Not Seeking Wealth and Status

Courtyard.

The jujube tree's green shade was like a canopy, and grapevines covered half the yard.

Zhou Yi pushed open the door and entered, his brow slightly furrowed.

The aura in the courtyard was mixed and chaotic, indicating that more than one person had been here, and the scent hadn't dissipated yet. After examining some hidden marks and arrangements, it was clear that the visitors were quite disciplined and hadn't rummaged around haphazardly.

This was truly a case of ill intentions!

"Whenever imperial power changes hands, Shenjing becomes a troubled place."

Zhou Yi cast a Cleansing Dust Talisman, instantly making everything clean and tidy.

Afterward, he went to a brokerage and hired two wet nurses to live in the west wing of the small courtyard, taking care of Chen Ya'er's daily needs.

"Where can I find a good family..."

Zhou Yi pondered carefully, recalling that most of his colleagues were not good people. Reflecting on himself along the same lines, he suddenly realized.

"So, in the eyes of ordinary people, I am a greedy jailer, a brutal torturer, a cold-blooded demon!"

The villain was myself!

Night fell.

Zhou Yi sipped tea and chanted scriptures in the courtyard until the moon was high in the sky.

A figure flew through the air, white robes fluttering in the wind, landing in the courtyard in a swirling motion.

Zhou Yi clicked his tongue and said, "I waited half the night, but I didn't expect it would be you who came."

"How did you know someone would come?"

The visitor was none other than Lao Bai, carrying a jar of wine in his hand, seating himself opposite Zhou Yi without ceremony.

"I just guessed."

Zhou Yi spoke truthfully. He didn't know how to calculate or divine; he simply felt that the Imperial Guard commander had been too enthusiastic during the day, and many people had been investigating the residence.

"Three-hundred-year Pear Blossom White, thanks to my old father-in-law's influence, they were willing to sell me a jar."

Lao Bai opened the wine jar, and a fragrant aroma filled the courtyard. "Old Zhou, guess again, what am I here for?"

Zhou Yi poured a bowl, the liquid as clear as spring water and as thick as amber, and drank it in one gulp, feeling refreshed.

"Can't guess! But I'll go if it's a good thing, and if it's a bad thing, I'll just drink your fine wine for nothing."

"I've never seen such a shameless person!"

Ever since Lao Bai learned this phrase, it had practically become his catchphrase. "My old father-in-law, Prince Dongyang, wants to invite you to his residence as a retainer, commonly known as a house guard."

Zhou Yi frowned slightly. "This is Shenjing, not the Northern Frontier. Does a dignified Prince's mansion need to recruit guards?"

"During the months you were traveling, a drastic change occurred in the capital..."

Lao Bai recounted the news of the Hongchang Emperor's death being kept secret, Prince Qin Zhao Yuan breaking into the palace gates late at night, Consort Sun and the Sixth Prince's deaths, and so on, mixing truth and falsehood.

Zhou Yi asked, "Did the current Emperor really kill his own mother and younger brother before the late Emperor's remains?"

Lao Bai nodded and said, "Where there's smoke, there's fire; it's likely true."

Zhou Yi said, "So Shenjing is unstable, and Prince Dongyang is recruiting guards because he's afraid of trouble affecting his family?"

"My father-in-law's intentions are more than just seeking stability!"

Lao Bai took a sip of wine and waved his hand. "I came to you just to fulfill my duty. It doesn't matter whether you agree or not. If you're interested in wealth and glory, you can take a trip to the Prince's mansion."

"Wealth! Glory!"

Upon hearing these two words, what appeared before Zhou Yi's eyes wasn't gold and silver treasures, but bloody corpses.

Lao Bai reminded him, "Old Zhou, in a few days, my wife and I are going to Jiangnan. Why don't you come along on the boat for a trip?"

"I have things to take care of in Shenjing, so I won't go to Jiangnan for now."

Zhou Yi pondered for a moment and said, "But there's someone I need to entrust to you..."

Then, he explained Chen Ya'er's identity, without mentioning the ghosts of Chenjia Village, only saying that he encountered fleeing soldiers massacring civilians and rescued the only survivor.

According to Lao Bai, all the mansions in Shenjing were now trying to win over experts, either as guards for self-protection or for some other purpose, and Chen Ya'er had become Zhou Yi's weak spot.

If she were really kidnapped, Zhou Yi wouldn't submit but would choose to avenge Chen Ya'er!

Lao Bai listened with righteous indignation and assured him, "Old Zhou, don't worry. My boy is also going to Jiangnan and can keep Chen Ya'er company."

"Oh? How could I forget about you!"

Zhou Yi's eyes lit up. "Why not raise Chen Ya'er in your home and have her recognize you as a godfather or something? That way, you'd have both a son and a daughter."

