Chapter 2328: If We Can't Meet Again

He Xuan Sheng understood Jiang Wang.

If you were to seriously explain a reason to him, even if you concocted the most perfect one, it would still likely arouse his suspicion. This guy was actually very smart, and his spiritual awareness was particularly terrifying.

Conversely, if you just casually messed with him like this, even directly cursing him a few times, he would probably just let it pass.

After all, how could Jiang Qing Yang suspect He Xuan Fat?

But today, Jiang Wang still hesitated slightly: "Chen Zhi Tao is definitely unwilling to come to Qi Country, after all..."

"I understand! Am I not as sensible as you?" He Xuan Sheng glanced at him sideways, very impolitely: "I've already made a complete plan to arrange for the two of you to meet in Chang Country. It's just right for you to also see what unique ancient Yang legacies they have over there. Cherish your time, consider his feelings, kill several birds with one stone."

Jiang Wang 'oh'd and continued reading.

He Xuan Sheng's pupils slightly closed, seemingly resting his spirit. The entire near sea situation was constantly changing in his mind.

"Hey—" Jiang Wang suddenly said.

He Xuan Sheng's heart jolted, and he impatiently opened his eyes: "Now what?"

"Why don't I see Shisi?" Jiang Wang asked.

He Xuan Sheng glanced at him sideways: "You still have a bit of humanity, remembering your old friend. How good Shisi is to you!"

"Not that much humanity either, otherwise I should be beating you now—oh no, I should say, testing your cultivation." Jiang Wang said while flipping through his book: "Brother Sheng, am I not caring enough about you now?"

"You've come at a bad time. Today is the day the Empress Dowager enters the main rear palace." He Xuan Sheng 'ha'd, his tone casual: "All the wives of meritorious lords in Lin Zi City have entered the palace to listen to her lecture. Lecturing on women's virtues, female etiquette, the way of controlling husbands, and so on."

The Empress lecturing on "controlling husbands" was, in itself, quite humorous.

Who could control that Great Qi Emperor...

What did Shisi need to learn these things for? Besides He Xuan Sheng, she didn't care about anything. He Xuan Sheng couldn't wait to give his life to her.

"Today is the day... the Empress enters the main rear palace..." Jiang Wang was just reading his book, but suddenly a thought occurred to him. He temporarily pulled his mind out of the world of seal arts and said to He Xuan Sheng: "Divide the carriage procession, take me to Hua Ying Palace first."

The day the current Empress was formally bestowed the title of Empress was also the death anniversary of Jiang Wu You's birth mother, Empress Yin...

After being confined to the cold palace for more than half a year, she "died of grief and depression." It was hard to say whether the bestowal of the title of Empress upon the current Empress wasn't the last straw that broke her.

He Xuan Sheng was very happy to see that he still maintained some human warmth. He lifted a finger and knocked on the armrest of the seat, and the carriage changed direction.

When they arrived outside Hua Ying Palace, Jiang Wu You was not yet in the palace.

The old woman who had been by Jiang Wu You's side all year round also sat in the carriage and looked at Jiang Wang, saying: "Your Highness has gone to Qing Shi Palace. Every year on this day, she goes to stay there for a while—does True Immortal Jiang want to enter the palace and wait?"

"No," Jiang Wang said lightly: "If it's convenient, can Nanny take me to offer incense?"

He Xuan Sheng sat quietly beside him, also holding a book of seal arts and reading. He had now formed his own faction in Qi Country's officialdom, and it was not convenient for him to enter Hua Ying Palace.

The old woman bowed and said: "You have a heart... of course you can."

Empress Yin's memorial shrine was very simple, in a very small, very secret room, with a spirit tablet that didn't even have a name.

Jiang Wang just simply offered incense and then wanted to leave.

At the door, the old woman lowered her head and said: "Thank you."

"Thank me?"

"This old body's surname is Yin."

The once magnificent Yin family had already been erased from the history of Qi Country.

She, who had always been by Jiang Wu You's side, was perhaps the only remaining member of the Yin clan.

