Fox Dragon stated that there was only one answer! I swear my allegiance to you!
Emperor Zhengde was no longer present. Between Jiajing and Wanli, Fox Dragon feared both.
But as the saying goes, a distant official is not as good as a present supervisor.
Jiajing could not cross over from the Inner Mountain River.
Yet the tip of Emperor Wanli's sword was less than ten paces away from him.
"Very good, from now on you will be one of the guardian divine beasts of my Great Ming... no, of朕's imperial court. I first promise to grant you the title of Sichuan Dragon God!"
The titles of Dragon God varied in scale, from small ones for ponds and wells, to medium ones for lakes and rivers, to great ones for the four major rivers and four seas, and even up to the Five Emperors and Four Symbols. The title of Dragon King was merely one among the ranks of Dragon Gods.
Emperor Wanli had Fox Dragon released from the Imperial Prison. The divine generals of the Northern Commandery escorted him. Before leaving, Old Shen shouted from inside the cell:
"Senior, senior promised to help me go to Wudang. I will definitely go. Thank you, senior, thank you for your guidance!"
Old Shen was still overjoyed, almost in tears!
He never expected that being imprisoned could lead to such a great opportunity! He had latched onto a master of the Ascension Realm. Why would he still work for the Great Ming? After cultivating for so many years, would he be blinded by these minor institutional benefits!
...
Breathing fresh air again, everyone felt very good. Fox Dragon, however, having been in prison for too long, found it difficult to adapt to the dazzling sunlight.
These long years had passed. Seeing the world outside again, and the bright sun hanging high, he felt a sense of daze.
As soon as Emperor Wanli emerged, someone quickly reported that a delegation of tribute bearers had entered the capital...
"Commander of Jianzhou Guard, Dragon Tiger General Nurhaci, has come to the Ming court to pay tribute!"
Emperor Wanli recognized him. This man had come three times, a familiar face. But Ji Xiang, who was by Emperor Wanli's side, was greatly shaken upon hearing Nurhaci's name!
"Nurhaci?!"
"The founder of the Qing Dynasty, now in the capital of the Ming Dynasty!"
A "malicious thought" suddenly surged in Ji Xiang's heart.
To harbor murderous intent without cause is one of the malicious thoughts. Yet, this malicious thought was unavoidable for Ji Xiang!
If he were to kill Nurhaci... what then!
"I never thought that not long ago, I was contemplating that if my cultivation were successful, and the Qing army attacked the Ming, I would lend a hand. I never imagined that the moment this vow could be fulfilled would arrive so quickly!"
"However, he has done nothing yet. To harbor murderous intent now would be to create evil karma... which contradicts my great vow."
Ji Xiang's great vow was to save all evil-doers in the world. Now, although he knew Nurhaci would become the source of great evil in the future, he had not committed any great evil acts yet. If it were merely about the internal conflicts within the Jurchen tribes, that would be a power struggle. Of course, he was responsible, but under what pretense could Ji Xiang punish him?
To severely punish Nurhaci for the sake of the Jurchen people who had died?
What a joke! Could this reason stand? It could not. Moreover, Nurhaci's attacks on other Jurchen tribes were permitted by the Great Ming. If one were to trace the root of the matter, Emperor Wanli should be strangled right now.
As he thought this way, Emperor Wanli first found Old Zhang, explained everything he had seen and heard in the Imperial Prison, and declared his intention to govern diligently, slay ghosts and gods, write books, and aim for sainthood.
Old Zhang also informed Emperor Wanli that Nurhaci had just entered the city and had used his Dragon Tiger divine power to spy on the nation's might.
"Nurhaci saw the tragic state of Shunyi City and had some ideas, didn't he?"
Emperor Wanli's tone was also displeased at this moment. He had privately spied on the Great Ming's national fortune and might, and even tried to touch the loopholes?
His disloyal intentions were obvious. The grand hat was already prepared.
Emperor Wanli pondered, feeling that Nurhaci was being a bit of a troublemaker. If that were the case, Li Chengliang should be re-employed and sent to the Liaodong region to suppress him forcefully.
At the same time, this matter made Ji Xiang's thoughts race!
"This old slave will never give up. He spied on the national fortune and might. Old Zhang and Wanli don't know, but I do. This must be covetousness. Combined with the fact that experts from the Inner Mountain River had sought out Wanli, hoping to win him over as their subordinate, Nurhaci's strength is not weak. It is very possible that he was targeted and sought out by experts from the Inner Mountain River!"
