Martial Cultivator

Leaving the city wall, the Great Liang Emperor did not hurry to leave the city but instead walked slowly within it.

This city, the grandest in the world, held complex feelings for the Great Liang Emperor. He was born here, spent his youth here, and later went to his fief. When he returned, everything had changed - both the place and the people.

Now, after spending more than ten years in the Divine Capital, he had done many things for the world. The thought of leaving this place behind still made him reluctant.

In his younger years, before he was made a prince title and given a fief, he had visited many places in the Divine Capital. At that time, there was that beautiful girl beside him. The two would walk and stop, almost seeing the entirety of the Divine Capital together.

Later, after assuming control of the Divine Capital, his status constrained him, and the times he left the Imperial City were limited. He never got a chance to carefully look at the city again.

”Living in the city, or trapped within it?”

The Great Liang Emperor murmured to himself.

Soon, the Great Liang Emperor arrived in front of a rouge shop. He stopped at the entrance and watched as a couple walked in hand in hand, chatting and laughing. The Great Liang Emperor smiled quietly as he watched this scene.

In an instant, the Great Liang Emperor was reminded of his youth, of the time he and the girl, who had not yet become his wife, first came to this rouge shop. Back then, the Great Liang Emperor had intended to buy her a box of rouge. Unexpectedly, that girl who had grown up in the general’s manor, showed no interest in it. Instead, she ended up purchasing a very ordinary wooden hairpin from an accessory shop next door.

But, it was that wooden hairpin that would adorn her hair in the future at nearly every major ceremony where this Empress was required in the Great Liang Dynasty.

The Great Liang Emperor shifted his gaze away from the rouge shop to look at the accessory shop beside it. Remarkably, it was still there.

After a moment of hesitation, the Great Liang Emperor walked over. The accessory shop was quiet and desolate, forming a stark contrast to the bustling rouge shop next door.

The Great Liang Emperor stepped inside. Behind the counter was an elderly shopkeeper with graying hair.

When the elderly shopkeeper saw the Great Liang Emperor enter, he slowly lifted his head and blinked his turbid eyes. ”What would you like to buy, sir?”

The Great Liang Emperor glanced around and asked, ”Do you have any wooden hairpins?”

On the counter before the shopkeeper was a pile of accessories, made of gold and silver, though the designs were somewhat outdated. They looked like styles that had been fashionable years ago.

In the Divine Capital, this grandest city in the world, everything changed rapidly. The clothing styles and ornaments favored by noblewomen never remained popular for long.

It was no surprise that the jewelry in this shop, with its old-fashioned designs, had few customers.

The elderly shopkeeper scratched his head awkwardly and said, ”Sir, it has been many years since this humble shop last sold wooden hairpins.”

”Mhm?”

The Great Liang Emperor glanced at the elderly shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper offered an apologetic smile.

The Great Liang Emperor said, “Many years ago, I brought my wife to this shop to buy a wooden hairpin. She wore it for many years.”

The shopkeeper was momentarily stunned. After a brief hesitation, he smiled and said, “Then, sir, your wife was truly fortunate. The wooden hairpins from our humble shop were once even sold to the palace. Her Majesty the Empress herself wore one. After word of that spread, countless people offered large sums hoping to acquire a wooden hairpin from this small shop.”

“Since that’s the case, why did you stop selling them? Did someone from the palace say something?”

The Great Liang Emperor spoke patiently, unable to tell if there were any emotional fluctuations.

The elderly shopkeeper stepped out from behind the counter, shaking his head with a smile. “Not at all. It was just that, considering Her Majesty the Empress wore a wooden hairpin from my humble shop, continuing to sell this item would seem a bit disrespectful to Her Majesty the Empress. Such an esteemed person likely wouldn’t want others to have the same item.”

The Great Liang Emperor smiled faintly. “She wouldn’t have minded.”

“Sir, your words... Eh, wait a moment... why do you look so familiar...”

The accessory shop was dimly lit, and the shopkeeper’s eyesight was no longer what it had been. Earlier, he had been too far away to see clearly. Now that he had stepped out from behind the counter, he finally recognized the Great Liang Emperor standing before him.

“You’re... Your Majesty...”

The shopkeeper froze, then began trembling as he prepared to kneel.

Back then, upon learning that the woman who chose the wooden hairpin here had become the Empress, it naturally became clear that the young man accompanying her was none other than the current Great Liang Emperor.

Over the years, the shopkeeper had seen countless people in this accessory shop, but how could he forget His Majesty and Her Majesty the Empress he saw that day?

”Rise.”

The Great Liang Emperor extended his hand to help the elderly shopkeeper up, smiling. “With Our weathered face, to think that you still remember.”

The elderly shopkeeper’s face was filled with excitement, ”Your Majesty’s noble visage, how could this commoner ever forget?”

The Great Liang Emperor simply smiled and said no more.

“Your Majesty, this commoner heard that something happened recently in the Imperial City, are you... unharmed?”

The elderly shopkeeper had lingering apprehension in his heart. Rumors swirled around the Divine Capital, and he had heard many stories.

The Great Liang Emperor shook his head. “It’s fine.”

“Your Majesty must take great care of your body! Countless commoners across our Great Liang depend on you. Without Your Majesty, how could we possibly go on?”

The elderly shopkeeper’s expression was utterly sincere.

The Great Liang Emperor asked, “If someone else were to take the throne, what difference would it make for you all?”

“Your Majesty, how can you say such a thing? Everything Your Majesty has done over the years, we commoners have seen with our own eyes. This entire Divine Capital, no, the entire world, who doesn’t remember Your Majesty’s kindness?”

The elderly shopkeeper waved his hand and said, “Who would dare say even a single bad word about Your Majesty? This commoner will give them a few punches myself!”

The Great Liang Emperor dismissed it with a smile.

Suddenly, the shopkeeper smacked his forehead. “Your Majesty, there’s something I’ve always forgotten to mention.”

As he spoke, he hurried behind the counter, rummaging through the farthest corner. He pulled out a wooden box covered in dust, blew it clean, and placed it on the counter. A bit embarrassed, he said, “Your Majesty, back when you and Her Majesty the Empress came here, that wooden hairpin was actually part of a pair. However, this commoner had only finished carving one of them at the time. The second one wasn’t ready yet. Later, when it was done, I learned that it was Your Majesty and Her Majesty the Empress, so I kept it all along. It must be fate that Your Majesty came today. Would you take this wooden hairpin with you?”

The Great Liang Emperor glanced at the hairpin. It was indeed just as it had been back then. He reached out, picked it up, untied his hair, and inserted the wooden hairpin into his bun.

The elderly shopkeeper began to sob.

The Great Liang Emperor asked, “Why are you crying?”

“Your Majesty was such a gallant young man back then, and now... you have so much white hair...”

The elderly shopkeeper’s eyes were red, tears streaming down his weathered face.

The Great Liang Emperor smiled faintly and shook his head. “What’s there to cry about? The days ahead will only get better.”

The elderly shopkeeper continued wiping his tears.

“Shopkeeper, does this mean I don’t need to pay this time?”

The Great Liang Emperor looked at the old shopkeeper in front of him.

The elderly shopkeeper choked back his sobs. “If Your Majesty insists on paying, this commoner might as well bash my head against the wall!”

The Great Liang Emperor did not speak and turned to leave.

The elderly shopkeeper hesitated for a moment before asking, “Your Majesty, where are you going?”

“To a faraway place.”

The Great Liang Emperor simply looked into the distance.

______