My daily cultivation progress is calculated.

Chapter 20: A Prison Guard Arrives Parachuted In, the Birthday Gifts Are Robbed

Two days later, the position of the jailer in cell A was determined.

To Shen Yan's surprise, he had no recollection of this candidate.

They were all parachuted in by Xu Shaogong; they weren't originally from the prison.

Shen Yan was dumbfounded, and in his heart he also admired Xu's good methods, as he had not skimped on any of the money.

So all this infighting and power struggles in the Heavenly Prison has been for nothing, just for the sake of doing things this way. Xu Shaogong's credibility has been completely exhausted, and it seems he doesn't intend to stay in the Heavenly Prison for long.

When Ma Danian heard the news, he was relieved that he hadn't tried to compete for the position of prison clerk in Class A.

The most affected were the guards of cell A. Apart from the one who died, the other three hated Xu Shaogong to the core.

"Officials are all heartless! This is just a jailer; you really can't trust what an official says."

A new prison guard has arrived. His name is Xu Shaonian. He looks to be around thirty years old, with a square face and an average appearance.

Upon hearing this name, Shen Yan muttered to himself.

"Could this be a relative of Xu Shaogong?"

Everyone thought the same thing, but no one dared to say a word.

When a new official takes office, those who are subordinates have to be sensible and offer tribute.

Shen Yan had already spoken with several squad leaders and agreed that fifty taels would suffice.

Several team leaders jointly hosted a banquet at Chunfenglou to welcome him.

Accompanying the jailer of Prison No. 1 was a descendant of an acquaintance of Shen Yan.

Hu Youtian's son was also summoned to the prison to serve, and like Shen Yan at the beginning, he was assigned to cell number C.

Shen Yan didn't pay much attention to this. He had already avenged himself, and he only needed to keep the other party away from him.

Bianjing, the Imperial City, the Western Garden.

The main hall is magnificent, with exquisite carvings and meticulous workmanship; the wooden pillars are all made of Phoebe zhennan wood.

An old man sat on the dragon throne, dressed in a Taoist robe, with white hair and a youthful face, looking like a sage.

This man was none other than Emperor Xuanwu, the ruler of the Great Zhou Dynasty, who had been on the throne for over fifty years.

He had not attended the morning court session for thirty years, and when there was business, he would summon high-ranking officials to the West Garden.

He had a favorite minister, the Right Chancellor Yan Fan, who amassed wealth for him and collected rare treasures from all over the world to fund his alchemy and cultivation practices.

Zeng Shihong, the Left Chancellor and leader of the Qingliu faction, helped him govern officials and handle affairs large and small.

A cabinet was also established to review and approve documents.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard acted as the emperor's eyes and ears, allowing Emperor Xuanwu to know everything about family affairs, national affairs, and world affairs, even while he was deep in the palace.

With the support of the Four Princes and the Xun Gui Group, they defended against foreign enemies and expanded their territory. Throughout the four seas and eight wastelands, all nations paid tribute, and their power was unmatched.

This emperor, who had mastered the art of balancing power to the extreme, was now as furious as a lion.

"In my more than fifty years on the throne, this is the first time I have witnessed the birthday tribute being robbed. Are you all just sitting around doing nothing? How can you serve as my eyes and ears with such incompetence? Zheng Jun, you have disappointed me greatly!"

"It took more than ten days for news of their abduction to reach Bianjing, allowing the entire country to be monitored. Ha! How utterly laughable."

Zheng Jun, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, knelt on the ground, not daring to raise his eyes.

The top-ranking experts were terrified and trembling before Emperor Xuanwu, this gaunt old man.

"Your subject acknowledges his guilt and will certainly investigate the truth as soon as possible and recover the birthday tribute from the Jiangnan region."

To please Emperor Xuanwu, prominent families and officials from Jiangnan jointly presented him with a million taels of silver, as well as the legendary top-tier cultivation technique, "The Longevity Manual."

Emperor Xuanwu spent the latter half of his life pursuing immortality, spending a huge sum of money to build the Wanshou Palace, where he practiced alchemy and cultivation.

