World-Ending Demon Emperor
Chapter 982 - 453: Fang Qingyi coughs up blood! Sudden turnaround!

Chapter 982: 453: Fang Qingyi coughs up blood! Sudden turnaround!

At this moment, the entire royal city seems on the verge of an impending storm.

All the nobles are beginning to band together for self-preservation, and their powerful servants and household guards are not only donning armor but also gradually starting to assemble.

Many degenerate members of the City Defense Army are doing the same.

The whole royal city appears eerily silent!

But a horrific civil war is about to break out at any moment!

These makeshift armies of powerful servants and household guards are not to be feared, and neither are the degenerate members of the City Defense Army— even if they number in the hundreds of thousands, they are no match for the sixty thousand strong Forbidden Army.

What is truly frightening is that the Zhi Du Temple Legion is muddying the waters, hiding amongst these temporary troops.

The Sanctuary Legion of the entire Rage Wave Kingdom numbers near thirty thousand, with more than half based in Zhi Du.

The Divine Dragon Temple Legion is the world’s most elite military force, bar none.

If they are allowed to remain hidden within, stirring up trouble, once war breaks out, what will happen is completely unknown.

Even whether Suo Lun and the entire royal family would be slaughtered in the chaos is an unknown factor. After all, the Dragon Temple harbors the world’s greatest martial artists.

Not only the noble families but also among the common folk, there is widespread unease.

At this time, all the courtesans should be asleep.

But since last night, the royal city’s brothels have been sleepless and almost entirely closed for business.

Because everyone has heard the terrifying news that the gold reserves of the royal city’s gold market have vanished into thin air.

This news has truly scared the daylights out of the courtesans.

Immediately, people began to band together, planning to withdraw their saved Gold Coins early the next morning.

Then the Hidden Yuan Association took advantage of the situation, fanning the flames in an attempt to incite chaos among the commoners amidst the nobles’ conflict.

They aim to create a bank run by tomorrow morning, further complicating Suo Lun’s situation.

In response, the Zhidu Art Committee stepped forward to calm the courtesans, urging them not to believe in rumors. Moreover, the president Yi Manman has announced that she will seek an audience with the Regent Duke Suo Lun tomorrow.

The Zhidu Art Committee, speaking of which, was established by Suo Lun himself.

Back then, Suo Lun had been framed by Zhi Ning and burdened with a debt of three thousand nine hundred Gold Coins to the royal city gold merchant, an amount the Suo Family could not repay even by turning their mansion inside out.

To make that money quickly, Suo Lun set his sight on the brothels as a resource.

He began to package the courtesans, launching the plan for the royal city’s "Nineteen Hairpins," causing these women’s price to skyrocket dozens to hundreds of times over, and in the process, he made his first large sum of Gold Coins.

Suo Lun made a quick profit and left, incidentally establishing the Art Committee and nominating his confidante Yi Manman as the president.

This committee, not only tasked with packaging women, but also responsible for other affairs, gradually became akin to the entire royal city’s brothel union organization.

It holds significant influence throughout the royal city.

Once, Duke Zhi Ting was the patriarch of the royal city’s brothels and the big backer behind the scenes.

However, after King Quo Bian suffered a stroke, even that bit of influence was wrested away from him; the entire Zhi Du red-light district gradually fell into the hands of the Hidden Yuan Association, and even Yi Manman lost the position of president of the Art Committee.

But after Zhi Li’s defeat and Suo Lun took charge of the royal city,

Yi Manman also immediately regained her position as president of the Art Committee. However, at least economically, the entire royal city’s brothel realm was still controlled by the Hidden Yuan Association.

Stirred by the Hidden Yuan Association, all the prostitutes in the royal city intended to withdraw their money from the royal city gold merchant.

And within a few days, this rumor would spread to other provinces, and the branches of the royal city’s gold merchant in these provinces would also immediately face a run on the bank.

Since brothels are hotbeds of chaos, and courtesans have the most savings at the royal city gold merchant, the Hidden Yuan Association plans to ignite this first fire among the courtesans.

However, even though the Hidden Yuan Association controls the brothel owners across the royal city, it doesn’t mean they can control all the courtesans as well.

In their hearts, Suo Lun is one of their own.

More than three years ago, Suo Lun was a patron saint of the pleasure quarters, almost residing in the brothels daily. Even without money, he could eat and live for free and had countless beauties at his disposal without cost.

The courtesans, mostly harboring a sense of inferiority, now see Suo Lun’s meteoric rise as defeating Zhi Li, marrying the princess, and soon becoming the Regent Prince of the kingdom, as a source of pride, feeling that it also mirrors the glory of the brothel world.

Therefore, with Yi Manman’s Art Committee stepping in to suppress the unrest in the brothel world, they agreed, promising not to go to the royal city gold merchant to make withdrawals the next morning but instead let Yi Manman inquire on their behalf to ask Suo Lun if the gold reserves had indeed disappeared.

Of course, this is just a temporary measure.

If their money indeed flew away, even if Suo Lun is one of their own, it would be of no use, for that money represents all the security for the second half of their lives.

...

Nine in the morning!

Suo Lun’s order to seize the estates has yet to be issued, but the elites of the royal city are already extremely anxious.

The Hidden Yuan Association starts to secretly instigate action, suggesting that they can’t sit idly by but must strike first!

This so-called decisive strike means having the temporary armies formed by powerful servants and household guards take the initiative to attack the Forbidden Army.

However, this is clearly impossible.

Give these elites a hundred times the courage, and none would dare to take the initiative to attack the Forbidden Army.

They dare not, but there are those who only fear that the world is not in chaos enough.

These are the leaders of the royal city’s City Defense Army!

This army is already rotten to the core and has been thoroughly infiltrated by the Hidden Yuan Association.

Previously, during Zhi Li’s assassination attempt on the King, it was this very City Defense Army that covered for the assassin Li Chenglian and others to escape.