Chapter 2260: June 9th in the Scorching Summer

Qiantang is the largest river on the border of Yue, comparable in fame only to Chu's Yunmeng Ze.

If the vast misty expanse of Yunmeng Ze is a distant and unreachable goddess, then the Qiantang River must be a strong man who drums and sings heroically, often roaring and shouting amidst the wind and clouds.

Perhaps the delicate undertone within the vigorous soul of the Yue people originates here.

That year, when Gao Zheng made the agreement in the Fallen Immortal Alliance, he once humbly said: "Yue has nothing, nothing more than Qiantang."

Although humble words, they roughly indicate the status of the Qiantang River within Yue.

Therefore, Zhou Sixun, the grand commander who leads the Qiantang naval forces, is truly the foremost military figure in Yue, holding an official rank even higher than Yue's top warrior, Bian Liang.

During his lifetime, Gao Zheng also specifically composed a song for the Qiantang River. The most famous part is none other than "Lonely Boat Sending Letter." Ji Li of Mugu Academy, who compiled "Songs and Music Through the Ages" in recent years, included this song and rated it as the "foremost Yue song."

In the past, when the Yue court built a tomb for Gao Zheng, Emperor Wen Jingxiu personally escorted the coffin, and civil and military officials all went to mourn. Outside the tomb garden, flower wreaths formed a sea... Mourners continue to arrive even now.

On the day Gao Zheng was buried, more than three thousand literary men spontaneously gathered at the Qiantang River and jointly performed this song on the riverbank. After the song finished, many wept in grief. Gao Zheng's feelings for the Qiantang River and his attachment to this land of Yue pulsed through every string.

Gao Zheng, who contributed his life to Yue and achieved immortal feats, finally died on the bank of the Qiantang River, his soul following the tide. People might find comfort in this, saying he died in the right place.

Many things hold no meaning for the deceased, but they are the only remaining comfort for the living.

The battle at Cloud Come Peak had already passed quite a few days ago.

From the ignorant fog of the Soul Self Five Bureaus Sea, the returned Ge Fei and the proud martial arts true person of the southern border, Zhong Li Yan, engaged in a sudden life-and-death duel, which concluded with a result that left people utterly shocked.

This battle, which should have shaken the southern domain and even alarmed the world, did not spread too widely due to the unspoken tacit understanding between the two countries of Chu and Yue.

The ripples stopped at the ancestral temple of Yue, and the news flowed within the upper echelons of Chu.

The barely alive Zhong Li Yan was sent back to Chu, while Ge Fei continues to stay in Yue—perhaps the court still doesn't know how to officially announce him, so he remains at Hidden Prime Peak.

Only now, he no longer needs to feign ignorance.

Chu seems to have already made a choice.

Silence is an attitude.

Chu is clearly unwilling to become Huang Wei Zhen's obstacle. Although there is a deeply embedded thorn named Wu Ling that cannot be pulled out, they have chosen to quietly await the opportune moment and observe the changes in silence.

One has to say, the great Chu could endure such provocation from Gao Zheng and didn't immediately raise troops to attack Yue—did they really lack reasons to mobilize troops and flatten a mere Yue?

But Chu was strangely silent!

They didn't even mention Ge Fei at all, nor did they say a word about Wu Ling's death. It was as if An Guo Gong Wu Zhao Chang's silence after returning from Fallen Immortal Forest was the ultimate outcome of that matter.

That was the heir of a state-enjoying family, a status even higher than ordinary princes!

In Zhou Sixun's view, such a Chu is more terrifying. He would rather see the Chu emperor rage with anger and deploy a million troops, or see An Guo Gong Wu Zhao Chang fall apart and draw his sword to attack.

It is normal for Chu to maintain rationality when facing Jing and Qin, but it can still show such restraint when facing Yue, which it could destroy with a snap of its fingers.

If such calm can always be maintained, Yue would naturally be very willing. Even if they were blameless in the Ge Fei incident, even if they had already created enough excuses for third-party forces to intervene, Yue's strength is ultimately far inferior to Chu's, and they cannot clash directly with Chu.

If a great war breaks out, even with the backing of Book Mountain and the intervention of Qin and Jing, Yue would struggle to protect its state. At most, they would just use the fresh blood of the Yue people to stain the faces of the Chu people.

Peace is exactly what Yue seeks. Although Wen Jingxiu adopted a prickly posture in front of Zhuge Yi Xian's star god, it was still defensive language.

But peace can never be begged for.

For now, the southern domain is calm. But those with clear eyes must see the undercurrents beneath the surface. Nothing will be so simple, and this round is far from over.

One only needs to see how arrogant the Southern Dipper Hall was for so many years, and the Chu emperor only acted twice: once to strip them of their imperial title, and once to exterminate their Dao lineage. The timing was so good, the measures so precise, it can be called an expert in carving up the world.

Now that Chu has suffered such a significant loss, clearly knowing how Wu Ling died, how can they possibly endure it repeatedly?

What is Chu waiting for? What kind of thunder will this suspended choice turn into?

Did Gao Zheng, who pinned his chess game on Huang Wei Zhen and desired to ride the Nine Phoenix and soar, calculate to this current step?

