The man in the blue shirt came over and questioned aggressively, “Which academy do you attend?”
Art required creativity and inspiration. Whenever he thought about the star courtesan’s farts, he felt the urge to just tear the painting apart.
Zhou Yi replied, “I have never been schooled. I’m just a butcher.”
Wang Hao whispered something into the man’s ears. Immediately, the man in blue seemed to calm down.
“You’re from the Demon Slaying Department. No wonder you don’t like Mingyue.”
The man in blue cupped his hands together in a polite manner. “My name is Wang Bo’an. I teach at the Jixia Academy.”
The Jixia Academy was the greatest of the Great Qian Dynasty’s Four Major Academies. The man looked to be only about 25 or 26; to be able to teach at the academy at such a young age meant that he must be a brilliant man.
“I’m Zhou Yi, Clerk of the Demon Slaying Department’s Resource Division.” Zhou Yi’s tone was cold and unwelcoming.
Wang Bo’an obviously knew that the woman dancing on the stage was a vixen, but he didn’t seem bothered by it. In fact, it seemed like he was actually more attracted to her.
Zhou Yi had been in the Demon Slaying Department for a long time and heard too many tales of demons feeding on humans. So no matter how he hard he tried to uphold his intentions to treat everyone impartially, he still had this natural disdain towards demons.
Of course there were good individuals among the demons, but there were more demons who violated the law and discipline. Overall, they were eyeball-to-eyeball with humans in a competition for living space.
After all, it’s not unreasonable to expect that one’s heart would deviate from those that are different from them.
Wang Bo’an straightened his clothes and sat down opposite Zhou Yi. He held his back upright and started speaking to Zhou Yi like a teacher would speak to a child.
“The Demon Slaying Department has always had a prejudice against the demon race. As the saying goes, heaven fosters all souls. Demons aren’t that different from humans. They are born and raised by their parents too. The Demon Slaying Department’s blind persecution of demons has only intensified the tensions between both races which is detrimental to the stability of our nation!”
“Hmm?”
Spirit light flickered in Zhou Yi’s eyes and yet, he could not see through Wang Bo’an’s Cultivation Base which was shrouded in a thick layer of Verdant Qi.
Those with Verdant Qi were the representation of fortune and were said to be blessed with good fortune and frequent promotions throughout their careers.
“What official position do you hold in the court, Brother Wang?” he asked.
“Imperial Scholar of Jing-Tai-Year 45th, Editor-in-chief of Hannin.”
“Ah, Editor-in-chief! Please forgive me for the discourtesy I’ve displayed just now!”
Zhou Yi immediately understood the source of his Verdant Qi. The Editor-in-chief of Hannin was no ordinary position. It was an eighth-grade official post with a future greater than that of the head of a county.
People in such positions dealt with core government officials on a daily basis, similar to the secretary of a prince. Should they be fortunate enough in their career, they could even be deemed an elder of the court.
Wang Bo’an said proudly, “I’ve been studying demons for a long time, and my previous piece of writing, ‘Ten Strategies to Comfort the Demons and the People’ was fortunate enough to gain the prince’s favor…”
Zhou Yi suddenly interrupted Wang Bo’an, “May I know your surname, and what position you hold in the court?”
“My father is the Secretary of the Minister of Rites…”
Wang Bo’an answered subconsciously. When he regained his senses, his face immediately flushed. “You… filthy butcher! Fools cannot be taught!”
He got up angrily and walked away.
“Huh huh huh.”
As Wang Hao listened from the side, she could not help but laugh like a silver bell.
Zhou Yi said, “Girl, shouldn’t you go and comfort him? Men also have to be coaxed.”
“Ah!”
Wang Hao screamed as her face turned red. She covered her face with her sleeves and ran away.
“Not too stupid I guess.”
As long as one were to cover their face, it wouldn’t be them who’d feel embarrassed.
Zhou Yi turned his head and looked at the stage. Mingyue, the star courtesan, had finished dancing and had invited a few talented scholars to come on stage to talk about poetry and songs.
“Who said that this Demon Fox isn’t going against the law…”
Through his spirit eyes, Zhou Yi clearly saw strains of Yang Qi converging into the star courtesan’s body.
Demon Foxes were cold in nature. They needed to absorb Yang Qi to reconcile their demonic aura.
Out of all the methods of absorbing Yang Qi, the fastest way was to hold in-depth conversations, followed by inhalation of essence and blood. Next, which was what the star courtesan was doing, was to use one’s charm to awaken their subject’s desires and draining their Yang Qi as if spinning silk from cocoons.
No matter what it was, the Law of Great Qian prohibited demons from absorbing Yang Qi to cultivate.
