The hand over his eyes moved very softly, retracting once an unknown amount of time had passed.

After a long while, Chu Jiubian finally opened his eyes.

His eyelashes dipped slightly as his gaze swept over the man’s hand hanging at his side, and then away.

“I’m going inside for a bit.” He didn’t look at Qin Xiao after speaking, and turned to walk toward the daoist temple.

Even though the temple had been given to him, the common people wouldn’t believe in a “god” they had never heard of, let alone who was standing in front of them.

Unless this god actually helped them personally, or the people around them continuously said, “This god is truly very effective!”

What Chu Jiubian needed to do now was find an opportunity to make the more influential people among these refugees believe he was a god, and help him spread his divine name.

Moreover, he needed to convince the refugees that he could actually help them.

For example, he could provide them with food, cure their illnesses…..

Inside the daoist temple.

The old doctor administered acupuncture to the crazed Dan Niang, and she visibly calmed.

But although she had indeed stopped making a fuss, her eyes were empty and lifeless.

She took the pearl flower from her hair and held it in her hands, stroking it repeatedly and ignoring everything else. It was as if her entire world consisted of only that pearl flower.

This was Dan Niang in a “clear-headed” state.

She had stopped making a fuss, but she looked even more unsettling than when she had been out of her mind.

“Thank you for your hard work, Doctor Zhao.” The woman who spoke looked at Dan Niang and heaved a great sigh. “What a tragedy.” The other women also regarded her with sympathy and heartache.

How had such a good person, such a good family, ended up like this?

With a sigh, Doctor Zhao instructed them to look after Dan Niang, then slowly made his way to his room.

There weren’t many doctors out in the world in the first place, and he was the one assigned to this temple.

The refugees all looked up to him, and had prepared him a separate room.

He didn’t disappoint them, and spent the entire day treating refugees.

These peoples’ bodies were already compromised due to years of backbreaking work, and now, with the weather so bad and insufficient food and clothing available, many of them were suffering from various ailments.

Rheumatic pain, high fever due to a cold, gastrointestinal upset…..

Ai, this world truly made it impossible for people to live, ah.

Doctor Zhao didn’t lock the door when he went into the room, and just went to the table to pour himself a cup of water.

The door behind him suddenly opened and closed, as if someone had come in.

Thinking that a refugee had come looking for him, Doctor Zhao turned around, only to be dazzled by a burst of light that he quickly raised his hand to block.

The white light gradually dissipated, and the old doctor lowered his hand, squinting as he looked toward the door again.

This time, he clearly saw that there was a man standing at the door.

Dressed in dark robes, the man had short black hair in the front and long, silver-white hair cascading down his shoulders. He was also soaking wet.

He should have looked somewhat of a mess, but the old doctor’s focus was not on any of this. All that met his eyes was the other’s face, like that of a banished immortal, as well as his noble, aloof demeanor.

Doctor Zhao was momentarily stunned.

Then he watched as the man extended his hand, palm up.

In the next instant, a small bottle made of an unfamiliar material appeared out of thin air in his palm!

Chu Jiubian had spent five points to make a deal with the System, and it did as asked, lifting the medicine bottle into the air and delivering it steadily to Doctor Zhao’s hands.

The System maneuvered Doctor Zhao’s hand so that he caught the medicine bottle.

Thud.

The old doctor had never seen anything like this before. His legs buckled and he fell to his knees, barely managing to avoid passing out.

*

*

Qin Xiao watched as Chu Jiubian walked into the daoist temple, weaving through the crowded throngs of people.

For some reason, although the crowd didn’t seem to notice Chu Jiubian, they all made way for him.

Qin Xiao softly rubbed his fingertips, which seemed to bear the lingering dampness from the other’s eyelashes.

A god?

He slowly clenched his fist, feeling the aura of that person dissipate, beyond his control.

Not long after, Chu Jiubian exited the daoist temple again and approcahed Qin Xiao.

Qin Xiao didn’t ask what he had done; he simply tilted the umbrella over his head again.

Since he didn’t ask, Chu Jiubian didn’t provide an answer. He just inquired: “Where are we staying tonight?”

“The magistrate’s residence. People have already been ordered to tidy up the courtyard.”

The Huai County Magistrate had a history of numerous misdeeds, and this flooding only made him worse than before. Seeing the common people he was responsible for struggling to survive, he kept the granaries closed, and in an attempt to curry favor with a superior, he almost helped Zhou Boshan fill the levee with civilians.

Fortunately, Qin Xiao arrived in time to prevent a tragedy like the one in Pu County.

In the end, due to his heinous crimes, the Huai County Magistrate was among those officials executed outside the city gates.

The premise of “the misfortunes of an individual should not spread to family members” was that benefits shouldn’t extend to family members either. However, the magistrate’s family, young and old, had lived a comfortable life for so many years by relying on him and the common people’s hard-earned money. The magistrate’s manor even occupied nearly an entire street.

In Great Ning, there were specific regulations in place for the residences of officials, which could not exceed the prescribed standards.

However, the required specifications were all of the “how many courtyards deep it can be” type, so these lower-ranking officials simply expanded horizontally. There was always a way to make themselves more comfortable.

The county magistrate had now been executed, and his property confiscated. The rest of his family members were also imprisoned, and once the refugees were all settled, these people would embark on their journey to exile.

Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao arrived at the county magistrate’s residence together.

For convenience, the two didn’t stay in separate courtyards, but rather in separate bedrooms.

The servants had already prepared hot water and a meal. After both of them had washed up and changed into dry clothes, they went to the main room to eat.

A single oil lamp was lit on the table between them. The wick had been burning for a long time, so the light was somewhat dim.

Rain pattered softly outside as they finished their meal in silence.

After rinsing their mouths, they took a slow stroll around the main room.

The servants cleared the table of dishes and set down tea for two.

Then, it was only the two of them in the room.

Directly facing the door were two chairs with a table between them – this was where the hosts would sit.

Below them were three chairs on either side for receiving guests.

Chu Jiubian went to the seat of honor and sat down. He picked up the teacup on the table next to him, tasting a faint sweetness when he took a sip.

“Is there sugar in this?” He looked up as Qin Xiao approached and took the other seat.

“Xiao Xiangzi informed me,” Qin Xiao said.

Chu Jiubian didn’t like the slightly bitter taste of tea, and preferred to add some sugar.

Although it sounded a little bizarre or unappetizing, it actually tasted pretty good.

“Actually, it would be even better with some milk,” he said.

Qin Xiao raised an eyebrow and didn’t voice his opinion.

But his expression clearly showed his difficulty accepting this.

“I’ll make it for you someday,” Chu Jiubian said.

Qin Xiao smiled faintly.

Chu Jiubian didn’t notice. He set the teacup back on the table and asked: “How is the dam construction going?”

Qin Xiao’s face lost its slight smile from before, and he said in a grave voice: “The damage to the dam in Huai County is much more severe than the one in Pu County.”

In Pu County, the breach could be sealed using the traditional “vertical blocking method.” However, the Huai County dam was located at a heavy flow point, and any materials used to block the breach would be washed away by the swift current as soon as they were thrown in.

Chu Jiubian frowned. He had thought of a solution, but he hadn’t laid eyes on the situation yet and wasn’t certain it would work.

Outside the main hall was a connecting corridor similar to the one in the eastern courtyard of Yangxin Hall. Qin Xiao had arranged for two city defense soldiers to take turns guarding outside.

At that moment, a soldier knocked on the door and said: “My Lord, Lord Jian has arrived.”

“Send him in.”

The door opened, and Jian Hongzhuo and an official from the Ministry of Revenue named Song Feng walked in and bowed.

Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao had stayed up most of the night, mainly waiting on his Lord Song.

Chu Jiubian was somewhat taken aback by Jian Hongzhuo’s presence. He had thought he was keeping an eye on the dam project.

His gaze dipped slightly downward, and he understood immediately when he saw the roll of blueprints Jian Hongzhuo was holding.

It seemed that Minister Jian had been drawing up plans here all this time, trying to find a way to repair the dam. To have come looking for them so late, he must have come up with a solution.

In order to reach the position of Minister of Works, one must possess genuine talent and ability. Chu Jiubian was genuinely looking forward to his solution.

“Have a seat,” Qin Xiao told the two of them.

“Thanking My Lord.” After thanking him, Jian Hongzhuo took a seat on the left.

Rather than sitting down, Song Feng remained in place and bowed: “My Lords, all of the items in the magistrate’s residence have been inventoried. Six thousand taels of silver, and precious artifacts and paintings worth twenty thousand taels have been seized.”

He stepped forward a few paces and handed the booklet he had been carrying to Qin Xiao, then stepped back.

Qin Xiao took it, ran his eyes over it a few times, and then handed it to Chu Jiubian.

Chu Jiubian also glanced over it briefly.

He didn’t take too close of a look, due to the belief that Song Feng wouldn’t dare falsify the accounts.

Because when Chao Shun had a high fever at the post station, it was Song Feng who had stayed to look after him.

The other party had not only witnessed the brutal scene of the guards taking Chao Shun away, but had also personally witnessed Chu Jiubian’s miracle of borrowing sunlight at night. Naturally, he kept all of his small calculations hidden after this.

Chu Jiubian turned to the last page and saw the shocking numbers.

It was astonishing that a mere county magistrate could embezzle so much money, even in a wealthy county such as this.

And this was only what they could see at the moment. In the decades before, the expenses of this county magistrate’s family for food, clothing, and other necessities must have been enormous.

For example, former Deputy Minister of Personnel Zhao Qianhe had embezzled hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. But he was a second-rank official in the capital, and worked in the very lucrative Ministry of Personnel.

However, this Huai County magistrate was just a minor local official, not even a prefect or governor, yet he had already embezzled so much.

This just showed how corrupt the officialdom in Great Ning had become.

The confiscated funds would be used for disaster relief, but a specific plan needed to be drafted to determine where it would be used.

Qin Xiao ordered Song Feng to liquidate all of the precious artifacts and paintings, so that the money could be used elsewhere later.

Song Feng accepted the order and withdrew.

Chu Jiubian placed the account book on the table and looked at Jian Hongzhuo, saying: “Has Lord Jian come up with a plan to stem the flooding?”

“I have indeed found a solution.” Jian Hongzhuo stood and walked over, spreading the blueprints down on the table for Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian to see.

“I was thinking of finding some large boats and placing them upstream, then connecting them with ropes and filling them with gravel.” Jian Hongzhuo gestured to the blueprints. “As shown in the diagram, skilled seamen could then be ordered to scuttle the ships…..”

Qin Xiao listened attentively, but just by hearing the beginning, Chu Jiubian knew what Jian Hongzhuo intended to do.

This was the “sinking ship” method – when faced with a dam breach that was too difficult to close due to rapid currents, only such heavy objects could stem the flow. Then, people would be ordered to shovel day and night to reinforce the area, using objects such as reeds and stones to completely block the flow of water.

And once the flood season was over, the dam could be rebuilt.

Chu Jiubian couldn’t help but send Jian Hongzhuo a few more glances.

This Minister Jian was not one to hide his talents, and was indeed a person of great skill. Chu Jiubian thought that this method might be feasible.

However, shutting off the flow of the river by sinking boats would be too costly.

Just by looking at this diagram, one could see that the Huai County dam breach was quite large, and would require at least fifteen to twenty boats to plug it.

Hexi Prefecture was adjacent to the Ning River, and some county residents did make their livings by fishing, but they all used small boats.

The government could scrape together some large ships in a short period of time, but the money and manpower needed to build each ship was enormous, and it would be too risky to sink so many just to block the dam.

If Jian Hongzhuo didn’t handle this well, he could very well lose everything.

And in sacrificing these government ships, the court would be required to requisition funds for new ones, which would be a huge burden on the current Imperial Court.

It was too big of a risk for anyone to take.

Even Chu Jiubian was unsure whether he should agree.

However, after listening to Jian Hongzhuo’s explanation, Qin Xiao only asked one question: “What are the chances of success?”

After a moment of silence, Jian Hongzhuo said cautiously: “Seventy percent.”

“Do it.” Qin Xiao agreed at once, and even gave him both his personal and official seals.

Jian Hongzhuo didn’t waste any time. Having received the order, he immediately led his men to coordinate and supervise the operation.

Once they left, only Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian remained in the room.

Chu Jiubian turned his head to face Qin Xiao.

Without much hesitation at all, Qin Xiao had agreed to something as risky and costly as blocking the dam with sunken ships.

He had even given Jian Hongzhuo both his personal and official seals, which previously had only entered the hands of Qin Chaoyang.

Qin Chaoyang hadn’t accompanied them this time, staying behind in the capital to look after Bai Lihong instead, so Qin Xiao carried both seals himself.

But given the current situation…..

How could Qin Xiao trust Jian Hongzhuo so much?

Wasn’t he afraid that the other party would take this opportunity to embezzle from the disaster relief funds?

Qin Xiao turned his head to meet Chu Jiubian’s thoughtful gaze. His expression softened slightly as he asked: “Are you wondering why I trust him?”

“Is he one of yours?” Chu Jiubian guessed.

Qin Xiao nodded: “Everyone knows that Jian Hongzhuo is a descendent of meritorious officials, the last remaining survivor of a family of loyal martyrs.”

He got up and paced to the window, looking out at the tall, straight figure receding into the distance: “But no one knows that he was entrusted with the care of my grandfather. He was also a close friend of my father’s.”

Before, Qin Xiao had been able to cooperate with Qin Feng in the palace coup and push Bai Lihong to the throne – and this was in no small part due to the covert support of the Minister of Works.

Jian Hongzhuo enjoyed a free and easy lifestyle. If Qin Jingzhao and his wife hadn’t suddenly died in battle, he would have long since resigned from his post and wandered the world with his loved one.

But life was unpredictable. His good brother had died in a conspiracy plot, leaving behind the elderly Grand Marshal, as well as the young siblings, Qin Xiao and Qin Feng.

Naturally, he could not stand idly by. This was why he remained in the court, clinging to the position of Minister of Works. When the time was right, he would be able to protect the Qin family and even find a way to uncover the truth behind the deaths of Qin Jingzhao and his wife.

But he hadn’t expected the Qin siblings to be so formidable that, after their mentor the Grand Marshal passed away, they would go all out and take that supreme position directly into the hands of the Qin family.

Although he did aid them in some ways, he was truly amazed by the siblings’ decisiveness, as well as their grasp on the political situation and peoples’ hearts.

As a result, Jian Hongzhuo felt more confident, and thought that once Bai Lihong’s position was stable and the cause of Qin Jingzhao and his wife’s deaths was uncovered, he would resign.

Therefore, he maintained his “salted fish” attitude and didn’t let anyone discover his relationship with Qin Xiao.

Like this, he would be able to safely withdraw from the chessboard in the future.

However, the flooding had clearly caused Qin Xiao a great deal of trouble, and with so many common people in the two counties suffering because of it, Jian Hongzhuo could not stand idly by, and thus unexpectedly stepped forward.

However, after returning from the disaster relief mission, this minister whose position was so leisurely that he was basically marginalized could no longer remain aloof.

Once you stepped into the vortex of power, you could only move forward, and none could escape unscathed.

Chu Jiubian went to Qin Xiao’s side and looked out the window with him.

Among the so-called “pure” officials in the court, from Zhao Qianhe, the former Deputy Minister of Personnel who had been exiled, to Jian Hongzhuo now, not one of them was truly “pure.”

Then what about Su Sheng?

Was that high-ranking official in charge of the Ministry of Revenue truly able to remain in power for so many years due to his outstanding competence?

Since he dared to share profits with the Su family and the four great families, did he really have no fallback plans at all?

If so, then his only way out seemed to be the seven vassal kings.

Chu Jiubian turned his head to look at the person next to him. The man’s eyes were deep and dark, and his entire being was shrouded in a sense of isolation that Chu Jiubian could empathize with.

The Regent, second only to the emperor, carried a burden that was much too heavy and all-encompassing.

He had no one to rely on and no fallback options; he could only walk forward alone in the struggle for power, encircled by wolves.

Just like this flood – if it weren’t for a hidden pawn like Jian Hongzhuo stepping forward to help him repair the dams, who would he be able to trust? And how would he be able to resolve this crisis?

Chu Jiubian lowered his eyes slightly.

He and Qin Xiao were very similar in some ways.

The two remained silent for some time, their shoulders very close together. If either of them moved even slightly closer, they would be touching.

However, neither of them crossed that line, and simply maintained a restrained distance.

The light in the room grew dimmer.

It threw the flickering shadows of their two figures across the wall, sometimes with a gap between them, and sometimes overlapping.

Like two lonely, solitary souls.

The pattering rain continued without abating.

A servant rushed through the rain and knocked on the door, breaking the silence in the room.

The two turned around to look.

Qin Xiao responded, and the servant opened the door and came in. With a respectful bow of his head, he offered the two of them a letter wrapped in oilcloth.

Having done this, he silently left and closed the door.

Qin Xiao opened the letter and walked back toward the oil lamp with Chu Jiubian.

Chu Jiubian moved closer to him so that their shoulders and arms touched.

Beneath the thin layer of clothing, Chu Jiubian could feel the contours of the man’s firm muscles.

His gaze shifted for a moment before he turned his attention to the letter.

The letter was sent from the prefectural city and signed by Kou Zimo, a senior official in the Ministry of War. Qin Xiao had kept him at the prefectural governor’s manor in order to investigate the truth behind the governor’s “suicide out of fear of punishment.”

The matter had now been investigated.

And it began with Zhou Boshan.

He was the well-known son-in-law of the Xiao family, as well as a rising star whom the Xiao family promoted through the dam repair project.

For fear of being blamed for the flooding, he had ordered the killing of civilians and used them to fill the dam.

He would surely die a horrible death if his actions were discovered, and might even implicate the Xiao family, tarnishing their reputation.

If it were someone else investigating, the Xiao family might still have had room to maneuver – but it was Qin Xiao who had come.

Qin Xiao had recently been concerned about how to target those powerful families, and now that they’d made such a big mistake, not only would the reputation of the Xiao family be affected, but even Xiao Wendao, the Deputy Minister of Works in the capital, might be implicated.

Therefore, these evil deeds could not be connected back to Zhou Boshan and the Xiao family.

Otherwise, what would the Xiao family do?

At this time, Kou Zimo had discovered correspondence between Lu Yuan and Huguang-wang Bai Liyue, hidden in a compartment in the governor’s study.

Lu Yuan was also a well-known member of the Xiao family faction, but these letters suggested that he may have already betrayed them and secretly become involved with Huguang-wang.

Kou Zimo’s first thought was that the Xiao family had discovered this and took the opportunity to kill Lu Yuan.

Firstly, Zhou Boshan’s crime could be pinned on him, and secondly, a traitor would be eliminated.

As for the third —

Once Lu Yuan’s seat was vacant, the Xiao family could promote Zhou Boshan to the position, and then Hexi Prefecture would still be under the control of the Xiao family.

They would have killed three birds with one stone.

This seemed to be the truth of the matter.

