The Glory After Rebirth [ɇÇ”Ÿä¹‹Å°Šè£] Chapter 286- 288

Chapter 286: More Lucid Moments

Watching Ji Yin leave, Ji Yanlai felt a sense of anticlimax and, after giving a mere shrug, shifted his gaze to the medicinal jade pendant in his hand, an interested expression on his face. “I never expected to have the luck to encounter this kind of rare occurrence. If father finds out, he’s probably going to regret having put me in charge of the clan so soon. Haha…”

Laughing, Ji Yanlai utilized his lightness skills and disappeared after a couple of flying leaps, leaving no traces behind.

…

Ling Zhang was still in a carry-over of shock when he left the hall. It’d never crossed his mind that Ji Yanlai would actually be so discerning as to find out something about his deepest secret. The Blood of the Phoenix Clan… Maybe this thing was indeed too powerful to deserve to exist in a mortal world. No wonder the imperial household of the Xia had put it under their control. If its existence was brought to light, nobody could imagine what kind of crazy things might happen. Maybe Ji Yanlai knew this as well and was positive that he wouldn’t breathe a word of it to anybody else after coming to realize how serious the consequences could be, which was the very reason why Ji Yanlai had dared to tell him all these things.

With a rapid blur of a figure, Ling Zhang’s vision fleetingly went blurred, and when things came into focus again, Ling Zhaowu had halted before him and grabbed his arm, gazing fixedly at him. “Zhang’er.”

Ling Zhang was stupefied, staring vacantly at Ling Zhaowu. This was the first time that Ling Zhaowu had called him Zhang’er… Ling Zhang’s heart quivered in spite of himself.

“Uncle Ling has just heard something about you from me. I also told him he could call you that,” explained Yuwen Tong, walking over.

Ling Zhang knew what Yuwen Tong meant. There was actually no need for Yuwen Tong to explain it to him. It was undeniable that as he heard Ling Zhaowu call him this, he was really almost reduced to tears.

“Father, I’m back.” Ling Zhang turned aside to hold Ling Zhaowu’s arm. “I’ve finished the talk with him. Now let’s go back.”

Ling Zhaowu immediately clung to his arm, intending to walk towards the outside.

Yuwen Tong cocked an inquisitive eyebrow at Ling Zhang, who lightly shook his head signaling that everything was fine. “I’ll tell you after we get back.”

Ji Yin caught up with Ling Zhang. As Yuwen Tong and Ling Zhaowu were present, he didn’t ask any questions but returned to the courtyard house beside the orchard with them.

Ling Zhang could tell that Ji Yin had something to ask him about and was aware of what it was specifically, so he found an opportunity to have a private talk with him. “Grandfather.”

“Zhang’er, why were you talking in riddles with the Clan Leader back there? Is there something you’re keeping back from me? And did something go wrong with that jade pendant of yours?” inquired Ji Yin, bursting with impatience.

Ling Zhang hurriedly replied, “No. It’s really just that that pendant saved my life twice. It could be said that it helped me survive two disasters at the cost of its own power. I think what the Clan Leader meant was that this pendant had developed its own sentience.”

Ji Yin looked skeptically at him with penetrating eyes. “Really?”

Ling Zhang gave a nod. “I cannot think of any other possibilities other than this. You should have more acquaintance with these things than I do, Grandfather. Before this day, I thought that it was just a common medicinal jade pendant, and I never expected it to have some other secret functions. Grandfather, exactly what did the Clan Leader mean by ‘refining techniques’ and ‘acknowledged me as its master’?”

If truth be told, although Ji Yanlai had dropped a hint of some sort, Ling Zhang indeed knew little about this medicinal jade pendant. Previously, he’d always believed it to be an ordinary medicinal jade pendant, so he indeed hadn’t lied to Ji Yin in this regard.

Ji Yin felt a slight sense of relief and responded, “I’m really not supposed to tell you about this. Even I myself don’t know much detail about the confidential information this matter involves. You’ll find out part of it when you reach the ninth layer.”

In fact, Ling Zhang hadn’t been counting on Ji Yin to give him all the answers. After all, his grandfather was the Prime Elder of the Millennium Pavilion, which meant there were rules he needed to follow.

“Leaving aside the matter of this pendant, what was that charades-like conversation between you and the Clan Leader about? Was there some kind of dangerous situation that you’ve been through and are keeping back from me?” continued Ji Yin.

