You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 174 It turns out that the Ninth Brother is the Empress Dowager's only son.

The Hall of Nourishing Heart.

After Cao Shaoqin left, Zhou Chen became somewhat distracted.

After an unknown amount of time, a palace eunuch entered.

"Your Majesty, the Minister of War requests an audience."

After the eunuchs and guards entered, they bowed and reported.

"Let him in."

Zhou Chen snapped out of his daze and said something indifferently.

The eunuchs and guards bowed and withdrew from the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

After a while.

The Minister of War walked in hurriedly.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." The Minister of War entered and respectfully bowed to Zhou Chen on the dragon throne.

Zhou Chen raised his eyes and looked coldly at the Minister of War; "Li Yuan, I ordered you to oversee the city's defenses and clear out any generals who were acting suspiciously, but the city's defenses almost ran into trouble."

"Is this how you're supposed to guard the city for me?"

Zhou Chen looked at the Minister of War and said coldly.

"Your Majesty, it is my fault for failing in my duty. I failed to fulfill Your Majesty's request and almost caused the city's defenses to spiral out of control."

"Your Majesty, I am guilty and beg for your punishment."

The Minister of War knelt down with a thud and begged for forgiveness.

As the Minister of War, he bears an unshirkable responsibility for this matter.

Fortunately, the King of Shu fled in time, and the city's defenses did not cause any major trouble.

Otherwise, he, as the Minister of War, would really be in deep trouble.

Zhou Chen glanced at the Minister of War kneeling on the ground and said, "We can discuss the punishment later. Is there something important that you have come to the palace to see me?"

Zhou Chen noticed that the Minister of War had entered in a rather hurried manner.

It must be something important.

"Your Majesty, the Imperial Uncle Zhang has given me some instructions. I feel that these matters are of great importance and dare not neglect them, so I went to the palace immediately."

"Your Majesty, please review this."

The Minister of War took out a memorial and spoke, his expression somewhat uneasy.

Oh!
Zhou Chen raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

What could have caused the Minister of War to look so uneasy?

Zhou Chen had never seen the Minister of War with such an expression before.

A palace eunuch standing nearby stepped forward, took the memorial from the Minister of War, and presented it to Zhou Chen.

Zhou Chen took the folded document from the eunuch and guards, and with curiosity, opened it and glanced at it.

That one glance caused Zhou Chen's expression to change drastically, and his pupils contracted sharply.

Zhou Chen never expected that the contents of this memorial would be about him, the emperor.

Zhou Chen raised his head and looked straight down at the Minister of War kneeling below.

The Minister of War felt a wave of pressure wash over him, and his body trembled involuntarily.

"Was everything on this document instructed by Zhang Guojiu?"

Zhou Chen looked directly at the Minister of War kneeling below and asked.

The voice was calm, and there was nothing unusual about it.

But the Minister of War felt a little nervous for some reason.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The Minister of War lowered his head even further.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chen remained silent, his expression shifting unpredictably.

No one knew what Zhou Chen was thinking at that moment.

The atmosphere inside the hall suddenly became somewhat oppressive.

"Li Yuan, don't mention this to anyone."

"Go and bring Zhang Guojiu to the palace for me. I have some questions to ask him."

After a while.

Zhou Chen glanced at the Minister of War kneeling below and said.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The Minister of War quickly responded, stood up, and left the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

After the Minister of War left, Zhou Chen looked at the contents of the memorial in his hand again, his brows furrowed.

"No wonder Mother has always favored Ninth Brother. It turns out that Ninth Brother is Mother's only son."

Zhou Chen thought to himself.

Only now did Zhou Chen understand why the Empress Dowager favored Zhou Zhi so much more than him; it turned out that he was not the Empress Dowager's son.

……

Cining Palace.

The Empress Dowager had already woken up after being in a coma for some time.

The Empress Dowager propped herself up to get off the bed.

The old palace maid and the imperial physician standing guard nearby hurriedly said, "Empress Dowager, your body is very weak right now and it is not advisable for you to get out of bed."

Ignoring the advice of the old palace maid and the imperial physician, the Empress Dowager shook her head and said, "I am fine. I need to go see Zhi'er."

At this moment, the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian walked in.

"Your Majesty, please forgive my impertinence, but Your Majesty is currently very weak and would be better off resting in bed."

"His Majesty has already issued an edict regarding the funeral arrangements for the King of Shu."

"Your Majesty, I will give the King of Shu a proper burial."

When the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian entered, he saw that the Empress Dowager was about to get off the bed and quickly spoke up to dissuade her.

"Eighth Prince, Zhi'er, he..."

The Empress Dowager looked at Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, who had just entered, her face pale, and hesitated to speak.

The Empress Dowager still couldn't believe that her son, the Prince of Shu, Zhou Zhi, had died like this.

The Eighth Prince, Zhou Xian, sighed silently.