However, Kou Zimo was a cautious person, and there were officials from the Ministry of Justice around him. Therefore, instead of coming to a hasty conclusion, he continued to investigate and left no stone unturned.

During his investigation, he indeed discovered two points of doubt —

The handwriting on these letters was very fresh!

Although the writer of this letter had done his best to imitate Lu Yuan’s handwriting, there were still some differences in the details.

Therefore, these letters showing a connection with Huguang-wang had been forged by somebody else.

And the forger had used the same handwriting as the person who wrote the “suicide note.”

Was this done by the Xiao family?

Had the Xiao family killed Lu Yuan and then fabricated a letter between him and Huguang-wang to make it look like he wasn’t actually affiliated with them?

This way, even if Zhou Boshan’s evil deeds were attributed to Lu Yuan, it would implicate Huguang-wang instead of the Xiao family.

The Xiao family had so many members that it was reasonable to assume that they wouldn’t abandon Lu Yuan, who was already a prefectural governor, for the sake of Zhou Boshan, who had yet to make a name for himself.

However, since Lu Yuan didn’t share their surname, he could become the lackey of another faction.

Zhou Boshan was a son-in-law of the Xiao family, so their reputation would inevitably be affected.

It was not impossible for the Xiao family to abandon Lu Yuan for the sake of their reputation.

Kou Zimo briefly explained his reasoning process, and the conclusion he came to was:

The Xiao family forged the letter turning Lu Yuan into Huguang-wang’s man, and then forged the suicide note, where Lu Yuan took responsibility for all of the crimes.

This cleared Zhou Boshan of suspicion and preserved the Xiao family’s reputation.

The handwriting on the letters was fresh because everything had happened so suddenly.

The Xiao family had never expected that Zhou Boshan was both wicked and stupid, capable of doing so many despicable things, and could only come up with this last-minute method to protect him.

Qin Xiao burned the letter.

The last glimmers of light from the oil lamp grew even dimmer, and the room slipped further into shadow.

Chu Jiubian could barely make out the furnishings in the room; only Qin Xiao beside him stood out more clearly under the lamplight.

The man turned his head to look at him, and his voice was somewhat grave as he said: “Do you think it was the Xiao family?”

Chu Jiubian pondered for a moment, then said: “If it was the Xiao family, why would they involve Huguang-wang in the forged letter?”

Powerful noble families controlled the Imperial Court, maintaining a delicate balance with the vassal kings. The Xiao family wasn’t powerful enough to just do as they pleased, so how could they dare involve a vassal king?

Moreover, this was the most powerful and difficult to deal with Huguang-wang.

The Xiao family would be putting themselves in a precarious position by offending him, caught between a rock and a hard place. Would they be that foolish?

“If I were Xiao Yao, I would have given up on Zhou Boshan immediately after learning what he did,” Qin Xiao said.

He was a son-in-law of the collateral branch of the Xiao family, and it was only because he happened to be in Hexi Prefecture that he had the opportunity to follow Jiannan-wang and gain merit.

Given his recent stupidity and malice, protecting him would only bring trouble, so it would be better to eliminate him directly.

On the other hand, they felt more comfortable using Governor Lu Yuan, and had no reason to forge documents to make him take the blame.

As for the Xiao family’s reputation and the punishment Qin Xiao might impose on them, they could only grit their teeth and bear it.

There was ample time, and they could make their plans slowly.

Qin Xiao looked at the young man and found the firelight illuminating half of his face, the other half cast in flickering shadows.

He said: “So there is a third party behind this.”

This third party intended to frame the Xiao family for Lu Yuan’s death, and incidentally use the letters to sow discord between them and Huguang-wang.

One was the most powerful of the noble families, and the other was one of the most powerful vassal kings. When these two sides clashed, it would be a battle between the snipe and the clam.^[1]

The third party was the fisherman who benefitted.

Chu Jiubian asked with a frown: “Could it be one of the other three great noble families? Or perhaps a vassal king?”

He was actually partial to the latter. 

The situation in the capital was unclear, and no one, including Qin Xiao, Chu Jiubian, and the four great families, wished to involve a vassal king at this time.

Therefore, this was likely the work of one of the vassal kings.

Huguang-wang wouldn’t be foolish enough to put himself out in the open, so it could only be one of the other six.

Qin Xiao paused for a moment, then said: “I asked Henan for grain yesterday.”

Henan.

That was the territory of Anhuai-wang Bai Liming.

Hexi Prefecture was out of grain, and the grain from the two nearby prefectures had recently been sold to the southern regions. Currently, the two places that could send grain here the quickest were Northern Zhili and Henan.

Even at the pace Chu Jiubian marched, it would take three days for the grain to be transported from Northern Zhili.

Moreover, with nobody in the court capable of handling this matter, Qin Xiao had no way of knowing that the grain wouldn’t be embezzled.

It would be better to borrow grain from Henan, which was right next to Hexi Prefecture. Then there would be no need to worry about embezzlement, and he only needed to receive the required grain. 

Moreover, Henan was only a day’s march from Hexi Prefecture, and possessed large granaries.

But Anhuai-wang wouldn’t send him grain for free. He would definitely want some benefits in return.

“He wants Hexi Prefecture,” said Qin Xiao.

Chu Jiubian’s heart skipped a beat.

In an instant, everything seemed to make perfect sense.

If Anhuai-wang was the third party, then he had planned everything from the very beginning.

When he learned that Jiannan-wang had come to repair the dams, he devised a plan.

He tried every means to divert or destroy the grain from Hexi Prefecture and other nearby regions, and then destroyed the dams.

When the dams were destroyed, the first to be held accountable would be Jiannan-wang and the Xiao family.

Since he was a member of the Xiao family faction, Governor Lu Yuan’s suicide would clearly confirm their guilt regarding the “embezzlement of construction funds.”

With the dams destroyed and no grain available in Hexi Prefecture, the Imperial Court would have no choice but to transfer grain from Henan.

And with this, Anhuai-wang could legitimately request Hexi Prefecture.

The location of Hexi Prefecture was very clever, situated precisely at the junction between the provinces of Northern and Southern Zhili, as well as the connection between Henan and Shandong. It was also a wealthy prefecture, making its location very important.

In the face of food shortages, the Imperial Court could either agree to give him Hexi Prefecture or directly transfer grain from Northern Zhili.

But if the grain were to be transferred from Northern Zhili, the process would be very slow, and Anhuai-wang could send people to incite the refugees into launching an uprising.

At that time, the Xiao family’s reputation would be ruined, the common people would riot, and the court would lose their support. The accusation of divine punishment might even be leveled at them for the Emperor’s illegitimate ascension to the throne or Qin Xiao holding power as an Imperial family member.

These were the things Qin Xiao feared the most, so he was very likely to agree to Anhuai-wang’s proposal.

It was an excellent plan. If this operation were to be carried out, Anhuai-wang may very well succeed in taking over Hexi Prefecture.

But he forgot to take Zhou Boshan into account.

This person was both wicked and stupid, and actually came up with the idea of using the common people to fill the dams.

Qin Xiao would definitely investigate such a huge calamity when he arrived, and may uncover more of the inside story – even the parts leading back to Anhuai-wang.

Anhuai-wang had no choice but to change his original plan and make another move.

That was why the letters between Lu Yuan and Huguang-wang were forged. His intention was to frame the Xiao family for Lu Yuan’s death, and then implicate the vassal king, making the situation in Hexi Prefecture even more unpredictable.

In this way, he could better conceal himself.

The number of refugees had decreased sharply simply because Zhou Boshan had killed so many people.

In addition, Chu Jiubian was the one escorting the silver and grain this time. He had rushed as fast as he could, and by sheer coincidence, the remaining grain in Hexi Prefecture had lasted until the day the disaster relief grain from Northern Zhili had arrived.

Anhuai-wang must have been worried that he wouldn’t be able to exchange his grain for Hexi Prefecture.

But it seemed he had achieved his goal. There wasn’t enough food, so Qin Xiao eventually had to ask him for more.

Chu Jiubian said: “Since he wants Hexi Prefecture, we won’t give it to him.”

Qin Xiao looked into Chu Jiubian’s eyes, saying nothing.

If this person was able to transport grain to Nanjiang without anyone noticing, he could certainly do the same here.

“As long as they have faith in me, I can save them,” Chu Jiubian said.

His Faith Value was slowly increasing, likely thanks to Doctor Zhao.

But he needed more.

He also wanted to exchange points for more medicine and food, and buy high-yield sweet potato seedlings so that the common people of Hexi Prefecture could plant them and quickly restore their vitality.

And he had many more things to do when he returned to the capital, all of which required faith.

“Do you need more temples?” Qin Xiao asked.

Chu Jiubian had discovered that he and Qin Xiao were indeed very compatible in many ways. They didn’t need to explain many things to each other, as they understood the other party’s thoughts.

“No need for temples,” Chu Jiubian said. “A dilapidated house will do.”

What form it took didn’t matter. As long as people believed in “Chu Jiubian,” he would gain Faith Points.

They stood facing each other, their eyes locked.

The dying oil lamp finally went out, plunging the room into complete darkness.

Either of them could have easily asked someone to light another oil lamp, which could have been replaced before it went out. They even had tinderboxes on them.

However, neither of them made a move. From the very beginning, they had been tacitly waiting for this moment of darkness to arrive.

Darkness deprived one of sight, thus amplifying one’s senses and urging them to do things they wouldn’t normally do and say things they wouldn’t normally say.

Chu Jiubian could only vaguely make out the outline of the person across from him, but he could also sense that person’s gaze.

He seemed to be anticipating something, yet was also fearful of it.

After a long while, the man’s voice finally rang out.

“Will it hurt you?” he asked.

Chu Jiubian knew he was referring to the day of the assassination attempt, when firing the gun had torn off one of his fingernails. 

“It won’t.”

After a long stretch of time, Qin Xiao finally moved.

He turned and walked toward the door, lighting a tinderbox as he went.

“Rest. I will go make arrangements.” He opened the door and strode out without looking back.

---

[1] This saying is based on the old proverb” “In a fight between a snipe and a clam, the fisherman comes out on top.” The story goes that a snipe flies down to peck at a clam, which shuts on the bird’s beak and traps it. While they’re stubbornly battling, a fisherman comes by and nets them both. ⮐

---

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Chapter 46 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 48

Ch 10 – Forbearance and Restraint

“Listen, since you’re coming with me to a third-class planet, you need to act like someone who shouldn’t be trifled with,” Kersz told Yu Xi.

Kersz had asked Yu Xi if he’d like to start off by abducting a few humans from a third-class planet, but Yu Xi was now very cautious. He decided to get a look at the situation first, and act if the opportunity arose.

Yu Xi had also realized that his behavior was a little strange when he interacted with humans.

“I’m already not someone to be trifled with.” Yu Xi had a fairly clear understanding of his own strength. “If I wanted to, I could wipe out your civilization right this moment.”

Kersz froze, then sent Yu Xi a helpless look: “Please stop reminding me that I’m letting a wolf into the house. I have no way to resist in this situation. I’m too weak…..are you nervous?”

“What is there to be nervous about?” Yu Xi didn’t understand.

“You’ve been picking at your hands,” Kersz said, gesturing to them.

Yu Xi gave an “oh” and immediately separated his hands.

“It’s just…..it’s just that I haven’t been around so many humans in such a long time. And when I saw them from afar last time, they didn’t seem very friendly.” Yu Xi was uncertain whether these humans would speak loudly and aggressively.

Kersz stared at Yu Xi.

“You know, I’m much stronger than them. If I wanted to, I could have destroyed their fleet in an instant.”

Yu Xi started to clasp his hands together again, but he quickly realized what he was doing and separated them. He coughed and let them drop to his sides: “But….”

“But they were a little too unkind.” Yu Xi cleared his throat. “They didn’t even give me time to explain.”

Kersz added: “They didn’t even give you time to hand me over.”

“I wouldn’t treat you so heartlessly…..most of the time.” Yu Xi’s tone was a little lacking in confidence.

“Wow, you’re so nice.” Kersz pretended not to hear Yu Xi’s hesitance, and looked him up and down. “Are you going to change your clothes?”

“Is this outfit ugly?” Yu Xi looked down at his clothes. “I carefully selected these.”

“That’s the problem. You’re a remarkable artificial intelligence, and even though you haven’t seen a third-class planet in person, you should know that these aren’t places where high-class humans gather. You don’t need to act like a socialite there.” Kersz holstered a gun at his waist.

“I know, that’s why I chose this outfit. The pattern on it is only visible under specific lighting conditions.” Yu Xi lowered his voice: “The blue stripes look like those of the blue morpho butterfly.”

“Wa…..” Kersz had no chance of repeating that word, and gave up after uttering the first syllable. “Whatever that is, you need to change clothes unless you want to be kidnapped by vicious outlaws…..what are you smiling about? Oh, I forgot that you wouldn’t see that as a bad thing.”

Yu Xi suppressed his smile: “Would they kidnap me to extort money from me? But I don’t have any of your currency.”

Kersz: “They may not be able to hurt you, but you should understand that they’re some of the unfriendliest people around.”

“They will yell at you, and try to hurt and intimidate you,” Kersz continued to caution.

“You’re also a space pirate,” Yu Xi said, pointing at him.

“But I’ve known from the beginning how powerful you are, and that I can’t afford to mess with you.” Kersz shrugged. “Believe me, kind and gentle people can’t survive in that sort of environment.”

“Of course I know that.” Yu Xi’s database contained relevant information. “Humans who live in this sort of environment are not to be trifled with.”

Kersz felt a sense of gratification.

Yu Xi pursed his lips: “But perhaps they just need a little sense of security.”

Kersz: “Don’t harbor any illusions about space pirates and the like.”

“Don’t you long for someone who will trust you wholeheartedly? A gentle and understanding person who doesn’t treat you as a space pirate, but as a heartbroken child?” Yu Xi asked Kersz.

“And then use them for my benefit?” Kersz asked.

Yu Xi reared back in shock: “Heavens!”

“I’m sorry, I don’t have the habit of wanting others to like me. If someone truly sees me as a heartbroken child, I’ll just think they’re looking down on me, and I’ll unscrupulously exploit them as a form of revenge.” Kersz made no attempt to hide his true thoughts.

“Do you know what you’re saying?” Yu Xi was very shocked.

“Of course I do. I have no intention of hiding what I’m like from you anymore. You wouldn’t buy it anyway,” Kersz said. “And your power is slightly outside my range of control…..well, not ‘slightly.’ In short, I’m afraid that if something happens to you, you’ll vent your frustrations on us in a fit of rage. At that point, it will be too late for me to have regrets.”

Yu Xi carefully pondered Kersz’s words, then said: “Do you think I’m the kind of person who wants others to like me?”

“You’re the kind of person who forces others to like you,” Kersz said. “Did you just ignore everything I said after that?”

“I heard you. You are no longer going to hide. You plan to show me your true, authentic, unfiltered self.” Yu Xi shifted in place, straightening his back. “I’m so glad. You’re such a good person~”

Kersz opened his mouth, then closed it again.

He spent some time straightening his clothes, then felt that he should say something, but found himself shutting his mouth again.

Was that what he meant?

It seemed like a valid interpretation.

“Perhaps our communication still needs some work,” was all Kerz could say.

Yu Xi: “Most likely. Oh! To help us communicate better, please say ‘blue morpho butterfly.’”

Kersz froze.

Kersz: “You realize I can’t pronounce that, right?” Yu Xi was using him for amusement again.

Yu Xi: “I haven’t realized anything. I’m just curious.”

Kersz: “Did the ancient humans ever tell you that you’re a devious robot?”

Yu Xi: “They thought I was sweet.”

Kersz: “It seems they weren’t so omnipotent after all.”

Kersz looked around: “Do you have any high-tech equipment here that can disguise your appearance?”

“I do. What are you planning?” Yu Xi asked.

“We’re both wanted criminals now, so we have to disguise our faces,” Kersz said.

Yu Xi gasped and covered his face with his hands: “We really have to?!”

Kersz: “…..Are you averse to that?”

Yu Xi: “My face is very handsome.”

Kersz stared blankly.

Wasn’t this supposed to be an emotionless robot?! He was such a narcissist that he couldn’t bear to cover up his handsome face!

*

*

The black starship docked at the spaceport on Ashfall.

A man with a dark red buzzcut was the first to disembark. This man had a square jaw and a high browline that cast a shadow across his eyes, as well as a scar at the corner of his mouth. People of this era would keep scars that held a special significance to them, even though the technology existed to erase them at any time.

Following close behind him was a man with short gray hair and gray eyes, emanating a sense of aloofness. His facial features were sleek, with a high nose bridge and thin lips, and his brow was slightly furrowed, as if he was holding himself back from something.

The aloof man quickly strode to his fierce-looking companion’s side and said: “Kersz, how much longer do I have to maintain this expressionless face?”

“Until we reach our destination,” said Kersz. “Don’t stare any humans in the face.”

“I know.” Yu Xi sucked in a deep breath. “But there are so many humans here.”

“They have nothing to do with you,” Kersz reminded him.

“Not necessarily. They just have nothing to do with me right this moment…..oh, I can hear their heartbeats and footsteps.” Yu Xi felt a little like shouting at the top of his lungs. He hadn’t had contact with a human community for ages.

“You’re like some kind of pervert,” said Kersz.

“You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this moment.” Yu Xi had been isolated for far too long.

“In any case, control yourself,” Kersz said through gritted teeth.

“I am in control. I won’t actively interact with humans.” Even though Yu Xi really wanted to do that.

They walked through the lobby and took an elevator to the ground floor.

Yu Xi attempted to straighten his furrowed brow.

Suddenly, a hand grasped Yu Xi’s arm.

“What are you upset about?” A flamboyant-looking man raised an eyebrow at Yu Xi. “If you want a little something to make you happy again…..”

The man abruptly fell silent, because he saw a smile spread across the gray-haired man’s expressionless face.

In a split second, white teeth flashed into view.

The man released his grip, but his wrist was immediately grabbed.

“Hey! Hey!” Yu Xi called out to Kersz.

Kersz had realized that there was something wrong with this man when they walked past him, but his reaction was clearly too late.

Yu Xi clutched the man’s wrist: “He touched me! He touched me with his hand!”

He then took the man’s hand and smacked it against his arm, saying: “That’s how he touched me, right there!”

Kersz: ……

“Does he want to come with me?”

“He wants to sell you contraband.”

Yu Xi’s smile faded. Then he said: “Will he come with me once he sells all his goods?”

Kersz: “He’s not suitable to be raised at home.”

Yu Xi: “But…..”

Kersz: “Let him go!!”

---

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Chapter 9 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 11

Ch. 69 – Hao Thick Face

Hao Chen still wasn’t entirely certain if Feng Ye knew who he was.

Because Feng Ye’s two inquiries seemed like he was deliberately teasing him, but also like he was just looking for someone to agree with him.

Unsure of the current situation, Hao Chen didn’t speak rashly out of an abundance of caution, giving an ambiguous, “En.”

Although calling someone fat wasn’t a good thing in the human world, it wasn’t the same for beasts. A plump body symbolized strength, so the crab judged Feng Ye’s words to be a compliment to his Lord. He had no objections, and blew bubbles in agreement.

