Xia Chichi hummed, "We're all just 'men' under his pen, does he want us to queue up, or does he want us together? Let me tell you, when it comes to debauchery and immorality, he's quite capable, but a truly diligent king still looks to me, Xia Chichi. A good minister chooses their lord, and you should recognize me as such. Let's overthrow him together!"

Tang Wanzhuang idly flipped through the memorials stacked at the edge of the table and said with a smile, "Sorry, he gave me a private letter, I have no reason to rebel."

Xia Chichi erupted in fury, "Impossible, absolutely impossible! Show me the letter!"

Tang Wanzhuang handed over the letter with a smiling face, and Xia Chichi glanced at the seal and sighed, "It's an internal message from the Demon Suppression Department, of course it was sent directly to you. What's so impressive about that? Besides, the one who opens it might not even be you. To avoid others reading it, there's no way it would contain any private matters concerning me. It's most likely filled with nothing but sweet nothings."

Tang Wanzhuang remained expressionless.

That's certainly true, but do you have to be so awfully Spirit-Awakened and jealous? You've spoiled my good mood.

Xia Chichi read the letter and furrowed her brows tightly, "Chang'an... Chang'an. What's your purpose in seeking me?"

"To have you contact your master. Your sect should have secret techniques for sending messages. How about asking her to make a trip to Chang'an? And how are things going in Jinzhong?"

"Two hours ago a fast report came. About twenty thousand shi of grain are on their way to Capital City, and nearly ten thousand shi have already reached Yanmen County. Also, a few thousand war horses."

"That's nearly thirty thousand shi of grain and a few thousand war horses!" Tang Wanzhuang gasped, "From how many families?"

"The Venerable slaughtered the Qiao Family, intimidating Jinbei, proclaiming that any who refuse to submit will have their entire family eradicated. Hence, Jinbei was terrified, and over ten families have submitted, offering up their grain voluntarily. If they didn't, they feared being exterminated by the Venerable, one by one."

Tang Wanzhuang opened her mouth, unsure of what to say.

This was the so-called Worldly Society method, direct and effective, a deterrent that one would naturally expect from having top-tier powerhouses at disposal.

Jinzhong had no powerhouses, not even a strong government had formed there; initially ruled as an Alliance of Merchants, it had essentially sworn fealty to the barbarians in secret. Located to the south of Yanmen, this created an extremely dangerous isolation of Yanmen Pass.

Consequently, the Great Han had to discard the formalities. With top-tier powerhouses who flouted the rules, the notion of "submitting to the barbarians" was pointless. Vermilion Bird, alone and with absolute martial power, would massacre family by family until the survivors were chilled to the core and surrendered outright.

Such norms should not be broken; otherwise, the other side could send a strong fighter into the heartland of the Great Han to cause chaos, and neither side would be able to continue the game. Zhao Changhe being seen as breaking the rules with his arrow across the river was still at the Earth List, on the boundary of acceptable, so if you have the ability, why don't you send someone from the Earth List to join us? If anyone dies here, don't say you weren't warned. Moreover, with the Wang Family obliterated instantly, there wasn't a powerhouse left to retaliate, and the Demon Gods like Desolate Calamity wouldn't seek vengeance for the Wang Family.

Yet Vermilion Bird, being on the Heavenly List and also an Imperial Realm Demon God, was certainly breaking the rules...

The trouble was, the Jin merchants didn't dare to openly admit they had submitted to the barbarians; it was all carried out in the dark. Theoretically, the Three Jins were still under the domain of Great Xia, and conflicts within Xia's own Worldly Society should be managed by the Demon Suppression Department. What business is it of foreigners?

Not to mention the barbarians, even the Li Family was dumbstruck, not knowing how to assist. Send troops? Who could compete with the terrifying mobility of top-tier masters who killed at will? Send a strong fighter into the heart of the Great Han to cause chaos? Vermilion Bird acted on the pretext of these people colluding with barbarians and had every right to slaughter them. What pretext would you have? Indiscriminate killing could taint your future governance of the world.

Let the barbarians send a strong fighter to the Central Plains?

It must be said, the death of Ba Tu's uncle, He Lei, the seventh of the Earth List, in the Central Plains, cast too great a shadow over the barbarians. Indeed, they dared not send fighters rashly, for the loss would be irreplaceable if another died. Oh right, He Lei was killed by Vermilion Bird's hand, for oppressing a Winged Fire Snake...

In short, unless Bo'e or Tie Muer themselves came, there would be no confidence in such a venture. Do they even have time for this? Moreover, wouldn't such acts by individuals of their status be laughable if they came to the Central Plains to do such things? Awkwardly embarrassing.

Hence, faced with Vermilion Bird's rule-breaking "Worldly Society tactics," there was no ability to retaliate. The Li Family could only request a Demon God to intervene. He was well-known to all; his name was Feng Yin. However, in the battle to maintain Imperial Realm, the Burning Flame Southern Sky, he was repelled by Vermilion Bird... From then on, Vermilion Bird rampaged through the Three Jins without resistance.

The submission of Jinbei to the wind, the resolution of Yanmen Pass's isolation, and the acquisition of a large amount of supplies alleviated the Great Han's pressing needs.

And Jinnan directly raised the Li Family's flag and formed a contiguous area with Guanglong. With Feng Yin directly sitting there in vigilance, Vermilion Bird could not act recklessly, otherwise, he might easily fall into a trap.

From that point on, the matter temporarily came to a rest... which is to say, now Vermilion Bird had time, plenty of time.

The king and his subject exchanged glances, each breathing a sigh of relief that they could help Zhao Changhe, yet feeling an odd sense of disquietude, as if everyone was collectively delivering a love rival into his arms.

"Let it be," Xia Chichi tossed the letter onto the table and said faintly, "After all, there's always a smelly, uncouth female knight by his side. I'm very jealous. Sending a grand witch to stir up trouble for the two of them doesn't seem like a bad idea at all."

..." Tang Wanzhuang didn't know how to respond to that remark, so she sternly said, "That's akin to walking into a tiger's den. Don't speak of it so lightly, as if we're merely playing house."

Xia Chichi rested her chin in her hand, "We can't do much besides worry anyway. What's the point of us sitting here looking worried and unhappy? That's why your former sickness was mostly self-inflicted, and I wonder if it was because that appearance easily entices men."

Tang Wanzhuang: "...Your male disguise is the one that entices men."

Xia Chichi: "?"

The two stared at each other for a long while before Xia Chichi sighed, "If I want him to be at ease, then I should study more about the matters he mentioned in the letter, such as papermaking improvements, printing technology advancements, and Ba Shu's equal-field system, and see how we can manage it here. It feels quite complicated. But on the other hand, these things certainly wouldn't bother me. However, your Tang family..."

Tang Wanzhuang replied, "At the founding of a nation, the world is like a blank canvas, most ready to be painted upon. We must not let the interest of a few families hinder our progress. He always said that he was very disappointed with this Worldly Society, with this world... I am willing to accompany him in shattering the past world and painting the canvas of his heart."

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