Chapter 434

Ying Zheng spoke indifferently.

Zhao Gao felt a heavy stone lift from his heart, but then remembered imperial punishments, and his heart turned bitter again.

"But! Now is not yet the best time to launch troops and directly attack Great Han."

After sentencing Zhao Gao, Ying Zheng also rejected the proposal to launch troops.

Before Bai Qi and the others could ask, he continued speaking,

"It is still unclear whether Ximen Wudi is absent from Qinglong Society."

"If he is merely delayed by some matter and has not appeared,"

"then our Great Qin launching an attack on Great Han would be a complete rupture with Qinglong Society."

"Such a cost is too great."

"Then what should we do?"

All court officials felt this reasoning was sound.

Qinglong Society's tyrannical ways left many hearts still trembling.

"The Great Qin court, and all forces directly under the Great Qin court, are forbidden to directly attack Qinglong Society or its affiliated peripheral forces."

"Luo Wang and Heibing Tai, activate your hidden agents at once."

"Deploy forces that publicly oppose our Great Qin court to attack Qinglong Society."

"Excellent! Brilliant move—stir the grass to startle the snake."

Prince Zichu was the first to praise aloud.

If forces publicly hostile to Great Qin strike, whether Ximen Wudi is present or not, regardless of when he returns,

they cannot blame Great Qin for it.

This avoids becoming the first bird to be shot.

Indeed, it is precisely stirring the grass to startle the snake.

"Your Majesty's brilliant strategy."

Shang Yang also spoke in praise,

"Moreover, the advantage of this method is that, based on Qinglong Society's response, we can not only determine whether Ximen Wudi is present,"

"but more crucially, uncover part of Qinglong Society's inner workings."

"If enough forces are deployed, they will be overwhelmed."

"Which forces should be sent?"

Zhang Han of Heibing Tai asked.

"First, send the Nongjia and the Mojia."

Ying Zheng declared without hesitation—he clearly had already planned this thoroughly.

Nongjia claims a hundred thousand disciples and boasts many experts.

Most crucially, they have always, openly or covertly, opposed the Great Qin court.

As for Mojia, they are even Great Qin's "deadliest enemy"!

The current Mojia Grand Master is Dan, the last Crown Prince of Yan, one of the former Seven States.

This man has continuously plotted to overthrow Great Qin and once dispatched Jing Ke to assassinate Ying Zheng.

Who could believe such a man could be manipulated by Great Qin?

"Brilliant!"

The court officials again chorused their praise.

……

Great Tang, Great Ming Palace!

"What? Are you certain, Minister?"

Wu Zetian leapt up from the Long Yi, overjoyed at the news that Ximen Wudi might be absent from Qinglong Society.

"Your Majesty, mind your decorum."

Shangguan Wan couldn't help pressing her hand to her forehead—this emperor's unrestrained behavior was too much.

"Your Majesty, what this Grand Master has stated is likely true."

Cang Qu stared at his nose, his nose at his heart, refusing to look at the scene.

"Excellent! Quickly, issue my edict: deploy the Twelve Guards to obliterate Yihua Palace."

If one were to ask which force in the Great Tang Realm Wu Zetian hated most,

it would surely be Yihua Palace—the peripheral force of Qinglong Society that nearly destroyed the Great Tang's Bu Liang Ren and killed over half of its senior officials.

Isn't what I want the Eternal Youth Mingyu Art?

As a force within Great Tang, you do not seek to repay the imperial grace.

Instead, you conspire with Qinglong Society beyond our borders and rebel against the court?

Is this not high treason?

Previously, Qinglong Society and Ximen Wudi protected them.

Wu Zetian and Great Tang could only grit their teeth and swallow their blood.

Now that Ximen Wudi is gone!

Then why not settle old scores and avenge old wrongs?

Yihua Palace, this double-dealing Men Sect, has no reason whatsoever to exist!

With the Twelve Guards of Chang'an mobilized, even if the so-called Twelve Month Master Hua Xi appears in person, Wu Zetian is confident she can utterly erase them.

269- Nine Provinces Combat Power Flower Ranking—(tied) 28th place!

"Your Majesty, absolutely not…"

Yuan Shoucheng immediately spoke up to dissuade,

"This old minister does not doubt the 'Heavenly Demon' sir."

"I'm only saying, what if?"

"What if?"

The excitement that had been on Wu Zetian's face vanished completely.

Indeed, what if Ximen Wudi was still at the Qinglong Society — wouldn't that be the end?

After all, the last time they attacked the Yihua Palace, the Great Tang suffered heavy losses.

If it happened again, the Great Tang truly could not endure such a battering.

"Exactly! This seat also feels that Ximen Wudi's absence this time is because he's tied up with something, but his return is only a matter of time."

As for Ximen Wudi's strength, Cang Ju genuinely acknowledged it from the bottom of his heart.

Otherwise, back at the Deyue Restaurant, there would have been no need for him to be the first to back down.

Someone at his own cultivation realm, unless they had a death wish, would hardly run into mishaps.

For someone like Ximen Wudi, it was even more so.

"Moreover, the Qinglong Society is indeed at its weakest right now, but as long as Ximen Wudi is there for a single day, the Qinglong Society cannot be destroyed."

Experts who have reached a certain realm can sway the fate of one faction, even the rise and fall of the Nine Provinces.

As the foremost taboo of the Nine Provinces, Ximen Wudi is even more so.

In truth, in Cang Ju's eyes, the Qinglong Society is Ximen Wudi, and Ximen Wudi is the Qinglong Society.

Even now with Ximen Wudi absent, suppose they uprooted the remaining six Dragon Heads, the Four Seasons Protectors, the twelve month Hall Masters, and the three hundred sixty-five branch altars all at once.

But once Ximen Wudi returned, he could at any moment annihilate hostile forces and rebuild the Qinglong Society!

"Are we supposed to just sit by and do nothing?"

Wu Zetian was furious — such a fine opportunity, was she really going to let it slip by for nothing?

"This seat believes the pressing matter now is to confirm whether Ximen Wudi is there."

"And to confirm whether he's there, we only need to send a force unrelated to the Great Tang."

Great minds think alike — Cang Ju's proposal was essentially the same as Ying Zheng's.

Hearing this, Shangguan Wan'er and Yuan Shoucheng nodded in unison, and began refining Cang Ju's proposal.

……

The Great Yuan Imperial Court.

Tie Muzhen, upon hearing the news brought back by Living Buddha Lianhua, was naturally overjoyed.