Zhou Sixun has no answer. But he understands that the situation has reached this point, and there is no turning back. Yue is now riding a tiger, and it's difficult to dismount. They can only see where this fierce tiger will lead them!

Yue's partial army can be eliminated, Gao Zheng died in the faint waves, but in this chess game, the most valuable person for Chu to consider has always been Huang Wei Zhen. The final outcome of this game might also have to wait for Huang Wei Zhen to write the end.

Zhou Sixun is very clear—in the following period, Yue had better not give Chu any excuse.

But he also has to proceed with the next matter.

To play chess with a colossal entity like Chu, sometimes taking risks is inevitable.

In fact, just sitting at this chess table is the biggest adventure!

Look around the world, how many are qualified to play chess with Chu? Those who are not qualified but still want to enter the game can only stake their lives on the table.

Now, this naval commander walks on the riverbed of Qiantang, while the magnificent world above surges.

He is in a narrow, long space, like a semi-transparent corridor woven from the deep water patterns of the river. There are rooms on both sides of the corridor, but not many, only thirty in total.

It is like a branch with thirty fruits, or thirty square-footed water centipedes—in fact, its manifestation in the present world is indeed like this.

It is just like that small water centipede, drifting with the waves at the bottom of the water, sometimes swallowed by big fish and excreted, sometimes entangled by water plants.

In the spatial sense of the present world, this place does not exist.

Precisely for sufficient concealment, it is so narrow. The larger the space, the harder it is to erase traces.

This is a place even lower than the underground palace of Qiantang and the water prison of Qiantang, known only to him and the Yue emperor—the previously informed people also included Gao Zheng.

This place has no name. Zhou Sixun also privately avoids giving it a substitute name, because a name is also a kind of connection and can become lines that are calculated.

Its history is very ancient, dating back to the reign of Yue Tai Zong Wen Zhong. Of course, it is not recorded in historical books, nor is it heard among the common people.

Its key is passed down only among the emperors of Yue, and its existence has always been supervised by the commander of the Qiantang naval forces.

So many years have passed, and these thirty rooms have never been full.

Flowers, magic tools, inscriptions, all the arrangements in the corridor are for erasing the traces of this place's existence and isolating divination.

Perhaps there is a more intuitive comparison—the bedroom of the Yue emperor is not as secretive as this place.

Unless sacrifices are involved, Fengdu might have a chance to find out in what posture Wen Jingxiu sleeps at night, but it is impossible to know any information about this place.

Zhou Sixun wears a hooded garment, his tall stature feeling very stuffy. He does this also to isolate cause and effect. He walks slowly forward and finally stops outside a room.

The people living here are existences that are not connected to the cause and effect of the present world. In other words, they cannot be linked to people and Yue.

Knock, knock, knock.

Zhou Sixun knocked on the door.

There was no sound at all in the room.

Zhou Sixun doesn't mind. He just puts his hand into the suddenly appearing pit on the wall, selects several square mud block characters, and composes a sentence—

"Zhang Jie Fu, it is your time to act."

He arranges this line of characters, then turns and leaves.

After he leaves, that crystal-like door slowly opens, but only opens. The room inside is a vast expanse of white, and nothing can be seen from the corridor.

Time seems to have stalled, and no changes occur for a long time.

Until—a dry, skinny hand, wrinkled like tree bark, suddenly stretches out and grips the doorframe!

The pen moves on the paper, and Zhong Xuan draws a turtle on the paper.

No one could imagine that the virtuous and prestigious, upright historian true person would draw a turtle on paper. So, this matter just adds a few points of interest and can thus become reality.

There's no other way. The work of Taixu Pavilion has entered a regular track, and the operation of Taixu Illusion is becoming normal. Very rarely are there matters that need to be brought before all cabinet members.

As Jing's representative of interests, Li Yi's absenteeism problem was cured by Jiang Wang. But the wind of absenteeism that Li Yi brought became even more intense after he proved his Dao.

There were only a few participants in the last meeting.

Usually, if Zhong Xuan and Ju Kui have something they want to discuss with other cabinet members, they often can't find anyone.

Without Dou Zhao, that belligerent element, and Jiang Wang, that troublemaker, Taixu Pavilion becomes extraordinarily quiet.

Cang Ming doesn't like to talk, Huang Sheli doesn't like to talk to those who are not good-looking, Li Yi doesn't talk... The current Taixu meeting is entirely a meeting of gourds. Everyone looks at each other, listens to Ju Kui read some unimportant things from a script, and then it ends. It's truly too boring.

Today is the 9th of June, Dao Calendar 3928, the time for the sixth Taixu meeting.

The weather is very hot, and the sunlight falling into the building of Taixu Pavilion deliberately reflects this point.

Zhong Xuan is bored and drawing a turtle on paper.

It is said that a historian is fortunate when the wind and clouds howl. These words are not false. If history has no waves, governing history is truly a dull thing.

Just as he is aimlessly idling, his ears suddenly hear such a voice, which instead feels somewhat familiar—"Good morning, Mister Zhong!"

