In his youth, Liao Dazhuang bore the moniker “Liao Da Dan,” or “Bold Liao.”

While others cowered from thieves, he dared to pursue them. When faced with injustice, he stepped forward. His bravery and tenacity brought about tangible improvements to Wa Yao Town, earning him the esteemed position of Pavilion Chief. These deeds, meticulously chronicled by Dong Bingrong, the City Lord of Tiannan, served as irrefutable proof that his appointment was not a matter of favoritism.

At this very moment, Liao Dazhuang entered the town hall. He had barely completed his obeisance before Hou Yuanwei, the County Governor of Huglong, seated below, impatiently inquired, “What is all that clamor outside, the wailing and crying? Who are those people?”

For the dignified County Governor to lose his composure so completely, the preceding wait must have been an agonizing ordeal!

Liao Dazhuang lowered his head, offering a humble reply.

He had brought them in: Zhang Cuihua and her son, Chu Yao; Zhang Cuihua’s aging father, elder brother, and sister-in-law; Zhang Hong, Zhang Cuihua’s younger brother, just released from prison; Zhang Hong’s wife, Madam Du; and even Madam Du’s several maternal brothers. To top it all, he had also rounded up Liao Guo, the gambling den owner who had swindled Zhang Hong blind, and who also happened to be Liao Dazhuang’s own clan nephew.

“In other words, everyone connected to Zhang Cuihua and Chu Yao’s current predicament has been rounded up in this short time, without a single soul missed,” Hou Yuanwei remarked with an air of detached amusement. “This reveals, Liao Dazhuang, that you are indeed a capable official!”

Liao Dazhuang’s knees instantly buckled, and he landed on the ground with a thud. “This humble official is incompetent, utterly incompetent!”

Dong Bingrong, upon seeing this, strode forward and delivered a swift kick. “If you were incompetent, would this old man have been so blind as to appoint you Pavilion Chief?”

He had, after all, held back, not daring to kick the man to death.

Liao Dazhuang rolled on the ground before scrambling back up, resuming his kneeling posture. He remained silent, his head bowed to the ground in a deep kowtow.

Hou Yuanwei, having lost interest in the two, turned away and addressed the figure seated above with practiced deference, “Marquis, if you would…”

“Let them enter,” the person on the high seat stated.

The voice was remarkably youthful, and surprisingly gentle.

Yet, for Liao Dazhuang, whose forehead was pressed against the cold stone floor, his heart felt even colder. By now, how could he possibly fail to discern the identity of this august presence? How many young Marquises could there be in the Great Qi Empire? And how could such a transcendent figure possibly be connected to Wa Yao Town, to that widowed mother and orphaned child?

At this moment, he felt the world spin around him, the many voices fading into a hazy murmur.

The eminent figure, who had arrived from the Imperial Capital overnight, spoke. Dong Bingrong, the City Lord of Tiannan, knew his place. Without awaiting the County Governor’s directive, he promptly exited the town hall and loudly declared, “Bring them in!”

None present were fools.

At the very least, the City Guard soldiers brought to Wa Yao Town by Dong Bingrong were not simpletons. Although Dong Bingrong had not uttered a single extra word, the City Guard soldiers’ attitude towards these individuals had clearly shifted when they were brought into the town hall.

Prisoners like Zhang Hong, still in shackles, and influential figures in the small town like the gambling den owner Liao Guo, were simply dragged in like dead dogs. However, to the ordinary Zhang Cuihua and the dark and thin Chu Yao, they offered polite phrases like “This way, please,” and “Mind your step,” their demeanor as solicitous as innkeepers, practically vying to carry them in.

But their understanding was clearly too shallow.

For when the disheveled and haggard Zhang Cuihua walked into the town hall, that Marquis of Military Achievement, whose name shook the very foundations of the world, actually rose from his seat and took the first step to welcome her!

“Sister Cuihua!”

Though a glimmer of expectation had resided in her heart, when her ears registered that phrase and her eyes beheld that person, Zhang Cuihua remained rooted to the spot, stunned. She had never imagined.

That figure, who had ascended to the highest echelons of the Empire, looked upon by myriad eyes, actually remembered that casual promise made years ago. He, a Wang Hou with a fief of three thousand households, had actually personally rushed to Wa Yao Town. He had actually called her “Sister”!

Even the most righteous figures in storybooks, if they cherished old friendships, would at most send a subordinate to handle matters or send a word of care. Yet, this person before her eyes…

He stood above billions of people in the world, he should be like a dragon or a phoenix, soaring through the Nine Heavens, yet he still remembered her and Chu Yao, like grey stones and broken earth, like withered grass and dust? One must know that even her own flesh and blood were unwilling to acknowledge her any longer!

