Shang Jingchuan sat in the sedan, and although the early spring weather was still a bit cold, he was sweating profusely in his thick official robes.
Even so, he was still unwilling to take off his official clothes. Instead, he sat upright, striving to display his authority.
At the same time, his mind kept replaying what he had seen and heard in court today.
Not only did he receive a private audience with the Emperor today, but he was also unusually granted a seat, and the Emperor inquired kindly about his experiences in Yunxiao County over the years.
All of this made Shang Jingchuan extremely grateful, and he was still very excited at heart.
Especially when leaving, the Holy Emperor reminded him to take this time to rest, as soon he would be entrusted with a heavy responsibility, leaving him no time to spare then.
The saying goes, "A scholar dies for a confidant." Having studied poetry and books for over half a lifetime, Shang Jingchuan had been waiting for this opportunity.
At this moment, the servant outside the sedan reminded him, "Lord Shang, we are almost home."
"Hmm!"
Shang Jingchuan responded with authority.
But immediately, the attendant’s words outside made him a bit defenseless.
"About the fare for the round trip..."
Shang Jingchuan was at a loss whether to cry or laugh, "I am the dignified governor of a county, an official of the imperial court, do you think I can’t afford this little fare? I’ll settle it once we get back."
"Please don’t be angry, Lord Shang, I didn’t mean it that way. It’s just that the sedan bearers under me need to eat, and I have no choice."
"Alright, alright, no need to explain." Shang Jingchuan interrupted the attendant’s words, somewhat annoyed.
"Yes!"
The attendant bowed and retreated, though he was actually a bit dismissive in his heart.
For he had seen many people like Shang Jingchuan in the past two years.
They were posted to an Outer Province for a few years, and due to the collapse of the situation, had to return to the Capital City to report their duties, hoping for a position from the Great Yan court, only to wait for years without any news.
After all, the Yan Capital City has nothing but numerous officials.
Various ranks of officials all eye a limited number of positions, and competition is extremely fierce.
Without connections or a fortune in silver, you just wait your turn at the back.
The attendant felt dismissive in his heart but did not show it at all on the surface.
The eight-bearer sedan swiftly and lightly turned around a long street, then entered Guangde Square.
When they arrived at the door, the sedan landed steadily, the attendant stepped forward to lift the sedan curtain, and then Shang Jingchuan bent over and walked out.
"Haha, Luoluo, you..."
He was eager to tell his daughter about today’s court happenings, but then was dumbfounded.
Because most of the courtyard wall of his small yard had collapsed, and through the gap, the courtyard was a mess, with blue stone slabs shattered all over the ground.
Shang Jingchuan stared blankly at the scene.
What happened here?
Was there a battle?
Would Luoluo be alright?
Thinking of this, Shang Jingchuan couldn’t care for anything else and hurriedly ran into the courtyard.
The attendant also saw the mess of Shang Jingchuan’s household, so he closely followed behind, fearing this "imperial court official" might make a run for it.
Upon entering the courtyard, Shang Jingchuan saw his daughter and Zui’Er standing safely under the eaves, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
He then noticed Zhao Ya standing at the foot of the steps chatting with two people.
Although Shang Jingchuan didn’t recognize Wang Tiancheng and Xu Niannian, from their attire and demeanor, he could guess they were Martial Dao experts.
"Ya, this...what happened here?" Shang Jingchuan asked.
Zhao Ya was a bit embarrassed.
After all, it was because of him that the Shang Family ended up like this, so he roughly explained, concluding with.
"Don’t worry, Uncle Shang, I’ll restore everything that was lost."
But Shang Jingchuan didn’t pay attention to these; his mind was full of the person Zhao Ya mentioned.
Yan Xizhao!
Although not a figure in the Martial Dao, Shang Jingchuan knew this name.
Especially these two days, the whole Great Yan court was abuzz because of this name.
Today, when he met the Holy Emperor, the Emperor mentioned this Celestial Beauty of the Great Yan royal family several times.
