Chapter 50

(First update.)

Xu Fengnian was in a fairly good mood on his way back to the mansion. The extra two servings of braised beef were for the maids in the Wutong Courtyard. As expected, Jiang Ni was still waiting in the yard. This little money-grubber, regardless of wind or rain, insisted on reading ten thousand characters of secret manuals every day, refusing to stop until she earned a hundred taels of silver. For every ten characters she read incorrectly or missed, she had to read ten more characters to make up for the ten coins deducted. Today, Xu Fengnian had slipped out to meet the blind old Xu, leaving Jiang Ni waiting in the Wutong Courtyard. When they met, she would surely give him the cold shoulder. Xu Fengnian entered the yard, and after waiting for a long time, Sweet Potato handed him a letter from Dragon Tiger Mountain, written by the old Taoist Zhao Xihuan. He instructed Qingniao to distribute the beef and then took the letter into his study alone. Jiang Ni was squatting in a corner, holding a copy of the "Hibernating Dragon Fist Manual," muttering to herself. It wasn't until Xu Fengnian sat down that she noticed him, quickly standing up with a face full of annoyance. Xu Fengnian opened the letter, sat in a cloud-patterned purple sandalwood reclining chair, and smiled, "Since you've been waiting for so long, why don't you wait a bit longer while I finish this letter?"

Jiang Ni, showing no sign of submission, calmly said, "Two coins per character today."

Xu Fengnian ignored her and focused on the letter. Jiang Ni watched as the prince's expression changed from sunny to cloudy, then to stormy, and finally to a dark, oppressive sky. For a moment, she forgot to repeat the value of each character. Xu Fengnian raised his hand to strike the sandalwood armrest but retracted most of his strength just in time, preventing the chair from being damaged. Even so, his expression remained terrifyingly grim. Xu Fengnian stood up, walked to the window, and after a few breaths, his demeanor became calm and relaxed. He looked at Jiang Ni and smiled, "Come, read the book while I listen."

Jiang Ni read through "Hibernating Dragon" and then half of a sword manual. By the time she finished, it was already deep into the night. She noticed that Xu Fengnian had not deducted any money from her today. Xu Fengnian, who had been absent-mindedly listening to her for two hours, smiled and said, "You've saved quite a bit of silver with me. How about we make another deal? A thousand guan for a secret manual. In a year, you can buy ten of them. Even if you can't practice martial arts, you can toss a few to the martial artists, and they'll surely bite like mad dogs. This is more practical than having a fortune with nowhere to spend it. How about this deal? Don't look at me like that, unwilling and bewildered. I'm just saying what you're thinking. Given our relationship, there's no need to be pretentious. What do you say? A thousand guan for a secret manual?"

Jiang Ni, wishing she could stab this cunning guy with the "Hibernating Dragon" manual, coldly smiled, "Is it a thousand guan or a thousand two hundred guan?"

Xu Fengnian, whose trick had been exposed, laughed heartily, "Friendship price, eight hundred guan per manual."

Jiang Ni immediately agreed, "Deal!"

Xu Fengnian waved his hand, picked up the carefully worded and subtly phrased secret letter from Dragon Tiger Mountain, frowned, and without looking up, said to Jiang Ni, who was putting the manuals back on the shelf, "Do you want a lady's couch prepared for you?"

Jiang Ni sneered, "I want to live."

Xu Fengnian made no comment on this. After Jiang Ni left, Sweet Potato entered the room with a crystal-clear jade bowl filled with fruit. Jade was a rare treasure, and even wealthy families could only afford inferior jade. Here, it was used as a simple fruit bowl. Only officials of the fourth rank and above could wear small pieces of jade, and even then, the color was often not very transparent. The prince was truly wasting a precious resource. Xu Fengnian picked up a pear, took a bite, and said fiercely, "The cow-rider just delivered a manuscript of the 'Treatise on the Two Instruments.' Grandpa Wei in the Tidal Pavilion only glanced at it and was overjoyed, saying it was even more in harmony with the Way than the ancient 'Treatise on the Yi Jing' in the pavilion, known as the king of all alchemical texts. Look, the head of the sect gave up his great cultivation, and even after I left the mountain, Wudang still wanted to add more flowers to the brocade. Now look at Dragon Tiger Mountain. In just over a year, they sent someone to bully Huang Man'er! These yellow-robed Taoists are truly courting death!"

