Reincarnation Girl Becomes Immortal

Hongji nodded slightly, her tone suddenly becoming a little nervous: "Could it be... that Senior Sister wishes to request an audience with His Majesty?"

Xi Heng said yes.

"It's better not to go..." She swallowed, her words becoming increasingly hesitant: "I have a feeling that if you sisters meet, there might be bloodshed."

"How could that be? I'm not a killer who kills indiscriminately."

"..." But Yan Hongji, being a martial artist at the Energized Realm, always felt a murderous aura surrounding Xi Heng.

"Besides, she is my junior sister's friend after all. Even if I wanted to kill her, I would think twice."

Hongji was speechless.

"Don't worry, even if we become sworn enemies in the future, I won't make a move today."

She didn't return to the capital to seize the throne; on the contrary, she needed the other party to remain in power for a while longer.

At least, let's wait until she has defeated Yan Meng's enemy forces.

“But if His Majesty sees Senior Sister, he might react in some way…” Yan Hongji suggested, pursing her lips.

"There are only two Transformation Realm experts in the palace now. What can they do to me?" Xi Heng chuckled and stood up, saying, "Take me to see Chu Xiao."

"Ah, me?" The other person inexplicably wanted to escape.

"Ah."

However, after a short while, Hongji managed to overcome her urge to retreat.

With her in the middle, perhaps, possibly, these two royal princes could soften their attitude for a brief moment.

"Please come with me, senior sister." She exhaled and retreated with trembling steps.

When she came to see Xi Heng just now, she was quite dignified, poised, and composed.

But after just a few words, he became nervous again when he left the room.

Xi Heng followed behind the other person, walking along the elegant and unique corridor of the restaurant. He casually glanced at the swaying lanterns that were lit up around him. He could see that the VIP room behind two screens painted with green mountains in the distance was getting closer and closer.

The wooden planks of the corridor made a clear sound as the two people stepped on them.

After passing the slightly folded screen, one can clearly hear the mournful sound of zither music playing on the stage not far away.

A brightly dressed dancer performs, while below, in the hall filled with tables and chairs, only one person sits.

She wore a light purple dress with only a few scattered gold threads hanging from it, without any complicated patterns. Her hair was half-tied up and she wore no noble decorations.

Even so, one can still sense an air of noble elegance from his unconscious habitual movements and the temperament he exudes.

As for this person's appearance, it is similar to Xi Heng's.

Hearing footsteps, the other person did not turn around, but quietly enjoyed the music and dance on stage while holding their tea.

Yan Hongji quickened her pace and approached first, whispering something to him.

Immediately, the other person put down the tea in their hand on the table, turned their head, and their eyes fell on the person who was approaching.

"Hello." Xi Heng raised his hand, making a friendly gesture.

Although Chu Xiao didn't quite understand, she could sense that Xi Heng was greeting her, and after a flicker in her eyes, she simply nodded.

"It's been a long time, my elder sister." She put on a nonchalant air.

"Hmm." Xi Heng casually pulled out a chair and sat down at the same table as Chu Xiao.

On the surface, it appears to be just a familiar family reunion.

But in reality, Xi Heng already sensed the presence of a powerful expert in the Transformation Realm emerging from a blind spot to the side.

"How long has it been? Ten years? Twelve years... We haven't seen each other since you disappeared back then, until today." Chu Xiao began to reminisce:

"I vaguely remember that back then, my elder sister was the most favored princess."

"Did that happen? I forgot."

Xi Heng yawned and waved slightly to the maidservant serving him, asking her to bring him tea as well.

"Naturally, you have been exceptionally gifted since childhood. It is said that when you were born, your grandmother dreamed that a god sent you a scarlet jade, which then transformed into a baby and descended from the sky. She thought you were a celestial jade from heaven, so she doted on you."

"Oh?" Xi Heng had never heard of this before.

"On the contrary, I have been neglected." Chu Xiao held a cup of tea in one hand and smiled bitterly. "My mother was a laundry maid in the palace. She was chosen by the late emperor to be his concubine. After I was born, she was neglected. My mother and I spent many years in a small courtyard in a corner of the palace. We lived a simple life. I had the title of princess but no real power. It was not until I was ten years old and answered a couplet that my father asked me that things finally started to improve."

