stonecrandall Chapter 113 The Ming Dynasty Court
Chapter 113 The Ming Dynasty Court
After the Songshan Sect members left in a sorry state, Liu Zhengfeng quickly walked up to Zhao Yu and bowed deeply.
"Young hero, your life-saving grace is something my family and I will never forget. From this day forward, whatever your needs are, I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"
Xiang Danian, Mi Weiyi, and other Hengshan disciples also stepped forward, bowed to Zhao Yu, and their faces were full of gratitude.
"Senior, there's no need for such formalities." Zhao Yu reached out and helped him up. "My help wasn't entirely without purpose. There are some things I'd like to ask Senior Liu for advice on."
Liu Zhengfeng immediately said seriously, "Young hero, please feel free to speak. As long as it is something I know, I will tell you everything without reservation."
"No rush." Zhao Yu waved his hand and looked at the crowd that had not yet dispersed in the hall. "You should take care of things here first, and we can talk later."
Liu Zhengfeng then realized what was happening, quickly turned around, and cupped his hands in greeting to the people of the Five Mountains Sword Sect.
Looking at these former comrades, he was momentarily at a loss for words.
"Brother Liu, you're confused."
Yue Buqun stepped forward, his face filled with anguish: "How could you associate with the elders of the Demonic Sect? If you make a mistake, not only will you be disgraced, but the entire Hengshan Sect will be implicated."
Liu Zhengfeng said with a wry smile, "Sect Leader Yue, things aren't as you think. Although Brother Qu is in the Demonic Sect, he has never done anything immoral. He is only focused on music, and his friendship with me is only to discuss the way of the qin and xiao, and he has never been involved in the conflicts of the martial world."
"Hmph! Those demonic cultists are all wolves in sheep's clothing; how can they be trusted!"
Daoist Tiansong snorted coldly and said sternly, "Anyone who belongs to the Demonic Sect is irreconcilably opposed to my Five Mountains Sword Sect. Brother Liu, if you are willing to associate with such people, I cannot interfere, nor will I resort to underhanded means to threaten you like the Songshan Sect did."
"However, I absolutely cannot attend today's ceremony. Farewell!"
After saying this, he cupped his hands in greeting to the crowd, and left without looking back, leading the disciples of the Mount Tai Sect.
Master Dingyi put her hands together and chanted a Buddhist prayer.
She looked at Liu Zhengfeng with a complicated expression and said, "Benefactor Liu, I know you are a person of great loyalty and righteousness. However, good and evil cannot coexist; this has been the rule for thousands of years. What you did today was indeed inappropriate."
"We, the Hengshan Sect, will now take our leave."
"Take care, nun," Liu Zhengfeng said, clasping his hands in greeting, his heart filled with bitterness.
Master Dingyi nodded, then turned to Zhao Yu and bowed respectfully with her hands clasped together: "Young Hero Zhao, thank you for your righteous help today. This humble nun takes her leave."
"You're too kind, Master." Zhao Yu returned the greeting.
The disciples of Hengshan Sect followed behind Abbess Dingyi and filed out.
Yilin walked at the back. She secretly raised her head, glanced at Zhao Yu, and said softly, "Goodbye, Young Master Zhao."
After saying that, without waiting for Zhao Yu's response, she blushed and ran out quickly.
Zhao Yu watched her retreating figure, then smiled and waved.
The guests in the hall also bid farewell to Liu Zhengfeng.
In just a short while, the once bustling hall became deserted.
Yue Buqun glanced at the empty hall, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Liu Zhengfeng, and said, "Brother Liu, things have come to this point, there's no point in saying more. Take care of yourself, and we'll take our leave now."
"Take care, Sect Leader Yue."
Yue Buqun nodded and led Linghu Chong, Yue Lingshan, and the others outside.
As she reached the door, Yue Lingshan suddenly stopped, turned around, and shouted loudly to Zhao Yu, "Brother Zhao! You must come to Mount Hua when you have time! I'll take you to see the sea of clouds!"
