Chapter 14

"Alright. You can go ahead and arrange it, my strategist." Xiao Sheng slowly said, "Back then, when Mother fell ill and passed away, I was still young and didn't notice anything unusual. But now, when I look back, I feel that something was very wrong, almost everywhere seemed suspicious.

"Hey, no matter what, I must investigate this matter thoroughly. If Mother was indeed murdered by someone, then no matter who the killer is, I will make them pay with their blood!"

"Your mother, Lady Mu, was the most favored concubine in the palace at that time. Apart from the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, the Empress, and the other two concubines, no one else had a higher status than her."

Yu Xuanji paused and continued, "Therefore, if your mother was indeed killed by someone, the power behind the killer must be unimaginably strong. Unless you can become a peak Martial Saint, you won't be able to take revenge on your own.

"Because of this, you, my lord, need to establish a force that is entirely your own. To build a force, you first need experts.

"According to my divination, the 36 Celestial Spirits and the 72 Earthly Fiends, a total of 108 Star Palace members, are destined to be reborn in this world within the next hundred years.

"As long as you can gather all 108 star spirits as your subordinates, and use these experts as the foundation to establish the Immovable Star Palace, then no matter how powerful the person who killed your mother is, taking revenge will be as easy as turning your hand."

"Rome wasn't built in a day. Let's not talk about things too far away for now." Xiao Sheng shook his head, stood up, and said, "Strategist, after you have everything arranged, send the message to the palace as usual, and I will act according to the plan. Well, I've been out for quite a while, it's time to go back. Strategist, I'll take my leave."

Yu Xuanji didn't respond, but gently flicked her sleeve, creating a gentle breeze. The ancient green zither hanging on the bamboo wall suddenly jumped up and flew into Yu Xuanji's hands like a returning swallow. With a light "tap," the zither landed steadily on the bamboo table.

Yu Xuanji's delicate fingers lightly plucked the strings, producing a clear and cool sound. The music continued, leaping from the strings, forming a farewell tune, "Three Stacks of Yangguan."

Xiao Sheng smiled, turned, and was about to step out the door. But before he crossed the threshold, a green figure, out of breath, ran over, shouting, "Young Master, Miss, it's bad, it's bad! Someone is causing trouble!" It was Yu Xuanji's maid, Xiaocui.

Before Xiaocui even entered the bamboo pavilion, a sudden change occurred. A strange, cow-like bellow erupted from a distance, shaking the sky and heard far and wide.

In an instant, all the windows, doors, and tiles in the Guose Tower were rattled by the strange bellow. Dust fell from the beams, choking the guests. Numerous wine bottles, cups, chopsticks, and plates fell to the ground, shattering.

In a moment, countless curses and screams, mixed with coughs and sneezes, rose in a cacophony. The once peaceful and beautiful place was now in chaos, a mess everywhere. The tangible and intangible losses to the Guose Tower were incalculable.

All the buildings in the Guose Tower were divided into small courtyards, isolated from each other. Standing in this small garden, one couldn't see what was happening outside. However, based on Xiaocui's words, it was easy to guess that the person who made the strange bellow was likely targeting Yu Xuanji, the top courtesan of Luoyang.

Xiao Sheng stopped, turned to his strategist, Tianji Star, and smiled, "It seems I can't go back now." He then said kindly, "Xiaocui, don't panic. What exactly happened? Who is causing trouble?"

Xiaocui, with a look of fear, threw herself into Yu Xuanji's arms, tightly hugging her mistress's waist, and stammered, "It's a group of very fierce Donghuang people. They don't follow any rules. As soon as they came in and sat down, they started complaining and criticizing everything. They also cursed the girls in the tower for not being charming enough...

"That's not all. They specifically demanded that the lady come out to drink with them. They are clearly here to cause trouble. Aunt Mei sent someone to tell the lady to give instructions on what to do."

The Guose Tower, located in the heart of Luoyang, was the top establishment in the pleasure district. It made a fortune every day. Naturally, there were many envious people. However, the Guose Tower was a property of the Music Bureau. It was impossible to interfere with it through official channels. So, many people resorted to underhanded tactics, trying to take a bite out of this big piece of meat.

These troublemakers were usually handled by the madams (equivalent to hostesses or PR managers) of the tower. They would say some nice words, apologize carefully, give some money, and calm the guests down. This was the soft approach.

If the soft approach didn't work, then the hard approach would be used. The tower's manager (equivalent to the head of security) was a peak Martial Warrior at the "Five Qi Converging" stage, just one step away from the "Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown" stage of a Grandmaster.

