Chapter 437: So Is the Next Version the Three Families' Jin Split or the Eight Kings' Rebellion?

Ji Ming still remained silent, furrowing his brows in thought, then leaned forward and scanned the assembly of nobles in the hall.

Um, too many…

Here, whether old or young, the numbers are simply too many.

In fact, he had sensed something off before, but it was just unfounded speculation, lacking clear observational results, so it wasn't that obvious.

In this magical world, the vast Royal Capital, with so many high‑ranking authorities, he could hardly find anyone who could still be considered middle‑aged.

For example, now, the other several real‑power dukes present who spoke after the Moonlight Duke.

These big shots, though their eyes were bright, their movements decisive, and their speech concise, already had faces full of wrinkles, clearly advanced in age.

Even the Radiant nobles, due to ancestral edicts, each resembled the Emperor in Warhammer 40K, overly emphasizing the purity of human lineage.

So even if intermarriage with other races is permitted, mixed‑blood offspring cannot inherit titles, yet such a situation remains rather odd.

Leaving other matters aside, the great nobles lack the royal family's complex rules, such as assessments for raising insects and prioritizing heirs.

Could it be that they cannot find any younger heirs who have more time for great deeds?

Even if we set aside this doubt for now, those youngsters…

First, those who can pass through this gate are absolutely either rich or noble; no external factor could possibly hinder their progress.

But what about reality?

Each steps are airy, eyes listless, faces full of superficial greed, showing no hint of wisdom or future.

Without exaggeration, even the few "lying‑flat" guys Ji Ming met when he was a laborer seemed more steadfast, mature, and diligent than them.

…

With that thought, he suddenly understood why, during the Moonlight Duke's speech earlier, he kept shaking his head and gesturing at the audience.

Ji Ming originally thought it was some odd personal habit, but now realizes that the old man, though long‑winded, is actually a good person.

—He's just watching!

He wants to see whether anyone in the audience can grasp what he's trying to convey, and whether they have the ability to succeed them.

Unfortunately, while Ji Ming can't state the answer, it's definitely "hard to say."

After all, the royal family has an assessment as motivation, capable of breeding waste in a jar, let alone the less‑pressured noble families.

At least the heir of the Mirror Light family that Ji Ming met through Prince Fi, who was merely playful, already counted as somewhat human‑like in this circle.

But Ji Ming is not a Radiant person; even if he were, he's on the church side, and royal affairs are beyond his jurisdiction.

Life is already busy; better to respect others' fates, set aside the savior complex, and avoid self‑indulgence.

However, I've heard that recently some players are indeed scheming for titles; perhaps they'll solve the problem.

And since the dukes have finished speaking, the next and final speaker is naturally the most influential person present.

Ahem…

The guards drew back the blackout curtains; the Sun King rose, slowly pacing to the railing of the stand.

One must admit, this old king, though fond of reckless antics, is still quite popular among the nobles.

Before he even spoke, the audience erupted in thunder‑like applause, and even some mischievous fans whistled as if meeting an idol.

Alright, perhaps he truly is an idol.

Because among the crowd were a few young girls who, upon seeing the king, scrambled like zombies, desperately searching for a way up.

Ji Ming, shaking his head, also sighed and decided to retract his earlier remark.

——Actually, among young people, there are still quite a few who maintain an enterprising spirit, yearning for progress, such as them.

there are actually many who remain ambitious and eager for progress, like them.

The Sun King, of course, also noticed them, but forced himself to withdraw his gaze with astonishing willpower, his finger joints on the railing turning a shade whiter.

"Good evening, my subjects, I am your king, lord of Radiance, the eighteenth Sun King, Andong Hui Guang."

Andong is actually the true name of the First Sun King; according to kingdom tradition, almost every king selects a favored offspring and bestows upon them the same name as the ancestor.

And this offspring, while favored, is often more capable, so whether it's the expected father‑to‑son succession or the unexpected brother‑to‑brother inheritance, there is a high chance of ultimate victory.

Thus history records as many as four Sun Kings named Andong, leaving the terribly unlucky old Andong relegated to being the sixth.

