The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 179 - 158, The Third Debate with the Heavenly Master

"Brother?"

Qin Qiu looked puzzled towards the direction, barely making out two figures hiding in an alley off the street, seemingly in an argument.

"Shh." Zhao Douan’s expression was odd as he held skewered candied hawthorns, hinting with his eyes for his henchmen to wait, and he strode forward alone.

An old servant, approximately over fifty years old, stood in front of a boy of sixteen or seventeen, urgently saying,

"Young master, you mustn’t go forward!

Those are government officers from the Imperial Court, many versed in martial arts, the old master has already fallen, and even the dogs of the Imperial Court dares to search this private residence; you barely escaped, how can you reveal yourself now?"

The young man was wrapped in a coarse cloth and wore a bamboo hat.

At this moment, his eyes brimmed with tears, like an angry little lion, struggling to move forward, and upon hearing those words, he said,

"Uncle Wen, but my mother is still inside; now that my father is dying, if my mother falls into the hands of the court’s hounds, what chance does she have to live? Although I am young, as a son, how can I watch my own mother being captured and not risk my life to save her?"

The old servant still pulled him, desperately persuading,

"The lady is not the master’s official wife and doesn’t have a formal status; she won’t be implicated too heavily and may even avoid being sent into exile, but it’s different for you.

Young master, although you are illegitimate, you are still the old master’s blood; the government won’t let you go.

As the old servant, I have received the old master’s favor; staying here to watch the house and protect it, I should take you and flee far away to preserve a bloodline for the Zhou family."

The young man looked up to the sky and sighed deeply, his tears falling uncontrollably, already resolved to death:

"Uncle Wen, my mind is made up, I shall not abandon my mother and escape alone. You should leave."

The old servant was deeply moved and suddenly bit his teeth, making a tough decision:

"Young master, your martial arts are not yet accomplished, wait here and watch. I have received the old master’s favor, today I will sacrifice this life and forty years of martial cultivation to rescue the lady!

If successful, the three of us will meet at the southern pavilion temple in East City, if defeated, you must know not to fight against them forcibly and flee for your life quickly."

The young man was greatly shaken, muttering with his lips, and finally clasped his hands together and bowed deeply,

"Uncle Wen, your righteousness, if things do not work out, I will flee the city, devote myself to rigorous cultivation, and once I have achieved something, I will come back to take Zhao Douan’s head to avenge this day!

If I am no match for him, I will look for a chance to kill his household women; without avenging this, I swear I shall not be considered human."

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The old servant showed a relieved smile.

He pulled out a short knife from behind his waist, leapt up, and disappeared into the courtyard wall as if a man prepared to die.

After the man left, the young man’s expression turned cold, wiping away the tears from his face, his expression mocking and bitter, he spat out and cursed,

"That old dog is indeed easy to deceive, hmm, do you think I don’t know about you and that cheap woman getting together? Wanting to be my cheap father? Pah, what rubbish, it would be better if you were all dead."

Suddenly, he heard a voice praising,

"Wonderful! Truly wonderful, I did not expect every member of the Zhou family to be so formidable, Zhou Cheng is a bad one, and the illegitimate son he bore is venomous-hearted."

The young man was startled.

He turned his head and saw on the rooftop behind him, a handsome young man, one hand on the hilt of his sword and the other holding a bright red skewered candied hawthorn, slowly jumping down.

"You are..." the young man’s pupils constricted sharply, reaching for the dagger under his robe.

Zhao Douan smiled and said,

"Wanting to kill my entire family, yet you don’t recognize this officer?"

Without waiting for a reply, Zhao Douan drew his sword from its sheath, and suddenly a bright red splash stained the alley’s grey wall.

The young man’s head fell to the ground, slowly seeping red, its surface then covered with a layer of frost formed by freezing air.

It looked like a big, bright red hawthorn candied skewer.

"To eliminate the weed, roots must be dug up, or they will grow again when the spring breeze blows..."

Zhao Douan fell silent, shaking off the blood on his sword, slowly sheathed it, and felt that this newly acquired "Cold Frost Sword" matched his newly mastered frigid qi.

"Ah—"

Hearing the noise, Qin Qiu, who had come to investigate, kneeled on the ground with a thud, screaming out in fright.

