Exchange

It had been several months since Wang Ming last saw Zhu Wushi.

Many things had happened during those months: the Princess Lixiu incident was over; Cheng Shifei had been tricked into obtaining the Indestructible Vajra Body, then stormed off in anger; Duan Tianya had married Ryūyō Hyōsu, and Cheng Shifei had become a consort.

Wang Ming had stayed far away from all these events, deeming them unprofitable and dangerous.

In these past few months, he had only gone out once, to a gambling house. He took advantage of a commotion to swap a fake Mermaid Xiao Mingzhu for the real one.

After that, he had stayed home, studying the martial arts of his original body.

Both Wan Sanqian and Zhu Wushi had sought him out several times during this period, but Wang Ming had turned them away with excuses, telling them to find someone else. Since he wasn't the real Zhang Jinjiu, how could he possibly find anyone?

However, Wang Ming discovered that he couldn't understand the martial arts manuals of his original body. The characters in this world were different from modern ones. He had no idea what meridians or acupoints were, nor did he know how to circulate qi to the dantian.

He could only guess at the meaning of the characters in the manuals, but when combined, their meaning eluded him entirely. The classical Chinese texts made him feel like an illiterate person.

Wang Ming felt compelled to put aside his martial arts studies for now and try to learn the language of this era.

He wanted to find a private tutor to teach him classical Chinese, but he stopped himself just as he was about to act.

This was a completely idiotic move. Zhang Jinjiu, the greatest detective in the world, suddenly couldn't read?

What would Zhu Wushi think if he found out?

So, Wang Ming had to put this idea aside and wait until Zhu Wushi was dead.

For now, he could only collect more martial arts manuals to build up his knowledge.

Once the plot ended, it would be much harder to find martial arts manuals.

"Come on out!"

"As expected of a top-tier imperial agent from the Earthly Rank, you could hear me from so far away." Wang Ming appeared behind Guihai Yidao, a wine flask in hand.

Wang Ming had timed his arrival, waiting for Guihai Yidao at Shuiyue Nunnery.

"Zhang Jinjiu, you're looking for me. Have you found out what I asked you to investigate?"

Previously, Guihai Yidao had asked him to investigate the cause of his father Guihai Bailian's death.

"No!"

Wang Ming replied with a slightly drunken tone.

As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Ming felt the atmosphere around him grow colder.

"But I accidentally discovered where your father's martial art, Hegemon Under Heaven, is located."

"Where?" Guihai Yidao's expression clearly showed a hint of excitement.

Wang Ming didn't reply. Instead, he found a spot to sit and started drinking.

After a moment of silence...

"That wine you want, I can ask the Divine Marquis to get it for you." Guihai Yidao understood; he wanted compensation.

"No need for such trouble, I don't want wine."

"Then what do you want? As long as I can do it, I'll get it for you." Guihai Yidao was a bit anxious now.

"The Saber Manual, I want a copy of it too."

At this moment, Wang Ming stopped pretending to be drunk and looked directly into Guihai Yidao's eyes.

"Alright! No problem."

Guihai Yidao was a good person, brainwashed by Zhu Wushi. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't kill easily. Moreover, Guihai Yidao still needed him for something.

A quarter of an hour later, the two met again in the bamboo forest not far from Shuiyue Nunnery.

"I've searched these clothes hundreds of times, they're not there." Guihai Yidao brought the items left by his father.

Wang Ming got up, picked up the clothes, and threw them directly into the bonfire he had prepared earlier.

"What are you doing!" Guihai Yidao was furious when he saw Wang Ming destroying the clothes.

"Look!" Wang Ming ignored Guihai Yidao's anger.

Indeed, Hegemon Under Heaven appeared on the clothes in the fire.

"Hahaha... I found it! I will get revenge!" Guihai Yidao picked up the Saber Manual from the fire.

Wang Ming watched the shouting Guihai Yidao with cold eyes, having no intention of disturbing him while he was emotionally charged.

Copy the Saber Manual!

He would ask Guihai Yidao about copying the Saber Manual after he calmed down. If he wasn't tactful now, Wang Ming feared he would be cleaved in two.

Half an hour later, After Guihai Yidao calmed down and reread the Saber Manual several times, he finally copied it for Wang Ming.

After finishing the copy, Wang Ming left Shuiyue Nunnery.

During this time, Wang Ming had not been idle. He dared not hire a private tutor to teach him to read, but he had found a way to learn the characters.

The best way was to buy storybooks and read them himself, guessing at the meaning of unfamiliar characters.

Then, he'd find a poor scholar to read the stories aloud to him.

If he encountered characters he couldn't read, he'd have a tutor teach him. Zhu Wushi would understand that not using his brain was abnormal.