Nevertheless, although Lao Deng's speech is often rambling and he frequently drops a few curses in front of Ji Ming, these are merely private jokes,

and in an occasion bound to be recorded in history, his words as a sovereign remain quite proper.

He first formally welcomed the guests, then offered blessings for everyone's future prosperous lives.

Finally, he emphasized that his children should be united and loving, harmonious as one; regardless of outcome, they remain brothers and sisters.

The earlier part Ji Ming listened to without much concern, but at this point he suddenly felt something off.

Guigui, could this also be one of your annual traditions?

In this life‑or‑death, competition‑for‑position scenario, can friendship truly be first and the contest second?

You guys get the hellish jokes (thumbs up).

After about three minutes, the Sun King took a gold‑trimmed envelope from his chest.

He slowly opened it like a guest at an award ceremony, then clenched the letter inside in his hand.

"Now, as the lord of Radiance, father of my children, I will announce this year's royal assessment passers."

Who could it be?

But although Ji Ming had already guessed that there was an eighty percent chance the backstage would be as hard as iron, not only were both parents present, but also Fiya, who had the strong support of her maternal grandfather and elder brother.

But even though Ji Ming had already guessed with about eighty percent certainty that it would be Fiya, whose family is as solid as iron—both parents present and even her maternal grandfather's elder brother lending strong support—

honestly, as someone from a prestigious family with strict upbringing, single‑mindedly aiming for assessment success, her performance during the graduation defense was indeed impressive.

At least compared with her few siblings who seemed to have "kidney deficiency" and "vase" written on their faces, she truly seemed three times more human.

Even now, recalling it leaves Ji Ming feeling disillusioned.

Oh my, the question clearly emphasized the Royal Capital's grain price slump!

【61】 When they were to solve the famine in that sealed land, someone's answer was to have the church choir go to the countryside and sing free songs twice.

Then… then take ten thousand gold coins from the stock to reward my hard work. Is this something a person could come up with!?

The remaining abstract answers are countless as well.

There is one who, to block the enemy's southward advance, resolutely decides to blow up the dam amid a torrential downpour, then wash the entire enemy army away.

"Wait a moment, Prince A Ma Er, the enemy is clearly upstream. Do you think a flood can flow against the current?"

"Examiner sir, I certainly don't think so, but I used magic."

"Uh, I think achieving this is a bit hard… moreover, the enemy also has mages."

"Then my mages are stronger. My whole team consists of mages, swish swish, Grand Mage!"

"..."

Ji Ming, attending as the Church's representative: Grass Mud Horse, so no one cares about the civilians who were also swept away?

Also, to gather provisions for a fifty‑thousand‑strong army, letting them clumsily form groups to hunt on the mountain, while filling their own bellies, they easily annihilate a hundred‑thousand enemy troops.

"Princess Suo Fei Ya, please examine the question carefully. It's merely a hill less than five kilometres in diameter; the creatures on it cannot possibly sustain a fifty‑thousand army for three months."

"I know, so I had them dig underground and discovered an enormous cavern filled with many animals!"

"... Princess, may I ask if such a place exists in this world?"

"It doesn't exist yet, but once I dig it out, won't it exist?"

"..."

Ji Ming, still listening from the side: First, this space does indeed exist; second, I still want to hear how this Valkyrie conveniently annihilated a hundred‑thousand enemies.

The final question is more complicated, and to let everyone speak freely, a "what if you were the king" premise was given first.

Then the respondents were told that dark forces at home and abroad are conspiring to crush him; as His Majesty the King, how should one achieve the most perfect outcome?

Everyone wrote quite a lot—some demanded that various dukes lead their troops back to the capital, others called for the Holy Light God to intervene and provide protection; it was rather lively.

Only one great master gave an answer of just two sentences, and the first sentence was.

— "What difficulty is that? I need only intervene slightly, and a ninety‑nine‑level pinnacle strongman can easily crush the conspiracy!"

The elderly judges were all baffled, passing the paper back and forth at least three times before a gentleman with a relatively sturdy heart finally spoke.

