You get Lu Bu as your starting character.

Chapter 181 The teacher returns to the court
Half an hour later.

The sounds of battle ceased abruptly.

Peace returned to the Blood Blade Sect.

The entire Blood Blade Sect, from the sect leader and elders to ordinary disciples, fell in pools of blood.

The Blood Sabre Sect, a prestigious sect in the martial arts world, was thus wiped out by Cao Zhengchun and his imperial guards.

It has to be said that if this news gets out...

That would absolutely shock the entire martial arts world.

It should be understood that the Blood Sabre Sect is not just any ordinary force in the martial arts world, but a towering figure among its elite.

It can be said that in the martial arts world, Wuliang Mountain and Blood Saber Sect are the two leading forces that dominate the martial arts world.

The Blood Saber Sect was wiped out by the imperial court, and its impact on the martial arts world was far greater than that of the Divine Fist Sect or other martial arts forces being wiped out by the imperial court.

Cao Zhengchun glanced at the corpses scattered on the ground, then turned and left expressionlessly.

This is the consequence of opposing the imperial court.

Even the most respected figures in the martial arts world could not escape such an end.

Hundreds of imperial guards followed Cao Zhengchun and left in silence, leaving behind only corpses scattered on the ground.

The Blood Blade Sect, once known as "Boundless in the North, Blood Blade in the South" in the martial arts world, was thus destroyed, becoming nothing more than a thing of the past.

……

The Hall of Nourishing Heart.

Zhou Chen stepped outside the hall and looked up at the somewhat hazy sky.

"Your Majesty, it's chilly outside..."

Cao Shaoqin followed behind Zhou Chen and said respectfully.

"It's alright, I'll just take a walk, you don't need to follow me."

Zhou Chen ignored Cao Shaoqin's words and walked step by step up the steps of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Since Zhou Chen fully recovered, he has been burdened by all sorts of things, and his nerves have been constantly on edge.

Today, Zhou Chen was unusually free from all sorts of trivial matters, so he decided to go for a walk and think about some things.

The Hall of Mental Cultivation was where the emperor rested and handled state affairs, so there were guards every three steps and sentries every five steps. The imperial guards were very strict in their protection. Every few steps Zhou Chen took, he could see squads of imperial guards patrolling.

Those imperial guards, stationed every three steps and sentry every five steps, all held their heads high and chests out when they saw Emperor Zhou Chen approaching.

"The Great Zhou Empire has too many deep-seated problems."

"This downward slope has already slipped to the bottom. So many corrupt officials have been purged from the imperial court, but what about the local areas?"

"If I want to revitalize the Great Zhou and reverse its decline, it seems that I still have a long way to go."

Zhou Chen walked slowly, lost in thought.

Although Zhou Chen first eliminated the powerful maternal relatives of Empress Wu Ying and General Wu Jin.

Then, Zhou Chen purged the influence of the four powerful families in the court and took over important positions such as Prime Minister and Minister of Revenue.

They took back most of the power from the central government.

This would free the imperial power from any constraints.

But Zhou Chen knew that these were far from enough to revitalize the Great Zhou and reverse its current state of decline.

Take the various regions of the Great Zhou Dynasty for example. Zhou Chen could get a glimpse of the extent of corruption there from the information sent back by the Eastern Depot.

This doesn't even include the issues of the four border regions.

All these things combined, when dealt with, are no easier than cleaning up the central government.

It might even be more difficult than cleaning up the central government.

Fortunately, Zhou Chen has already taken the first step, cleaned up the court, and seized control of the court.

This laid a solid foundation for what followed.

"time."

"Give me enough time, and these problems will not be problems for me."

Zhou Chen thought to himself.

Whether it's local corruption or border problems, Zhou Chen believes he can resolve them given enough time.

He has now made his move and begun to devise a plan to resolve the border issues.

Once the border issues are resolved, the basic stability of the Great Zhou Dynasty will be secured.

Just as Zhou Chen was walking slowly forward, thinking about these things, Cao Shaoqin walked over quickly.

"Your Majesty, Lord Fang has returned from the four northern provinces."

"General Zhang has also returned with the Divine Martial Guard."

After Cao Shaoqin walked over, he bowed and said.

"Oh!"

"Fang Xuanling and Zhang Liao have returned."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chen immediately stopped in his tracks.

"Let's go back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation."

Zhou Chen turned around and returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

The Divine Martial Guard's army, which had been suppressing the rebellion, and Fang Xuanling, the imperial envoy sent to provide disaster relief, had returned. Zhou Chen needed to hear their reports in person.

Not long after Zhou Chen returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Fang Xuanling, Zhang Liao, and Wei Xu entered.

After Lü Bu went to Shu, Wei Xu was put in charge of the Northern Camp Shenwu Guard's army to quell the rebellion.

"Your subject is Fang Xuanling."

"This humble general is Zhang Liao."