“Sister Cuihua?”

Jiang Wang gently called out again, a smile playing on his lips. “What, only a few years have passed, and you no longer recognize me? Shall I reintroduce myself?”

He cleared his throat, and just as he had when they first met, cupped his hands in a polite gesture. “May I ask… are you Chu Haoxue’s family?”

Years ago, it had been the same person, the same question. At that time, this honorable figure had merely been a fellow laborer, subject to the same scolding.

Zhang Cuihua, momentarily dazed, tightly held Chu Yao’s hand. “Yes… yes, we are.”

Chu Mi had left when Chu Yao was less than two years old. Chu Mi had perished in the maze when Chu Yao was just seven. This year, he was already nine.

He had a pair of slender eyes, just like his father’s, and he looked at the man before him with a mixture of timidity and shrewdness. Chu Yao had been very scared these past few days. He had been driven out of his home by his grandfather, and his mother had moved into a dilapidated shack that offered little protection from the wind or rain. His mother had said studying would be a problem, but he wasn’t afraid of that. After starting school, he discovered studying was even harder than fetching tiles, and the teacher always seemed to hit his palms. If his mother hadn’t hit people even harder, he would have stopped going long ago!

It was Auntie who always brought people to cause trouble, every day there were crashing sounds, very scary. Several times they had even tried to hit him. But he thought of his father, a great hero, and he didn’t cry. He would pinch a handful of the small awls his mother used for making shoes every day and stay by her side.

When Auntie came to scold, he would scold back. He was very good at scolding, especially good at imitating Grandma Sun from the village entrance, using colorful language like “won’t lay eggs,” “born without an asshole,” “upside down collapsing old mother lying flat”…

When Auntie tried to hit people, he would shout for the officials. This was his first time in the Wa Yao Town Hall, it was so big, so grand. He was actually very nervous. He had never seen so many soldiers. And every single one of them wore armor and carried knives and spears.

His Uncle, who had such a foul temper, was kneeling. His Auntie was kneeling. Auntie’s fierce brothers, all of them, were kneeling with wilted heads and drooping brains. Even the Pavilion Chief, who had been so majestic and rounded up people everywhere, was now kneeling, his butt sticking up, not daring to lift his head.

Yet, he and his mother were standing. He was still young and didn’t quite understand the meaning of dignity. But in his heart, a profound sense of security had been born. All of this was due to the man before his eyes. This young, handsome, majestic, and kindly smiling man. Who… was he?

“I am your father’s good friend.”

Jiang Wang smiled at Chu Yao, then turned to Zhang Cuihua. “I told you initially, Sister, that no matter what grievances you and Chu Yao suffered, you only needed to come find me. Have you forgotten, Sister? Or perhaps, you do not consider Jiang Wang a friend?”

Standing to the side, Dong Bingrong looked at the dishevelled mother and child with a complex expression. This hall full of people, this whole town, including the County Governor himself, who dared to consider the Marquis of Military Achievement a friend? Who was worthy? At this moment, he could have killed Liao Dazhuang, and he wished he could slap himself several times. He had a true deity under his jurisdiction, yet he had been unaware and had not offered worship. It should have been a blessing, instead it had turned into a disaster!

Because she had always done manual labor in Wa Yao, Zhang Cuihua’s skin was not good, her face was chapped, and she looked much older than her true age. Yet, her eyes were remarkably clear. She spoke earnestly to the eminent figure from the Imperial Capital, “It is not yet the time of insurmountable hardship. These are all minor matters now! I can still work, I can still raise Yao’er.” Her voice softened. “My husband fought desperately for this opportunity, I do not dare to use it lightly.”

If Jiang Wang had visited Zhang Cuihua and Chu Yao in Wa Yao Town when he was merely a young man from Qingyang Town, bringing news of Chu Haoxue’s death, it would have been understandable for Zhang Cuihua to feel uncertain about the future. But later, he had seized the title of the First Leader of the Yellow River, his name known throughout the nation. Then, he had been ennobled based on his military merit, his fame reaching every corner of the world. Yet, Zhang Cuihua had never sent Chu Yao to seek refuge, a clear indication that she held her own convictions.

She was a woman of immense determination, otherwise she would not have waited for Chu Mi for so many years. Jiang Wang was very willing to respect her decisions, and thus, he had only visited again in this situation.