He understood the Empress Dowager's hesitation, but the facts were the facts and could not be changed.

Seeing that the Eighth Prince Zhou Xian remained silent, the Empress Dowager's already pale face turned even more bloodless.

The Empress Dowager, her body trembling as she tried to stand up, sat back down on the bed, her expression sorrowful and dejected.

Even though the Empress Dowager had been in and out of the palace for many years, she was still, in the end, a woman and a mother.

She possesses the innate gentleness of a mother.

The Empress Dowager waved her hand.

The imperial physician and other palace maids and eunuchs all left.

After a moment's hesitation, Zhou Xian, the Eighth Prince, also withdrew.

The Eighth Prince Zhou Xian wanted to comfort the Empress Dowager, but how could such a thing be resolved with mere words of comfort?

Seeing that the old palace maid had not left, the Empress Dowager waved her hand and said, "You may leave now. I wish to be alone."

The old palace maid hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Your Majesty, a message came from the Imperial Uncle's residence that the Imperial Uncle is also implicated in the matter of the Prince of Shu."

"His Majesty has already issued an order to arrest the Imperial Brother-in-Law, and his residence has been searched and confiscated."

Previously, the Imperial Uncle's Mansion had sent someone into the palace to deliver a message, at which time the Empress Dowager was still unconscious.

Now that the Empress Dowager has woken up, the old palace maid hesitated for a moment, but still told the Empress Dowager the news.

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager's expression changed.

The Empress Dowager never expected that even her brother, the Imperial Uncle, would be involved in this matter; it was truly one wave after another.

Before the Empress Dowager could recover from the events surrounding the King of Shu, the Emperor's brother-in-law's property was confiscated.

The Empress Dowager sighed, glanced at the old palace maid beside her, and said, "Send someone to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to tell His Majesty to leave the Zhang family a way out."

"I have never asked anything of Your Majesty, so please consider this matter as a request I am making to Your Majesty."

"Tell His Majesty exactly what I said."

Her son, the King of Shu, was already dead, and the Empress Dowager could no longer stand by and watch her own family members be exterminated.

Therefore, the Empress Dowager could only hope that Zhou Chen would spare the lives of the people from the Imperial Uncle's family in this way.

"Yes, Queen Mother."

The old palace maid understood the Empress Dowager's meaning and nodded.

The Empress Dowager said nothing more and waved her hand.

The old palace maid quietly slipped out.

...Runan Prefecture.

While Luoyang was in turmoil, Runan Prefecture was also far from peaceful.

On the street, hundreds of imperial guards dressed in eagle-patterned uniforms, with jade belts around their waists and crescent-shaped knives in their hands were quite conspicuous.

"When the Eastern Depot is handling business, all irrelevant personnel should stay away."

These imperial guards quickly crossed the main streets of Runan Prefecture and headed towards the Yuan family's residence.

Leading the group was Cao Zhengchun, the Grand Supervisor of the Eastern Depot.

Soon, Cao Zhengchun arrived outside the Yuan residence with his imperial guards.

"Who are you?"

"This is the Yuan residence, not a place where you can run wild."

"Hurry up and leave."

The guards outside the Yuan residence saw Cao Zhengchun and his large group rushing menacingly towards the Yuan residence.

Immediately, the guards outside the Yuan residence began to warily shout at them.

"bump……"

Without saying a word, Cao Zhengchun swung his hand and struck.

The guards outside the Yuan residence were all blasted away.

Cao Zhengchun took a step forward and stood upright above the Yuan residence.

"The Yuan family of Runan colluded with the Prince of Shu to rebel and usurp the throne, committing heinous crimes."

"His Majesty has decreed that the Yuan family of Runan be wiped out and their nine generations of relatives be exterminated."

Cao Zhengchun's shrill voice echoed throughout the entire Yuan family.

Even the area around the Yuan family and half of Runan Prefecture could hear it clearly.

what?
Did they collude with the King of Shu to rebel and usurp the throne?
Whether it was people from the Yuan family or people from Runan Prefecture surrounding the Yuan family, they were all speechless with shock upon hearing this news.

No one expected that the Yuan family, the most powerful of the seven great families of the Great Zhou Dynasty, would collude with the Prince of Shu to rebel and usurp the throne.

This is simply incredible.

"Do it."

"Anyone who dares to resist will be killed without mercy by this mediocre family."

Cao Zhengchun waved his hand.

Hundreds of guards stormed into the Yuan family's residence.

"How dare you! My Yuan family of Runan is the head of the seven great families of the Great Zhou Dynasty."

"A mere oral decree is enough to wipe out my Yuan family of Runan; it's utterly ridiculous."

Four figures rushed out from inside the Yuan family compound.

He exuded a powerful aura.

Although the experts of the Yuan family all went to Luoyang with their ancestor and clan leader, a few remained to guard the Yuan family's old stronghold.

"Humph."