Of course, Hao Chen was of a different opinion. He had long since gotten rid of his primitive aesthetics, and didn’t want to admit that he was fat. But he was in no position to refute. After all, Feng Ye was talking about the Lord of the North Sea, the Kunpeng, who was tens of thousands of li long – not him, an ordinary disciple of Tiangong Pavilion.

He had no choice but to accept this loss. Hao Chen held his mini fan, maintaining a superficial smile.

When the crab was finished boasting, he returned to his stall. Although their acquaintance had begun with a misunderstanding, after chatting back and forth, the four of them seemed to have become more familiar with the vendor.

Fang Yang couldn’t restrain his curiosity, and crouched down on the ground to ask the crab: “What are you selling?”

He looked left and right, but still couldn’t tell what should be on display in this empty stall. Could it be that this crab was selling himself?

The crab really was selling himself, or rather, his labor.

The crab looked at Fang Yang with the two eyes on its forehead and proudly explained: “I’m a tour guide. I provide guided tours for people visiting North Sea City for the first time.”

“Tour guide?” Fang Yang’s eyes lit up. Weren’t the four of them visiting North Sea City for the first time?

“Then can you be our tour guide?” Fang Yang asked excitedly.

The crab agreed, But at the same time, he stretched out a claw toward Fang Yang, not to attack, but to request money: “One thousand spirit stones.”

One thousand spirit stones. Feng Ye had just calculated this number not long ago, and reacted quickly at this moment.

A normal tour guide would only charge three to five spirit stones at most, yet this crab dared to ask for one thousand spirit stones, which was the equivalent of the black-grade robes he had set his sights on but couldn’t afford.

Feng Ye couldn’t help but take a closer look at the crab’s shell. It was clearly a blue crab, so why was its heart so black – just like a certain fish?

Cao Zirui didn’t say anything, but as the only wealthy person among the four, even he felt that this price was too high.

And Fang Yang was so stunned by this number that he didn’t react at all.

When the crab held his claw outstretched for a long time without receiving a single penny, he became unhappy: “Is it too expensive for you?”

Nobody answered, but their expressions clearly indicated that it was indeed too expensive.

“Hmph!” The crab clasped his claws across his chest as if folding his arms, and said in a huff: “You get what you pay for. Although our Lord is the master of North Sea City, he’s far away in the heavens and won’t easily interfere in mortal affairs. The one who really has the final say in this city is my cousin, Proprietor Crab.”

Sure enough, this crab is related to Proprietor Crab, Feng Ye thought.

And a certain lord who should have been far away in the heavens began to wonder if the city really belonged to him, or if these crabs were just using his name for clout.

But he was unable to come to a conclusion. It was just that he had so many assets. Being so rich that you can’t keep track of what you own is distressing, Hao Chen lamented.

The crab continued: “I am Crab Eighteen, Proprietor Crab’s eighteenth cousin. Regardless of whether or not you’re an outsider, as long as you have us crabs as tour guides, no stores, big or small, will dare to overcharge you. If you’re here to buy things, you can save more than these one thousand spirit stones with one of us as your guide.”

Translated, this meant that he charged a fair price and was not black-hearted.

But no matter how fair it was, three of the four people had no money and showed no enthusiasm.

Only Cao Zirui seemed to be deep in thought. He had consumed a lot of his materials inside the Floating Island Secret Realm, and many of his medicines and elixirs were depleted. It was time to purchase some.

The crab added the final log to the fire, pointing with his pincers at the pearl Fang Yang had been holding in his hand: “What did the one who sold you that pearl say? Did he tell you that it was formed by a hundred-year-old clam spirit?”

The crab was completely correct. Fang Yang and Cao Zirui exchanged glances, then looked back at the crab.

The crab said proudly: “He just scammed you. How could a pearl from a hundred-year-old clam spirit be so cheap? Judging by the quality of the pearl, the clam must have been no more than fifty years old, and the price should have been no more than fifty spirit stones. How much did you pay?”

He said this with great conviction. These two humans didn’t look very smart. Moreover, most sea monsters were simple and honest, but those who could survive in North Sea City were all cunning and treacherous.

In any case, these humans usually only came once every ten years, so it was a one-time deal. Therefore, most of the monsters running the stalls ripped off as many customers as possible, cheating them to the bone.

Fang Yang and Cao Zirui looked at each other again. Cao Zirui glanced at the pearl and back. Without another word, he pulled out one thousand spirit stones and passed them into the crab’s claws.

“It’s a deal.” Although the crab’s claws were large, they moved very flexibly, and he finalized the deal while counting out the spirit stones.

Since he had successfully sold himself, there was no need to keep the stall up any longer.

When Feng Ye and the others looked at the naked crab curiously, wondering where he would put the spirit stones, the crab placed them on the rag that made up his stall.

Then he used his claws to roll the rag up around them, making a quick, simple package. The crab picked up a small branch from nearby, attached it to the package, and picked it up, ready to go: “Guide Crab Eighteen is here to serve. Where would you like to visit, and what do you want to buy?”

He now had the air of a consummate professional. 

The four people stared in amazement. 

After a moment, Cao Zirui realized that he was the one who had paid for the tour guide. Crab Eighteen was very perceptive, and could see that he was the only one with wealth among the four-man group. Therefore, although he had asked them as a group, he was actually directing the question toward Cao Zirui.

Cao Zirui touched his storage bag in thought, then decided that he should first replenish his defensive magic weapons.

Although he already had quite a few magic tools, it would be best to prepare a few more in case he needed them at a critical moment. During his trip to the Floating Island Secret Realm, he had gained a profound understanding of this.

When he heard this, the crab waved his claws and said: “Understood.”

Then he took up a sideways posture as he walked down the street, one eye on the path ahead and the other eye making sure the tourists were following closely behind.

Feng Ye: “……” It had to be said that sideways-walking crabs had a natural advantage when it came to the tour guide profession. They never had to worry about losing sight of their charges.

And according to his observations along the way, he found that all of the crab clan walked sideways through North Sea City.

As the group made their way to a shop selling defensive magic tools, Crab Eighteen cleared the way for them. Some vendors had set up shop wherever they pleased, blocking the middle of the road. But when they caught sight of Crab Eighteen, they plucked up their wares from the ground and fled as if he was a city management officer.

Crab Eighteen gave a “hmph” and didn’t chase after them. He just griped to the four people behind him: “We’ve told them that they can’t block the road, but there are always some people who don’t follow the rules.”

The four people who had been blocking the road while they talked not long ago: “…..”

North Sea City was indeed the largest island in the North Sea. It took the four people and one crab half an incense stick’s time to finally reach their destination.

Crab Eighteen pointed at the nearby shop, motioning for them to go inside.

“Turtle Shell Shop.” Fang Yang glanced up at the placard.

Cao Zirui inspected the store. The decoration style was very grand, and seemed much more reliable than those roadside stalls.

The four of them walked inside, and the first thing to catch their eye was the dozens of turtle shells on the wall opposite the door.

And the hunchbacked shopkeeper standing behind the counter with his hands tucked into his sleeves.

The hunchbacked shopkeeper smiled as he greeted Crab Eighteen: “Eighteen, are you bringing business to me again?”

Crab Eighteen shook the package in his claws and said: “I’m just working for pay.”

After saying this, he turned and said to the four people: “The best defensive magic tools in the city are the turtle shells from this Turtle Shell Shop. Each of them is made using genuine shells from spiritual turtles with profound cultivation. Their defensive power is comparable to that of your human earth-grade magic weapons, and the price is fair, no deception.”

There was nothing wrong with Crab Eighteen’s introduction, and Feng Ye could see that the defensive power of the turtle shells was indeed as he said, but this shop…..

While Fang Yang and Cao Zirui focused their attention on the turtle shells, Feng Ye couldn’t help but walk up to the counter and ask the hunchbacked shopkeeper: “Boss, you also seem to be….” A turtle too?

Did it not hurt his conscience to sell the corpses of his own kind?

Feng Ye didn’t finish his sentence, but the hunchbacked shopkeeper understood at once. After all, most people who came to this store for the first time asked such a question.

He didn’t get angry, but replied with a smile: “Guests coming from afar may not know that around here, dead is dead. There is no such thing as a peaceful burial like you humans prefer. We all live underwater, only coming ashore to do business. We live and die in the sea, and cannot be buried beneath the earth.”

He turned his head and pointed at a turtle shell on the wall: “These were all left behind by our ancestors, who died either naturally or by accident. Their souls have dispersed, and a body is just a body, no different from herbs or minerals. It is better to use them to refine magic tools and make contributions to the clan.”

“When I die in the future, my turtle shell will become one of the commodities here.” The hunchbacked shopkeeper maintained his smile when speaking of his own fate, as if it didn’t bother him at all.

This was very different from the human world, where people had always been sensitive about death, and had to spit three times after even mentioning the word.

After hearing what the hunchbacked shopkeeper said, Fang Yang and Cao Zirui also realized that he was a turtle, and that this wall was covered in the corpses of his brethren. Although the shopkeeper had given them an explanation, they still found this difficult to accept right away.

Feng Ye nodded. This idea was novel and very open-minded. He may not be able to accept it, but he would respect the customs of others.

Hao Chen didn’t say a word about the hunchbacked shopkeeper’s remarks. He didn’t find it strange – in fact, this was tradition in the North Sea.

However, when he saw the wall covered in turtle shells, they awakened some distant memories in Hao Chen. He glanced at Feng Ye with a slightly guilty conscience, fearing that he would discover a certain secret.

Good things couldn’t be thought into existence, but bad things could. Just as he had this thought, Feng Ye figured it out.

Feng Ye hesitantly pointed at a turtle shell on the wall and asked: “It seems that turtle shells aren’t the only thing you sell here, right?”

About half the wall was covered in neatly-patterned turtle shells, but there was still a small half where the shells were bare, and looked more like those of a tortoise than a turtle.

“Ignorant human.” Before the hunchbacked shopkeeper could explain, Crab Eighteen stood up with a disdainful snort.

Hao Chen’s eyebrow twitched. He had a bad feeling about this.

Sure enough, Crab Eighteen said: “In our North Sea, a tortoise is a turtle.”

Hao Chen couldn’t help but open his mini fan, wishing he could kill the crab before it revealed this secret. 

But if he took action here, Feng Ye would definitely notice. In the end, all Hao Chen could do was try to cover his face with his shrunken fan.

Feng Ye looked back to find that a certain person was trying to cover his eyes with his small fan, thinking that this would hide his big face. He seemed to have sensed a hint of killing intent just now.

He turned back to Crab Eighteen, who was obviously the one Hao Chen wanted to silence. Feng Ye couldn’t help but grow curious. What secret could make Hao Chen, whose skin was as thick as a city wall, want to kill the crab to silence him?

Crab Eighteen continued, completely unaware: “The story begins a long time ago. Although the North Sea is ruled by our Lord, various clans subservient to him still act independently and have occasional fights over territory. 

“Fighting is fine, but after fighting, they must still go to our Lord to seek justice. This annoyed him very much, but he couldn’t find any other solution. One day, when our Lord was visiting a human town, he happened to hear about a human myth.”

“How can mortals understand the graceful bearing of gods? The stories they tell are all fabricated nonsense! But…..” Crab Eighteen changed his tone. “Sometimes, humans are very clever.”

“In their story, they said that there was a magnificent dragon palace at the bottom of the sea, where night pearls are used for lighting and the walls are made of coral. The Dragon King commanded the sea clans, and for easier management, he established six departments, each headed by a minister.”

“It was just a complete transfer of human political trends into a story. At that time, the jiao in the Southern Sea had not yet become Yinglong, and in the entire world, only one dragon existed in the Eastern Sea. But there was no dragon palace at the bottom of that sea, much less six political departments.”

“Although it was all human nonsense, our Lord thought of a good idea because of it. When he returned from that town, he summoned all of the clans in the North Sea and ordered them to build him a palace as magnificent as the one described in the story. Then he selected five strong clans of equal strength to take charge of various matters. Humans call these the six ministries, but in the North Sea, they are the five Sea Masters.”

“With the five Sea Masters from the five clans, everything was ready except for a prime minister.”

“The turtle clan is long-lived and wise, making one of them the perfect candidate for prime minister. And as the story said, every dragon palace has a turtle prime minister, so there should be one in the North Sea as well. Our Lord wanted to imitate the human Imperial Examinations and choose the turtle with the highest test score as prime minister.”

“However, our Lord would go on a tour of the North Sea after dinner each day, and was so exhausted that he fell asleep before the tests were even carried out.”

Isn’t this just taking a stroll after a meal to aid digestion and relieve tiredness? Feng Ye thought with a dark face. But in Crab Eighteen’s mouth, it sounded like Hao Chen had suffered terribly on behalf of the North Sea clans.

If Crab Eighteen had said this before he met Hao Chen, he might have believed it. But after getting to know Hao Chen, he was entirely certain that his own estimation of him was correct, and that Crab Eighteen’s words were simply those of a fanatic.

Unaware of Feng Ye’s inner ridicule, Crab Eighteen continued: “Our Lord was tired and wanted to sleep, so he had no time to prepare the test papers. But he sometimes sleeps for dozens or hundreds of years, and if he didn’t appoint a prime minister before going to sleep, there would be no one to oversee the five Sea Masters he appointed or take charge of palace construction. So before going to sleep, he randomly selected a turtle as prime minister.”

“However…..” When Crab Eighteen finally got to the point, Hao Chen could barely restrain himself, yearning to kill him on the spot.

Unfortunately, Feng Ye noticed his intentions in time. Before Hao Chen could actually make a move, he took a sudden step back to stand beside Hao Chen and placed an arm around his shoulders in a somewhat intimate manner.

This seemed like very normal behavior between friends. It was common for men to put an arm around another’s shoulders, and the others listening to the story took no notice of this.

But to Hao Chen, Feng Ye was not a friend.

This was a relationship that went beyond friendship. So even though he knew Feng Ye had put an arm around his shoulders solely because he had sensed his killing intent and wanted to prevent him from attacking, he still couldn’t help being a little distracted by such closeness.

In an instant, he forgot about attacking, which allowed Crab Eighteen to finally expose the secret he had tried so hard to hide.

“Our Lord was a little hazy before he went to sleep, and the turtle he picked out was actually not a turtle.”

The answer was so obvious that even Fang Yang was able to guess it: “A tortoise?”

The hunchbacked shopkeeper nodded affirmatively, and took over the story from Crab Eighteen: “Although everyone knew that our Lord had chosen the wrong turtle, he fell asleep right after picking him, and we didn’t dare disturb him. Several matters still needed to be handled by a prime minister, so even if he wasn’t the right one, ‘Prime Minister Turtle’ still had to take office.”

“A hundred years later, our Lord woke up and realized that he had called a tortoise a turtle. But…..you should also know…..” the hunchbacked shopkeeper smiled: “Our Lord must have been concerned about his reputation. To save face for him, we all tacitly say that ‘Prime Minister Turtle’ is a turtle, not a tortoise.”

“Thus, in the North Sea, a tortoise is equivalent to a turtle,” Crab Eighteen summarized.

There was a brief silence.

“Pfft!” Fang Yang was the first to burst out laughing, and then Cao Zirui was unable to maintain his cold face, his lips curling uncontrollably.

As laughter rang out, Hao Chen, who had been distracted by Feng Ye’s closeness, immediately came to his senses with the realization that his reputation was unsalvageable.

His hand clenched tightly around his mini fan. The spiritual energy around him became disordered, and he looked as if he was about to fly into a rage out of embarrassment.

“Cough, cough.” Feng Ye coughed to mask the laughter bubbling up in his throat.

Realizing that the fish he was holding was about to go berserk, he didn’t antagonize him by laughing. Instead, he put on a mask of seriousness and tilted his head to glance at Hao Chen, saying: “I’ve always heard of the Kunpeng’s great reputation, but I didn’t expect to find out today that…..”

Find out what? Hao Chen waited anxiously for Feng Ye to finish, but it could be expected that according to Feng Ye’s usual behavior of criticizing him when he could and making opportunities to do so when he could not, it wouldn’t be anything good.

Feng Ye finding out about this stain on his reputation was enough for him to laugh about for the rest of his life.

His entire life’s reputation had been ruined by this crab. At this thought, Hao Chen couldn’t help but glare fiercely at the ignorant crab, wanting to beat this loudmouth to death.

Seeing this, Feng Ye suddenly smiled. His serious expression vanished, and the smile on his face shone from the bottom of his heart: “…..that this dignified Lord of the North Sea is also quite cute.”

Hao Chen stared at Feng Ye’s smile in a daze. He didn’t know whether this smile had some strange soul-stirring power, or if it was the magnetic voice resonating in his ears that was so captivating. 

Hao Chen covered his chest, his heart palpitating yet again.

---

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Chapter 68 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 70

The downpour intensified.

The common people were squeezed together and jostling each other, but there seemed to be a vacuum-like space around Chu Jiubian that none of them could get near.

The surrounding civilians, and even the soldiers around Qin Xiao, seemed oblivious to this fact. As if controlled by some strange force, they instinctively ignored the strange phenomenon.

Only Qin Xiao noticed it.

Once again, he witnessed Chu Jiubian’s extraordinary, unique qualities.

He also noticed the other’s indifferent gaze.

This was Chu Jiubian’s usual demeanor. His light-hued eyes rarely revealed any emotional fluctuations, and he always carried a sense of aloofness, as if detached from the world.

Zhou Boshan’s screams grew fainter and fainter. Those tied to the other wooden stakes were officials from Huai County and Guangqing Prefecture. Some of them had fainted at this scene, and some wept, their apologies and cries for mercy rising and falling.

But their voices were almost entirely swallowed up by the sound of the rain, and couldn’t reach Qin Xiao’s ears.

A curtain of rain separated Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao. They were several hundred meters apart, but neither of them moved, nor did they look away.

After an unknown amount of time, the man’s screams finally subsided. Bright red blood flowed into a large pink puddle.

Lightning flashed through the clouds, followed by a muffled rumble of thunder.

Qin Xiao stood up and instructed the person next to him: “The disaster relief grain has arrived. Make preparations to distribute porridge.”

This man was the commandant of Hexi Prefecture. He had witnessed Qin Xiao’s methods before in Pu County, where he executed a fourth-ranked prefect at will, but this “death by a thousand cuts” punishment filled him with even more awe and fear.

He didn’t even dare look Qin Xiao in the face anymore, and replied with his eyes slightly lowered.

Qin Xiao lifted his feet and walked toward Chu Jiubian without taking an umbrella.

Most of the onlookers had already fled in fright when Zhou Boshan was no longer recognizably human. The remaining small group bolted into the city in a panic, their eyes filled with fear and dread when they looked at Qin Xiao.

Like they were looking at a ghost instead of a savior.

Qin Xiao stood in front of Chu Jiubian, completely soaked through. A few strands of hair hung down and clung to his face.

Chu Jiubian stared back at him for two breaths, then tilted the umbrella handle slightly to cover his head.

“Did you just arrive?” Qin Xiao asked.