“I regard Chu Haoxue as an elder brother, and for his wife and child to suffer grievances and be bullied, this is no small matter,” he said, turning his gaze to Hou Yuanwei, the County Governor of Huglong, who was now standing to the side. His voice was not loud, but every word struck like a heavy hammer. “This is a blow to this Marquis’s face.”

Hou Yuanwei’s cold sweat immediately broke out.

With a thud! Dong Bingrong, even more directly, knelt down, his knees cracking the ground tiles. “The common people under my rule are suffering from bullying, and as the City Lord of Tiannan City, I bear the primary responsibility! I beg the Marquis to temporarily take my head, and I shall certainly provide an accounting for this matter!”

And that Liao Dazhuang, renowned for his “boldness,” who had been kowtowing incessantly, suddenly went limp and fainted!

“Marquis, Marquis!” Zhang Hong, kneeling on the ground, trembled with fear.

Zhang Hong’s wife, Madam Du, somehow found the courage to suddenly shout, “There is a misunderstanding in this! We are all Chu Haoxue’s family, we are our own people! I even cooked for him!”

Jiang Wang’s brows furrowed visibly.

Hou Yuanwei immediately stepped forward, pointing at the woman. “Ignorant village woman, what audacity do you have to randomly claim connection to a noble! Come, cut out her tongue!”

The armored soldiers to the left and right immediately drew their swords and advanced! Madam Du’s face turned pale with fright, and she covered her mouth in terror.

Jiang Wang simply raised his hand, halting Hou Yuanwei’s eager display.

“I already know the entire story, right and wrong. I do not need to listen to their quibbles, nor do I care if they can concoct some hardship or excuse,” he said, looking at Chu Yao. He smiled and reached out. “Come here.”

Zhang Cuihua loosened her grip on her son’s hand and gently pushed him forward. Chu Yao, a little uneasy yet bold, reached out his hand.

And was held. His small, thin hand was held by that slender, powerful one. He felt that the hand holding his was warm, very powerful. It felt as though it could take him to any place in this world.

He no longer remembered what his father looked like. But wasn’t this the feeling when those little playmates who had lost a fight, crying, were picked up by their fathers?

Jiang Wang, holding Chu Yao, turned to Zhang Cuihua and said, “How these people are dealt with today, Sister Cuihua, is up to you. Avenge enmity, repay grudges. Any grievances you have suffered, you need not endure any longer today…” He smiled. “Just consider it helping me regain some face.”

“Can I?” Zhang Cuihua asked.

Jiang Wang raised his hand in a gesture of invitation. The entire hall was silent, no one dared utter an extra sound. Zhang Cuihua seemed to understand the weight of that single word, “Marquis.”

She turned, walked slowly several steps, stopping before her aging father, who was still kneeling on the ground. She looked at these bewildered old people, trying hard to keep her voice steady. “When you were gravely ill, your two sons, your two daughters-in-law, were all waiting for you to die… It was me.” She pointed to her heart. “It was this daughter, struck by your hoe, who took out the silver saved for Yao’er’s studies to cure your illness! You cursed me often, I did not reply. You hit me often, I did not hit back. You even drove Yao’er away… Father, you no longer have a daughter after today!”

Having said this, she turned and walked away, without looking at the old man’s expression.

She walked to her elder brother. This timid, cowardly man was already shedding tears, his face contorted in a grimace. Zhang Cuihua raised her hand, and he flinched.

Zhang Cuihua ultimately did not deliver a slap, but pointed at his nose. “Brother, in vain I call you Brother, in vain Yao’er calls you Uncle! Your wife you do not control, your younger brother you do not control, your father you do not control, your sister you do not control.” She gritted her teeth, her voice almost squeezed through them. “You pretend to be a good person in everything, you are a shrinking turtle in everything!”

Having finished her scolding, she withdrew her hand in frustration. She bypassed her sister-in-law, who offered an awkward smile, and walked further. She stopped before her younger brother, Zhang Hong, who was still wearing shackles. Having spent several days in prison, he looked particularly pathetic at this moment. He raised his head to look at his sister and stammered, “Sister…”

Zhang Cuihua simply slapped him, gritting her teeth. “That was my son’s study money!” Zhang Cuihua, who often worked in Wa Yao, burning and moving tiles, had hands as rough as bricks, hardened by calluses. This slap knocked out one of Zhang Hong’s teeth! But Zhang Cuihua ignored his face and delivered another slap! “That was my son’s study money!” She ignored it again, another slap! “That was my son’s study money!!” After three such slaps, Zhang Hong’s face was covered in blood, several front teeth missing.