Zhao Douan felt annoyed and casually stuffed the candied hawthorn into his mouth,

"Quiet."

"Mm..."

At this moment, several people leaped out from within the courtyard wall, with Zhang Han, an old acquaintance, at the forefront.

Zhang Han, with his impassive face, glanced at the corpse in the alley and frowned,

"Dead?"

"He tried to escape, but didn’t manage it," explained Zhao Douan, curious,

"What about the one who went in just now?"

After advancing in cultivation, his hearing had become even stronger; he hadn’t heard the sound of fighting.

Zhang Han indifferently replied,

"That Zhou family servant, after entering the courtyard, voluntarily discarded his knife and surrendered, saying he had captured Zhou Cheng’s illegitimate son and was outside, willing to use this man to offset his crimes."

Zhao Douan stared dumbfounded.

Zhang Han’s brow relaxed, and he ordered his men to drag the corpse away.

Taking out two heavy pearl-studded hairpins from his chest, he handed them to Zhao Douan,

"I was planning to give these to you back at the government office. It’s an unwritten rule at the government office that everyone gets a share when a household is raided; rest assured, these are clean items that have not been recorded. I heard Haitang say that the women in your family don’t have any decent jewelry."

Zhao Douan paused for a moment then cheerfully accepted.

Killing and taking bribes, the people outside were not unjust in their vilification of him.

On his way back, approaching a street corner,

Zhao Douan suddenly stopped and looked towards another direction on the street corner.

He saw another pair of master and servant quietly watching the Zhou Mansion being raided.

Xue Xuan, full of scholarly aura and with slightly thin skin, was nudged by Uncle Fu beside him. Turning his head to look over, he bit his lip and seriously gave a bow from afar.

"Brother, do you know that young lady? Should I invite her over?"

Qin Qiu, with the candied hawthorn in his mouth, made a fierce pose.

Zhao Douan gave him a glare, nodded to Xue Xuan from a distance, and turned to leave.

Both were onlookers of the Zhou mansion being raided; however, the two pairs of master and servant showed two entirely different attitudes towards him, as different as heaven and earth.

...

...

"What happened to Elder Son?"

Next to the carriage,

returning empty-handed from strolling around the jewelry store, You Jinhua, sharp in perception, noticed an anomaly in her stepson’s mood as he returned.

"Nothing, just... ran into a few colleagues," said Zhao Douan with a smile.

"That’s good," You Jinhua sighed in relief and then smiled brightly,

"We’ve strolled around, it’s time to go back."

Zhao Pan, fresh and refined like a flower, looked longingly at the jewelry store.

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But she didn’t say anything, graciously "Mhm"ing in response.

"You go back first, I’m going to wander off to clear my mind."

Zhao Douan said, reaching into his robe, he stuffed two warm and valuable hairpins into their hands, stating indifferently,

"Gifts from colleagues, wear them yourselves."

Saying this, he stepped forward and walked straight into the crowd,

Leaving You Jinhua and Zhao Pan standing there dumbfounded.

Mother and daughter, holding the pearl and jade hairpins in their hands, were lost in a daze.

A collection from the corrupt official Zhou Cheng.

With just one glance, one could tell they were even more precious than all the jewelry combined in that shop from before.

...

...

Zhao Douan clasped the black and red sword scabbard, walking through the marketplace.

Because of the Qiqiao Festival, many young women on the street stopped at the sight of him, some with flushed cheeks.

The Empress ruled the court, leading to a liberated atmosphere.

Walking out from the throng, Zhao Douan reached a secluded spot by a small stone bridge, now with a dozen or so women’s silk handkerchiefs in his grasp.

He sighed softly, tossing the handkerchiefs into the water under the bridge.

Then, he realized that this bridge was the very same one where Zhu Kui had committed suicide.

Self-mockingly smiling, Zhao Douan leaned on the railing, suddenly saying,

"Come out, you’ve followed me all this way, lurking and lurking, what kind of true being are you?"

Whoosh... A breeze blew by, stirring the willows on the riverbank.

In utter silence, a figure appeared beside Zhao Douan.

It was the tall and statuesque form of an elderly priest, dressed in plain cloth, with white eyebrows and beard, slender eyes, and a ruddy complexion.