If one wants to find fault with someone, one must do so openly, using the power of the Ming court!
Ji Xiang directly disclosed his conjectures to Emperor Wanli and Old Zhang.
"This person might harbor rebellious intentions! Experts from the Inner Mountain River might have already won him over! Spying on the national fortune is definitely not something a second-rank general of the third grade would dare to do. Nurhaci has visited the Ming court three times, and this is his fourth tribute. Does he not understand the rules?"
"It is merely his status as a foreign general that the Ming court treats him kindly. I find this person rather dangerous!"
Ji Xiang's intense hostility was even felt by Emperor Wanli, who found it strange: "Ji Xiang, do you have any past grievances with him?"
Ji Xiang chuckled: "It's not that I have any personal grievances with him, Your Majesty. Please analyze it yourself. Are Nurhaci's actions not unusual?"
"To try to compensate for the nation's might with his own status, he is loyal to the Ming court, but not to such an extent! In the past, during the Tang Dynasty, An Lushan was respectful to Emperor Xuanzong before he rebelled!"
A word of enlightenment awakened the dreamer. Emperor Wanli suddenly understood. After a moment of thought, he saw through it again!
"That makes sense! An Lushan was the adopted son of Zhang Shougui, and Nurhaci is the adopted son of Li Chengliang. Even their early resumes are similar. Both of them lost their fathers..."
Old Zhang's gaze sharpened:
"Could it be that he also desires the national might, or the national fortune?"
Emperor Wanli said:
"National fortune! That must be related to the great path of enfeoffment of divine spirits! Japan has also suddenly appeared with techniques to supplement national fortune. Our Great Ming's national fortune also suddenly rose after the Fire Lord's rebellion, although this might have something to do with my diligent governance..."
Emperor Wanli praised himself a little, and those around him paid no attention.
Old Zhang even seized the opportunity to flatter:
"Your Majesty's spirit to govern diligently and face the Great Ming's mountains and rivers will surely bring glory to the sun and moon in the future!"
Emperor Wanli was very pleased with Old Zhang's flattery and indicated that he should remain calm and not publicize it excessively. Knowing that he was awesome was enough; he needed to be low-key.
"If I am not low-key, I will attract the covetousness of unknown gods and ghosts! And according to Ji Xiang's words, if Nurhaci is valued by the people of the Inner Mountain River, then the Tatars, Japan, Joseon, and even those small territories like Annan, all those who possess the dignity of an emperor, have they all been..."
Emperor Wanli suddenly felt as if he had foreseen the future, his body trembled, and he broke out in a cold sweat!
These guys are all around the Great Ming! The people of the Inner Mountain River, with this move, are they trying to... launch a global attack on the Ming!
What is this "surrounding the Ming attack group"!
"So, we know about this matter! But Nurhaci is, after all, a second-rank Dragon Tiger General, the peak of a military official without rank. If we rashly make a move against him, the court officials will surely object."
"This guy is not a god or a ghost. If you move against him, these officials will not believe that Nurhaci would rebel!"
"Of course, I believe that Old Xu, the three Grand Secretaries, and Tian Yi will all be powerful helpers for both of us."
After Emperor Wanli finished speaking, he saw Liu Mengyin by his side. Liu Mengyin immediately bowed, stating that he was an unwavering imperial loyalist! From now on, even if you called a deer a horse, I would not frown. If you had no horse, I would be a horse myself!
It was a joke. Now that he was part of the Great Ming's establishment, who would still care about returning to Joseon!
He was getting promoted and rich!
"Good, from now on you will be my imperial golden brush. I want to see what Emperor Jiajing valued in you that he even told you little stories for two nights."
Emperor Wanli was very pleased with Liu Mengyin's allegiance and stated that when necessary, he would have to return to Joseon to be his informant, keeping an eye on their king and preventing him from doing anything foolish.
If that Joseon king dared to do anything foolish, to raise the banner of rebellion and cause trouble, then the Emperor would have no choice but to send him to meet the emperors of the Song Dynasty.
Ji Xiang pondered for a moment and then spoke to Emperor Wanli:
"If Nurhaci's intention is indeed to obtain national might or national fortune, then he is very likely to go to the Eastern Yue Temple and the Fire God Temple, because in these two temples, there were once... national gods personally enfeoffed by you!"
"National gods share the same fate as the national fortune. They are themselves a part of the Great Ming's national might!"