Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

No true battle had taken place at Tanzhe Temple, but the dangers hidden within had been more frightening than the vast majority of the world's battles.

On that day of autumn rain, the Imperial Court and the Orthodoxy had moved far too many experts, so it was simply impossible to conceal news of this event.

The people very quickly found out that Tie Shu had returned from the Southern Sea, and they even knew that he had come to the capital and wanted to kill Wang Po. Simultaneously, they also confirmed Wang Po's objective: he had come to kill Zhou Tong. Most importantly, the people finally confirmed that the fissure between the Imperial Court and the Orthodoxy was growing deeper and deeper. A major problem could occur at any time.

In the coup of the Mausoleum of Books, these two great powers had worked together with complete sincerity. Just a few days later, they were now running against each other, a most incomprehensible matter. Now, however, everyone clearly understood why.

Because of Chen Changsheng.

No one noticed the cold wind rising up from the bottom of the New North Bridge, nor did anyone know what Chen Changsheng was thinking.

He never left the Orthodox Academy. He quietly sat by the window in the library, reading books, not looking out the window, not asking about what happened beyond it.

Many people speculated that the Divine Empress's body had probably been buried by him in the Orthodox Academy, but no one had any proof.

Even a powerful figure like Eunuch Lin had retreated in low spirits, and the Li Palace had clearly displayed its stance, so who would dare forcefully intrude into the Orthodox Academy to conduct a search?

The Imperial Court did not continue to send down decrees asking for the Orthodox Academy to bring out the Divine Empress's body, but everyone knew that this matter would not come to an end like this.

Many people did not understand why Chen Changsheng wanted to act this way, including many important personages of the Orthodoxy, such as Daoist Baishi.

If it was just for the sake of the right to inherit the Orthodoxy, then with the Pope's decree, he only needed to choose the appropriate moment to display his goodwill to the Imperial Palace, and the Imperial Palace was certain to withdraw its original plans.

But he did not receive a decree, nor did he request a decree to enter the palace, nor did he have anyone pass a message to the Imperial Palace. He had remained silent.

At present, the entire world knew that he was a descendant of the exiled imperials, that his body held the blood of the Chen clan, but he was not the Divine Empress's son.

In the past few years, there should also have been no affection between him and the Divine Empress.

Why did he defy three successive decrees? Why did he want to display his disdain for the Imperial Court through his opposition to Zhou Tong? Why was he using his silence to contend against his own teacher?

Xue Xingchuan was already buried, and while Xue He had been escorted back to the capital and jailed in Zhou Prison for various complex reasons, his life was probably in no danger. The Xue Estate had returned to tranquility, but no one had forgotten that during the unrest that had taken place at the funeral the Xue Estate held a few days ago, many factions had sent a representative. Was this out of consideration for the old government, or enmity for the new? Was it reverence of the Pope, or a challenge to Shang Xingzhou?

If this were still Tianhai's government, Zhou Tong would certainly have used this matter to stir up a great storm, but now he was acting completely out of character, maintaining a strange silence.

Anyone who knew that a figure like Wang Po was hiding in the capital and could at any time walk out of some random tea shop on the side of the street and send a blade glow flying at them would probably be as silent.

Significantly, in the past few days, Zhou Tong stopped staying at the Imperial Palace as he had done in the first few days and returned to the alley of the Northern Military Department to begin overseeing matters once more.

"Tie Shu is probably close by. He will be constantly guarding Zhou Tong."

Su Moyu continued, "He will wait for Wang Po to reveal his blade, and then kill him. This way, he will not be violating the oath to the starry sky. Neither the Pope nor anyone else will be able to punish him."

The chilly autumn breeze blew in through the window, rustling the pages of books, yet it was unable to cause the slightest change in Chen Changsheng's expression.

As he watched the silent and unspeaking Chen Changsheng by the window, Su Moyu inwardly sighed and said, "It's truly a pity about that day at Tanzhe Temple."

On that day, if the Li Palace had been willing to pay everything and killed Tie Shu in the autumn rain, their problems now would not be so intractable.

Chen Changsheng's gaze remained on his book. "That day wasn't good for killing."