"This humble general is Wei Xu."

"I have met His Majesty."

Upon entering the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Fang Xuanling, Zhang Liao, and Wei Xu all bowed to Zhou Chen.

"Hahaha, my three meritorious officials have returned."

"Everyone is free of charge!"

Zhou Chen laughed loudly, looking at the three of them who looked travel-worn.

Clearly, Fang Xuanling and his two companions went straight to the palace upon returning to Luoyang without packing anything.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Fang Xuanling, Zhang Liao, and Wei Xu stood up.

"What were the losses of the Northern and Southern Divine Martial Guard armies in suppressing the rebellion?"

After Fang Xuanling and the others stood up, Zhou Chen did not ask Fang Xuanling first, but instead looked at Zhang Liao and Wei Xu and asked about the losses of the Divine Martial Guard.

In Zhou Chen's view, the army is the foundation and reliance of everything.

As long as there is a large army, nothing is a problem.

Therefore, Zhou Chen's primary concern was the matter of the army suppressing the rebellion.

"Your Majesty, the Southern Camp of the Divine Martial Guard suffered over 28,000 casualties."

Zhang Liao bowed and said.

"Your Majesty, the Northern Camp of the Divine Martial Guard has suffered over 76,000 casualties."

Wei Xu also bowed and announced a number.

Upon hearing the two numbers announced by Zhang Liao and Wei Xu, Zhou Chen's smiling face vanished instantly.

"How come, of the 200,000 troops sent to quell the rebellion, less than 100,000 returned?"

Zhou Chen frowned.

Zhou Chen knew that it was impossible for a large army to quell a rebellion without casualties.

Zhou Chen hadn't expected that the casualties among the Divine Martial Guards would be so great.

Of the 200,000 troops sent to quell the rebellion, less than 100,000 returned, suffering more than half of their forces as casualties.

The number of casualties is considerable.

In particular, the Northern Camp Shenwu Guard, a force of 100,000 men, suffered more than 76,000 casualties, with less than 30,000 returning.

It's no exaggeration to say that the 100,000-strong Northern Camp Shenwu Guard army that was sent to quell the rebellion was almost completely decimated.

Zhang Liao and Wei Xu remained silent, as did Fang Xuanling.

Of the 200,000 troops sent to quell the rebellion, less than 100,000

This is indeed a heavy loss.

After all, the Divine Martial Guard is no ordinary army; it is the capital that allows the Great Zhou to intimidate the world.

The loss of so many Divine Martial Guards is no small matter for the Great Zhou. Zhou Chen's expression was somewhat tense.

The Twelve Divine Martial Guards had a total of 360,000 troops, and now more than 100,000 have been killed or wounded, in addition to the 30,000 troops of the Guard that were wiped out along with the Grand Tutor.

The Twelve Divine Martial Guards have almost been crippled.

After a moment of silence, Zhou Chen looked up at Zhang Liao and Wei Xu and said, "You two need to quickly compile a list of all the soldiers who died for the Great Zhou, and don't leave out a single one."

"I will inform the Minister of War and the Minister of Revenue to properly compensate these soldiers who died for the Great Zhou."

"You two should also inform the generals at all levels in the army that they should not withhold even a single penny of the compensation for the soldiers who died in battle."

"If I find out that anyone in the army is embezzling the pensions of the fallen soldiers, even if they risked their lives for the Great Zhou, I will not spare them."

Zhou Chen said sternly.

Zhou Chen did not want to see these Divine Martial Guards who died for the Great Zhou, who shed blood for the Great Zhou, have their families shed tears for the Great Zhou as well.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Liao and Wei Xu immediately bowed and said...

"Alright, now you can all begin to discuss the specific details of the suppression of the rebellion and the disaster relief efforts."

"Fang Xuanling, let's start with you. What's the situation in the four northern prefectures?"

After Zhou Chen finished inquiring about the army's situation, he began to ask about other things.

Upon hearing Zhou Chen's question, Fang Xuanling immediately stepped forward to report on the disaster relief efforts in the four northern prefectures over the past few months, as well as the current resettlement situation in the four northern prefectures.

After Fang Xuanling finished reporting on the disaster relief situation.

Zhang Liao and Wei Xu also began to report on the specific details of their suppression of the rebellion and the extermination of the Zheng family in Rongyang.

……

More than an hour later.

Fang Xuanling, Zhang Liao, and Wei Xu all finished reporting their matters.

Zhou Chen looked up at the three of them and said, "You have all made great contributions in this disaster relief, rebellion suppression, and extermination of rebels."

"In this way, you will be able to establish yourselves in the imperial court and the military."

Although Emperor Zhou Chen had forcibly placed Fang Xuanling and the other two in the court and the army, they still needed to make achievements to establish themselves.

Otherwise, even with Emperor Zhou Chen suppressing the resentment, it's inevitable that some people would harbor resentment.

