Le Jianghu de Feng Qingcheng et Mo Xibei

Chapitre 13

"What is 'openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang pass'?" Two questioning voices rang out at the same time.

"The eighth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems!" he blurted out, noticing the even greater confusion on their faces. Then it suddenly dawned on him that this fictional dynasty might not even have had the Thirty-Six Stratagems. He quickly explained:

"To put it simply, my senior brother and I openly broke with the Emperor and left the palace. Then, we secretly cultivated new power and officials for the Emperor."

"Oh! That's quite a plan. You said there are thirty-six plans, so what are the other thirty-five?" Xuanyuan's interest in him grew even more. He hadn't expected that someone so young, who seemed to dislike medicine and martial arts, would know so much about the ways of rulers and ministers and so many ingenious strategies.

"Whatever else is unimportant. Let's talk about the details of how to secretly share the Emperor's burdens!" Getting past the Emperor was easy enough; she could simply say she'd learned the Thirty-Six Stratagems from her master. But getting past Qingfeng back home wouldn't be so easy. So, she immediately changed the subject.

Qingfeng, however, understood that she was using a feigned attack to advance her own plans. If he wasn't mistaken, her covert operation was to bring him, her senior brother, to Longmen to protect her. He simply couldn't understand why this woman, a palace maid deeply poisoned by imperial power, would so eagerly jump into a bloodbath and danger instead of seeking a safe haven and a peaceful life.

[Main Text: Chapter Forty - Cultivating Internal Energy]

A tranquil night, a sky without stars or moon. A silent maple forest, endless darkness without lights or fire.

Suddenly, two dark figures darted into the woods, their footsteps crunching on the fallen leaves and twigs, breaking the tranquility.

"Senior brother, seven days have passed. Tell me about the situation in the Eastern Palace, or let me go back and take a look! Although you have been handling affairs on behalf of the Emperor these past few days, aren't there still the Empress Dowager and the Imperial Concubine in charge of the inner palace? If they find out that the foolish Empress of the Eastern Palace is missing, that would be troublesome." Leng Jie pleaded for the ninety-eighth time.

“I’ve already said it, from the moment you joined the sect, you were just my junior brother, Wuming. What happened after you went mad is none of your business. You don’t need to worry about it,” Qingfeng replied for the first time.

"Sigh! That's progress. You finally managed to give a complete answer." Leng Jie muttered softly.

Seven days after returning from the medicine hut, Qingfeng had been ignoring Leng Jie. No matter what she said, he would only respond with a curt "hmm" or a "humph." He had clearly promised to open her meridians in three days, but he wouldn't mention it again. This greatly worried Leng Jie. She had made a solemn pledge before the emperor. In this ancient world where everyone could scale walls and leap across rooftops, she, like an eagle without modern equipment, would be a large bird with broken wings, waiting to be slaughtered, if she didn't learn light-footed martial arts.

"But you have to tell me how you solved it, right? I'm a party involved, I have the right to know!" Leng Jie pleaded pitifully again.

"Hmph! Did you even ask me, the person directly involved, when you sold me to the Emperor?" Qingfeng roared. The thought that she had decided his fate with the Emperor without his consent sent a surge of anger through Qingfeng.

"Sigh, how can a grown man be so petty! What's the big deal? Is it worth getting so angry? Besides, you originally wanted to go out and become an itinerant doctor to treat the poor people of the world, right? I was just suggesting that you make a commotion wherever you go, so that all the officials in the court and those people who need treatment can know your whereabouts at any time. It's not as serious as selling you out!"

Seeing that Qingfeng remained silent, Leng Jie coaxed him helplessly. "Besides, you've ignored me for days, and I've already been punished by facing the wall in repentance for a few days! You should be over it by now! Or, I'll recite the sect rules for you!"

She should have kept quiet; the more she spoke, the angrier Qingfeng became. He was angry at her ungratefulness, angry at her refusal to listen to advice, angry at how she had so skillfully persuaded Xuanyuan to actually hand over the Dragon Gate to her. What angered him most was that she actually said he had to teach her internal energy cultivation and lightness skills within a month. Then, she would take up her post, while he could retire and practice medicine. Did she think she was a god? She expected him to learn the skills he had practiced for over ten years in just one month. Thinking of this, Qingfeng was furious and coldly said:

"Hmph! Those rules were established so that you would follow them. Since you don't follow them, what's the point of memorizing them?"

