Chapter 7: Turning over nine cows! What we lack least is strength.

  Facing the micro-subtly pretending to care, Zhang Zixing replied slowly: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your concern. I have just recovered from a serious illness and my body has not fully recovered, so it's not suitable for me to drink too much. Therefore, before Wenxiu left, she specifically instructed..."

  Before he finished, Wei Zixu immediately interrupted: "I heard that the third king's illness has changed him into a different person, and it is indeed 'famous for nothing'. However, you usually don't take women's words to heart, but today you're so afraid of your wife, how strange!"

  Wei Zi Yan looked at Zhang Zixing's smiling but silent expression, and said: "Since Third Brother is so compatible with his wife, and has been going out less often lately, I suppose he won't be competing with Eldest Brother for Miss Huang again?"

  Miss Huang? Zhang Zixing was taken aback, but he reacted extremely quickly, immediately thinking of King Zhou's third wife, Huang, who was also the sister of Huang Feihu. She was the one who had been thrown down from the Star-Picking Tower by King Zhou. Who would have thought that now his elder brother, Wei Zixi, was also her suitor?

  Wei Zi Yan seemed to be intentionally going against the Third Prince, seeing him remaining silent, and deliberately said: "Third Prince is acting strange today, if it were any other day, he wouldn't let me get away without arguing with me, could it be that his illness has changed his personality?"

  Zhang Zixing detected the mocking tone in Wei Ziyuan's laughter and knew that he had always been jealous of Shou Wang, so he didn't make any excuses and just coldly smiled. Seeing this, Wei Ziyuan thought Zhang Zixing was even more contemptible and continued to provoke him: "Third Prince is born with divine strength, wasn't it just a few months ago that you used the 'Tuo Liang Huan Zhu' technique at Fei Yun Ge? Why don't we do this, take advantage of today's grand banquet for Father Emperor to gather all officials, I'll find a few robust warriors and have them compete with Third Prince in a test of strength. On one hand, it will add to the festive atmosphere, on the other hand, it can also show off Third Prince's divine might to Father Emperor and all officials, what do you say?"

  "The two kings' brotherly affection, how could I dare to decline? Moreover, I have always been fond of martial arts," Zhang Zixing was not one to be bullied by anyone, and with a pretended excited expression, he suddenly "lightly" grasped Wei Ziyuan's hand and said delightedly: "What kind of identity is a warrior? How can they match up to me in combat? I've heard that the two kings' martial arts have recently improved, why don't we both go down to the arena together and try each other out?"

  "Ah!" Wei Ziyan felt his wrist was about to break, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get rid of it. Looking at Zhang Zixing's face with a still friendly smile, a strange fear suddenly rose in his heart - was this still the former impulsive and easily irritated Third Prince?

  Wei Zi's hands were trembling with pain, he knew that Shou Wang's strength was unmatched, and he himself was no match for him. He didn't dare to provoke him again. Wei Zi Qi saw the situation and quickly raised his cup to mediate: "We are all brothers, and this dispute is also because of a woman. If we take it seriously, won't it lose our father's face? Come, let's drink together!"

  "The great king's words are extremely correct, two kings, please!"

  Upon hearing Wei Ziyu's words, Zhang Zixing also stopped arguing with Wei Ziyuan and let go of his hand. He maintained a smile as he raised his cup and drank it all in one gulp. Wei Ziyuan gritted his teeth and glanced at the several purple marks on his wrist, then trembled as he picked up his wine cup, hiding the fear in his eyes.

  Originally, Emperor Yi had not yet established a crown prince, and the court officials were divided into two major factions. One faction believed that the eldest son, Wei Zi Qi, who was kind and talented, was the most suitable candidate, but another faction believed that Wei Zi Qi's mother was only a minor concubine at the time of his birth, so he was not as qualified as Shou Wang, who was born after she became empress. As a result, Emperor Yi was unable to make up his mind, despite being inclined towards his younger son Shou Wang. Another concubine's son, Wei Zi Yan, knew that most officials favored his older brother and joined forces with him to suppress and exclude Shou Wang.

  At this time, the banquet began to perform the Nine Ox Dance - a dance performed by dancing slaves with nine domesticated oxen. Wei Zigao gave a wink to Wei Ziyuan, and Wei Ziyuan understood, loudly saying: "I have long heard that Sanwangdi's divine power is astonishing, able to tame beasts and lift tripods, today taking advantage of the excitement, why not show off his skills?"

  Di Yi and the surrounding officials all heard Wei Zi Yan's voice, and they all looked over here. Wei Zi Yan's intention was very clear, he wanted to take advantage of Shou Wang's "sickness just recovering, not having the strength" to make a big fool of him in front of his father and the officials. The usually kind-hearted "good old man" Wei Zi Qi remained silent at this time, clearly sharing the same intention as Wei Zi Yan.

  Hypocrite! This empire is destined to be mine, just because of your little cleverness, what qualifications do you have to compete with me? Want to see me embarrassed? We lack everything, but the one thing we don't lack is strength! Two idiots, wait and see...

  The scene where Wei Ziqi instigated Wei Yanzhi did not escape Zhang Zixing's eyes. He glanced at Wei Ziqi with a friendly face, and his disdainful intention was even stronger. When he saw Emperor Yi and the ministers' expectant gaze, he suddenly became heroic: "Good! Since Father is so happy today, I'll dare to make a fool of myself!"

  Zhang Zixing strode down, pushed away the dancing slaves with one hand, and grabbed the tail of an ox with both hands, shouting: "Come over to this palace!"