It is said that the "Longevity Manual" is divided into two parts, Yin and Yang. People can only learn one part. If they try to learn both parts at the same time, their progress will be slow at best, and at worst they will suffer from qi deviation and demonic possession.

Just one article can enable one to break through innate limitations and live as long as a tortoise, living for thousands of years.

His lifespan is far longer than that of a typical Grandmaster of the Innate Realm, who lives for three hundred years.

Emperor Xuanwu's desire for the "Longevity Secret" goes without saying.

He possessed the Yang manual, but had been unable to master it for over a decade, leading him to doubt whether the Yin manual was more suitable for him.

So he secretly ordered people to search for the Yin chapter of the "Longevity Manual". As expected, after ten years of searching, they finally found it in the Jiangnan region.

They were escorted to the capital with the birthday tribute, but unexpectedly, they were transported by hundreds of soldiers and guarded by experts of the third rank.

How could Emperor Xuanwu not be angry that the thieves could still steal it?

He was already over sixty years old, and even if he took Taoist elixirs for a long time, he wouldn't live for many more years.

The Longevity Formula can refine essence into qi, use qi to preserve youth, and thus achieve longevity like a tortoise.

Unlike typical internal energy cultivation methods, which require reversing the innate from the acquired, it directly cultivates innate true energy.

This is exactly what Emperor Xuanwu wanted most: innate true qi is the key to the long lifespan of innate grandmasters.

With the nourishment of innate true energy, he could live for several more decades without any problem.

"I don't care what methods you use, what means you employ, or how many people you kill. You have one month to find out the truth. Otherwise, you can forget about being the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The Great Zhou has no such useless commander."

"Yes, Your Majesty. I obey your command and will certainly not fail in your trust."

"That's good, you may leave now!"

Emperor Xuanwu was furious in the Western Garden and was determined to find the thief who stole the birthday gifts at all costs.

The entire Imperial Guard was mobilized to search for the whereabouts of the birthday tribute.

The Great Zhou Dynasty is about to be engulfed in a bloodbath.

……

……

Bianjing, the Crown Prince's Residence.

The bright moon hangs high, lightly veiled by dark clouds, with only a few stars twinkling dimly in the night sky.

Li Chengde was drinking with officials of the Qingliu faction at his residence, and the atmosphere was filled with laughter and merriment.

Yuan Qingshi was also among them, accompanied by his newly acquired concubine, Hua Nongyue.

Li Chengde has been the crown prince for nearly forty years. He has been the crown prince since he was ten years old, and now at fifty, he is still the crown prince.

Li Chengde was too eager for advancement; he dreamed of ascending to the Golden Palace, which Emperor Xuanwu had not visited for thirty years.

He watched as the officials below lined up in two rows, drinking and making merry.

He imagined this place as the imperial palace, where the officials were not making merry, but holding a meeting.

Li Chengde would gather his officials at his residence every month, but at first he did not dare to be so blatant, and the number of people at the gathering was only three to five.

Seeing that Emperor Xuanwu did not reprimand him, he became bolder.

Each time, twenty or thirty officials would be invited, a number comparable to the previous morning court sessions, only the officials were of lower rank.

He felt somewhat disappointed that none of the six heads of government attended the banquet.

Just then, a servant rushed in, interrupting his reverie.

He was very displeased, as this disturbed his mood at this critical juncture.

However, in front of officials, he could only put on a benevolent expression.

"What is it? Can't you see that I'm discussing matters of state with you gentlemen?"

The servant was about to lean in and whisper the report.

He frowned.

"All of you here are important ministers of my Great Zhou Dynasty. There is nothing I cannot tell you."

"Your Highness is kind and benevolent."

"His Highness the Crown Prince has the world in his heart."

"..."

Li Chengde was very pleased to hear the flattery all around him.

The courtiers were also moved when they heard the Crown Prince say this.

A scene of guests and hosts enjoying themselves immensely.

The servant stood by, sweating profusely with anxiety, but dared not speak out.

He had no choice but to think for a moment and then speak.

"Your Highness, the Prime Minister has arrived and is currently waiting in the study."

Upon hearing this, Li Chengde realized something was wrong and addressed the officials.

"You all continue drinking, I'll be right back."

After saying this, he hurriedly followed the servant to the study.