"So what exactly do you want? You said yourself that once you join a sect, you can't leave. Are you trying to back out and stop teaching me martial arts?" Leng Jie's patience finally wore thin, and she asked angrily in a cold tone.

"Look at this! Is this how you treat your senior brother? It's utterly disrespectful! Did I say I wouldn't teach you? Did you think I called you here so early just to see the night view?!"

"You should have told me sooner! You made me worry for days." Leng Jie patted her chest, secretly relieved, and a smile naturally appeared on her face as she uttered sweet words:

"I knew I wouldn't misjudge people or choose the wrong sect. Senior brother is indeed a true gentleman, a man of integrity and a man of great character! Wuming has decided to include you in the ranks of idols!"

The first half of what he said was alright, but the rest was infuriating. He had already agreed to teach her martial arts, and now he was belittling him into being a puppet? Qingfeng roared angrily, "An idol? You think I'm a puppet?"

"Uh! When I said idol, I meant someone I admire! There's absolutely no derogatory meaning in it!" Realizing he'd used the wrong modern term when he heard Qingfeng's tone, he quickly explained. Seeing that the explanation worked, he couldn't help but tease, "Senior brother, you're so funny! It's a good thing you didn't interpret it as 'someone to vomit,' otherwise, I would have been in serious trouble."

"You admire me?" This person who always makes him look foolish, would admire him? Qingfeng asked incredulously.

"Eh! Senior brother seems to lack confidence? You are highly skilled in martial arts, have excellent medical skills, are handsome and elegant, young and promising, and keep your word... Look at all these qualities that I, your junior brother, can learn from and admire. How can you lack confidence!" In order to learn martial arts, Leng Jie once again used her silver tongue.

"Hmph, who said I lack confidence? I just don't believe you. Since I met you, think about it yourself, how many times have you spoken the truth? Not only do you speak one way to one person and another to another, but your appearance changes constantly. To this day, I haven't even seen your true face!" Although there was some complaint in his words, his tone was calm. Before Leng Jie could speak, he continued:

"Alright, enough talk, time is running out. Sit cross-legged like you did last time when you expelled the poison, and I'll open up your meridians for you. It might hurt a bit later, so you must bear with it. If your internal energy backfires, we'll both suffer from qi deviation. Do you understand?"

"Understood!" After answering, he immediately sat down as Qingfeng instructed.

Qingfeng sat down in the same posture, palms facing Leng Jie. He gathered his dantian energy in his palms and slowly channeled it into Leng Jie's body, from her arm to her dantian. Then, he guided the powerful true energy already within Leng Jie's body, directing it towards the blocked acupoints...

In a short while, cold sweat beaded on Leng Jie's forehead. His clenched teeth clicked. A surge of heat within his body, guided by the flow of his inner energy, rushed about, causing varying degrees of pain at each acupoint. Sometimes it was a burning, unbearable agony, like being engulfed in flames. Other times it was an icy, bone-chilling cold, like being plunged into freezing ice. And then there was the unbearable itching and pain, like a thousand ants gnawing at his heart.

"Heavens! Is this what you call a little pain? Even hellish torture wouldn't be this bad!" Leng Jie gritted her teeth, enduring the pain, and wailed inwardly.

Finally, the energy surged through the Tianzhu and Fengchi acupoints, passed through the Yamen and Houding acupoints, and reached the Baihui acupoint. Immediately afterward, Leng Jie felt as if a volcano, dormant for millennia and awaiting its eruption, was suddenly erupting above her head. A surge of heat, like rolling lava, flowed unimpeded through her blood vessels to every part of her body. Wherever the heat reached, there was first a burning pain, followed by a surge of vitality, as if injected with a stimulant.

