Casting immortality in the furnace

Chapter 63 Establishment of the State in Fujian

Lou Zhenqing looked at the boy who had died tragically on the ground, feeling slightly displeased, and frowned, saying:

"My lord, if you wish to interrogate the assassin, you should have your servants do it. Why do you do it yourself? This is not the behavior of a ruler."

Si Wuju's expression changed slightly.

He secretly traveled south and arrived at Langdang Mountain Market. Suddenly, he heard that Chenxing had been assassinated. He was shocked and furious and immediately ordered Qingji to arrest the person.

Qing Ji was a renowned swordsman in Yue. Even though Zhai Yao possessed a secret treasure like the Hidden Bat Robe, he couldn't escape Qing Ji's sword heart detection and was immediately captured.

Si Wuju initially thought that Zhai Yao was sent by the Fujian forces, so he had Qing Ji interrogate him.

Little did anyone know that after Zhai Yao stabbed Princess Chenxing, she was utterly despondent and had nothing left to hide.

Without being interrogated, she told him everything about how she met Chenxing, got to know her, fell in love with her, was forced to separate, and even had her entire clan wiped out. She then turned her love into hatred, thinking of killing her to avenge her clan and then ending her own life.

Si Wuju was dumbfounded. He never expected that there was such a hidden story behind this assassination attempt.

The thought that his fiancée had once been in love with another man and even made vows of eternal love filled him with rage, and he immediately broke Zhai Yao's legs.

Seeing Si Wuju's inexplicable anger, Zhai Yao immediately guessed his identity. He was both shocked and furious, and no longer cared about anything else. He fabricated a whole bunch of experiences with Chen Xing, describing them vividly and in an extremely romantic way, only wanting to die quickly so as not to drag Chen Xing down with him.

Si Wuju was furious. Although she knew that Gu Mie dared to arrange a marriage between Chen Xing and her, she must still be a virgin and had never lost her virginity.

But when she thought that there was a ten percent or twenty percent truth in what this kid was saying, which would be no different from losing her virginity, she was instantly enraged and beat Zhai Yao to death.

Even so, Si Wuju was still filled with resentment and wished he could kill that vile woman immediately and sever the marriage alliance with the Gumi tribe. However, when he thought that this was his father's order, he gave up the idea and could only send a telepathic message to Lou Zhenqing, asking him to send Zhai Yao's head to Chenxing to punish her properly.

Of course, he couldn't tell Lou Zhenqing these private matters.

Having been reprimanded by Lou Zhenqing, Si Wuju could only grit his teeth and say:

"Doctor Lou is right. But the thought that this scoundrel dared to assassinate Princess Changming fills me with rage, and I can't help but teach him a lesson myself."

His words were half true and half false, but the expression on his face truly revealed his feelings.

Lou Zhenqing couldn't see anything unusual. Although he felt that the young master was too extreme, the assassin was indeed extremely wicked, so he couldn't say anything more.

Si Wuju, unwilling to discuss this matter further, changed the subject:

"Dr. Lou, how is Princess Chenxing's injury?"

He wished Chenxing would die so that the Gumi tribe could replace her with a princess.

Lou Zhenqing looked relieved. "The princess is blessed with good fortune. Although she has been poisoned, it is not life-threatening. She should recover soon."

Si Wuju lowered her gaze and sighed:

"That's wonderful! I've been so worried about her."

He walked to a table to the side, invited Lou Zhenqing to sit opposite him, and began to discuss serious matters.

"Dr. Lou, do you have any plans regarding establishing a state in Fujian?"

The marriage between Si Wuju and Chenxing was a result of the alliance between the Yue Kingdom and the Gumi Kingdom.

The King of Yue has already drafted an edict, granting Si Wuju a territory spanning five hundred li south of Langdang Mountain as his domain.

But merely drafting an edict means that the establishment of a nation is nothing more than a hollow formality.

Because the territory that the King of Yue granted to Si Wuju was not even within the territory of the Yue Kingdom!

South of Langdang Mountain lies the Min region, which belongs to the seven major royal families of Min.

The territory granted by the King of Yue was partly to the Gumi tribe and partly to the Zhuqie tribe.

Although the Great King of Gome agreed to cede his portion of the territory, plus two large cities, as part of his dowry.

But how could the remaining territory of the Zhuqie tribe possibly be given up for nothing?

Only Si Wuju could win it by himself.

However, King Yue has now moved the capital to the north and taken most of his army with him. It is impossible for him to send troops from afar to help him conquer territory.

Si Wuju's greatest hope at the moment is to rely on his status as a prince to gather some capable people from the Yue Kingdom to assist him, and then borrow troops from the Gumi tribe to take over the territory belonging to the Zhuqie tribe.

Lou Zhenqing was the capable person he invited.

After Si Wuju agreed to the matter, he appointed Lou Zhenqing as a senior official and concurrently as the prime minister, thus entrusting him with the important task of establishing the country.

Lou Zhenqing has been busy with this matter recently. Now that Si Wuju asked about the plan, he was not flustered and took out a map:

"Young master, please take a look. This is a geomantic map that Elder Chen Qing gave me, which includes the terrain a hundred miles south of Langdang Mountain."

