Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 1012 - 1012 0601 Daring to Mock Him_2

Chapter 1012: Chapter 0601: Daring to Mock Him_2 Chapter 1012: Chapter 0601: Daring to Mock Him_2 It’s an ugly thing to say, but many in Eastern Capital City have been counting on their fingers, calculating how many more days Emperor Jianwu can live. They are even plotting about how to divide up the cultivation resources left by Emperor Jianwu once he passes away, how to occupy Jianwu Palace, and how to purge the lineage of Emperor Jianwu.

Li Mijia was involved in these plans, with dozens of scenarios mapped out. He was even plotting that once Emperor Jianwu died, he might be able to get a reward from Huoyang Emperor and drive Zhao Shibo out of Prince Manor, then take over the Prince Manor for himself.

Now, Li Mijia suddenly heard that Emperor Jianwu hadn’t died and had even walked out of the small space, resuming control over the grand affairs of Jianwu Palace. The feeling was like having a cooked duck grow wings and fly away; he was extremely disappointed and shocked.

Li Mijia was very aware that whether Emperor Jianwu was personally presiding over the affairs of Jianwu Palace made a completely different situation. In the Imperial Family Secret Territory, princes had represented the topmost power for thousands of years. Even a prince who had just entered the Imperial Family Secret Territory was not to be taken lightly by anyone. This was even more the case for an emperor like Emperor Jianwu, who had been struggling in the Imperial Family Secret Territory for hundreds of years; he simply could not be disrespected by anyone.

In the Imperial Family Secret Territory, everyone, including Li Mijia, knew one thing: a prince’s dignity was never to be violated, at any time, any place. Once it was violated, even if it was just the prince himself who felt he had been disrespected by others, the consequences would be quite severe, and the perpetrator would definitely not have a good ending.

Li Mijia was very reluctant to believe what Zhao Shibo had said, but his rational mind told him that Zhao Shibo would never joke about such a matter. Li Mijia stared at Zhao Shibo for a long while before he could barely squeeze out a smile. He gave a cupped hands salute to Zhao Shibo and said, “Prince, since Lord Jianwu has once again taken charge, I humbly request that you pass on a message for me, asking if Lord Jianwu could spare a moment for a meeting. I have come on behalf of Huoyang Palace, and there are matters that require Lord Jianwu’s explanation.”

Having been arrogant earlier and respectful now, Zhao Shibo felt exceedingly comfortable. Now, in front of Li Mijia, he finally looked like a prince. With his hands clasped behind his back, he said, “Chief Li, I’m truly sorry. I never dare to defy a prince’s orders. Just now, the prince has already ordered not to allow you to set foot in Jianwu Palace. I can only obey the order and wouldn’t dare to disturb my lord over this matter again. Please understand.”

Li Mijia said, ” Prince, I am here on behalf of Huoyang Palace.”

Zhao Shibo said, “Right, you’re just representing Huoyang Palace, not the Huoyang Emperor himself. Isn’t it normal for the prince not to see you? What, you don’t think you’re the Huoyang Emperor himself, do you? When you come to our Jianwu Palace, do you really expect our emperor to have to see you?”

Li Mijia’s mouth twitched. Zhao Shibo was mocking him as merely a servant of Huoyang Palace, completely unworthy of facing Emperor Jianwu directly. Although what Zhao Shibo said was true to some extent, Li Mijia still felt it was unbearable. He was the Chief Guard of Huoyang Palace, a person second only to one and above tens of thousands within Huoyang Palace. Wherever he went, who dared not give him face? But now, Zhao Shibo dared to mock him, and not long ago Zhao Shibo had been nodding and bowing at him.

Furious yet unable to show it, Li Mijia said, “I’ve come representing Huoyang Palace with the intention to discuss matters neutrally and communicate properly with Jianwu Palace to clear things up. Once that happens, it’ll all be in the past. But now, Jianwu Palace won’t even allow me to set foot inside, which is not an attitude of solving problems. This is trivializing our Huoyang Palace. You are disregarding our Huoyang Palace, disregarding our emperor. I will certainly report everything that has happened here to the emperor in full. If the emperor decides to punish you later, I hope you will have no regrets.”

Zhao Shibo said, “Chief Li, can I interpret your words as a threat? Ha ha, don’t blame me for being blunt. You threaten me, that’s fine, but if your words threaten our emperor, Jianwu Palace, do you think you can bear the consequences? Don’t think Jianwu Palace is really afraid of your Huoyang Palace. I have been courteous to you because I don’t want to harm the peace between our two palaces, but that doesn’t mean Jianwu Palace is beneath Huoyang Palace in any way.”

Li Mijia knew that arguing with Zhao Shibo would be futile, failing to resolve any issue. Besides, standing outside the gates of Jianwu Palace, he lacked any home advantage. Thus, Li Mijia snorted coldly and swept away with a flick of his sleeves.

Watching Li Mijia’s departing figure, a cold smile played on Zhao Shibo’s lips. He had long grown tired of Li Mijia’s haughty demeanor, which never seemed to acknowledge his status as a prince. Now with the backing of his father, he thought, who within Eastern Capital City would dare to underestimate him as a prince?

Zhao Shibo turned back and said to the Imperial Guards guarding the palace gate, “Please inform them that the prince seeks an audience with his Highness.”

Before the Imperial Guard could go to announce him, a message from Emperor Jianwu came from within the palace.

“There’s no need for you to come in, nor should you return to your Prince Manor. Take your men and stand guard outside Jianwu Palace from this moment on. No one is permitted to step into Jianwu Palace. If anyone refuses to listen and insists on forcing their way inside, you have my permission to execute first and report later.”

Zhao Shibo was startled by the command. As a son of Emperor Jianwu, in the hundreds of years since his birth, his father rarely asked him to personally lead men to defend him. The few times he did, it was always when his father faced grave danger, not fully trusting outsiders, but instead relying on his own son to protect him.

Zhao Shibo urgently responded, “Father, is someone planning to harm you? Tell me who is it that dares to move against you? I will lead men to raid his house immediately and exterminate his entire family.”

Emperor Jianwu replied, “Don’t let your thoughts run wild. There’s no need for such reckless inquiries. All you need to do now is focus on one thing: follow my orders strictly—do as I command, no questions asked. Did you hear me?”

Though Emperor Jianwu’s voice was stern, it didn’t reveal any urgency, which somewhat relieved Zhao Shibo. He quickly agreed, “I will immediately summon all the Gold Core Realm experts from the Prince Manor. If anyone dares to harm you at this time, they will have to step over my dead body first.”

Having pledged his loyalty to his father, Zhao Shibo promptly ordered his men to gather all available hands from the Prince Manor and position them around the exterior of Jianwu Palace.

Qi Tian had been cultivating within Jianwu Palace, stirring the Spirit Qi, which already attracted the attention of several nearby palaces. Although only Li Mijia from Huoyang Palace had come to seek information, the truth was that others from different palaces were also looking in this direction, trying to discern what was happening. Now, noticing Zhao Shibo personally fetching troops from Prince Manor to guard outside Jianwu Palace, the other palaces took the situation seriously and contemplated investigating further.