"Mm-hmm."
Yin Changli no longer had the luxury to ponder over trivial matters.
The thought of meeting Yin Fengqi soon made Yin Changli somewhat nervous. Ever since he was a child, he had always harbored a sense of fear towards this man.
Despite the fact that this man was his own father.
When Yin Changli was in Medical King Valley, he saw other disciples occasionally visited by their parents, and he was incredibly envious. He often wished his own father were an ordinary man.
Having an emperor as a father might seem enviable to many, but only Yin Changli knew the misfortune of being born into the royal family.
The carriage slowly arrived at the entrance of the imperial palace.
Upon arrival, they were stopped by the guards.
Yin Changli declared his identity, but the gatekeepers seemed to have never heard of this name, nor did they recognize such a prince. They even suspected someone was impersonating a prince to cause trouble.
Fortunately, Li Changqing was there. Li Changqing showed the token given to him by Yin Fengqi, and only then did everyone kneel down and allow the carriage to enter the palace.
In the vast imperial palace, many people saw the carriage approaching. Whether maids or eunuchs, they all quickly knelt aside and only dared to stand up after the carriage had passed.
Because only those of extremely noble status were permitted to ride carriages within the imperial palace.
And such permission was granted by imperial authority.
Yin Fengqi had just finished a court session when he heard that Li Changqing had arrived and was arranged to be in the Huangyun Hall.
Yin Fengqi hurried to meet Li Changqing.
In Huangyun Hall, Li Changqing and Yin Changli sat there, but Yin Changli felt even more uneasy at this moment.
"Don't be nervous, what's there to be nervous about meeting your own father?" Li Changqing comforted Yin Changli, but conveniently forgot how nervous he himself had been when he first met his son.
Even more nervous than Yin Changli was now.
"Master Changqing."
At this moment, Yin Fengqi's voice came from outside.
The palace maids and eunuchs inside quickly knelt down to welcome Yin Fengqi's arrival, but Yin Fengqi didn't bother with them and headed straight for Li Changqing.
"Your Majesty." Li Changqing nodded in greeting.
At this time, Yin Changli also quickly stood up, knelt down to Yin Fengqi, and performed a very standard palace etiquette.
Only then did Yin Fengqi notice the young man Li Changqing had brought with him.
"He looks somewhat familiar," Yin Fengqi said, looking at the youth with a puzzled face, as if he had seen him somewhere before.
Li Changqing: "…"
"Greetings, Father Emperor."
Yin Changli bowed respectfully.
Hearing this address, Yin Fengqi showed a trace of surprise. Was he being called Father Emperor?
"Are you the eleventh?" It seemed Yin Fengqi remembered who the person before him was.
"Yes," Yin Changli said without raising his head, respectfully speaking, "Having been away for a long time, I have returned today to pay my respects."
"Rise."
Yin Fengqi's gaze became calm, then he glanced at Li Changqing and said, "Master Changqing seems to know my imperial son."
"We've known each other for a long time," Li Changqing said indifferently.
"Father Emperor, Master Changqing has saved my life," Yin Changli told Yin Fengqi.
Yin Fengqi was surprised to hear this and inquired about the matter.
Yin Changli explained briefly, not saying too much, but when he mentioned that the matter involved the Longevity Sect, Yin Fengqi's expression turned somewhat grim. The Longevity Sect was now despised by everyone, and he hadn't expected them to reach out to someone from his North Cold Country.
And it was his own son.
Whether he favored this son or not, that was still the royal bloodline of North Cold Country.
"Thank you, Master Changqing," Yin Fengqi said with a fist salute.
"It's nothing, Changli is a talented child, and I like him very much," Li Changqing said cheerfully, "He hasn't returned for so many years, why not let him see his mother first? The child has been longing for his mother."
"Alright," Yin Fengqi didn't mind, and at this moment, he also remembered that Yin Changli's mother was Consort Xuan, whom he hadn't seen for several years.
"I shall take my leave."
"Master Changqing, I must excuse myself."
Just as Yin Changli was about to leave, Li Changqing said, "Wait."