Feeling that Ji Yin definitely wouldn’t let this go if he didn’t give him anything, Ling Zhang thought for a moment and said, “Maybe it has something to do with my memories. I told you this before, Grandfather – I almost forgot all the martial formations my mother taught me when I was young, but over half a year ago, I suddenly recalled all of them down to the last detail. At that time I almost passed out – I mean the day when Jia Yuanling used knockout powder on me. I used that medicinal jade pendant to counteract its effects. If I’ve ever been through anything special, it would be that incident when I utilized my medicinal jade pendant.”

A slight frown creased Ji Yin’s forehead. He had an intuition that it was not about this matter, but this matter was indeed also very strange. Ling Zhang had been still a little boy when the knowledge of those martial formations had been imparted to him. Children forget things very easily, and there hadn’t been anybody who could help young Ling Zhang brush it up. How had he come to instantly recollect all of it? To make it even more confusing, that had happened right after Ling Zhang used the medicinal jade pendant to counteract the effects of the knockout powder.

“That was the only thing that happened to me and could be regarded as rather strange. If there’s a second one, it would be the Force of Blood in me, which even you and the Clan Leader couldn’t explain, not to mention I,” added Ling Zhang quickly.

Ji Yin ruminated over it for a while and then said, “Go to Mr. Mu and have him check on you. I’ll talk to the Clan Leader and ask him to examine you again.”

“Grandfather, nei–neither of these two are bad things for me, so I actually think it’s not necessary to get to the bottom of either of them. I mean, they’re related to the Blood of the Phoenix Clan coursing in me anyway, and that medicinal jade pendant was made by the former Clan Leader himself. Maybe it has some hidden functions from the very beginning. Didn’t you say that the former Clan Leader has been missing for a very long time? Where are we supposed to go to find him?”

Ji Yin pondered for another few moments and then replied, “I’ll try to figure out a way to ascertain the whereabouts of the former Clan Leader. No matter what, I just want you to stay safe.”

After hearing this, Ling Zhang felt that by not telling his grandfather the truth, he was acting like a piece of shit, but at the same time he also feared that Ji Yin would really manage to seek out the former Clan Leader who might uncover his secret as well, given that even Ji Yanlai had discovered it, and if that happened, it wouldn’t be long before a lot of others came to know about it.

He could only hope that the former Clan Leader wouldn’t be located too soon.

After Ling Zhang’s talk with Ji Yin came to an end, Ling Zhaowu attached himself to Ling Zhang for the rest of the day. He found that Ling Zhaowu, like Mr. Mu had said, had indeed become particularly clinging, as though he were really a child. Fortunately, Ling Zhaowu still had to drink decoction on a daily basis and sleep for some time to rest his mind after that, which allowed Ling Zhang opportunity to talk with Yuwen Tong in private.

Ling Zhang told Yuwen Tong about that medicinal jade pendant but kept back the part where Ji Yanlai might have discovered the secret about his rebirth.

“This is quite puzzling. I mean, that pendant seems to be nothing more than a piece of jade ware. I know it’s rare, but I couldn’t find anything else whatsoever that might make it special. Are we really missing something, by any chance?”

Yuwen Tong, who was gifted with an extraordinarily retentive memory and had also once scrutinized that pendant, did some recalling and then shook his head. “I didn’t notice anything special about it either. If the pendant does have something special, it would mean that we’re simply not discerning enough to see through it. Given that the Millennium Pavilion has so many unique kung fu skills, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s some kind of ingenious, hidden design in that pendant.”

Ling Zhang nodded. “You’ve got a point. Now the pendant has been taken by Ji Yanlai. He’ll return it to me on the day we leave. We should carefully check it again after getting it back.”

Yuwen Tong raised his hand to smooth a tousled strand of Ling Zhang’s sideburn and said, “Just let nature take its course. You’ll be able to find out when you reach the ninth layer anyway.”

Ling Zhang, casually stuffing a few strands of his hair into his bun, which had snagged on some twigs and come loose when he’d been strolling with Ling Zhaowu a while ago, said, “Speaking of which, Ji Yanlai told me that my constitution is very suitable for this cultivation method of internal energy, that I might make the second person ever to reach the highest layer of it. He said whenever I have any questions, I’m welcome to go and ask him. I don’t quite believe him. I think he overestimates me.”

Yuwen Tong was happy to hear this. The more powerful Ling Zhang got, the better able he would be to protect himself.

“This is a good thing, but you must never tell anybody else. You don’t want it to come to the knowledge of any troublemakers.”

Ling Zhang said, “I understand. You may rest assured that I won’t.”