Sweet Potato softly said, "Dragon Tiger Mountain has been powerful for two hundred years, while Wudang has been declining for three hundred. Moreover, Wudang is in Beiliang, while Dragon Tiger Mountain is several thousand miles away. Their approaches are naturally different."

Xu Fengnian calmly said, "I was already planning to visit Dragon Tiger Mountain, and now I definitely want to see the grandeur of the Celestial Master's Mansion."

Sweet Potato gently massaged Xu Fengnian's shoulders. After the prince started practicing the saber, his originally weak body had become much stronger, and his physique and aura had improved rapidly. If Sweet Potato's previous massage techniques were like embroidery, now even knocking on a bell or drumming would feel like scratching to Xu Fengnian. Sweet Potato softly said, "Your Highness, are you really going to leave Liang again?"

Xu Fengnian nodded and smiled, half-jokingly, "But this time, I won't be a stray dog. As the prince, I'll bring a grand entourage. Dragon Tiger Mountain, Yin Academy, the Xuan Yuan family's Dismounting Manor, the King of Yue's Sword Pool, and the Luoshen Garden by the Luo River—these places I dared not visit before, I will now. Sweet Potato, will you come with me?"

Sweet Potato shook her head pitifully, "Can I not go, Your Highness?"

Xu Fengnian laughed it off, had Sweet Potato put away the letter, and took two jars of wine, walking out of the yard to the Tidal Pavilion. Every time he saw the plaque with the four characters "Majestic and Unparalleled," Xu Fengnian felt uncomfortable. If it were just the nine-dragon plaque with its ghostly calligraphy, it would be fine, but there were also two side plaques with flying dragons and silver hooks, making the nine-dragon plaque look even more out of place. The old emperor, who was exceptionally talented, had a hand that was truly not to be praised.

Xu Fengnian thought of his second sister, Xu Weixiong, whose writing was as messy as worms in mud. He couldn't help but sigh that if his sister were a man, the thirty thousand iron cavalry of Beiliang would surely be firmly in the Xu family's hands, regardless of whether Xu Fengnian was truly foolish or not.

Xu Fengnian pushed open the door to the Tidal Pavilion's main hall and said helplessly, "Second Sister, are you still angry? If it doesn't work, I'll go to Yin Academy and let you scold me."

This time, he entered the pavilion not only to drink with White Fox Face but also to look through the genealogy of the Celestial Master's Mansion. Among the four current Celestial Masters, Zhao Xihuan, Huang Man'er's nominal master, was second in seniority but had the least power. On the surface, Zhao Danxia, the National Master, led the Daoist sects, but it was said that his brother, Zhao Danping, was not an easy person to deal with. This Celestial Master spent most of the year spreading the Dao in the capital, and his divine deeds were well-known even to children, making his reputation equal to Zhao Danxia's. The eldest, Zhao Xiyi, seemed to have no news leaking out.

Every family has its own difficult scriptures to chant, let alone the Celestial Master's Mansion with countless Daoist texts.

Today, Xu Fengnian was going to the upper floor to thoroughly understand this family that claimed "only our clan can pass on the title of Celestial Master." The outside world only knew that the Tidal Pavilion was an armory, but few knew that the pavilion's collection of secret information was even more impressive.

Xu Fengnian reached the second floor and, just around the corner, saw a new face—a short, old man with a missing arm, a goatee, and a tattered sheepskin coat. He was on tiptoe, struggling to pull out a martial arts secret manual, licked his finger, and began to read.

