Chapter 21 King Chen
Xu Shanshan probably guessed what was going on. She didn't answer, but only talked about another thing with Maomao.

"Did you see the Liu family really bury Xie Xuan and the others' bodies in the backyard?"

"Maomao saw it. Master Liu was brave. He buried the body and planted flowers on it. Now that the murder case has been solved, the Liu family doesn't even plan to stay in Jiangling City. I think the whole family seems to be discussing moving to another place."

The debt owed to Liu Shiyou has also been settled, and the reward of "official career" has been safely pocketed by Mao Mao, who is very happy.

Xu Shanshan had long seen through Master Liu. He was timid on the outside but cruel on the inside. Compared with his two sons, he was more capable of taking on responsibilities and could withstand more pressure.

"That's good. Jiangling City is bound to become a place of conflict in the future. The Liu family is weak, so it's better for them to stay away from trouble."

Hearing her say this, Maomao was surprised: "Wasn't Jiangling City a commercial city in the past? Why would it be so popular in the future?"

Xu Shanshan gently patted its head: "Times are different now. In peacetime, it is a trade route, but in times of war... its use is invaluable."

"Maomao doesn't understand, Shan, are we going to Tang's house now?"

She shook her head and looked down at her slightly oversized and old Taoist robe: "It's time to change clothes."

-

Shangqiu
On a summer night, a silver plate hangs in the deep night sky, with layers of clear clouds, like smoke and fog, shrouded in the moonlight.

When the entire Tang family was preparing to go to bed, they welcomed a group of uninvited guests.

Lord Fu hurriedly sat up from the bed and asked through the door, "What did you say? Who's here?"

"Mr. Fu, it's Prince Chen."

"Prince Chen?" Duke Fu was surprised. "Why did he suddenly come to Shangqiu?"

Lord Fu's face was full of confusion. Their Tang family had no friendship with King Chen, and it was already late at night. It seemed like... they were conspiring with someone.

The person reporting outside the door lowered his voice and said, "He didn't say, but it seems that he and his group are deliberately disguised, as if they are visiting secretly."

Duke Fu looked serious. He stood up and put on his clothes. "Besides Prince Chen, are there any other people following you?"

"He only brought his personal entourage, no other special people."

"Okay, I got it. You go and entertain them first, and I'll be there later."

Mr. Fu paced in the bedroom, feeling inexplicably uneasy and anxious.

He raised his head and looked through the window lattice, but suddenly saw the full moon hanging in the sky, and his mind suddenly buzzed.

He thought he had not taken it to heart, but now he recalled it.

On the full moon day, a high-ranking and powerful person will visit Shangqiu late at night. This will be the most important decision for the Tang family. Whether the future will be prosperous or decades of foundation will be destroyed, it all depends on your decision.

"Snapped!"

Fu Gong hurriedly opened the door and asked the guard: "What day is today?"

"It's Wangri."

The full moon refers to the full sun, and the person in a high position of power refers to King Chen.

Now that the time and characters are accurate, only the second half of the prophecy remains...a choice? What choice?
Lord Fu quickly called Lord Nong and Lord Hai, and the three of them packed up and went to Furong Hall to meet King Chen.

Along the way, the three men looked serious and solemn. They walked through a long corridor with bright lights and bluestone hollows, but saw that the lights in the reception room in front of them were bright. King Chen and his entourage were in a very arrogant manner, occupying the magpie's nest.

Prince Chen sat upright in the main seat, sipping tea calmly. The Furong Hall was cleared inside and out and was filled with his own people.

As the saying goes, the people do not fight with the officials, and the businessmen do not compete with the government.

King Chen is now both an official and a politician. He represents a reactionary force that cannot be underestimated. It is hard to say what the current situation in Jing State will be like in the future, but one thing is certain -

If the seven kings rebel, the world will be in turmoil.

The three ministers of the Tang family put away their chaotic emotions, bowed and stepped forward to greet him: "I didn't know that King Chen was coming. The Tang family is sorry for not welcoming you."