“En.” Chu Jiubian glanced behind him. “What will be done with those people?”

He was inquiring about the other officials with Zhou Boshan.

“They will be executed,” Qin Xiao said in a neutral voice.

As if in sync with him, the remaining soldiers picked up their swords at the commandant’s order and, one by one, slit the officials’ throats.

Bright red liquid splattered, and the entire land seemed to be stained with blood. 

Chu Jiubian was watching from afar when he heard the man’s deep voice.

“Do you think I’m cruel?” Qin Xiao asked.

Chu Jiubian paused, then looked up to meet the man’s tired, bloodshot eyes.

“Why do you ask?” he asked with some surprise.

“That’s what everyone says.” Qin Xiao stared at him intently. “What about you?”

Chu Jiubian’s gaze shifted slightly and landed on the stubble that was beginning to appear on the man’s chin.

He suddenly wondered if Qin Xiao had experienced the same doubts and wavering resolve in the world where Chu Jiubian didn’t exist.

Had he asked others the same question back then?

Or did Qin Xiao silently suppress his emotions from beginning to end, being “a law unto himself,” and a “cruel and bloodthirsty” regent in the eyes of the public?

“You did the right thing.” Chu Jiubian looked up again to meet the man’s gaze, his eyes unwavering. “Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures.”

In the current situation, only by executing these people could he stabilize public sentiment and maintain the dignity of the Imperial Court and His Majesty.

Moreover, this swift and decisive approach was the third time Qin Xiao had intimidated everyone.

The first time was the massacre at Shenwu Gate, in order to suppress the rebellious intentions of the powerful nobles and princes.

The second time, he executed two scions of noble families in front of all of the officials. This demonstrated that he didn’t fear their power, thus instructing them to restrain their sons and daughters and prevent them from acting recklessly and defying the Imperial Court.

The third time was today.

Qin Xiao used the cruelest method of torture to serve as the most direct deterrent to all of the officials who relied on wealthy and poweful families.

Anyone could rely on a powerful family, and anyone could find opportunities to climb the social ladder, but Qin Xiao’s bottom line was the common people and morality.

The court could fight amongst itself however it pleased, but it must never use the common people as bargaining chips.

Qin Xiao had already shown everyone what the consequences were if they did otherwise.

Of course, there was another important reason for his actions, which was to let all of those who depended on powerful and influential families see clearly whether the big tree behind them would actually protect them if something happened.

Qin Xiao understood the meaning behind Chu Jiubian’s resolute composure.

But even so, he wanted to get a clearer answer.

“But I used the punishment of lingchi,” he said.

This punishment had been established by the second emperor of the previous dynasty. Not only did the emperor who was given the posthumous title “Li”^[1] establish the punishment of lingchi, he also put in place practices such as branding, skinning, and dismemberment.

Due to the excessive cruelty of these punishments, subsequent emperors, for the sake of their so-called “benevolence,” never used them again.

Now that Qin Xiao had reestablished the punishment of lingchi, even if he himself believed he was in the right, he couldn’t help but waver for a moment at the sight of the fear in the eyes of the common people.

He wasn’t afraid of being misunderstood by the world, nor of his reputation for cruelty.

He even felt that such a fearsome reputation would act as a deterrent.

But now, facing Chu Jiubian, he truly wanted to know the other’s opinion.

“Punishments fluctuate in severity from generation to generation, and although they appear consistent, they are not truly unified. They must follow the proper order and essential principles.” Chu Jiubian said in a mild tone, “In times of chaos, harsh punishments are necessary. So what if it’s lingchi? There are some people who deserve to go to hell.”

“No matter how tragically they die, or how many times, the sins they have committed can never be atoned for.”

The damage had already been done. Any price they paid was still too little.

Even if Zhou Boshan were to die a hundred times, those innocent souls who lost their lives due to his momentary lapse in judgement would never return.

Qin Xiao stared at him in silence for a long moment.

Chu Jiubian was referring to Zhou Boshan, those corrupt officials, and all of the powerful elites who treated human life as worthless.

But that wasn’t all.

He seemed to have a more subtle, secondary meaning, about certain things and people only he knew about.

Qin Xiao lowered his eyes toward the young man’s left wrist next to the umbrella handle.

The marks there were already very faint, but as Chu Jiubian’s words implied, some injuries may be invisible on the surface, but the damage caused could never be erased.

Qin Xiao’s fingertips twitched slightly, and he immediately retracted them into a fist.

But in the next moment, he raised his hand and grabbed the handle of the umbrella.

Chu Jiubian released his grip.

With no further words on this matter, they walked side by side into the city.

Holding the umbrella, Qin Xiao tipped it mostly over Chu Jiubian’s head.

“Have all of the common people been settled?” Chu Jiubian asked.

“They are all in the northern part of the city.”

The relief funds and grain were being overseen by Chao Shun, that senior official in the Ministry of Revenue. He dared not make any mistakes, so Chu Jiubian felt at ease as he followed Qin Xiao along the city streets, heading north toward where the refugees were gathered.

Nearly 30,000 people in Huai County had been affected, with the three submerged villages having populations of 10,000 each.

These people were settled in batches in different villages and cities by Qin Xiao, and placed under the care of soldiers sent by the prefectural commandant in order to prevent riots and accidents.

And there were now more than a thousand refugees gathered in a dilapidated daoist temple in the north of the city.

As they walked, they encountered many townspeople wearing straw raincoats, as well as a few scattered refugees.

They should all be from the same group who had been watching the excitement outside the city.

These people’s expressions changed when they saw Qin Xiao, and they hurriedly ducked for cover.

Chu Jiubian glanced at Qin Xiao. His expression was tranquil, as if it didn’t bother him at all.

“What will be done with the corpses of those common people?” Chu Jiubian asked.

Qin Xiao: “They will be fished out and burned.” 

Floods were prone to spreading disease, so it was better to burn them just to be safe.

In addition to the common people from Pu County who were thrown into the water to block the dam, Qin Xiao also ordered Liu Junqi, the senior official from the Ministry of Works who was stationed in the area to repair the dam, to keep an eye on the situation and have all of the waste collected, burned, and disposed of properly.

However, this would cause those common people who witnessed the bodies of their friends and relatives being burned to harbor more complex feelings toward Qin Xiao in addition to their fear and gratitude.

In this era, people valued a peaceful burial and abhorred the idea of having their bones cremated and ashes scattered.

But this was the safest course of action. Qin Xiao had no other choice.

By the time the two traveled all the way to the north of the city, it was already dark.

The daoist temple housing the refugees had been quite popular in previous times. However, the Huai County magistrate later became a devout Buddhist and shunned Daoism. He drove away all of the daoist priests in the area, and the temple soon fell into disrepair.

But the temple occupied a considerable amount of area, and wasn’t too crowded even while accommodating more than a thousand refugees.

The two didn’t approach, but instead stood at a distance and observed.

The grain brought by Chu Jiubian had arrived. The daoist temple gates were wide open, and many local Huai County officials were helping the relief troops unload the grain.

Some strong and able-bodied people among the refugees were assisting them, and the physically weaker ones also tried to help in any way they could. Some of them even clasped their hands to their chests and kowtowed to heaven and earth.

The porridge distribution wasn’t able to commence tonight, which caused some unrest among the common people. But upon hearing that Qin Xiao had executed the corrupt officials outside the city by cutting them into a thousand pieces, even if they had grievances, these law-abiding citizens didn’t dare to voice them.

Now that the grain had arrived, their initial dissatisfaction had vanished entirely, to be replaced by gratitude.

They were grateful for this moment of kindness, grateful for the slightest trace of compassion from the officials, and grateful to the gods above.

These were refugees, unlearned common people.

They didn’t understand many profound Confucian principles, and couldn’t even distinguish truth from falsehood. They could barely make ends meet, so how could they possibly linger on who treated them well and who treated them badly?

Anyone who provided them with food and drink, and ensured that they wouldn’t starve or freeze to death, was a good person and a good official.

But those who didn’t give them food and drink were corrupt, evil officials.

Before the disaster relief supplies arrived, Qin Xiao had seemed like one of those corrupt, evil officials. But now that the grain was here, they came to see that Qin Xiao was a good official who cared about them and rooted out corruption.

But they couldn’t be blamed for this – because both the previous dynasty and the past rulers of Great Ning had maintained a policy of keeping the common people ignorant.

The common people didn’t need to be sensible; they were merely tools of production and war, and useful for attacking political enemies. They were as insignificant as ants…..

They were many things, but they could not be people of sound thinking…..

Even if a few common people did get an education, they would become dependent on various forces, large and small, for the sake of their so-called futures and securing a better life.

Instead of tools, they became easily-discarded pawns.

Even among those scholars and writers who consciously read books and sought to understand Confucian principles, how many of them truly comprehended those principles?

Chu Jiubian stood there in silence. The umbrella shielded his head, but his robes, shoes, and socks were already soaked through.

A faint commotion sounded from the distant daoist temple, and then a figure rushed out the door, laughing and hollering.

It was a woman.

The sky was dark, but judging by her silhouette, one could see that her abdomen was significantly distended.

She was pregnant!

Chu Jiubian’s expression immediately shifted. He quickly paced toward her, and Qin Xiao moved almost at the same time.

Several people chased after her from inside the daoist temple – all of them elderly women.

The woman hopped and skipped in the rain. Then she suddenly stopped and shyly caressed a pearl flower stuck in her crooked hair bun, speaking into the empty air as if asking someone their opinion on how it looked.

Upon their approach, Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao saw that her messy hair was sticking to her face, where a birthmark the size of a copper coin could be faintly seen.

The woman tilted her head when she caught sight of Chu Jiubian.

Then, as if she had thought of something, she ran toward him. Qin Xiao almost instinctively stepped forward to shield him.

The woman reached out and clutched Qin Xiao’s arm, her eyes empty and unfocused.

“You’re back.” The woman said, then hurriedly withdrew her hand.

She smoothed her hair, then took out a small, wet garment from her bosom. The red linen had faded to a dull gray.

“This was made for our child, isn’t it beautiful?” The woman’s gaze grew increasingly unfocused. She held the small garment close to her chest, smiling gently. “Beautiful. Our child will look good in anything.”

The older women caught up to her and seemed to recognize Qin Xiao. Their expressions changed, and they knelt down fearfully to kowtow.

“Get up,” Qin Xiao called to them, then regarded the crazed woman.

A woman who was a bit bolder spoke up in a trembling voice: “My Lord, she is a madwoman. Did she offend you?”

“It’s fine. Take her back first,” said Qin Xiao.

The other women immediately supported her, forming a ring around her as they gently led her back to the daoist temple.

Chu Jiubian stopped the bold woman and asked: “What’s wrong with her?”

“Replying to My Lord’s question…..” The woman dared not lie, and quickly told him everything she knew.

As it turned out, Qin Xiao had ordered people to summon doctors from nearby counties and assign them to these disaster-stricken areas to treat the common people. An old doctor from Yunlu County had been assigned to this daoist temple.

The old doctor was accompanied by a young apprentice, as well as this madwoman.

“It’s quite pitiful, really,” the woman sighed. “Dan Niang’s husband was unjustly killed by the Yunlu County Magistrate, and the news was such a shock to her that she alternates between lucidity and madness. The old doctor keeps her with him out of pity.”

Yunlu County Magistrate?

Chu Jiubian had previously heard Liu Junqi name the Yunlu County Magistrate as the one who had brought innocent civilians to the gates of the government office and had them executed. He was one of the officials who had just been tied up outside the city and had their throats slit.

That kind of death was far too lenient for him.

Chu Jiubian felt his head start to spin again. He closed his eyes and pushed through the dizziness, mentally asking the System: “Can she be cured?”

[Host, this System can provide a comprehensive treatment plan, which only costs 30 points. Are you sure you want to generate a treatment plan?]

He had just received over thirty points from the disaster relief team, and hadn’t expected to use them so soon. 

“I’m sure,” he said.

[Patient located. Scanning in progress.]

[Scanning complete.]

[This patient suffers from moderate psychological trauma and can be treated with specific medications. However, given her pregnancy, it is recommended that the dosage be reduced by half.]

Chu Jiubian’s heart settled.

[Because Host has reached the required spending amount, this System is gifting you one course of treatment medication.]

[If Host requires this System to provide testing on a wider range of individuals, please purchase the monthly subscription service for 300 points.]

Chu Jiubian slowly opened his eyes and saw that the woman who had just spoken had already turned around and ran back to the daoist temple.

The surroundings were dark, with only a faint light coming from the daoist temple in the distance.

The sound of the rain muffled the voices within the temple, but the pattering of raindrops on the umbrella grew increasingly clear.

Qin Xiao’s deep gaze followed the figures coming and going from the temple. The sensation of the woman’s grip on his arm was still vivid. The constricting feeling had gradually spread from his arm to his chest, making it difficult for him to breathe.

There was a sudden chill on the back of his hand holding the umbrella, and his arm muscles reflexively tensed.

Qin Xiao looked down to find the young man’s cold palm covering his hand.

The handle tilted down, and Chu Jiubian closed the umbrella completely.

Qin Xiao raised his eyes and observed Chu Jiubian under the extremely dim light.

With nothing above his head to shield him, he was completely exposed to the rain along with Qin Xiao.

Chu Jiubian reached up and swept back his wet bangs, revealing a smooth forehead that added to the delicateness of his face.

His eyes, which were usually devoid of emotion, seemed to have a spark gradually igniting within them. It was exceptionally clear under the hazy sky.

“In times of famine and chaos, taxes should be levied lightly and profits should be distributed,” Chu Jiubian said slowly. “Eliminate the thieves, and commune with the gods.”

In years of famine, relief supplies should be distributed to the common people, compulsory labor and taxes should be reduced, thieves should be eliminated, and gods should be worshipped for spiritual sustenance.

Qin Xiao had accomplished the first few, but as for the last one…..

“Do you know why I don’t believe in gods?” Qin Xiao’s voice was soft and even.

Chu Jiubian remained silent.

Qin Xiao seemed to give a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.

“If gods truly exist, then why can they not see this suffering?” he asked.

Chu Jiubian stared at the man’s faint outline in the darkness. His Adam’s apple bobbed.

In that moment, he finally came to a realization.

Why did he always feel that Qin Xiao was indecisive? Why did the other party always seem restrained by the fear of potential consequences?

Qin Xiao wasn’t being restrained by fear, nor was he truly indecisive. He simply cared.

He cared about these common people.

Chu Jiubian suddenly felt like he was very close to the person in front of him, and yet very far away.

The System sounded in his mind: [Monthly subscription feature failed to activate. Host is still short 130 points to activate it. Please keep trying.]

“I can see it,” Chu Jiubian said, his clear, cool voice devoid of any warmth or inflection.

Qin Xiao stared at him without saying a word.

“I need faith,” Chu Jiubian continued. “Give me this daoist temple, and I will help the common people get through this ordeal safely.”

Qin Xiao maintained his silence for a long time, as did Chu Jiubian.

The rain seemed to intensify, and Chu Jiubian could barely open his eyes.

Qin Xiao took the umbrella from his hand and put it over Chu Jiubian’s head again.

Chu Jiubian raised a hand to wipe his eyes, but Qin Xiao’s hand touched his eyelashes first.

His half-raised hand froze mid-air. Eyes closed, he felt the man’s rough fingertips brush gently against his eyelids.

Accompanied by the sound of rain, he heard the other say in a deep voice: “Okay.”

---

[1] Li (厉) means severe or fierce. ⮐

---

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Chapter 45 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 47

Ch 9 – Hunger

When Yu Xi woke up, he connected to the starship’s system and was unable to find Kersz in any of the rooms. He then checked the escape pods, but found that none of them were missing.

Yu Xi was a little puzzled. He opened his door, and a second later, someone fell to the floor with a thud.

Kersz promptly got to his feet: “I almost fell asleep just now.”

Yu Xi narrowed his eyes.

“Oh, did you sleep well?” Kersz patted off his jacket. “I’m used to sleeping while sitting up, don’t worry about me.”

“What are you doing?” Yu Xi asked. “You can take any room on the ship.”

“But you were in a bad mood when you went to bed yesterday. You seemed a little sad.” Kersz seemed to realize what he had just said. “Wait, not sad! You’re a rational robot, you don’t get sad. You were just, uh….malfunctioning.” He used Yu Xi’s words despite not believing them himself.

“Considering that your malfunction might have been caused by being mistaken for my criminal accomplice, I wanted to check on you,” Kersz continued. “You didn’t open the door for me, so I figured you haven’t forgiven me yet.”

“I was asleep,” said Yu Xi.

“Oh, I see!” Kersz slapped his forehead. “I thought you never wanted to talk to me again. I was so scared.”

“No.” Yu Xi went to change his clothes.

Kersz didn’t understand: “What do you mean, ‘no?’”

“You knew that I was sleeping. When you first intruded upon my planet, I was in sleep mode, and the monitoring system showed that you wandered around my place for a long time. You’re well aware that the system will go into automatic management mode after I fall asleep.” Yu Xi said, “You’re just acting pitiful for sympathy.”

Kersz arched an eyebrow.

“You play the victim and put on a show of being pathetic in order to have an easier time around me,” Yu Xi continued. “But it is unnecessary. I won’t mistreat you just because you made me a wanted criminal.”

“Really?!” Kersz didn’t deny it. He couldn’t fathom the boundary between Yu Xi’s rationality and his emotions, but he didn’t really care about what was going on in his head – he was only concerned with things that were tangible and practical. “You’re so magnanimous.”

Yu Xi silently modified the system and canceled the order for spicy scrambled eggs he’d made before going to sleep the night before. He had already determined how to convince this human that stir-fried eggs with chilli peppers was a traditional dish of the ancient humans.

Scrambled eggs with tomatoes would do instead.

“I’m just a robot. My thoughts aren’t as convoluted as those of humans.” 

“You’re truly the most benevolent robot in the world.” Kersz stepped forward and hugged Yu Xi from the back.

Yu Xi froze.

He hadn’t even put on his shirt yet. “Oh! What are you doing?!”

“Meeting you is the luckiest thing that’s ever happened to me.” Kersz even nuzzled the back of Yu Xi’s head.

“You’re going a bit overboard with your pitiful act!” Yu Xi smacked Kersz’s hands a couple of times. “This isn’t like you. What are you planning?”

“Just think of it as the rejoicing of a terrified human who just found out he’s not going to be executed by his savior,” Kersz said rather dramatically.

“You’re really pushing your luck.” Yu Xi was still standing there with his clothes in his hand.

Kersz’s hands started to feel around, and Yu Xi reminded him: “I told you before that you don’t need to resort to depravity.”

Kersz immediately withdrew his hands and raised them in a sign of surrender.

“Are you done rejoicing?” Yu Xi asked.

“Probably.” Kersz was a little confused.

He was confident in his conclusion that Yu Xi had never truly integrated into human society. Like a child who was loved by many and whose family never pushed him to grow up, even though he had stockpiled an incredible amount of knowledge, there were still a lot of things that couldn’t be fully understood without direct experience.

Yu Xi’s reaction to negative human emotions proved his point, but he seemed indifferent to Kersz’s attempts to get closer to him.

