Chapter 41 Because of Incompetence, He Became Emperor

The Nine-Thousand-Year-Old held Wan Feiliang, a chiliarch of the Brocade-Clad Guard, in quite high regard.

After all, he was the only operative they had managed to plant within the Brocade-Clad Guard.

The Brocade-Clad Guard was an elite enforcement agency directly under the emperor's command. Although the official rank of its members was not particularly high, their authority was immense.

They had the right to intervene in any case throughout the Great Qian Dynasty. Furthermore, as long as the target lacked influential backers and wasn't immune to direct execution, the guards possessed the authority to execute suspects on the spot.

That was precisely why so many factions desperately wanted to plant their own people inside the Brocade-Clad Guard.

Panicked? That was absolute nonsense; panic was out of the question.

"What are you talking about? I have no idea what you mean. Centurion Lu Quan is dead? Well, that is truly a pity."

Ye Liuyun wore an expression of complete ignorance.

He even feigned a suitable amount of surprise. Although his mouth spoke of pity, the smile lingering at the corners of his lips showed no sign of fading whatsoever.

Seeing that Ye Liuyun refused to admit it,

Guan Bao was unconcerned. In many situations, hard evidence was completely irrelevant.

As long as I believe you are the one who did it, that is more than enough.

"You certainly are audacious. After killing Lu Quan, you didn't even bother to hide the corpse, simply leaving it exposed in the wilderness. Are you truly not afraid of bringing down relentless retaliation?"

Behind Guan Bao, Shi Sheng's eyes flashed with a murderous glare. He had already circulated his inner energy to its peak, waiting only for Guan Bao's command to strike.

Meanwhile, Si Nan had quietly slipped his hands behind his back, his fingers concealing several hidden darts.

As the central figure in this confrontation, Ye Liuyun

remained as calm and unruffled as ever. Naturally, he was not foolish enough to confess to the murder simply because of Guan Bao's words.

Instead, he steered the conversation in an entirely different direction.

"This is precisely where the difference lies between us!"

"Difference?" Guan Bao was somewhat taken aback by what Ye Liuyun meant.

Shrugging casually, Ye Liuyun replied with an easy smile.

"A martial artist at the Postnatal Realm taking an old eunuch as his foster father—it seems you are truly consumed by a lust for power."

Although he had never met the Nine-Thousand-Year-Old in person, anyone bearing such a moniker could hardly be a young man.

Moreover, in an era like this, eunuchs held a low social standing. Even though this Nine-Thousand-Year-Old possessed immense wealth, high status, and formidable martial prowess, he would still be viewed with covert or overt disdain by many.

For Guan Bao to acknowledge him as a foster father, he must have secured substantial benefits in return.

It was hardly likely that he genuinely wished to attend to the eunuch in his old age and see him properly buried.

"But I am different. The fourteen prefectures of this realm do not consist solely of the Great Qian Dynasty."

This was the very reason Ye Liuyun felt so secure and unshakeable.

Even if he truly encountered an adversary he could not defeat, could he not simply run away?

As a transmigrator, Ye Liuyun felt no deep sense of belonging to the Great Qian Dynasty. Whether he chose to travel to a different dynasty, or wander the world with a sword in hand and make everywhere his home, he had options.

While the green hills remain, there is no need to worry about firewood.

My strength is lacking for now, so I shall leave. Once my cultivation reaches its peak, I will ensure you do not even have the chance to flee.

"Are you truly so confident that you can escape from my grasp?"

Guan Bao understood the implication behind Ye Liuyun's words, but he merely smiled with absolute self-assurance. Surging his inner energy throughout his entire body, he narrowed his eyes and fixed his gaze upon Ye Liuyun.

His posture clearly telegraphed his intention to suppress and execute Ye Liuyun right then and there.

"Then why don't you try?"

Spreading his hands wide, Ye Liuyun smiled as he looked at Guan Bao before him.

He adopted a stance that practically invited Guan Bao to strike if he dared.

He seemingly had no inclination to play the pig to eat the tiger; he had never intended to hide his true strength from the very beginning. It was simply that no one had asked, and Ye Liuyun could hardly go around shouting from the rooftops every time he broke through to a new realm of power—that would be utterly foolish.

