Conversation

Based on Qi Shan's understanding of Shen Tang, he knew that Young Master Shen was not someone who would stay put obediently. Fearing that something might go wrong, he quickly finished his business and rushed back. The result--

Where was he?

Where was the Young Master Shen who was so large?

Qi Shan stood in place, his face a little pale.

Just as he was wondering if Shen Tang had been abducted by child traffickers or if she had abducted the child traffickers, a deep, steady male voice sounded in his ear.

"Are you Qi Shan, Young Master Qi?"

"Greetings, elder. I am indeed Qi Shan."

Qi Shan suppressed his anxiety and clasped his hands in a bow to the approaching man.

After the bow, he straightened up and secretly observed the man's appearance—his hair was graying, his face was aged and weathered, looking around forty or fifty years old. He wore a faded, old-fashioned short robe and straw sandals. These alone wouldn't have piqued Qi Shan's curiosity. What surprised him was the man's refined and elegant demeanor, his peaceful and upright features, and a pair of black eyes that were too clear, not at all what one would expect at his age.

He lowered his eyelids, his gaze falling upon the man's hands.

They were rough, old hands with signs of chilblains, holding several bundles of meat wrapped in lotus leaves. Their owner was likely someone who had done manual labor for a long time and came from a poor family. Various analyses flashed through his mind in an instant, gradually settling into clarity.

He asked calmly, "How do you know my name, elder?"

The man smiled kindly, "The Young Master Shen you mentioned told me."

Upon hearing this, Qi Shan knew immediately who "Young Master Shen" was.

The worry that had been building in his chest dissipated completely with this news. He asked the man again, "Did that young master leave any message?"

"Yes, he said he was 'going out of the city on business and would return shortly'."

Qi Shan didn't know what to say. Young Master Shen didn't know the way and had never been to Xiaocheng before. What business could he possibly have outside the city?

Qi Shan asked again, "Did he say what business?"

The man replied, "To act on behalf of heaven and punish evil and promote good."

Qi Shan: "...???"

He looked suspicious. No, that didn't sound right. It sounded like the nonsensical doctrines of some cult that those rioters spouted.

The man continued, "Young Master Shen was worried that you wouldn't find him when you returned, so he specifically asked me to wait here to prevent you from worrying, Young Master Qi."

Qi Shan sighed exasperatedly, "Why would I worry about him? If anything, I'd worry about him getting into trouble with scoundrels..."

The man pursed his lips unnaturally, suppressing a knowing smile.

He had to admit, the judgment was quite accurate.

When Qi Shan heard about Shen Tang's "exciting" experiences over the past hour from the man, his composure faltered for a moment—he had only been gone for a little over an hour, and Young Master Shen was already causing so much trouble? But since it had already happened, there was no point in saying anything more.

Qi Shan waited for Shen Tang to return while making small talk.

He appeared calm on the surface, but his mind was filled with doubts.

This elder was dressed like a poor commoner, but his speech, manners, and overall demeanor suggested someone who had spent years immersed in scholarly pursuits, raised in a wealthy and noble family. Even in his faded, old robe, with hands marked by manual labor, his inherent grace remained unchanged.

As they chatted, Qi Shan began talking about Word Spirits.

He had recently been researching military formation Word Spirits—"Self-Entrapment" and "Cornered Beast Fights Back." The former was used for deploying troops and luring the enemy, while the latter was mostly used to boost morale when one's own situation was unfavorable, representing a final struggle. If the opportunity arose, there was a chance for a comeback.

Upon hearing Qi Shan speak eloquently, the elder seemed to momentarily space out, as if lost in thought. He then said, "Self-Entrapment, self-destruction... Is the Word Spirit you're using 'Seeing the hawk, one throws himself into the net, ignoring the sparrow in the fence'? That's not very good."

Qi Shan's heart skipped a beat. He asked, "Why isn't it good?"

"It's easy to be targeted. If the enemy's strategist has a stronger Literary Heart than you, they can break the formation simply by 'drawing their sword to sweep away the net, and the oriole flies away'."

If the net is broken by a sharp sword, can it still trap the oriole?

Naturally, the sky is vast for birds to fly, and the trouble is endless.