“Then go,” said Yu Xi. “I still need to get dressed.”

Kersz hummed in response and took a couple of steps back.

He didn’t know if he had offended Yu Xi this time, but he soon received an answer to this question.

Because he was treated to the most lavish meal of his life.

Staring at the dazzling array of dishes on the large round table, Kersz was overwhelmed by the number of options before him: “My god.”

“I won’t be able to finish all of this.” Kersz gulped hard.

“If you can’t finish it, then you can’t finish it.” Yu Xi was able to process the resources of an entire planet, so this was nothing to him.

“Wasting it will make me feel guilty.” The two of them had entirely different perspectives. Before meeting Yu Xi, Kersz had never really eaten.

“Then perhaps you can try to finish it all.” Yu Xi shrugged.

After Kersz’s tentative hug, Yu Xi experienced the inexplicable urge to ply Kersz with copious amounts of food. He wanted to witness Kersz’s expression of delight, to let this complicated human experience pure joy.

Kersz looked at the table of food: “You’re right. I figure it’ll take me all day to work through it.”

Yu Xi: “…..Are you serious?” Stuffing all of this food into his stomach would hardly be enjoyable.

“I’m serious. Oh, this dish is red and yellow. Are those chili peppers?” Kersz pointed at the scrambled eggs with tomatoes.

“No, those are tomatoes,” Yu Xi replied.

“It looks a bit like chili peppers when it’s cut into pieces like this,” Kersz said.

“I think so too.” Yu Xi said nothing more.

Looking at this table of food, Yu Xi searched his memory bank for the holding capacity of a human stomach.

Yu Xi was a little worried, and went to Kersz’s side as soon as he sat down: “Let me see your belly.”

Kersz had just picked up the cutlery, but he immediately set it back down and lifted his shirt.

Yu Xi exclaimed: “Such a flat stomach!”

“And very shapely,” Kersz added.

Yu Xi met Kersz’s eyes, and he continued: “I’ve heard that having visible eight-pack abs is a natural endowment, and I’m very much endowed.”

Wearing a smug little smile, Yu Xi reached out and rubbed Kersz’s belly as if to soothe him: “They’ll soon disappear.”

“If it’s because of this food, then I’m very honored.” Kersz pulled his shirt back down.

Yu Xi said nothing. At the realization that Kersz was really going to stuff all of this food into his stomach, he silently activated the medical pod.

He had initially thought that Kersz was just running his mouth, but as the food gradually disappeared, Yu Xi finally understood that Kersz had a food obsession.

Kersz’s stomach wasn’t very big, and he had to move around for a while to digest before digging in again.

Eating seemed to have transformed from enjoyable into a sort of mission.

Yu Xi initially warned Kersz to pay attention to digestion time, as stuffing too much food into one’s stomach could cause complications.

In the end, the scheming space pirate found himself in bed, clutching his stomach.

Yu Xi urged him to take a stroll around, and then Kersz fell into a deep sleep.

When Kersz woke up again, Yu Xi was watching him, and his head was resting on the other’s arm.

Kersz paused for a moment, then offered him a smile: “Good morning, Mr. Yu.”

“How do you feel?” Yu Xi asked.

“Not great. I’m still really full.” Kersz glanced down and saw that Yu Xi was rubbing his stomach. “Does this kind of food promote sleep? My mind went blank after eating.”

“You were in a food coma,” said Yu Xi. “While you were resting, your blood sugar was riding a roller coaster.”

“Because of the food?” Kersz asked.

Yu Xi nodded: “I will control the amount of food you eat from now on. You can’t eat like this all the time, or you will develop health problems.”

“Thank you. You’re very kind.” Kersz adjusted his position to make himself more comfortable.

He had no plans to separate himself from Yu Xi for the time being. After all, he still needed to cultivate a good relationship with him.

“No, I should apologize to you.” Yu Xi knew that Kersz was intelligent, but he had overlooked the complexity of human emotions, and the fact that even the most cunning person had an irrational side.

“I didn’t intend to waste food. Or perhaps I should say that these things don’t even count as food to me,” Yu Xi said softly. “The meat is synthetic, so no animals died to make it. And I’ve always grown vegetables, which simply grow and then die.”

“I understand, Mr. Yu. These things don’t count as important resources to you.” Kersz knew that Yu Xi didn’t need these things to live, and that they were basically just toys to him.

Yu Xi agreed with this, but he was also aware that at certain times, food held particularly different meanings for humans: “I thought that the more food there was, the happier you would be.”

“I was too greedy,” Kersz said. “It can’t be helped, that’s just how it is for space pirates.”

“No. No, this wasn’t greed.” After a moment’s thought, Yu Xi came to the following conclusion: “You just couldn’t accept such good things going bad.”

“I overlooked the environment you grew up in. That was my mistake.” Yu Xi had kept in mind that Kersz was a naughty, scheming child, but he’d forgotten his less than ideal upbringing.

Kersz’s eyes widened.

“Why do you look so surprised?” Yu Xi asked him.

“I thought you would ask if something was wrong with my brain after I stuffed myself like this.” Kersz was astonished by Yu Xi’s perceptiveness.

“I would never think that way,” said Yu Xi. 

“All humans have this problem,” Yu Xi comforted him. “You’re not the only one, so don’t overthink it.”

Kersz: …..

So Yu Xi held this stereotype for the entire human race.

“It stems from a hunger deep within the soul,” Yu Xi said.

At this moment, Yu Xi seemed to empathize with what Kersz was feeling.

Kersz added casually: “Perhaps it’s like your longing for humans.”

Yu Xi was at a bit of a loss, and subconsciously said: “Then I must be starving.”

Kersz went silent and looked toward Yu Xi.

Yu Xi slowly shifted his gaze away to avoid eye contact.

Kersz’s mind started to turn.

After waiting for a while, Yu Xi looked toward Kersz again and said quietly: “What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking about humans and robots,” said Kersz.

Yu Xi: “A philosophical question? People always like to ponder things like this.”

Kersz: “Pretty much.”

He suddenly had the illusion that he too could become food for a robot, allowing it to feast and fill its belly.

Was it just his imagination?

Kersz looked down at Yu Xi’s hand, which was still rubbing his stomach.

“Your abdomen is very soft,” Yu Xi blurted out.

Kersz: “It’s probably quite chewy, too.”

Yu Xi: ?

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Chapter 8 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 10

Ch. 68 – Lord of the North Sea

Have I entered this guy’s lair? Feng Ye wondered with a glance at Hao Chen beside him. He saw a look of astonishment on his face that said: ‘I actually have such a market?’

It seems the master of North Sea City has no idea that he’s shouldering such an important responsibility, Feng Ye revised mentally.

At the same time, he had a vague feeling that there was going to be something interesting to watch this time.

However, before watching the show, he still had to rescue these two silly boys from the trouble they’d gotten into.

So Feng Ye walked out of the crowd and stopped directly between Cao Zirui and the crab. Holding each of them back with one hand, he used a clever trick to separate the crab’s claw from Cao Zirui’s sword.

He smiled politely at the crab and issued an apology: “My fellow disciples are young and ignorant, and offended this noble…..crab. A great man does not bear grudges against his lessers, so please don’t bother with them.”

Seeing that Feng Ye had a decent attitude, the crab stopped waving his claws. He glanced at Fang Yang, the culprit who had caused this commotion, where he was shielded behind Feng Ye.

Fang Yang met the crab’s eyes and finally had time to give the apology he hadn’t had a chance to issue: “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were…..a crab monster?”

“Hmph!” The crab huffed. Without pursuing the matter further, he just waved his claws and said: “I’ll let it go this time.”

When there was no fight to be seen, the onlookers dispersed with disappointment.

The crab returned to his stall, which was empty. Aside from himself, there was only a piece of fabric on the ground.

Anyone seeing this would think that the crab was the commodity, not the stall owner.

Fang Yang can’t be blamed for this, Feng Ye thought. So after listening to Fang Yang’s explanation, he comforted the apologetic-looking youth.

“I was reckless,” Cao Zirui also apologized.

“You were trying to help me. It’s not your fault.” After receiving comfort from Feng Ye, Fang Yang passed it on to Cao Zirui.

He motioned to Feng Ye and Hao Chen, and the four of them formed a circle. Fang Yang glanced at the crab not far away and asked in a deliberately soft voice: “Who is the Lord of the North Sea he mentioned?”

The crab had looked so proud when he spoke that title. It appeared that the Lord of the North Sea was a very powerful person. Come to think of it, the gods in heaven, big and small, were all very powerful compared to mortals.

But Fang Yang didn’t know how powerful this person was, nor what kind of god the Lord of the North Sea was.

Cao Zirui shook his head when he heard this. He didn’t know much about the Lord of the North Sea, and had only learned today that the master behind North Sea City was a god in heaven.

Feng Ye and Hao Chen were wearing strange expressions. Who was the Lord of the North Sea? This question…..

Feng Ye couldn’t help but glance at Hao Chen, and their gazes collided.

Both of them were startled.

Why is Feng Ye looking at me? Could it be that he’s discovered my identity? Hao Chen thought with some suspicion. He had looked at Feng Ye to see how he felt about the Lord of the North Sea – that was, how he felt about Hao Chen. This made him wonder if his disguise had fallen off.

Feng Ye was thinking the same thing, but he reacted quickly and asked Hao Chen in puzzlement: “My knowledge is limited, and I know very little about the major or minor gods in heaven. Just what kind of god is this Lord of the North Sea? Does Fellow Daoist Hao Chen know anything?”

Did he really just look at me to ask this question? Hao Chen still had some doubts, but they were easily assuaged by Feng Ye’s inquiry.

It was a rare opportunity to introduce himself openly. Hao Chen shamelessly proceeded to praise himself: “What a coincidence! I read about the Lord of the North Sea in a certain book.”

“Oh? Tell me about him.” Feng Ye cooperated, setting up the stage for him to perform.

With a swish, Hao Chen opened his fan and began to boast: “It is said that when the world began, the sky rose and the earth descended, and the sun and moon had not yet begun to shine when the first gods were born in heaven.”

“Afterward, the sun, moon, and stars found their places, and with the advent of the cycle of life and death and the rise of countless races, gods with other responsibilities were born one after another. However, these gods born later were less powerful than the earliest gods. The ancient gods were stationed in the eight directions and the four poles, jointly protecting the order of heaven.”

“For example, Lu Wu of Kunlun, the Phoenix of Penglai, and…..the Kunpeng of the North Sea.” Although Hao Chen endeavored to suppress his pride when he said this, the word “proud” was practically written across his face.

Feng Ye inwardly rolled his eyes. Pretending he hadn’t noticed, he just nodded seriously and suddenly said: “It turns out that the Lord of the North Sea is the Kunpeng.”

The Kunpeng was widely known across the world, and there were many poems and songs describing a bird with wings like clouds that hung from the sky, so Fang Yang and Cao Zirui were not unfamiliar with this name. They just hadn’t known that the Kunpeng also held the title of Lord of the North Sea.

When Feng Ye pointed this out, they both seemed to have reached an epiphany.

Seeing how well-known he was, Hao Chen’s pride swelled and he waved his mini fan with increasing speed. He cleared his throat and continued: “The Kunpeng was born to guard the North Sea. For tens of thousands of years, he has been diligent and loyal in his duties, protecting the countless lives that reside there.”

“It sounds as if the Lord of the North Sea is a responsible, gentle, decent god,” Fang Yang exclaimed with some admiration.

Cao Zirui nodded in agreement.

Feng Ye…..rolled his eyes inwardly. The rumors he’d heard clearly stated that this Kunpeng slept after eating and ate after sleeping, would wake up grumpy, and had never done any serious work a day in his life.

It would be more appropriate to call the Lord of the North Sea the God of Sleeping.

Hao Chen was clearly taking advantage of the fact that nobody knew what kind of person the Kunpeng was to wildly fabricate stories.

Although Feng Ye wanted to poke holes in Hao Chen’s arrogance, very regrettably, he shouldn’t know many details according to his current identity.

“Oh right, isn’t the North Sea in the north?” After some thought, Fang Yang asked a question that stunned both Feng Ye and Hao Chen: “Who is more powerful, the Kunpeng of the North or Yinglong of the South?”

Before the Kunpeng, Yinglong was the first god Fang Yang had ever heard of. He was very curious to know how powerful this cold, cruel god of war was in comparison to an ancient god like the Kunpeng.

This question truly stumped Hao Chen. He wanted to say that as the Lord of the North Sea who was thousands of years old, he naturally wouldn’t be afraid of Yinglong, who was only born as a god two thousand years ago.

Although cultivation levels didn’t necessarily correspond to age, in most cases, age was indeed linked to power. Yinglong’s age was only a fraction of his, so logically speaking, his strength should be far inferior.

But the thing was, he was really a little…..not afraid, but certainly intimidated. Hao Chen had no desire to confront such a violent deity unless absolutely necessary. He didn’t fear a fight, but if Yinglong set his sights on the North Sea, it would be a serious problem.

Yinglong didn’t even have a homeland to protect. Although he nominally resided in the Southern Sea, Yinglong wasn’t actually in charge of that area. That would be the Phoenix of Penglai Island, which was also located in the Southern Sea.

As a neighbor of the Phoenix, this Yinglong hadn’t learned the gentle kindness that the Phoenix was known for. On the contrary, he was ferocious to the extreme. He was also solitary and free from attachments, while Hao Chen had burdens and responsibilities and had little freedom to act.

Even with his thick skin, Hao Chen couldn’t boast that he wasn’t wary of the God of War Yinglong at all, so he declined to answer Fang Yang’s question.

Feng Ye didn’t answer either. It was indeed a little…..difficult to say who was stronger between the Kunpeng and Yinglong.

The two maintained a tacit silence, but while Hao Chen couldn’t openly brag, the crab could do so very easily.

Not far away, the crab pretended to be setting up his stall, but was actually eavesdropping the entire time. He blew bubbles in agreement when Hao Chen praised the Kunpeng, and ultimately couldn’t help but speak up.

He said as a matter of course: “Naturally, our Lord is stronger!”

The four of them turned around to face the crab.

Without any scruples, he boasted with a hint of contempt about something that even the lord in question didn’t dare brag about: “What is that Yinglong? He’s just a common jiao, merely a snack for our Lord!”

Hao Chen: “……” No. Although some divine birds did feast on jiao, he had never eaten one himself. Jiao all resided in the Southern Sea, and he had never gone there.

This crab was just boasting with no logic at all. It was as ridiculous as saying that polar bears ate penguins.

Feng Ye shook his head with a smile, and didn’t interrupt the crab’s chatter.

Although Fang Yang didn’t know how strong the Kunpeng was, the God of War shouldn’t be as pitiful as the crab claimed, a mere snack. So he inquired: “But isn’t Yinglong able to roam freely throughout the world?”

“Hmph! Our Lord can even soar to the sky!” The crab shook his claws and said proudly: “Not to mention going ninety thousand li straight up, and ninety thousand li under the sea, our Lord can come and go as he pleases.”

This was indeed the case. Hao Chen nodded in satisfaction. Whether or not he could defeat Yinglong was one thing, but listening to flattery was a different matter. 

“And our Lord’s size is comparable to that of a mountain! How can that tiny Yinglong compare to him!” The direction of the crab’s boasting was growing increasingly wondrous.

Feng Ye suppressed his laughter and echoed: “Indeed, I’ve also heard that the Kunpeng is thousands of li long and weighs unknown tens of thousands of tons. While Yinglong isn’t small, compared to the Kunpeng, it’s like a sesame seed weighed against a watermelon. Isn’t that right, Fellow Daoist Hao Chen?”

At the end of his statement, Feng Ye turned toward his companion.

Hao Chen was caught off guard by this question that was suddenly thrown at him, and couldn’t help but start to suspect again that Feng Ye had discovered his identity.

But when he looked closely at Feng Ye’s expression, which was serious and proper, it really seemed like he was just asking a simple question. Hao Chen couldn’t really tell if Feng Ye knew or not, or whether he had asked this intentionally. He could only reply with caution: “That seems correct…..”

“Tens of thousands of tons?!” Fang Yang was astonished. What a staggering weight! He couldn’t even imagine it.

Feng Ye patted his shoulder and said lightly: “Just think of him as a fatter fish.”

Maintaining his innocent look, Feng Ye asked: “Right, Fellow Daoist Hao Chen?”

Hao Chen: “……” This guy has to know, right?

---

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Chapter 67 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 69

Use their own bodies to plug the dam.

Chu Jiubian had previously wondered if Zhou Boshan had done something to prevent the refugees from going to other counties.

But even the worst-case scenario he had considered couldn’t compare to this.

Liu Junqi seemed to have had a lot on his mind these past two days, and was in the mood to discuss it with Chu Jiubian. He continued: “And then there was Governor Lu Yuan. When he learned of the flooding, his first instinct wasn’t to provide disaster relief, but instead to pin the blame of embezzling construction funds on the common people. He executed both the craftsmen and the villagers who repaired these two damaged sections of the dams.”

“Those county magistrates too, they received orders from above and just carried them out without regard for whether it was right or wrong. It’s said that the magistrate of Yunlu County even took those people directly to the gates of the government office and had them beheaded there. It’s simply incomprehensible!”

Liu Junqi became increasingly irate as he spoke, and even disregarded etiquette by ripping off his straw hat and smashing it on the ground.

Chu Jiubian could no longer hear what he was saying. A buzzing sound filled his ears.

He suddenly stumbled, grabbing the side of the carriage for support. The soldier who was holding the umbrella helped steady him.

Liu Junqi wanted nothing more than to hurl a few vulgar curses, but when he saw Chu Jiubian stagger, he was startled and swallowed them back.

He saw that the young man’s face was pale and his hair was damp from the rain, making him look slightly disheveled. 

Only now did it occur to Liu Junqi that this was the Grand Tutor Chu who had stirred up such chaos in the capital. He looked so young. If not for his calm and composed demeanor, one could easily mistake him for a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy just by a look at his face.

“It’s nothing.” Chu Jiubian knew that his low blood pressure was acting up again. “Go see to your work. I’m heading to Huai County.”

“Yes.” As Liu Junqi watched the pale-faced Chu Jiubian board the carriage, a strange feeling arose within him – just like when he saw Qin Xiao kill hundreds of people in one go yesterday.

Early yesterday morning, he, Jian Hongzhuo, and other officials from the Ministry of Works, Ministry of Personnel, and Ministry of Revenue had arrived in the prefectural city and discovered the death of Governor Lu.

At that moment, Liu Junqi and several others instantly surmised that there were many secrets and hidden stories behind this flood.

However, these secrets were not for them to uncover.

Qin Xiao arranged for trusted officials to stay behind to investigate the inside story of Lu Yuan’s death, then led the others, including a county commandant and a thousand soldiers, to Pu County.

They arrived in Pu County in the morning, but after traveling for so long, they still hadn’t encountered any refugees. Qin Xiao sensed that something wasn’t right, so he quickly rode to Sanyang Village, where the dam was located.

The village had basically turned into a vast expanse of water. The water was already halfway up the horses’ legs when they entered the village, and grew deeper the farther they went.

