Chapter 323

He couldn’t help but start to doubt whether his original decision was too hasty. Their Harik family did their utmost to support the emperor, hoping to use the emperor’s power to break the blockade of the aristocratic families and gain more room for development for the family.

But now it seems that the emperor has greater ambitions. His goal may not only be to regain power, but to completely control the entire Sun and Moon City and become the true master of this land.

“What should I do?”

Norton whispered to himself, a hint of confusion in his voice.

Why do I suddenly feel like I’m in a difficult position after all these operations?
However, at this moment, a cold wind blew and Norton couldn’t help shivering.

He wrapped his cloak tightly around himself and turned to walk towards the family mansion. Along the way, various possible consequences kept appearing in his mind.

If they continue to support the emperor, once the emperor successfully takes control of the situation, will he destroy the bridge after crossing it and kick the Harik family away?

After all, the emperor’s mind was unfathomable, and no one could guarantee that he would not attack his former allies in order to consolidate his power. But if they stopped supporting the emperor now, all their previous efforts would be wasted, and they might also offend the emperor and retaliate against him.

After returning to the family mansion, Norton went straight into his study. He sat in front of the large desk, supporting his forehead with both hands, and fell into deep thought.

The study was silent, with only the candlelight on the wall flickering gently, emitting a faint light and casting his shadow on the wall behind him.

After an unknown amount of time, Norton finally raised his head. He decided to call together the core members of the family and hold another emergency meeting to discuss countermeasures.

Soon, the elders and key members of the family came to the study. They all had doubts and uneasiness on their faces, and they had obviously realized the seriousness of the matter. Norton stood up, glanced at everyone, and said slowly.

“Everyone, I believe you have all heard about what happened in the court today. The emperor’s performance exceeded our expectations, and his ambition and strength should not be underestimated. Now, we must re-examine our relationship with the emperor and make the right decision.”

After hearing Norton’s words, everyone started talking. An elder frowned and said.

“Master, I don’t think we can give up supporting the emperor so easily. After all, we have invested so much. If we withdraw now, all our previous efforts will be in vain.”

Another elder shook his head and said.

“I don’t think so. The emperor is too ambitious now, and we have no way of controlling him. If we continue to support him, we will probably become his pawns, and he will kick us away after he has used us. At that time, our family will be in danger.”

Everyone held their own opinions and argued endlessly. Norton listened quietly to everyone’s speeches, constantly weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

Finally, the head of the Norton family decided to go find Brigitte.

After learning the news that the Harik family was in a dilemma, Chen Yao’s expression was as calm as water, and his deep eyes were like the twinkling cold stars in the night sky, revealing the sharpness that saw through everything.

His slender fingers tapped lightly on the table, making a rhythmic sound that echoed in the quiet room, as if composing a prelude to the coming storm.

Chen Yao raised his eyes slightly, his gaze passed through the narrow window of the secret room, and looked towards the distant sky. He slowly spoke, his voice low and firm, as if penetrating layers of fog and reaching the depths of people’s hearts.

“Tell the Harik family that everything is as usual. There is no need to panic and there is no need to pay too much attention to those groundless speculations and worries. They just need to follow the routine, maintain the surface calm, and do not lose their composure.

After a brief pause, a hint of determination and decisiveness flashed in Chen Yao’s eyes, and he continued.

“But at the same time, let them speed up and arrange the elite forces of Douluo Continent to launch an all-round and deep infiltration of Sun Moon City.”

“Yes, Master Chen Yao.”

Brigitte nodded and then relayed Chen Yao’s words to the people of the Harik family.

The secret envoy of the Harik family took the order respectfully and disappeared quickly into the night like a flash of black lightning.

He was fully aware of the difficulty and importance of this mission. Every detail was related to the family’s rise and fall, honor and disgrace, and no mistakes were allowed.

After receiving Chen Yao’s instructions, the Harik family acted quickly. On the surface, they still maintained the peace and tranquility of the past. The family members went about the city as usual, participated in various social activities, and maintained seemingly friendly relations with other noble families and court officials, as if nothing had changed.

