Unsheathed

Chapter 131(2): (2): Scholar's Disciple

The town was flourishing more and more by the day.

Aside from visiting the abandoned school daily to read, Cui Chan was still living in the Yuan Clan's ancestral residence. Every day, he would carry a chair to the edge of the residence's open-air area, and he would often stare into the distance in a daze for several hours at a time. Occasionally, he would pay a visit to the new school built by the Dragon Whisker Creek's Chen Clan, but those visits would always be very brief.

At this point, Wu Yuan had already been stripped of his role as kiln supervision official, and his successor was said to have been a young up-and-comer who was related to Pillar General Cao. In the Great Li Empire's imperial court, the Cao Clan and the Yuan Clan, the latter of which was the clan that Wu Yuan's father-in-law belonged to, were renowned enemies.

“In fact, the relationship between the clan was so terrible that physical altercations could easily arise between members of the two clans in any setting, and it was a common sight to see the two pillar generals hurling abuse at one another in the imperial court.

“The emperor was mostly quite tolerant of the two pillar generals, often playing the role of mediator, but at times, even he would run out of patience and tell the pillar generals to piss off back home to continue their argument there. For many generations, the two clans had been neighbors, and it was said that from a young age, the children of the two clans would learn to hurl all types of objects, such as bricks and rocks, into the neighboring yard.

On this occasion, Wu Yuan was visiting his teacher for guidance. "Teacher, the Ministry of Personnel has always been under the Cao Clan's control. Could it be that they're trying to transfer me back to the capital and relegate me to a post with no future prospects for a few years?"

"That's not the case," Cui Chan replied in an indifferent manner as he remained seated in his chair. "What do you think of Cao Ji's background and capabilities?"

A wry smile appeared on Wu Yuan's face as he replied, "His background is far superior to mine, and he's a very capable man as well."

"The fact that you're competing with someone like him indicates that you're no slouch yourself. Besides, you're the governor of Dragon Spring County, while Cao Ji is only the kiln supervision official. At the moment, the dragon kilns are back in operation, but only for the purpose of wrapping up some matters related to bonded porcelain, so the situation isn't anywhere near as dire as you think it is."

Cui Chan looked up at the sky as he continued, "Of course, the Cao Clan wants Cao Ji to use you as a stepping stone to reach greater heights, so it's up to you to thwart their efforts and become a firm obstacle in Cao Ji's path. If you're unable to do this, then I'm not sure the Yuan Clan would still be willing to let you marry their young mistress.

“On the contrary, it's clear that the Cao Clan has high hopes for Cao Ji, so if you can prevent him from rising up the ranks, then the Yuan Clan would perhaps even beg you to marry their young mistress."

Cui Chan took a glance at Wu Yuan as he mused, "It's only to be expected that His Majesty would afford different people different treatment, and he's always been quite generous toward the descendants of those who have made significant contributions to the empire. However, ultimately, the more capable one among the two of you will be the one who comes out on top."

Wu Yuan smiled as he replied, "I'm in a much better mood now after hearing what you have to say, Teacher."

A cold smile appeared on Cui Chan's face as he scoffed, "You're in a much better mood now, but what about me? What am I supposed to do?"

Wu Yuan offered no response to this, pretending as if he hadn't heard the question.

All of a sudden, Cui Chan brought up a completely unrelated subject. "What are your thoughts on the altercation between Ruan Xiu and that outsider?"

Wu Yue pondered the question for a moment, then replied, "While it's true that Ruan Xiu was a little excessive in her retaliation, that idiot was at fault for repeatedly harassing her. She issued warnings to him on several occasions before taking action, so it's hard to pick out much fault in what she did.

“We also have to remember what Ruan Qiong did to those cultivators who dared to peer into Jewel Small World from above. Ever since then, no more cultivators have dared to break the rules, and with a father like that, it's only to be expected that the daughter also has quite a fiery temper."

Cui Chan was starting to get disgruntled, seemingly frustrated by his student's foolishness, and he scoffed, "My esteemed Master Wu, can I trouble you to do some background research before you speak? Why was that idiot in the mood to be wandering around the town? Why did he just so happen to visit the shop that Ruan Xiu was managing on Dragon Riding Alley?