Eventually, corpses began to float to the surface.

Some of the corpses had soaked until they resembled steamed buns, while others looked as if they had just perished. No one was collecting the bodies as their numbers increased.

The civil officials had never witnessed such a scene, and many of them vomited.

Even the thousand county soldiers looked grim, although they didn’t have as strong of a reaction.

Commotion could be faintly heard on the embankment ahead. It sounded like crying and shouting.

Qin Xiao spurred his horse and raced toward the dam. The water was nearly up to the horse’s belly.

When they finally reached the dam, Qin Xiao led everyone up the embankment.

The stretch of dam here had not collapsed. Liu Junji crouched down to inspect it, and found that the materials were indeed of good quality. There was no reason it shouldn’t have held up against heavy rain.

It seemed this was indeed a man-made disaster.

As he stood up, he saw Qin Xiao leading his men along the embankment toward the sound of the commotion.

Liu Junqi quickly followed, and saw Qin Xiao and his group stop shortly afterward.

Liu Junqi squeezed through the crowd to Qin Xiao’s side. When he looked ahead, a chill ran down his spine.

They had reached a zone extremely close to the dam breach, where floodwater was gushing out through a huge gap that cut the dam straight down the middle. 

On the opposite bank of the breach, hundreds of soldiers were on their knees.

Judging from their attire, they should be soldiers from Pu County and Guanqing County. All of them were carrying swords at their waists.

This crowd, who should have been arrogant and overbearing, were now trembling with fear as they knelt and kowtowed before Qin Xiao and his men.

And beneath the breach in front of them, amidst the raging floodwaters, dozens of people – men and women, young and old – were struggling and crying out.

In the waist-deep floodwaters behind them were more common people begging for mercy. Their cries shook the heavens.

Liu Junqi was momentarily confused, unable to wrap his head around what was going on. But in that brief moment of stunned silence, Qin Xiao had already taken a long, thick hemp rope from one of the county soldiers and tied it around his waist, stuffing the other end into the hands of several soldiers. Then he jumped lightly into the water. And in just a few breaths, he was climbing back up with a woman who was choking on several mouthfuls of water.

Liu Junqi finally returned to his senses and hurriedly called for help. They turned the woman over so that she was lying facedown on the edge of the embankment, her abdomen pressed against the wall of the dam. Then they pounded her back hard, which finally caused her to spit up some water and clear her airway.

The prefectural commandant came to a realization and roared at the soldiers opposite him: “What are you all standing there for?! Save them!”

The soldiers hurriedly climbed to their feet and, with ashen faces, began to rescue the common people.

Once everyone was rescued, Qin Xiao led his group, along with the surviving villagers, to a higher area on the right side of the village where they could set up temporary shelters and a porridge stand. 

They brought some grain taken from a neighboring county and found an unflooded farmhouse to cook porridge in. They also sourced some usable bowls and basins from other people’s homes, then distributed porridge to the remaining eight thousand or so common people in Pu County.

The common people wept with joy and even sank to their knees to kowtow to Qin Xiao and the others.

Standing beside Qin Xiao, Liu Junqi felt a burning pain in his face reminiscent of being slapped.

But the sharp pain in his heart was bittersweet.

He had never felt the gap between the powerful and the common people so acutely. It was as if he had finally realized that there were countless people struggling like ants to survive beneath his feet.

People. They were all people.

Solely because of their disparate backgrounds, they led entirely different lives.

The power struggles between noble families were paid for by the common people, who in turn had to kowtow to them.

It seemed that to them, an official who bullied them but didn’t kill them wasn’t the worst, and an official who stood up for them was the pinnacle of justice and uprightness.

But Liu Junqi felt unworthy.

He couldn’t even bring himself to look into their grateful eyes, nor could he accept their goodwill with a clear conscience.

He couldn’t help but glance toward Qin Xiao.

Qin Xiao stood there in a straw raincoat and a bamboo hat. His expression remained unchanged, indifferent and with a touch of nonchalance, as if nothing in the world concerned him.

But in fact, his robes were still wet under his raincoat.

So, what was the right thing to do?

Who was in the right?

Liu Junqi recalled a saying that Minister Wang often repeated: “High-minded people understand righteousness, but low-minded people understand profit.”

A gentleman values morality, while a petty man values personal gain.

But now, he realized that none of the powerful officials around him who spouted those classical phrases and claimed to “govern by the Analects of Confucius” actually lived up to their so-called benevolence and morality.

All they cared about was profit.

If they could use common people to block the breach in the dam today, what heinous things would they do tomorrow?

Could some of the things he did in the past have caused irreversible consequences in ways he himself was unaware of?

Liu Junqi was lost in thought until a subordinate tugged at his sleeve, snapping him back to reality.

Then he met Qin Xiao’s icy gaze, and his scalp immediately tingled.

“Did I bring you here to just stand around doing nothing?” Qin Xiao asked calmly. “Go with Minister Jian and find a way to repair the dam. If you are unable to, you will pay for it with your life.”

Liu Junqi sensed the anger hidden in his level tone and quickly agreed, following Jian Hongzhuo to inspect the dam.

And at the same time, he saw that the thousand county soldiers had already forced the prefectural soldiers, as well as the Pu County Magistrate and the prefect from Guangqing Prefecture to kneel before Qin Xiao.

Nearby were the makeshift porridge stands. The common people all hid under the shelters, fixing their resentful eyes on those people as if they wanted to skin them alive.

The rain continued unabated, accompanied by intermittent rumbles of thunder.

The magistrate was already so frightened that he lost his composure, desperately crying out: “Have mercy, My Lord, have mercy! This humble official was only following the orders of Prefect Sun!”

Prefect Sun immediately said: “Please observe clearly, My Lord. This official never said anything about blocking the dam with the common people! The magistrate acted on his own initiative. This official came here today to provide disaster relief, and only then realized the depths of this person’s depravity!”

As he spoke, he glanced toward the prefectural soldiers behind him: “Quickly, tell us whether or not I brought you here for disaster relief.”

“Yes, that’s right!”

“We’re here to provide disaster relief!” 

“He’s spouting nonsense!” The county soldiers were also becoming anxious.

“It was clearly you who gave the order, yet you claim it was Magistrate Zhou who did it. We were just following orders!”

“We know nothing about this.” The soldiers seemed to have finally found a route to survival, and shouted even louder: “We’re here to provide disaster relief!”

The common people had more confidence now that someone was standing up for them, and someone roared angrily upon hearing this: “You’re lying! You wanted to use our bodies to block the dam!”

“That’s right! You’re all corrupt officials! Evil officials!”

The crowd was roused to action.

Qin Xiao glanced at the Hexi Prefecture Commandant and said: “What are you waiting for?”

The commandant’s expression shifted slightly: “My Lord, the soldiers aside, the prefect is at least a fourth-rank official…..”

His voice gradually weakened under Qin Xiao’s indifferent gaze.

“What?” Qin Xiao’s voice was somewhat sinister. “Could it be that you are the person behind this?”

Cold sweat immediately soaked the commandant’s back, and he said hurriedly: “This humble official wouldn’t dare. I will deal with them immediately.”

Liu Junqi stood on the embankment, looking into the distance. He watched the county soldiers raise their swords and cut down every last one of those people regardless of their rank, leaving none alive.

He couldn’t help but think back to the scene in front of the Meridian Gate.

It was just the same as back then, when two scions of prominent families were beheaded in plain sight.

Qin Xiao had no care at all for those powerful and influential families. No matter who was backing them, he would just kill them and be done with it. What could any of them do to him?

As Liu Junqi watched Chu Jiubian’s carriage gradually disappear into the distance, his expression was somewhat complicated.

However, he quickly composed himself and assigned the remaining soldiers and officials from the capital to oversee the disaster relief efforts.

Meanwhile, Chu Jiubian took the remaining two-thirds of the disaster relief funds and grain to Huai County.

It wasn’t until dusk, just as the sky was beginning to darken, that he arrived.

The county town was very quiet, as if there was no one present.

When they went to Pu County before, Chu Jiubian and the group didn’t pass through the county seat, but took a shortcut to Sanyang Village.

But to reach the breached dam in Huai County, it was necessary to pass through the county seat.

It was, however, some distance from the dam. The floodwaters hadn’t reached this place, so it shouldn’t be this quiet.

Chu Jiubian sensed that something was happening up ahead, so he ordered the soldiers to be on alert and proceeded cautiously with the convoy.

They walked from the east side of the city to the west side, and as they drew closer to the city gates, the shrill screams they began to hear grew louder. They were coming from one man.

Chu Jiubian lifted the carriage curtain to look ahead, only to see a large crowd of people packed outside the city gates. No few of them were fully equipped in straw raincoats and hats. They should be residents of the town.

Some of them were filthy and disheveled, and lacked raincoats. Those must be refugees.

These people were huddled together with the brims of their hats bumping into each other, but they didn’t seem to care. They were all standing on tiptoe and craning their necks, staring in a certain direction. The crowd made a commotion each time a scream rang out, but none of them left.

Chu Jiubian frowned and ordered the convoy to stop.

With the city gates blocked, they couldn’t leave even if they wanted to.

He told his men to stop all of the carriages and horses, and to be on their guard. He then got out of the carriage and opened his umbrella, walking toward the crowd.

A captain wanted to follow him for his protection, but Chu Jiubian declined.

He had secret guards who were more reliable than a captain.

He also felt that the odd scene in front of him had something to do with Qin Xiao, and he could even guess what the other party was doing.

Zhou Boshan, the prefect who ordered the use of civilians to block the dam, and the son-in-law of a collateral branch of the Xiao family, was currently in Huai County.

There were just too many onlookers, and Chu Jiubian felt that he might not be able to squeeze in.

Just as he was wondering whether he should call someone to clear a path for him, he suddenly heard the System’s mechanical voice: [Host, for just one point, this System can ensure that you aren’t jostled by the crowd.]

The System knew that Chu Jiubian was currently short of points, so it didn’t request many.

Chu Jiubian paid up.

In the next moment, he noticed that the people blocking his way were moving aside. A meter-wide passageway was cleared in the middle, extending all the way to the very center.

And at the very center was a clear area with a single chair.

A man dressed in dark brocade robes sat upon it with his legs crossed, while a soldier in a straw raincoat stood beside him, holding an umbrella over his head.

And ten meters away from him were several wooden stakes, each with a person tied to it.

On the foremost stake was a shirtless young man.

A soldier next to him held a dagger, and was slowly cutting strips of flesh from his body.

Blood and bits of flesh fell to the ground, where the blood washed away by the rain stained a large patch of dirt under his feet.

This was the punishment of lingchi.

Chu Jiubian stood silently in the vacuum-like area surrounding him, umbrella in hand.

His gaze shifted from the screaming man to the person sitting in the chair.

The man seemed to sense something, and his sharp gaze fixed on Chu Jiubian.

Their eyes met, and Qin Xiao’s gloomy expression shifted slightly.

His hands clenched into fists, and his back even tensed up.

Another scream. A flash of lightning. A deafening roar of thunder.

Chu Jiubian heard the whispers of the people around him.

“This lingchi punishment is so cruel, but Ning-wang’s expression hasn’t changed.”

“Don’t you know? The person being executed by lingchi is Zhou Boshan, the Prefect of Hexi Prefecture. He used the bodies of common people to fill the dam in Pu County. Don’t you think he deserves to die?”

“Of course he deserves to die! But isn’t lingchi too much? Ning-wang is truly too cruel.”

“Let’s throw you into the dam and see if you think it’s too cruel then……”

---

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Chapter 44 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 46

Ch 8 – Why do you want humans?

Yu Xi hugged his knees, isolating himself under a corner of the table.

Kersz piloted the starship to evade attack and initiated another jump.

Yu Xi hadn’t taught him how to pilot it, and although Kersz originally hadn’t intended to expose his ability, doing otherwise just make them a stationary target.

The second jump was more fortuitous, and their starship was the only one adrift in the empty void of space.

Yu Xi stared blankly at the ground.

Kersz crouched down, and Yu Xi looked at him: “Humans are not friendly toward wanted criminals.”

“Nonsense. I have no prejudice toward wanted criminals.” Kersz considered himself to be a human too.

“You’re a wanted criminal.” Yu Xi’s lips trembled. “You’ve ruined me.”

Kersz hadn’t expected such a strong reaction.

Yu Xi wanted to get along well with humans, chatting about life and hobbies every day before gently luring them to his planet.

Now that he was a wanted criminal, how could any of the good humans like him?

And those humans had looked so fierce. No human had ever been so cruel to him before.

Kersz continued to observe Yu Xi, puzzled as to why he had become so human-like and strongly reactive.

As he watched, he noticed that Yu Xi’s eyes seemed to be brimming with tears.

Kersz: “Huh? Is there something wrong with my eyes?”

Kersz rubbed his eyes and shook his head. Then he looked closely and saw that Yu Xi’s tears had already slid down his cheeks to his chin.

The tears fell, and Yu Xi himself was momentarily stunned: “Am I broken?”

Kersz: “You might be crying.”

“No, I’m a rational robot.” Yu Xi’s voice trembled.

Kersz: “Do you hear yourself right now?”

Yu Xi kind of wanted to go home. Perhaps he could wait until this generation of humans died before coming back, and then he could be a clean robot again. But then he thought about his remaining lifespan and began to lose his composure.

“Hey, hey, hey, why are you crying even harder?” Kersz was at somewhat of a loss.

“I don’t have enough time. My reputation is ruined,” Yu Xi choked out. “How can you be so bad? How could I have discovered such a wicked human?”

Kersz: “Well, I’m a space pirate. Did you steal a starmap when you connected to the enemy starship? Shall I take you to see some other places?”

“They said they were going to attack me, and then they just opened fire on me.” Yu Xi wasn’t listening to Kersz at all. “How bad-tempered. How vicious.”

Kersz: ……

Kersz began to ponder Yu Xi’s abnormal behavior again. Was he not accustomed to dealing with malice? It was the same as last time – when Kersz’s tone became cold and hard, Yu Xi’s first instinct was to run away.

But he had been alive for such a long time. He must have witnessed a great deal of human evil, and he was even able to tell that Kersz was a deeply scheming person.

“Why did they attack me? They could have listened to my explanation, or even asked me to hand over the evil space pirate, ah.” Yu Xi grew increasingly upset the more he thought about it. “I clearly haven’t done anything, so why am I being made a criminal suspect too?”

“Aren’t you being a little too quick to sever ties with me? And aren’t there some things that are better said behind my back?” Kersz said with a hint of helplessness.

Yu Xi looked up at a 45 degree angle from under the table. He had never been hated by so many humans before.

Kersz finally picked up on a clue: “…..Have you never truly integrated into human society?”

He finally realized what had been so odd. Yu Xi did have a lot of theoretical knowledge, but he seemed to be inept at dealing with human emotions.

He was like a child raised in an ancient human family. Many people tried to reason with Yu Xi, but he only needed to understand the cause and effect, not to experience things firsthand.

“I can no longer integrate into the human world.” Yu Xi felt that there was no hope of survival. “They all think I’m a bad guy!”

Kersz: “So you’re more used to being a good baby?”

Yu Xi finally looked at Kersz.

Kersz shrank back.

“Please wait a moment,” Yu Xi said to him.

What? Had Yu Xi decided to cherish Kersz, the only remaining human?

Kersz didn’t understand.

The stone pendant around Yu Xi’s neck lit up, and then something about the length of a finger and as thin as a hair appeared between Yu Xi’s hands. This thing floated mid-air, emitting a faint glow.

It then proceeded to grow bigger and longer.

“What kind of treasure is this?” Kersz asked in puzzlement.

Yu Xi gave the now half-meter long object a couple of swings, then launched himself straight at Kersz.

“Huh? Ah! No! Why are you hitting me?!” 

Yu Xi lashed Kersz’s bottom with the blue whip: “You naughty boy!”

Kersz covered his rear as he ran, and the thing stung his hand as it lashed him: “If you were just going to beat me, why did you say ‘please?!’”

“I’m a robot. That’s just how I’m programmed.” Yu Xi felt that Kersz’s question was nonsense.

“You just wanted to beat me! You were only polite so that I didn’t run away!” Kersz shouted as he ran. “If you’re so afraid of humans treating you badly, then why are you still so hung up on them?”

Kersz had initially meant to feign concern, but Yu Xi’s two lashes had ignited his temper: “You should know what humanity is like at this stage. We’re all a bunch of self-righteous, short-sighted fools.”

Yu Xi chased right behind Kersz: “Of course I know what you’re like!”

“Then why are you crying?!” Kersz asked him.

“I’m not crying, I’m just malfunctioning!” Yu Xi retorted.

Yu Xi chased Kersz to the point of complete exhaustion before he stopped.

Kersz sat on the ground, panting heavily. He accused Yu Xi of being a human-abuser, then muttered that he really didn’t understand why Yu Xi didn’t just create another robot with feelings like himself for company. Two equally matched robots would be much more enjoyable. Then he started pulling at Yu Xi’s pendant. He feared that he might become a sinner against humanity in the future, but if all of humanity were to die out, there would be no one left to condemn him.

Yu Xi felt that he had finally grasped an aspect of Kersz’s true nature – he was a bad boy who couldn’t hold his tongue.

Kersz grumbled to himself until his throat was dry. Once he calmed down, he looked at Yu Xi’s unchanged expression and reorganized his thoughts before once again tempting Yu Xi with his greatest desire: “A reputation can be whitewashed. If you’re really that worried, how about I take you to capture a human to practice on first?”

“But I’m a wanted criminal now,” said Yu Xi.

“Even wanted criminals have wanted criminal friends.” Kersz’s voice was a little hoarse. “I have a lot of wanted criminal friends, and they’re all destitute and homeless.”

“I need to relax.” Yu Xi felt that he must adjust his mental state before facing more humans.

He also came to the realization that he was prone to “malfunctioning” when humans were angry with him.

Kersz blinked: “How long do you plan to relax?”

“I don’t know. I’ll get some sleep first.” Yu Xi turned to leave.

He heard Kersz get up, and then heard Kersz’s footsteps following behind him.

Yu Xi turned his head: “Find your own room.”

“I thought you might want human companionship,” Kersz said.

Upon hearing this, Yu Xi gave him a gentle smile: “Oh~ You’re so cute.”

Then the smile dropped right off his face and he went into his room.

Kersz: …..

Was Yu Xi being sarcastic to him just now?

Would he refuse to visit human communities out of shame?

Back in his room, Yu Xi let out a long sigh. He pressed a hand to his chest, feeling a bit stuffy.

However, this would not affect Yu Xi’s rest. All he had to do was adjust his system to sleep mode.

Yu Xi decided to clear his mind first.

But just as his mind began to fall silent, he seemed to hear Kersz’s question again – have you never fully integrated into human society?

Yu Xi frowned, inexplicably resistant to this statement.

Then he entered sleep mode and fell into a dream.

He dreamed that someone was crying.

All sorts of people were crying, regardless of gender or age, and they were all hugging Yu Xi.

Choking with emotion, those people all asked Yu Xi “why does the concept of separation exist?”

