I Am Immortal In The Cultivation World novel Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Loyalty to One’s Country

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

“So, it’s someone from the Li family. Mr. Liu, you have to use your trump card!”

Zhou Yi opened the food box. There were four cold and four hot dishes. They looked and smelled good. The wine pot was also a hundred years old. To be able to find such good wine in one night, the warden must have put in a lot of effort.

“But of course.” Head Chef Liu pursed his lips. “I’ve used all the skills of my ancestors for fear of angering her.”

There were also many unspoken rules in the small kitchen of Sky Prison, especially for cell C-9. Chef Liu had to customize meals according to the prisoner’s title, official position, and close relatives. They could not be generalized. If the Duke’s family ate the same dishes as the Assistant Minister’s family member, it would definitely cause trouble!

These profligate young masters were extremely bored. All that’s left is to compete for face. One could eat cold food and drink hundred-year-old wine in the Sky Prisonand be better off than those eating four hot dishes!

In the eyes of ordinary people, the reason why noble young masters were jealous of each other was that they had nothing to do and were bored to death. However, they had to follow the orders of the officials in the Sky Prison.

The most powerful family in the Chongming Dynasty was the Long family. Now, the treatment that had been reserved for Young Master Long had been transferred to the Li family.

Li Wu razed the Fengyang Kingdom to the north and south. After resting for a year, he led a million troops to fight with Great Yong in the north and vowed to take back the lost three states. Now, their power was even greater than the Long family of the Chongming Dynasty!

Zhou Yi carried the food box to Prison C9 and met Lieutenant Zhu, who was in charge of day-time duty.

Commandant Zhu repeatedly reminded him, “Zhou Yi, you must be careful. That master is a fierce person. If he goes crazy, I won’t dare to save you!”

Zhou Yi said in surprise, “Commander, we’re just delivering food…”

“Do you know why he was sentenced to the Sky Prison?” Lieutenant Zhu reminded him in a low voice, “He sent troops to plunder the trade route and pretended to suppress the bandits. Instead, he slaughtered a few villages and claimed the job was done!”

…

Zhou Yi was silent for a long time before asking, “Who would dare to expose such a shocking matter?”

To plunder and kill the innocent!

Who among the nine clans of the Li family wasn’t a criminal? That included Great General Li Wu. He could lead an army of a million troops to attack the north. If this matter wasn’t handled properly, the world would be overturned!

Now that even Commandant Zhu knew, it was obvious that he could no longer hide it. It was equivalent to announcing the Li family’s crimes to the world.

Zhou Yi did not think that the imperial court, or Emperor Hongchang, had the guts!

Commandant Zhu said, “Who else could it be? It was Prime Minister Zhang!”

After Emperor Hongchang ascended the throne, he massacred the remaining members of Long’s court. The four ministers were all implicated. Now, the person ranked as the Grand Secretary was his teacher, Zhang Zhengyang.

“No wonder.”

Zhou Yi had never seen Zhang Zhengyang before, but from the rumors in the city, he only felt that this person was an important person in the empire. It was rumored that after Zhang Zhengyang became the Grand Secretary, the first time he penned a statement, he resolved a major crisis in Fengyang.

It was better to be safe than sorry!

It was also Zhang Zhengyang who proposed the strategy of exempting all taxes for five years to win over the hearts of the rebel army and completely cut off the problem of the rebel army’s revival.

In seven years, Zhang Zhengyang was the only person who could compare to Li Wu.

Cell C-9.

Zhou Yi opened the cell door and took out the dishes from the food box and placed them on the table.

“Time to eat, my lord.”

“Yeah.”

The prisoner sat cross-legged on the soft couch in the inner room without opening his eyes. He let out a soft snort from his nose.

Zhou Yi bowed and retreated. The feeling this person gave him was not merely the arrogance of ordinary popinjays. Instead, he looked down on everyone.

“How fearless!”

…

Several days passed.

Zhou Yi came to the small room to get food and realized that Chef Liu was not there.

“What’s wrong with this guy?”

Word of Li Xiong’s crimes had already spread like wildfire in the market. A few days prior, many people were beating the imperial drums and crying out injustice, claiming to be relatives of those villages.