"Old Wang?" Zhao Douan was taken aback for a moment, his tightly wound nerves suddenly relaxed, and he asked without words,

"Why is it you?"

The man known as "Old Wang," one of the four cultivators in the Heavenly Human Realm, as revered as an immortal by the common folk, Zhang Yan Yi, chuckled,

"Why can it not be me?"

Zhao Douan exhaled,

"I thought I had an enemy coming after me, I just couldn’t shake the sensation of being watched."

"Oh? Have you advanced to a higher rank? Heh, your perception seems to have strengthened somewhat," Zhang Yan Yi feigned surprise.

Clearly, with his cultivation, if he chose to hide, there was no way Zhao Douan could have sensed him; he had merely revealed himself on purpose.

"That’s natural, Your Majesty helped me advance personally."

Zhao Douan boasted,

"Give me two more years, and maybe I’ll even surpass you. Hey, let’s sit over there and talk."

Me, surpassed... Zhang Yan Yi smiled without replying,

"Alright."

...

...

At the tea stall.

"Here is your white tea."

The owner of the stall, carrying a tall-nosed tin teapot, called out and then cleared the space.

This was the third encounter between Zhao Douan and Zhang Yan Yi.

Compared to the first two times, there was less caution and vigilance.

After a bit of small talk, Zhao Douan praised the effectiveness of the Imperial Talisman and asked if Jin Jian had delivered his message.

Zhang Yan Yi nodded with a chuckle, asking about Zhao Douan’s recent state of affairs.

"...That’s about it," Zhao Douan picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said with a smile,

"But let’s not talk about me. Old Wang, you didn’t come here by chance today, did you?"

Zhang Yan Yi smiled,

"Last time, young friend, you discussed the indifference of the Heavenly Dao and proposed the profound concept of ’The Dao follows nature’, which was very insightful. I pondered this after returning and found myself unable to add or subtract even a half word; I deeply admire it. I came here today especially to seek your teaching."

Zhao Douan rubbed his fingers together with a smile,

"Sure, but about the price..."

Zhang Yan Yi laughed yet was frustrated,

"Old man is merely quoting a few of your lines, why so mercenary?"

Zhao Douan said seriously,

"Old Wang, you’re wrong. Since you cultivate the Heavenly Dao, have you forgotten? I once told you, the way of heaven is to take from those who have a surplus to give to those who do not. You are the one with the surplus, and I am at a deficit."

The Old Heavenly Master was left speechless, shaking his head while laughing and scolding,

"How could the Heavenly Dao be interpreted like that? The discussion of Dao among cultivators is a noble pursuit. Yet, in your hands, it seems like a transaction between merchants."

Zhao Douan stated earnestly,

"Do not think merchant practices are base, they’re a profound study."

The Old Heavenly Master chuckled,

"Fine, fine, I will not argue with you. These days, I’m composing a book for my disciples and am troubled over some phrases. If you could offer me some inspiration, you will be well rewarded."

Fine then... Zhao Douan reluctantly replied with feigned disinterest,

"What do you want to ask?"

Such an attitude, should the world learn of it, would surely cause countless people to beat their chests and stomp their feet.

To be able to sit and discuss Dao with Heavenly Master Zhang, such a chance is sought after by many strong figures but seldom bestowed, even to the Empress.

Yet Zhao Douan not only didn’t cherish it anxiously, he even looked like a miser worried about being taken advantage of.

The Old Heavenly Master wasn’t annoyed, smiling pleasantly,

"It’s not anything new, just that the younger disciples down there, despite understanding Cultivation, still can’t quite grasp the essence of Cultivation.

Like how you previously expounded on the meaning of ’Dao’, while I could comprehend it, many young disciples still can’t differentiate between Cultivation and Cultivation.

They believe that Cultivation is to serve the ’Heavenly Dao’ gods while Cultivation is to become a vessel for wielding the mighty forces of heaven and earth. What do you think of this interpretation?"

"Can’t differentiate between Dao and vessel?"

Zhao Douan contemplated for a moment, then remembered a phrase from Zhou Yi that seemed fitting. After pondering, he slowly recited,

"What is beyond form is called Dao, what is within form is called a vessel."

"Just like how a single yin and a single yang are what Dao is about, this is my humble view."

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