Chapter 1073: Chaos, It Has Begun to Chaos

The Old Aristocrats' people have been surrounded by the Duqi!

That night, this news spread throughout the entire Jinghua.

In a place like Jinghua, there is no such thing as a secret.

In an instant, the previously taut atmosphere of Jinghua felt as if it had exploded.

What does this Duqi want to do?

What does this Vice Minister Liu want to do?

"What did you say?"

Zhu Zhen, an old man of seventy or eighty, was rudely awakened in the middle of the night.

Not letting the nobles leave the city? Not letting them return to their territories?

While letting his servants dress him, he furrowed his brows tightly.

Something has happened!

Something is about to happen!

He had not expected that this Vice Minister Liu would not start from the palace, but instead start with the Old Aristocrats!

"Go and take a look!"

In this time of storm and stress, Zhu Zhen dared not be the least bit negligent.

Just as he finished dressing, a large group of people had already arrived at the Shangshu Mansion. These Scholar-officials were also desperate; they had just been at the Shangshu Mansion and had felt that nothing would happen tonight, so they had gone back to sleep, only to be awakened again.

"My Lord..."

"Teacher..."

"What exactly does this Vice Minister Liu want to do?"

The group was also somewhat confused.

If the Emperor had truly passed away, this Liu Zheng should have first taken control of the palace—the imperial edict! When everyone's eyes were fixed on the imperial edict, this Vice Minister Liu actually targeted the Old Aristocrats first?

Why?

Zhu Zhen, having finished dressing and just returned to his home in Jinghua, had not yet recovered his energy, and his face was somewhat pale. Facing the questioning of so many people, he slowly shook his head, indicating that he did not understand either.

"Old Minister, shall we go over and take a look now?"

Several vice ministers asked tentatively.

Zhu Zhen shook his head again: "Look, we must go and look. But I think..."

He lowered his head, took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and then spat it out.

"I keep feeling that Vice Minister Liu's move tonight is being done for someone to see..."

"Ah?"

"What?"

The group looked at each other in dismay.

They could not figure it out.

Done for whom to see?

Suddenly, one person exclaimed: "Could it be for us to see?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room was in an uproar.

Done for them, the Scholar-officials, to see? Why would that be? To kill the chicken to warn the monkey? That shouldn't be it... That Vice Minister Liu, his first move, was actually aimed at the Old Aristocrats... Why?

Everyone racked their brains.

Controlling the Old Aristocrats.

On the surface, it is possible that Liu Zheng wants to ensure the smooth progress of the resistance against Tsarist Russia. Because in this situation, if these Old Aristocrats returned to their own territories, then when the fighting started, who would still listen to you? Everyone has their own agenda; those who are less extreme would just go through the motions on the battlefield, or even play both sides. It is even possible they would pull their troops back to protect themselves, or even declare independence.

But what about on a deeper level?

Liu Zheng is merely a vice minister; by what right does he consider these national affairs? By what right does he make such decisions?

Unless...

Xie Tianyao, before he died, had spoken to him and given him instructions!

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhen shuddered, and his clouded eyes began to clear.

Logically speaking... given the complex situation in Jinghua now, what Liu Zheng wants to deal with should not just be the Old Aristocrats. But today he made such a big show of force, targeting only the Old Aristocrats.

Something is not right.

Something is not right!

Is he doing this for them, the Scholar-officials, to see!

But...

Why would

that be?

Suddenly.

A flash of clarity crossed Zhu Zhen's mind.

Vice Minister Liu is waiting for them, the Scholar-officials, to take a stand!

That's right!

"Go and take a look!"

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhen no longer hesitated, and the group hurriedly followed behind him. Carriage after carriage.

Zhu Zhen suddenly felt that the storm was finally coming.

"Are we not going in?"

Tonight in Jinghua, it is destined to be restless. Soon, Liu Zheng and the others arrived outside the residence where the Old Aristocrats were gathered. This place was a stronghold of the Old Aristocrats in Jinghua, the Han Wang Fu. At this moment, the residence was already surrounded by three layers of people inside and three layers outside.

