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Chapter 523 Imperial Decree and Entrustment (asking for monthly ticket)
Jiang Wanxiang's words sounded like a heinous crime, as if they had completely shattered the dignity and order of the Red Emperor's reign for eight hundred years. The atmosphere between heaven and earth suddenly became gloomy and murderous to the extreme.

All the ministers and officials, no one dared to speak for a moment.

The old man seemed to be carrying some kind of majestic force that was visible to the naked eye.

Rather than saying that they felt a huge sense of oppression, it would be better to say that they sensed an immense fear that could not be described in words, a fear that transcended the threat of life and death.

It is a feeling of fear about the drastic change of an order that we have been accustomed to for eight hundred years, which is about to be completely shattered and trampled upon by people.

This fear gripped their hearts and made them speechless.

Get rid of Ji Zichang.

Ji Zichang looked at Jiang Wanxiang in front of him.

Even though he had expected this, when Jiang Wanxiang said this, he still took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, feeling the calmness of the blood flowing in his body.

If it were myself ten years ago, I would have been extremely furious, looking cold and angry on the outside, but panicking on the inside.

But Ji Zichang discovered that when this day really happened.

There were no ripples in my heart.

Was it something that had been anticipated, or was it something that had long been awaiting this day to come?

He seemed unusually calm and indifferent. Ji Zichang was not wearing the imperial robes today. His powerful hands grasped the hilt of the sword at his waist, allowing himself to stand there, maintaining, at least the minimum dignity of a king.

This sword is not the Chixiao Sword used by our ancestor Chidi, who wielded a three-foot sword to kill all the heroes and gain hegemony over the world. It is just an ordinary ceremonial sword and the only thing Ji Zichang can rely on.

He looked at the old Canglong, whose cheekbones were already prominent, and said calmly:
"Qing, are you planning a rebellion?"

Jiang Wanxiang replied: "It's just to free His Majesty."

"Yes, let this old man rest assured."

In these two sentences, there is no murderous intent of a powerful official who is plotting rebellion and forcing the king to death, but only a kind of calmness under old age and fatigue.

At this time, some ministers from the Red Emperor's lineage finally reacted. They instantly realized that this was the time when heaven and earth were truly changing, and the previous order was turned upside down and shattered.

Some people also realize that this is an opportunity to truly change the world and change their own status.

And the opportunity to change your life is the scene before your eyes that will inevitably be written in history books.

I don't know who gave me a look.

A fierce general from Zhongzhou suddenly shouted: "Your Majesty, Yingguo should be the orthodox. The Red Emperor listened to the treacherous and repeatedly killed ministers and loyal officials. He is unpopular and everyone has the right to kill him!"

After saying this, he drew his weapon and stabbed Ji Zichang in the back.

He was at the sixth level of the sky, a realm he had endured all the way to, and suddenly he rose up suddenly. He was so close and attacked brazenly, and everyone else was unprepared. Ji Zichang's cultivation was not high, and by the time he realized it, a terrifying gust of wind had already rushed over.

He felt cold in his heart.

However, he realized that this was just a token of his allegiance to Jiang Wanxiang. This was because before, he had used the power of the King of Qin to eliminate those powerful civil and military officials. The confidants and even enemies of these powerful officials had already had complaints about him, but they had been suppressed because of the power of the King of Qin.

The longevity lock of the King of Qin is not just for the little princess.

It is also their short-lived lock.

At this moment, Jiang Wanxiang appeared and temporarily repelled the threats and pressure from the King of Qin. Their hostility and resentment accumulated over the years burst out at once. Jiang Wanxiang also drew his sword at the same time. The sword, which was as long as the sky and had nine dragons wrapped around it, stabbed out fiercely.

Blood exploded.

Ji Zichang's hair was flying.

Jiang Wanxiang's sword pierced through his shoulder. The sword body emitted a cold light, piercing through the face of the brave general and killing him.

Ji Zichang was stunned, watching Jiang Wanxiang slowly retract his sword.

