Nobody knew what the other people from Dazhou thought, but now at least two people in Shaoliang City were unwilling to surrender. It was natural for the emperor to be unwilling, but Li Fuyao, who was born in Luoyang City and had grown up in Dazhou, was unwilling to surrender not just because of Dazhou.
He had a wish since long ago to make the noblemen in Luoyang City unhappy. If he knew that the noblemen in that city had gone much farther after he went there someday, he didn’t even mind changing the word “unhappy” into more words.
They couldn’t stay alive.
But currently, this swordsman in the first stage looked at the sudden spring rain outside the window and shook his head helplessly, “You said that there are more than ten cultivators, so there must be so many. Now I am worried that the emperor won’t be able to resist but would yield first. Earlier, he appeared to be broad-minded, but in fact he has never been in such an emergency. Plus under the pressure from the imperial court, he must be indecisive, so shall we inform him? Although we can’t get any profit, it’s good to make him steadfast.”
Qing Huai didn’t comment but just watched the rain outside and stated calmly, “It’s raining, so the soldiers would slow down, and those cultivators always live in comfort, so they would walk quite slowly or even stop. If the emperor of Dazhou hasn’t given up, he would transfer the army in the south to the north. If we hope that Dazhou wouldn’t be destroyed, we should start as soon as possible besides killing all the cultivators.”
Li Fuyao furrowed his brows, “How soon?”
“We’d better set out today and kill all the cultivators before they cross the Luosang River. But as you said before, the one in Yanling would be unhappy and send other cultivators next time. Then we would take them seriously.”
Qing Huai stared at Li Fuyao. Now the young girl was serious and didn’t joke at all.
Li Fuyao nodded to show that he understood and then asked, “Can you leave one or two of the more than ten cultivators to me? I can’t cope with more. I just want one or two, can I?”
Qing Huai stretched out her arms, “Why?”
Li Fuyao laughed, “Although it’s fun to see somebody bully others, it’s more fun to do it by myself. Like the men in the town said, it’s not satisfying.”
Qing Huai nodded in an instant, “Those cultivators are at the lowest stage, not powerful in the human world, but since they started cultivating, they are different from ordinary people. You swordsmen are good at fighting against the rivals at the same stage. The first three stages of the cultivators from the three religious sects are vague and nobody knows how powerful they are. Maybe some of them are cultivators at the same level as the swordsmen at the third stage, the Sword Qi Stage, but most of them must be in the first or second stage. It must be no problem if you deal with one or two of them.”
After being assured by Qing Huai, Li Fuyao stopped worrying and took off the machete from his back, wiping it carefully. He didn’t say more and then went to bring a brush pen and some ink, planning to write a letter. His handwriting was beautiful. When he was in Baiyu Town, he worked as a storyteller every day and also wrote family letters for others occasionally. A family letter should be written neatly, so he practiced writing and could write well. In the beginning, he practiced writing in order to make a living, so his handwriting looked prim but ponderous. Later, he lived a better life and wrote more casually. At least he thought it was pleasant to the eye.
However, as soon as he picked up the brush pen, he was numb. What should he write?
After a pause, Li Fuyao put down the brush pen and asked, “How about you write?”
Qing Huai snorted and pretended that she didn’t hear.
She had never written in the demonic land. Moreover, her handwriting was so terrible that even she was unwilling to look at it. How would she embarrass herself?
Li Fuyao went back to the seat helplessly and grabbed the brush pen again. This time, he put away the pen and ink after writing just a few words simply.
After sending the short letter to the shop of white fungus porridge, Li Fuyao returned to the hotel and then went out of the city with Qing Huai. It was troublesome to walk while holding an umbrella, but it was better than being wet. When they got out of the city gate, they saw many armed soldiers of Dazhou. Logically, in Shaoliang City where everybody was supposed to be restless, they should see many different scenes, but in fact, except for the long queue in the military government in the west of the city, nothing had changed.
“To be honest, I kind of like this place,” Walking on the street, Li Fuyao spoke casually.
“The soup buns taste good,” Qing Huai rarely echoed him.
The two cultivators, one from outside the human world, and one different from the cultivators of the three religious sects, really had independent characters.
While walking, Li Fuyao thought of the map of Dazhou he had read before and expressed impassively, “It will take more than ten days to reach the Luosang River, but we should walk as quickly as possible. Otherwise, I am worried.”
Qing Huai turned her head, “About what?”
“I am afraid that we can’t get there in time.”