Liu Zheng and Zheng Yue Ru had already arrived outside.

Zheng Yue Ru felt a bit strange.

A fight was about to break out inside, yet Liu Zheng had no intention of going in.

Liu Zheng chuckled: "No rush, no one has arrived yet."

"Are you waiting for Lord Zhu?"

Zheng Yue Ru's eyes lit up.

Liu Zheng nodded slowly.

There were some things he could not say explicitly, but he hoped that through his own actions, he could let Zhu Zhen realize something. As for this group of Old Aristocrats, he certainly could not let a single one of them go. Once they returned, they would be like dragons returning to the great rivers; trying to control them again would be unrealistic.

Therefore.

No one expected that the first direction he would strike would be the Old Aristocrats.

Likewise, he was also sending a signal to the Scholar-officials, to Zhu Zhen's side.

The throne was to be passed to Xie Ming; this was the best choice at present.

It just depended on whether these Scholar-officials knew how to seize the opportunity.

Inside, the sounds of angry shouting and slaughter were rising one after another, yet Liu Zheng sat in the Horse Carriage, not in the least bit anxious, closing his eyes to rest his mind; Zheng Yue Ru also sat beside him, curiously watching the soldiers running back and forth under the night sky.

This was the first time Zheng Yue Ru had experienced such an atmosphere.

All along, she had been in Liangzhou, high and mighty, managing Yintan City and the finances of the entire Liangzhou Chamber of Commerce.

Although she held the title of a general, she had truly never experienced such a tense situation.

She knew.

Although Liu Zheng looked calm and composed at this moment, she knew he was under immense pressure. This was Jinghua! If anything went slightly wrong, the world would be turned upside down, and there would be no place left to bury one's body!

Those they were surrounding right now were all figures in Longyan who, wherever they stomped their feet, could make Longyan tremble three times!

"Over here, over here!"

"Hurry up, hurry up!"

After waiting for a moment.

The people from the Scholar-officials' side finally arrived.

The Scholar-officials also had their own troops, but running at the very front were the junior ministers and yamen runners of the Dali Temple.

Liu Zheng saw this, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Zhu Zhen was indeed Zhu Zhen; he never did anything without covering every detail.

The carriage stopped, and with the support of others, Zhu Zhen appeared before Liu Zheng.

Liu Zheng had already emerged from the Horse Carriage, and by the light of the torches, he cupped his hands toward Zhu Zhen: "It is so late, I have troubled Lord Zhu."

Zhu Zhen looked deeply at Liu Zheng: "Why is Vice Minister Liu doing this? Surrounding the Han Wang Fu in the middle of the night does not seem like a wise move!"

The old fox spoke with hidden sharpness!

Liu Zheng also smiled slightly: "Since it is not a wise move, Lord Zhu should have watched from the sidelines; why the rush to get here?"

His words made Zhu Zhen smile faintly as well.

Yes.

If he believed that Liu Zheng's actions were irrational, he could have completely avoided coming, sitting back to watch the situation here grow larger and larger. Then the Scholar-officials could sit back and reap the rewards.

But he did not...

Because he was Zhu Zhen, and in this

matter, he had caught a whiff of something unusual.

He had to catch this ride!

He looked deeply at this young man before him once again.

Come to think of it, the number of times Zhu Zhen and Liu Zheng had faced each other directly was not many. But both men represented the greatest forces in Longyan.

The struggle behind the scenes had already reached a white-hot stage.

Being this close to Liu Zheng for the first time, Zhu Zhen could not help but sigh.

This young man was a figure of consequence.

"Make way!"

"Move aside, move aside!"

Just at this moment, another wave of troops arrived in a hurry.

The New Aristocracy.

Liu Zheng did not even need to think; it must be the group from the Prince of Han.

Zhu Zhen suddenly shuddered, a dazzling brilliance erupting in his eyes as he looked at Liu Zheng in disbelief.

He suddenly realized.

Coming here so early today was the right choice!