The fierce general from Zhongzhou covered his face, fell to the ground with his back to the sky, his weapon fell with a clanging sound, blood flowed all over the ground, and flowed and dripped from the white jade steps of the Red Emperor's lineage. The whole atmosphere became more and more dead silent.

Jiang Wanxiang held the sword and put the blood-stained sword into the scabbard.

Ji Zichang said slowly: "You don't want my life."

Jiang Wanxiang shook his head and said, "Your Majesty is not someone I must kill, and I am not someone who kills innocent people indiscriminately."

"I just need your majesty to give up the throne."

Jiang Wanxiang said calmly: "Then, leave here. Go wherever you want. It's up to you. Go find Li Guanyi. Go to any peaceful place. Get rid of this responsibility and do what you want to do."

Ji Zichang was stunned. He looked at Jiang Wanxiang, seeming a little surprised.

Jiang Wanxiang chuckled and said:
"We will fight for the peace of the world. Your Majesty can also go and do what you want. After all, in this chaotic world, you, me, and too many others have been detained."

“I can’t do what I want to do, and I can’t be who I want to be.”

"I will bear the filth that your majesty has to bear, and then your majesty can do whatever you want."

"After today, you will be free."

Ji Zichang looked at Jiang Wanxiang in front of him.

Suddenly I realized that this blue dragon has become so old.

In Ji Zichang's memory, Jiang Wanxiang was always ambitious. Although he had white hair, his spirit was more vigorous than that of ordinary young people.

But now, his hair was completely white, and the skin on his face had lost its oiliness, but was pale and shriveled, like the earth that had been squeezed out of all its vitality, or like crumpled and stacked white papers that had been left for who knows how many years.

His flesh was dried up, like those of an old and dying man.

The bones in his cheeks could no longer hold the flesh and blood, and his cheekbones were prominent. His eyebrows had turned white, and the dark blue robe with a dark dragon pattern, which had originally fit his body very well, now seemed a little empty.

When the wind blew, it looked like strips of cloth hanging on white bones.

But even so.

The eyes under the white eyebrows were still blazing, still like fire.

The tiger will not fall until it dies.

This is especially true for dragons.

The same is true for people.

Ji Zichang whispered, "So that's how it is... Qing, you've grown old."

Jiang Wanxiang smiled and said, "Your Majesty, what are you talking about? It was the autumn hunt in the eleventh year of Tianqi, and now it is the eighteenth year of Tianqi. Seven or eight years have passed, and a little naughty boy will also be old enough to start a family and build a career. Young people are also calm, isn't Your Majesty the same?"

"As for the old man."

"I am not old, I am dying."

Ji Zichang looked at Jiang Wanxiang.

In the end, he didn't agree.

The latter grinned and said, "Your Majesty still doesn't agree, but don't worry, I can still wait for a few days. Your Majesty, please stay in the palace, think carefully, and have a good rest."

"I believe Your Majesty can make a wise and correct choice."

"I will wait patiently for your majesty's choice."

There were thousands of soldiers and horses, Yuwen Lie and He Ruoqinhu stood on Jiang Wanxiang's left and right - the elite troops of Ying State had hardly encountered any decent resistance and had already taken over the entire Zhongzhou.

On this day, Ji Zichang was still treated as the Red Emperor and remained in the palace.

Jiang Wanxiang climbed up the tall building.

The lights flickered. When he was young, Jiang Wanxiang and Gao Xiang came here to grab a bride, the emperor's bride. He was never a person who was restrained by etiquette and laws. Now when he saw Chidi Zhongzhou again, it was no longer as prosperous as he had seen in his youth, but just a distorted place.

Jiang Wanxiang looked pale, and he felt breathless even when he went upstairs.

However, his own skills are still based on the luck of the Ninth Heaven King.

The powerful internal energy state and the weakened vitality appeared on Jiang Wanxiang's body at the same time, which gave people a feeling of flowers blooming and oil boiling in a raging fire.

Yuwen Lie and He Ruoqinhu looked at the old king with concern.

