Chapter 55: There Is No Way I Will Let You Succeed

After touring the nearby farmland, the two of them strolled through several small towns in the eastern region.

Finding nothing that required particular attention, they returned to the Xiaocheng County Government Office.

There, Yang Chuan personally assisted Tian Yueying, and that very day, they issued a decree to the surrounding villages.

It was a policy aimed at reducing agricultural taxes.

Experiencing the vast benevolence of the crown once more, the farmers around Xiaocheng were deeply grateful to the Great Qi Empress.

At the same time, they held immense respect for Yang Chuan, who had recently assumed his official post.

On their way back to the imperial capital, the two heard numerous rumors circulating among the common folk.

Especially at a post station along the way, Yang Chuan heard the highest volume of praises he had encountered in all these years.

"Hey! Did you know? Ever since Yang Chuan, our Prince of Equal Rank, came to Great Qi, the common people have finally caught a glimpse of good days ahead!"

"What kind of person is this Yang Chuan? Appointed as a Prince of Equal Rank right upon taking office—could he be some kind of divine being, to make Her Majesty trust him so completely?"

"Oh, you don't even know Yang Chuan? Three years ago, he made quite a name for himself right here in Qi!"

Inside the tavern on the first floor of the post station, two middle-aged men in plain clothes were sipping wine and chatting about Yang Chuan's past exploits.

"Let me tell you, back in the day, Yang Chuan was the most formidable Grandmaster-realm martial artist in the entire Great Qi!"

Recounting the legendary past when Yang Chuan single-handedly defeated two Grandmaster-level martial artists of Great Qi and escorted Yan Wugou back to Great Dakang, the speaker was practically flying with spittle, almost spraying it onto his companion's face.

Then, shifting to the events of the past three years, he spoke of Yang Chuan as if he were a long-lost relative.

Every description was filled with boundless pride.

"Ever since the day he returned to Kang, Yang Chuan was appointed Grand Preceptor by the Empress of Dakang. Although he held autocratic rule for three years, he transformed Dakang into an iron-clad empire. Even without his assistance now, if Dakang were to decline for another few decades, it would still remain the head of the seven nations!"

"I'm telling you, now that our Her Majesty has secured the assistance of someone like Yang Chuan, Great Qi has been blessed with a century of fortune."

"As long as the two of them harbor no selfish motives against each other, within ten years, our Great Qi will surely unify the Nine Provinces and become the sole powerful empire in this world!"

Witnessing an ordinary commoner boasting about his abilities out in the open, Yang Chuan found it amusing while deeply agreeing with the man's final sentence.

As long as no rift formed between himself and the Empress, and they did not harbor mutual suspicion because of a few words from outsiders, he could pat his chest and guarantee that he would certainly forge Great Qi into the powerful empire the people longed for.

As if sharing a telepathic connection, Tian Yueying, upon hearing those final words, instinctively turned her gaze toward Yang Chuan.

Their eyes met, and they smiled in mutual understanding.

Then, they exchanged a resolute look, silently promising one another that the tragedy of Yan Wugou would never be repeated between them.

After resting for a night at the final post station, the two headed straight back to the capital early the next morning.

Hearing that Her Majesty had returned, all the officials came out to welcome her, among whom Prime Minister An Xunlu was the most anxious.

The ten assassins he had dispatched previously had yet to report back with any news.

He had no idea whether those men had been subdued by Yang Chuan or if they had all perished outside.

However, before hearing any news regarding Yang Chuan, he still hoped those assassins had fulfilled their mission and slain Yang Chuan outside the capital.

To his astonishment, as the imperial procession welcoming the Empress back to the palace passed through the northern gate of the capital, An Xunlu immediately spotted the Grand Treasurer of Great Qi, Yang Chuan, clad in white and mounted on a tall steed at the very front of the procession.

He had assumed that after surviving an assassination attempt during this trip, Yang Chuan would appear somewhat haggard.

Yet, far from showing the slightest sign of exhaustion atop his horse, Yang Chuan's complexion appeared even ruddier than before!

Seeing that his wish to avenge Yuan Tianze had gone unfulfilled, An Xunlu could not help cursing him silently among the crowd.

Just then, an official beside him suddenly pointed at Yang Chuan's right arm and said, "Look, Lord Yang's right arm seems to be injured. See that obvious bulge? Clearly, there is a layer of gauze wrapped beneath his clothes to stanch the bleeding."

Hearing this, An Xunlu looked closely at Yang Chuan's right arm. Confirming the presence of a protrusion, a surge of secret delight welled up in his heart.

The ten assassins he had dispatched this time were merely around the third tier of martial cultivation.

Such low-level martial artists were a dime a dozen across the entire territory of Great Qi.

Having previously heard of Yang Chuan's martial prowess, he had half-expected him to have attained the monstrous realm of invulnerability to blades and spears.

To think that a mere ten minor assassins could easily handle him.

That being the case, if Yang Chuan ever dared to offend him again in the future, he only needed to recruit a few martial artists above the seventh tier to put Yang Chuan to death once and for all!

"Hmph, a fugitive fleeing from a foreign land dares to seize power in my Great Qi? As long as An Xunlu has breath in his lungs, I will never let you succeed!"

Convinced that Yang Chuan was not an invulnerable monster, An Xunlu's mood instantly brightened, and he hummed a little tune as he returned to his estate.

As a veteran official who had served under two reigns, he naturally had no desire to contend with the Empress for the imperial throne.

Had he truly harbored such ambitions, he could have seized control of the Great Qi realm long ago when the Empress was weak.

The only reason he secretly cultivated such a faction of partisans and confidants was simply because of his advanced age; he wished to secure a safe and peaceful retirement, leaving him with no other choice.

Originally, An Xunlu had no intention of making an enemy of anyone, but ever since Yang Chuan arrived in Great Qi, he found the man insufferable no matter how he looked at him.

First, he was exceptionally granted the title of Prince of Equal Rank by the Empress, followed immediately by his actions on his very first day in court, where, wielding his authority, he directly cast Grand Commandant Cao Ding into death row.

One must ask: if such an arrogant and dismissive fellow were allowed to manage state affairs within Great Qi, what path to survival would these veteran officials of Great Qi have left?

Years ago, during the three-year period when the Great Qi Empress insisted on setting out to seek the "Elixir of Immortality," these powerful ministers, secure in the knowledge that no one was overseeing them, had each engaged in corrupt and illegal practices to varying degrees.

What they feared most was the sudden appearance of an impartial, ruthless, autocratically-minded official in the court.

And Yang Chuan was precisely the ruthless and impartial figure they spoke of.

This man had no old political factions in Great Qi; regardless of which official committed a crime, he showed no inclination toward shielding them.

It was precisely this selfless and impartial character that made him stand out so jarringly among the officialdom.

However, Yang Chuan had no mind to get bogged down in such political infighting. After escorting the Empress back to her residence, he hurried straight to the imperial treasury to retrieve the financial ledgers of the past three years.