"Master?" Yin Changli looked at Li Changqing, who then said to Yin Fengqi, "Changli has not returned for a long time, and no one in the imperial palace recognizes him. If it weren't for me, he wouldn't even have been able to enter the palace gates. I think Your Majesty should find someone to accompany him."
"That makes sense."
Yin Fengqi quickly called in his personal eunuch chief steward.
Then he ordered the chief steward to accompany Yin Changli to see his mother.
"Additionally, I have something important to discuss with Your Majesty," Li Changqing said to Yin Fengqi.
"Please speak, Master."
Yin Fengqi nodded.
"Our Changqing Trading Company's intelligence department is becoming increasingly well-established, and we can obtain many top-secret reports. If Your Majesty's North Cold Country needs any intelligence, you can come to our company to purchase it in the future. Also, if Your Majesty could help us with some promotion, we will offer a discount on intelligence reports for North Cold Country."
"Moreover, our overall prices will be cheaper than those of Cangyuan Pavilion."
Li Changqing spoke earnestly.
Now that Bai Tu and Zhen Wanshou were in Cangyuan Pavilion, Li Changqing directly became a transporter.
He started moving intelligence out of Cangyuan Pavilion for sale. After developing the intelligence department of Changqing Trading Company, Li Changqing realized that gathering intelligence was not so simple. While it was not difficult for the company to obtain more general intelligence, obtaining some of the more secret intelligence was not so easy.
And moving intelligence from Cangyuan Pavilion, he directly became a transporter.
Li Changqing didn't feel there was anything shameful about it. The so-called impregnable Cangyuan Pavilion had never been infiltrated by anyone, yet hadn't Li Changqing managed to place someone inside?
More importantly, his relationship with Tianhai City made Li Changqing vaguely guess that the person using him as a pawn might be in Tianhai City.
It might even be related to the Cangyuan Realm Master.
Li Changqing hadn't thought this way at first, but when Luo Xiaochuan informed him that Li Hengsheng was actually the child of Yue Hanjun, Li Changqing became even more certain that there was a huge conspiracy behind him, and this conspiracy came from Tianhai City.
It was either the Cangyuan Realm Master or Yue Hanjun.
This result made Li Changqing increasingly doubt his own identity.
If Li Hengsheng was Yue Hanjun's child, then what role did Li Changqing, this person, play in this whirlpool?
What exactly was Jiang Tianyun looking for in Li Hengsheng?
Luo Xiaochuan also said that there was something on Li Hengsheng that Jiang Tianyun was looking for, but Jiang Tianyun didn't find it when he came in person this time.
So where did what they were looking for go?
All of this was what Li Changqing was eager to find out.
And in this cruel world where people prey on each other, who talks to you about such righteousness? If you have the power, just go for it.
Strengthening Changqing Trading Company would give him more chances to survive.
But when Yin Fengqi heard this, he was somewhat astonished. He wondered if Li Changqing had drunk a bit too much this morning?
Yin Fengqi knew that Changqing Trading Company's ability to make money was unquestionable, with the recent Dahongpao tea becoming incredibly popular and making the company a hefty profit. However, he hadn't heard that Changqing Trading Company's intelligence department was anything special.
More importantly, wasn't Changqing Trading Company only involved in the Eastern Desolate Land?
It hadn't even touched the Western Wilderness or the Southern Wilderness, let alone Yunhuang. Where did Li Changqing get the confidence to say he could compete with Cangyuan Pavilion?
But out of courtesy, Yin Fengqi didn't question him on the spot. After pondering for a moment, Yin Fengqi said, "Alright, if Changqing Trading Company's intelligence department is really that powerful, then I will definitely give Master Changqing a good promotion. I also have some intelligence I would like to inquire about. Could Master Changqing arrange it for me?"
"Tell me," Li Changqing knew Yin Fengqi probably didn't believe him, and now was a good time to arrange it to let Yin Fengqi give it a try.
If the intelligence department rose to prominence, it would be another opportunity for Changqing Trading Company to rise.
And unknowingly, Changqing Trading Company was also growing in strength, slowly recruiting more experts. They aimed to quietly claim a place in the Eastern Desolate Land.