The imperial court pretended not to hear.

In the end, it was still the constables of the capital government who invited the innocent to leave one by one, then began locking them up on the grounds that they had gathered to cause trouble.

After this incident, the Imperial Court became a place for the people to vent their anger. Every day, the gate was stained with all kinds of filth.

The Imperial Censor wrote a letter to the governor of the Divine Capital, stating that he had treated the people harshly, neglected his duty, and protected criminals. However, He didn’t mention the Li family by name.

The governor of the Shenjing Prefecture was helpless. He sent a letter to confess and apologize and then went to jail. In a short period of time, the Divine Capital could be said to have changed drastically. The center of the storm was now cell C-9.

Chef Liu seemed to have gone crazy. Zhou Yi hurriedly went to look for Lieutenant Zhu and asked him about the day’s food delivery.

Lieutenant Zhu said righteously, “He’s also a prisoner in Sky Prison. He’ll eat whatever others eat. There’s no need to treat him differently!”

Zhou Yi frowned slightly, then said in realization, “There’s news from the north?”

“If you had led your troops into a noble house and killed the traitor who smuggled the armaments on the spot, perhaps General Li would have spared your life. However, you didn’t dare to do so and only slaughtered the commoners!” Zhou Yi shook his head and said, “Such a character who bullies the weak and fears the strong seems to be no different from a dog raised by flies.”

Li Xiong slowly turned his head and finally looked at Zhou Yi. “Sharp-tongued smart ass!”

Zhou Yi shrugged and left with the bucket.

“When your family comes later, I’ll arrange for you to be imprisoned with your children. Cherish your last night together!”

…

Fengtian Palace.

Silence.

The Emperor dismissed the servants to both sides of him, leaving only Zhang Zhengyang in the hall.

“Teacher, this storm is too dangerous.”

Emperor Hongchang walked down from the hall and personally carried two brocade piers. He sat down and looked at Zhang Zhengyang.

“Your Majesty, I have no choice.” Zhang Zhengyang bowed, sat down, and said, “The civil officials have the heart to rebel. Even if they are as powerful as the Long Rebellion, they can still be destroyed overnight. Military officials like Li Wu, who are brave enough to challenge you, whose achievements cover the world…” He paused, as if weighing his words. After a moment, he said, “It’s possible to abolish it!”

Emperor Hongchang frowned. “Teacher, Minister Li is devoted to the king’s affairs and is strict with his clansmen. How can the Long Rebellion be compared to him?”

“This is what’s terrifying. It’s fine if Li Wu is as greedy and violent as the Long Rebellion, but he just had to be strict with his clansmen to buy the hearts of the people. Clearly, he has a big plan! This time, Li Xiong committed a crime. I sent someone to publicly announce it. My intention was to let Li Wu submit a letter. The Imperial Court is forced to spare Li Xiong and his family.”

Zhang Zhengyang said, “How could I have thought that Li Wu could even be so ruthless as to kill his own uncle and cousin? Such a heartless and decisive person, is he even the slightest bit loyal?”

Emperor Hongchang was puzzled, “The crimes committed by Li Xiong are unforgivable. Teacher, why are you doing this?”

“With this, we can break Li Wu’s golden body of reputation. He can lead troops and conquer the world, but he can’t be famous!”

Zhang Zhengyang said, “The people will never allow a person who protects his relatives and slaughters the people to rule the world. In this way, His Majesty can rest easy.”

Emperor Hongchang shook his head and said, “Teacher, the history books say that the world should be ruled by the strong. If Minister Li really has the intention to rebel, with his military prestige, I’m not confident…”

“The history books are right, but they can’t be trusted.” Zhang Zhengyang said, “After the chaos of the previous emperor’s reign, the people have only been able to live a stable life for a few years. They definitely don’t want there to be any chaos. With billions of people like this, it can be said to be the general trend. It’s not something that soldiers and horses can do.”

Emperor Hongchang was silent for a long time, but he still shook his head slowly.

“Minister Li is loyal to the country. Back then, he followed the edict and swept the north and south. That’s why I’m here today!”

“If Minister Li did not betray me, I will not betray him!”