his eyes still shimmered with excitement and reverence. In front of Liu Zheng, he would always be a little child.

"Jiang Xuan has grown taller too, not bad, not bad!"

Liu Zheng walked over with a gratified expression.

Jiang Xuan let out a 'hey' and said excitedly: "Young Master, I have so many things I want to tell you!"

Liu Zheng let out a 'ha': "Good, we'll drink and chat tonight!"

Jiang Xuan sighed: "I originally told Sister Yue Ru to come too, but she said she was afraid of delaying your affairs. Really..."

Zheng Yueru...

Liu Zheng did not speak; he patted Jiang Xuan's shoulder and walked toward the city.

The whole family finally gathered in the Post House.

Liu Dahao, Liu Zheng, Qin Zhangfeng, Pei Yanran, and Pei Qianyun sat around together, smiling at each other.

The opportunities for them to gather together seemed to be getting fewer

and fewer.

This kind of true, genuine family affection was what people cherished the most.

"By the way, where is the Princess?"

"That's right, where is Princess sister-in-law? Call her out quickly!"

"Where is Chan'er?"

As soon as the few of them sat down, they began to tease.

Liu Zheng gave an awkward smile.

Under repeated calls.

The devastatingly beautiful and infinitely charming Xie Chan walked out with a blushing face.