Jiang Qun turned his head stiffly to look at Xu Xin.
"Minister Xu, what is the situation with this Xia Tian?"
*You never mentioned anyone named Xia Tian before.*
Xu Xin's primary focus had been on Lu Yang. In his eyes, Xia Tian was merely an insignificant minion unworthy of mention, which was why he had not gone into detail earlier. Now that His Majesty was asking, he naturally gave a full account.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, there is another accomplice named Xia Tian who assisted Lu Yang in rebellion. According to Lu Yang's confession, this cultivator named Xia Tian possesses a quick wit and is well-versed in governance. Lu Yang promised him the position of prime minister once the Soybean Dynasty was established, and only then did Xia Tian agree to join the Soybean Dynasty."
Jiang Qun pressed a hand to his forehead, trying to sort out his thoughts. After hearing Xu Xin's explanation, his mind was an utter mess; no matter how hard he tried, he could not piece together the logic.
*In other words, Imperial Father joined a new dynasty, became its prime minister, and now wants to overthrow Great Xia?*
*No, Imperial Father, you didn't have to push yourself to such lengths just to make me emperor, did you?!*
*As the prince regent, I just finished dealing with two of my younger brothers, and now I'm using my imperial authority to deal with the reigning emperor—and on charges of rebellion, no less! If this gets written into the history books, future generations will dismiss it as absurd wild fiction!*
Down below, Emperor Xia met his eldest son's gaze, feeling rather awkward himself. He had not expected that after slipping out for a stroll, he would end up back here—and in a predicament like this.
Yesterday, while detained by the Ministry of Justice, he had contacted the Tribulation Transcendence experts secretly guarding him, telling them to break him out of the ministry. To his dismay, they refused.
Their reasoning was that their duty was to protect Emperor Xia's safety. As long as he was in no actual danger, they could not intervene—a shining example of fulfilling their duties to the letter.
Emperor Xia suspected the bunch of them just wanted to watch the spectacle.
If he were exposed in broad daylight before everyone and had to admit he was Emperor Xia, having carried off the imperial throne out of boredom just to get some exercise, he would lose an unimaginable amount of face.
Emperor Xia could not help wondering if that brat Jiang Qun had lied to him back then. Why was it so exhilarating when Jiang Qun traveled in disguise and revealed his identity, while he, the sovereign of an entire nation, was tied down hand and foot the moment he revealed his identity on his own turf?
Besides, he remembered Yun Zhi saying that the Lu Yang kid always ran into bizarre incidents. This did not match what Yun Zhi had described at all!
Jiang Qun also realized that his imperial father's identity must not be revealed in public. He waved his hand to dismiss the others. "Enough. All of you withdraw. We shall personally interrogate these two criminals."
"Ah?" Xu Xin and the officials were put in a bind. How could an emperor interrogate suspects all by himself? What if something went wrong?
"Your Majesty, this..."
"Withdraw!" Jiang Qun's tone hardened. Xu Xin and the others dared not disobey the emperor's command and had no choice but to leave.
With everyone dismissed, only Jiang Qun, Lu Yang, and Emperor Xia remained in the cavernous Daming Hall. Since they were all on the same side, there was no need to keep up pretenses.
Dropping his imperial majesty, Jiang Qun reverted to his normal self. He walked down from the throne in exasperation, came up before Emperor Xia, and asked, "Dad, why did you go and steal the throne for no reason? And you even dragged Lu Yang along to steal it with you. Tell me, how are we supposed to handle this?"
Emperor Xia bristled, blowing his beard and glaring. Giving up the act entirely, he morphed back into his elderly appearance. "Bullshit! What do you mean Lu Yang accompanied me to steal it? It was clearly that brat Lu Yang who dragged me along to steal it!"
Inside the spiritual space, Lu Yang's pupils contracted at the sight of Emperor Xia's true appearance. *So Xia Tian was actually Emperor Xia, and the Emperor Xia on the throne before was the First Prince in disguise!*
Emperor Xia continued righteously, "Besides, what do you mean by stealing the throne? The imperial throne belongs to the Old Ancestor, and keeping custody of it is my duty in the first place! What law did I break by moving the throne from one place to another?"