In addition, the tower had over a hundred strong servants, all of whom were at the "Sinew Transformation" stage of martial arts. Although most were only at the first or second level, far below the ninth prince, who was also at the martial arts stage, they had received strict training and could almost match the regular army of the Da Hao Empire.

Over a hundred trained, disciplined martial artists, armed with fine weapons, forming a formation and charging together, had immense power. Even a fake Grandmaster like the Duke of Bai Li Kun Luo would have to retreat, not daring to fight head-on.

However, the appearance of that strange bellow seemed to indicate that neither the soft nor the hard approach could control the situation.

Xiao Sheng and Yu Xuanji looked at each other and nodded slightly. The fourteenth prince smiled and said, "Xiaocui, don't be afraid. Those Donghuang ruffians want to see the top courtesan of Luoyang? Fine. Strategist, let's go out and meet them. What do you think?"

Yu Xuanji patted Xiaocui's head, whispered a few words of comfort, and then picked up the zither from the bamboo table, walking out decisively, truly showing that women can be as capable as men.

The two walked side by side, following the corridor through several courtyards. They arrived at the reception building of the Guose Tower, which was the first building facing the street. Usually, first-time guests to the Guose Tower would be arranged to enter the reception building, where the madams would introduce the girls. If everything went as expected, the group of Donghuang ruffians should be in the reception building right now.

"Spit, what a fraud, this so-called top pleasure house in Luoyang! Look at this wine, it's sour! Look at this food, it's rotten! Look at this girl, she's old and ugly, and she stinks like a fox. Damn, even the streetwalkers in Donghuang, who cost fifty coins, are better than this. How dare they take my money? Damn, the people of Zhonghuan are indeed a bunch of greedy locusts!"

Just as they reached the reception building, a buzzing, cow-like, and horse-like, strange and unpleasant voice drifted into Xiao Sheng's ears. Not only were the curses vicious, but a clear "slap" sound followed, indicating that someone had been hit.

Xiao Sheng's face darkened, and he shouted, "Where do you barbarians come from, daring to bark in Luoyang? Don't you open your dog eyes and see where you are? Want to cause trouble? You've come to the wrong place!"

The Da Hao Empire ruled over 99 states and 12,960 counties, with a population of millions. An ordinary person riding a fast horse from the capital of the Da Hao Empire, Luoyang, would need at least a year to reach any of the four borders. The vast territory was unmatched by any other country in the world.

Ruling such a vast territory naturally presented certain difficulties. Therefore, 2,000 years ago, the founding emperor of the Yun Ding Dynasty, Zhou Yu, divided the empire into five regions based on the flow of mountains and rivers: Donghuang, Nanman, Xijing, Beijiang, and Zhonghuan. This administrative and geographical division has been used ever since.

Zhonghuan, located in the center of the empire, had the largest population, the richest land, the most abundant resources, and the most prosperous trade.

Xijing and Beijiang, in terms of resource richness, were not inferior to Zhonghuan. However, due to the lack of rain and harsh climate, they were sparsely populated and much weaker in overall strength compared to Zhonghuan.

Nanman, with its hot and humid climate, was filled with miasma. Throughout history, a policy of indirect rule was implemented here. The locals only knew their local chieftains and not the central government, effectively making it a semi-independent kingdom.

As for Donghuang, the situation was more special.

Over a hundred years ago, the Zhu Guo Dynasty (also known as the Qing Dynasty), which ruled the empire, faced internal and external troubles, and the people lived in misery. The "Eagle Auspicious" country from the far west took advantage of the situation and launched an attack. The Zhu Guo Dynasty suffered a great defeat and was forced to cede Donghuang to the Eagle Auspicious country as a colony, a humiliating loss of national sovereignty.

After the fall of the Zhu Guo Dynasty, various warlords rose up, and the land was filled with war. Due to its remote location and scarce resources, Donghuang saw little fighting. Many people fled to Donghuang to avoid the war, trading various scarce goods and profiting from the war.

After several decades, Donghuang became significantly prosperous, even surpassing Zhonghuan for a time.

Later, the founding emperor of the Xiao family swept away the warlords and established the Da Hao Dynasty. After nearly half a century of rest and governance, the empire regained its former glory. When the current emperor, Emperor Xuan, ascended the throne, his first major action was to personally lead an army to reclaim Donghuang.

The Eagle Auspicious country, seeing the situation, knew it couldn't match the Da Hao Empire's army. Therefore, they had to retreat, returning the colony they had ruled for nearly a century to its original owners. The Da Hao Empire reclaimed Donghuang, completing the unification of the empire.