And the method they used to hide their growing strength was already laid out by Li Changqing.
That was to divert everyone's attention with various business successes. While everyone's focus was on the business of Changqing Trading Company, who would notice that the company had actually recruited quite a few experts?
Under the joint efforts of Yan Botao and Zhao Yiqiu, Changqing Trading Company had not only found a lot of talent in business management but also recruited some scattered high-level cultivators.
There were already more than twenty cultivators at the Prenatal Realm.
And four at the Peak Innate Realm.
In terms of strength, they had already surpassed many sects.
Moreover, Changqing Trading Company mainly had the Qinglian Sword Sovereign as a powerful backer.
Qinglian Sword Sovereign was the backbone of the entire Changqing Trading Company.
Additionally, with Zhang Fuguang present, although he had not explicitly agreed to join Changqing Trading Company, at least he was currently working for the company. Mu Qingge had also joined, adding another Peak Innate Realm expert.
Then there was Xue Qianbai. Li Changqing knew Xue Qianbai was a person of deep loyalty and righteousness. Having given such a generous gift to Xue Qianbai, even if he didn't join Changqing Trading Company, he was a loyal ally.
It seemed that no one in the entire Eastern Desolate Land had realized that such a massive force had emerged unnoticed.
Using the trading company as a cover, they had grown into a behemoth.
And not only that, the disciples of the many families in Changting Town were also gradually increasing their cultivation. It used to be difficult for any family to produce a high-level cultivator, partly because there were no good paintings, and more importantly, because there were not enough cultivation resources.
Now it was different.
Not to mention the three major families of Changting Town, even those who followed Changqing Trading Company to reap benefits were now wealthy.
The resources for the disciples were so abundant that they had never fought such a prosperous battle.
Their cultivation naturally increased.
Moreover, Li Changqing had recently announced a reward.
All the disciples of the families in Changting Town were included; whoever first broke through to the Prenatal Realm would be rewarded with a Painting Treasure.
Such a temptation directly made many disciples soar.
Their cultivation became even more fervent.
With great rewards come brave men, and Li Changqing believed that such rewards would definitely allow them to grow faster.
After leaving the imperial palace, Li Changqing returned to Changqing Mansion and immediately called for Zhang Fuguang.
"Could you make a trip to Medical King Valley for me?" Li Changqing said to Zhang Fuguang.
"Okay."
Zhang Fuguang didn't even ask why, but since Li Changqing had said so, he would do it.
"Check the current situation in Medical King Valley. I went there before, and the entire valley was annihilated, except for the valley master, perhaps not a single survivor was left. But until today, no information has come through, and I feel something is not right."
Li Changqing instructed.
Normally, such a task could be done by the Lightning Sparrow, but Li Changqing felt that if the same spirit beast appeared in Medical King Valley twice, it might attract the attention of those with ulterior motives. So this time, Li Changqing directly asked Zhang Fuguang to make the trip personally.
Li Changqing was not worried about Zhang Fuguang's strength, and with the Painting Treasure Li Changqing had given him, even if the Great Martial Sect came, they might not be able to do anything to Zhang Fuguang.
Hearing that Medical King Valley had been destroyed, even someone as naive as Zhang Fuguang found it incredible.
In Cangyuan Realm, Medical King Valley could be considered a major sect.
Moreover, Medical King Valley's medical skills were very strong, and their reputation in Cangyuan Realm was particularly good. Many sects had good relations with Medical King Valley, and it could be said that Medical King Valley could call upon many to help if they asked.
For such a sect to be silently destroyed was unbelievable.
But Zhang Fuguang didn't say anything and soon set off.
Meanwhile, Li Changqing was preparing to replace Xie Yunsun.
Once Xie Yunsun was replaced, there would be fewer obstacles in Cangyuan Pavilion.
And today, he could say he had received his first order.
That was the order from Yin Fengqi.
Yin Fengqi actually had something he was particularly keen to investigate, but because of the high level of confidentiality of this matter, the price for obtaining this intelligence was very high. Yin Fengqi couldn't afford it, so he had never sought out Cangyuan Pavilion.