After all, they all rose from obscurity to become high-ranking officials and generals in the imperial court.

It would be strange if no one disagreed!

Now that they have achieved these accomplishments, Fang Xuanling and his associates will have the means to establish themselves.

No one will harbor any resentment anymore.

"You must be tired from your journey, so why don't you go and rest first!"

Zhou Chen waved his hand and said.

The three of them returned to Luoyang after a long and arduous journey without resting for a moment, and went straight to the palace to meet the emperor.

Now that Zhou Chen had finished listening to the reports from Fang Xuanling and the other two, he told them to go back and get some rest.

They all looked exhausted.

"My minister retire."

Fang Xuanling, Zhang Liao, and Wei Xu bowed and accepted the order.

Then, the three of them left the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

After Fang Xuanling and the other two left, Zhou Chen pondered the things they had just reported.

Powerful and influential families ran rampant in the region.

Corruption is rampant among officials, and they disregard human life.

The common people suffered greatly from the excessive taxes and miscellaneous duties, and were subjected to constant oppression.

Zhou Chen hadn't expected that the situation in the area was even more devastating than he had imagined.

Zhou Chen had previously received reports from Fang Xuanling about the situation in the north and surrounding areas, and he knew that the situation there was very chaotic.

But after hearing Fang Xuanling's personal report, Zhou Chen realized that the situation in the area was far more depraved than he had imagined.

It's fair to say that some of the scenes are shocking.

"If the situation is like this in the surrounding northern regions, then the other parts of the Great Zhou should be much the same."

Zhou Chen thought to himself, his eyes flickering.

……

Cining Palace.

With tears streaming down his face, Zhang Guojiu looked at the Empress Dowager and cried, "Sister, you must help your elder brother, help the Zhang family!"

"Now my elder brother has nothing left, and the Zhang family has nothing left either."

“If you don’t help your elder brother and the Zhang family, they will all starve to death on the streets.”

Zhang Guojiu looked at the Empress Dowager with a pitiful expression.

Although Zhou Chen spared Zhang Guojiu and the Zhang family from the death penalty, they could escape punishment, but not punishment.

All of the Zhang family's assets and other possessions were confiscated, and all of their identities were stripped away.

It can be said that although Zhang Guojiu and his family were lucky enough to survive, they were plunged directly from heaven to hell.

To put it bluntly, they are probably not even as well off as some ordinary people now.

"Humph."

"If I had known today, why would I have done it in the first place?"

"I truly never expected that even you would be so bold."

"Does Zhi'er not know whether he's alive or dead? Don't you even know whether he's alive or dead?"

"If His Majesty hadn't spared your lives out of respect for me, do you know what would have happened to you?"

The Empress Dowager looked at Zhang Guojiu with disappointment and frustration.

The Empress Dowager had already lost her son, the Prince of Shu, Zhou Zhi, and she was truly afraid that she would also lose her only remaining brother and her maternal family.

Fortunately, Zhou Chen spared the Zhang family out of consideration for her.

Otherwise, the Empress Dowager really couldn't imagine what she would do in the future.

"Little sister! I was also deceived by Zhi'er."

"It was Zhi'er who told me that His Majesty was not my biological nephew, and that's when I was bewitched and believed him."

"Especially that Ji Wusheng, he's even more despicable, all sweet talk and flattery..."

Before Zhang Guojiu could finish speaking, he noticed the Empress Dowager's expression was off, and immediately stopped speaking.

"what did you just say?"

"Zhi'er, are you telling me that His Majesty isn't your biological nephew?"

The Empress Dowager's expression changed, and she stared straight at Zhang Guojiu.

Zhang Guojiu nodded reluctantly.

"Did you confess all of these things while you were in jail?"

The Empress Dowager pressed for an answer.

Zhang Guojiu nodded again, forcing himself to do so.

The Empress Dowager's expression shifted and then collapsed.

Seeing this, Zhang Guojiu whispered, "Sister, should I not have told you all this?"

The Empress Dowager glanced at Zhang Guojiu, said nothing more, and simply waved her hand.

An elderly palace maid standing nearby immediately came over with several land deeds.

"This is some property I have prepared for you. From now on, you should live peacefully as ordinary people!"

"If you cause any more trouble, I won't be able to save you."

The Empress Dowager didn't want to say anything more, so she simply waved her hand, signaling Zhang Guojiu to leave.

This was all she could do for Zhang Guojiu and the Zhang family.

Zhang Guojiu gestured as if he wanted to say something, but seeing the Empress Dowager's gesture of waving him away, he swallowed his words.

After receiving several land deeds from the old palace maid, Zhang Guojiu left Cining Palace.

After Zhang Guojiu left, the Empress Dowager's complexion, which had improved somewhat, turned pale again.

The Empress Dowager got up and returned to her bed.

Only a faint sigh remained in the Cining Palace.

(End of this chapter)