The Lord is Empire

Following this, a few waitresses walked over excitedly and said, “Boss, how come you’re here?”

Zhao Fu lightly laughed as he replied, “Mm, I’m here with a friend. Prepare one of the best rooms and some good food.”

“Yes sir!” the waitresses replied and hurried off to prepare everything.

Hearing this exchange, Zhang Heng looked quite awkward. He had never expected that this restaurant would be owned by Zhao Fu, but all he could do was awkwardly smile.

The three of them sat in an elegant room, and Zhang Heng started to eat first while Zhao Fu and Ge Nia sat and watched.

“What, aren’t you two going to eat? It’s a waste not to eat such good food.”

In front of this delicious food, Zhang Heng seemed to become a different person. Gone was the steady and confident person; right now, he only cared about eating and felt quite strange that Zhao Fu and Ge Nia weren’t eating.

Zhao Fu smiled and shook his head as he said, “Brother Zhang, take your time; I’m not very hungry.”

When he heard this, Zhang Heng didn’t say anything. As a person, he wasn’t lured by money or beauties, but he couldn’t resist the temptation of good food. Perhaps this had to do with his past – if it hadn't been for his master, he most likely would’ve starved to death.

After eating and drinking his fill, Zhang Heng downed a final cup of Hundred Flower Wine before his attitude became serious again, and he regained his extraordinary bearings.

“Your Majesty, O’ Great Qin Legatee, I won’t beat around the bush. I came this time to meet with you, the mysterious and terrifying, to see what sort of person you are!” Zhang Heng said with a sharp gaze, causing Zhao Fu’s hairs to stand on end. It was the first time his identity had been exposed so suddenly like this.

However, when he thought that others had most likely guessed his identity and that his identity would become known after growing more and more, he didn’t feel as panicked. However, he still had no idea how Zhang Heng had figured out his identity.

Zhao Fu didn’t try to hide it, and his gaze became cold as the dignified aura of an Emperor erupted from his body. He said with an imposing might, “Then, what does sir think of me?”

Zhang Heng suddenly laughed, “Overall, you’re not bad; you have a good temperament and willpower and will be a powerful King in the future. Right now, I didn’t want to concern myself with the matters of the world, and I simply explored around. However, since my senior apprentice brother has made a move against Great Qin, I should help Great Qin in response.”

“Your senior apprentice brother?” Zhao Fu was quite confused before his eyes lit up and he asked, “You’re from the School of Vertical and Horizontal?”

Zhao Fu couldn’t help but feel shocked upon realizing this. This was because the School of Vertical and Horizontal was simply too famous, and he had only just clashed with someone from it and already felt a headache. He was now quite clear about the School of Vertical and Horizontal’s strength.

Zhang Heng didn’t try to hide it, and he cupped his hands as he once again introduced himself, “This lowly one is Zhang Heng of the Horizontal Branch of the School of Vertical and Horizontal!”

This was the first time that Zhao Fu had personally met someone from the School of Vertical and Horizontal – no wonder he gave off such a dangerous aura. Now that both sides had revealed who they were, Zhao Fu cast aside the worry he had been feeling and smiled, saying, “I’ve long since admired the great name of the School of Vertical and Horizontal!”

Zhang Heng also smiled as he said, “The people of the world praise our School too much; in actuality, we’re just ordinary folk.”

“How does brother Zhang plan to help Great Qin?” Zhao Fu believed in the School of Vertical and Horizontal’s strength, so he didn’t pay much mind to Zhang Heng’s words. Zhang Heng had said that he wanted to help Great Qin, so Zhao Fu wanted to know just how he would do this.

Zhang Heng’s smile didn’t change, and he sat up straight in his chair as he replied, “By now, senior apprentice brother has most likely discovered Great Qin’s position, and he is slowly casting out a large net and closing it. He wants to trap Great Qin and kill it off like a trapped beast. Senior apprentice brother feels more excited the greater the challenge is. However, he has underestimated Great Qin’s strength, and I’m sure that Your Majesty will be able to break through.