Today, after hearing what Li Changqing said, Yin Fengqi also wanted to give it a try. What if Li Changqing could really get it?
Yin Fengqi's cultivation technique was a body refining technique, taking the pure body refining path. So, to advance from the Peak Innate Realm to the Grandmaster Realm, he needed a rare cultivation material.
This material was called Jinglong Tendon.
It was a special herb that had appeared in the history of Cangyuan Realm, but it was very hard to find.
Even the Merit Hall of Tianhai Pavilion didn't have it.
Without this thing, it was difficult for Yin Fengqi to step into the Grandmaster Realm, so for many years, Yin Fengqi had arranged for people to search for this material everywhere, but to no avail.
He had also come to Cangyuan Pavilion to find the whereabouts of this material, only to find that although Cangyuan Pavilion had information on it, the price was extremely high.
It required either a high-level Painting Sage's Painting Treasure or one of the top thirty Divine Weapons from the Divine Weapon List.
Such a price directly deterred Yin Fengqi.
Where to get such good things?
There is no actual ranking for Painting Sage's Painting Treasures, but Cangyuan Pavilion does have a classification. The so-called high-level Painting Sage refers to those who once had the qualifications to compete for the position of Painting Immortal. Only the Painting Treasures they created could be called high-level.
Those who had just stepped into the Painting Sage level, with their Divine Souls only reaching the immortal level, could only be considered junior Painting Sages.
So, such high-level Painting Treasures were extremely rare.
Even with two Grandmasters in North Cold Country, it was difficult to protect such Painting Treasures.
For example, the Evil Ghost Scroll used by Su Zheng was actually a high-level Painting Treasure, but unfortunately, it was destroyed by Li Changqing's Zhenxian Sword Formation.
Yin Fengqi didn't treat Li Changqing as an outsider and told him the price demanded by Cangyuan Pavilion.
Because Li Changqing could find out about this kind of thing himself, it was better to be frank.
Li Changqing compared the price with Cangyuan Pavilion and then said there was no problem. As for the reward, Li Changqing didn't give Yin Fengqi too much of a discount.
He directly asked Yin Fengqi for the Red Phosphorus Sword.
The Red Phosphorus Sword, ranked forty-second on the Divine Weapon List, was in the treasury of North Cold Country.
Li Changqing wanted this sword, and Yin Fengqi did not refuse, agreeing immediately.
Although the Red Phosphorus Sword was also a ranked Divine Weapon, to be fair, the Divine Weapons ranked in the top thirty and those ranked after thirty were not on the same level.
It was a difference between heaven and earth.
Li Changqing wanted this sword because he found that his Seven Kill Green Lotus Sword Formation was already struggling against the Great Martial Sect, so only the Zhenxian Sword Formation could truly crush the Great Martial Sect.
However, the Zhenxian Sword Formation was too powerful, and his own Seven Green Lotus Swords simply couldn't withstand such power.
Every use would cause some damage.
He needed to gather stronger swords to withstand the consumption of his Zhenxian Sword Formation.
Naturally, Li Changqing set his sights on the Red Phosphorus Sword.
However, Li Changqing also wanted to get some higher-level swords. He had seen Xue Qianbai's Thousand Snow Sword, which was a high-level sword.
But thinking that the Thousand Snow Sword was Xue Qianbai's lifeblood, Li Changqing didn't even consider it.
If Xue Qianbai knew that Li Changqing had his eyes on his Thousand Snow Sword, he would probably come out of seclusion and slay Li Changqing first.
He would gather them slowly.
In the afternoon, Yin Changli returned from the imperial palace, and it was evident from his expression that he was very pleased.
It was clear that seeing his mother had put him in a very good mood.
The first thing Yin Changli did upon his return was to thank Li Changqing.
It could be said that without Li Changqing today, he wouldn't have been able to see his mother so smoothly, and he might not even have been able to enter the gates of the imperial palace.
"Why be so formal with me?"
Li Changqing smiled and took a sip of tea.
"But, Master," Yin Changli hesitated, "Today, in front of Father Emperor, you and I appeared to have a close relationship. Father Emperor, having been an emperor for so long, tends to overthink things and hates people forming cliques. Could he suspect you have ulterior motives for bringing me to the palace?"
