Martial Cultivator

In the Divine Capital, the cicadas had already begun to cry.

Occasionally, their calls could be heard among the willows by South Lake, though not very frequently.

Xie Nandu sat under the eaves, listening to the cicadas while sipping sour plum soup.

The exquisite porcelain spoon clinked softly against the even more exquisite porcelain bowl, producing a pleasant, melodious sound.

It was very pleasing to the ear.

The maidservant Liu Ye stood nearby and asked, “Miss, the bamboo pavilion has been completed. It was built exactly as you instructed. When would you like to go and take a look?”

The green bamboo Chen Chao had brought back from Sword Qi Mountain had been given to Xie Nandu. She had chosen a fine location, purchased the land, and over the past few days, the pavilion had been under construction. The craftsmen were excellent, private artisans of the Xie Family. Though they might not match the artisans of the Ministry of Works, they were far superior to ordinary builders.

Xie Nandu tapped her porcelain bowl lightly and shook her head. “There’s no rush.”

Liu Ye was already accustomed to her mistress’ way of speaking and paid it no mind. She simply added, “Earlier, Instructor Liu sent word saying that your studies have progressed well. If you’re interested, you could take up a teaching role at the academy and give lectures to other young students. After all, passing on knowledge is a good thing.”

Xie Nandu thought for a moment and then said, “Four classes a month, no more than forty students per class.”

Liu Ye furrowed her brows slightly, feeling that something was amiss, but she did not say anything. Her mistress’ temperament had always been like this; completely impervious to others’ opinions.

Except for that person.

That person...

Liu Ye sighed silently in her heart. Did that person still have a foothold to stand in the Divine Capital?

Or perhaps in the entire world, did he still have a foothold to stand?

Liu Ye shook her head and then saw a scholar appear at the small courtyard’s entrance.

”Mr. Wei.”

Liu Ye was startled and quickly got up to greet him.

After all, this Mr Wei was not just the Dean’s disciple; he was also her mistress’ senior brother.

Xie Nandu also stood up, looking at this senior brother of hers.

Wei Xu carried a box of pastries in his hand. He handed it to Liu Ye before smiling and saying, “I heard Junior Sister is about to start teaching. As your senior brother, I’ve come to congratulate you.” ℞

Xie Nandu said, “Senior Brother knows that this wasn’t my intention.”

Wei Xu replied, “That makes me even more curious as to why Junior Sister agreed.”

“There are some things I want to say, so I’ll say them.”

Xie Nandu smiled at Wei Xu and continued, “Some matters seem impossible to resolve with just one or two people in a few short years. So, we always need to find some help.”

Wei Xu said, “Being prepared in advance is truly a good habit.”

Xie Nandu gave a slight smile but did not say much.

“Though, I wonder what Teacher will think after this.”

Wei Xu said with vicissitudes of emotion, “Given Teacher’s temperament, he probably won’t say anything.”

Xie Nandu said, “I haven’t seen Teacher in a long time.”

Wei Xu nodded, “Me too.”

A lot of things had actually happened in the Divine Capital recently, but most people’s attention was on Chen Chao, the young man who had killed his own elder brother.

But there was more to the Divine Capital than just this one person.

The Dean was also a very important figure.

That night, it seemed that the Dean did not clearly state his position, but it was also as if he had.

If he had chosen to side with the Deposed Emperor that night, Chen Chao might not have been able to kill him so easily.

If the Deposed Emperor had not died, the situation that night would have become very complicated.

Among the powerful figures in the Divine Capital, the Dean was the only one who could have changed the course of events that night, but he did nothing.

And after that night, no one saw the Dean again.

He had disappeared.

There was no sign of him at the academy.

No sign of him anywhere in the Divine Capital.

He disappeared more thoroughly than Chen Chao. No one knew where he had gone.

After all, a powerhouse who had reached the end of Nepenthe, if they did not want to be found, then surely no one could find them.

……

……

There were many manors in the Divine Capital whose ownership was unclear. These manors often belonged to some of the high-ranking officials in the city, but for various reasons, they did not want anyone to know that these manors were theirs.

So, the actual owners and the names on the property deeds probably had little to no connection on the surface.

In those low, humble manors, there were actually hidden secrets.

A private residence in the southern city was tucked away in the most quiet alley, yet people came and went regularly. No one expected that this was actually a hidden brothel.

There were many such places in the Divine Capital, but there were always some people who, for various reasons, could not appear in these places openly, leading to the existence of hidden brothels.

They did not inquire about the identity of the guests, so many people were willing to come here.

Tonight, a carriage slowly stopped before the alley. After the carriage came to a halt, a figure stepped out from the compartment, then walked straight into the alley, arriving at the hidden house.

After knocking a few times, the door to the manor opened.

A middle-aged man greeted the guest. He had a thin mustache and appeared frail. Upon seeing the visitor, he did not ask any questions and simply stepped aside, ushering them in.