He wanted to help, but the latter waved his hand, and he stopped. Jiang Wanxiang stood on a high building in Zhongzhou, looking at Zhongzhou in the night, looking at those ancient houses, looking at the upturned eaves, the magnificent lights, the eight hundred years of legend of the Red Emperor, the heroic spirit, the love between young men and women, and the worldly affairs, all between the lights.

Jiang Wanxiang stretched out his hand, spread his five fingers, covering the light in front of him, and murmured:
"The lights are on, the world is red and dusty."

"It is really beautiful, but also extremely ugly."

"In a world like this, how can people like you and me be willing to leave?"

"How can we stop before our great wish?"

He Ruoqinhu's eyes were filled with sadness, and he said softly:

"Your Majesty has made great achievements and will live a long life."

Jiang Wanxiang laughed: "Long life? Hahahaha, He Ruoqinhu Sumu would also say such things, cough cough cough cough..."

He wanted to laugh it off as he did in the past, but after a few laughs, he turned into a violent coughing fit, and the coughing became so severe that he spurted out a mouthful of blood. His sleeves were stained with blood, which was black in color, like thick ink, with a foul odor that was shocking.

Yuwen Lie and He Ruoqin changed color and stepped forward to support him.

Jiang Wanxiang did not refuse. He looked at the black blood on his sleeves and said, "The wound from the Wolf King's sword can no longer sustain him even if he takes all the longevity-prolonging substances in the world. Human flesh and blood have their limits after all. His life span is coming to an end, but it cannot be reversed by human power."

"What can I do?"

He looked at his palm, an old man's palm, which had begun to tremble as he held the sword. When he was young, he held a sword, rode a horse, and fought on the battlefield for three days and three nights, but he had never reached this situation.

In the snow-covered mountain, I hid in a cave under the rock with Gao Xiang. I reached out my hand to grab a ball of fallen snow, stuffed it into my mouth and swallowed it, feeling my skin gradually turning red and hot in the winter, and feeling the fire burning in my internal organs.

He raised his head and saw the bright moon in the sky through the hole made by his fist.

The moon illuminates the boy's dream.

He was young at that time, had no background, no status or identity.

But he still has friends, dreams, and the wildfire of a young man who is unwilling to give up.

Now he has everything, but he has lost his vigorous blood and vitality.

Stripped of luck, this body of a monarch cannot endure the backlash of luck, which leads to a significant reduction in lifespan. However, as he said, the luck of the world, excluding Ying State, still has the luck and reputation of Zhongzhou for 800 years.

Even the fortune of the Red Emperor's dynasty of eight hundred years has already become tainted with smoke and foul, as poisonous as death, and covered with filth, but even such fortune is still fortune.

At this time, it is no different from drinking ice and swallowing snow when we were young.

Even if it is a highly poisonous thing, I don't care.

Jiang Wanxiang slowly clenched his palms.

"Ji Zichang."

"You are not capable enough to dominate in troubled times. A peaceful place outside the world is the right place for you."

"Just go where you want to go."

"Even if it's as poisonous as luck, it's enough to support such a broken body and rush to the last battle... With a great wish ahead, no matter whether Li Guan wins or we win, it won't be too long in the end."

Jiang Wanxiang whispered in his heart, and looked at the two famous generals again. His old eyes drooped, his charm hidden, but no one knew what he was thinking about writing. Finally, he sighed.

He first asked Yuwen Lie to go out and wait. Yuwen Lie was silent, bowed and left.

Jiang Wanxiang looked at He Ruo catching the tiger, and said in a calm and light voice, as if chatting:
"Qianhu, how many years have you been with me?"

He Ruoqinhu said respectfully: "When I was seventeen years old, I served under your majesty to conquer the four corners of the world. Now my hair is white. If I count, it has been forty-seven years."

"Forty-seven years, forty-seven years..."

“It’s a really long time.”

Jiang Wanxiang was helped to sit down, and said with a gentle smile:

"Your family and your mother's family are both powerful families in the world, and they are also entangled with many forces in the court. This is a natural thing. Born in a powerful family, being a famous general, having made many military achievements, and having a heroic and clear temperament, people will naturally gather around you."