…

Thus, Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong stayed in this uneventful place, spending all their time taking care of Ling Zhaowu, waiting for Ji Yanlai to give them the miracle drug.

The agreed time was ten days away. In the knowledge that it was no good willing time to go faster, Ling Zhang had no choice but to show more patience.

This place was located in the depths of the Sanguan Mountains. What with those natural barriers and the many defensive formations outside, it was impossible for Yuwen Tong’s men to send any messages in. Their only source of information was Ji Yin, but Ji Yin was not the one responsible for keeping in contact with the outer branches and had to ask someone else.

After a few days, Ling Zhang felt that he was bothering his grandfather too often and stopped.

During the past couple of days, Ji Yanlai had brought Cong to visit him several times. They had always dressed very simply, and their request had been very simple, too – roast pheasants made by Yuwen Tong. To this end, every time they had specially brought their own pheasants which were prepped in advance and were all very fat.

Yuwen Tong, who was a good-tempered man, had granted their request every time. Of course, Ling Zhang had joined them every time as well.

Ling Zhaowu was at Ling Zhang’s heels like a shadow every day and naturally had never missed any of the barbecues. He’d always crouched beside the grill with Cong, staring unblinkingly at the roasting pheasants, swallowing. If it weren’t for the fact that his height and looks were unmistakably suggesting he was an adult, people would easily take him for a child of the same age as Cong’s.

Every time, Mr. Mu had exhorted, “Eat the meat only. Don’t eat any skin, and don’t overeat.”

He’d been afraid that Ling Zhaowu might ingest too much fat and jeopardize his health.

The most tasty part of a roast pheasant was its skin. Every time, Ling Zhaowu’s eyes had seemed to bore into the pheasant skin, watching Ling Zhang remove all the skin, the look in them so aggrieved as though he were being bullied.

There had been several occasions when Ling Zhang almost succumbed to the expression in Ling Zhaowu’s eyes but eventually refrained from giving him what he wanted. “Father, be good.”

Every time he’d said this, Ling Zhang had felt as though he were the father and Ling Zhaowu were the son.

“Soon the agreed date will come. Uncle Ling will recover. I believe Brother Ji will keep his promise,” Yuwen Tong consoled him, looking at Ji Yanlai.

Ji Yanlai, in a casual sitting position, bit off a chunk of roast pheasant and started chewing at it. “You really don’t have to remind me of it so often. I never go back on my word. The drug will be delivered to you as soon as it’s ready.”

After saying this, he flicked a glance at Ling Zhaowu and asked, “How’s he doing? Has he been on the mend during the past few days?”

Yuwen Tong replied, “Mr. Mu said that he’s having more moments of clarity than before, and he’s exceptionally placid whenever Brother Zhang is keeping him company.”

On one occasion, Ling Zhaowu had woken up in the middle of the night, and maybe because he’d recalled something, he’d kept calling “My son!” but couldn’t open his eyes. It was only when Mr. Mu had performed acupuncture on him that he’d calmed down.

Chapter 287: A Return Visit to Tongguan Town

The date they’d agreed on half a month ago came, and Ling Zhang had been waiting since early in the morning. According to their agreement, Ji Yanlai was supposed to give the drug to them on this day.

There was no telling whether or not Ling Zhaowu had perceived something, but he had been silent all along since he’d got up, and wherever Ling Zhang went, he followed on his heels, as though afraid of being abandoned.

“Father, we’ll go back home together after we get the drug,” Ling Zhang consoled him.

Ling Zhaowu looked at him. “Go back home?”

“We’ll return to Tanyang. Grandfather and Uncle are waiting for you there,” said Ling Zhang.

“Tanyang…” Ling Zhaowu murmured repeatedly, his eyes staring somewhat vacantly, as though remembering something.

Ling Zhang fixed him with an expectant gaze but at the same time was on the alert, fearing that his father might suffer another seizure.

After a few moments’ trance, Ling Zhaowu’s face started to show signs of pain. Ling Zhang interrupted him at the sight of this. “Father!”

On hearing Ling Zhang’s shout, Ling Zhaowu gave a start and subconsciously looked at him.

“Let’s go and start packing.” Ling Zhang supported him to his feet, eyes on him.

His attention distracted, Ling Zhaowu’s headache gradually ebbed away. It seemed as if he wouldn’t have a fit as long as he didn’t think too deeply.

This time around, Mr. Mu would leave with them, so apart from Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong who were helping Ling Zhaowu with the packing, Mr. Mu had also been packing his bag since early in the morning.