"Okay," Zhao Yu replied with a smile.
Yue Lingshan waved goodbye and skipped away after Yue Buqun.
Liu Zhengfeng finally breathed a sigh of relief after everyone had left.
He instructed his disciples to tidy up the hall, then gestured to Zhao Yu, "Young Master Zhao, the backyard is quieter; let's talk there."
Zhao Yu nodded and followed Liu Zhengfeng to the study in the backyard.
The two sat down as host and guest, and Liu Zhengfeng personally poured Zhao Yu a cup of tea: "Young Master Zhao, you can ask me anything now."
Zhao Yu picked up the teacup, took a small sip, then put the teacup down and looked at Liu Zhengfeng.
"What I want to ask is, how exactly did you obtain that rank of third-grade military officer? A third-grade military officer is no insignificant official; how did a江湖人 (jianghu person, a person from the martial arts world) manage to get it like that?"
"Oh?" Liu Zhengfeng was taken aback, clearly not expecting Zhao Yu to ask this.
He gave a wry smile: "I didn't expect you to be interested in this, young hero. Now that things have come to this, I won't hide it from you anymore."
"Actually, I had anticipated the movements of the Songshan Sect. After all, this place is the territory of my Hengshan Sect. How could Zuo Lengchan mobilize so many people without my knowledge? I know he has always coveted the Hengshan Sect and wanted to annex the Five Mountains Sword Sects. Now that he has retired from the martial arts world, he will definitely take this opportunity to make trouble."
At this point, Liu Zhengfeng's face showed a hint of lingering fear: "I just didn't expect him to be so ruthless as to actually dare to harm my family. If it weren't for your timely intervention, young hero, my whole family would probably be dead today."
He had long since disregarded his own life and death.
Having spent so many years in the underworld, witnessing countless battles and bloodshed, Liu Zhengfeng was no longer afraid of death.
But he couldn't let his family be implicated.
"So," Zhao Yu said thoughtfully, "this third-rank military officer is a fake. You plan to use the imperial court to intimidate the Songshan Sect?"
"Yes and no."
Liu Zhengfeng shook his head: "It can't be said to be completely fake. The imperial edict is real, the official titles are real, and they are all recorded in the court. I wouldn't dare to forge anything; rebellion is no joke."
"However, my position as a military commander is merely a nominal one. I have the title but no real power; I have no military authority and no salary. It's just an empty title. To put it bluntly, I bought it with money."
Zhao Yu nodded slowly, "That's right."
If Liu Zhengfeng was indeed a legitimate military officer of the imperial court, the court would not have remained silent after his entire family was killed in the original story.
Although the Ming Dynasty had begun its decline, it was not yet in its final years, and the court still held considerable authority.
Even those who use martial arts to break the law do so at a price.
"Who did you buy this official position from?" Zhao Yu continued to ask.
"I used my connections with the magistrate of Hengshan County and through the connections of Grand Secretary Yan in the capital."
Liu Zhengfeng said, "It cost me tens of thousands of taels of silver to obtain this imperial edict. I thought that with the court's name on my side, Zuo Lengchan would have some reservations. I didn't expect that he would not even put the court in his eyes. These tens of thousands of taels of silver have been wasted."
"Yan Song openly sells official positions, and the court doesn't do anything about it?" Zhao Yu frowned.
"Manage? Who's in charge?"
Liu Zhengfeng scoffed: "His Majesty the Emperor is only interested in Taoist cultivation and doesn't care about state affairs. As long as Yan Song pays the annual taxes, writes the petitions, and builds a few more Taoist temples for him, why would he care about these other things?"
"Moreover," Liu Zhengfeng lowered his voice, "I even suspect that a large portion of the silver I spent ended up in the emperor's private treasury. Otherwise, how could this imperial edict have come so cheaply?"