“Why was it that he was completely oblivious to her identity? And why did he make such a major transgression right when his clan was purchasing those mountains to establish ties with the Great Li Empire? Perhaps one or two of things could be chalked down to coincidence, but how could there have been so many coincidences taking place one after another?

“Do you not find that suspicious at all? There are countless foolish and perverted men in this world, yet we're talking about a young man who had the right to represent his clan here, and he possessed decent cultivation aptitude, so why has been struck by such misfortune?"

Cui Chan was speaking about this in quite a lighthearted tone, but Wu Yuan was listening with a grim expression, and it was quickly dawning on him that things weren't as simple as they seemed.

After pointing out the suspicious nature of the situation to Wu Yuan, Cui Chan rubbed his own cheeks forcefully as he heaved a forlorn sigh. "Come to think of it, I've been struck by even more misfortune than that perverted idiot! Wu Yuan, how about you stick your face over here so I can slap it a few times to vent my frustration?"

Wu Yuan was no idiot, and he certainly wasn't going to agree to something like this. "I'm going to have to decline, Teacher."

Cui Chan was furious to hear this. "A teacher for a day is supposed to be a father figure for life! Your personality is very much like mine, so you're most likely going to betray me someday as well. Once you're finished with everything here in Dragon Spring County, try to make the time to pay the capital a visit. Find the... the other me, and continue the discussion regarding constructing an academy on Cloud Drape Mountain."

Wu Yuan nodded in response, and there was no apparent change in his expression.

Cui Chan then waved a dismissive hand to shoo Wu Yuan away, and the latter promptly departed.

Aside from Cui Chan and the young boy, there was another person staying in the Yuan Clan's ancestral residence, and that was the boy by the name of Xia Yulu, the Lu Empire prisoner that Wu Yuan had brought back for Cui Chan in secret. The boy was 14 years of age with a tall and slim build that was not inferior to a young man's.

Furthermore, he was extremely handsome with skin as smooth and fair as jade. For some reason, Cui Chan changed his name to Yu Lu, and he was very reluctant to accept this change, but he had no choice but to do so.

Perhaps Yu Lu was elated to have been spared the terrible fate awaiting all prisoners of the Lu Empire, or perhaps he simply had a very energetic and cheerful personality to begin with. In any case, whenever he had some spare time, he would go through and clean the Yuan Clan's ancestral residence.

After cleaning the interior of the residence, he would even climb onto the roof to repair and replace the old tiles. If it weren't for the fact that Cui Chan had scolded the boy for causing such a ruckus, he would've most likely gone on to repaint all of the residence's walls.

All of the bowls, plates, and vases in the residence had been polished to a mirror-like gleam by Lu, and whenever Wu Yuan visited Cui Chan, he would always spot Yu Lu busy at work. Upon spotting Wu Yuan, Yu Lu would only smile at him from afar, holding his broom as he waited patiently for Wu Yuan to leave.

After politely accompanying Wu Yuan out of the manor, Yu Lu would set about cleaning up footprints, wiping down the chairs, and performing other tasks that were normally reserved for servants. Much to Wu Yuan's befuddlement, Lu seemed to thoroughly enjoy these tasks, and Wu Yuan couldn't help but wonder if this was because Yu Lu had gone insane from the stress and grief he felt from the fall of his nation and being reduced to a prisoner.

After Yu Lu had grown accustomed to his busy yet peaceful lifestyle in the manor, a secret letter appeared in Cui Chan's sleeve, and shortly thereafter, he brought another stranger back to the manor. This time, it was a slender young girl with a rather dark complexion. Her looks could only be referred to as below average, and she wore a stiff and wooden expression all day long. The only remarkable feature about her was her eyes, which were quite pleasant to look at.

Even in the face of the Great Li Empire's imperial preceptor, she remained as expressionless as ever, displaying no fear, nor any intention to suck up to him. This evoked a sense of admiration within Lu, and after learning that she was also previously a prisoner, he attempted to get closer to her.

Unfortunately for him, he was always stoically ignored, and to make matters worse, the girl was extremely terrible when it came to doing housework, having already broken many plates and bowls. In the end, Yu Lu was unable to tolerate her clumsiness any longer, and he told her to sit down and rest while he did all of the housework on his own, including buying groceries, cooking, and washing the clothes.