When the packing was almost finished, Ji Yin showed up, holding a medicine phial and a jade pendant in his hand.

Ji Yin first returned the pendant to Ling Zhang, which had become blackish green and lustrous again. As sunlight hit it, a gleam flowed across its surface and then gradually sank into the center, a refreshing medicinal aroma emanating from it. Ling Zhang took the pendant which gave his palm a cool sensation. Given its familiar shape, this was indeed his jade pendant.

Seeing its sheen, Ling Zhang found this whole thing amazing and was now slightly more convinced of Ji Yanlai’s words.

Ji Yanlai had said that this pendant had acknowledged him as its master, and also faintly implied that there were some secrets hidden in this pendant which were closely linked to his rebirth, so Ling Zhang naturally set great store by it. After taking it, he solemnly put it on a string and wore it around his neck into his collar.

After he put away the pendant, Ji Yin handed him the medicine phial and, with a delighted face, said in an excited tone, “The pills are ready. There are two of them, one for your father to treat his illness, the extra one for you.”

Ling Zhang was very surprised. “For me?”

“The Clan Leader said that since you’ve adopted our method to cultivate internal energy and are more talented than others, you deserve to be treated as a half-disciple of the Millennium Pavilion, though you’re not officially a clan member, which was why he gave you an extra pill.” Ji Yin relayed Ji Yanlai’s message.

Fairly reasonable as those words sounded, Ling Zhang knew very well that this kind of pills were very rare and precious and even official members of this clan would scramble for them, but he had been offered two at a time, which showed that Ji Yanlai was investing a lot in this deal with them.

Ling Zhang took the medicine phial. “I want to go and thank the Clan Leader in person. Where is he?”

Ji Yin shook his head. “The Clan Leader started closed-door cultivation right after making the pills, saying that this pendant of yours provided some enlightenment which he needed a stint of closed-door cultivation to further comprehend, that he wouldn’t be seeing us off and we could leave whenever it’s convenient for us. To ensure our safety, the Clan Leader has made arrangements for two guards to go downhill with us. They are both kung fu experts. With their protection, your father and Mr. Mu would have less less concerns about safety.”

Ling Zhang inclined his head. “That’s very considerate of the Clan Leader. It seems that I’ll have to wait until the occasion arises to thank him.”

Maybe Ji Yanlai had sent these two men here purely out of his intention to help, and maybe it was because he wanted them to spy on them. Either way, these two men could be of help, so Ling Zhang raised no objections.

Ji Yin said, “Have you finished packing? If you have, we may set off in an hour.”

All of them had almost got everything ready, but before leaving, they felt that they had to express their gratitude to Ya the servant. Not having carried anything valuable with him that he could gift Ya with, Ling Zhang gave him a token. Yuwen Tong also gave him a token of the Yuwen family.

“Sorry we don’t have anything else to give you. This is my token. If some day you’re in Tanyang or the capital city, you may visit the Ling family or me. The other one is Yuwen Tong’s token, which carries more weight than mine. It’s useful in basically every city of the Great Yue. It’ll prove helpful to you when you’re in need.”

Ya said in a deep voice, “Thank you.”

“We’re the ones who should say thank you, for tending my father. The chance of us seeing each other again elsewhere is rather slim, so take care of yourself.”

Ya bobbed his head. He was taciturn but very poised.

After taking their leave of Ya, Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong, carrying Ling Zhang’s and Mr. Mu’s baggage respectively, left the courtyard house with the other three. When they had walked out of the orchard, they saw two middle-aged men who were in gray and appeared just as taciturn waiting for them outside.

“Prime Elder.” The two men paid their respects to Ji Yin.

Ji Yin introduced them to Ling Zhang and the others. “This is Ji Donglin, and this is Ji Chaofang. They’re the guards under the Clan Leader’s orders to escort us to Tanyang.”

As Ji Yin had told them about this matter a while ago, Ling Zhang and the others were not surprised to hear it.

“Thank you in advance for escorting us, Brother Donglin, Brother Chaofang,” said Ling Zhang.

Both Ji Donglin and Ji Chaofang folded their hands in front and said, “You’re welcome, Childe Ling.”

Thus, the group of five men expanded to a group of seven. Ling Zhaowu, knowing that he was about to leave this familiar place where he’d lived for five years, had a very uneasy expression on his face. He had a long cry when parting from Ya and was now looking somewhat lethargic.