Zhou Yi waited till later that afternoon. Seeing that Zhang Cheng did not come down from upstairs, he left and returned to the inn.
Early the next morning.
Zhang Cheng arrived earlier than usual. Upon seeing that Zhou Yi was already on duty, he nodded in satisfaction.
“How did you feel yesterday?”
“I gained a lot of knowledge.”
Zhou Yi’s hand was writing non-stop. “I don’t feel that great about their star courtesan though.”
Over his two lifetimes, this was the first time he had delved into and experienced the mundane world of mortals. Despite the reputation of the Spring Breeze Court in the capital, he did not know that it was a top clubhouse or even where its entrance was facing during his previous life.
“Star courtesan Mingyue? What do you mean?”
Zhang Cheng adeptly poured hot water into a cup as he prepared his tea. A warm fragrance greeted their nostrils and dispelled much of the coldness of the underground.
As a layperson, Zhou Yi knew nothing about the art of tea. As he watched Zhang Cheng making tea in a way that seemed simple, natural, casual and relaxing, he made up his mind to learn the skill from him in the future.
Zhou Yi pondered over and over again before finally saying, “Star courtesan Mingyue is very similar to the demons in the dungeon.”
Zhang Cheng looked at Zhou Yi in surprise. “What a waste of such profound clairvoyance. There is indeed something off about the star courtesan, but it isn’t something we can interfere with.”
As he spoke, he handed over a cup of tea. “Here, have a taste.”
“Thank you.”
Zhou Yi said with doubt, “So, does the Demon Slaying Department know about this?”
“Anything that involves demons in the capital city is known to the Demon Slayer Department.”
Zhang Cheng carefully patched everything together. “However, according to the Law of Great Qian, there is no stipulation that harmless demons have to be killed.”
Zhou Yi took a whiff of the tea. He immediately felt more relaxed. He sipped on it the way Zhang Cheng did, and he felt the warmness rushing to his brain.
The spiritual Qi within the tea slowly nourished his mind, placing him in a state of twilight that was somewhere between drunkenness and soberness.
Zhou Yi could not help but let out a long sigh of comfort. “This is good tea. It actually makes me feel a little tipsy.”
“That’s normal. Why else would it be called the Drunken Spring?”
Zhang Cheng carefully put away the teapot. He said proudly, “This tea is harvested from the Mother Trees at the White Cloud Monastery. If it weren’t for our reputation, regular people wouldn’t even get to smell it.”
“Zhang, is it true that demons are allowed to live in Great Qian if they don’t break the law?”
Zhou Yi was thinking about Feng Ling’er, the little fox hidden in his sleeve. He didn’t think the fox had done anything wrong. Besides, it was half-human.
The nature of a half-human half-demon hybrid mostly depended on the strength of their parent’s bloodline. Its father was just a mortal scholar and therefore, Feng Ling’er’s soul was shaped like a fox.
“What’s the matter? Do you wish to raise a vixen?”
Zhang Cheng made a surreptitious wink and let out a laugh that any man would understand. Then he sighed regretfully. “Don’t even think about it. If it wasn’t for the support that the fox had, people would’ve already skinned her and turned her into a neck warmer.”
Everything became clearer for Zhou Yi. In Journey to the West, every demon that had support and backing was brought away while those who did not were killed.
Even the Monkey King vanquished demons according to their background, let alone the Demon Slaying Department.
Seeing Zhou Yi’s silence, Zhang Cheng emptied the spirit tea in his cup and begun humming and singing while tapping on the table lightly.
“Redeemed the Imperial Court I had with great ambition, I look around, that was just my mind’s empty illusion. Troubles I encountered while vanquishing demons, I look around, my heart is in bewilderment.
Alas! Am I of any use to this world? Secluded from the world, I ought to be.
Demons up ahead, surrender while you can—”
Zhang Cheng sang with joyful harmonies and a charming melody.
Zhou Yi was stunned. Calligraphy, tea making, singing; Zhang Cheng was just like an old guru who was full of surprising treasures.
If one were to think about it, one would understand that most cultivators who live long lives were proficient in lyre-playing, chess, calligraphy, painting, and drinking wine and tea. Only the art of poetry required more talent. It was not something that one could accumulate over time.
Singing, tea, drinking, brothels…
Zhou Yi was unaware of the lives the other top officials were living, but at least he knew that Zhang Cheng was having a great one. Occasionally, he would lament a hero’s twilight years, and in a blink of an eye, he would have rolled into a sea of stunners.
Zhang Cheng never followed through with the stance training that he had promised to teach Zhou Yi way back then. And no one knew whether he had just forgotten about it, or if he was feigning ignorance.