Qing Huai glanced at Li Fuyao, as if looking at an idiot, “If you want to get to the Luosang River now, you can make it in at most half a day.”
Li Fuyao frowned and wondered if she hadn’t taken out something in storage.
Seeming to see through Li Fuyao’s mind, the girl explained, “If you reach the Dawning Stage, it would be not difficult to walk ten thousand miles one day, but I am still at the Fundamental Stage now and can walk at most several thousand miles per day. And it’s more challenging when I take you with me, but you know that not all the cultivators in the world are as stupid as you swordsmen who have nothing special except a sword. For example, as for the little things I bring, I can walk one thousand miles after smashing one. The Luosang River is only eight thousand miles away from here, which means that I can reach there as long as I smash more than ten of them.”
Li Fuyao was excited to hear that, but soon he asked worriedly, “This kind of magic tool must be rare, right?”
Qing Huai nodded and answered seriously, “Yes, it’s rare, so I don’t have many.”
Li Fuyao asked cautiously, “How many?”
Qing Huai sighed gently, “Only about ten thousand.”
Li Fuyao almost fell on the street. Ten thousand was not many? Now he understood why Qing Huai didn’t worry that she couldn’t reach Liangxi before late spring. That was the reason. With this stuff, how would she need to make efforts?
After they left the city, the rain became heavier. Li Fuyao held the oil-paper umbrella and asked, “How about we go to the Sword Mountain directly?”
But as soon as he finished his words, Qing Huai disagreed, “We can finally fight. Why would we go to the Sword Mountain?”
Li Fuyao just felt a headache and thought, “It’s fine that you are unreasonable. Why do you like fighting?”
The imperial court session in the Moral Hall was over long ago. The emperor returned to the imperial study of the Evergreen Palace to check the reports from the officials. Now Dazhou hadn’t been destroyed and he was still the emperor, so he naturally couldn’t slack off.
Moreover, there were countless trifles all over the country waiting for him to handle. How could he be indifferent?
Under the precarious situation, it showed the importance of the emperor.
The manager of the Ceremony Department, Su Jin, waited outside the imperial study since the emperor got up, and after the imperial court session was over, he waited here for half a day. This leader of more than ten thousand eunuchs was old now, but he didn’t look tired at all after standing outside for half a day.
It was rare these years that he stood outside the imperial study but didn’t hear the one inside curse anybody. The ambitious ruler never minded showing his love or hatred for some official, but now he didn’t make any sound, and Su Jin couldn’t hear any of the names which were mentioned frequently at ordinary times.
Su Jin sighed and watched the spring rain, thinking of the country’s history of more than two hundred and seventy years. Somehow, his eyes were red with tears. Su Jin was a eunuch, but he was also a member of Dazhou.
After a short while, a young eunuch ran over to the imperial study from outside. After saluting the manager respectfully, the young eunuch took out a letter from his pocket and gave it to Su Jin. Then he ran away once Su Jin nodded.
As one of several people who knew everything about the emperor leaving the imperial palace that day, Su Jin was naturally clear about what that teenager meant to the emperor. Two pieces of news from outside the palace would probably become the emperor’s last straw.
Su Jin didn’t dare to think too much and soon gently knocked at the door of the imperial study.
The emperor gave him a response immediately.
Su Jin said with great respect, “Your Majesty, the teenager you have seen before has left Shaoliang City, but before leaving, he sent a letter into the palace and asked you to read it in person.”
The emperor in the imperial study kept silent for a long time before responding peacefully, “Bring it in.”
Su Jin pushed the door and came in, to see the emperor sitting beside the window, who looked as usual, but with pale lips, showing his fatigue.
Receiving the envelopment, the emperor didn’t open it at once but asked, “When did the teenager leave Shaoliang City?”
Su Jin lowered his head and answered, “When the imperial court session was over.”
The emperor nodded and then gestured for Su Jin to go out. After the eunuch went away, the emperor started to look at the envelopment.
While checking the envelopment, the emperor looked bitter and thought, “You believe that you are not from Dazhou, so you abandoned me and left?”
But soon the emperor talked to himself, “Since you are not from Dazhou, why should you risk your life for the country?”
When the emperor opened the envelopment and looked at the yellowish paper, his eyes lit up all of a sudden.
It was like a dry wood came to life again.
He didn’t say anything but suddenly began to laugh heartily.
There was only one sentence on the paper on the table, “Kill cultivators by the Luosang River.”
The emperor looked at the handwriting on the paper twice and praised sincerely, “The handwriting is so f**king…beautiful.”