But he didn’t expect her to come to his house and have a duel with Zhao Ya.
And they fought to a draw.
How could Shang Jingchuan not be astonished by this?
At this moment, Wang Tiancheng and Xu Niannian stood up to take their leave.
They needed to return to Washing Sword Manor, as there were still many matters unfinished.
Zhao Ya didn’t insist on keeping them and just saw them off to the courtyard gate.
Wang Tiancheng cupped his hands with a smile, "Alright, Zhao, no need to see us off further. Better go back and tidy up quickly."
"Yes, the lady has been looking forward to you. After all, daring to take Yan Xizhao’s sword directly for the sake of a beauty, how could she not be touched?" Xu Niannian also smiled.
Zhao Ya knew they were talking about Shang Luoluo but didn’t explain much, just cupped his hands with a smile.
"Then I won’t see you off any further."
"Feel free to visit the Golden Saber Institute; I’ll welcome you anytime!" Wang Tiancheng said.
"The same at Wunian Academy!" Xu Niannian also conveyed his stance.
Zhao Ya nodded, "I will definitely come to bother you!"
"Farewell!"
The two of them leaped a few times and disappeared amidst the eaves and roofs of the Yan Capital City.
Zhao Ya watched them go, then turned back into the courtyard.
At this moment, Shang Jingchuan looked at Zhao Ya with a look of incredulity, "Just now those two were from the Golden Saber Institute and Wunian Academy?"
"Yes!"
Shang Jingchuan hesitated to speak, finally sighing.
"I’ll go find someone to fix the courtyard wall first."
"Hey, wait a minute, Lord Shang, our fare..."
The attendant, who had been following Shang Jingchuan, quickly spoke up when he saw him about to leave.
Shang Jingchuan was a bit embarrassed.
He wore official robes and didn’t have any money on him.
Fortunately, at this moment, Zhao Ya handed over a silver note.
"Is this enough?"
The attendant saw the denomination of the silver note and immediately beamed with joy.
"Enough, enough, more than enough."
"Take the money and leave."
"Yes, yes, you all are busy, Lord Shang, I’ll take my leave, just call me anytime if you need a sedan chair."
The attendant left cheerfully.
Shang Jingchuan said a bit painfully, "Why did you give him so much money? A round trip from here to the Imperial City gate in a sedan chair would at most cost twenty taels of silver, but you gave him thirty."
"I had no choice, that was already the smallest denomination."
Zhao Ya wasn’t lying about this.
After accumulating over this period, especially after looting a few corpses, although he didn’t acquire much cultivation resources, he did indeed gather quite a bit of gold and silver.
Just in gold notes alone, Zhao Ya currently had at least forty to fifty thousand taels, not to mention the silver notes.
While this may not seem like much compared to the wealthy families in Yan Capital City, it’s an unimaginable fortune for ordinary people.
Subsequently, Zhao Ya also gave Shang Jingchuan a thousand taels of silver, telling him to quickly find someone to repair the courtyard walls and stone tiles.
That amount of money would certainly be more than enough, and the remainder could be used to supplement the Shang family’s daily needs.
After all, Zhao Ya knew well that upon returning to the capital, both Shang Jingchuan and Shang Luoluo probably wouldn’t have had much savings left.
Shang Jingchuan took off his official attire, changed his clothes, and went out to find a bricklayer.
Zhao Ya and the others returned to the house.
Zui’Er was extremely excited at this moment, almost happier than winning a battle herself.
"Wow, Ya, you’re amazing! You actually broke that woman’s sword move with just one slash, can you teach me?"
"Sure, but you need to first master the White Crane Palm."
"Uh...actually, I don’t really want to learn that much. Are you guys hungry? I’ll go make some food!"
With those words, Zui’Er quickly fled.
Only Zhao Ya and Shang Luoluo were left in the room.
Shang Luoluo kept looking at Zhao Ya with a gentle, glistening gaze, and even after they were alone, she continued.
Zhao Ya felt a bit uneasy.
