"I'm sorry, Old Man Chen, I'm late." Dai Luoli walked to Old Man Chen, head lowered, a bit ashamed to meet his gaze.
"You've never been late before. This is the first time. Old Man Chen will give you a chance to explain." Old Man Chen's expression was serious, but it was all an act.
Dai Luoli's small face flushed. "I went to watch the excitement, and then I realized I was late."
"Watch the excitement?" Old Man Chen was taken aback. Early in the morning, in the vast Duke's Manor, what excitement was there to see?
Dai Luoli quickly explained, "Old Man Chen, I heard some people say that someone from the Spirit Cat Duke's Manor came. So, I curiously waited a while, and saw a very pretty girl. That girl seemed to have a high status, as a group of people were surrounding her."
"Spirit Cat Duke's Manor?" Old Man Chen seemed to think of something, and his expression changed slightly. "Come in. I'll let it slide today."
"Thank you, Old Man Chen." Knowing he wouldn't be punished, Dai Luoli became excited.
When the two of them returned to the living room, Huo Yuhao saw Dai Luoli again. However, what piqued Huo Yuhao's curiosity more was the thoughtful expression on Old Man Chen's face. It seemed something was on his mind.
"You're the person from last night." Dai Luoli quickly noticed the other person in the living room and stared at Huo Yuhao with wide eyes.
"He's a year older than you. You can call him 'older brother'." Old Man Chen noticed Huo Yuhao observing him, quickly composed himself, and patted Dai Luoli's head.
"Older brother?"
Dai Luoli's expression stiffened. His eyes turned cold, as if the words "older brother" were something he deeply loathed.
Huo Yuhao shook his head inwardly. It wasn't just Huo Yun'er who was bullied by the duchess; Dai Luoli's mother was also a victim, though not as severely. At least Dai Luoli's mother had some status. Furthermore, Dai Luoli had clearly interacted with Dai Huabin too many times since childhood, which explained his aversion to the term "older brother."
"Luoli, go warm up in the training ground first. Grandpa Chen will come later." Old Man Chen clearly noticed Dai Luoli's discomfort and shook his head helplessly.
"Yes." Dai Luoli glanced at Huo Yuhao with a complicated expression and then turned to leave.
"This child is just like you; he was bullied by that little brat, Dai Huabin, before." After Dai Luoli left, Old Man Chen stroked his beard and said.
Huo Yuhao nodded calmly. He looked up at Old Man Chen and asked, "Old Man Chen, I saw you frowning just now. Did you run into some trouble?"
"You are quite observant." Old Man Chen shook his head. "To be precise, it's a problem for the Duke's Manor."
Hearing this, a flicker of curiosity arose in Huo Yuhao's heart, but he didn't pry further, instead, he stopped asking.
But Old Man Chen didn't mind and casually said, "Just now, someone from the Spirit Cat Duke's Manor came over. In the history of our Star Luo Empire, the White Tiger Family and the Spirit Cat Family have always been intermarried, and their relationship is extremely friendly. If I'm not mistaken, that kid Dai Huabin should have merged his martial soul with that of a member of the Zhu Family."
"According to the usual practice, the Zhu Family's member will be sent to the White Tiger Duke's Manor to be cultivated for a period of time, mainly to let the two families' members live together, increase their feelings, and lay a good foundation for the development of the martial soul fusion technique in the future."
Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao immediately understood. In the original story, wasn't it Zhu Lu who had a martial soul fusion skill with Dai Huabin?
No wonder Zhu Lu had been following Dai Huabin at Shrek Academy; it turned out she had been sent to the White Tiger Duke's Manor at this time to cultivate their relationship.
"The reason I say it's troublesome is that a marriage between the two families will make the other party wary." Old Man Chen sighed.
"The royal family?" Huo Yuhao instinctively asked.
Old Man Chen raised his eyelids slightly, his gaze towards Huo Yuhao was somewhat surprised, "That's right. But you must remember, don't go around talking about these things outside."
Huo Yuhao nodded thoughtfully, but a special seed was planted in his heart – the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Old Man Chen stroked his beard and said, "Alright, get ready and go to the training ground to wait. Although I don't have much to teach you, I can still lay a foundation for your future cultivation."
"Yes." Huo Yuhao respectfully responded, and then followed Dai Luoli's footsteps and left.
In the vast living room, only Old Man Chen was left. He looked at the clear sky outside the window and shook his head, sighing, "The royal family is declining day by day, no longer as powerful as it was in its peak period. The two duke manors, one holds heavy troops, the other controls the finances. If the royal family and the duke manors secretly fight, the one who will benefit will only be the Sun Moon Empire."
Star Luo Imperial Palace.
"A hundred years. The two Duke's Manors have another pair of people capable of martial soul fusion. The timing is quite perfect."
Seated behind a massive dragon desk was a handsome young man. It was Xu Jiawei, the Star Luo Emperor, who had officially ascended the throne just a year ago. However, there was no emotion on his face as he spoke, his deep gaze concealing his thoughts.
"Older brother, the two Duke's Manors show signs of fusion again. Their power is already immense, and countless nobles are attached to them. This isn't good news for us. Our imperial family's authority is declining, and our family's talents are dwindling. The nobles within the empire are also restless. The crisis is imminent. We must strike hard to suppress some of those who want to rise."
"Otherwise, it will be too late once the Sun Moon Empire has free hands."
Opposite Xu Jiawei sat a golden-haired young woman. She was exceptionally beautiful, and although she was only sixteen years old, one could already foresee the captivating beauty she would possess in a few years. She was Xu Jiujiu, the late Emperor's most beloved eldest daughter, the Imperial Princess.
However, Xu Jiujiu's face was filled with worry as she spoke; her young age made it difficult to conceal her emotions.
In contrast, Xu Jiawei wore a slight smile. "We need to choose the right time to strike. I've just ascended the throne; it's not suitable for me to use such measures."
"But if you don't take any action, older brother, it will only embolden these people, making them even more rampant," Xu Jiujiu frowned.
"That's why I place so much importance on the next Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament," Xu Jiawei said with a hidden meaning.
Xu Jiujiu's eyes flickered slightly. "Are you planning to…?"
Xu Jiawei said in a low voice, "To suppress the nobles, divide the White Tiger Duke's power, strengthen central authority, and promote Soul Tools, the tournament is the most suitable time."
Xu Jiujiu had wanted to ask more, but suddenly stopped. Obviously, she had suddenly understood something. If she could think of it, how could her own brother not think of it?
Xu Jiawei stood up, hands clasped behind his back, and looked at the Douluo Continent map hanging on the wall behind him, his gaze sharp. "The fishermen on the sea all understand that before a storm comes, the sea is the most calm. But correspondingly, the bigger the waves, the more expensive the fish."
"Then we'll use this wave to clear away a batch of expensive fish."
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