The girl was more than happy to accept this arrangement, sitting lazily on a chair every day, and one could easily mistake her to be the owner of the residence instead of Cui Chan. The girl didn't seem to appreciate Yu Lu's kindness at all, and she never even looked directly at him. Instead, she would only occasionally glance at him out of the corner of her eye with a hint of derision on her face.

One day, Cui Chan clapped his hands together and instructed, "You three, come over here."

Yu Lu, the girl, and the young boy did as they were told, gathering in front of Cui Chan.

Cui Chan cocked his head to the side as he inspected the trio, and in the end, his gaze fell upon Yu Lu as he said, "Yu Lu, from the very beginning, you were a pawn that I had set out to acquire. You are someone Her Majesty was determined to get her hands on, but at the moment, she's in a bit of a predicament, having been banished to the Palace of Eternal Spring to work on herself.

“After taking over the Green Bamboo Pavilion, the other me in the capital city of the Great Li Empire also took the liberty to send you to me as well. Essentially, I saved you from a terrible situation, so you should be very grateful to me. Given Her Majesty's tendency to always fully exploit those around her until they have nothing left, you would've most likely suffered just as terrible a fate as Yang Hua in her hands."

Cui Chan turned his gaze to the young girl as he continued, "What are you planning to call yourself from now on? Maybe you should completely change your name like Yu Lu has."

"I'll be satisfied as long as I can still retain the Xie surname, esteemed imperial preceptor," the young girl replied in a gentle voice.

Cui Chan thought about this for a moment, then chuckled, "Then how about you call yourself Xie Xie? What a fantastic name that is! You really should be thanking me." [1]

The girl remained as expressionless as ever, but her eyes were burning with fury, and despite her best efforts, she was unable to conceal the anger in her eyes.

"From now on, I won't be called Cui Chan, either," Cui Chan said in a forlorn voice. "You can call me Cui Dongshan if you'd like, or you can refer to me as young master."

A dejected look appeared on Cui Chan's face as he continued, "Yu Lu, Xie Xie, go and pack up your belongings. We'll be leaving tomorrow, and we'll travel southward along the main road to the border."

Neither Yu Lu nor Xie Xie raised any objections.

Cui Chan then turned to the other boy, who was looking at him with an expectant expression, and he said, "You stay here. You can go to the Chen Clan's school to study, or do whatever else you want."

An indignant look appeared on the boy's face upon hearing this, and he was just about to muster up some courage to beg Cui Chan to bring him with them, only for Cui Chan to yell with a menacing expression, "Get out of here!"

The boy was given a massive fright, and he hurriedly departed.

Cui Chan rose to his feet and made his way into a small study on the second floor, where he began to write a letter.

It was an extremely long letter that totaled close to 10,000 characters.

"Whenever anything is taken too far, it inevitably becomes detrimental. The Great Li Empire's imperial court holds scholars in excessively high regard. As a result, many sycophantic individuals have turned to poetry as a shortcut to kickstart their political careers. This type of political climate must be addressed.

“We cannot allow the imperial court to be full of incapable and superficial fraudsters who can do nothing but recite poetry. There must be an emphasis on pragmatism and practical ability. Regardless of who rises to claim the throne in the future, we cannot lose sight of the fundamentals required to attain the Great Dao.

“It is vital that we focus on substance over flair and ability over theoretical knowledge. Control over the imperial academy is also of the utmost importance. If the situation demands it, retracting the arrangements made by the Ministry of Astronomy in exchange for complete control over the imperial academy is an option that can be explored."

……

At the conclusion of his letter, Cui Chan suddenly hurled his brush onto the ground in frustration. "What's the point in writing all of this now? It's not like I'm me! You're not going to be affected by this at all, so of course you can say whatever you want! I can't believe you're so shameless that you would tell me to refrain from contacting you for now and fend for myself!

“How about you give me half of your wealth? As expected of a stingy bastard like you, old Cui Chan! You're enjoying life in the capital, while I have to serve as a lowly disciple! Why can't the gods just send down a bolt of lightning and put an end to my life?!"

Cui Chan suddenly burst into tears as he spoke, looking as if he were completely inconsolable.

1. The name that Cui Chan has proposed (谢谢, pronounced Xie Xie) literally translates to "thank you". ????