Letting a poor scholar read storybooks was like listening to a storyteller in a tavern; no one would pay it any mind.

Through the poor scholar's recitation, Wang Ming had basically learned ancient script.

On the way back from Shuiyue Nunnery, he memorized the Saber Manual and then burned it on the spot.

He wasn't sure if it was a hidden benefit of transmigration, but his memory had clearly improved. While not to the point of photographic memory, memorizing the Saber Manual didn't lead to confusion.

Ever since Wang Ming obtained the "Hegemon Under Heaven," he couldn't shake a feeling of unease at home.

The saber techniques were useless!

Wang Ming had no interest in practicing martial arts that drove people insane.

This world had many powerful martial arts, but the ones he could obtain through his own intelligence were held by the Four Great Secret Agents or Zhu Wushi.

Thinking of Zhu Wushi, Wang Ming fell into a long period of contemplation.

"Constantly relying on these trash martial arts won't be good for my future plans!"

Finally, he decided to take a gamble.

After a period of travel, Wang Ming arrived at Dragon Guard Manor.

"Zhang Jinjiu, what brings you here?" Zhu Wushi asked, standing alone in the main hall.

"Divine Marquis asked me to investigate the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom. I have a lead."

"Where?" Zhu Wushi's expression immediately changed, and he asked excitedly.

Wang Ming continued to pretend to drink, ignoring Zhu Wushi's question. He thought to himself, 'If you don't give me any benefits, you expect to get something for free!'

At this time, Zhu Wushi had not yet dealt with Cao Zhengchun and wouldn't change his expression so readily.

An awkward atmosphere fell upon the room.

A moment later, Zhu Wushi realized that Wang Ming was demanding benefits.

How could someone of his stature fail to understand Wang Ming's intentions?

He had just been too excited and overlooked it for a moment.

"Haha! Zhang Jinjiu, rest assured, if the news is true, I, this King, will personally grant you a few bottles of the finest wine from the number one wine god in the land."

Zhu Wushi generously promised. Wine held no value for him.

"No! I don't want wine. Recently, I feel my martial arts are too weak, so I wish to exchange for the Divine Marquis's 'Heaven and Earth Great Shift'," Wang Ming slowly stated his request.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Wushi's earlier ecstatic expression vanished, and his gaze became sharp as he looked at Wang Ming.

Wang Ming felt a pang of nervousness under that gaze.

Zhu Wushi remained silent, turned to his throne, took out a book from below, and controlled it with his internal energy. The secret manual slowly floated towards Wang Ming.

Wang Ming didn't inspect it and directly put it into his robes.

"Here's the manual. Now, Zhang Jinjiu, speak!" Zhu Wushi said with a hint of impatience.

"Cao Zhengchun has one. The Marquis can verify the truth of the information. As for the rest, I am investigating them diligently."

"Good, the number one detective is indeed formidable. Once the remaining one is found, whatever reward you ask for will be easily granted."

Then, Zhu Wushi lowered his head to write something. Wang Ming knew this was a signal for him to leave. He bid farewell and quickly departed.

On the way back, Wang Ming's back was drenched in sweat. He had been afraid that Zhu Wushi would not follow the script and would instead capture him for strict interrogation.

Wang Ming actually wanted the "Great Art of Absorbing Power," but he didn't dare to ask for it, fearing Zhu Wushi would kill him, and also fearing he might provide false information.

Rushing back to his residence, he carefully read the manual, but he still couldn't understand it.

Just knowing the characters didn't mean one could understand ancient texts.

Especially for martial arts manuals, he could only memorize them first.

Wang Ming anxiously thought, 'I hope Zhu Wushi isn't so petty that he sends someone to kill me!'

This time, the gains were significant. Wang Ming wanted to wait until he learned the basic knowledge before practicing.

Wang Ming said with helplessness, "It's a pity time waits for no one. I don't have the time to learn and develop in secret. The information and intelligence I possess will lose its meaning if the time passes. If I miss the plot points, obtaining these manuals will be completely impossible."

As he thought this, he figured Cao Zhengchun should be inviting Zhu Wushi to the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom banquet, and at the same time, Zhu Wushi would be verifying the information.

Wang Ming's guess was correct. Zhu Wushi had already obtained the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom and awakened Suxin.

Originally, Zhu Wushi had intended to kill Wang Ming.

But then came Cao Zhengchun's invitation and the awakening of his beloved Suxin. These events occurred consecutively, leaving him no time to issue the order.

Finally, looking at Suxin and thinking about the third Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom, he suppressed his murderous intent.

For someone without power, influence, or martial arts skills, not following the plot would be foolish.

This was his only advantage. If he gave that up, he might as well wait for death.

Please collect, please recommend.