However, under this calm appearance, undercurrents are surging. Under the cover of night, the elites of the family frequently shuttled to various corners of the city, quietly connecting with the secret forces from Douluo Continent, and carrying out the infiltration plan in an orderly manner.

They disguised themselves as ordinary merchants, pushing carriages full of goods, and cleverly transported people and materials with special missions to various key locations in the city.

Or they could disguise themselves as ordinary people in the streets, and with their keen observation and excellent disguise skills, collect information about the actions of all parties in the city, and continuously pass on important intelligence back to their families.

Every action is carefully planned and every detail is repeatedly scrutinized to ensure that there are no mistakes.

In these seemingly peaceful days, the conflict between the emperor and the noble families was like a volcano that gradually accumulated strength and became more and more intense. In the court, the open and covert struggles between the two sides never stopped, and every court meeting seemed like a battlefield without gunpowder.

Every decision made by Emperor Feng Xiaochen in the court was like cutting a piece of the power cake of the aristocratic families, which aroused their strong dissatisfaction; while the aristocratic families continued to hinder him in secret, trying to weaken the emperor’s influence and take back their lost power.

As time went on, the aristocratic families encountered repeated setbacks and gained nothing in their search for the mysterious power that supported the emperor.

They spent a huge amount of manpower, material resources and financial resources, sent out countless spies, and conducted a carpet search of the entire Sun and Moon City, but they still did not find any trace of the mysterious power.

This made the noble families increasingly anxious, and the fear and anger in their hearts continued to accumulate.

Finally, after that long and depressing wait, the patience of the noble families was completely exhausted.

They were no longer willing to continue searching in this aimless manner, and the anger in their hearts burned fiercely like ignited firewood.

After some secret discussions, several noble families, led by the Xu family, decided not to endure any more and to declare war directly on the emperor.

The desire for power in their hearts has completely overcome their reason. They cannot tolerate the emperor taking power from them, and they cannot accept that the former puppets now want to turn the tables and become the masters.

In the Xu family mansion, the spacious martial arts training ground was now shrouded in a murderous atmosphere.

Xu Su stood on the high steps, his eyes like torches, scanning the densely packed family members and private soldiers below the stage. His face was full of determination and ruthlessness, as if he was a general about to go to the battlefield, his eyes revealed a desire for victory and contempt for the enemy.

“Everyone!”

Xu Su’s voice resounded throughout the venue like a huge bell.

“The emperor is unjust and has forced us into a corner. Today, we have reached the limit of our patience and no longer need to endure! Take up your weapons and fight the emperor to the death for the glory and dignity of our family and for our future!”

His words were full of incitement, and every word was like a sharp dagger, piercing into the hearts of the people and igniting their fighting spirit.

The people in the audience raised their weapons and let out deafening shouts.

“Fight to the death! Fight to the death!” The voice was like surging waves, one after another, as if to overturn the entire Sun and Moon City.

Under the command of Xu Su, the Xu family’s army moved quickly. Groups of soldiers dressed in heavy armor, holding sharp weapons, marched out of the mansion in neat and powerful steps. They had firm expressions on their faces, and their eyes revealed their desire for battle and their loyalty to the family.

Carriages loaded with soul guides, escorted by soldiers, slowly drove towards the designated assembly point.

These soul guides have been carefully developed and stored by the noble families over the years. They are extremely powerful and are their important support in this war.

At the same time, other aristocratic families also responded to the Xu family’s call and began to mobilize.

The armies and supplies of the Hongchen family, the Wang family and other families gathered together like a tide and marched towards the designated battlefield.

For a time, the Sun and Moon City was filled with military movements, and the air was filled with tension and oppression.

The aristocratic families did not deliberately conceal their actions, and the people of the entire Sun Moon City could clearly see that mighty armies and mountains of soul guides were pouring into the aristocratic families’ territories.

This made the atmosphere in the city increasingly tense, like a taut string that could break at any time.

