Imperial Cultivation

No matter how good one's talent is, in the eyes of the court officials, one is still just a mere heir apparent.

Not to mention the heir apparent, even a prince or the Prince of Ying would face a barrage of impeachments if they overstepped their boundaries.

The Emperor's decision will surely provoke dissatisfaction from countless people, who will wail and lament as if in unbearable pain.

Chu Qingfeng said, "You wouldn't want the daughter of the Duke of Anguo to be a concubine, and Yao Yue Palace wouldn't want it either. Letting the Eighteenth Princess be a concubine is unacceptable to Da Zhen. There's no other way; what Imperial Brother can do is make them both principal wives."

"The court officials will not agree."

"Imperial Brother can still suppress them. After all, it involves the secret realm, which concerns the fate of the Great Jing Dynasty. An exception can be made this once."

"It's making Imperial Grandfather's position difficult," Chu Zhiyuan sighed.

He could imagine that the city would be in uproar, and he didn't know how much trouble it would cause. The Emperor must feel stifled.

He himself felt stifled.

Even more aggrieved was Xiao Ruoling.

Originally the principal wife as the heir apparent's consort, now there was another principal wife.

Whether it was himself or the power within the palace, it was being divided in half.

No one would feel good about it.

Moreover, it involved matters of love between a man and a woman, making it even harder not to be angry.

Even though Xiao Ruoling came from the Duke's mansion and was accustomed to the idea of multiple wives and concubines, she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.

Actually, there was a way to break the deadlock.

That was to have the Eighteenth Princess withdraw herself, unwilling to marry him, and leave Da Zhen. Then Da Zhen would have nothing to say.

They couldn't possibly send another princess to marry him.

But this matter still required careful planning, preferably together with the Eighteenth Princess. This Eighteenth Princess was also clearly forced and was a pitiful person.

He was being forced to marry, she was being forced to marry. Although both were being forced, their situations were worlds apart.

Their positions were the same: to sabotage this marriage alliance.

But it needed to be done with utmost caution, probing clearly before making a decision.

Otherwise, if there were further complications, causing Da Zhen to renege on sharing the secret realm, he would become a sinner of the Great Jing Dynasty.

He shook his head at this thought.

Living in this world, one cannot always be in control, and one's fate cannot be dictated by oneself. Even if one is an heir apparent, even if one is a princess, noble as they are, they still cannot be autonomous. If one wants autonomy, one must have strong cultivation, become a Grandmaster to jump out of the chessboard. Even if one cannot become a chess player, one does not have to be a pawn to be manipulated by others.

One must be strong enough, become above a Grandmaster, so that the Emperor cannot force him, Da Zhen cannot force him, Da Meng cannot either, no one can!

Chu Qingfeng had been observing his expression. Seeing him sigh, he patted him on the shoulder, "Treat the Eighteenth Princess well. She's a good person; don't bully her."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Uncle, she's a princess. It's not me bullying her; it's her bullying me. Don't forget she has a Grandmaster with her."

Chu Qingfeng smiled, "That Grandmaster is indeed with her and will stay for good."

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Da Zhen is truly generous."

Chu Qingfeng shook his head, "That Grandmaster Zhu is the younger sister of Consort Shu of Da Zhen, the Eighteenth Princess's maternal aunt. She insists on accompanying her, and no one can stop her."

Although he had decided to find a way to sabotage the marriage, what if it didn't succeed? One should always consider failure before considering success.

If there was a Grandmaster from Wentian Cliff in his palace, what could be hidden from Wentian Cliff?

To guard against Wentian Cliff, he would have to guard against the Eighteenth Princess. Such a marriage of convenience was truly tragic.

Seeing him frown, Chu Qingfeng said, "Don't worry. Now that she's entered your palace, she won't be informing Wentian Cliff."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Uncle, that's not necessarily believable, is it?"

"Why isn't it believable?"

"Who can restrain a Grandmaster?"

"Since the Eighteenth Princess is marrying you, this is her home, not Da Zhen. Even if Zhu Caifu really wanted to leak information about your palace to Wentian Cliff, the Princess wouldn't allow it."

Chu Zhiyuan no longer argued.