Jiang Wang took a final glance at her: "Please take care."

He turned and left.

"Still going to the detached villa on Xia Mountain." He Xuan Sheng had many things on his mind, but it didn't affect the clarity of his speech: "That side has already been tidied up for you. The Ninth Imperial Prince hasn't lived there for a long time now, and it's not the season to appreciate the scenery either. Nearby, there's just a very peaceful An Le Bo, who won't disturb you at all..."

An Le Bo?

Jiang Wang's heart only felt a faint thought... this name seemed to be from a very long time ago.

Many things from the past, in retrospect, all seemed to be separated by a window. While seemingly close, they were still inside and outside the window, like looking at scenery from another place.

He sat in the carriage and followed its path.

The carriage was on the road, and the road was under the sky.

His body was not free, but his heart lived freely.

"Like this..." Jiang Wang stared at the content on the book page, absentmindedly saying: "After I arrive, just seal the courtyard door. Don't say I'm back in Lin Zi, don't let people disturb me."

Every time he returned to Qi Country, the most important thing was to socialize with old friends. Visiting each family he was close to once was originally also meaningful. But just as He Xuan Sheng said, the premise of "human relations" was still being able to retain the "human" part.

At this crucial moment of swimming in the deep sea of the Heavenly Way, it was best to just exempt himself from all of it and not see anyone.

"Good, good, read your book then." He Xuan Sheng 'hey'd: "Leave everything else to me."

In the scorching summer, there was no "maple glow in the late afternoon," only the incessant chirping of cicadas, which covered the entire mountain.

Ten carriages of secret records filled the detached courtyard.

Jiang Wang and the three venerable dharma images each began to read.

In the high-level sequence of Fishing Sea Tower, "Jing Hai" was the highest, with "Protecting the Sect" and "Practical Affairs" below it. This was also the highest vision since Fishing Sea Tower was founded.

Chen Zhi Tao, with "Zhi Tao" as his name, fully embodied the expectations placed upon him. Now, it seemed he had not disappointed this expectation.

At the crucial moment when Fishing Sea Tower was facing near extinction, he took office during a crisis, shouldering the great responsibility of Tower Master. While one couldn't say he "pulled back the wild waves from collapsing," he indeed withstood pressure from all sides, allowing the sect to steadily pass through the difficult period.

And in the "Post-Chen Du era," he maintained the autonomy of Fishing Sea Tower.

In the era when Wei Xun was still alive, if you said that the goal of Fishing Sea Tower was to guarantee independent autonomy, that would absolutely be a joke. At that time, the ambitious True Monarch Chen Du, who connected with various forces externally and united many islands internally, forcefully formed the Town Sea Alliance, aiming to unify the sea border and pursue maritime hegemony.

But after Wei Xun left, given the situation Fishing Sea Tower faced, "guaranteeing independent autonomy" was actually a quite difficult political goal.

After the Maze World War, Qi Country's unification of the sea border was almost a certainty. The Town Sea Alliance, created by Wei Xun, had already become Qi Country's unilateral domain. Many affairs of the near sea were decided by Jueming Island alone.

The large and small sects of the near sea archipelago all began to embroider purple flags overnight. The transformation of sea people into Qi people seemed only a matter of time.

Due to unique historical reasons and the existence of the Main Region, Yang Valley's status was relatively transcendent.

Fishing Sea Tower was then able to guarantee the preservation of its Dao tradition only with the support of Jing Country.

Or more directly speaking, it was the projection of power by Peng Lai Island in the near sea, the personal arrival of Eastern Heavenly Master Song Huai to the sea border, and the statement from Yang Valley that led to the rebuilding of Fishing Sea Tower.

How could Fishing Sea Tower preserve itself in the face of Jing Country's will? How could it guard its Dao tradition in the face of Qi Country's authority? How could it, with its currently debilitated state and relatively weak body, cope with a near sea situation whose pattern was already so clear?

This was a great test of the new Tower Master's determination and wisdom.

Chen Zhi Tao had already done very well, but many people demanded that he do better.

"These are what I should do."

