Seeking Truth with a Sword
Chapter 45 - 44 Companions

Chapter 45: Chapter 44 Companions

"Alright, coming right now."

Li Ang turned, took a towel from the rack, wiped his face briefly, straightened his clothes, then closed the door and followed Cheng Juxiu.

The two walked along a corridor overgrown with various vines when Cheng Juxiu casually asked, "How’s the review going lately? Are you confident?"

"Pretty good, I guess."

Li Ang hesitated and said, "It’s just that Wang Wenlun has so many books, and they’re quite exhausting to read."

"Haha."

Cheng Juxiu laughed. "You don’t need to worry too much about that. Professor Wenlun teaches national history at the Academic Palace. He’s a kind and honest man, not the type to deliberately make things difficult or seek fame by posing strange questions. If it were some other professor, it wouldn’t be so easy."

"Is that so?"

Li Ang breathed a sigh of relief, then curiosity sparked anew. From Cheng Juxiu’s tone, it seemed the Academic Palace wasn’t entirely harmonious; some professors weren’t well-liked by the students. Actually, this was normal. The Academic Palace gathered all of Yu Country’s material and talent resources. If there were no conflicts of ideology, faction, or interest, it would actually be rather strange.

"By the way, Senior Brother, how should I address your classmate?"

"Uh, her name is Han Qingyun. Just call her Senior Sister Han when you meet her."

Cheng Juxiu explained, "She is Middle Rank in the Cloud Patrol Realm, one rank higher than me. She is also one of the most promising among the younger generation to break through to the Candle Cloud Realm before thirty. For this reason, neither the Academic Palace nor the court has assigned her any tasks. She is allowed to follow her own heart, practicing Daoism in Fengjing Mountain’s Taoist temple south of Chang’an. We were teammates in the past and explored several secret sites of Former Sui Cultivation Sects together, so we have a good relationship. She might seem a bit cold and aloof on the surface, but she’s actually quite warm-hearted, so there’s no need to be intimidated. Ah, here we are."

Cheng Juxiu had clearly been to this hostel many times. He led Li Ang through various twists and turns to a quiet, secluded waterside pavilion near a pond.

The pavilion had white walls and black tiles. Light, translucent, goose-yellow curtains hung from the eaves on all four sides. On the ground was a low table with a full set of white porcelain tea service, complete with a tea tray and decorative rockery. A stick of incense lay slanted in a crevice of the rockery, its misty, coiling smoke lingering in the air.

However, what caught Li Ang’s attention was not this expensive tea set, worth at least five hundred strings of coins, but the woman sitting on a soft couch behind the tea table.

She was dressed in black-and-white Taoist robes. Her black hair was slightly swept up and casually secured with two plain iron pins. Although her face was slender and delicate, her Willow Leaf Eyebrows were as sharp as swords, giving the impression of being pricked by a sharp weapon at a single glance.

"Ju Xiu, take a seat."

The woman put down her teacup, a faint smile touched her lips, and the unapproachable aura around her softened slightly.

"Take a seat."

Cheng Juxiu sat down on the soft couch with Li Ang, took a sip of tea, and said, "Senior Sister, can you take a look at my junior brother’s Spiritual Vein Talent? I had a look when I was in Yizhou City. The trigram showed ’Convinced and Judgment’ and seven Spirit Veins, but it doesn’t seem quite accurate. And he also said that lately, when he circulates Spiritual Energy, he feels a pain in his head."

"Give me your hand."

Han Qingyun spread open her palm, and Li Ang quickly extended his hand.

Han Qingyun took Li Ang’s palm and drew two lines on it with her fingernail, one horizontal and one vertical.

Li Ang felt a nameless flow of energy rush into his arm from his palm. His entire hand grew slightly warm, and faint white threads even lit up beneath his skin.

"The trigram is still ’Convinced and Judgment’."

Han Qingyun’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. She put down Li Ang’s hand and said coolly, "It’s the same as your assessment: seven Spirit Veins, but one is located right here."