Why was everyone nowadays assuming he was weak, as if any ordinary person could defeat him?

"... "

The surrounding atmosphere abruptly grew tense and solemn.

It was as if both parties were waiting for the other to make the first move.

Just at that moment—

"Stop!"

Yan Shuzhu had never expected that just as she was planning to return to the imperial palace, she would stumble right into such a scene.

She had intentions of recruiting Ye Liuyun, so how could she possibly stand by and watch him be bullied here?

Ye Liuyun and Guan Bao turned their heads simultaneously to look at the figure approaching from not far away.

It was none other than Yan Shuzhu, accompanied by Lv Lan.

"Leave this to me!"

As she walked up to Ye Liuyun, Yan Shuzhu deliberately gave him a reassuring look.

"Who are you?"

Guan Bao felt a vague sense of familiarity upon looking at the newcomer. However, because Yan Shuzhu had let down her hairpin and was dressed in feminine attire, Guan Bao failed to recognize her immediately.

"Do you know who I am? How dare you block my path!"

"Audacious!"

Before Yan Shuzhu could say anything further, Lv Lan stepped forward directly.

A wave of innate-realm inner energy swept outward, its oppressive momentum forcing Guan Bao to take several steps back in involuntary retreat.

Before he could recover from his shock at Lv Lan's formidable strength, Lv Lan produced a token carved with dragon motifs.

"His Majesty is present! Why do you not kneel?!"

"His Majesty?"

Damn it! No wonder she looked familiar. She was indeed the young emperor whom he had followed the Nine-Thousand-Year-Old to meet once or twice in the past.

It was just that in the past, Yan Shuzhu had always presented herself in male attire. Seeing her in feminine garments was truly a first for him.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!"

After a brief hesitation, Guan Bao dropped to his knees.

In an era where imperial authority reigned supreme, regardless of whether this monarch was merely a figurehead devoid of real power, as long as the status remained, outward deference was mandatory.

"The emperor?"

Ye Liuyun cast a surprised look at Yan Shuzhu, who was standing before him.

Previously, he had assumed she was merely a favored imperial princess. He had never imagined for a moment that she was actually the reigning emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty.

With this thought, Ye Liuyun could not help leaning over to whisper a question to Si Nan beside him.

"The emperor of our Great Qian Dynasty is a woman?"

Originally, Si Nan had also been frozen in place, stunned by Yan Shuzhu's imperial identity.

Yet upon hearing such a question from Ye Liuyun, his thoughts gradually drifted back to reality. Looking at Ye Liuyun's curious expression, Si Nan found himself somewhat lost for words.

"My lord, did you seriously not know this all along?"

Good grief, it was one thing for you not to know the name of your own father-in-law, but you didn't even know whether the emperor of Great Qian was male or female?

"Who has the time to pay attention to things like that?"

He had formerly been a local ruffian and hooligan. Even after taking Ye Liufeng's place in the Brocade-Clad Guard, he had never paid much attention to imperial affairs, mainly because such matters felt too distant.

He truly had not expected that the Great Qian Dynasty was ruled by a female sovereign.

"Uh! My lord, I have heard certain rumors."

Seeing that Ye Liuyun was genuinely clueless,

Si Nan stood dumbfounded for a moment before leaning close to Ye Liuyun's ear and speaking in a low voice.

"This new emperor ascended the throne only recently. I've heard that our Great Qian Dynasty actually lacked no shortage of capable imperial princes. The reason she was chosen to ascend the throne is primarily because she possesses virtually no political capacity!"

Before the new emperor's accession, Yan Shuzhu had been considered one of the most unremarkable among all the princes and princesses.

Because she was born with severed meridians and unable to cultivate martial arts, Yan Shuzhu had chosen to maintain a low profile in all her endeavors.

Yet ironically, it was precisely because of this perceived 'incapacity' that Yan Shuzhu managed to secure the imperial throne.

"???"

Ye Liuyun's curiosity was piqued. Since when did choosing an emperor require selecting the most incapable one of all?