On Small Crescent Island, within the Fishing Sea Tower sect station, Chen Zhi Tao wore a sea-blue sect master Dao robe, knelt before the statue of the founding ancestor, and slowly said.

Crescent Island, also known as "Embracing Island," had now become a territory defined as "neutral" by Qi Country, open to all sea people. Nominally, it no longer belonged to any single force, only to the jurisdiction of the Town Sea Alliance, and was also the location of the Town Sea Alliance headquarters.

The statue of the Fishing Dragon Guest stood on this island, stood on Tian Ya Terrace, for people to mourn.

The inheritance of the Fishing Dragon Guest, however, had moved to Small Crescent Island—this was originally a branch of the original Fishing Sea Tower. Song Huai, Yue Jie, and others had striven for the rebuilding of Fishing Sea Tower on the original site of Embracing Island. It was Chen Zhi Tao who went against public opinion and moved the sect here.

It was very clear that he was unwilling for Fishing Sea Tower to become Jing Country's spearhead on the front line of resistance in the near sea.

From "unwilling" to it actually happening, there was another difficult and long journey in between. Fortunately, it had all passed.

Now, Qin Zhen stood at the edge of the ancestral hall door, looking at the back of this young Tower Master before her, and said blandly: "If we only discuss 'should,' you have already done enough."

She and Chong Guang were still Jing Hai elders at the moment, and there was no change in their duties, but they were already effectively the grand elders of Fishing Sea Tower.

After all, Chen Zhi Tao was a junior they had watched grow up, and there was still a big gap in cultivation, so it was impossible for him to establish the authority of a Tower Master in front of them.

She and Chong Guang appeared less and less now, which was both to show weakness to Qi Country and to provide a stage for Chen Zhi Tao, avoiding stealing the show.

"For Chen Zhi Tao, perhaps it is enough, but for the Tower Master of Fishing Sea Tower, I am still far short." Chen Zhi Tao did not turn back, but his voice was heavy: "In the distance, there is the founding ancestor, and nearby, there is the former master. Zhi Tao's talent and virtue are shallow, it is hard to bear even one ten-thousandth... Ashamed and cannot be at peace."

Chen Zhi Tao was also an ambitious person, otherwise, he wouldn't compare himself to Wei Xun, to the Fishing Dragon Guest.

But people's aptitude did vary, some appearing once in a thousand years, some hard to meet in ten thousand years, and some, one could only say, were mediocre. Chen Zhi Tao was of course not a mediocre generation; in all aspects, he was a genius. But wanting to catch up to Wei Xun, or even the Fishing Dragon Guest, that really couldn't be described solely by "hard work."

Qin Zhen sighed lightly in her heart, her face still like an ancient well with no ripples, and only said: "Aren't you going to Chang Country for a trip? Just go now. As for Fu Dong Xu, just don't see him."

At this moment, a voice leisurely rang out from outside the door—"Fu Dong Xu... why not see?"

Qin Zhen's instinct was to form her fingers like scissors, but then she forcefully retracted this sharpness. She felt an indescribable trance—the current Fishing Sea Tower no longer even had the qualification to "not see guests."

The person who appeared outside the door at this moment was a man with eyes like bright mirrors, his gaze full of scrutiny, his eyes filled with the thoughts of others. He wore a very loose Dao robe, which fluttered lightly in the sea breeze. He stood in front of the ancestral hall, the important ground of Fishing Sea Tower's sect, his gaze surveying the surroundings, his posture extremely relaxed.

He was naturally the Platform Head of the Mirror World Platform, Fu Dong Xu, who had now resumed his duties. He truly felt no sense of danger in the current Fishing Sea Tower. This arrogance was also natural.

Chen Zhi Tao stood up in front of the ancestral master's image, turned around, and looked directly at the uninvited guest outside the door, stepping out one step at a time, facing him.

He was neither humble nor arrogant, bowing slightly: "Platform Head Fu! Chen Zhi Tao, the Tower Master of Fishing Sea Tower, greets you here. Please convey my regards to your country's Emperor."