Feeling no aura from the old man, Xu Fengnian decided to play a trick, tiptoeing over and softly saying, "Old brother, are you here to steal books too?"

The old man ignored him, reading at an incredible speed, the pages flipping rapidly, the only sound in the quiet pavilion.

Xu Fengnian leaned in to see the content, but the old man, cautious and stingy, held the manual a bit further away.

Xu Fengnian pretended to stuff a few books into his robe and kindly advised, "Old brother, don't read anymore. Take as many books as you can."

The old man tightened his sheepskin coat, ignoring the prince as if he were deaf.

Xu Fengnian whispered, "You haven't seen White Fox Face? The man with the sword, more beautiful than any woman? He has a terrible temper. We should be careful, or we'll be in trouble."

The old man finally looked up, his cross-eyed gaze glancing at the prince.

Xu Fengnian, pretending to be friendly, put his arm around the old man and said warmly, "Old brother, the secret manuals upstairs are even more advanced and rare. I've bribed the prince's maids and know the way around. Want to go with me?"

The old man's cross-eyed gaze became even more severe, but he didn't avoid Xu Fengnian's impolite gesture.

He seemed to find the "fellow thief's" kindness quite contemptible.

Just as Xu Fengnian was about to speak, he suddenly felt a suffocating presence. Turning his head, he saw not only White Fox Face but also Xu Xiao and Master Li Yishan. Behind Xu Xiao were six guardians of the pavilion, all on high alert. What was this?

White Fox Face slowly walked over, looking at Xu Fengnian as if he were an idiot.

The Great Pillar of the State, Xu Xiao, did not approach but bent slightly and said softly, "This time, Fengnian, you'll have to be careful on your journey out of Beiliang."

When had the only non-royal king of the dynasty, the King of Beiliang, ever been so respectful to anyone?

Even the current Prime Minister, Zhang Julu, didn't have this privilege.

Xu Fengnian, still with his hand on the old man's shoulder, felt his body stiffen.

White Fox Face watched the scene with amusement, his peach blossom eyes filled with schadenfreude.

Xu Fengnian secretly glared at White Fox Face, slowly withdrew his hand, and put the books back in their place.

Xu Fengnian looked at Li Yishan, who had come down from the upper floor, and saw him smile and shake his head, indicating he had nothing to say.

The Great Pillar of the State and Li Yishan left together, and Xu Fengnian clearly felt the six guardians, each for different reasons, relax their tense postures.

White Fox Face mimicked Xu Fengnian's gesture, hooking his arm around the prince's shoulder and smiling, "He has a terrible temper. Be careful, or you'll be in trouble?"

Xu Fengnian tried to return the gesture but was dodged, and he awkwardly explained, "I heard wrong. He has a very good temper, very good."

White Fox Face left gracefully, climbed a ladder, and continued reading on the second floor.

In the end, only the prince and the cross-eyed old man remained, one confused and the other acting mysterious.

Xu Fengnian thought for a moment, feeling he had finally grasped the situation. He kept a distance from the mysterious old man and cautiously said, "Old brother, are you a high-ranking expert Xu Xiao invited to deal with the old demon sealed in the pavilion?"

The old man narrowed his eyes but remained silent.

Xu Fengnian, pretending to be worried, said mysteriously, "Old brother, this is dangerous. What did Xu Xiao promise you? If it's not enough, don't agree. The demon in the pavilion is incredibly powerful, with three heads and six arms, able to swallow clouds and spew mist, and move mountains and overturn seas!"

The old man, who was about to put the manual back, paused, then let go. Strangely, the book did not fall!

The cross-eyed old man turned and left, annoyed by Xu Fengnian's incessant chatter.

Xu Fengnian's face turned pale, muttering, "Please don't tell me you're that hellish old demon."

The old man's hoarse voice echoed in the pavilion, "How did the Butcher Xu Xiao end up with a son like you? Quite interesting."