"Back then, probably no one could have imagined that I would be the one to sit in this high position, right?"

"Amazing." Xi Heng didn't hold back his applause.

A maid brought her some tea, which she accepted and drank.

Chu Xiao then brought up another topic: "In recent years, my elder sister's reputation has begun to rise, mainly because she killed Fang Tiande, a major threat to the Great Zhao. But after that, there was no news of her for almost a year. It is said that she went to cross the sea to search for immortals. Did she find them?"

Xi Heng relaxed and casually replied, "I did find some traces of immortals, but there are no more cultivators in this world, and those so-called immortal mountains and islands have all sunk to the bottom of the sea."

"What a pity." The girl, who looked similar to Xi Heng, closed her eyes and sighed.

It's unclear whether the regret is that Xi Heng didn't die in a shipwreck, or that she couldn't go off to cultivate immortality and live a life of seclusion.

"yes……"

Whether it was her imagination or not, Yan Hongji felt that something was off about the atmosphere around her.

Although she knew that it would be stranger for the two royal sisters to meet if the atmosphere wasn't odd.

But it is this seemingly calm atmosphere, yet one that subtly harbors murderous intent and seems poised to erupt at any moment, that is most unsettling.

"What brings you here today, Princess Xiheng?" Chu Xiao asked calmly. "Did you come specifically to kill me?"

"How could that be? I'm here to help you." Xi Heng took a sip of tea, completely disregarding the imposing presence of the Transformation Realm follower not far away.

"Help?" Chu Xiao tapped her chin with her fingertip, looking puzzled.

“I came here from the northern border to help you resolve the affairs of state. In any case, this world must not be handed over to others.”

"How much longer can we hold out in the northern frontier?" Chu Xiao asked.

"The enemy has already breached Black Dragon Pool. As long as they have enough navy, they can transport troops south to plunder. Once they have reorganized, they can launch a general offensive, and the major cities in the north of Great Zhao will be forced to retreat and defend themselves."

Chu Xiao withdrew her gaze from Xi Heng and looked back at the tea set steadily on the table. She then said, "The situation is the same in the west and the south. The Western Barbarians have now captured three cities, and the Dark Heaven Cult has occupied four places: Hengzhou, Yongzhou, Daozhou, and Jinzhou. The garrison in the south is powerless. Only the capital army can fight, but it is also being held back by bandits."

“The Merciful Saintess of the Dark Heaven Sect is a friend who crossed the sea with me. I can write a letter to her to postpone our northward advance.” Xi Heng said, “As for the great bandits in the capital region, I only need to allocate half of the capital’s troops to me to defeat them within ten days… As for the Western Barbarians’ siege methods, they are crude and can’t conquer more than a few cities in a year. Just let the Western City Generals hold their ground.”

"What should we do about the shortage of money and food?" Chu Xiao's eyes flickered. She realized that this princess, who had been away from the country for more than ten years, somehow knew something about state affairs.

Xi Heng only mentioned six names:

"Former Prime Minister Cai Yuan, current Prime Minister Li Shimei, Censor-in-Chief Wang Xiangfu, Privy Councilor Zhu Xun, Grand Tutor Liang Cegong, and Grand Counselor Li Yuan... all were killed and their homes confiscated."

"Huh?" Chu Xiao was taken aback.

……

Chapter 113, Affection and Desire

As each name reached Chu Xiao's ears, she could already vaguely sense the murderous intent in her elder sister's words.

The six people Xi Heng mentioned were all treacherous officials who had incurred the indignation of capable ministers in the court, who had petitioned to have them demoted and punished.

The common people say that jackals and wolves are rampant in the imperial court, and this is what they are referring to most of the time.

However, these six individuals are all of high status, and many of their disciples and relatives hold official positions in the court. They have clearly become the foundation of the court, and if they are to be eliminated, the court will inevitably suffer a great loss of strength.

The country is now in chaos. If the court is unable to take any action due to internal turmoil, it will likely be a sign of the country's impending demise.

—At least, that's what Chu Xiao thought at first.

In recent years, she has supported newcomers from the imperial examinations to become officials and establish their own factions, and demoted the status of scholars in the Imperial Academy. This was all in order to restrain the factions of officials under these old ministers and to use the new faction to oppose the old people who have been left over from the previous emperor's era.