Lao Bai originally had a carefree and unrestrained personality, often causing trouble in the martial world with his lightness skill, making him not a good person to entrust with such a task. However, marriage and family could really change a man. Since his marriage to Princess Rongchang, Lao Bai had become a stable and caring husband.

Lao Bai was stunned to hear this. He failed to win over Zhou Yi but was bringing back a goddaughter instead?

Zhou Yi thought Lao Bai was afraid of his wife and promised, "Just tell Princess Rongchang that Chen Ya'er is the direct granddaughter of an Innate Grandmaster. You only need to raise her for twenty years, and your family will be safe and sound during that time!"

"What about after twenty years?"

Lao Bai was quite tempted. He had thought about asking Zhou Yi to protect his mansion before, but he was too embarrassed to ask.

Even knowing Zhou Yi would agree, Lao Bai was unwilling to put his friend in a difficult position.

Zhou Yi slowly said, "In twenty years, Chen Ya'er will naturally not need anyone's protection."

"Don't worry, Lao Zhou, I will definitely take care of her like my own daughter."

Lao Bai suddenly changed the subject, his face full of shamelessness, and said, "If... I'm just saying if, Chen Ya'er and my son are in love, would that be possible?"

Zhou Yi raged.

"Shameless scoundrel!"

The next day.

Heavenly Prison.

After Zhou Yi signed in, he chatted with his colleagues about what he had seen and heard on the road, and distributed the local specialties he had bought in Shenjing from various mansions.

They agreed to go to the Spring Breeze Pavilion in the evening, and the slight sense of unfamiliarity immediately dissipated.

In ancient times, there was listening to music in brothels, and now there is foot washing and massage, which is truly an unparalleled weapon for bringing colleagues closer.

Zhou Yi returned to his single room, but the tea water had not yet boiled.

The newly arrived Lieutenant Lu knocked on the door and came in, carrying a bag of tea leaves: "Biluochun Tea from Mount Taichuan, Lao Zhou, would you like to try it?"

"I won't accept rewards for no merit, does Lord Lu have any instructions?"

Zhou Yi could drink Lao Bai's wine for free, but he couldn't easily take Lieutenant Lu's tea. The former was a good friend, while the latter was just a colleague.

"Lao Zhou, are you willing to stay in Heavenly Prison your whole life?"

Lieutenant Lu said, "With your skills, you are enough to serve as a retainer in a royal mansion. If you follow the right person, you might be able to bring glory to your ancestors and enjoy wealth and prosperity."

"What's wrong with Heavenly Prison?"

Zhou Yi smiled and said, "My great-grandfather was a jailer in Heavenly Prison, so was my grandfather, and then it was passed on to my father. I can't betray my ancestors!"

"..."

The imperial court has always promoted benevolence and filial piety. Zhou Yi even brought out his ancestors, and Lieutenant Lu was immediately speechless.

Zhou Yi said, "I don't seek glory, I just want to live a stable life. Lord Lu, please take these tea leaves back."

Lieutenant Lu waved his hand and said, "Lao Zhou, don't make fun of me. This Biluochun Tea is just for you to drink. From now on, we are colleagues, and I will need Lao Zhou's help and care!"

"Then I won't stand on ceremony."

Zhou Yi said with a smile, "Lord Lu, please wait a moment, today we will taste this famous tea together!"

"Don't call me Lord anymore, we are about the same age, just call me Lao Lu."

"Haha, Lao Lu!"

A moment later.

The strong tea fragrance spread, intoxicating people.

Zhou Yi usually spends his spare time drinking tea and chanting scriptures. After more than twenty years, he has developed a first-class tea ceremony.

In a few hundred years, Zhou Yi will become a refined scholar familiar with the Confucian, Buddhist, and Taoist classics, proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, wine, flowers, and tea.

Only the way of poetry, without talent, is truly impossible to force.

In the following days.

People repeatedly went to his home or came to Heavenly Prison, promising various benefits, from wealth and glory to becoming a general and enfeoffment as a marquis, but Zhou Yi politely refused them all.

In the eyes of those big shots, this kind of behavior was just relying on one's talent and being arrogant!

So they sent experts to climb over the wall at night, trying to teach him a lesson, but they all fled back with bruised noses and swollen faces.

Zhou Yi only showed his body tempering skills. After being tempered by true essence and nourished by mana, he had reached the limit of organ refinement. A step further would be the peak of horizontal training, the Marrow Cleansing Realm.

The Marrow Cleansing Realm possesses the power to split an army with ease!

Especially in Shenjing City, once a small-scale war breaks out, Marrow Cleansing Realm experts are even more valuable.

After the news spread, more people came to win him over.

Until Zhou Yi took a ruthless approach, crippled a few flies, and released a message to the outside world.

"I don't seek glory, I don't covet power, I would rather die of old age in Heavenly Prison!"

Only then did it become quiet.