Ji Donglin and Ji Chaofang took the traveling bag from Ling Zhang’s back so that Ling Zhang could focus on guiding Ling Zhaowu forward. “Let’s go, Father.”

Clinging on tight to Ling Zhang’s arm, not daring to release his grip, Ling Zhaowu vigorously nodded. “I’ll do what Zhang’er says.”

Because of Ling Zhaowu, they didn’t walk very fast, and it took them a long time to get to the exit.

Ling Zhang was just about to crouch down to carry Ling Zhaowu on his back when Yuwen Tong shoved his traveling bag into Ling Zhang’s hand and squatted down before Ling Zhaowu. “I’ll do it. Uncle Ling, I’ll carry you.”

Ling Zhang’s other hand was holding Mr. Mu’s medicine chest, so naturally it was inconvenient for him to carry anybody on his back. He was a little worried that Ling Zhaowu might be unwilling.

But maybe because Yuwen Tong had managed to build trust with Ling Zhaowu during the past half a month, the latter didn’t feel afraid but just looked at Ling Zhang.

Ling Zhang said, “I’ll be right by your side. I won’t walk away.”

It was after hearing this that Ling Zhaowu obediently lay prone onto Yuwen Tong’s back to let Yuwen Tong carry him. Seeing Ling Zhang was indeed walking side by side with them, Ling Zhaowu gradually relaxed.

The exit was the dense woods that they had followed Ji Yanlai through to enter this place half a month ago. The complexity of this formation was beyond Ling Zhang’s grasp, and he could only recall a small part of the right route, which was not enough for him to get out of it on his own.

“I’ll lead the way. Donglin, Chaofang, you two bring up the rear. Keep an eye on Mr. Mu,” said Ji Yin.

Mr. Mu said, “Well, don’t underestimate me. Although my kung fu is lousy, I’m a quite strong man.”

But Ji Donglin and Ji Chaofang still acted as rear guard. Ji Yin was taking the lead. Yuwen Tong was carrying Ling Zhaowu on his back, Ling Zhang walking side by side with him, followed by Mr. Mu, Ji Donglin and Ji Chaofang.

The seven of them entered the thick woods, progressing along a path so circuitous as though they were going in circles.

Foliage of the tall, exuberant trees blocked the sun, making the path dark and brooding.

Ling Zhaowu was very frightened of this place and kept calling Ling Zhang’s name. “Zhang’er!”

So Ling Zhang directly carried the medicine chest on his shoulder and took Ling Zhaowu’s hand. “I’m here, Father. Don’t be afraid. We’ll be out of here soon.”

With his son holding his hand, Ling Zhaowu calmed down somewhat, slumped over Yuwen Tong’s back, curling up.

Getting through the woods took them a long time. In the sunshine, Ling Zhaowu looked somewhat better, but maybe because he’d been in nervous tension all along, he seemed rather groggy after relaxing his concentration.

When they had walked for about an hour after exiting the woods, Ling Zhang glanced at the sun overhead in the sky and suggested they stop to have some rest.

“It’s noon. Let’s stop and have a bite to eat.”

The others looked at Ling Zhaowu and then all nodded.

They had just left the Millennium Pavilion and still had their cooked food. This time, because of Ling Zhaowu, they had carried a ceramic wok. After heating the food, they had Ling Zhaowu eat some. Mr. Mu decocted some medicine and let him drink it. After the duration of drinking a pot of tea (approximately 10 minutes), Ling Zhaowu, leaning against a tree trunk, drifted off to sleep.

The others took advantage of this opportunity and quickly finished their lunch. When they had gathered up their stuff, Yuwen Tong, as he’d done previously, carried Ling Zhaowu on his back and they resumed their journey without more ado, planning to cover some distance while Ling Zhaowu was asleep.

…

After two days’ travel in the Sanguan Mountains, they reached Tongguan Town.

At first Ling Zhaowu had been quite scared. Halfway to the town, he’d kept quiet for a day, and eventually he’d appeared somewhat anxious and fretful, for the Sanguan Mountains had struck him as fearful and he’d wanted to get out. Fortunately, they’d been not far away from edge of the mountainous area.

As soon as they arrived at Tongguan Town, they quickly checked into an inn and settled Ling Zhaowu in a room.

It was Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong who had been taking care of Ling Zhaowu in the Millennium Pavilion during the past half a month, so naturally the two of them were able to handle it with ease, though they were now in a different place. They bathed Ling Zhaowu, helped him change clothes and then had him finish his supper and take his medicine. When Ling Zhaowu had fallen asleep in bed, Ling Zhang heaved a sigh of relief and found that his shoulders felt somewhat sore.