Now that some results have been achieved, once the influence of these treacherous officials in the court weakens, they can be convicted one by one.

This is the prudent approach that Chu Xiao followed.

But now she understands that, given the current domestic situation, it is no longer possible to continue with a gradual approach.

The Great Zhao was surrounded by enemies on all sides, and bandits roamed everywhere. Heavy taxes made it difficult for the people to live and work in peace. Even with such heavy taxes, the country still could not provide enough money and food to the military forces in various regions.

The best solution, as Xi Heng suggested, is indeed to plunder all the gold and silver treasures that these treacherous officials have hidden deep in their residences and not circulated outside, and to replenish the national treasury with the silver and land.

These high-ranking corrupt officials have been embezzling for decades, and it is unknown how much wealth they have swallowed.

Even now, they still stare at gold and silver like vicious beasts, and despite their treasuries being overflowing with gold, they still suck the blood and sweat of the people to satisfy their greed.

Although, executing them would inevitably destabilize the court.

But if we don't take action, it's uncertain whether the entire Zhao state will even exist, so what's the point of worrying about its foundation?

"..."

As she pondered, Chu Xiao gradually realized that although Xi Heng's words were extreme, they were not entirely unfounded.

Given the current state of the nation, perhaps what it needs is this kind of straightforward approach, rather than any deliberation or careful calculation.

but……

She said:

“Although these people are treacherous officials, apart from Prime Minister Li Shimei, they are not inactive. They also have many disciples serving as officials in various parts of the court. If they are harmed, it will surely cause resentment and bring the court to a standstill. If we kill them, we cannot do so in the name of the court.”

"You don't need to do it yourself."

Xi Heng was already an assassination expert, and dealing with these family guards who were at most only at the level of internal strength was a piece of cake.

She said, "All you need to do is provide me with a list of officials residing in the capital and their addresses, and I will know the answer within three days."

She had already planned how to act when she arrived; all the imperial court and the Northern Frontier Army needed were the windfalls hidden in her home.

All that's needed is for these people to die and for the imperial court to take over their property.

There's no need to do what she did when she was emperor, dragging these people to the court with the imperial guards to behead them.

"...Is that feasible?"

Although Chu Xiao knew that Xi Heng was already a martial artist at the Transformation Realm, she still didn't think that she could do such a thing by herself.

“That will do,” Xi Heng said.

"Once I've finished, you can send the Imperial Guards or Imperial Bodyguards under the pretext of investigating the murderer to plunder treasures, silk, grain, land deeds, house deeds, and other valuables."

Chu Xiao chose to believe, nodded, and then said:

“Cai Yuan, Wang Xiangfu, and Li Shimei are all incompetent officials who have misled the country and should be executed. However, the other three have accomplished real things and their families are not in the capital, so their execution can be postponed for a while.”

"No."

Xi Heng still remembered the mocking manner of those people in the imperial court.

These three were the ones who hired the Black Blade Master, so naturally they couldn't be let go.

Having arrived in the capital, the only course of action is to kill them every time we meet them.

Even if you can't see them, you'll still go to their door and kill them.

"..."

Chu Xiao pressed her temples, concealing the distress in her eyes.

She met Xi Heng's gaze for a moment, then let out a sigh.

The sudden arrival of her powerful elder sister, a martial arts master, left her unsure of how to respond.

However, things have already developed far beyond her expectations, so one more thing is just another matter...

As time passed, the two princesses' friendly visit soon came to an end.

The exchange was very pleasant.

……

As night fell, Xi Heng, having made thorough preparations, left the Yan family's Flower Pavilion.

She wore simple black warrior's clothes that did not restrict her movement, held a longbow in her left hand, carried a bunch of arrows on her back, and had letters and notes stuffed in a brocade pouch at her waist.

Concealing his presence, he leaped lightly across the rooftops, heading towards the locations of the residences of every official in the capital, locations he had painstakingly memorized over time.

Upon reaching the door, he raised his longbow, drew an arrow from behind, and then took out a letter from his waist, piercing it with the arrowhead.

Aim at the door or a beam, loosen your grip slightly, and the arrow will immediately leave the bowstring and strike the target with a thud.

The arrow's tail trembled slightly, and the book's cover swayed gently.