"Why do you keep looking at me like that?"
"Oh, nothing, just want to look," Shang Luoluo replied with a smile.
"Well, feel free to look then!" Zhao Ya replied candidly, leaning back in his chair and carefully inspecting his Meteorite Iron Saber.
This was a habit of his.
After every battle, he would thoroughly check his weapon to prevent any unnoticed damage that could cause problems during the next use.
This was a matter of life and death for him, so he couldn’t afford any sloppiness.
While he was immersed in checking, a fragrant breeze wafted over. He then saw Shang Luoluo come over, bending down to help him inspect his saber.
Their faces were so close that Zhao Ya could even see Shang Luoluo’s eyelashes clearly.
"Can I hold this saber for a moment?" Shang Luoluo suddenly asked, turning her head.
"Uh...sure, but be careful. The blade is very sharp."
Zhao Ya let go and handed the saber to Shang Luoluo.
Shang Luoluo reached out to take it. Even though she was prepared, her arm dipped under the weight, almost dropping it to the ground.
"So heavy!"
She struggled to lift it, attempting a couple of swings but finding herself unable to handle it, and couldn’t help but sigh.
Zhao Ya chuckled, "Yes, it really is...."
Before he could finish, Shang Luoluo suddenly put down the saber and kissed him on the cheek.
Though it was just a fleeting touch, the warm sensation was unmistakable.
Zhao Ya froze, and then Shang Luoluo whispered gently in his ear, "Thank you."
"Uh...there’s really no need for such formality, after all, I was bound to have a fight with that Yan Xizhao sooner or later. Sooner is better than later, especially since she just broke through and hasn’t fully stabilized her strength yet, which was a perfect opportunity for me."
Zhao Ya smiled, but his face showed a slight blush.
Shang Luoluo looked at him with a playful smile and suddenly said, "Strange, shouldn’t I be the one blushing? The way you’re acting makes it seem like I’m the one up to no good."
Zhao Ya: "..."
"Hehe, I’m going to help Zui’Er with the cooking, you take a break!"
With that, Shang Luoluo turned and left.
Zhao Ya sat in the chair, touched his cheek, feeling a bit puzzled.
Was he... just flirted with?
But he didn’t know that after rushing out of the living room, Shang Luoluo’s face had turned as red as her ears.
Despite her usual carefree demeanor, she was actually quite conservative. Before meeting Zhao Ya, she had never been alone with another man, let alone kissed one.
And this time, she initiated it.
That naturally left Shang Luoluo feeling incredibly shy.
While the matter with the Shang family was temporarily settled and the news of the encounter between Yan Xizhao and Zhao Ya hadn’t spread.
In Changping Square, Yuzhu Alley, Rao Mingyue bought the necessary medicinal ingredients as instructed by Mo Xu.
"Mr. Mo, I’ve got almost all the medicinal ingredients." Rao Mingyue said excitedly.
"Thank you for your effort. Did you buy them from different markets, avoiding Changping Square as much as possible, as I advised?" Mo Xu asked.
He looked frail, with a gray complexion and dull eyes, clearly having injured his fundamental Primordial Energy.
"Yes, I bought them exactly as you instructed, purchasing a little from each pharmacy, so they were spread out." Rao Mingyue replied.
"Good, though it’s a bit more troublesome, it’s safer and better for you as well. Next, follow my instructions to prepare these medicinal ingredients."
"Understood." Rao Mingyue nodded firmly.
After Mo Xu finished explaining the precautions for making the medicine, Rao Mingyue quickly had him lie down to rest while she took the medicine pot to a hidden spot in the back of the house to start brewing.
Mo Xu was staying in an unused woodshed in the backyard of a small residence, which was generally deserted and relatively safe.
Despite this, Mo Xu still felt uneasy.
He didn’t know why the Four Seas Gang had suddenly gone quiet, but he knew that once they targeted him, they wouldn’t give up easily.
So he was eager to recover, at least to the point where he could move, so he could leave and not bring trouble to Rao Mingyue.