Zhang Cuihua did not look at him, but turned her head to look at her sister-in-law, Madam Du. Madam Du was already crying, tears streaming down her face, but she dared not make a sound, afraid of having her tongue cut out by the armored soldiers beside her.

Zhang Cuihua did not hesitate, walked forward, and delivered a slap. Along with the crisp sound, she shouted with force, “My husband was not a coward!” She delivered a slap with her right hand, then one with her left. “My husband did not abandon us, mother and child!” “My husband was a good man!” “Chu Yao has a father, his father is named Chu Haoxue!”

After several such slaps, Madam Du collapsed directly to the ground, and Zhang Cuihua herself gasped for air. After a while, she withdrew her hand and turned back.

“Anything else?” Jiang Wang asked.

Zhang Cuihua thought for a moment, then pointed at Liao Guo, the gambling den owner who was kneeling on the ground. “This person often sets up gambling traps, acts as a banker, and lends money at high interest, harming countless people! If such a person is not punished, Wa Yao Town will never have peace!”

“How do you wish to punish him?” Jiang Wang asked.

Zhang Cuihua shook her head. “I am a country woman, I do not understand the laws of Qi, I do not know how he should be punished. Let the officials handle it.”

Jiang Wang said in an unwavering voice, “I said, you can choose how to punish him.”

Zhang Cuihua only replied, “The Marquis pities us, mother and child, and decides for us. But I understand nothing, how dare I sully the Marquis’s reputation?”

Jiang Wang asked again, “Is there anyone else?” He emphasized, “Anyone who has committed a wrong should be punished.” This included the Pavilion Chief, the City Lord, the County Governor; he would support Zhang Cuihua in questioning all of them today.

But Zhang Cuihua only shook her head. “My vision is limited, I do not understand the affairs of officials, I do not know what is right, what is wrong. If they have done wrong, the Marquis will handle them, and the law will punish them. Those few slaps were only for the grievances I suffered and the fright Yao’er endured.”

Jiang Wang sighed. “Sister, although you have never cultivated, your realm is already higher than many… I am still accustomed to you calling me Brother.”

“Respect and humility are in order,” Zhang Cuihua said. “You may be easy-going, I cannot be presumptuous. No matter how much my deceased husband did, your personal visit tonight has already repaid everything. After this, we are only indebted to you.”

“How can it be repaid?” Jiang Wang’s eyes were complex at this moment. He patted the back of Chu Yao’s head. “I plan to take this child as my disciple, I wonder if Sister agrees?”

Zhang Cuihua was both surprised and overjoyed, and quickly told Chu Yao, “Quickly kowtow to your master!” Chu Yao was a clever child, he turned and knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Jiang Wang. The young child did not know how to express thanks, so he kowtowed very hard, hitting the ground tiles with a loud thud, and clearly said, “Master!”

Jiang Wang only received this kowtow, then helped him up.

Hou Yuanwei, standing to the side, said, “The Marquis of Military Achievement taking a disciple, this is a great matter! It is a great joy for my Huglong County! Wa Yao Town must have accumulated how many years of virtue to produce such a dragon! Please allow this humble official to make arrangements in the county city, invite guests from all directions, and have good friends and companions witness this, to fully express this congratulatory sentiment!”

This ability to turn a funeral into a joyous occasion was truly worthy of a County Governor. Only Dong Bingrong, who was still kneeling and hadn’t yet stood up, looked on with a mixture of surprise and admiration.

But Jiang Wang simply waved his hand. “Let us not dwell on these formalities. The bond between master and disciple will develop through future interactions, it is not dependent on such ceremonies.” He specifically pointed at Liao Guo, Liao Dazhuang, and the others, and told Hou Yuanwei, “Remember to handle these people, these individuals, according to the law. What the law dictates, so shall it be.”

Hou Yuanwei immediately thumped his chest in assurance. “I will certainly investigate thoroughly and act impartially. There will be absolutely no arbitrary judgments, nor any leniency!”

“This humble official is willing to guarantee this with his head!” Dong Bingrong declared decisively from the side. One wondered how many heads he possessed, to offer them as guarantees so readily.

Fortunately, Jiang Wang had no intention of making things difficult for them. He simply stroked Chu Yao’s head, rubbing away the swelling on his forehead, and asked gently, “Would you like to follow Master to Linzi?”

Chu Yao didn’t have time to feel the magic of cultivation techniques; he turned to look at his mother. Jiang Wang also looked over. “Sister, why don’t you come too? Chu Yao is still young, he shouldn’t be separated from his mother.”