"But, I have something to tell you."

He Ruoqinhu said respectfully:
"Your Majesty, please grant it."

Jiang Wanxiang looked at He Ruoqinhu and said, "You are calm and considerate of the overall situation, but you are involved in too many things. As a pillar of the country, you must know what the real overall situation is and not be dragged down by these many identities and connections."

"To avoid making mistakes that could lead to irreparable consequences."

He Ruoqinhu was stunned. Although he boasted that he was above the court and had never been bound by his birth, friends, or relatives, he still bowed respectfully and said, "I will definitely keep your words in mind."

Jiang Wanxiang looked at him for a long time and said, "Okay, you are the pillar of the country, you should not take yourself lightly."

"Go back and call Yuwen Lie in."

"promise!"

He Ruo captured the tiger and went out, allowing Yuwen Lie to enter. Yuwen Lie lost an arm in exchange for the mechanism. His former arrogance gradually faded, but his inner pride remained the same. He bowed and said, "Your Majesty."

Jiang Wanxiang looked at this famous general who was not even considered a young generation and said:

"You are arrogant by nature. Sometimes, you need to take a step back."

"But you can't be arrogant. Keep it that way."

"...Heh, although it is true that you are capable of maintaining your pride, I still hope that you can move beyond your past self and go further."

"Gao'er, I'll leave it to the general."

Yuwen Lie bowed in silence and said, "Yes."

Jiang Wanxiang seemed to be tired. He waved his hand and said, "You go down. Let me rest here for a while."

Yuwen Lie nodded and left.

Jiang Wanxiang stayed here alone. There was silence all around. He looked up into the distance, sensing the distorted luck of the Red Emperor for eight hundred years. He stretched out his hand, and it seemed that because his body was already dying, his palm could clearly sense the existence of luck.

He took a deep breath, and gradually took control of the luck accumulated by the Red Emperor over eight hundred years of his reign. The luck that was once glorious and radiant was now rotten and poisonous. He felt that his body was once again in this state, like drinking poison to quench thirst.

Swallow it all.

Control it.

Then he watched helplessly as these damn eight hundred years of distorted luck corroded his body.

Waste away vitality and chop into pieces the flesh and blood.

He renounced his reputation after death and sacrificed his life before death. He did not seek status or fame, but only victory. Only the wild fire that remained supported his broken body, and he rushed towards the unification of the world that his comrades and subjects of all generations had longed for.

Too many people have fallen behind him.

He can't give up, let alone stop.

Giving up at the last moment of the battle is the most shameless betrayal to everyone and yourself.

Even if there is no trace left after death, even if I fall into the endless purgatory, even if I am disgraced after this life, even if I risk everything in this life, I will struggle and twist myself to reach victory.

He clenched his fists, had white hair, was skinny, had eyes like fire, and had a heart as fierce as a dragon.

It’s like when I was young, shouting to myself.

"Gotta win!"

"Jiang Wanxiang!!!"

In later history books, many historians did not understand why Jiang Wanxiang forced Chidi to abdicate at this time. Some said that he wanted to break through the arrangement of the name in the end and become a real emperor, but others said that a person like him, who had been born out of wedlock all the way to the end, divided the world into two.

He once took the initiative to guide the autumn hunt in the eleventh year of Tianqi and the subsequent fission.

People like him don't care about any reputation.

He was just like a tireless blue dragon and fierce tiger, swallowing up the vital areas of Zhongzhou, absorbing all the essence before the final battle, grasping everything that could increase his chances of winning, and then betting everything he had on the final battle.

This king, who has both good and bad reputations, is indeed the same as Jiang Su. The king and his subject are one. They have the same temperament. They don't care about their own life or death, and they don't care about their reputation after death. They only have victory in their eyes.

He was too old and could no longer hold the sword.

He values ​​the future more than life and death, and he wants to step onto the battlefield before anything happens.

However, there is not just one hero in the world.