"Prince Ke Wei Duo, where did you find a ninety‑nine‑level pinnacle strongman who is especially adept at tracking and teleportation?"

"Well… I'm already a king; the whole court, civil and military, are my subjects, so of course I can find them."

"But… we don't have any."

"But I'm a king, after all."

"But this is… something that doesn't exist."

"I think this can exist!"

"This truly doesn't exist!"

At this point, Ke Wei Duo got angry and slammed the table.

"Damn, which side are you on? I'm the king! Treasonous minister, if you keep saying you don't have it, I'll chop off your head!"

Ji Ming: …

Bro, this is definitely the biological child of An Dong's old Deng; if it's someone else's seed I'll apologize publicly, okay.

Standing with this group of geniuses possessing world‑shaking wisdom, Fiya's answer, though not perfect, was proper and, at least, truly feasible—simply wonderful.

Although the common folk inevitably suffered wartime casualties, at least they weren't swept away and could return after the war to rebuild.

Even after exhausting all effort, the fifty‑thousand army still had to disperse twenty‑thousand to barely get through, but at least they held off the enemy's assault until reinforcements arrived.

Although "Queen Fiya" was nearly assassinated several times, she relied on ecclesiastical intervention, endured until the truth came to light, and smoothly consolidated the throne.

Thus, when the Sun King read out Fiya's name, although many in the audience whose hearts were hanging in suspense were utterly crushed, more people still expressed congratulations.

But, as mentioned earlier, after rumors of the Sun King's ill health spread—regardless of their truth—the overall situation had already changed.

The royal examinations are held every other term, and no one knows which term will be the last for this cohort.

Therefore, those who have already made it ashore hope not to add more players to this literal card game, and preferably those who haven't come up stay silent.

Meanwhile, the ghosts still yet to reach shore all want to seize the chance, clutch the last few tickets, and smoothly board the monarchy's last train.

Thus, regarding this year's royal examination, some people's ideal outcome is for Ai Li Nuo to participate and obtain the reward through a backdoor.

This yields two benefits: first, Ai Li Nuo certainly cannot vie for the throne, and as a strong contender, Fiya is certainly out of the picture, allowing an early ban of an opponent.

The other is that, since this year an exception was made to allow a backdoor, next year such an exception cannot be granted for a second royal offspring to pass the exam, leaving the slot vacant, which reduces the chance of a fiasco.

Who would have thought they expected a preliminary squabble to give the court nobles a chance to cause trouble, yet for various reasons the first review passed with a high vote.

The big shots have already nodded; for us trying to stir up a storm is not that simple, after much thought we can only tuck our necks and accept the result.

But the problem is that the original seven candidates increased by two in just a month, truly becoming a nine‑prince succession struggle—a pure high‑end game.

Moreover, since Philip and Fiya, the sibling pair, will inevitably form an alliance, the remaining seven will inevitably assemble one or two campaign teams.

By then, the three houses will split, the Eight Kings' Rebellion… oh dear, the situation is too complicated; dear family, I'm scared!

Ji Ming: Right, scared that there won't be enough melons to eat then.

Whatever, anyway among these nine I'll look after Ai Li Nuo because of the senior's request.

But because of her special background, she definitely won't run; she's already considered to have graduated from life, so the remaining—dead or alive—whose son?

But you can't just read aloud; as Fiya's seldom‑met great father, the Sun King also went down to display his benevolent fatherly demeanor.

Ji Ming was still hiding aside, silently ranting, thinking that although it's true, it's really hard to remember that the two are father and daughter.

After all, that dad who looks like a great‑grandfather might just a few days ago have been hanging out with a little girl younger than his own granddaughter.

As a result, whether it's because that old Deng, a half‑immortal, can divine, guessed someone was cursing him, or truly etched the disgusting person into his bones.

Putting on a show properly, he suddenly began shouting Ji Ming's name loudly.

"Damn!"

Ji Ming had no choice but to glide smoothly out of the crowd, wearing a business smile as he made a dazzling entrance.

(End of Chapter)