His own mother had passed away when he was very young. His aunt had not treated him badly, but it was not that same intimacy. The loneliness he and An An had experienced was an unchangeable fact. He did not wish for Chu Yao to endure the emotions of his own childhood. Cultivation, though a solitary journey, left some regrets that could never be filled, no matter how long one cultivated.

“The Marquis’s great kindness and virtue, we mother and child truly do not know how to repay,” Zhang Cuihua said, then moved to kneel and bow. “Please receive this bow from me!”

Jiang Wang immediately supported her. “Chu Haoxue is my good friend, and Chu Yao is my disciple, so we are family. You can just call me Brother from now on, Sister, no need to be so polite.”

“Is there anything you want to pack?” he asked again.

Zhang Cuihua shook her head. “There is nothing at home.”

Jiang Wang then raised his hand and conjured a cloud of qi, lifting Zhang Cuihua and Chu Yao together. Without leaving a single word for Wa Yao Town, they simply flew out of the town hall and headed straight for Linzi. For many people in Wa Yao Town, this was nothing short of a second legend of ascension. Perhaps years later, there would be another rumor—”In Wa Yao Town, there was a scholar named Chu Haoxue, who sought immortals and pursued the Dao, not returning for seven years… Upon his return, his entire family ascended.”

Both Zhang Cuihua and Chu Yao were flying in the sky for the first time, and they were inevitably nervous. Jiang Wang spoke about various things to ease their mood.

“Linzi is actually not particularly special, it’s just exceptionally large.”

“What does three hundred and twenty li around mean? It means with your short little legs, you would run around the city wall for three days and three nights and still not complete a single circle.”

“There are a lot of people in Linzi, and when there are a lot of people, there are many fools. The bad people are particularly bad, and the good people are very good.”

“Hahahaha, everyone in the Marquis of Military Achievement’s residence is a good person!”

“Later, when you study in Linzi, study hard, and don’t bully others. But if others bully you first, just hit them back. If you can’t hit them, come back and tell Master, and Master will help you hit them.”

“What do you mean, ‘can’t hit them’? That doesn’t exist.”

“Hahahaha, I am not the world’s first! You can’t say that casually in Linzi, there’s someone named Jiang Mengxiong, who has a bad temper. The people your Master can’t defeat won’t have children in the same school as you, so you can rest assured. But again, I emphasize, no bullying others.”

Chatting like this, they flew back to the Marquis of Military Achievement’s residence. The sky was still not bright! Chu Yao, who had clamored to see how high the Linzi city wall was, had already fallen asleep halfway.

“Eh, eh, eh, why are you back again? Do you have any conscience left? If you hadn’t run away, I would have been ready to run to the Mingkong Cold Mountain!” Chongxuan Pang, drawn by the commotion, rushed out. “How did you leave for a trip and bring back two people, and a child at that!”

Jiang Wang first kicked Chongxuan Pang back, instructed the steward Xie Ping to arrange for Zhang Cuihua and her son to rest, and then dealt with Chongxuan Pang separately.

“Let me tell you, remember that time on the Horizon Platform…”

They flew to a sky they had never reached before. They saw a grand city they had never seen before. They lived in a luxurious house they had never lived in before. Even the small courtyard where she and her child temporarily resided was larger than the courtyard where her entire family had been squeezed together before.

That place was the poor and desolate Wa Yao Town, and this was Linzi City, where every inch of land was worth a fortune. The Marquis of Military Achievement was of course a good person, and the Marquis of Military Achievement was very good. But Zhang Cuihua understood even more clearly, how could anyone in this world be good to you without reason?

What price had that timid, trouble-averse, never-provoking-trouble Chu Haoxue paid for this?

She lay on the beautifully carved bed, covered by a silk quilt. The material of the quilt was smoother than the surface of oil, it felt like lying in a cloud. All of this felt like a dream. But Yao’er was sleeping soundly, his face content, a relaxed smile on his lips. How real that smiling face was.

She looked at her son’s sleeping face. Tears suddenly burst forth.

When her son’s study money was stolen, she hadn’t cried. Because she wanted to get that silver back. When her own father drove her out of the house, she hadn’t cried. Because she wanted to take care of her son. Holding her son in the room, listening to the sounds of insults outside, the sounds of banging on the door, she hadn’t cried either. Because if she was afraid, her son would only be more afraid.

She, who worked like a man, who worked tirelessly to ensure her child was fed and clothed. No matter how much she was bullied, no matter how many grievances she suffered, she had never shed a tear.

In this night of noise and eventual quiet…

She silently wept.

—Author’s Note—

One chapter is for the grand alliance leader Yan Shaofei (73/78).