"Like what?"
Li Changqing asked casually.
"Like Father Emperor might suspect you brought me here because you intend to support me, the least favored prince. Although I haven't been in North Cold Country for years, I know Father Emperor hates this the most and has explicitly forbidden court officials from getting too close to the princes. If someone really oversteps, they might be in trouble," Yin Changli said with a wry smile.
"So what?"
Li Changqing laughed, "Even if your Father Emperor suspects, so what?"
"Would he dare to touch me?"
Li Changqing looked into Yin Changli's eyes.
These four words left Yin Changli stunned, followed by a sudden realization.
Li Changqing was not from North Cold Country After all.
Moreover, Li Changqing's status was such that even his father, the emperor, had to appease him. How could he dare to touch Li Changqing?
He would be lucky to have Li Changqing's favor, wouldn't he?
Li Changqing had no fear whatsoever. Moreover, today he had made it clear how formidable the intelligence department of Changqing Trading Company was, and Yin Fengqi would be even more reluctant to offend Li Changqing in the future.
What Yin Changli didn't know was that Li Changqing did indeed have the intention of making Yin Changli the emperor.
***
In the North Cold Country's imperial palace.
Yin Fengqi unexpectedly visited Shuning Pavilion today.
In Shuning Pavilion, Consort Xuan could hardly believe that Yin Fengqi had come and hurriedly got up to welcome him.
Even the eunuchs and palace maids in Shuning Pavilion were incredulous; it had been many years since Yin Fengqi had visited.
In their eyes, Consort Xuan had already become a discarded consort of the palace.
Therefore, their attitude towards Consort Xuan had become colder and colder over time, and sometimes they would even lose their temper with her.
Now that Yin Fengqi had arrived, they were all panicked.
Why had the emperor suddenly come to Shuning Pavilion?
Could it be because of the visit of the eleventh prince today?
Consort Xuan was tearfully greeting Yin Fengqi, but after arriving at Shuning Pavilion, he ordered Consort Xuan to move to Shuihua Palace from today onwards.
This command shocked the entire harem.
Shuihua Palace was more than three times larger than Shuning Pavilion, and from today onwards, Consort Xuan was also promoted from a common consort to a noble consort.
The number of people serving her had also increased significantly.
As for those eunuchs and palace maids who had bullied Consort Xuan before, Yin Fengqi just needed to investigate a little to find out who they were, and all of them were taken out and executed by caning.
Such changes left everyone wondering why, but everyone in the vast harem understood one thing: Consort Xuan was on the rise again.
Once the news broke, even many princes heard about it.
Consort Xuan suddenly gained favor.
This made them sense something unusual.
A little investigation and they immediately learned one thing: today, the eleventh prince had come to the imperial palace.
They didn't have a deep impression of this eleventh prince.
But no matter who it was, they all had a very strong sense of crisis.
They felt that something was not quite right.
Could another powerful contender have emerged?
Not only that, but the next day, Yin Fengqi also rewarded Yin Changli with a mansion.
Changli Mansion.
Such changes made Yin Changli, who had been overlooked since childhood, also incredulous.
Little did he know that this was all due to the influence of Li Changqing.
Indeed, Yin Fengqi did not like it when people formed cliques and factions coveting his throne, but it depended on who it was.
If Li Changqing, a renowned Painting Sage, could stay in North Cold Country, and he was willing to support a prince, then Yin Fengqi certainly wouldn't mind.
As long as it wasn't Li Changqing himself taking the throne, he could accept it.
Yin Changli, after all, was his own flesh and blood.
Moreover, when Yin Fengqi interacted with Yin Changli, he also discovered the excellence of his long-unseen son.
There was a faint trace of sword intent flowing around his body.
Additionally, possessing a divine body, something Yin Fengqi himself had never expected. Having once possessed dragon blood essence, he lamented that none of his sons had a divine body. Who knew that now, he actually had a son with a divine body.
Although Yin Fengqi didn't say it openly, he was quite satisfied with this son.
Proofreader & Editor: Lotas