"Alright! It's open! The true energy within you is at least sixty years' worth of cultivation. As long as you can control it freely, you might actually master it within a month. Remember the cultivation technique I gave you the day before yesterday? After you've regulated your breathing for a moment, circulate the true energy within your body twelve times according to that method." Qingfeng wiped his sweat and gently instructed. Seeing Wuming nod in agreement and diligently regulate his breathing, he warned again:

"After you finish your training, wait here for me to return from court so I can accompany you to the East Palace. If I find out you went to the East Palace alone, then I will deal with you according to the sect rules."

Without waiting for Wuming's reply, she stood up, brushed the debris off her clothes, and with a graceful sway, disappeared into the darkness.

[Main Text: Chapter Forty-One - A Brilliant Double Act]

Inside the magnificent, solemn hall, the atmosphere was now bustling like a teahouse or marketplace. Officials of all ranks were gathered in small groups, chatting about everything under the sun, from the most trivial matters to the most interesting stories of the time. They discussed which official had taken a concubine, which brothel had a new girl, which lord was henpecked, and which family had produced a spendthrift son. However, they never uttered a single word about any serious matters concerning the government or the people.

With a loud shout from the eunuch in charge of the ceremony

"His Majesty has arrived!"

The noisy scene immediately quieted down, and all the civil and military officials lined up in a row, each taking their place, and bowed and shouted in unison:

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Wearing a golden crown and a dragon robe, the expressionless emperor, accompanied by Eunuch Fu, strode slowly into the hall. His shrewd gaze swept over the kneeling ministers before he leisurely walked to the spacious dragon throne. He stood, sat upright, and raised his hand to indicate that he was exempt from formalities.

After all the ministers had risen, Eunuch Fu, who was beside the emperor, knowingly announced:

"The Emperor decrees: If there is anything to report, present your memorial; otherwise, the court is adjourned!"

"Your Majesty, this old minister has something to report!"

"Lord Shui, His Majesty said that if there is anything to report, please submit a memorial to the Emperor." Eunuch Fu reminded him.

"Your Majesty! This old minister wishes to ask: Why does Your Majesty not answer our questions in person? We have not heard Your Majesty's instructions for ten days. We are very uneasy!" After saying this, he glanced at the emperor's expression with one eye, while squeezing the other eye together to wink at the other officials.

For ten consecutive morning court sessions, the Emperor remained silent, and each day after court, he went straight to his study, claiming to be engrossed in reviewing memorials. However, he refused to see anyone. Even his favorite concubine and the Empress Dowager were kept out. This inevitably aroused serious suspicion among the perceptive ministers.

Immediately, several more officials chimed in:

"Your Majesty, please say something! We are deeply uneasy!"

After the officials finished speaking, they all stared intently at the emperor's expression. Seeing that his face remained unchanged, while the usually composed and prudent Eunuch Fu beside him looked tense, the officials seemed to have accelerated their speculation. A second-rank civil official with a large face and big ears pressed him aggressively:

"Could it be that His Majesty has a problem with his voice? If so, the imperial physicians must be summoned to treat him as soon as possible! How can our great Celestial Empire have an emperor who cannot speak? If other small countries find out, how will we save face?" The implication was that if His Majesty is truly mute, he should obediently abdicate!

The man on the dragon throne suddenly turned cold, his sharp, piercing gaze like two swords, directly striking the official who had questioned him. The official felt a chill run down his spine, stumbled, and knelt trembling, begging for mercy:

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger! This old minister was only worried about Your Majesty! I have absolutely no disloyal intentions!"

Seeing this, the others also knelt down. However, the doubts on their faces did not diminish as a result.

At this moment, the emperor's expression suddenly warmed, and he smiled, speaking in an unusually gentle tone, as if he were having a casual chat with everyone:

"Oh! Is that so? Worried about me? I must thank you all for your loyalty! But, I wonder what you gentlemen would like to hear me say? Let's start with you, Lord Huang! How is your Ninth Consort? Should I arrange for her to divorce your first wife, Lady Lin, who is preventing you from taking a concubine? And Lord Liu, has your young master's broken leg been healed? Should I call the imperial physician for you? Oh, and Lord Shui, is the new Hu concubine at the Grand View Garden as beautiful and gentle as our Consort Shui? Why not invite her to the palace so I can see for myself? Lord Wang..."