Jiang Qun was struck dumb. It really did seem that way; no matter how one argued it, no law had been broken.
"Wait, that's not right," Jiang Qun remembered something else, pointing at Lu Yang. "He didn't know your identity. That makes him guilty of theft."
"Huh? I knew his identity all along," the Immortal Fairy spoke up.
"Back when we went to the Imperial Palace to steal the throne, didn't I specifically ask for your opinion, and you said you agreed?"
Nurtured by Lu Yang's long-term legal education, the Immortal Fairy had always been a law-abiding citizen—if one overlooked the rebellion part.
Ao Ling and Jiang Lianyi's scheme to make Lu Yang switch allegiances was doomed to fail.
When it came to schemes, how could Ao Ling and Jiang Lianyi ever be a match for the Immortal Fairy?
"How did you know?" Emperor Xia was dumbfounded. He had concealed himself exceedingly well; how could Lu Yang have recognized him?
He had a nation-guarding treasure masking his presence!
"Just by looking with my eyes," the Immortal Fairy said. What was so hard about that? A disguise visible at a single glance was fine for fooling Tribulation Transcendence cultivators or half-immortals, but fooling her was out of the question.
Emperor Xia thought to himself: *I heard Yun Zhi dotes on this youngest junior brother of hers. Could Yun Zhi have given Lu Yang some magical treasure that sees through disguises?*
Of course, there was also someone who had not seen through it—namely, Lu Yang.
"Fairy, you knew all along that Xia Tian was Emperor Xia?"
"Of course I did! It's just that this Immortal forgot what his name was."
Prompted by the Immortal Fairy's words, Lu Yang finally recalled that when she ran into Emperor Xia outside the Ministry of Justice, she had asked, "What was your name again?" rather than "What is your name?"
"Then didn't you ever consider capturing Emperor Xia or something, Fairy?" Lu Yang had assumed that if she met Emperor Xia, she would pull off a move like holding the emperor hostage to command the ministers. Because she had never shown any inclination to do so, Lu Yang had not connected Xia Tian to Emperor Xia at all.
"Never considered it."
"Why?" Lu Yang asked, puzzled.
"Because when two nations are at war, envoys must not be harmed!" Unlike a venomous advisor like Lu Yang who excelled in underhanded plots and stratagems, the Immortal Fairy conducted herself with honor and uprightness.
"..."
"Then the reason you made him prime minister was..."
"Naturally because this Immortal appoints people solely on merit, selecting talent without holding past history against them!" the Immortal Fairy said smugly. When it came to singing her own praises, she never skimped on flattering words.
Clapping her hands, she casually held them out. "Since Xia Tian served as Emperor Xia and is hailed as an emperor once in a millennium, he must be exceptionally skilled in governing. Wouldn't appointing him as the prime minister of our Soybean Dynasty be a perfect match?"
Lu Yang: "..."
*Why do I feel like the Fairy makes total sense? Have I been fighting the Invincible Nascent Soul too many times lately?*
"This Immortal has already planned it out. Once the Soybean Dynasty is established, Emperor Xia will be the prime minister. After his term, this Immortal sees that his son is quite a talent as well, so he can be the second prime minister. As for future prime ministers, we can just pick people from their Jiang family." The Immortal Fairy was truly far-sighted, charting out a grand blueprint for the Soybean Dynasty.
The depth of her vision was something a fawning, deceitful sycophant like Lu Yang could never hope to rival.
Lu Yang thought to himself that this was the first time he had ever heard of the imperial throne following a system of abdication while the prime ministership followed hereditary succession. Never mind forty myriad years in the past—even forty myriad years into the future, there would never be such a thing. The Soybean Dynasty had truly set an unprecedented historical precedent.
"Your Majesty possesses great talent."
Chapter 941