"Then, in your opinion, elder, what would be better?"

"Why not 'Sink into Fire, self-destruction'?"

Qi Shan: "..."

If "Self-Entrapment" still left a sliver of hope, a chance to "draw their sword to sweep away the net," then the Word Spirit the elder mentioned was a killing move aimed at annihilating the enemy, exuding a murderous aura. Qi Shan looked at the elder with some surprise. This seemingly kind old man was casually advocating for death.

"Then—in your opinion, elder, what about 'Cornered Beast Fights Back'?"

The elder seemed indifferent, his expression listless, yet he said something astonishing: "On the battlefield, it's life or death. If you fight with the mindset of a 'cornered beast fighting back,' holding back your blows, it's hard to achieve lasting victory."

Qi Shan: "..."

You can't judge a book by its cover; it's true.

He thought he was already taking unconventional approaches, but he hadn't expected to encounter someone even more unconventional. However, this elder... Before Qi Shan could have any further thoughts, Shen Tang came trotting over on that mule. She jumped off and said with a smile, "Yuanliang, sorry to keep you waiting."

Qi Shan put aside his extraneous thoughts and carefully examined Shen Tang's clothes and hands. They were clean. Could it be that no lives were taken?

"You said 'to act on behalf of heaven and punish evil and promote good.' Where is the 'evil'?"

Shen Tang leaned against the motorcycle, her face beaming. "Oh, them. They were fast runners. By now, they're probably asking Meng Po for a bowl of soup."

Qi Shan: "..."

So, this 'evil' was indeed plural.

This Young Master Shen also has quite the temper.

Seeing Shen Tang and the other person had met up, the old man took his leave.

Qi Shan quickly asked where the old man lived now, saying they could spar over a game of chess sometime, but the old man politely declined.

Watching the old man leave with his lotus leaf-wrapped parcels, Qi Shan's brow furrowed. He only snapped back to attention when Shen Tang waved her hand in front of his eyes.

"What are you doing?"

He impatiently swatted Shen Tang's hand away.

Shen Tang said, "He's not going to look back just because you keep staring."

Qi Shan muttered, "What a pity."

Shen Tang took out two pieces of malt candy and chewed them, then quickened her pace to catch up with Qi Shan, curiously asking, "What's a pity?"

Qi Shan said, "This person is not simple."

Shen Tang thought he was going to say something else. Even a blind person could see that. She said, "Someone you can pick out in a crowd of millions is naturally not simple. His demeanor doesn't seem like that of an ordinary person. I wonder if his family fell on hard times or if something else happened."

She wasn't ruling out the possibility that the old man was a hermit, "a great hermit hidden in the city, a small hermit in the wilderness." However, hermits had their own dignity. No matter how poor they were, they wouldn't eat offal that ordinary people disdained, wear tattered clothes, and do such strenuous labor.

Qi Shan didn't answer. Shen Tang asked again, "Seeing as you two got along so well, like you'd known each other for ages, what did you talk about?"

"Word Spirits."

"He has a Literary Heart?"

Qi Shan lowered his gaze. "Perhaps, he once did."

Shen Tang: "???"

"Once did" meant he didn't now?

For someone Qi Shan deemed worthy, they must be kindred spirits. Shen Tang couldn't help but be curious—why did the old man lose his Literary Heart? Was it like the Gong Clan's confiscation and exile, where their Dantians were forcibly abolished and their Literary Hearts shattered?

As Qi Shan walked, he noticed the footsteps behind him had disappeared.

He turned his head and saw Shen Tang running towards a butcher shop that was packing up. She was asking the butcher something and returned a moment later.

Requesting recommendation tickets.

The new book's ranking on the signing list is so low.

Self-Entrapment: The Word Spirit in the text, "Seeing not the sparrows in the fence, but the goshawk, one walks into the trap," is simplified to Self-Entrapment, originating from "Wild Field Yellow Sparrow March."

Cornered Beast Fights Back: A cornered beast will still fight, let alone a person? Even in a desperate situation, they will fight back with all their might, boosting morale when one's side is at a disadvantage. The old man was not interested because he believed in either going all out to kill the enemy or being killed oneself.

Sink into Fire, Perish by One's Own Actions: This is literal.