Crowned by the Treacherous Big Shot
Chapter 444 - 398: Emperor Liang’s Own Grandson

Chapter 444: Chapter 398: Emperor Liang’s Own Grandson

No one in the group expected to encounter Yu Zichuan’s father here, much less that the Yu family had moved to the capital city of Liang Country.

What a coincidence!

Yu Father said, "Your mother is pregnant and insisted on eating the braised pork from a small tavern here."

"Braised pork?"

Tan’er’s eyes lit up greedily.

Yu Father sighed, "No more. The tavern has long since closed."

Tan’er was disappointed, "If it closed, how is that auspicious?"

Well, now there were two people craving braised pork.

Lu Yuan cupped his fists and bowed to Yu Father in a gesture of respect: "Uncle Yu."

Yu Father looked Lu Yuan up and down: "You are—"

Lu Yuan replied, "Lu Yuan."

Yu Father suddenly understood: "Ah, that heartless scoundrel, wicked through and through, the infamous Grand Commander—"

Yu Zichuan quickly covered his father’s mouth.

Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow and gave Yu Zichuan a faint smile. "I didn’t expect such high praise from you."

He wasn’t about to get angry over this.

It wasn’t like he didn’t know himself as well as Yu Zichuan did.

Not a single accusation was unfounded.

Yu Father turned to Lu Yuan with an open-hearted demeanor: "I’ve heard you’ve turned over a new leaf, repented publicly, wept bitterly, and knelt to beg forgiveness from the common folk... To know your mistakes and correct them—there’s no greater virtue! Young man, you have a bright future!"

Lu Yuan’s smile froze.

Yu Father was warm and welcoming. Hearing that the group was heading to the imperial city to find an old friend, he immediately invited them to stay at the Yu family home.

Yu Zichuan decisively requested to share a room with Chen Long.

"I’m afraid Lu Yuan will kill me."

Chen Long recalled everything Yu Zichuan had said behind Lu Yuan’s back and thought, if it were him in Lu Yuan’s place, he’d kill Yu Zichuan too.

Chen Long had no objections.

Compared to Shang Wuyou and Ji Li, Yu Zichuan was the most low-key of the bunch. It was quite peaceful living with him, apart from the occasional collapsed roof.

Something crossed Chen Long’s mind, and he asked, "You’re from the southwest. How did you meet Lu Yuan in the first place?"

Yu Zichuan answered honestly: "I went to the Capital City to learn archery, ran into him, and he said the Governor Mansion had the best archers around. So I followed him."

Chen Long regarded him with a look beyond words. "The Governor Mansion is full of Jinyi Guards who wield blades. Where are the archers supposed to come from?"

Yu Zichuan said with aggrieved resignation, "Alright, enough, I know I was duped."

By evening, the group’s caravan of carriages had arrived at the capital city.

The city gates were heavily guarded, and their carriage was stopped.

The Yu family’s coachman dismounted, took out travel permits and the token, and negotiated briefly with the guards.

The guard glanced at the four carriages behind him. "All yours?"

The coachman handed over a money pouch with a calm expression. "Yes. Please grant us passage, good sirs."

The guard returned the money pouch, declining. "His Majesty governs the troops with strict discipline."

The coachman quickly retrieved the pouch with an apologetic grin. "Yes, yes, my mistake."

The guards lifted the curtains of each carriage, verifying everyone’s travel permits and logging their details under the Yu family name.

"You may enter the city."

The guard said.

As they passed, Meng Qianqian remarked, "I didn’t imagine the capital would be so tightly guarded. Thankfully, we met Uncle Yu; otherwise, we might not have even made it past the gates."

Lu Yuan observed the people on the road and said, "King Qin proclaimed himself Emperor and is hosting a grand wedding banquet at the Crown Prince Mansion to invite heroes from across the land. Forces from all directions will pour into Liang’s capital, so it’s only natural for the security to be this stringent."

Meng Qianqian took out a handkerchief and fanned herself.

Lu Yuan asked, "Feeling hot?"