Yu Xi used the same words to appease them all.

He told them that this was the law of nature, that accepting separation was something that each individual must learn how to do, and that the pain of separation was proof of how much they cherished those who were gone.

He repeated this truth to the elderly, the young, the women and the men. He embraced each human being, witnessed countless partings, and guided them through.

Yu Xi even created a romantic fantasy for these people, telling them that they would “meet again” when they came to recognize the imprint the deceased had left on their souls.

Those who cried in Yu Xi’s arms appeared and disappeared one by one.

In the end, Yu Xi’s arms were empty.

He sat atop a high-rise building. The planet was brightly lit, but there was only one “smart butler” around – Yu Xi.

Yu Xi gazed up at the starry sky and the boundless universe beyond it.

He knew that people eventually dispersed, scattering throughout the universe.

Suddenly, he felt that something wasn’t right. After some thought, he turned on loudspeakers all across the planet, and the words he had once used to comfort humanity sounded through them.

This is the law of nature, something everyone must learn, proof that you cherished those who are gone, and you will one day be reunited.

At last, there was no longer silence in his ears.

A nighttime breeze was blowing. Yu Xi rubbed his hands together, then clasped them tightly. He hunched his shoulders, clamped his clasped hands between his thighs, and bowed his head.

Was something missing?

Yu Xi looked left and right, then lowered his head again.

He waited for a moment, then looked left and right again.

Humans always appeared at times like these to receive his hugs.

The more he hugged, the more humans appeared.

Yu Xi swung his legs, recalling the silly crying faces of those humans.

He really liked squeezing together in a ball with them, ah.

Hahaha.

Yu Xi’s legs swung slower and slower, before finally coming to a stop.

He looked around himself again.

There was nobody there.

---

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Chapter 7 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 9

Ch 67 – North Sea City

“Sea Market?” Feng Ye repeated the phrase with some confusion. He stared at the person who had just passed by him. Although he looked human, his facial features were…..strange, no matter how he looked at them. It was like someone had randomly doodled them, the proportions completely off.

“Right. Sea Market.” Fang Yang nodded affirmatively, turning sideways as he spoke to make room for those passing by.

Feng Ye and company were located on the largest island in the North Sea. This island was clearly far from the mainland, nestled in the middle of a remote stretch of water, and should have been as desolate and pristine as any other island.

But on this island, there were unusually prosperous buildings standing in rows, with neatly-maintained streets lined with shops welcoming customers.

And there were currently a great number of cultivators gathered here. Some strolled around the market, while others pulled pieces of cloth from who knew where and found empty spaces along the street, sitting on the ground to sell their wares. The market was so busy that it even seemed a bit crowded.

Feng Ye and the other three stood in the middle of the road, blocking the flow of traffic. After standing there for just a short while, they had received countless cold glares.

Thus, before Fang Yang could start to explain from the beginning, the four of them quickly moved to a corner to escape the constant staring.

Hao Chen was also puzzled about the Sea Market. After flying for a day and a night on Lingxiao Sword Sect’s ship, he and Feng Ye had inexplicably arrived on this small island.

But when the ship landed, the others seemed to know what was going on and went ahead to the market, leaving only the two of them with questions filling their heads.

This was not so for Cao Zirui, who knew what the Sea Market was and why everyone had come here. In fact, all Fang Yang knew was what Cao Zirui had explained to him. 

Fang Yang simply repeated this explanation to his Useless Shixiong and Hao-dage: “The so-called Sea Market is just as the name suggests, a market at the seaside.”

Feng Ye and Hao Chen: “……” No kidding.

Unaware of their inner complaints, Fang Yang continued: “Although it’s mostly humans who trade with each other at seaside markets, the Sea Market is different. It’s also called North Sea City. The owner of this market isn’t a human, but a crab spirit with profound cultivation, called Proprietor Crab. Besides humans, there are also quite a few sea monsters who set up stalls to sell things.”

Feng Ye nodded in understanding. He had been wondering why he was seeing so many monsters transformed into humans. They were so bizarre and grotesque that even the phrase “crooked melons and cracked dates” wasn’t enough to describe them, yet they dared to walk around openly in the market.

“As for why we came to North Sea City, it’s actually tradition. The entrance to the Floating Island Secret Realm is directly above the North Sea, and everyone harvests a lot of spiritual herbs there. But while those things are valuable, they might not be things those people need. So naturally, they will want to go to the nearest market to sell or trade them.”

“The closest and largest market to the North Sea is North Sea City. Although you have to pay a small fee in spirit stones to set up a stall here, the market guards also ensure the safety of the transactions, and at least no incidents of robbery will ever occur in the territory of the island. Because of this, trading here is the first choice for many people.”

“Every time the Floating Island Secret Realm closed, most people would come straight here, so it became a tradition. All of the sects bring their disciples here to stay for three days in order to facilitate trade.”

So that’s how it is, Feng Ye thought. No wonder he kept seeing disciples from those sects of various sizes who should have returned home. And no wonder Tiangong Pavilion and Lingxiao Sword Sect had flown side by side all night despite being located in different locales. Apparently, they had been aiming for the same destination.

“Shixiong didn’t know such common sense knowledge?” Fang Yang looked with some doubt at Feng Ye and Hao Chen, who seemed to have come to a sudden realization. He himself hadn’t known, because he really had no such common sense knowledge. But Useless Shixiong and Hao-dage weren’t new to their sects, yet they were just as clueless as he was.

Feng Ye and Hao Chen’s eyes drifted at the same time. Of course these two didn’t know such an obvious thing. It wasn’t until this moment that they had realized they would be staying for three days in North Sea City instead of returning directly to the sect. 

Faced with Fang Yang’s question, the two of them experienced a tacit sense of guilt.

Fang Yang was just asking casually, never suspecting that these two were imposters. After asking this question, Fang Yang turned around and pulled Cao Zirui toward the nearest stalls to see what was on display.

A seaside market was inherently different from a land market. In addition to the human cultivators who set up stalls to sell straightforward magic instruments and spiritual herbs, spirits from the sea mostly sold local specialities such as pearls and corals.

Fang Yang had never seen such novel things that grew deep in the sea. In fact, this outing to the Floating Island Secret Realm was his first time seeing an ocean. So when he looked at these pearls and corals now, he couldn’t help but marvel.

Cao Zirui was more restrained. Although he had long known about the Sea Market, seeing was believing. It was quite novel to actually see such a bustling scene and all kinds of unprecedented goods. But he didn’t show it as obviously as Fang Yang, continuing to maintain his icy appearance.

The other two followed the youths at a leisurely pace. Although Feng Ye and Hao Chen would peer at various street vendors, they were far from intrigued. 

Pearls and corals – how could people have the nerve to sell something that could be picked up everywhere? Hao Chen eyed the street vendors with contempt. Besides, the pearls they were selling were only the size of pigeon eggs, while in his palace, pearls the size of a fist were scattered all over the place. 

Thus, he looked down on everything around him. Fang Yang squatted down and pointed at such a despised pigeon egg-sized pearl on a carpet, asking: “How much does this cost?”

The vendor was a middle-aged man with a long beard split in two. Feng Ye eyed this beard and came to a conclusion: catfish spirit.

The catfish twisted the long whiskers framing his mouth and swept his gaze over Fang Yang’s attire, which was a basic sect uniform. It was clear that its owner was not wealthy, so he quoted a price that should be within Fang Yang’s affordability: “Three hundred spirit stones.”

However, he had still overestimated Fang Yang’s spending power. Fang Yang gripped his storage bag, which held only a little over a hundred spirit stones, and gave a regretful sigh: “So expensive.”

He had picked a bag of Yuanling Grass but had no time to sell it, so his entire net worth was the one hundred or so spirit stones he had saved up throughout daily life.

The catfish spirit thought Fang Yang was just reluctant to spend, so he enthusiastically lobbied: “This isn’t expensive at all. These are pearls that oyster spirits nourished inside their bodies for a hundred years before spitting them out. They contain the mirage energy that the oysters swallow and spit out, which is excellent material for refining weapons or medicine.”

Fang Yang was persuaded. But although he looked at the pearl with some reluctance, he still gave a firm shake of his head. Even if he sold all of his Yuanling Grass, he still wouldn’t be able to afford this pearl. And no matter how useful the pearl was for refining weapons or medicine, it was still of no use to him.

He didn’t know how to refine materials, so it would be too extravagant to buy this pearl just to play with it like a marble.

As a sword cultivator, he still didn’t have a decent spiritual sword. He had plans to use his savings for a magic weapon, not to spend it on things like this.

So Fang Yang made up his mind and moved on to the next vendor, no matter what prices the seller blurted out.

However, Cao Zirui was in no hurry to leave with him. He looked at Fang Yang’s back, then at the pearl on the ground, his thoughts unclear. Suddenly, he reached into his storage bag and took out two hundred spirit stones, with which he bought the pearl from the catfish spirit.

After purchasing it, he took the pearl in his hand and trotted to catch up with Fang Yang. As if presenting to him a treasure, he offered the pearl to his gobsmacked friend.

Fang Yang stared at the pearl in front of him, but didn’t reach out to take it. After a moment’s hesitation, he finally reacted and waved his hands: “Why did you buy this for me, ah? Hurry up and return it!”

As he spoke, he grabbed Cao Zirui’s hand and tried to haul him back to return the goods.

However, Cao Zirui gently broke free from Fang Yang’s grip. He offered the pearl to him again and said earnestly: “I’m giving it to you.”

To prevent Fang Yang from refusing again, he quickly added: “In thanks for saving my life.”

It turned out he was repaying a favor. Fang Yang was somewhat relieved, but still couldn’t accept it: “Didn’t you promise to treat me to a nice meal? That’s enough for me.”

He pressed down Cao Zirui’s raised hand as he spoke. And yet, Cao Zirui raised it for a third time, insisting on gifting the pearl to Fang Yang: “Not enough.”

He repeated solemnly: “It’s not enough.”

Three times was the limit. If he continued to refuse, he would just be making things difficult for Cao Zirui. After some thought, Fang Yang accepted it for the time being, planning to return it when he got the chance.

The two youths continued on into the market together, while Feng Ye and Hao Chen following behind witnessed the entire process in silence.

Feng Ye folded his arms as he watched the two interact. Seeing such simple, sincere friendship caused a smile to unknowingly appear at the corners of his mouth.

However, Hao Chen’s thought process was entirely different from Feng Ye’s. Watching the two walk about ten meters ahead, he covered his lips with his mini fan and whispered to Feng Ye: “It seems your naive shidi is lucky enough to have hooked up with a rich man, ah.”

Feng Ye couldn’t help but glance at Hao Chen leaning close to his ear, thinking, Here he goes again. In Hao Chen’s mouth, the friendship between the two teenagers became hooking up with a rich man.

He remained silent, with no intention of squabbling with Hao Chen over such a tedious topic, and continued to follow after the two youths.

Although Feng Ye had no interest in these corals and pearls, he was very interested in one thing. He was desperate to change his unsightly tattered robes. So he stopped in front of a clothing stall and asked its owner: “How much are these?”

The stall owner was a cultivator in the beginning stages of Foundation Establishment. He was initially happy to see business come to his door, but when he noticed Feng Ye and Hao Chen’s clothing, as well as their cultivation levels, his expression transformed into impatience.

Two Qi Refining disciples, one in tattered clothes with the look of a beggar and one with intact clothes that were made of only the most commonplace fabrics. They looked so poor that they probably couldn’t even afford to buy his robes.

Although he was impatient, he still sent them away with two sentences: “These are black-grade magical garments, and excellent ones at that. They have fantastic defensive capabilities, impervious to water and fire, as well as invulnerable to swords and spears. They’re worth one thousand spirit stones.”

One thousand spirit stones. Feng Ye calculated the mere concept of one thousand spirit stones. En, he still needed nine-hundred and ninety eight.

Feng Ye didn’t ask anything further, just took the two spirit stones in his storage bag and tactfully left the stall under the stall owner’s contemptuous gaze.

Hao Chen’s eyes swiveled and he touched his storage bag, wanting to imitate Cao Zirui’s actions from earlier and buy the clothes as a gift.

However, when he touched his empty storage bag, he realized that although the amount of wealth he possessed would take a month to count out, he hadn’t brought a single penny with him.

He could only heave a sigh of regret, then catch up with Feng Ye. Although he hadn’t brought any money, that wouldn’t stop him from showing off his skills.

He asked Feng Ye, all smiles: “Is Fellow Daoist Feng Ye short of money?”

Although he had called Feng Ye simply by his name the day before, it was only that one time. Now, he added the “fellow daoist” suffix.

Feng Ye didn’t care about the change of address, and just nodded in response to Hao Chen’s question.

He was short of money. It wasn’t something to be ashamed it, so he admitted it readily.

Hao Chen’s smile deepened, and he suggested with feigned casualness: “Ai, your naive shidi has hooked up with a rich man. If Fellow Daoist Feng Ye could also hook up with a rich man who is willing to spend thousands of gold on you, you could buy anything you want.”

Hao Chen’s hint couldn’t be more obvious. Feng Ye played along with a hint of amusement: “Where can I find such a rich man?”

“Cough, cough.” Hao Chen deliberately cleared his throat. At the same time, he puffed out his chest and fully opened the mini fan in his hand, like a peacock spreading its wings or a pufferfish puffed up into a ball, doing his best to attract attention to himself.

But Feng Ye maliciously jabbed Hao Chen and caused him to deflate: “Ai, if Fellow Daoist Hao Chen was a rich man, I would definitely stick to your side. But…..”

Feng Ye gestured to Hao Chen’s storage bag and reminded him: “Fellow Daoist Hao Chen is even poorer than I am. I at least have two spirit stones saved, but Fellow Daoist Hao Chen has nothing but the clothes on his back.”

Hao Chen: “…..” He then remembered that it was common knowledge that he hadn’t brought one penny with him.

But it was just money. With one message to Prime Minister Turtle, he could immediately have a large cart of treasures sent over. But if he was unwilling to expose his secret identity, he obviously couldn’t come up with an excuse for his sudden wealth.

He could only stand there in vexation, feeling that he had missed a great opportunity. Why hadn’t he brought any money with him when he went out?

Feng Ye held back his laughter as he continued forward to catch up with Fang Yang and Cao Zirui, who were some distance away.

He arrived at just the right time, because the two of them happened to be in trouble.

Although most of the spirits in the Sea Market had taken a human form, there were still a few who had maintained their original appearances.

But Fang Yang was completely unaware of this. He squatted down and stared at a half-man-high crab behind a stall. Thinking that it was an item on sale, he exclaimed: “What a big crab!” He glanced around for the stall owner in confusion, only to find that there was no one watching over it but the crab.

That would have been fine, but his hands were strangely itchy and he reached out to touch the crab.

Such unsolicited touching was extremely rude between humans, and the same was true for spirits.

The crab flared up at once and batted Fang Yang’s hand away with a claw, saying furiously: “Disrespectful human!”

Fang Yang realized he was in trouble. Before he could apologize, Cao Zirui, who had gone off on his own to buy something, came back just then.

When he saw the big crab waving its claws at Fang Yang, he thought he was being attacked, and immediately pulled out his usual spirit sword from his storage bag and approached, sword raised.

The crab caught the sword in one claw as it stabbed at him, flying into a rage: “How dare you act so wantonly in North Sea City! Haven’t you heard who the owner of this place is?”

This was the scene that Feng Ye and Hao Chen saw when they came over. Who was the owner of North Sea City? That would be Proprietor Crab.

Fang Yang had just recently educated them about a crab spirit with profound cultivation.

The one in front of him was also a crab. He seemed so self-assured – perhaps he was a relative of Proprietor Crab.

Although they didn’t know what was going on, they were new here and the other party was probably a local, so it wouldn’t be appropriate to start a conflict. So Feng Ye began to step forward to mediate, but he couldn’t help but pause when he heard what the people around them were saying.

The fight between Cao Zirui and the crab had made quite a commotion, and with so many people around, a crowd of onlookers immediately formed a circle. 

Hearing the crab’s aggressive tone, those who had no common knowledge — like Feng Ye — couldn’t help but whisper to their companions: “Who is the owner of North Sea City?”

Their companion whispered back: “Nominally, it’s Proprietor Crab, but…..North Sea City is such a huge market. Although Proprietor Crab is very powerful, he’s only at the level of our Nascent Soul cultivators. He can’t control such a huge place alone.”

“But North Sea City is very safe, and nobody dares break the rules here. This is all because of the person behind Proprietor Crab…..”

Although she was speaking softly, the crab still heard her.

The crab proudly shook the claw that wasn’t gripping the sword and said: “Hmph, that’s right. The true master of North Sea City is one of the most powerful gods in heaven, who guards the North Sea…..”

“The Lord of the North Sea!” The crab kept them in suspense before revealing the truth with flair.

Those just learning this for the first time gasped. The owner of North Sea City happened to be a god, the Kunpeng, who had the power to cover the sky and blot out the sun!

However, Feng Ye and Hao Chen’s reactions were different from everyone else’s. Their expressions were exactly the same:

Hao Chen: “……”

Feng Ye: “……”

How had he never known there was such a market?

---

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Chapter 66 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 68

Chu Jiubian quickly finished reading the rest of the letter, and the more he read, the heavier his heart became.

When Qin Xiao arrived at the governor’s manor in Hexi Prefecture, he found that Governor Lu Yuan had committed suicide by poison in his bedroom and left behind a suicide note.

He confessed in this note that as the governor, he had failed to protect the common people. Even after the dam was breached, he had ordered people to frame and kill innocent civilians and craftsmen in order to shirk responsibility.

Now that he knew that Ning-wang himself had come to provide disaster relief, his heart was in turmoil and he felt guilty and deserving of death. Thus, he took his own life in order to atone for his sins, and only asked that Qin Xiao spare the lives of his family.

After reading the suicide note, Qin Xiao immediately summoned the local prefectural commandant.

The local official system in Great Ning was somewhat different. In areas under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Court, the highest level was the prefecture, comparable to a province in modern times. The highest administrative official was the governor, and the highest military commander was the prefectural commandant, each of the two keeping to their own areas of business.

Next came the county, with the highest-ranking official being the magistrate, and then came the districts and townships.

In areas governed by the vassal kings, they and their own “mini-courts” were the highest level of government office, followed directly by prefectures, counties, and townships.

For example, Guizhou and Guangxi, which had failed to take action during the previous drought, had also been fiefdoms of a vassal king during Emperor Chengzong’s reign. It was only later that they were taken back, and since Emperor Yingzong never took charge of them, the highest administrative official there was the magistrate.

Currently, both magistrates there had been escorted back to the capital by Qin Chaoyang. The regions would be temporarily managed by disaster relief officials from Southern Zhili, but Qin Xiao would send people to take over governance later on.

That said, after Qin Xiao finished reading Lu Yuan’s suicide letter that morning, he summoned the Hexi Prefecture Commandant and ordered him to lead his men to arrest all of Lu Yuan’s family members. The prefectural governor’s manor was also to be surrounded.

