Gu Chengyin began to elaborate on his line of thought in detail: The sudden death of Xiao Bichang is an earth-shattering case that has shocked the entire court, led by the Imperial Household Department, jointly investigated by the Censorate and the Ministry of Justice, and overseen by the Cabinet.
A case of this magnitude must have a clear conclusion to give an explanation to the court and the public.
He shifted the topic: However, the corruption of the Left Vice Minister belongs to another category.
According to the laws and official system of Great Luo, official corruption falls under the jurisdiction of the Censorate.
The Censorate has the authority to independently open an investigation, and its memorial of findings can bypass the Cabinet and be submitted directly to His Majesty's desk.
Luo Zhao's eyes lit up; she understood.
Gu Chengyin continued, Moreover, the people from the Censorate are currently at the Ministry of Revenue, interrogating the relevant personnel and verifying documents.
And all the accounting records of the Ministry of Revenue from recent years are entirely in our hands.
I have already mentioned it to Imperial Censor Wang Gangfeng of the Censorate, suggesting that the Censorate and the Crown Heir's Palace share what they have and pool their resources regarding the Left Vice Minister's corruption case.
He stated that he would immediately return to the Censorate to report this upward.
Hearing this, Luo Zhao completely understood Gu Chengyin's scheme.
She looked at Gu Chengyin and said slowly, Are you... trying to drag the Censorate down into the muddy water with us?
Gu Chengyin rolled his eyes at Luo Zhao in exasperation, Your Highness, you shouldn't put it that way.
What do you mean by dragging them down? This is called a joint investigation, a legitimate collaboration based on shared duties and case relevance.
Besides, this is inherently the Censorate's statutory authority and duty.
I merely... happened to provide a few insignificant clues and some convenience, that's all.
Luo Zhao did not speak, but she gave Gu Chengyin a deep look and silently memorized this maneuver, which seemed simple but actually capitalized on rules and timing perfectly.
No matter how formidable hidden conspiracies and tricks were, they were still inferior methods that could not see the light of day.
But acting like Gu Chengyin—utilizing overt rules, authority, evidence, and the current situation to openly and honorably push things in the desired direction—was the higher-level and far more irresistible kingly way.
Seeing that Luo Zhao had taken his words to heart, Gu Chengyin went deeper, Your Highness, currently, the greatest obstacle to taking down Xiao Song and the Xiao clan behind him is His Majesty's attitude.
Including Cui Shifan, if he wants to become the Chief Grand Secretary, then this situation cannot descend into chaos. If it becomes chaotic, it will prove his incompetence.
Someone who cannot even control the situation cannot become the Chief Grand Secretary.
However. Gu Chengyin's tone turned certain as he pointed to the stack of documents: With these things, His Majesty's attitude will no longer be a problem.
In fact, His Majesty will be even more eager to see the Xiao clan uprooted than we are.
He did not explain the specific reasons, but Luo Zhao could already feel the heavy weight of that stack of documents.
Once His Majesty's attitude is resolved, the next issue is how to swallow this massive cake that is the Xiao clan.
How much of the cake we can eat will depend on our own strength and appetite, as well as that of our partners.
Luo Zhao listened quietly. At this moment, she restrained all her aloofness and arrogance.
Like an obedient student listening to the teachings of an esteemed master, she was completely engrossed, afraid of missing a single word.
Even Shangguan Yunying was listening extremely carefully, with a thoughtful light occasionally flashing in her eyes.
Gu Chengyin looked at Luo Zhao and first threw out a realistic question:
Your Highness, I need to ask you a question first.
With the current strength of the Crown Heir's Palace—including your influence in the court, the resources you can mobilize, your reliable manpower, and your capacity to withstand counterattacks and subsequent turmoil—how much of the cake can you eat?
He paused and provided a clear framework of options: If you can swallow it all, the subsequent strategy will be arranged according to the method of taking everything.
If you can only eat fifty percent, then we will plan for fifty percent. We must act according to our capabilities; otherwise, not only will we bite off more than we can chew, but we will also be attacked by everyone.
This question cut straight to the core and was exceptionally cruel.
It forced Luo Zhao to clearly recognize the true power in her hands, rather than relying solely on her status as the Crown Heir and her full heart of ambitions.
Luo Zhao's expression visibly shifted.
She subconsciously raised her eyes and exchanged a glance with Shangguan Yunying beside her.
Shangguan Yunying's eyes also carried a trace of solemnity and assessment.
Both saw a similar answer in each other's eyes.
An answer that was not so inspiring, but much closer to reality.
Luo Zhao lowered her gaze again. She did not look into Gu Chengyin's eyes. Her red lips parted slightly, and her voice was much lower than usual:
One... ten percent?
She spoke a number that even she found somewhat embarrassing.
This was not false modesty, but rather she was very clear about her own situation.
It had not been long since she was established as the Crown Heir. Although she nominally oversaw the state, her actual power and influence were far from stable.
The veteran officials in the court all had their own factions, and her true core forces were still in the process of being cultivated and gathered.
The capabilities of the Crown Heir's Palace were reflected more in handling specific affairs than in court maneuvers and the distribution of interests.
Without the tacit approval and support of Emperor Luo, as well as Gu Chengyin's help, she would find it very difficult to truly shake a Chief Grand Secretary like Xiao Song.
Gu Chengyin was not surprised by this answer. Instead, he nodded and said calmly, Alright, then we will plan for ten percent.
If Luo Zhao truly had the strength to swallow the entire Xiao clan's cake, then the one sitting on the dragon throne and controlling the universe would not be Emperor Luo, but her.
Reality was just like that. Only by acknowledging one's weaknesses could one formulate better strategies.
If the Crown Heir's Palace were to fight alone, Gu Chengyin continued his analysis, his tone as calm as if he were analyzing a military campaign:
Then only eating ten percent of the cake while having to face the entire Xiao clan would absolutely be a losing bargain.
Therefore, as my first step, I sought out the Cui clan.
Gu Chengyin revealed his key layout: The crux of the matter is that the noble families are not an iron monolith.
They have collaborations with each other, but they have their own interests even more so.
The reason Cui Shifan is willing to cooperate with us is that he knows very well that His Majesty will not allow the Xiao clan to be uprooted entirely.
And seizing this opportunity can actually allow him to take a step further. Thus, the Crown Heir's Palace and the Cui clan share a common interest.
This cooperation based on common interests makes us temporary allies.
Gu Chengyin emphasized, This also effectively prevents the Cui clan from feeling the sorrow of a fox mourning the death of a hare, worrying that after the Xiao clan falls, they will be next, which would force them to help the Xiao clan fight against the Crown Heir's Palace.
And even if His Majesty's attitude changes later on, the Cui clan will not be able to turn back. They will have no choice but to follow along and eat the cake.
Gu Chengyin began his specific deduction on eating the cake, as if the massive Xiao clan had already become fish on a chopping block:
According to my preliminary design, of the final cake, the Cui clan will take twenty-five percent plus a Grand Secretary seat.
This will satisfy Cui Shifan, but without letting his power expand to a point where it becomes difficult to control.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
world slacker. But a genius female disciple just had to get clingy, insisting that he take her as a disciple. Not only that, she was always making advances on him, thoroughly disrupting his peaceful slacker life...
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