He had been quite tense as well, and it was after Yuwen Tong massaged his aching muscles that he fully relaxed.

“Sit here.” Ling Zhang had Yuwen Tong sit down, and then returned the favor by giving him a good massage.

“Mr. Mu has also turned in. Donglin and Chaofang will take turns to check on your father tonight. You two may go to sleep now.” Ji Yin showed up.

“You should go to bed as well, Grandfather,” said Ling Zhang.

Ji Yin walked up to take a look at Ling Zhaowu and then went to sleep.

Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong quickly washed and then went to bed in the room next to Ling Zhaowu’s.

When they woke up, Ling Zhaowu was still sleeping.

“Let’s just spend the night here and set off tomorrow morning,” suggested Yuwen Tong.

Ling Zhang looked at him, appearing to have something to talk to him about.

Seeing this, Ji Yin and Mr. Mu went to Ling Zhaowu’s room to check on him, giving Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong some privacy.

“We’ll be fine in Tanyang. Do you think you should go back to the capital city? It’s been such a long time since we left the capital city, I’m worried that there had been some unexpected occurrences,” said Ling Zhang.

Now that they had come outside, the placid life in the Millennium Pavilion was naturally past history, and there were many brutal facts they’d have to face up to. It’d been over half a month since the last time they’d received a message from the capital city. Ling Zhang was now deeply worried that there’d been some accidents that might cause the situation to go out of control.

Chapter 288: Upheavals in the Capital City

“I’ll go back to Tanyang with you,” said Yuwen Tong.

Frowning, Ling Zhang maintained in a firmer tone of voice, “No. You need to return to the capital city. I’ll go there immediately after my father gets better.”

Yuwen Tong also knitted his brows. He was unwilling to let Ling Zhang go back to Tanyang alone. Moreover, this was an opportunity to bond with his future father-in-law, and he didn’t want to miss it.

But Ling Zhang was very insistent. “You must go back, because you told me some day you’d take me to the top of the hierarchy. You’re not breaking your word.”

Yuwen Tong stared unblinkingly at him for quite a while. Eventually, he let out a sigh and put his arms around Ling Zhang. “I don’t want to part from you.”

Ling Zhang hugged him back. “Our business in the Millennium Pavilion has been settled. I can handle the rest of it on my own. Besides, I have my grandfather by my side, so you don’t have to worry about me. If it weren’t for the fact that I have to bring my father back to Tanyang, I would definitely return to the capital city with you. I don’t want you to face all that single-handed. I haven’t been able to do anything for you. If you accompany me back to Tanyang, I’d have a terrible conscience about it. I feel so useless.”

Yuwen Tong cuddled him tighter and sniffed, “What nonsense is this? With our relations, do we really have to be so mindful of our personal gains and losses? What do you take me for?”

“Then go back to the capital city. Do you not trust me to be capable of handling the matters in Tanyang by myself?” Ling Zhang retorted.

Both of them kept silent for a while. Ling Zhang was not trying to anger Yuwen Tong intentionally. His hands on Yuwen Tong’s waist slid up to Yuwen Tong’s back, gently stroking it, his voice softening. “Do it my way, okay?”

Yuwen Tong’s back tensed for a brief moment and then slightly relaxed. He lowered his head to look at Ling Zhang, who looked squarely back at him.

“Promise me you won’t get me to worry about you. You must stay safe and take good care of yourself at all times.”

“Okay, I promise. I’ll eat my meals on time, practice kung fu on time and sleep on time every day, and become fair-skinned and chubby.”

“Well, you may skip that ‘fair-skinned and chubby’ part. That’s what a pig looks like.”

Ling Zhang took his hands off Yuwen Tong and gave him a glare.

The corners of his lips lifting, Yuwen Tong scooped up Ling Zhang, supporting him with his hands on Ling Zhang’s hips, looking him in the face. “Even if you turned into a pig, you’d still be mine, and I wouldn’t allow anybody to glance at you.”

Ling Zhang had to put his legs around Yuwen Tong’s waist, which struck him as quite an awkward posture…

“It’s you who’s a pig!”

“Then we make a perfect match.”

…

After convincing Yuwen Tong to agree to go back to the capital city, Ling Zhang felt a slight sense of relief, but before dark, he got a message that brought a frown to his face.