He would be at ease if it were a Grandmaster from another sect, but Wentian Cliff was different. "Still worried? Zhu Caifu should have fallen out with Wentian Cliff."

"Hmm--?"

"Do you know that the Eighteenth Princess is Consort Shu's child, and that Consort Shu also has a son, the Seventeenth Prince, who eventually became a disciple of Wentian Cliff? But Consort Shu initially disagreed with the Seventeenth Prince joining Wentian Cliff."

"Why did she disagree?"

"That's unknown. The Seventeenth Prince ultimately chose to join Wentian Cliff, and Consort Shu couldn't dissuade her son, but she was very dissatisfied with Wentian Cliff because of it."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded. Anyone would be dissatisfied, feeling that Wentian Cliff had incited their child.

"This time, Wentian Cliff insisted on sending the Eighteenth Princess over, further straining their relationship with Consort Shu... For the sake of the Eighteenth Princess, Zhu Caifu also had a big argument with Wentian Cliff, ultimately declaring that she would never return to Wentian Cliff."

"..."

"You will also be a Grandmaster in the future. There's no need to be too wary of her."

"That's true," Chu Zhiyuan smiled. "To actually fall out with Wentian Cliff, this Grandmaster Zhu is quite formidable."

Whether Zhu Caifu had truly fallen out with Wentian Cliff or was just pretending, it could be tested. Moreover, there was still the Heavenly Concealment Sect in the shadows.

He left the Knowing Autumn Hall, exited the Emperor's Nanguo Gate, and strolled along the street. He saw Huang Shirong in the crowd from afar.

The two met again in the crowd.

Wen Qianqian and Xu Mengyu, still dressed in white like snow, followed behind Huang Shirong, looking at him with smiles.

...

"The owner of that saber?" Huang Shirong gently shook her head. "It is said that it was obtained from the outside by a certain ancestor, who said it was a Grandmaster's saber. It's probably been around for thousands of years, and no one has ever touched it. We don't practice saber techniques."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded.

The White Cloud Sword Palace has no saber technique inheritance.

So they naturally have no interest in sabers. It wouldn't be surprising if it was thrown into a corner to gather dust. "This time, hearing that you wanted a Grandmaster's saber, Elder Gu remembered this saber."

"The material of this saber is ordinary, but it contains the saber intent of a Grandmaster, which is extremely beneficial to me."

"Then that's for the best."

Since it's been thousands of years, that ancestor should have died of old age, making it difficult to find out its owner.

Then so be it.

He was at the Great Spirit Realm Perfection and should be able to suppress the saber intent of this saber. He didn't know if he could use the Spirit Communication Talisman at that time.

If he could use the Spirit Communication Talisman, he could see the true origin of this saber. "By the way, Hall Master Zhao asked me to convey his apologies."

"What is he apologizing for?" Chu Zhiyuan smiled. "The one who made the decision was the Flying Heaven Sect Master."

"He also feels that his sect is too unfeeling," Huang Shirong smiled. "He feels embarrassed and has no face to see you, Heir Apparent."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Tell him to rest assured. I'm not so petty. The Heavenly Saber is the Flying Heaven Sect's. It's the Flying Heaven Sect's freedom to let whoever they want see it, and no one can force them."

Huang Shirong gently nodded.

But she shook her head inwardly.

The heir apparent's comprehension was outstanding, and his talent was unparalleled, but to say he was magnanimous would be blatant lying.

The heir apparent was pretending to be magnanimous. In reality, he was the type to hold grudges. The Flying Heaven Sect had completely offended him this time and would suffer in the future.

The Flying Heaven Sect Master, without understanding the heir apparent's situation, directly refused, which was extremely unwise.

This had planted a major hidden danger. She really didn't know what the Flying Heaven Sect was thinking, making such a decision.

Didn't any of the elders in the sect have a say, didn't any of them understand the situation?

She secretly shook her head and smiled, "Congratulations, Heir Apparent, on marrying the Eighteenth Princess."

"You're teasing me."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled wryly, waved his hand, and took his leave with clasped hands.

As he walked, he pondered in his mind how to make a trip to the Flying Heaven Sect.

He found the opportunity the next day. The imperial court had a decree of commendation for the Flying Heaven Sect.

He took on this task and went to the Flying Heaven Sect to announce the decree.