The Vermilion Bird Empire is now in chaos. Large armies are pressing toward the border, exerting pressure from eight directions, like eight sharp blades aimed at the Vermilion Bird Empire.
A great war was about to erupt, and the people of the Vermilion Bird Empire, who hadn't fought for hundreds of thousands of years, were instantly gripped by fear.
Countless people began fleeing the city. In the chaos, all kinds of negative news flew everywhere, especially some scholars who wrote articles, secretly fanning the flames and spreading a large amount of false information.
He said that war had already broken out somewhere, and the Vermilion Bird army was strewn with corpses, no match for others. Soon, this place would be engulfed in the flames of war, and everyone would be doomed.
Some even wrote the "Diary of So-and-and-So," filled with rumors slandering the Vermilion Bird Empire, and under the instigation of certain people, spread them widely, deliberately inciting dissatisfaction and disturbing public sentiment.
They called on these citizens to start protesting against the Vermilion Bird Empire, and welcomed external forces to notify the empire, so they could live a good life.
The armies of the eight great empires hadn't even taken action, yet the empire itself was already in chaos and panic.
Meanwhile, the sky above the Vermilion Bird Imperial Capital was shrouded in dark clouds. The tense atmosphere made this bustling and lively city grow quiet, with patrolling soldiers filling the streets, and the entire city was placed under martial law.
Now the Vermilion Bird Empire is in crisis, having begun recruiting soldiers nationwide, with extremely generous benefits.
However, the Eight Great Empires joining forces against the Vermilion Bird Empire is a battle with a huge disparity in rank—there's simply no way to win.
More importantly, before the action even began, the hearts of the Vermilion Bird Empire were already in chaos. That time, Long Chen slaughtered the Confucius' Courtyard, killing many scholars.
Now, this act is seen as a tyranny to eliminate dissenters, because scholars have learned too many of the Vermilion Bird Empire's flaws, and the empire wants to kill them to silence them.
In short, all kinds of rumors are extremely unfavorable to the Vermilion Bird Empire, and it's hard to tell truth from falsehood. With the people in chaos, it's like a pile of scattered sand.
Inside the palace hall, Yu Xiaoyun sat above, his face dark and murderous intent terrifying. None of the ministers dared to speak.
"Everyone has eaten too much peace, and they don't even know how to fight. If they scare them a little, they'll turn into chaos like this, disgracing the Vermilion Bird." Yu Xiaoyun roared angrily.
All the civil and military officials present were terrified, not daring to make a sound. They all knew the emperor was angry at this moment, and no one dared to provoke his misfortune.
"Our Vermilion Bird Empire is full of talent, flourishing in culture and martial arts, reaching unprecedented glory. Tell me, why is it so disgraceful?" Yu Xiaoyun said angrily.
Yu Xiaoyun's gaze swept over the civil and military officials, over all the princes and princesses, but no one dared to answer. The entire hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
"Yunwen, as the eldest prince, tell me, how did the empire fall to this state?" Yu Xiaoyun shouted coldly.
If Long Chen and the others were here, they would be surprised to find that the Crown Prince, Yu Qingxuan, Zhu Yifeng, Yu Qianxue, and other princes and princesses were all in the main hall.
When 'Zhu Yunwen' was asked about him, he could only grit his teeth and stand up, gritting his teeth and saying, "
This is the inevitable result of valuing civil over military affairs. In times of peace and prosperity, with music and dance, martial artists have no place to show their skills.
With literary trends flourishing, martial artists are suppressed. Hundreds of years of self-sacrificing and selfless cultivation are not as high as those who earned fame through years of hard study. Didn't you even write your own hand: All trades are inferior, but only studying is noble?
Now that a great war is approaching, you cannot prepare in advance; without troops to use, yet you blame us, this is truly the behavior of a wise ruler. "
Zhu Yunwen" Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions in the grand hall changed. They stared at the Crown Prince in disbelief.
"How dare you!"
Sure enough, Yu Xiaoyun was furious: "How dare you speak to me like that? Are you blaming me for being blind and bringing this upon myself?" Facing
the furious Yu Xiaoyun, Zhu Yunwen gritted his teeth and shouted as if he had thrown caution to the wind:
"Yunwen dares not offend the imperial dignity, but in times of peace and prosperity, luxury is rampant. Martial artists are not welcomed, while scholars can flatter and praise the royal family.
Martial artists have no place to use their skills and are naturally looked down upon. There are already ranks and levels—who wouldn't want to be respected and climb higher?
A martial artist is a martial artist, a scholar is a scholar, but you insist we have both literary and martial skills. Long Chen once said, studying literature is about reasoning with others, while martial arts is about persuading us.
Since we practice martial arts, why should we learn any other principles? It wasted such valuable time and also drained the sharpness and dominance that a martial artist should possess.
With the current literary atmosphere prevailing, everyone lacks the will and determination to fight to the death, weak and unwilling to face others. Who else can you blame?
On the battlefield, fearless true men are like scholars. Those scholars love to reason so much—why don't you have them to reason with the Eight Great Empires? "
Bastard, someone, lock this unfilial son in a dark room and not let him out for ten days." Yu Xiaoyun was trembling with anger and shouted harshly.
"Father, you must not ...!"
The princes and daughters and ministers cried out in alarm. Ten days in a dark room—except for Long Chen, no one else could hold out. This was no different from killing him.
"Your Majesty..."
Even the two empresses couldn't stand it anymore.
"Five days. No one is allowed to speak again, or they will all be locked up together." Yu Xiaoyun seemed to think ten days was too much, but punishment was inevitable—he had to be dealt with severely.
"Court is dismissed,"
Yu Xiaoyun said, then stood up with a dark expression, flicked his sleeve, and left.
The two empresses hurried after him, while the other ministers and princes and princesses silently withdrew. Now, not only was the empire in chaos, but the imperial city itself was about to be thrown into chaos.
Yu Xiaoyun, Jiang Huixin, and Xu Lanxin arrived at the entrance of the Vermilion Bird Trial. Yu Xiaoyun looked relaxed, his anger gone from earlier.
It turned out that everything in the grand hall was just a performance, creating a tense atmosphere, and among the ministers in the hall, there were spies and spies of the enemy—all of this was done for others to see.
The eldest prince, Yu Qingxuan, and others in the grand hall were all pretended by special personnel, and Long Chen and the others entering the Vermilion Bird trial were all classified secrets.
"They've already reached the sixth level. Clearly, they already know the situation of the empire and are fighting desperately." Jiang Huixin looked at the divine image on the main gate and said.
"We can only try to delay for a trial of unprecedented strength. We don't know if they can break through." Xu Lanxin said with some concern.
"Don't worry, with that rascal here, there will definitely be no problem." Yu Xiaoyun said.
"Brother Xiaoyun, do you have that much faith in Long Chen?" Xu Lanxin said in surprise.
"I'm not confident in him, but in the Heavenly Dao." Yu Xiaoyun said.
"What do you mean?"
"Good people don't live long, but troublemakers last a thousand years. This kid is a troublemaker—he won't have a short life." Yu Xiaoyun said irritably.
Jiang Huixin: "..."
Xu Lanxin: "..."