Some serious events had taken place in the capital city. The first one was that something had happened to the Zhongxin Marquess. Somehow, Wang Cai had found some proof, the authenticity of which was unknown, and alleged that the Zhongxin Marquess had secretly taken huge amounts of bribes, that he’d been pretending to be righteous and honest when in fact he was just a despicable fraud, a greedy kleptocrat having no regard whatsoever for the law. The emperor, in his shock and wrath, had ordered the Dali Temple (the Supreme Judicial Court in feudal China) to comb the entire residential compound of the Zhongxin Marquess. The Zhongxin Marquess had argued that he was wronged, but the emperor had refused to believe him and even forbidden him to leave his house. Afterwards, the Dali Temple had ascertained that the Zhongxin Marquess had indeed taken bribes, but the amount hadn’t been as large as Wang Cai had claimed to be. The Zhongxin Marquess had pleaded that someone framed him. After expressing his willingness to use his death to prove his innocence, he had directly bumped his head onto a column at the court meeting. Fortunately the General Zhongwu (AKA the General of Loyalty and Valor) had promptly given him a pull, and the Zhongxin Marquess had merely hurt his head instead of killing himself. Jiang Shennian had tried to persuade the emperor to hold a further inquiry into the affair, but the emperor had rejected the request, directly stripped the Zhongxin Marquess of his title of nobility and taken away all his powers. Even Ji Feng’s father and uncles had been incriminated. All members of the Ji family had suffered.

The Zhongxin Marquess had fallen ill after that meeting and been lying in bed for four days.

Ling Zhang had been jumpy all along while listening to the news. If the Zhongxin Marquess failed to make it through, how heavy a blow it would be to Ji Feng!

“Did the Zhongxin Marquess really take bribes?” Ling Zhang was skeptical, but the Dali Temple had indeed found concrete evidence.

Yuwen Tong said, “What the Zhongxin Marquess had was real power, and the emperor trusted him very much during the few years following his enthronement. As such a powerful official, he undoubtedly had a stream of visitors every day who came to him with gifts to seek help, so I can’t be absolutely sure that he never took any bribes, but ever since he took office, he’s been assiduous and looking out for the people’s best interest all along, and he’s also one of the few courtiers who dare use blunt words to remonstrate at a court meeting. With him going down, there’s one less person who could restrict the emperor’s authority, which is definitely not a good thing for the imperial court, given the circumstances. These officials have always been obsessed with taking sides and contending for power to better serve their respective masters, and only very few care about the people’s well-being. If the likes of Wang Cai continue to gain strength, I’m afraid the political situation would get even worse.”

Ling Zhang’s brows furrowed. “I wonder how Ji Feng is doing. For people of the Ji family, the Zhongxin Marquess’ going down must be like the sky falling in.”

Yuwen Tong said, “As long as the Zhongxin Marquess pulls through, the situation in the Ji family wouldn’t be that dire. Ji Feng is no longer a child, and it’s about time he shouldered some responsibilities.”

The second severe event was no smaller than the first. In a sense, its severity was even greater – there had been another insurrection in Cangzhou, and it’d been of a larger scale than that of the last one. Most of the officials of Cangzhou were new, and many important posts were still vacant. After the outbreak of this rebellion, Cangzhou had instantly been thrown into chaos and confusion. To make things worse, some officers of the Cangzhou Prefecture Guards had been found involved in corruption, and some other horrific truths had also been brought to light. For a time, the rebellion in Cangzhou had been picking up steam, and by the time of the arrival of the army sent by the imperial court, the insurgents had built a rebel army of a considerable number of members and had taken control of one third of Cangzhou. The rebel army tens of thousands strong had engaged the army sent to suppress the uprising by the imperial court, and hitherto, the revolt still hadn’t been put down yet.

“The commander of the army is Dai Cheng who’s just returned from Tanyang. This is really a thankless task for Dai Cheng. It’s said that apart from men, there are also female members in the insurrectionary army. These people have deep hatred for the imperial court and refuse to surrender on any account. Killing those women is different from killing enemies on a battlefield. I think Dai Cheng has probably been having trouble sleeping.”

With a darkened face, Yuwen Tong relayed the message he’d just received, all the others listening with furrowed brows.

“How did such a great uprising come to break out? Theoretically, almost all the guilty officials of Cangzhou should have been put into prison and the new ones are still unfamiliar with their duties and haven’t hit their stride yet.” Ling Zhang was confused.