Inside, there was a long corridor. At the end of the corridor hung several lanterns, and many side rooms lined up there. Each room had a lantern hanging in front of it, some lit and others unlit.

A lit lantern indicated there was a guest inside, while an unlit one meant the room was empty.

The visitor walked straight to the innermost room of the row.

The lantern there was lit.

That man did not care, walking right in.

The middle-aged man initially seemed like he wanted to say something, but after seeing this scene, he remained silent.

There was actually no one in that side room.

That person walked to the wall and pushed it. A hidden passageway appeared ahead.

The hidden passage was not long, one could reach the end very quickly.

At the end was a small courtyard.

In the courtyard sat a man.

Moonlight fell across his face, casting an otherworldly aura over him.

The visitor chuckled and said, “You’ve got quite the taste, still in the mood to enjoy the moonlight.”

The man tilted his head to gaze at the moonlight, sighing in admiration. ”Tonight’s moon is exceptional; a rare sight. Why not take a longer look?”

”I’m afraid you won’t get many more chances to enjoy it.”

The visitor also glanced at the moon.

”If that’s the case, then I should take a few more looks while I can,” the man remarked.

The visitor said, ”You seem like someone who knows how to enjoy life. But enjoying a moment and enjoying a lifetime are entirely different matters.”

The man chuckled. ”Of course, one should strive for a lifetime of enjoyment. Besides, I don’t think the situation is as dire as you make it out to be.”

”That night, our emperor finally indulged in doing all the things he couldn’t and didn’t do over the years. Now, across the entire Great Liang Dynasty, it seems there’s no dissenting voice left. But she has never been one to stop there. Has he slowed his steps in recent days?”

The visitor smiled faintly. ”The greatest traitor of the Great Liang Dynasty in over two hundred years, since he’s seen it, how could he not want to track it down?”

”Being seen isn’t something unacceptable. Over the years, we’ve been seen countless times, yet not once have we been truly found. That’s why I’m enjoying the moon at this moment.”

”He thinks he’s remarkable, the most extraordinary in the world. He even disregards his own ancestors. But is there really someone that remarkable in this world?”

The man said, ”Still, I admire him very much. What he has accomplished in these two hundred years, no one else has managed to achieve it.”

”Since that’s the case, why don’t you believe he can accomplish even more?”

The visitor looked at the man with some confusion.

The man replied, ”Because his opponent is me.”

Hearing this, the visitor suddenly smiled.

Indeed, the man sitting on the throne might be the most remarkable emperor of the Great Liang Dynasty in the past two centuries. But the man before him had also been regarded as the most extraordinary subject of the same period.

This was a contest between monarch and subject.

The visitor sighed, ”Many years from now, the tales of the world will likely write about this confrontation in bold strokes.”

The man said, ”I will defeat him.”

The visitor said nothing more, merely looking at the moon above, lost in thought.

”So, for the situation in Wei Prefecture, do you already have a plan?”

The visitor asked.

”I’ve already sent someone to kill him.”

The man extended his hand, letting his palm rest under the moonlight, and said, ”Back then, I didn’t kill him not because I couldn’t, but because I wanted to let him suffer a bit more. But now, the time has come for him to die.”

……

……

Wei Prefecture could be considered one of Chen Chao’s hometowns. After the great fire in the Imperial City back then, he left the Divine Capital and stayed in Wei Prefecture for a long time. It was not until the great flood that he was forced to leave his home.

Even so, he later chose to return to Wei Prefecture and continued to stay there. Without those qi refiners, he might have spent his entire life in Wei Prefecture.

Chen Chao had very deep feelings for Wei Prefecture.

So when he learned that the matters mentioned in the letter from the eldest son of the old villa master of the Divine Water Mountain Villa were related to Wei Prefecture, Chen Chao had already made up his mind to make a trip there.

After leaving Deercry Monastery, he deliberately concealed his whereabouts, taking a long detour before finally arriving at the border of Wei Prefecture.

From there, he followed the Wei River for quite a distance.

This great river, which flowed through the entirety of Wei Prefecture, had caused a massive flood in the 11th year of Tianjian. Many people living along its banks had suffered greatly at that time.

Chen Chao had been among those affected.

That year, many things happened in the Great Liang Dynasty. The Wei Prefecture Great Flood was just one of them, and for years it had been regarded as a natural disaster.

This was actually quite normal, as similar events had occurred throughout history.

At the time, several imperial astronomers were punished because of this incident.

Even Chen Chao had always believed the flood to be a natural disaster, until he saw those letters.

Looking at the Wei River, Chen Chao’s expression was very ugly.

It could not possibly look any grimmer.

The letters mentioned many details about the flood.

If the flood had simply been a natural disaster, it would have been easier to accept.

But what if it was not a natural disaster, but a man-made calamity?