"Which other lords wish to hear me speak? I'll speak my mind all at once, and then settle your family affairs as well. Perhaps only in this way can you wholeheartedly serve the court, and only then will you know where disasters are occurring, where the people are suffering, where officials are neglecting their duties, and where..."

The ministers, who had been so aggressive just moments before, were now trembling with fear, cold sweat pouring down their backs, terrified by the emperor's soft words. They never imagined that every word of their casual gossip had reached the emperor's ears. In this situation, naturally, no one paid attention to anything amiss with the emperor's voice or lip movements. Instead, they prostrated themselves on the ground, repeatedly confessing their sins.

"We are guilty! Your Majesty, have mercy! We are guilty! Your Majesty, have mercy!..."

"Hmph! Those who are guilty, go to the Dali Temple immediately to receive your punishment! Civil officials will receive thirty strokes of the cane, and military officials will receive sixty. Eunuch Fu, go and examine the injuries. If anyone is found to have falsified the evidence, they will be punished for deceiving the emperor."

"Your Majesty, we thank you for your grace!" "This old servant obeys the decree!"

After expressing their gratitude, the pampered civil officials, supporting each other and trembling, cautiously left the main hall. The military officials, though not as frightened as the civil officials, were still drenched in a cold sweat.

Only Eunuch Fu was truly happy. This was the most exhilarating day he'd had in the three years since the Emperor ascended the throne, aside from the day of his coronation. Previously, all the officials in the court acted according to the whims of the Cold Prime Minister, and later, Minister Shui took over. In their eyes, the Emperor was nothing more than a figurehead. Today, Young Master Qingfeng had finally vented his anger for the Emperor.

After everyone had left the main hall, the person on the dragon throne suddenly called out to the area under the table:

"Come out! Everyone's gone."

After saying that, he stared blankly at a petite black figure slowly moving out from under the table, complaining as it did so:

"Ugh, why couldn't this table be higher?! I'm lying on it and can't move at all! Senior brother, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and help pull me out!"

"Uh! Oh!" Coming to his senses, the person reached out and picked up the dragon table in front of him, placing it aside.

With no obstruction, the man in black immediately bent his legs, straightened his back, and performed two backflips before landing gracefully.

On the dragon throne sat Qingfeng, impersonating the emperor. Although he possessed superb disguise skills, he lacked the ability to alter his voice. The emperor's voice was extremely unique, both clear and steady, both cheerful and ethereal, a contradictory combination, just like his appearance. Leng Jie had spent several hours with the emperor, and could only imitate his voice to about five or six tenths of its accuracy.

Therefore, for the past ten days, although Qingfeng sat on the throne in the Golden Palace in the guise of an emperor, he had not uttered a single word. Everything was handled by Eunuch Fu. Leng Jie, who had only learned of this situation the day before, immediately noticed something amiss. She wanted to discuss it with Qingfeng first, but he ignored her. She had no choice but to give up and leave it to him.

At midnight today, after Qingfeng opened her meridians, she intended to remind him to be on guard. However, before she could utter a sound, he vanished. So, after finishing her practice, she sneaked into the main hall and hid under the dragon throne to see what would happen. Unexpectedly, she overheard so many interesting things.

As soon as Qingfeng sat down on the dragon throne, he saw Wuming under the table. He was first taken aback, and then, following her instructions, he and Wuming put on a wonderful "double act". Qingfeng found their performance very amusing, especially the sight of the ministers with pale faces and trembling bodies as they thanked him; he almost burst out laughing.

But after laughing, Qingfeng's heart was filled with complex emotions. Putting aside the fact that only officials summoned by the emperor and those of the fifth rank or higher could enter this hall, her current full-body night attire meant that if she were discovered, she'd be arrested as an assassin! Thinking of this, Qingfeng's face darkened, and she adopted the imposing manner of a senior brother, coldly saying, "Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to wait in the maple forest? Do you want to experience the sect's punishment?"

"You only said I couldn't go to the East Palace alone, but you didn't say I couldn't come to the main hall. Besides, I helped you a lot! You don't even thank me, and you actually want to punish me! You're too ruthless!" Leng Jie looked at Qingfeng's constantly changing expression and replied nonchalantly.