Yuwen Tong explained, “With the dismissal of the many guilty officials, a lot of posts fell vacant. Some were filled by inferior Cangzhou officials, and others by officials from other cities who wanted to help their masters line their pockets. These people didn’t learn lessons from their predecessors, and some of them are even more corrupt. On top of that, the last incident in Xiang City that had cost a lot of innocent people’s lives had sowed the seeds of hatred in Xiang City residents’ minds. There were multiple reasons for the outbreak of this rebellion in Cangzhou, but the most important one was the extreme exploitation of Cangzhou people.”

The truth sent a chill to Ling Zhang’s heart. “Those bureaucrats are monsters. They must’ve lost their minds!”

“It’s their masters who are crazy,” remarked Yuwen Tong flintily.

“The worse part is that the emperor didn’t make any efforts to appease the rebels but ruthlessly ordered Dai Cheng to kill them on sight, which gave new fuel to the indignant rebel army, and even old people joined the rebellion. This is why Dai Cheng and his troops still haven’t wiped out the insurrectionary army.” Yuwen Tong’s face was growing colder.

“It never crossed my mind these were such unpeaceful times.” Mr. Mu kept shaking his head after hearing these words.

Ji Yin, however, had a bland face, giving no particular response to it. In his sight, this world had always been divided and never really been peaceful, and in his heart of hearts he despised the emperor of the Great Yue. Furthermore, having been living a secluded life for so many years, it was very difficult for him to feel any sympathy for the people in the outside world again.

“The emperor must have a death wish,” observed Ling Zhang resentfully.

Yuwen Tong said, “Cangzhou is very close to the capital city, and the emperor believes that Cangzhou residents, instead of revolting, should be grateful to him for bringing more than half of the previous Cangzhou officials to justice, which was why he sent an army to suppress the rebellion. Pity he’s the only one seeing things that way. The situation in Cangzhou is quite grave. Although Dai Cheng still have enough troops and will no doubt exterminate the insurrectionary army in the end, the seeds of hatred have been sowed, and I’m afraid this won’t be the last time that an insurrection breaks out.”

Everybody lapsed into silence. Ling Zhaowu, who was the only one unable to understand, was sitting beside Ling Zhang with glazed eyes.

Yuwen Tong continued, “Things have always been complicated there, but the problem is that this matter triggered another round of strife in the imperial court. Previously, the Jiang family had been the leading force in Cangzhou for the longest time. Although many of their subordinates in Cangzhou have been thrown into prison, those local inferior officials that have been promoted to fill the vacancies more or less had some dealings with the Jiang family. This time around, in order to help the Crown Prince shift the responsibility for recommending the wrong person, the Gu family threw all the blame for the revolt in Cangzhou on the Jiang family. Naturally, the Jiang family refused to be the scapegoat, and Jiang Shennian did his best to fight back, but unfortunately for him, Jiang Chengfeng has been removed from office, and the other members of the Jiang family couldn’t be of much help. In addition, the Jiang family has never taken sides, and courtiers in the Crown Prince’s faction assisted the Gu family to squeeze the Jiang family. The Jiang family is on the losing side already. If Jiang Shennian is to help the Jiang family survive this, he and all the other officials in his family would have no choice but to resign.”

Ling Zhang was taken aback. He’d never expected to hear any of these. Jiang Shennian was the emperor’s uncle, and he actually couldn’t even keep his job?

Yuwen Tong made a conjecture. “The vendetta between the Jiang family and the Gu family has been there for a very long time. As the Crown Prince ascending the throne will do the Jiang family no good, I’m afraid Jiang Shennian has already secretly taken sides, though on the surface he hasn’t, which was why the Gu family launched such a ferocious attack on the Jiang family, trying so hard to bring down Jiang Shennian.

So this time I’ll have no alternative but to return to the capital city.”

The last remark was the point Yuwen Tong had been trying to make. They’d been away for less than a month, but such serious events had happened in the capital city. Yuwen Tong must go back.

Thinking about the complexity of the situation in the capital city, Ling Zhang was distinctly careworn.

“Let Donglin and Chaofang go back to the capital city with you,” Ji Yin suddenly said.

A slight frown creased Yuwen Tong’s brow. “They need to stay here to protect Brother Zhang and Uncle Ling.”

Ji Yin fixed him with an earnest gaze and said, “Your business is of greater importance. Besides, the reason why the Clan Leader sent Donglin and Chaofang here in the first place was that he wanted them to offer you help. He asked me to tell you not to forget the agreement between you two.”

“Bring them with you,” Ling Zhang also immediately said. There was no doubt Yuwen Tong would encounter dangers after returning to the capital city. With more people protecting Yuwen Tong, he would be less worried.