The next day.
As soon as Ye Yu woke up, he was notified by a maid to attend the morning court session of the Lan Kingdom along with the Azure Cloud Sect’s daoist masters.
Ye Yu was quite puzzled by this.
He quickly sought out Li Nian’an, only to find that the latter was equally confused.
They were practitioners from the Sacred Lands. By convention, they should not participate in mundane affairs of human empires. This was an unwritten rule on the Central Continent.
As the ruler of the Lan Kingdom, Yin Zhi should know this well.
So why were they being summoned to the morning court?
After a moment of thought, Li Nian’an decided it would be better to go.
Perhaps, Yin Zhi intended to announce something during the morning court?
Soon, under the maid’s guidance, they arrived at the Lan Kingdom’s court hall.
Here, civil and military officials had already gathered.
Yin Zhi sat high on the dragon throne, with Yin Feijing standing beside him!
When Ye Yu, Li Nian’an, and several elders arrived, everyone present, except for Yin Zhi, gazed at them with curiosity.
Including Yin Feijing.
“Let me introduce. These immortals are the elders from the Azure Cloud Sect, one of the Five Great Sacred Lands. They happened to be in the Lan Kingdom, so I had them invited here.”
“It serves as a witness!”
Yin Zhi paused for a moment, then slightly waved at Ye Yu, indicating him to step forward.
“Fellow Daoist, could you please announce the decree for me?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, a eunuch quickly approached Ye Yu, holding the imperial edict high.
Seeing this, Ye Yu was quite surprised.
Why was he being asked to read out the Lan Kingdom’s edict?
This wasn’t right!
Not only Ye Yu found it odd, but the civil and military officials present also found it strange.
Li Nian’an furrowed his brow slightly.
He transmitted a message to Yin Zhi: “This isn’t proper. Sect practitioners should not be involved in earthly affairs!”
“Don’t be so surprised. It might not be long before Ye Yu becomes the esteemed son-in-law of our Lan Kingdom. No matter how it’s done, it’s all within reason!”
Yin Zhi’s words effectively closed off further discussion.
If Ye Yu really became the Lan Kingdom’s son-in-law, under such dual identities, naturally, no one would find any fault.
But Ye Yu had only just met Princess Yin Feijing. Was it really possible for him to become a son-in-law so quickly?
That seemed too hasty, didn’t it?
Ye Yu stared at the imperial edict in front of him, lost in thought.
Just as he was about to ask Li Nian’an whether he should accept it, Yin Zhi smiled and said, “Fellow Daoist, just consider it a small favor. It won’t harm you!”
After speaking, Yin Zhi even winked, revealing a meaningful smile.
Ye Yu’s expression grew serious.
He began to speculate privately.
Could it be that the content of this edict had something to do with their Azure Cloud Sect?
That’s why he was asked to announce it?
Thinking of this, Ye Yu took the edict, opened it, and began to read aloud.
“From today onwards, I voluntarily abdicate. The throne of the Lan Kingdom will be inherited by the Sixth Princess, Yin Feijing.”
After reading this line, the once quiet court hall instantly erupted into chaos.
“How can this be? It’s utterly absurd!”
“How can the vast territory of the Lan Kingdom be handed over to a woman?”
“Your Majesty, reconsider!”
“The Sixth Princess has only recently recognized her roots and returned to the clan. Now you want her to be the emperor? I implore Your Majesty to retract the edict! It would be better to investigate thoroughly before deciding on the heir to the throne!”
“……”
Listening to the numerous objections from the ministers, Ye Yu was bewildered.
Indeed.
Why was Yin Feijing being made the new ruler so suddenly?
Or perhaps….Yin Feijing used some secret technique to control Yin Zhi’s mind? Her goal in obtaining the Concealment Pendant was to control the entire Lan Kingdom?
Ye Yu abruptly turned his head, only to find that Yin Feijing’s expression was also quite surprised.
It didn’t seem to be an act.
But if this wasn’t orchestrated by her, then who could it be?
Yin Zhi remained unperturbed, calmly sitting on the dragon throne, observing everything.
Soon, five princes dressed in ceremonial robes walked from the crowd to the front.
They knelt in a row, shouting loudly, “Father, reconsider!”
Yin Zhi finally slowly rose.
He picked up five memorials from the table and threw them in front of them.
“These are all the evidence of your factionalism and misconduct. How dare you ask me to reconsider?”
The five princes, trembling, picked up the memorials.
Their faces turned ashen, and they dared not say another word.
Yin Zhi looked at the officials and coldly said, “I am the ruler of the Lan Kingdom. I can give the throne to whomever I wish! Yin Feijing is my bloodline. If I voluntarily abdicate to a worthy successor, what’s wrong with that? Anyone who continues to oppose will be sent to death immediately!”
“I oppose!”
A cold voice rang out.
The crowd turned to look.
A woman in phoenix robes walked in slowly, with a withered old man behind her.
Ye Yu felt inexplicably irritated.
This trip to the Lan Kingdom had been nothing but troublesome.
Not only did they fail to find any help, but they were also unexpectedly dragged into their royal succession dispute.
The old man wasn’t someone to be trifled with. Since entering, he had kept his hands behind his back. The spiritual energy around him fluctuated constantly.
It was clear he was setting up a formation.
Don’t ask how Ye Yu knew.
In general, he did the same.
Unbeknownst to others, he would set up formations. So no matter what happened, he would always be a step ahead.
Yin Zhi sneered, “Queen Zhou, you came to court without summons. What is your punishment?”
“And you, Wu Renbi. Why didn’t you report to me immediately upon your return, but instead stand with the queen?”
Indeed, the woman in phoenix robes was Queen Zhou Ruyun of the Lan Kingdom.
And the withered old man was the one they were here for, the grand formation master and chief minister of the Lan Kingdom, Wu Renbi!
But from the current situation, it seemed something was wrong.
Wu Renbi didn’t appear to be on Yin Zhi’s side!
Ye Yu pondered for a moment, and instinctively took a step back.
The reason was simple.
He really didn’t want to be entangled in the kingdom’s power struggle.
Queen Zhou Ruyun sneered, “Your Majesty, you’ve gone senile. You actually want to pass the throne to a wild girl! Whether she’s even your own daughter is debatable! How can the Lan Kingdom be handed over to her?”
“Since ancient times, the throne has always been given to the eldest, not the youngest. No matter what, the throne of the Lan Kingdom should belong to my son, the First Prince. How can you break the rules set by our ancestors?”
Hearing this, the First Prince, Yin Shujie, was overjoyed.
Yin Zhi said coldly, “Who becomes the ruler of the Lan Kingdom is not for you to decide. I say who it is, and that is who it will be!”
At this moment, standing aside, Yin Feijing’s feelings were very mixed.
To be honest, she really didn’t expect things to escalate to this point.
Originally, Yin Feijing had only come to the Lan Kingdom to retrieve that item.
She had no intention of involving herself in the Lan Kingdom’s throne.
But now, Yin Zhi was determined to push her to the throne without consulting her. Why was that?