Qin Xiao then kept back two officials from the capital who had come with him and tasked them with uncovering the truth behind Lu Yuan’s “suicide.”

He himself continued onward to Huai and Pu counties with Jian Hongzhuo and the other Ministry of Works officials – led by Cui Jin, the Hexi Prefecture registrar.

These two counties were closely connected, which saved them the effort of traveling between them.

It was said that Prefect Zhou Boshan had gone to the disaster area to oversee the situation, but it was unknown whether he had managed to control the state of affairs.

Chu Jiubian read the last part of the letter: This place is shrouded in mystery, and this lord is unable to save the situation by himself. Hoping that the Young Master will come to my aid.

The dignified Regent was quite adept at showing vulnerability.

But Chu Jiubian had no intention of laughing at him.

He burned the letter and quickly donned his raincoat, then told the postmaster to wake everyone up and have them pack their belongings for departure.

Chu Jiubian sat in the carriage, listening to the sound of people bustling around outside. His eyes held a dark and unfathomable expression.

If they traveled through the night, they should be able to reach Hexi Prefecture by tomorrow afternoon.

Qin Xiao had sent the letter before noon today, and Chu Jiubian had received it tonight. This indicated that given Qin Xiao’s speed, the relief team would arrive in the affected counties tomorrow. The other party may have already returned to the prefectural seat.

If Qin Xiao didn’t manage to return in time, Chu Jiubian would directly take the relief funds and supplies to the two affected counties without lingering in the city.

But taking into account the darkness of night, strong winds, and heavy rain, the team’s journey would undoubtedly be much more difficult than during the daytime.

If they happened to get stuck on the road, it would take even more time.

With this thought in mind, Chu Jiubian lifted the carriage curtain and lightly beckoned with one hand.

Within two breaths, a guard completely covered in armor lifted the curtain and entered the carriage. He went down on one knee and bowed his head, avoiding eye contact with Chu Jiubian.

This was the guard Qin Xiao had originally sent to protect him. He was quite obedient, and it was convenient to send him to run errands and handle some affairs.

Chu Jiubian bought three remote controlled high-powered waterproof flashlights from the System Mall and handed them to the guard, instructing him to attach them to the first and last carriages. His own carriage was in the middle, so one should be attached there as well.

Once all of the lights were on, the whole team would be able to see the road clearly.

The guard acknowledged the order and withdrew without asking a single unnecessary question.

The guard moved like mist, but his obvious presence on the roof of the carriage was still noticed by some of the soldiers.

They knew he belonged to Chu Jiubian, and simply supposed he was checking on the status of the silver and grain, so none of them thought too deeply about it.

Their greatest concern at the moment was how inconvenient and arduous it was to travel at night.

“Yesterday, we were able to rest at a post station and get some sleep, but now we’re being forced to travel all night. I don’t know what Lord Chu is thinking.”

“Indeed. Even if we set off later tomorrow, we could still reach Hexi Prefecture by nightfall. Why the rush now?”

“I can understand him being in a hurry, but with such heavy rain, the roads are muddy and treacherous. It was fine during the day, but we can’t even see the road clearly right now. I’m afraid I’ll sink into the mud every few steps.”

“Why don’t we go and talk to him? We can always leave earlier tomorrow, and it will save us from marching at night.”

The civil officials thought similarly, but they had all noticed Chao Shun’s reaction today.

As a secretary for the Ministry of Revenue, Chao Shun was the highest-ranking official among them. While he had initially been respectful toward Chu Jiubian, ever since falling ill, he seemed to hold more fear and awe for him.

When Chu Jiubian said that they needed to travel overnight just now, the other party was the first to voice his support, and even started ordering people around. He was incredibly attentive, and showed no signs of his previous high fever. 

Everyone guessed that Chao Shun had recovered so quickly due to the efficacy of Chu Jiubian’s medicine, so he was grateful to him because of it.

Others spoke of Chu Jiubian’s identity as an immortal.

They believed that Chu Jiubian had given Chao Shun an immortal elixir, and that the official’s awe and fear had grown when he sensed the immortal’s divine power.

However, not many people possessed such a mindset. After all, these junior officials hadn’t had the opportunity to meet Chu Jiubian before, and even the “miracles” circulating around the capital were all hearsay, half true and half false.

Even those who boasted of their own intelligence saw that Chu Jiubian ate and lived like everyone else and had nothing special about him aside from his hair, and came to the conclusion that the rumors were wrong – that this Grand Tutor Chu was simply a normal person.

Therefore, their current reluctance to contradict Chu Jiubian was not due to fear of his divine status, but simply because he was a superior official. 

If the sky fell, the taller person would hold it up. These low-ranking officials didn’t want to be the first to stick their necks out.

Ultimately, these civil assistants were better at assessing the situation than the military officials were.

So in the end, it was one of the temporary captains among the soldiers who took charge and approached Chu Jiubian.

“My Lord,” the captain said respectfully, clasping his fist in a salute,“This humble official has something to report.”

Chu Jiubian lifted the window curtain and looked outside.

The moonlight was entirely obscured by clouds, and it would be no exaggeration to say that it was pitch black outside. Only when the curtain was lifted did the light from the oil lamp shine out and illuminate the captain’s features.

The captain didn’t look up, knowing from the light that his superior had given him permission to speak.

At the same time, hundreds of subtle glances were cast in their direction.

Knowing that the captain had approached Chu Jiubian to offer suggestions, although nothing could be heard over the sound of the rain, everyone’s attention was so focused on him that even his subordinates slowed their pace somewhat.

“What is it?” Chu Jiubian’s voice was cold and distant.

The captain continued: “My Lord, this road is difficult to travel at night, and the carriages and horses might become stuck. How about we wait until tomorrow morning to set off?”

The official road was straight, so there was no fear of taking a wrong turn.

But the current road was not paved with gravel. It was all dirt, and had become quite bumpy and uneven over the years. The soil had indeed become soft under the rain, and getting stuck was a very real danger if one didn’t take caution.

The rain showed no signs of abating, and was also accompanied by the occasional flash of lightning and muted rumbles up in the clouds.

Chu Jiubian rubbed the remote control in his hand.

The flashlights had already been strapped to the roofs of the carriages. As they were a product of the System, they had amazing specs, and the remote control could work from as far away as one kilometer.

So when he pressed the switch now, all three powerful flashlights would light up.

Chu Jiubian glanced at the distracted soldiers outside. Seeing that everyone’s attention was focused in this direction, he pressed the switch.

In an instant, the three carriages were cast in a glow as bright as daylight, and the powerful flashlights illuminated the road for a hundred meters both ahead and behind.

Gasps of shock from the crowd were accompanied by the slight jostling of the horses as the whole procession was stirred up.

“What’s going on! How is it already dawn?!”

“It’s not dawn – it’s that we have light while the rest of the world is still dark!”

“It’s…..it’s Lord Chu…..”

Everyone looked toward Chu Jiubian’s carriage and were dazzled by the white light shining from the roof. They were tense and frightened, but such feelings were accompanied by a strange tremor of excitement.

This was a miracle! 

They were actually witnessing a miracle!

The captain next to Chu Jiubian was the most astonished of all. He felt as if he had just said “it is difficult to travel at night,” and then daylight suddenly dawned.

He almost reflexively looked up at the person in the carriage, and it only took a moment for his look of astonishment to change to one of terror.

The outside was now bright, but the carriage had gone dim.

The captain could only see Chu Jiubian’s delicate face illuminated by the warm yellow light of the oil lamp. His dark, tousled hair slightly obscured his brow and eyes, while the long, silver-white portion cascading over his shoulders seemed to shimmer with an otherworldly glow.

He was like a banished immortal.

The captain’s heart pounded wildly in his ears, and his legs went weak.

“Can we go now?” Chu Jiubian asked quietly.

Just as he finished speaking, a clap of thunder rang out, and the captain’s weak legs nearly sent him to his knees.

The captain’s teeth chattered as he met Chu Jiubian’s indifferent eyes: “W-we can.”

Chu Jiubian fortunately lowered the curtain after receiving his reply – otherwise, the captain wouldn’t have been able to stay upright.

Once the initial panic subsided, the crowd moved quicker than ever.

Everyone packed their luggage and belongings with absolute haste, and dared not voice further objections or opinions. Only one word was on their minds – miracle!

To turn night into day in an instant – what else could this be but a miracle?!

Driven by curiosity, some people surreptitiously glanced toward the roofs of the carriages, only to be blinded by the intense light. They dared not look again, and the awe in their hearts intensified.

Could that be the sun?

In order to travel at night, Lord Chu actually borrowed the sunlight!

Was this a method of the gods?

Lord Chu truly was a deity!

Inside the carriage, Chu Jiubian watched his Faith Value soar by thirty points.

The convoy jostled along the way, but thanks to the light, the journey was relatively smoother.

As dawn broke, Chu Jiubian turned off the lights and ordered his guard to retrieve them.

The guard handed the items over to him with deference, but just as he was about to leave, Chu Jiubian stopped him and handed him some cold medicine he’d prepared in advance: “Take one of these.”

When he gave out medicine to the convoy before, he had also prepared some for the guards, as catching a cold was the biggest concern when traveling at night.

The guard was somewhat surprised, and his composure cracked just for an instant. But he accepted it smoothly and performed a silent kowtow before leaving.

After traveling all morning, the convoy indeed entered Hexi Prefecture around noon.

It was only a half hour’s march to the affected counties, so Chu Jiubian had everyone head straight there without stopping to rest.

The group now listened to him without question. His word was law.

The convoy trudged slowly forward, but they didn’t encounter a single refugee all the way to the gates of the city.

Had all of the refugees in Huai and Pu counties been settled?

Or was it that these places were too far away from the prefectural seat, so the refugees settled in county towns and cities along the way?

Chu Jiubian frowned slightly. Something felt amiss.

The massive disaster had affected tens of thousands of common people in two counties, and an untold number of villages and farmland had been submerged. It was impossible for all of these refugees to stay put. Many would have naturally fled to larger cities and towns.

Unless these people had been restricted to their hometowns by the authorities and were unable to leave at all.

Thinking of what Qin Xiao’s letter had said about Prefect Zhou Boshan having gone to the disaster area two days prior, Chu Jiubian immediately had a guess in mind.

If the other party had really ordered that all of the refugees were to be gathered in one place, would they have enough food?

Could they guarantee that people wouldn’t die from starvation or disease?

And if they did die, how was it handled?

Were the bodies burned, or left to soak in the rain and mud?

If it was the latter, so many rotting corpses in addition to the filth from the rainwater and flooding would be a breeding ground for disease!

Or perhaps they had resorted to even more ruthless and decisive measures…..

But hopefully, the truth was not as he imagined.

“My Lord, we have arrived at the prefectural governor’s residence,” someone reported from outside the carriage.

Chu Jiubian exited the carriage, and the officials Qin Xiao had left at the residence to handle matters there came out to greet him.

Their leader was an official from the Ministry of War named Kou Zimo. Chu Jiubian was familiar with this person; he was one of the few people in court who openly sided with Qin Xiao.

He originated from the Qin Family Army and later rose to the position of section head in the Ministry of War. However, due to his low official rank, he had limited say in court and was unable to outwit the civil officials, so he was never able to offer much help to Qin Xiao.

Kou Zimo naturally knew of the relationship between Chu Jiubian and his family’s lord. He felt a sense of kinship upon laying eyes on him, and quickly stepped forward to greet him with a bow.

Chu Jiubian cut his greeting short, asking: “Has Qin Xiao not returned yet?”

Nowadays, who inside or outside of the court didn’t know that he and Qin Xiao were on the same side?

The story of their “love tribulation” was becoming more and more credible, and those not in the know actually believed that there was something going on between the two.

Qin Xiao did nothing to deliberately suppress or refute the rumors, and Chu Jiubian was even less likely to do so.

Therefore, Chu Jiubian usually didn’t mind demonstrating their special relationship in front of outsiders, such as by calling him by his full name.

Kou Zimo was momentarily surprised by his address of Qin Xiao, but he understood after a moment’s thought.

The two of them were family, so there was nothing wrong with calling each other by name.

Thus, he quickly composed himself and said: “Answering My Lord, Lord Ning-wang has not yet returned. A message arrived this morning which said that a method to plug the dam in Pu County has been found. Liu Junqi, an official in the Ministry of Works, has been left to oversee it. The fix should be completed today.”

“Right now, Lord Ning-wang should be in Huai County with Minister Jian from the Ministry of Works. The dam there was more seriously damaged, and plugging it will be much more troublesome.”

Chu Jiubian nodded, then asked: “Have the local county officials arrived with the grain?”

Upon receiving the news of the damage to the dams, they had immediately dispatched messengers to the surrounding counties and prefectures at breakneck speed. These officials were ordered to send all the grain they could spare to Hexi Prefecture, as well as officials, craftsmen, and soldiers to help alleviate the disaster.

That way, when Chu Jiubian and the others delivered the silver and grain, there wouldn’t be such a scramble.

Kou Zimo observed Chu Jiubian’s expression and carefully chose his tone as he answered: “Both Anyang County and Liucheng County sent grain, as well as several officials and craftsmen, but the grain only amounted to a few cartloads.”

The food supplies were nearly depleted.

If Chu Jiubian failed to arrive tonight, the refugees would be out of food.

For those displaced common people, life had lost all meaning. Many were in poor mental states, and while going without food for a night might normally just be skipping a meal, at a time where nerves were stretched and vulnerable, it could very well be the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

The refugees might riot. The consequences would be unimaginable.

Chu Jiubian frowned: “What about the food supply of Hexi Prefecture itself?”

It was impossible that such a large prefectural city wouldn’t have enough food to feed two counties’ worth of people.

“The night before we arrived with Lord Ning-wang, more than a dozen granaries experienced leaks from the rain, and the grain was all soaked. Also, when we inspected the grain, it was all old and stale, with much of it moldy. Even if it hadn’t been soaked with water, it was inedible.”

Moldy grain, granary roofs in disrepair – this governor of Hexi Prefecture was really playing with the lives of the common people. No wonder he committed suicide out of “fear of punishment.”

Kou Zimo said: “My Lord, please come in and rest for a while before we talk further. This official has already asked someone to prepare lunch and hot water.”

“No need,” said Chu Jiubian. “Bring all of the grain merchants in the city here.”

Since food was about to run out, he would just buy some more. Otherwise, the few cartloads of grain that was delivered wouldn’t last more than two days.

“Lord Ning-wang already sought them out.” Kou Zimo sighed. “Those grain merchants said that since grain prices are high in the south, they’ve already transported all of their grain there. They gave all they had left to His Lordship this morning.”

Chu Jiubian: “……”

What a coincidence, ah!

Once was a coincidence, but twice was a pattern.

The granaries in Hexi Prefecture were leaky and full of mold, and the local grain merchants were also out of grain. If the Imperial Court wasn’t able to come up with a solution, wasn’t it inevitable that the common people of the affected counties would revolt?

If that really happened, then who would take the blame for such a huge blunder?

Would it be Jiannan-wang? Or the Emperor?

The people behind this hadn’t left any unused tricks up their sleeves. They intended to utterly lay waste to the situation.

However, there was one point of suspicion: the people behind this indeed wished to achieve such a result, and had cut off all of the grain supplies they could, but why did the refugees still have enough grain to last until the Imperial relief convoy arrived?

“Find someone to lead the way. We’re heading to Pu County at once,” Chu Jiubian said.

The grain they’d brought from the capital was enough to feed the two counties’ worth of people for two days, and these two days were enough for Qin Xiao to come up with another solution. And even if they couldn’t source any food, Chu Jiubian still had the System.

The problem was that he didn’t have enough Faith Points at the moment, so he would need to collect more when the occasion presented itself.

However, he didn’t want more faith points from Nanjiang. He wanted them from the people of Hexi Prefecture.

He couldn’t always be the one to save these people – they needed to be allowed to save themselves.

By using their contributed faith points to purchase grain and save their lives, Chu Jiubian could also grow his reputation. It was a win-win scenario.

Led by a local county official, the disaster relief team arrived safely in Pu County.

Liu Junqi, a senior official with the Ministry of Works, was rushing about in a raincoat as he directed people to repair the dam. His voice was hoarse from shouting.

He only turned around when someone notified him that the disaster relief convoy had arrived, and quickly approached when he caught sight of them.

Chu Jiubian lifted the carriage curtain to set his eyes on this scene.

Liu Junqi was a student of Wang Zhiyuan, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, but he now seemed to be a man of action.

This must be one of those conscientious officials Qin Xiao had mentioned who was still entangled with one of the great families.

But the Wang family?

Chu Jiubian felt it necessary to inquire about this with Wang Qichen. If this Liu Junqi was a man of good character and not some great villain, then he could be appropriately promoted.

A senior official of the Ministry of Works, eh? The next highest rank he could attain was naturally Deputy Minister of Works.

Chu Jiubian lowered his eyes to hide the dark glint in them, and when he looked up again, he had regained his cool, indifferent demeanor.

“Greetings, Grand Tutor.” Liu Junqi bowed.

Chu Jiubian got out of the carriage, and a soldier rushed over to hold an umbrella for him with an extremely deferential expression.

Liu Junqi took note of this. He also discovered that not just this soldier, but everyone in the disaster relief team whether they be civil or military officials, regarded Chu Jiubian with awe.

The forces behind these people were actually quite complex and deeply entrenched, and they could be spies or informants for one faction or another. Yet now, without exception, they had become so deferential.

How had Chu Jiubian managed to subdue all of these people in just a few days?

Liu Junqi suppressed his astonishment.

Without wasting words, Chu Jiubian got straight to the point: “I’ll leave you two days’ worth of food and 100,000 taels of silver. The Ministry of Revenue will assist you, and I’ll send someone to deliver more grain in two days’ time.”

“Yes,” Liu Junqi replied at once.

Just when he was worried about running out of food the next morning, the Imperial disaster relief team arrived and relieved his immediate crisis.

He was aware of the food situation, and that it would be difficult to obtain more grain in a short period of time. But the man in front of him was Chu Jiubian, and all sorts of variables could change in his presence.

So he would just wait patiently for good news.

“By the way,” Chu Jiubian asked casually, “why didn’t we see many refugees in Pu County on the way here?”

The refugees here all had food, temporary shelters, and blankets to keep them warm. Logically, they should be in good condition, but they all looked lifeless.

Liu Junqi’s expression immediately turned grim: “My Lord may be unaware, but more than half of the 20,000 common people in Pu County have died, and the ones remaining were lucky enough to have survived until Lord Ning-wang’s arrival.”

Ironically, if not for the high death count, there wouldn’t have been enough grain to last until Chu Jiubian arrived.

Chu Jiubian’s heart skipped a beat, and he asked: “What did that Zhou Boshan do?”

Liu Junqi was astonished that he had guessed the truth so quickly.

“That Prefect Zhou was indeed involved,” said Liu Junqi. “To prevent the refugees from flocking to other counties and causing a chain reaction, and in order to plug the breached dam…..”

He took a slow breath before saying in a trembling voice: “He actually ordered the common people to jump into the river and use their bodies to plug the hole!”

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Chapter 43 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 45