After Emperor Feng Xiaochen learned of the actions of the aristocratic families, he suddenly felt a strong sense of uneasiness in his heart.

He knew very well that once this war broke out, it would be a brutal fight with rivers of blood, and Sun Moon City would be plunged into endless flames of war.

He quickly summoned his trusted ministers and generals to discuss countermeasures in the meeting room of the imperial palace.

The atmosphere in the meeting room was suffocatingly solemn.

Feng Xiaochen sat in the main seat, his face slightly pale, but his eyes revealed determination and unyielding. He held the armrests of the chair tightly with both hands, his knuckles turned white from the force, showing his inner tension and anxiety.

“My dear ministers, the noble families are openly rebelling and trying to overthrow the court. How should we respond?”

There was a hint of urgency in Feng Xiaochen’s voice, and his eyes swept across everyone present, hoping to find a glimmer of hope and confidence on their faces.

The ministers bowed their heads in thought, and for a moment, the meeting room fell into silence. After a long time, a general stood up, clasped his fists and said.

“Your Majesty, the noble families are coming with great force this time. Our army is not superior in numbers and equipment. But we cannot sit still and wait for death. We must rise up to resist. I suggest that we immediately mobilize the garrisons around the capital to strengthen the city defenses. At the same time, we should ask for help from the Harik family. They once promised to support Your Majesty. Now is the time for them to fulfill their promise.”

Feng Xiaochen nodded and said, “My dear minister, what you said is absolutely right. Without further delay, send someone to the Harik family immediately to ask for their support. Make sure they understand that this war concerns the safety of the entire Sun Moon City, as well as the interests of their family.”

Soon, the emperor’s envoy rushed to the residence of the Harik family without stopping.

Norton, the patriarch of the Harik family, personally met the envoy. After listening to the envoy’s purpose, Norton patted his chest and made a promise.

“Please rest assured, Your Majesty. Our Harik family has always kept our word. We promised to support Your Majesty, and we will certainly not break our promise now. Our family’s army is ready to go, and is ready to be dispatched by Your Majesty at any time.”

After hearing Norton’s words, the messenger felt relieved and hurried back to the palace to report.

After Feng Xiaochen learned of the Harik family’s reply, his worries were slightly alleviated, and a glimmer of hope rekindled in his eyes.

“With the support of the Harik family, we have a chance of winning.” Feng Xiaochen said.

“Pass the order, the entire army enters the first level of alert, and must hold on to Sun Moon City and wait for the arrival of the Harik family’s reinforcements. At the same time, strengthen patrols and control in the city.”

During this period, through various means, the emperor has initially gained control over Sun Moon City. It was precisely because of this that the aristocratic families completely fell out.

As the emperor’s order was issued, the entire Sun and Moon City quickly entered a wartime state.

On the city walls, soldiers were on high alert, their eyes closely fixed on what was happening outside the city; on the streets, patrols were shuttling back and forth, and the atmosphere was so tense that it made one breathless.

Everyone knows that a thrilling war is about to break out, and their fate will be completely rewritten in this war.

In this tense atmosphere, the people of Sun Moon City also fell into deep panic. They closed their doors and dared not go out, fearing that they would be involved in this cruel war.

The streets were filled with fear and despair, and people’s faces were filled with worry and helplessness.

At this time, outside of Sun Moon City, the armies of the noble families had already assembled. They were arranged in neat square formations, flashing a cold metallic light under the afterglow of the setting sun.

Xu Su rode a tall warhorse and patrolled back and forth in front of the army. His eyes were full of confidence and pride, as if victory was already waving to him.

“Soldiers!” Xu Su shouted again, “Tomorrow, we will launch a general attack on the emperor. Let us use the weapons in our hands to take back everything that belongs to us and make the entire Sun Moon City tremble under our feet!”

“Take everything back!” The soldiers’ shouts rang out again, and the sound seemed to break through the sky, foreshadowing that a cruel war was about to begin.

(End of this chapter)