Meng Qianqian nodded. "It’s stifling in the carriage."

Lu Yuan touched her forehead. It wasn’t feverishly warm, but it was hotter than usual.

He opened another window slightly. "Better now?"

Meng Qianqian felt the breeze and nodded lightly. "Better."

Lu Yuan glanced at her attire. "You’re not wearing much."

"It’s hot in the southwest," Meng Qianqian replied.

"Hot?"

Lu Yuan asked.

Meng Qianqian said, "You have cold syndrome. You don’t feel the heat."

Lu Yuan pulled back the curtain and asked Yu Zichuan, who was sitting on the roof of the carriage, "Are you hot?"

Roasted all the way under the sun, Yu Zichuan replied, "Hot."

And then, without missing a beat, he jabbed at Lu Yuan: "What young man isn’t afraid of the heat? Unlike you—so... old already."

Lu Yuan: "Yu Zichuan, get down here right now!"

Yu Father led the group to the Yu family residence.

The capital city of Liang was bustling and prosperous, no less impressive than the Capital City of Great Zhou.

The people lived in peace and contentment, seemingly unconcerned about someone in the southwest proclaiming themselves Emperor.

As long as their daily lives remained unaltered, whether it was King Qin or Emperor Liang in power, who cared?

Halfway along their route, the caravan ran into a blockage. A team of officials bearing signs for clearing the path was approaching.

The pedestrians scattered to make way, and the carriages hurriedly moved into alleys and side streets.

Including the Yu family’s carriages, Meng Qianqian’s group had four in total, all crammed into a narrow alley with some civilians who were also making way.

Ji Li squinted and looked. "What’s going on now? Has something happened in Liang’s Imperial City?"

Tan’er poked her head out of the window. "A murder?"

A helpful young man said, "You sound like you’re from out of town. There’ve been many outsiders around lately—it’s because Prince Jian of the Crown Prince Mansion is coming through."

Tan’er asked, "Is that the one who came up from the common folk’s kids?"

The words were blunt, but why did it somehow feel like this little girl was cursing someone?

The young man shook his head, dismissing the thought. No way. The little girl looked so innocent—surely, it was just his imagination.

He patiently explained, "Oh, you’ve heard about Prince Jian? Indeed! Emperor Liang has waited for years, and now there’s finally an heir."

Tan’er pouted. "Well, that’s not definite!"

Tan’er seemed to dislike this sudden appearance of Emperor Liang’s grandson.

Because her elder sister hated the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion, she hated it too.

Anyone connected to the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion—she detested!

The young man opened his mouth to reply, then decided against it. "Never mind, never mind, just the harmless words of a child."

Tan’er folded her arms and declared with utmost seriousness, "I’m no child!"

"Make way! Make way!"

Angry shouts from the officials echoed along the street.

Meng Qianqian noticed they were clad in black iron armor, even the horses were armored in black iron.

Her first thought was the Black Armor Army.

Clearly, Chen Long, Si Snake, and Ji Li had the same thought.

Ji Li tapped Si Snake with his folding fan. "Snake, don’t you think those officials’ outfits look familiar?"

Si Snake said, "You’re suggesting they’re under Chu Grand Marshal’s command, the Black Armor Army?"

Ji Li said, "An entire battalion of ten thousand Black Armor Army soldiers that went missing—it’s still unclear where they are. Could they have hidden in the southwest?"

Chen Long frowned. "Why hide in the southwest?"

Ji Li analyzed, "The southwest is fragmented, with warlords ruling their own territories. Although King Qin is predominant, he doesn’t enforce control as strictly as other countries. For a target as massive as ten thousand troops, the southwest is the only place I can think of where they could go unnoticed."

Though Ji Li was often unreliable, his reasoning this time wasn’t without merit.

They had assumed the missing Black Armor Army might be hidden in an obscure part of Great Zhou or had gone beyond Yumen Pass, but they hadn’t considered the southwest.

Ji Li became excited. "Hey! Hey! Hey! If that’s true, we won’t be so outmatched against the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion!"