Chapter Sixteen: The Emperor and His Ministers, Fathers and Sons, Seek Votes

  The royal family also has rules. These five princes want to sue the son of a meritorious minister, they need to submit a memorial, it's impossible to speak directly in front of the emperor and slander him.

  Bai Qi was practicing at home when his father had already been summoned to the imperial study, where he would have a face-to-face conversation with the emperor.

  Guo Gong Bai Jian held the indictment written by the five princes in his hand, looked at it repeatedly for several times, and said: "Your Majesty, this is a frame-up."

  The current emperor of the Great Jin Dynasty was a man in his fifties, with a refined face. He sat behind the dragon-shaped desk, smiling at his most trusted general, the strongest military leader of the Great Jin Dynasty.

  Bai Jian stood up, bowed and said: "I don't know about others, but I can tell you that I didn't believe in any martial arts until recently when I saw the State Master display his divine powers. Only then did I realize that there are indeed cultivators in this world."

  Bai Jian was very calm and composed, facing the prince's accusation, he did not lose his manners in front of the emperor.

  "However, your son has beaten my son." The emperor said slowly and calmly.

  Behind the emperor stood a Taoist priest in his thirties. The Taoist was dressed in finery, wearing a purple and gold robe that made him look somewhat like a miniature version of the Bronze Man. On top of his head, he wore a three-tiered purple and gold crown, with a jade sword inserted at an angle, holding a deep red wooden sword in his hand, closing his eyes to cultivate his spirit.

  The Emperor and Bai Jian both pretended he didn't exist, Bai Jian not even looking at him, said to the Emperor: "I am ashamed, I have no way to teach my son, I wish to resign from office and go back home to reflect on my mistakes."

  The emperor nodded and said, "Yes, your precious son also thinks so. What I want you to do is indeed a difficult task for the Bai family."

  These words cut to the heart, but Bai Jian calmly said: "As a son, doing so is also understandable."

  "Bai Jian, aren't you afraid of My Majesty's wrath? I'll let you stay here." The Emperor still wore a smiling face, but his words were those of taking a life.

  "If you want me to die, I cannot but die."

  "Haha, it sounds like I'm going to kill the loyal and good. The emperor looked at Bai Jian standing there calmly, without any fear. He knew that he couldn't intimidate this Duke of Wei either."

  If he could kill Bai Jian here, what else would Bai Jian do? How could he possibly expect him to confront those cultivators.

  "Well, then what should I do?" The emperor looked at the indictment in Bai Jian's hand and asked with feigned ignorance.

  "Of course I must reprimand Your Imperial Highness." Ba Jian looked up at the Emperor.

  The Emperor was taken aback and said: "You must be mistaken."

  "I am not confused, what Your Majesty said earlier is true in the front and false in the back, this is deceiving the emperor."

  The emperor looked at the Duke of Wei, his own subject, who had become difficult to control. The things he let him do would implicate the entire family. Which cultivator was easy to get along with?

  "Very well, I will reprimand him. You may go now, come back tomorrow and we will discuss the affairs of the Feathered Forest Army."

  "Yes, Your Majesty." Duke of Rui Guo bowed and withdrew from the imperial study.

  The emperor looked at Bai Jian's back and smiled, saying: "What a good father-son relationship, if it weren't for me having no one else to use..."

  The Taoist priest opened his eyes at this moment and said: "If Your Majesty closes the Jiuding Palace, I only need a moment to take his life."

  The emperor's face turned ugly and he said, "No need to say more, I understand. This Bai Jian still has great use. Hmm, call Yu Zhen over, I heard she saw Bai Jian's son."

  Bai Jian left the imperial palace and didn't stop walking until he was outside the palace gates. Only then did he turn his head to take a last look at the red walls behind him.

  If it were in the past, he would never have had this attitude. What he said to Bai Qi was not entirely true either. If he could leave Jinling, he would say nothing and would not build a bronze temple for the Son of Heaven.

  The power of the national teacher, within Jinling, is not his own match. If he were to leave Jinling, he would likely be immediately killed by the national teacher. The nine tripods of Jinling restrict the power of Qi Refining Masters. Within Jinling City, a warrior like himself who is a First-Rank Heaven's Chosen is the bane of Qi Refining Masters.

  The power of the Nine Tripod Cauldron is actually the source of his own True Dragon Seven Killings Gun. As long as he assists the Emperor for a day, this strength will grow rapidly.

  If I could walk, I would definitely take my son and flee to the ends of the earth, although this Baqi...

  Bai Jian shook his head. His son was always filial. If the Emperor removed him from his position because of the matter of beating the Crown Prince, it would also be a good ending.

  The royal family is heartless, he knew it long ago, but who made him a person with emotional baggage?

  At that moment, it was high noon, but the sky was overcast with dark clouds. A strange and fierce gust of wind suddenly rose up, blowing straight at him. Bai Jian smiled coldly and shouted: "Disperse!"

  It was as if a thunderclap had sounded, and even the deepest part of the imperial palace could hear it clearly. The fierce wind suddenly stopped, and a figure fell from the wind, wrapped in gray cloth all over, with only eyes exposed. Bai Jian let out a loud shout, carrying the power of Broken Army Halo. A pre-heavenly first-class warrior, invincible under the Golden Elixir.

  The assassin's eyes revealed a look of shock, he found that his meridians were severed, and in his body, a burst of explosive power exploded, his internal organs were completely shattered.