Si Wuju frowned. Seeing that the map was mostly filled with barren mountains and treacherous waters, and the marked areas were either dilapidated villages or places inhabited by demons, without a single city, he couldn't help but ask:

"There's no strategic location on this map, so what's the point of looking at it?"

"Although it has no strategic location, it has tens of thousands of men."

Lou Zhenqing patiently explained, "The Fujian region is wild and uncivilized. Most of the land is unsuitable for farming or property ownership. Even if we control it, it would be of little use."

"But if these people can be deployed properly, they will be a great help, whether it is to open up new land and roads or to recruit soldiers. I plan to gather them together and send people to train and integrate them."

Si Wuju nodded, then pondered for a moment and said:

"In this case, the food rations for these people would be a considerable sum. It would be better to let the Gumi tribe take charge of this matter and save some expenses."

Lou Zhenqing shook his head. "Young master, the reason I want to assimilate these villagers is to free them from the control of the tribes in Fujian and make them your subordinates who will only obey you."

Si Wuju was no fool; he immediately understood after hearing what he said.

Because the Min region was isolated, most people were unaware of the power of the Yue Kingdom, only knowing the terrifying nature of the various royal families.

If he doesn't win over a group of people, who will listen to his orders?

Moreover, promoting capable individuals from among these lower-level villagers to assist in state affairs could also divert the influence of the Gumi tribe.

It can also cause the two to fight each other, wasting their energy, while he himself remains at ease.

Si Wuju thought about many things for a moment, then smiled and praised:

"Dr. Lou is very thoughtful. I will definitely provide full assistance for this matter. Just let me know how much money and grain you need."

Lou Zhenqing nodded slightly and then began to talk about matters such as the preparation of provisions and the forging of weapons and armor.

Si Wuju stopped interrupting, her heart aching more and more as she calculated.

All of these things cost money!

Although he has accumulated some wealth over the years, it is still far from enough to expand his territory, and he still needs the support of the Gumi tribe.

"It's also my father's fault for being biased, sealing my brothers within the country while banishing me to this desolate land."

When the State of Wu was at its peak, it was defeated by the King of Yue, which shocked the world. The King of Yue then became the hegemon among the feudal lords and inherited all of Wu's territory.

With its vast territory stretching from Shandong in the north to Fujian in the south, from Poyang Lake in the west to the two seas in the east, it had no place for him.

Si Wuju sighed inwardly, and looking at the small hundred-mile map on the table again, he felt it was not worth it at all.

"Though I am young, I am the son of a hegemon. How can this mere five hundred miles of territory be a place for a great man to settle down?"

Si Wuju's resolve gradually hardened, but he kept it deep inside and didn't show it, listening attentively to Lou Zhenqing's arrangements.

"what?"

Qingji, who had been standing silently behind his young master, suddenly looked surprised.

Without saying a word, he turned and disappeared.

Before long, he reappeared in the side room, this time with a man in black robes in his hand.

Qingji threw the person on the ground and explained:

"Just now, the Gumi tribe sent out a assassin to secretly infiltrate the market and kill a young man, but the young man comprehended the sword's power at the critical moment and killed the assassin instead."

Si Wuju frowned, noticing that the assassin's black robe was the same as Zhai Yao's, only of lower quality.

He couldn't help but sneer, "The Gumi tribe has deliberately sent us this explanation, as if they're afraid we won't be able to catch the assassin."

Now that Si Wuju has learned about Zhai Yao and Chen Xing's past, and knows that the Gu Mie tribe's actions are to protect Zhai Yao, fearing that she will be caught by the sword furnace, he is both angry and resentful.

Lou Zhenqing was taken aback, realizing that he had been in the market without knowing that an assassin had entered, while Qing Ji had detected it from the beginning. He felt secretly ashamed.

Unexpectedly, Qingji praised him in return:

"Dr. Lou is truly a master teacher who produces outstanding students."

Lou Zhenqing was taken aback, thinking Qing Ji's words were sarcastic. His face darkened, and he stood up, saying:

"It is true that my skills are lacking and my cultivation is low, so it is understandable that Lord Qingji looks down on me. But to dare to belittle even my master is far too arrogant!"

He suddenly drew his sword, a deep blue light emanating from it, its shape unfathomable. Countless runes flowed across the blade, arranging themselves into the shape of stars. It was none other than the Listening Rain Sword, the sword that made him famous.

"I am but a humble man, Lou, and today I would like to ask Lord Qingji for some guidance."

Qingji was greatly surprised to see that he looked like he was about to fight him to the death.

"I'm talking about your disciple, what does that have to do with your master?"

Lou Zhenqing was taken aback and asked in confusion:

"None of my disciples are here. Why are you mentioning them?"

Qing Ji asked in confusion, "Isn't that Fan Zhou your disciple?"

"Fan Zhou?"

Lou Zhenqing was greatly alarmed and pointed at the black-robed assassin that Qing Ji had captured, shouting:

"He assassinated Fan Zhou!"

Lou Zhenqing was extremely anxious. He was planning to take Fan Zhou as his disciple, but Fan Zhou was assassinated right under his nose. It was a great disgrace!

Lou Zhenqing was about to go find Fan Zhou, but then she suddenly realized something, and her expression became even more horrified:

"Fan Zhou killed this assassin?!"