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墨書 Inktalez
Next, Lu Chen was preparing to head to the Western Seven States. This time, it was not for any other purpose but to attend a grand event at the invitation of Emperor Chu Mang of the Han Dynasty. It could be considered a personal invitation from Chu Mang.
However, even though it was a personal invitation, Lu Chen, as the Loyalty Duke, had to go because the other party was the emperor.
Moreover, this emperor had some connections with him; after all, Lu Chen had once served as a servant in Han Wangfu, enduring hardships.
Sun Zizhao knew some of Lu Chen's legendary experiences. At times when they were not discussing state affairs, Sun Zizhao would take the initiative to ask about Lu Chen's personal matters. Of course, these were not secrets related to cultivation but rather personal stories.
When Sun Zizhao inquired, Lu Chen naturally shared his experiences, including those from Han Wangfu. Hearing this made Sun Zizhao feel somewhat disheartened; it was an unpleasant feeling that even made him chuckle in disbelief. It seemed that Lu Chen's past had been too difficult, leading to such experiences.
As Sun Zizhao's Loyalty Duke, Lu Chen's past experiences caused Sun Zizhao some pain as well; it was still an unpleasant feeling.
Originally, as a Marquis of the Daiwa Dynasty and a figure of the second emperor level, Lu Chen was not supposed to leave Baiyang City easily according to regulations. He did not have military duties and was not an envoy; leaving Baiyang City casually would invite criticism.
Such occurrences were unprecedented. Even ministers in the court would write memorials to impeach him upon learning of this because no one knew if his departure was for rebellion or to betray state secrets.
Therefore, Sun Zizhao issued a gag order: those who knew were not allowed to disclose anything. Lu Chen was going to meet with Chu Mang in a private capacity. However, even if this information leaked out, what could be done? Who would dare defy Sun Zizhao's orders?
Even if someone wrote a memorial for impeachment after learning about it, Sun Zizhao would suppress it on behalf of Lu Chen. It would have no effect because the matter itself was orchestrated by Sun Zizhao behind the scenes; Lu Chen was merely the sword while Sun Zizhao wielded it.
As for the formation of the Alliance Army involving Great Qi, Korea, and the Daiwa Dynasty, that initiative came from Lu Chen in his personal capacity. Sun Zizhao was merely astonished by Lu Chen's strategy to unite the three powers against the Tyranny of the Great Zhou.
Thus, this time when Emperor Chu Mang invited Lu Chen to Jianzhou for a gathering, it was also in a personal capacity and not through official documents. Outside, no one knew about this matter; it was highly confidential with very few people aware of it.
Once preparations were nearly complete, Lu Chen set off towards Jianzhou, one of the Western Seven States and the capital of the Han Dynasty. When the Han Dynasty was still a fief under the Great Zhou Court, Korea's capital was also located in Jianzhou.
After leaving Baiyang City alone without any attendants, he soared directly towards Korea.
He carried gifts with him; however, these gifts had already been arranged when he received Chu Mang's reply and were being transported by special carriages to Korea. They would then be received by designated individuals and presented to Chu Mang. Since Chu Mang invited Lu Chen to attend the gathering, it was only proper for Lu Chen to prepare some modest gifts as basic etiquette. Although they were modest gifts, they were quite valuable—worth several tens of thousands of taels of silver.
These gifts were worth several tens of thousands of taels of silver but consisted entirely of local specialties—some renowned items like pearls produced by Fishing Sun. Simply sending gold and silver would be meaningless; Chu Mang would not regard such money highly.
On the contrary, if money is used to buy something and then sent over, it becomes quite interesting, which is different from simply sending money.
Lu Chen set off in the morning, his true form manifesting as lightning, traversing through the dense clouds like a flash of light, dazzling and bright. However, from the ground, nothing could be seen, especially because of the white sky; nothing was visible at all.
After flying for a while, Lu Chen felt he had left the Central Plains and was about to enter the Western Seven States. He slowed down and lowered his altitude. At that moment, he spotted the first stronghold entering the Central Plains from the Western Seven States: Qingtian Pass.
What a familiar place this was! When Lu Chen first emerged from Han Wangfu and entered the Killing Green Mountain Range, this was the first city he encountered. Most importantly, it was here that he met someone extremely important in his life—Old Mu. Now returning to this old place after more than a decade made him sigh; it felt as if the scene of their first meeting was still vivid in his mind. After all, it was an experience he had lived through himself, and Lu Chen would not easily forget it.