Zhong Xuan's eyes light up. He turns his head to look and sees the troublemaker, Cabinet Member Jiang, already greeting Ju Kui.

The historian true person subconsciously sits up straight, and the drawing paper changes to a book slip for engraving words. He asks tentatively: "Cabinet Member Jiang, did you specially attend the meeting today because you have some proposal? Wasn't it convenient to communicate with me first?"

Jiang Wang wrinkles his brow: "Cabinet Member Zhong, I hear your words and they don't sound quite right. I just busy killing a Shura king and missed one meeting? When you stare at me and ask like this, it's as if I'm the one who repeatedly absents!"

Li Yi, who repeatedly absents, sits there, not knowing where his mind is wandering. Perhaps he doesn't know someone is pointing at him, or he doesn't care. In any case, he doesn't speak.

"Misunderstanding, True Person Jiang! I just feel you are diligent in cabinet affairs, that's why I asked you." Zhong Xuan says: "In the future, when I record history, I will write a heavy stroke, saying you are hardworking."

Jiang Wang acts as if he just realizes who is the one who evaluates historical merit, and his attitude improves greatly: "That is of course. With our relationship, you can ask whatever you want, and I won't answer? Um, there is indeed a proposal."

He opens his mouth and says: "I propose to build a Taixu corner tower in the Tianyu world and extend the Taixu Illusion over there! Now the exchange between the two sides is inconvenient, and often there are lone true demons that I miss, delaying how many important matters!"

Ju Kui says seriously: "Heavy Xuan Zun spent great effort to build the Taixu corner tower in Yuyuan. The complexity of the demon world is even a hundred times greater. Not to mention whether the Taixu Illusion can be extended over, the problem is more about whether the safety of the Taixu Illusion can be guaranteed after it is extended—with the current situation, Cabinet Member Jiang's proposal is almost impossible."

"If it's not realistic, then don't propose it." Jiang Wang waved his hand. He was originally just casually probing. At this stage, besides the goal of slaying the eighteen true ones of foreign races, he really has nothing else.

Ju Kui was originally about to end the topic, but facing Jiang Wang, the lightning pattern between his brows suddenly jumped. In that instant, it was as if a vertical pupil opened. He looked at Jiang Wang deeply: "Cabinet Member Jiang's cultivation is advancing by leaps and bounds, truly a fortunate matter for our human race!"

Jiang Wang was just about to be modest for a few sentences, but suddenly his line of sight jumped, and he saw Li Yi silently twisting his fingers on one side, and immediately lost all interest in talking. No matter what, chatting about cultivation in front of the already Dao-proven Li Yi is not a very interesting thing. He could only say: "Where, where!"

Many cabinet members were still absent from this Taixu meeting: Heavy Xuan Zun, Qin Zhi Zhen, and Dou Zhao, all three did not come.

The first two are still in Yuyuan, not moving from their nests, because Jiang Wang is always running back and forth in the racial battlefield, so they also have no way to relax.

The latter is probably still competing in Fallen Immortal Forest.

"This time only three people were absent, which is still okay." Zhong Xuan said while recording.

Jiang Wang sighed with a tsk: "They don't value this meeting enough!"

Huang Sheli had long wanted to mend their friendship, but Jiang Wang went to the border wilderness this time instead of to Jing, making her unable to use her energy anywhere. At this moment, she immediately flattered: "I strongly request fines! For cabinet members who are repeatedly late or absent, they must be heavily fined yuan stones to let them know the pain!"

"Ai—cannot!" Jiang Wang hurriedly stopped her. Would that money count as money to other cabinet members? To him, Mr. Jiang, it counted too much! A Cloud Top Immortal Palace, built for so long, is still lacking a big mouth.

All things being equal, just all things unequal. How can the poor and the rich be fined the same?

He said seriously: "We, Taixu Pavilion, use a sense of responsibility rather than money to constrain cabinet members. Cabinet Member Huang, your idea is very dangerous! It goes against the atmosphere of Taixu Pavilion!"

"Yes, yes. Cabinet Member Jiang considered it more thoughtfully." Huang Sheli knew her mistake and corrected it, completely coaxing him, and raised her hand: "I withdraw my proposal."

Ju Kui couldn't stand their lack of seriousness and lightly coughed: "If you have any proposals, you can begin now."

This time, no one spoke.

True Person Ju got the quiet he wanted.

Zhong Xuan observed Ju Kui's face with interest. He is a person skilled at finding fun in boredom, otherwise, he could not dedicate himself to governing history.

Ju Kui expressionlessly knocked on the armrest, already preparing to announce the meeting adjourned, but suddenly his face changed: "There is an emergency proposal that needs everyone to vote on."

This Law Family true person rarely showed such exposed emotions, and the cabinet members couldn't help but look over.

Ju Kui looked around, his gaze sweeping over everyone, and said word by word, seriously: "Chu has formally submitted a state letter, requesting that Zhong Li Yan replace Dou Zhao's position as a Taixu cabinet member. Please all cabinet members—vote on this matter."

This chapter is 4k words, added for the great ally Green Robe Ancestor (2/3)!