  Bai Jian entered the palace with his attendants, but they waited outside. When they heard the loud shout, the attendants abandoned their horses and rushed to the palace gate. Bai Jian walked up to the assassin, looked down at him, and casually took the long sword handed over by his attendant.

  The long sword was drawn, carrying a cold and stern aura. Bai Jian smiled slightly at the struggling assassin, saying: "I've heard that Qi Refiners have a way to dispel swords, but you won't get the chance."

  As he spoke, he thrust his long sword downwards, straight at the assassin's skull. The assassin twisted his body, but couldn't avoid Bai Jian's sword. The long sword pierced into the skull, making a crisp sound, and the assassin's pupils suddenly dispersed. His soul, trapped in his body, also dissipated with the sword's penetration.

  No cultivator in Jinling City dares to be reckless, under the suppression of the Nine Cauldrons, many abilities of the cultivators are restricted, and even their souls are sealed within their physical bodies. Whether you are a cultivator in the Nascent Soul stage or a Golden Core strongman in the Return to Void stage, no one can escape this predicament.

  Bai Jian drew his sword and with a single horizontal slash, beheaded the assassin.

  On the other side, the Yu Lin army had already arrived. Bai Jian ordered his servant to take away the body and turned back to face the rushing Yu Lin soldiers: "You can take the head, I want to know where this person came from. You have three days."

  Go ahead, Bai Jian sheathed his sword and walked away under the escort of the servants.

  Those dozens of Imperial Guards looked at each other, but no one dared to truly step forward and stop him. They wanted White Jian to go back and explain the details to them. That would be seeking death. It was said that White Jian's son had beaten up the imperial princes and killed a few soldiers, so they wouldn't hesitate to do the same to him.

  Bai Jian mounted his war horse and galloped away. His mood wasn't good, and he had been tough on the Emperor earlier because of this. Now, a cultivator dared to come into the city and attempt to assassinate him, even if it was just a probe, it still revealed a problem. These cultivators were absolutely capable of doing anything.

  Back in the mansion, Bai Jian came alone to the rear residence but didn't see Yu Linzhong. He turned to Bai Qi's courtyard and saw Bai Qi practicing his spear in the yard. Bai Jian didn't interrupt his son's training and stood by watching. Bai Qi also didn't stop, instead he used all of the True Dragon Seven Kills Spear moves before putting away his stance, stabbing his long spear into the ground, and coming to his father's side.

  "Get up, not bad, where's your mother?" White Jian did not point out what was wrong with White Qi. White Qi's gun technique had already been practiced to a high level at this stage, the only thing lacking was actual combat experience.

  "Dad, Mom said she's going out for a few days and took Xiaoyu with her."

  "Hmm?" Bai Jian now knew that Yu Lin Zhong was not a congenital martial artist, but a cultivator of the Qi Refining Sect. He brought back the assassin's corpse to let Yu Lin Zhong see the identity and origin of this body.

  "Hmm?" Just as Bai Jian was asking Qianyu when she would return, a servant came in and said softly: "Master, there is a monk who wants to see you."

  "Monk? Nowhere in sight!"

  "Yes."

  That servant was about to leave, but Bai Jian changed his mind and thought that since he had built the Copper Man Temple, among the cultivators of Qi, there would definitely be countless people who wanted him dead, but there would also be those who supported him. He was worried that he couldn't find any cultivators to turn to, and this monk might be an opportunity.

  "Wait, then the monk said he was from where?"

  "The master said it was the abbot of Honglian Temple," the servant replied.

  Bai's eyelid twitched, Honglian Temple!

  Could it be that I and Xiaoyu stole something and the victim has come looking for us?

  "Honglian Temple?" Bai Jian thought for a moment, but couldn't recall which temple in the Great Jin Dynasty it was.

  "Tell that monk to wait, I'll be there in a moment." Ba Jian ordered his servant to go back and told his son: "Zi'er, today on the road, I encountered an assassin who was a Qi-refining master. From now on, if you want to go out, you need to bring several personal guards with you."

  Bai Qi saw that his father did not mention the matter of beating the prince, and he felt a little strange in his heart. However, this was not something that could be asked about, so he could only nod and agree.

  "In a moment, I'll send someone to deliver a gun to you. This long spear of yours won't do against a cultivator." Bai Jian said, turning and leaving.

  Bai Qi really wanted to follow his father to see what kind of monks were coming to the Red Lotus Temple. However, his wet nurse was not around and Xiaoyu was no longer there, he feared being seen with that stolen object on him. If a conflict arose, it would only add to his father's worries.

  Just thinking about sneaking into the living room in front of me, and then a servant came to report.

  "Young master, there is an official who wants to see you. He says that Princess Yuzhen wishes to summon you into the palace."

  Bai Qi smiled and said: "I didn't see, father doesn't allow me to go out."

  Bai Qi dared to say this because Princess Yu Zhen did it, which was not in line with the rules. He didn't even have any achievements, and although he was the son of a national duke, he couldn't enter the palace at will. **In that place, if you go in by yourself, others can dispose of you at will.

  Bai Qi immediately said again: "Hmmm, go and tell that old man, Princess Yu Zhen wants to see me, she can come to the Guo Gong Fu."

  Bai Qi was clever and saw that his father didn't mention the incident of the prince being beaten, knowing it had been suppressed. The emperor refused to punish the Bai family, so Princess Yuzhen immediately summoned him, intending to take action against herself and restrain her father.

  Such tactics are really boring.