Chapter 165: Chapter 144: Remnants of the Former Dynasty

Indeed, the Great Yu has perished, but the Great Yu has never truly been destroyed.

"The Grand Ancestor Emperor of Da Chen knew very well that relying solely on his own efforts, it was impossible to completely eliminate the remnants of the Chu people who shared the same origin as him. So, in the end, he employed the scholars, after all, it was these scholars who destroyed the once-great Da Chu, and they had adequate means to target the Chu people."

In that spacious court hall seemingly built for giants, Prime Minister Jia Wen was leading the young emperor, walking slowly.

"So, has Your Majesty understood?"

"The Prime Minister speaks truly."

The young emperor, with vacant eyes, instinctively nodded, but judging by his bewildered expression, he clearly hadn’t understood a word.

However, Jia Wen didn’t really mind.

These old histories were less meant for the emperor to hear than for him to recite to himself.

Confronting the Grand Ancestor Emperor of Da Chen, standing over two meters tall and as imposing as the descent of a Giant Spirit God, even those old scholars skilled in human nature were helpless. No matter how adept they were at manipulating hearts, the other had to be human first—fortunately, many Yu people back then understood clearly that if they couldn’t win, they might as well join, just a temporary feigned compliance, as they did when the former Chu dominated all sides.

Now, the time of harvest had finally arrived.

After disposing of the last minister loyal to the royal family, they could finally execute their plans fully.

"So, Your Majesty."

Jia Wen turned his head, looking at the young emperor beside him.

"Have you heard of abdication?"

"...Abdication?"

The young emperor remained puzzled. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Please explain, Prime Minister."

"Abdication means the emperor steps down from his position and transfers the ruling title to someone capable."

As he said this, Jia Wen bowed to the young emperor.

"Now, with unrest everywhere and the people’s grievances resounding, it’s a sign of the loss of virtue by the Son of Heaven—indicating that Your Majesty hasn’t fulfilled your role well. Therefore, Your Majesty, it’s time to abdicate the position."

"This..."

The young emperor hesitated.

"But didn’t the Prime Minister say before that the throne is the affair of the royal family, so how could I..."

"Yes, it is the royal family’s business."

Speaking, Jia Wen bowed again toward the massive throne in the hall.

"But those were the matters of the Grand Ancestor Emperor, not yours... Your Majesty, consider this: the Grand Ancestor Emperor stood over two meters tall, how could such a massive figure possibly unite with a mortal?"

"This..."

The young emperor grew even more bewildered.

"That actually seems to be the case?"

"Naturally."

Prime Minister Jia Wen nodded.

This matter he vaguely sensed after various verifications, after all, the union of a two-meter-tall figure with a mortal was simply too astonishing, yet due to reverence for the venerable, people generally dared not discuss these royal secrets. It was only someone like Jia Wen, with keen interest, who could dig out some near-truth information from piles of old papers.

And the truth was, the current Da Chen royal family indeed had no bloodline of the Grand Ancestor Emperor of Da Chen.

Now, the true ancestors of this Da Chen royal family should be some battlefield orphan adopted by the Grand Ancestor Emperor. After adopting the infant, the Grand Ancestor Emperor handed it over to the harem’s concubines and treated it as his own. But this information was so secret, coupled with the Grand Ancestor Emperor’s intention to conceal it, not many knew about it.

However, this false message deceived so many Yu dynasty descendants.

For over a hundred years, these past scholars have always pondered how to deal with such an intractable Giant Spirit God, yet who would have thought the so-called Da Chen royal family could never attain the terrifying posture of the erstwhile Grand Ancestor Emperor of Da Chen.

Since it’s clear the Da Chen royal family couldn’t transform into giants, what were they waiting for?

"In any case, though there is no real blood relationship between the Grand Ancestor Emperor and Your Majesty’s ancestors, Your Majesty’s ancestors were virtuous, so the throne fell to Your Majesty’s family."

As he said this, Prime Minister Jia Wen placed his hand on the young emperor’s shoulder.

"And now, with the people suffering and Your Majesty’s loss of virtue, it’s fitting to abdicate the throne and allow the virtuous to govern the realm."

"The virtuous... who?"

The young emperor raised his head.

"To whom should I abdicate the throne?"

"Humbly, I am willing to alleviate Your Majesty’s worries."

Prime Minister Jia Wen bowed deeply.

"Should Your Majesty permit, I am willing to manage the realm in your stead. As for yourself, you could freely pursue whatever you wish, be it painting, carpentry, or the Mystical Technique... didn’t Your Majesty love those enigmatic matters? Without the burden of the court, you have time to pursue those."

"No need to attend court?"

The young emperor immediately perked up.

"This is good! I want this! Prime Minister, when will abdication start?"

"Any day will do."

Prime Minister Jia Wen remained casual.

After all, this isn’t crucial.

The entire court’s officials already sided with him, and the remaining loyal ministers have been purged. He’s planned for so long, within the realm of Da Chen, he’s already beneath one but above all.

And as for that last person, subtly over time, he’s become his puppet.

Whether the young emperor abdicates or not, it hardly matters, but for safety’s sake, it’s better to clear away this Chen Dynasty royal family—since this Chen Dynasty has no bloodline of the Grand Ancestor Emperor of Da Chen, they are merely conjectured to be formidable in nature. Instead of waiting for some new Giant Spirit God to emerge, better to cease this mighty line.

This world, after all, is ruled by humans, needing no divine apparitions.

And now, he will finally fulfill the longstanding wish of the Yu people, by eliminating the last suspected Chu remnant, this so-called Emperor of Da Chen.

Of course, for the orderly succession of the throne, he will not personally become an assassin—like he said, one ascending to the throne as virtuous, pity though as the former emperor, gifted with neither talent nor virtue, leads to ending forever without offspring, yet under his virtue, enjoys a peaceful old age.

Everything will unfold as planned, as he has secretly prepared for so long.

As for those so-called insurgent forces among the populace... to Jia Wen, they are of least concern.

Just a group newly able to extrovert their Evil Qi, could they possibly rival the old Chu war generals of yore?

"Calculating the time, they should have already set out, right?"

Jia Wen’s gaze crossed the hall, seemingly witnessing the widespread conflagration within Da Chen territory.

However, before the erudite inheritors of the former Great Yu, none of this is worth mentioning.