Han Qingyun pointed with her index finger towards the center of Li Ang’s forehead and continued, "Such a divination pattern is rare and not recorded in ordinary texts. You might find something in the *Taixu Miaolin Scripture* or the *Spiritual Treasure Wisdom Body Observation Scripture* at the Academic Palace Book Tower, assuming those books haven’t been borrowed."

"Is that so?"

Cheng Juxiu was slightly disappointed. "Well, good things often face setbacks..."

"Juxiu!"

Suddenly, a voice came from the other side of the corridor.

A thin, lanky scholar clad in a loosely fitted Confucian robe hurried over, looking rather flippant.

He first greeted Han Qingyun respectfully, calling out, "Senior Sister." Then, he turned to enthusiastically hug Cheng Juxiu, saying earnestly, "Juxiu, I have good news! I’m a father!"

"What?" Cheng Juxiu looked at his friend, shocked. "When did you get married? How did I not know..."

Before he could finish, Cheng Juxiu understood. Pretending to be annoyed, he chuckled and playfully punched his friend’s shoulder. He then turned to Li Ang and said, "This is my classmate from the Academic Palace, Ding Jingshan."

Li Ang cupped his hands. "Greetings, Inspector."

"Hey, I’m not qualified to be an Inspector." Ding Jingshan waved his hand amiably, dragging out his words. "Being an Inspector is for young talents like Juxiu. Me? I’m just a minor official."

"You call being a secretary from the Secretary Province a minor official?" Cheng Juxiu rolled his eyes and casually said to Li Ang, "He works at the Secretary Province. If you need anything related to books, he’s the one to ask."

"The Secretary Province?" Li Ang blinked. He had recently crammed on the bureaucratic structure of Yu Country. The rank of secretary from the Secretary Province was an upper sixth-rank post, responsible for overseeing the library’s four divisions. Even in Chang’an City, this was considered an official with rank. To put it in perspective, even a County Magistrate, responsible for managing tens or even hundreds of thousands of people, was only an upper sixth-rank official.

"My family arranged this idle post for me, basically just so I could secretly collect a salary. When I heard Juxiu was coming back, I scaled the wall to get out. No one in the Secretary Province even noticed." Ding Jingshan curled his lip, clearly unenthusiastic about his secretarial position. "It’s nothing compared to Senior Brother He. He’s now the Left Spring Palace Middle Officer."

Senior Brother He, He Siping. Li Ang recalled Cheng Juxiu mentioning him. He was a year Cheng Juxiu’s senior and now a High-level Cloud Patrol Realm practitioner, only one step away from the Candle Cloud Realm. The position of Left Spring Palace Middle Officer that He Siping held was an important post within the Crown Prince’s Palace. It was a lower fifth-rank post, overseeing the Crown Prince’s attendants and aides, and responsible for reviewing and presenting memorials. He oversaw the six bureaus: Scriptures, Meals, Medicines, Internal Affairs, Equipment, and Palace Gates. In other words, he served as the Crown Prince’s steward and assistant minister. If the Crown Prince were to successfully ascend the throne in the future, He Siping would undoubtedly become a high-ranking court official.

"By the way, I heard you’re back and will soon be helping Professor Gongyang build boats that can sail further into the Endless Sea. You might not return to Chang’an for years? That won’t do! We brothers rarely get to meet. Tonight, we must go to Zuifang Building and not come back until we’re thoroughly drunk!"

Ding Jingshan winked at Cheng Juxiu, then turned to Li Ang. "Well... young brother, you can come along to broaden your horizons too. Zuifang Building is a fine place. The ladies there can open your eyes to new experiences, making you realize what it means to be like the ocean, accepting all rivers, vast because of its capacity to..."

"Get lost, get lost! Don’t corrupt my junior brother."

Cheng Juxiu rolled his eyes, stopping Ding Jingshan from continuing his inappropriate remarks. Just as he was about to say something, the sachet at his waist began to vibrate intensely.