Prince Chen is the second uncle of Emperor Yue, the oldest of the seven princes, and also the most cunning one. When he was young, he had a good appearance. Now that he is older, he still has a clear and elegant appearance. However, this is only the surface. In reality, he is a complete politician.

Everything starts from one's own selfish interests, only caring about winning, no matter the cost.

He put down his teacup and said, "I am sorry to bother you, but I will spare you the polite words. I heard that something happened in Jiangling City, so I came here... and saw a good show."

Tang Gengfu and Tang Genghai secretly exchanged glances.

The "incident" that King Chen mentioned was definitely not the recent famine, but the fact that Xie Xuan sent troops to besiege Jiangling City with the intention of killing the city commander and stealing the political power in the city.

"Xie Xuan is a wicked man with wild ambitions and acts recklessly. Don't worry about this matter. I will report the Xie family to the court and will not ask the Xie family to bring bad luck to Jiangling City because of Xie Xuan's death."

King Chen's kindness made Tang Gengfu and his brothers suspicious.

Regarding this matter... there is no need for Prince Chen to come all the way to talk to the Tang family. This is related to the safety of Jiangling City. If he wants to do a favor, wouldn't it be more appropriate to talk to the city commander?
"But do you know why Xie Xuan is determined to take over Jiangling City?"

Lord Fu shook his head: "This... We are just ordinary businessmen, and we don't understand the thoughts of the officials."

The three ministers of the Tang family wanted to shirk responsibility and pretend to be stupid, not wanting to get involved in state affairs and the military strategists quarreled with each other.

However, since Prince Chen had already arrived, he was determined to break through the gauze paper.

King Chen smiled and said, "I heard that the divine fortune teller helped the Tang family to come back to life more than ten years ago. Since there is a connection between you two, have you heard that the world's number one fortune teller once produced the Gou Gua before he disappeared?"

The three ministers looked at King Chen in astonishment.

"In the year of Jiu Zi Li Huo, floods and droughts coexist, and the world is about to be in chaos. Will the country be divided into eight parts?"

As soon as these words came out, the air seemed to be sucked out in an instant.

Mr. Fu said in a dry voice: "I have heard something about it."

"There must be seven kings among the eight, and the Xie family wants to be the eighth one."

Prince Chen's smile deepened, and his words flowed like an undercurrent of water. Everyone in the room breathed lightly and slowly, as if the slightest emphasis would break the solemn silence at that moment.

"Now, his prophecies are coming true one by one, but the Xie family has taken the lead in making the first move to conquer the world at this moment. It turns out that the Xie family's loyalty to Emperor Yue for so many years was fake, and they are actually just a poisonous snake lurking beside the emperor."

The Xie family is a poisonous snake? What about the seven kings?

Hai Gong was straightforward and said, "But what does this have to do with Jiangling City?"

"You naturally don't understand. Jiangling City may have been just an ordinary city in the past, but once the world is in chaos, it will become an extremely critical springboard."

He dipped his fingers in water and rolled a few circles on the table. "It connects the four major places of Jizhou, Guanzhong, Sanmenxia and Longxi. All the important transportation routes converge here. Therefore, as long as we take Jiangling City and build a fortress, we can control the entire "crossroads" and disgust all the passing troops."

Prince Chen actually told them such a shocking military secret, and Duke Fu was terrified.

"Your Majesty, you don't have to tell us merchants about these things."

But Prince Chen stared at them coldly and said slowly, "Since you know this top-secret matter, do you think you can stay out of it?"

Isn't this forced selling?

The three officials' faces changed suddenly.

"Now you, the Tang family, only have two choices. One is to be loyal to me and conspire with me for great things, or choose another... dead end."

"Lord Chen, my Tang family is just a merchant family. How can we be attached to you?"

They knelt down in fear and trepidation.

"Since ancient times, if you want to accomplish great things, how can you do it without money? Your Tang family is in my fiefdom. Without my protection, how can your Tang family's wealth increase? Now that I need your return, your Tang family should not refuse without any courtesy, right?"

The words that were deliberately hushed carried a strong threat tone.

(End of this chapter)