"Don't even mention that you are the head of the seven great families. Even if you are one of the four great clans, if His Majesty orders you to die, you will still die for me."

Cao Zhengchun's face turned cold, and he swung out a palm strike.

Half-step Celestial Being?

The four experts who rushed out of the Yuan family changed their expressions upon sensing the aura emanating from Cao Zhengchun.

Unfortunately, before the four experts from the Yuan family could react, Cao Zhengchun sent them flying with a palm strike from a distance.

After the four experts from the Yuan family fell to the ground, they struggled for a few moments before dying.

Cao Zhengchun's full-force palm strike, even if it were their half-step Celestial Master ancestor, let alone the four of them, would not be able to withstand it.

After dealing with the four experts who had fled from the Yuan family, Cao Zhengchun did not stop. He took a step forward and continued to attack the interior of the Yuan family.

Although many of the Yuan family's experts have left, the family is somewhat weak.

But no matter what, the Yuan family is the head of the seven great families of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and their old stronghold still has considerable power.

It won't be easy for a few hundred guards to take over the Yuan family's stronghold.

Therefore, Cao Zhengchun, the Grand Supervisor of the Eastern Depot, had to personally take action.

With Cao Zhengchun, a half-step Celestial Realm expert, taking action, the Yuan family's defenses were completely powerless to resist.

Within minutes, the entire Yuan family had essentially lost all ability to resist.

……

Rongyang Prefecture City.

The Zheng family mansion was also experiencing a period of suppression.

Zhang Liao led the Southern Camp Divine Martial Guards to completely surround the Zheng family mansion, leaving it completely impenetrable.

Compared to the rampages of the Imperial Guards, the Divine Martial Guards' attacks were more focused on large-scale battles.

At Zhang Liao's command, the powerful crossbows in the hands of the Divine Martial Guards lashed out like meteors, shattering the peace of the entire Zheng family.

Screams continued to ring out.

"kill."

At the same time, Zhang Liao led the Divine Martial Guards into the Zheng family mansion.

The sounds of fighting could be heard coming from the Zheng family mansion.

The deafening sounds of battle shook almost half of Rongyang Prefecture.

Faced with the sweeping campaign of the Divine Martial Guard army, the Zheng family had absolutely no chance of winning.

Unless the Zheng family patriarch can return with all the Zheng family's experts, or all of the Zheng family's private soldiers can gather together, perhaps they can fight against the Divine Martial Guard.

Unfortunately, the patriarch of the Zheng family and all the experts of the Zheng family had been buried at the Shangyang Gate of the Imperial Palace, and the private soldiers of the Zheng family were also divided and besieged by other Divine Martial Guards.

Therefore, there is only one outcome awaiting the Zheng family of Rongyang.

That was when Zhang Liao led the Divine Martial Guard to exterminate them.

……

Southern Xinjiang.

On the desolate official road.

A group of people were driving several horse-drawn carriages at high speed.

There were also more than thirty guards on horseback escorting them around.

"Brother Ziming, where are we going?"

A young man sitting next to a carriage looked at a middle-aged man riding a horse beside him and asked him a question.

They had been traveling day and night for several days, but none of them knew their exact destination.

The family only told them to listen to Brother Ziming, who was riding on a horse-drawn quilt.

Indeed, the middle-aged man riding on horseback next to him is Yuan Ziming.

The people Yuan Ziming brought with him were the young talents secretly sent out by the Yuan family.

Their destination was to cross the border.

Upon hearing the young man's question, Yuan Ziming did not answer directly. Instead, he glanced at the young man and said, "You'll know when we get there."

It wasn't that Yuan Ziming didn't want to tell these people the destination.

Rather, Yuan Ziming was afraid that if he told these people their destination, they would cause trouble.

After all, these people are the best of the younger generation in the Yuan family, and they are used to living a life of luxury.

If they heard that they were to leave the pass and go to that wild and desolate land, the younger generation of these families would probably be unwilling.

"Young Master, the Eastern Depot's henchmen are catching up again."

At this moment, a guard knight rode up from behind and reported to Yuan Ziming.

"These henchmen of the Eastern Depot are truly persistent."

"However, we are about to reach our destination. Even if the Eastern Depot's henchmen want to intercept us, it will probably be too late."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ziming let out a cold laugh.

Throughout the journey, the Eastern Depot's guards clung to them like dogs, never letting go.

If they hadn't sent out a lot of guards to block the Eastern Depot's guards behind them, they might have been caught up by the Eastern Depot's guards long ago.

Now that they are about to leave the pass, they are no longer afraid of the Eastern Depot and its guards that are closely following them.

By the time the Eastern Depot's guards caught up, they had probably already left the pass.

Could it be that the Eastern Depot and its guards could relentlessly pursue them and chase them all the way out of the pass?

"Boost."

Yuan Ziming shouted loudly.

Their group immediately sped up the delivery.

(End of this chapter)