“However, this lowly one still has some suggestions. Right now, Your Majesty can use Seeping River, Valiant Peace, South Leaf, and Open Flask as a foundation in a straight line to split apart the northern side of the Midland Continent. If Your Majesty can do that, Great Qin’s rise will be unstoppable.

“Not only will this allow Great Qin to break through senior apprentice brother’s encirclement, but it will also smooth the path for Great Qin in the future. However, I’m sure that senior apprentice brother will try to obstruct you as much as possible, so I hope that Your Majesty will be mentally prepared.”

Zhao Fu already felt quite troubled about Zhang Heng’s senior apprentice brother, and he felt that his life had become incredibly difficult now that he had such an opponent. He was now prepared for anything else that Zhang Heng’s senior apprentice brother would throw at him.

After hearing Zhang Heng speak, Zhao Fu realized that his aim had been off. With Seeping River, Valiant Peace, South Leaf, and Open Flask as a foundation, if he steadily expanded, no one would be able to stop him in the north, and he would be able to escape from the interference of Zhang Heng’s senior apprentice brother.

Zhao Fu was quite satisfied with this suggestion, and he replied, “Thank you for your guidance, brother Zhang!”

Zhang Heng lightly shook his head and said, “Your Majesty is too courteous. I’m sure Your Majesty can tell that this crude plan is only just the preliminary steps. As for obtaining Battle City, I also have some suggestions. Would you like to hear them?”

“Oh!” Zhao Fu once again felt quite surprised – who would have thought that Zhang Heng would have guessed this as well? He had just been about to start taking care of this matter, so he wondered what Zhang Heng had to say about it. As such, he asked, “What suggestions do you have, brother Zhang?”

“In actuality, Your Majesty doesn’t have to do much; brother Sword Demon’s fame and talent are already enough to give him a 20% chance of obtaining the position of City Lord, so this lowly one’s suggestion is simply akin to pushing a boat along a current.

“First, brother Sword Demon needs to reveal to everyone his true appearance – after all, no one would want a faceless person to become the City Lord. Second, brother Sword Demon needs to officially join Battle City and even temporarily cut off ties with Great Qin to fully devote himself to Battle City for now.

“Third, brother Sword Demon needs to establish his own faction, mainly to display his strength and gain sufficient power. Fourth, he needs to stop acting low-profile and try to make himself as well-known as possible to attract people to him.

“Fifth, brother Sword Demon needs to maintain friendly relations with all factions in Battle City, but he must not try to curry favor with them or drag them to his side – this is a taboo of power struggles. Sixth, and finally, he must not take the initiative to attack any other faction; rather, he must act as humbly as possible.

“If he can do all of these things, there is a 90% chance that brother Sword Demon will be able to become the next City Lord of Battle City. As insurance, Your Majesty can even have the current City Lord assassinated – if that happens, there will be a 100% chance that brother Sword Demon will become the next City Lord, but the risks will be extremely great!”

After listening to Zhang Heng, Zhao Fu’s mind became clearer. Zhang Heng’s suggestions were simply flawless, and if they followed his advice, it would almost be guaranteed that Ge Nia would become the next City Lord. If Zhao Fu was Battle City’s City Lord, he would be inclined to choose Ge Nia.

“Thank you for your advice, brother Zhang!” Zhao Fu couldn’t help but laugh in delight before calling out, “Please bring up another table of food and our best Hundred Flower Wine!”

Zhang Heng quickly waved his hands and said, “Your Majesty, there’s no need for that. This lowly one has eaten and drank his fill. Now that these matters are done, it’s time for me to leave. I hope that I’ll be able to meet Your Majesty again in the future.”

Hearing this, Zhao Fu inwardly sighed. Zhang Heng was a talent among talents, but it was a pity that he didn’t intend to join him. As such, Zhao Fu didn’t try to make things difficult for him.

Under the golden sunset, Zhang Heng rode his donkey and slowly disappeared from Zhao Fu’s vision. This scene seemed quite familiar, and Zhao Fu couldn’t help but think of Gongsun Lin.

It was a pity that he wasn’t able to keep either Gongsun Lin or Zhang Heng, both of whom were top-tier geniuses. Zhao Fu started to wonder if it was because he lacked charisma.