Lu Chen believed that Old Mu himself would not easily forget their first meeting either. What moved Lu Chen about Old Mu was his loyalty and unyielding spirit; his unique personality evoked feelings of affection in Lu Chen, leading him to take him in.
As Lu Chen swept past Qingtian Pass, he saw the current state of Qingtian Pass—military troops lined up in formation. Clearly, since the establishment of the Han Dynasty, the Great Zhou Court had increased its military presence here. Because east of Qingtian was the territory of the Great Zhou Dynasty, while to the west lay the Western Seven States. Currently, the Han Dynasty in the Western Seven States was rebellious and needed to bolster its defenses against them.
Who wouldn't know that such a rebellion from Korea could suddenly attack Qingtian Pass and advance into the Central Plains?
Seeing the formidable setup at Qingtian Pass, Lu Chen understood some of the underlying circumstances and coldly smiled to himself: "No matter how solid your city walls are or how many troops you have in the Han Dynasty, with just a command, they could flatten Qingtian Pass and march into the Central Plains."
Lu Chen blinked; his assumptions were not wrong. The current Korea focused on development and had Star Gate assisting in military training. Their individual combat capabilities were becoming increasingly formidable. With someone responsible for troop movements and formations, attacking and capturing Qingtian Pass was only a matter of time.
After sweeping past Qingtian Pass, Lu Chen then entered the Killing Green Mountain Range, flying above it. The Killing Green Mountain Range stretched endlessly for hundreds of miles north and south, directly cutting off the Central Plains from the Western Seven States. East of Killing Green Mountain was the Central Plains; westward lay the Western Seven States.
Flying over Azure Field Mountain, Lu Chen felt heavy-hearted and somewhat uneasy. Fortunately, it wasn't long before he exited the territory of Killing Green Mountain Range and re-entered a habitable area—the Western Seven States.
After that, Lu Chen did not linger but flew straight to Jianzhou. He did not fly directly into the city because that would be inappropriate behavior; after all, Jianzhou was now the capital of the Han Dynasty and surely housed many experts within.
Lu Chen wasn't afraid of those people; he was now in a guest's position and naturally did not want to create enmity. It was better to keep things simple.
Lu Chen landed outside Jianzhou City and walked into town. Just as he reached the city gate, he was intercepted by City Guards. Ignoring their rude behavior, Lu Chen remained polite and generously took out a document from his pocket.
This document was personally written by Sun Zizhao and bore an official seal—red and square-shaped—anyone who glanced at it would know it came from an important source. Upon seeing this, the City Guard was immediately shocked; he had already received orders from above indicating that a distinguished guest would be returning to Jianzhou soon. It seemed that guest had indeed arrived.
The City Guard's attitude improved significantly; he treated Lu Chen with great respect and asked if he wanted to summon a carriage to take him to the palace. Lu Chen declined directly, stating that he wished to enjoy some sights of Jianzhou City first.
Foreign envoys came to visit, and it is normal for them to tour the market and assess the economic environment. The soldier understood this and immediately granted permission for Lu Chen to enter the city. Lu Chen put away the document and began to stroll through the city.
As the capital of Korea, Jianzhou City naturally has a good economic environment, comparable to Baiyang City, and even surpassing it in many aspects. This is understandable, as Jianzhou City is a historically significant city, having always been the royal city and administrative economic center of Korea.
Three generations of kings from the Chu Family, who were distant relatives, once resided here, which contributed to its development.
Baiyang City was only recently designated as the capital of the Daiwa Dynasty. Although it had strong fortifications in the past, that did not signify much. Later, based on Lu Chen's suggestion, Sun Zizhao ordered renovations for Baiyang City, which improved its condition significantly, finally giving it some semblance of a capital city. Moreover, due to different development philosophies compared to ordinary cities, it is bound to improve even more in the future.
After wandering around Jianzhou City, Lu Chen felt he gained some new insights and then directly sought out his contact person.
In Jianzhou, under the Daiwa Dynasty, there are contacts available in every city. Of course, not all of them are for intelligence gathering; some are responsible for official receptions. The person sent to meet Lu Chen was one such official.
These individuals had already received gifts transported from Baiyang City to be presented to Chu Mang and were quietly waiting for Lu Chen's arrival. Now that Lu Chen was here, they were responsible for accompanying him and presenting the gifts to Chu Mang.
Naturally, they would also accompany Lu Chen to attend the banquet hosted by Chu Mang in the palace, as this is part of the formalities.
Thus, this day passed. Lu Chen rested here for one night, and early the next morning, accompanied by these individuals, he made his way step by step toward the palace.
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