Zhang San, please behave yourself!
Chapter 284 - 273: Everything is Destiny’s Arrangement!

Chapter 284: Chapter 273: Everything is Destiny’s Arrangement!

My name is Zhang San, and I was sent by the Town Martial Office as an undercover agent to the Heavenly Punishment Sect. Right now, I am freaking out.

Because I discovered that my amnesiac predecessor seems to have been the Saint Heir of the Heavenly Punishment Sect.

Many sects do not pass leadership from father to son or from teacher to disciple. Instead, they select the most promising young people within the sect for training, eventually choosing one among them who could succeed in the future.

This is what it means to be the Saint Heir!

Of course, the fact that the title "Saint Heir" exists is enough to demonstrate the power and dominance of the Heavenly Punishment Sect.

So, at this moment, the amnesiac Zhang San, sitting in the position of the Saint Heir, felt like the chair was poking his butt.

"Folks, I must confess that I have lost my memory. I don’t remember anything about the past. Am I really the Saint Heir of the Heavenly Punishment Sect? Could you all double-check? My name is Zhang San," he said.

At that moment, an old granny with fresh flowers in her hair, sitting closest to Zhang San, smiled and said, "Saint Heir, your name is indeed Zhang San, and you are the Saint Heir of our Heavenly Punishment Sect. I watched you grow up from a baby; there’s no mistake about it."

At this moment, Zhang San felt even more uncomfortable in his seat.

"What should I call you, Granny?" he asked.

"I’m Granny Dou, but everyone calls me Pockmarked Granny."

Suddenly, Zhang San thought of something and couldn’t help but ask, "Wait! If I have always been the Saint Heir of the Heavenly Punishment Sect, then why do I need to undergo a test to join the Heavenly Punishment Sect? And this test isn’t easy either!"

Pockmarked Granny laughed and said, "Saint Heir, this was the plan you left before you left. All we are doing is following it. You said that no matter what happened, everything should go according to the plan you set."

Zhang San curiously asked, "Then what is my plan?"

Pockmarked Granny smiled and shook her head, saying, "I only know a part of the Saint Heir’s plan. The complete plan is known only to you, the Saint Heir."

The end.

Zhang San initially wanted to take the opportunity to gather some intelligence, perhaps even take advantage of the situation to gain some benefits. But he ended up not even knowing what his predecessor had arranged.

This damn predecessor, quite clever indeed.

At that moment, Zhang San thought of what Bai Yucheng had said before disappearing.

Could it be that I actually collaborated with Bai Yucheng?

Suddenly, right behind the central chair, a door-like panel was pushed open.

This was the first time Zhang San had seen a design with a door behind the chair. Following that, an old man stepped through, closed the door behind him, and walked past the chair to sit down in front of everyone.

In the hall, everyone unanimously shouted, "Greetings, Sect Hierarch."

In the whole hall, everyone bowed their heads in deep reverence.

The only exception was Zhang San, who was sitting in the Saint Heir’s chair, looking at the old man beside him.

The old man looked confusedly at Zhang San for a moment, then suddenly slapped Zhang San on the head.

"Are you stupid? Don’t you know to greet the Sect Hierarch when you see him?"

Zhang San said blankly, "I’ve lost my memory. I don’t remember who I am, nor do I remember you. Isn’t that normal?"

The Sect Hierarch, upon hearing this, did not seem very shocked but nodded slightly, saying, "I warned you before that your plan to infiltrate the Town Martial Office was dangerous. But you wouldn’t listen. Now do you see the real danger? It’s okay, even with a lost memory, you are still the Saint Heir of our Heavenly Punishment Sect!"

With that, the Sect Hierarch stood up, walked over to Zhang San, and patted him on the shoulder.

Zhang San suddenly realized that as the Sect Hierarch had been a bit far from him, how was he able to slap his head so accurately?

Never mind, if someone could become the Sect Hierarch of the Heavenly Punishment Sect, he must have extraordinary methods.

Maybe it was an opportunity to gain some benefits from him, asking the Sect Hierarch for things could surely...

As Zhang San looked at the Sect Hierarch, he noticed that his clothes were all patched up.

With so many patches, he indeed seemed to be a powerful person.

But... also a poor one.

Afterward, as the Sect Hierarch led the matters of the Heavenly Punishment Sect, Zhang San did not understand and listened confusedly.

After the Sect Hierarch had taken care of everything and sent everyone else away, the great hall was left only with Zhang San, the Sect Hierarch, and Pockmarked Granny.