"Well said." Fu Dong Xu's face radiated bright glory, laughing very relaxed: "Tower Master Chen is truly a man who understands etiquette! These four words, knowing grace and repaying it, many people nowadays no longer know how to write."

Given Qin Zhen's past temperament, with Fu Dong Xu provoking her like this, she wouldn't have vented her anger without stabbing Fu Dong Xu a few times. But today, she just stood silently, like a piece of thin paper floating in the wind.

"I often ask myself—do you want to solve the problem, or do you want to create the problem? So I don't act rudely. Arrogance, sarcasm, venting emotions don't help the matter itself." Under this situation, Chen Zhi Tao took another step outward, looking directly at Fu Dong Xu: "I wonder what Platform Head Fu thinks?"

Fu Dong Xu laughed: "Tower Master Chen truly has a first-class heart and nature, what you say is truly reasonable! Indeed, we want to solve problems, not create problems."

He also bowed to Qin Zhen to express his apology, then said: "To be honest, this humble one has come to Small Crescent Island this time precisely to solve problems."

He looked into Chen Zhi Tao's eyes and emphasized: "Representing the central Great Jing Empire, to solve the problems here."

Qin Zhen remained silent, maintaining Chen Zhi Tao's authority as Tower Master.

And Chen Zhi Tao just looked at Fu Dong Xu, slowly saying: "The best attitude is the attitude of solving problems. But I wonder in Jing Country's eyes... what is a 'problem'?"

It wasn't that they were afraid of Jing Country wanting to solve problems, they were just afraid that Jing Country would consider Fishing Sea Tower to be the problem.

Fu Dong Xu's face held a smile: "Tower Master Chen is a wise man, why not take a guess?"

At this moment, the radiance on his face flowed away for a while, gathering into a ball of light in front of him. From within that ball of light, a brilliant figure walked out.

Fishing Sea Tower's First Elder, Chong Guang, just like this, stood between Chen Zhi Tao and Fu Dong Xu.

His face also had light, he was even always in the light. The mirror light carried by Fu Dong Xu was repeatedly dispelled by him.

His eyes showed no emotion, and he spoke first: "Let me take a guess—Fishing Sea Tower? Town Sea Alliance? Jueming Island? Qi Country?"

Although Fishing Sea Tower had declined, the Tower Master could not be looked down upon.

Chen Zhi Tao could not play the pretend mysterious guessing game with others, so Chong Guang took the initiative to come forward.

Fu Dong Xu put his hands behind his back and said proudly: "In True Immortal Chong Guang's eyes, the pattern of the world's first empire is just this?"

"Perhaps not just this, but I don't know." Chong Guang said cautiously: "Are there any other matters in this near sea archipelago that are worth your personal visit, Fu Dong Xu?"

"Me? Haha! In this great event, I am just a vanguard!" Fu Dong Xu laughed twice, then his face turned serious, and he said in a deep voice: "My Great Jing stands in the central domain, towering over the human world. Looking east, what can be called a 'problem' has only ever come from one place—"

"Platform Head Fu is perhaps referring to 'Cang Hai'?" Chong Guang raised an eyebrow and asked.

Fu Dong Xu waved his large sleeve: "Exactly so!"

Boom! Rumble!

Thunder sounded overseas.

First, there were several claps of thunder, then sudden rain poured down.

Raindrops hung like a curtain in front of the eaves.

The line of sight penetrated this rain curtain, but was unable to chase that free swallow, still trapped and locked in the heavy palace chambers.

Under the cobweb-laden palace eaves, Jiang Wu You stood pressed against the wall, like a slender goddess statue. She was the only bright and colorful scene in this dark palace.

She did not speak, just looked at the rain.

Just like that day many years ago, quietly waiting for the news of her birth mother's death.

At that time, her foster mother, Consort Ning Gui, said that a very important person had left.

At that time, she drew out a short sword and performed a sword dance, like a swallow piercing through the rain, seemingly unaware that the one who had died was her own mother.

Of course, she was also very sad at that time, but she actually didn't understand the meaning of death.

She just knew that there was someone she would never see again.