Chapter 265: Purge the Court
Yet now, the old Dragon King had proclaimed to the world that he would appoint such a despicable, morally bankrupt, physically frail, and vulnerable human as the National Teacher. This news was bound to cause surprise and immense indignation in their hearts.
The great war with the human race only ended a century ago. Instead of capturing and skinning this human, how could they possibly revere them as the National Teacher?!
A single stone stirred a thousand waves.
However, since it was the old Dragon King’s personal decree, no matter how great their objections, they could only wait for the new monarch to deal with it.
Yet, on the second day after the old Dragon King’s burial, a mutiny erupted.
It was a unit of the Dragon City Imperial Guard, originally responsible for escorting the new King back to the capital.
This unit was composed of “royal relatives” for generations and was the lineage with the purest bloodline closest to the imperial family. They should have possessed absolute loyalty and devotion to the “new King.”
Therefore, the banner raised by the Imperial Guard was highly fitting for their stance.
“Purge the court, strike down the traitor!”
Unfortunately, although Long Li was young, she was intelligent and insightful from childhood. How could she possibly be deceived by their so-called slogan of acting for her own good?
She feared that if they beheaded the traitor Chen An today, they would invent a Mu An, a Long An, or others tomorrow.
After all, once she fell into others’ hands and couldn’t return to Dragon City, wouldn’t whatever happened depend on their whims?
There’s nothing new under the sun.
The succession of power has always been accompanied by a period of bloody conflict.
Recalling the events that had unfolded since his arrival in this world, Chen An gathered his thoughts and suddenly asked,
“When your father announced my name, he didn’t explicitly state that I was human.”
The old Dragon King had acted this way, naturally considering Chen An’s inappropriate identity.
As long as Long Li could safely return to the capital and initiate the inheritance ceremony, and then reveal the fact that the National Teacher was human, although there would undoubtedly still be resistance, Long Li would at that time possess sufficient influence.
Dealing with these objections would then not appear as disheveled as it did now.
So… who had spread the information that I am human?
Chen An did not voice this question.
He changed his words, saying, “It was too smooth.”
In front of him, the girl was likely still pondering how to answer his previous question when she heard these four words.
Her expression faltered, and she asked, “What was smooth?”
Chen An glanced at her, “The journey back, it went too smoothly.”
This time, the girl finally understood his meaning.
She frowned, “But the Red Bear clan is known for their brutality and loyalty. They only recognize people, not matters. As long as I appear, there should be no problem.”
After speaking, she seemed to feel it wasn’t convincing enough and added, “Including the current leader of the Red Bear clan, I met him a few years ago in Dragon City. He doesn’t seem like someone who would participate in rebellion…”
“Before the mutiny, the Imperial Guard would only be more loyal than them.”
Long Li’s narrative was interrupted by Chen An’s voice.
He looked at her, “Continuing forward now is a gamble.”
“Do you want to gamble?”
Upon hearing this, a flicker of hesitation crossed Long Li’s face.
Indeed, this man was right. Before the Imperial Guard mutinied, they would have shown more loyalty than anyone else.
But she still nodded, her expression firm.
“If I don’t even have this much courage, then I don’t think I’m qualified to inherit my father’s throne, let alone return to Dragon City and perform the inheritance ceremony.”
When she spoke the words “inheritance ceremony,” the girl instinctively glanced at Chen An.
The man quietly listened to her finish speaking, then casually remarked, “Mm, well said. So, let’s turn back.”
“Hmph, this Highness naturally… wait!”
Long Li froze, even doubting if she had heard correctly.
At this moment, the curtain used to block wind and rain at the front of the carriage was lifted, and a woman with a cold expression walked in.
She was tall and her appearance was striking, though her brows were slightly furrowed.
Long Li’s attention was quickly drawn to the woman who entered. Forgetting her argument with Chen An, she quickly stood up to greet her.
Seeing this, a flicker of emotion flashed in the woman’s eyes. She lowered her head slightly and said softly, “Your Highness, you don’t have to be like this.”
Long Li shook her head, her gaze fixed on the woman’s shoulder.
There, the gauze skirt was stained with a large patch of dark red from blood, which was quite shocking.
Seeing this, Long Li felt a pang of heartache. She lowered her head in self-reproach, “Sister Qing, it’s my fault. If I had listened to you that day and not tried to persuade those rebels, you wouldn’t have been so seriously injured.”
The woman shook her head, “Your Highness acts with consideration. It’s just that those rebels are unrepentant, and it has nothing to do with Your Highness.”
After speaking, she turned her gaze to the only man in the carriage.
He was lifting the curtain and staring listlessly out the window.
On his body, there were no outward features that could be associated with the demonic beast race.
This was indeed a human, without a doubt.
And he was the kind of “weakling” whose cultivation couldn’t be seen at all.
Well, she had learned this term from the human race.
The woman thought, then mused, “What the National Teacher said is not without reason. As we fled, apart from the initial pursuit which was unusually fierce, the chase inexplicably became, became…”
She paused, clearly searching for a word to describe it, but she was stuck.
“Strange.”
The gentle reminder made the woman pause slightly.
She nodded, “It is indeed strange, as if we were being deliberately herded towards the territory of the Red Bear clan.”
As her voice fell, silence ensued.
Seeing that neither of them seemed optimistic, the girl’s beautiful brows furrowed.
She linked her arm with the woman’s and said tenderly,
“Oh, Sister Qing, what’s wrong with you, a demon? Why are you taking the outsider’s side?”
“Am I your Highness, or is he your Highness?”
The girl’s cute and coquettish demeanor brought a doting smile to the woman’s eyes.
“Of course, I am loyal to Your Highness.”
Hearing this, Long Li turned her head, looked directly at Chen An, lifted her chin, and let out a small hum.
Though she said nothing, her triumphant expression was vivid.
Chen An chuckled, thinking that the Dragon race’s saying of being three hundred years old wasn’t just for show.
She was still just a little girl, after all…
He sighed, “Little Li, you are too impatient.”
“We can afford to wait. They are the ones who need to be anxious.”
The expected reply did not come quickly.
Chen An looked up and saw that the girl’s face had inexplicably turned red.
She tried hard to put on a fierce expression, but her features were so delicate that it only made her look even cuter.
“You, why are you calling me that!”
“Do you think calling me that will make me listen to you?”
The girl bared her teeth, her amber vertical pupils glinting, and she even swung her little fists.
She no longer called him “Prime Minister Father” and did not use respectful terms.
At this moment, she seemed more like the first impression Chen An had of her when they met.
So, when did this situation begin to change…
Was it the death of the old Dragon King?
Or the unexpected encounter not long ago?
Perhaps it was both.
Chen An thought.