"Sect Hierarch, I’ve recently encountered an issue and need your advice," Zhang San said.

Upon hearing Zhang San’s polite tone, the Sect Hierarch couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

"Pockmarked, see that? This child is more adorable after losing his memory. Previously he never asked me anything and looked down on my methods eight hundred times over!"

Pockmarked Granny also laughed and said, "The Saint Heir has grown up and knows humility now, which is good!"

Zhang San then relayed the incident he encountered in Fengdu County City and asked, "What should I do when I go to the Capital next? I don’t want to be imprisoned and executed right upon my arrival by Kaihuang’s orders."

The Sect Hierarch laughed heartily and waved his hand, saying, "Kaihuang, that man, likes capable and effective officials. Back when Kaihuang was still a Pillar of the State under the Northern Zhou, he received significant assistance from the Zheng Family to seize control of the Northern Zhou. Yet even after ascending the throne, he didn’t grant the Zheng Family significant responsibilities. Guess, why is that?"

Zhang San thought for a moment and answered, "The Zheng Family is opportunistic and unreliable?"

The Sect Hierarch shook his head.

Zhang San continued, "The Zheng Family has ambitions too, so Kaihuang doesn’t trust them?"

The Sect Hierarch pondered for a moment and said softly, "Indeed, the Zheng Family has its ambitions, and initially, they planned to use Kaihuang to eventually dominate the powers themselves, but they couldn’t outmaneuver Kaihuang. However, these aren’t the most crucial reasons. Even after his enthronement, Kaihuang still bestowed many favors on the Zheng Family, but he didn’t rely heavily on them because..."

"The people of the Zheng Family lack the capability!"

Zhang San gained a fresh understanding of Kaihuang’s standards for employing people.

"Therefore, Zhang San, after you arrive in the Capital, if you can demonstrate your capabilities and catch Kaihuang’s eye, even if you cause some troubles, it wouldn’t matter. Doesn’t Kaihuang know about the corruption among his subordinates? Doesn’t he know that many of them are incompetent? This is also one of the reasons why he began the civil service examination in these past years."

Zhang San nodded repeatedly.

Since Kaihuang is an emperor who recognizes talent, all he needs to think about is which of his strengths to showcase upon reaching the Capital to gain favor.

But what are his strengths?

As Zhang San was pondering this, Pockmarked Granny walked over and handed him a small booklet.

"Saint Heir, since you have returned to our Heavenly Punishment Sect, you shouldn’t return empty-handed. This item will be very useful to you. You will need it in the Capital."

Zhang San immediately thanked both Pockmarked Granny and the Sect Hierarch.

Meanwhile, in the Imperial Palace of the Capital, an enraged Kaihuang was furiously flinging his sleeves and then striding rapidly towards the direction of Mohism.

Pharaoh followed him, a look of helplessness on his face.

"Your Majesty, there’s no need to be so angry," he said.

"There’s no need? These ghosts and gods have such good relations with the Crown Prince? To the point where they killed every official who was being escorted back? Not one left? I’m going straight to ask Mozi. The Mohism knows the power of ghosts and gods, and he must surely know about this."

However, upon reaching the part of the Imperial Palace where the Mohists worked, Kaihuang found that Mozi was not there.

"To inform Your Majesty, Mozi just said he needed to fetch some items and then he left through the door. We do not know where he went," they reported.

Kaihuang looked displeased.

Pharaoh explained, "Mozi has a secret technique called ’Creation Gate,’ which allows him to open one door and enter another, traversing from the furthest northern to the southernmost part of the Great Sui in a single step. Only he knows this technique, so finding him will definitely be impossible now."

"Hmph!" Kaihuang was very angry, a type of anger that was hard to appease, "Pharaoh, you find Mozi as soon as possible and have him come to see me. I must know what the heck is going on with these ghosts and monsters!"

Pharaoh nodded helplessly.

However, despite using techniques to search, Pharaoh found that Mozi was untraceable not just in the Imperial Palace, but throughout the entire Capital and even the entire Capital Region Road.

This old man should stay properly in the Imperial Palace; where has he run off to?

Always dressed like a beggar, don’t let anybody mistake him for a homeless man and beat him up!

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[Note 86]Citation Explanation

Pockmarked Granny is referenced from "Notes from the Gallery on the Right, Volume Sixteen," originally envisioned as a spirit seen in dreams during a pock outbreak. If one buys her flowers in the dream, one’s illness swiftly improves; however, if the flowers bought are exchanged with someone else in the dream, the illness worsens.