On the night of this day, in the Red Emperor's palace, Ji Zichang was silent for a long time. The night was dark. The elite troops from Ying State surrounded and controlled the Red Emperor's palace. Even at night, the palace was brightly lit.

Civil and military ministers, and officials from all walks of life came in an endless stream.

They came to pay homage to the Red Emperor with great respect, and then, almost in tears, they persuaded His Majesty the Red Emperor to consider the general situation of the world and the future. Now that the world is divided, the Red Emperor's lineage no longer has the same status as it used to.

The world has been divided for three hundred years.

Now it is finally time for reunion after a long separation.

Your Majesty should adapt to the times and hand over the throne.

Retiring after accomplishing one's mission, calming the hearts of the people of the world, and pacifying the four directions, isn't that also the behavior of a sage and wise ruler?

Civil and military officials, some wept bitterly, some were loyal and sincere:

"Your Majesty, think twice!"

Yan Taibao, who taught Ji Zichang calligraphy, was waiting beside Ji Zichang today, watching the ministers and officials coming and going in an endless stream. He looked out from the side door of the palace. The night was as dark as ink, and the lights were like dragons.

Those were the red lanterns lit on the carriages of all officials and ministers. Looking at them at the moment, they did not look festive at all. Instead, they were like bloodstains staining the night sky, like blood coughed out of a person's mouth.

There was an endless stream of carriages and cars. After visiting Ji Zichang, these people did not return to their own residences, but instead turned around and went to pay a visit to the Ying State Emperor Jiang Wanxiang. The lights on both sides were as bright as dragons and as bright as day, and there was an endless stream of people.

Yan Taibao watched this scene with sadness and anger in his eyes.

All the high-ranking officials in the past dynasties have received salaries from the imperial court.

The country is in great trouble, and it is like this!
Ji Zichang looked at this scene and said calmly:
"Teacher, don't be angry..."

Yan Taibao turned and looked at Ji Zichang. Looking at this disciple, the emperor was calm and composed, with sadness in his eyes: "Your Majesty..." He wanted to say a lot of things, wanted to comfort him, wanted to cheer him up, but the situation had deteriorated to this point.

I just opened my mouth and said these two words, and I couldn't say anything else.

He just choked up, tears streaming down his face, and couldn't speak coherently.

At this moment, a voice was heard suddenly, and the door opened, and an old man appeared here. The old man had a gentle expression, his white hair was well-groomed and meticulous, he had reached the seventh level of martial arts, and his internal energy was powerful.

It was Ji Yanzhong, a descendant of the Red Emperor of Zhongzhou.

This old man is regarded as the last face of the Chidi lineage, but his status as a grandmaster can still be mentioned in peacetime, but now is a chaotic time with heroes vying for supremacy. The top ten in the world are all at the eighth level, and the top five are above the ninth level.

The old man's seventh-level Grandmaster level of cultivation is somewhat lacking.

"His Majesty……"

Ji Yanzhong shouted in a low voice and took out a box. Inside the box was the thing that Ji Zichang asked him to take. After opening it, it turned out to be a seal, which was the representative of the Chidi Dynasty, the Chidi Seal.

Ji Zichang stretched out his hand and gently brushed the seal with a calm expression.

He unfolded a scroll, picked up the brush and dipped it in ink, and wrote with ease and courage like a dragon or a snake. His calligraphy reached a level that even Yan Taibao, who taught him calligraphy, was amazed. Only when the state of mind and the text are in harmony can such charm be achieved.

Ji Zichang took the seal, pressed it full on the ink, and stamped the large seal with a circling red dragon on the imperial edict, deeply imprinting it. Then he rolled up the seal of the Red Emperor and the imperial edict together and handed them to Ji Yanzhong.

Abdication was just the future he had already seen.

However, he still has a second choice.

"The imperial edict and this seal will be handed over to the uncle."

"Please leave this place, leave Zhongzhou, and go to Jiangnan."

"Give these two things to my friend—"

"Pharmacist Li."

(End of this chapter)