  The dancing bull let out a mournful bellow, its four hooves thrashing about as it struggled to control its gradually retreating body. The dancing bull was a wild bull that had been domesticated, and the pain triggered its wild nature, causing it to struggle violently. Zhang Zixing's face twisted in effort, his body seemingly on the verge of being dragged away. Wei Ziqi and Wei Ziyuan exchanged a glance, both seeing the amusement in each other's eyes. Suddenly, they saw Zhang Zixing smile at them, his smile seeming to convey strong contempt and provocation.

  At this moment, Zhang Zixing suddenly let go of one hand and actually controlled the mad cow with a single hand. At the same time, he pulled over the tail of another cow. All the officials knew that Shouwang had the skill of replacing the beam, and at first glance, he seemed to be out of strength and was somewhat nervous. Now seeing him so brave and driving two cows, they all cheered loudly.

  But what was even more astonishing was yet to come. Zhang Zixing, as if following a set pattern, pulled over the nine-headed cow one by one and surrounded himself with them in the middle. He stirred up the ferocity of the wild cows, causing them to struggle desperately, but they were unable to break free from his control. After some time, they were all panting heavily, while Zhang Zixing remained calm and composed, as steady as a rock. Under his mighty strength, the nine-headed cow moved east when he wanted it to move east, and west when he wanted it to move west, just like a puppet being manipulated. Emperor Yi and the officials watched with their eyes wide open, momentarily forgetting about eating. Wei Ziyuan and Wei Ziqi were stunned, unable to believe that this third prince's power had not only not weakened after his illness but had actually increased explosively, allowing him to pull nine cows at once. They were all left speechless.

  Zhang Zixing's body is a fusion of the 24th century new human body and the naturally divine power of the Longwang, surpassing the ordinary human category. The strength is incredibly powerful. The first pose of Yun Zhongzi's Warsoul Technique is called "Dòu", which is about the technique of using one's own strength. Zhang Zixing has recently been diligently practicing the "Dòu" technique and has made small achievements, with a qualitative leap in the use of physical strength, far surpassing his abilities during the market fight.

  Zhang Zixing first tried the War Soul Technique, and unexpectedly, it was to his liking. He was excited in his heart as he controlled the nine oxen to fall down one after another, as if they were paying homage to the Son of Heaven. Emperor Yi was overjoyed and stood up, exclaiming: "My son's divine power!"

  The civil and military officials were like a dream come true, shouting loudly in succession. Seeing the Taishi's eyes shining brightly, they nodded their heads repeatedly. Huang Feihu was originally from a military background, respected the strong, and seeing Shouwang so brave, he shouted even louder. The one who started it all, Weizi Yan, did not expect that he would end up making a fool of himself, letting Shouwang steal the show, his face suddenly turned gloomy, and his eyes revealed an uncontrollable hatred. And although Weizi Qi appeared calm on the surface, his fists were already tightly clenched in his sleeves.

  Zhang Zixing returned to his seat, as if nothing had happened earlier, and continued to frequently toast the two brothers. Wei Ziyuan and Wei Ziqi looked at his harmless smile on his face, as if it was the first time they had met this strange prince in so many years, and a chill rose up in their hearts simultaneously.

  After the banquet in Xianqing Hall ended, all the officials returned home with a flourish. Zhang Zixing was about to return to Shouwang Fu when he was suddenly detained by a eunuch, saying that the emperor had another matter to summon him (the Shang Dynasty already had eunuchs, and the character "凸刀" appeared in oracle bones, which is similar in meaning to the word for eunuch; here it is referred to as a eunuch for convenience). Zhang Zixing did not dare to be slow, and followed him to Zhaoxuan Hall, where he found that Weizi Qi and Weizi Yan were also there.

  Emperor Yi summoned his three sons and did not immediately state the reason, but sat upright on the dragon chair, pondering for a long time, making the three men wonder in their hearts.

  "The three princes," Emperor Yi finally spoke up: "What do you think is the current... trend of the world?"

  Zhang Zixing and Wei Ziqi were both taken aback, knowing that Emperor Yi's question was not asked without reason. Neither of them dared to respond immediately, and they fell into silent contemplation. Wei Ziyuan did not expect this, seeing the two men not speaking up, he thought his chance to shine had arrived, and hastily said: "Now that the rebellion has been quelled, all the vassals have submitted, and people from all corners of the land are praising Your Majesty's benevolence. I believe that under Your Majesty's rule, we will surely see a revival of the prosperous era of Wu Ding..."

  Wei Zi boasted about the merits of Tianzi, then looked at his two brothers with a smug expression, expecting praise from their father. However, Emperor Yi was not as pleased as expected, instead he furrowed his brow and remained silent.

  Wei Zi carefully observed the emperor's words and expression, knowing he had misspoken, lowered his head and didn't dare to speak again. Wei Zi Qi saw Emperor Yi being like this, became even more cautious in his heart, Zhang Zixing also didn't rashly open his mouth, on one hand thinking, on the other hand secretly analyzing the intention behind Emperor Yi's question this time.

  After a long time, Wei Zifu's speech finally broke the silence: "I venture to report to Your Majesty, I think that what the two princes said just now was not wrong. Your Majesty's virtue and prestige are unmatched, and all the people of the four directions sincerely obey..."

  At the sight of Emperor Yi's still tightly furrowed brow, Weizi immediately stopped his eulogy and shifted his tone: "However, at present, to the west there are the Quan Rong, to the east there are the Eastern Barbarians, who from time to time come to harass our great Shang subjects. Among the vassals, there are also individual horses that harm the group, with hearts harboring different intentions; it is absolutely not permissible to treat this lightly."

  "The prince's words are reasonable," Emperor Yi nodded slightly and asked: "Then, in your opinion, how can I rest assured?"

  Zhang Zixing quietly observed Emperor Yi's expression, finding that although his face showed approval, the worry in his eyes had not decreased by half. At this point, he thought for a moment and became even more certain of his own idea.