Su Moyu understood that he was speaking about the princely carriage on the cliff and replied, "If Zhexiu had been supervising the affair, he would still have done it."

If they were willing to pay everything, there was no need to fear the princely carriage and the thunderous hooves beyond the mountains.

"How could the Storms of the Eight Directions be so easy to kill? Even if we succeeded, the Li Palace would have to pay an enormous price."

If Tie Shu had really been killed on that day, just which one of the four Prefects of the Orthodoxy would have been able to walk alive out of the autumn rain?

As Chen Changsheng perused his book, he added, "And it would throw the world into chaos."

Su Moyu argued, "If Tang Tang were supervising the matter, he would still insist on doing it, because the esteemed master of the Dao would also probably not want to see the world in chaos. Thus, he would choose to kill."

Chen Changsheng did not believe that the matter would develop as Su Moyu or Tang Thirty-Six believed.

The Li Palace had wanted to kill Tie Shu for the purpose of protecting Wang Po.

Wang Po's purpose in coming to the capital was to kill Zhou Tong.

Zhou Tong was a person the Imperial Palace had to protect.

Wang Po was a person the Imperial Palace had to kill.

Chen Changsheng was keenly aware that for the sake of these four statements, his master would be willing to throw the world into chaos, and also…

"Martial Uncle wouldn't act this way."

He raised his head and gazed out the window at the bleak and indifferent autumn as he said, "Because he is not that sort of person."

The Pope was a powerful man who cherished the world.

But he was not a hero, much less a ruthless man of ambition.

When he gazed at the stars, there would be things that he revered, and he wanted to protect Chen Changsheng and Wang Po.

But he also did not want the world to fall into chaos, for the people to be cast into misery.

For him to keep the situation in the capital at a level where it could still be controlled was already extremely challenging.

And for the person sitting across from him at the chessboard?

The Imperial Palace was very quiet. Many people in front of that palace hall had seen the silhouette of Shang Xingzhou cast by the lights in that room, but nobody knew what he was thinking.

Shang Xingzhou was probably doing something, but nobody knew what it was.

Just as it was in the coup of the Mausoleum of Books and the rebellion of Xuelao City, his silence was often a prelude to a sudden clap of thunder.

No one knew where Wang Po was either.

The entire world knew that he was in the capital and wanted to kill someone, yet no one was able to find him.

He had vanished, but a restaurant in the southern part of the city had gained an accountant from Wenshui.

……

……

The autumn deepened over the capital, continued to deepen, deepened until it had reached the greatest extreme. The chill pierced into the bones, but fortunately, the liveliness in the air and the lanterns and colored banners decorating the streets somewhat diluted the cold.

The confluence of the north and south, this grand event anticipated by all, had finally been formally announced, and the celebration was about to take place.

This celebration was grand to an unprecedented scale, both a celebration of the success of the confluence of the north and south, and also an attempt by the new government to completely wash away the odor left behind by the Tianhai Divine Empress.

The diplomatic mission from White Emperor City arrived at the capital a few days before the festivities. Of the White Emperor couple, only one came in the end.

After engaging in a heaven-shaking battle with the Demon Lord, the White Emperor had also suffered significant injuries. The one to come was his empress, the Chief Princess of the Great Western Continent.

Many people cast their gazes towards the Orthodox Academy.

Everyone knew that the Orthodox Academy had always had an extremely close relationship with the demi-humans, and Chen Changsheng was even Princess Luoluo's teacher.

So what sort of effect would the arrival of the demi-human diplomatic mission have on the situation in the capital?

To this question, not even Chen Changsheng knew the answer.

On the day the diplomatic mission arrived in the capital, he put down the book in his hands for the first time, took a bath and changed his clothes, and then waited for the arrival of an old friend.

An old friend truly did come. However, it was not Luoluo, but Jin Yulu.

"Her Highness is currently at a critical moment of breaking through and could not leave. I encountered Xuanyuan Po on the road. He had suffered significant injuries and required rest, so I could not bring him back."

Jin Yulu looked at him, patted him on the shoulder, and then sighed.

'Could not leave', 'not able to be brought back'.

Chen Changsheng felt quite sad.