Where did you get so much information about adults' shortcomings?

Want to know? Then come with me to the East Palace first.

[Main Text: Chapter Forty-Two: The Cicada Sheds its Shell (Revised)]

On an autumn morning, a thick frost and mist hung in the air. The entire imperial city was shrouded in a greyish frost, appearing exceptionally gloomy and melancholic. Pedestrians on the road could not be clearly seen beyond five steps.

The East Palace, with its extremely sparse population, stands quietly in the misty autumn frost, appearing lonely and desolate.

Nine days had passed without her return, and the Eastern Palace remained as desolate as ever. Leng Jie let Qingfeng use his light-footed skills to carry her over the palace wall, directly to the back window of her bedchamber. Having been away for so many days without any news of the Empress's disappearance, she had long suspected Qingfeng had done something. However, when she looked through the window, she was still startled by the scene before her.

Good heavens! Had she come to the wrong place? Was this even a place for humans to live? The room was a mess, with things scattered all over the floor. On the dragon and phoenix bed she had been lying on since arriving in this world, sat a woman dressed in phoenix robes that obscured her true face, her hair disheveled and unkempt, her gaze unfocused. Her hair covered her face, and apart from those unfocused eyes, she couldn't see anything else. But judging from her attire and figure, she should be a woman, right?

She was devouring a hard, cold, leftover steamed bun with relish. Crumbs of dough dripped from her mouth, falling all over her and the floor. She finished the bowl-sized bun in a few bites, then reached for a bowl of rice porridge on the bedside table. She dipped her other hand into the bowl to scoop out the rice and eat it. Rice porridge dripped down her sleeve and from the corner of her mouth…

Leng Jie suddenly felt a chill. She lowered her voice and muttered to herself, "Oh my god! This is what real stupidity looks like! It seems my acting skills aren't up to par. I definitely can't reach this level!"

Though the voice was soft, every word reached Qingfeng's ears, and he suddenly recalled the first time he saw her. He couldn't help but smile, glancing at the person beside him, then at the one inside. Then, he suddenly leaned close to Wuming's ear and whispered, "Don't be discouraged. You played dumb very well. When I saw you that day, I couldn't eat for three meals, but when I saw her several times, I didn't feel anything. That's enough to prove that you're much better than her."

"Uh! I'm stronger than her? That means I looked even more terrifying back then?" Thinking this, Leng Jie involuntarily shivered. Fortunately, she quickly realized she was being teased by Qingfeng. She turned to Qingfeng and made a super ugly, silly face.

In the past, Qingfeng might have found this silly expression disgusting and ugly. But now, he not only didn't feel that way at all, but actually found it very cute.

Seeing that Qingfeng wasn't intimidated by her expression, but rather blushed and almost burst out laughing, Leng Jie felt bored. Suddenly, she noticed the "pretending to be stupid" inside put down her bowl. She then unleashed the silver needles she had prepared beforehand, and the person fell dead upon contact.

She always wanted to return to the Eastern Palace, not to reminisce about her life as a foolish empress pretending to be insane. Chun Cui simply wanted to come back and take away some things that belonged to her. She thought that since she had taken what she had collected, it should naturally be hers.

Qingfeng had always believed she had returned to check on things because she was worried about her identity being exposed. He naturally assumed that once she saw someone had taken her place, she would feel at ease continuing to be his junior brother, Wuming. Therefore, when she suddenly pulled out the needles, he was stunned and didn't have time to stop her. The next second, the person sitting by the bed collapsed weakly onto the bed. And the person beside him had already leaped through the window and entered the room.

What exactly does she want? Is she still unwilling to relinquish the empty title of Empress? Qingfeng's brows furrowed, his lips turned down, and his face unconsciously darkened. He followed suit, leaping inside, and asked coldly:

"You want to stay?"

"Do you think I'm really stupid?" Leng Jie, busy tidying up and checking her belongings, didn't notice Qing Feng's strange expression at all. Hearing his question, she casually replied.

"Then what were you doing? Why did you poison her? She's just an idiot. If you don't want her to replace you, I can send her back to the Cold Palace," Qingfeng questioned angrily.