Recaps

Luo Jinsong tried to prevent the jianghu martial artists from attacking the Secret Martial Guard camp, but a staged riot turned into a battle when Cui Kai led Tianquan Star Hall in an assault. Pei Du and Duan Siniang fled to a nearby slope and realized the attackers were unfamiliar, weak martial artists.

• Luo Jinsong led two hundred guards between the Secret Martial Guard camp and the crowd, killing the burly instigator and intimidating many martial artists.
• Jing Changyuan challenged Luo Jinsong, but Pei Du defused the confrontation until Jing insulted Duan Siniang and Pei Du fought him.
• Cui Kai recognized Luo Jinsong and led over a hundred members of Tianquan Star Hall in a charge, triggering attacks on the Secret Martial Guard camp.
• Pei Du took Duan Siniang up a slope to escape the fighting, where they noticed the attackers were unfamiliar faces with surprisingly low strength.

Cui Kai led Tianquan Star Hall and jianghu forces in an assault on the Secret Martial Guard camp, but Yang Zhengshan arrived with the Yaowu Battalion and crushed the attackers. After Duan Siniang implicated Jing Changyuan in stirring up trouble, Yang Zhengshan killed him and threatened to wipe out Lingxiu Villa for defying the court’s laws.

• Cui Kai fought Luo Jinsong, who overwhelmed him and broke his blade, while the attackers pressed toward the Star Origin Fruit Tree.
• Yan Bo warned Luo Jinsong that the tree was threatened, and Luo Jinsong drove Kou Rong back as the Guard Battalion moved to defend it.
• Yang Zhengshan and Xue Ou led the Yaowu Battalion into the battle, routing the jianghu attackers and killing Cui Kai and Deng Maoqi with thrown swords.
• Duan Siniang told Yang Zhengshan that Jing Changyuan had incited the jianghu forces against the Jing'an Marquis Mansion.
• Yang Zhengshan questioned Jing Changyuan, then speared him and vowed to destroy Lingxiu Villa for disregarding the laws of the court.

Yang Zhengshan secured Cuixia Valley and discovered that Spirit Spring Water could nourish the Star Origin Fruit Tree and hasten its fruit’s ripening. As soldiers built up the camp, Princess Mingxi and Granny Meng arrived, while the Imperial Court’s larger plans for the Innate Martial Artists remained in motion.

• Zhang Ye told Daoist Xuan Zhen that Emperor Yanping sought to make Yang Zhengshan an Imperial Venerable and bring all Innate Martial Artists under imperial command.
• Yang Zhengshan ordered Cuixia Valley sealed, and Luo Jinsong reported that Star Moon Sect members had led the camp attack, while no trace of the Shenyang Sect had been found.
• Yang Zhengshan watered the Star Origin Fruit Tree with Spirit Spring Water and discovered its fruit’s glow and red coloring had increased, showing that the water nourished Spirit Plants and hastened ripening.
• Lv Shizhi brought the Soldiers of Lianwu Camp and Yaowu Camp to Cuixia Valley, where Yang Zhengshan arranged roadwork and construction of a military camp.
• Princess Mingxi and Granny Meng arrived at Cuixia Valley, and Yang Zhengshan respectfully welcomed them.

Yang Zhengshan assembled eighteen Innate Martial Artists at Cuixia Valley to discuss the Star Origin Fruits and announce Emperor Yanping’s decree making them Imperial Venerables. After Jing Mingzhou challenged the decree, Yang Zhengshan presented the gathered seniors with a stark choice, and several sects began agreeing to comply.

• Yang Zhengshan welcomed An Yuxing, Zhang Ye, Xuan Zhen, and other Innate Martial Artists who arrived at Cuixia Valley over several days.
• Ji Zhen arrived with Emperor Yanping’s handwritten order inviting the Innate Martial Artists to discuss distributing the Star Origin Fruits.
• Yang Zhengshan prepared a gathering and confirmed that the boxes held 383 Star Origin Fruits, then welcomed eighteen Innate Martial Artists, including Zhang Luan.
• Yang Zhengshan announced that all Da Rong Innate Martial Artists would receive the title of Imperial Venerable, equivalent to first grade, and explained that the title did not require them to serve in the capital.
• Jing Mingzhou challenged the decree, and Yang Zhengshan declared that rejecting the title would count as resisting the imperial command and refusing obedience.
• After a tense pause, Li Zhen’s Tyrant Tiger Sect and Ji Zhen’s Hengdao Sect agreed to accept the title.

Yang Zhengshan recruited Innate Martial Artists to serve as Imperial Venerables and guard Cuixia Valley by offering annual stipends and rewards. After filling the four guard positions, he announced how others could collect their stipends and began trading Hundred Herb Brew for precious herbs.

• Yang Jiushi asked about compensation, and Yang Zhengshan offered each Imperial Venerable a Three-Yellow Plum and a True Origin Pill annually, with extra rewards for guarding Cuixia Valley.
• Yang Jiushi and Ji Zhen volunteered for the guard posts, followed by Zhang Shouning, who said he wanted one last chance to pursue Entering the Dao before his life ended.
• Yang Zhengshan awarded the final post to Wu Anchou because he had no family or disciples to tie him down, while Lu Zhongji withdrew to care for his sect.
• Yang Zhengshan explained how the remaining Imperial Venerables could collect their stipends at Fengxian Hall and asked them to pass the news to absent martial artists.
• Wu Anchou, Ji Zhen, and Zhang Shouning requested Hundred Herb Brew, and Yang Zhengshan offered to exchange five jars for each precious herb.

Yang Zhengshan joined a discussion about methods of Entering the Dao, then helped direct the Martial Temple’s plans to establish authority over Da Rong’s martial world. As he traveled back to the Capital, Lingxiu Villa was annihilated in a disastrous operation that exposed the decay of Yungui’s guard forces.

• Yang Zhengshan listened as Zhang Ye, Granny Meng, Xuan Zhen, Li Shouning, and Master Dezhao discussed the methods of Entering the Dao, but he remained unable to understand the method of the self alone.
• After the gathering ended, Yang Zhengshan urged Zhang Luan to destroy Lingxiu Villa swiftly and proposed that the Martial Temple later target Star Moon Sect as a whetstone.
• Zhang Luan and Li Zhen left for Jiujiang Prefecture that night, while Granny Meng and Princess Mingxi escorted the Star Origin Fruit to the Capital and others stayed to guard Cuixia Valley.
• Yang Zhengshan remained at Cuixia Valley for seven or eight days, then began his leisurely return to the Capital with two hundred personal guards.
• Zhang Luan led a force against Lingxiu Villa, killed Jing Mingzhou and more than three hundred others, and lost sixteen military officers in the operation.
• After receiving the battle report on the road, Yang Zhengshan shook his head at the losses and ordered his party to hurry back to the Capital.

Yang Zhengshan proposed using rewards and regular gatherings to draw Innate Martial Artists closer to the Imperial Court, then received two Star Origin Fruits and a pill recipe from Emperor Yanping. Back at his mansion, he found Xue Qiao'er growing close to Yang Wanqing and learned Liu Zhe had moved into his own home.

• Yang Zhengshan advised Emperor Yanping to establish a Venerable Hall with bounty tasks and hold an Innate Martial Arts Banquet every three years to encourage cooperation and build ties with Innate Martial Artists.
• Yang Zhengshan asked Emperor Yanping for two Star Origin Fruits and the True Origin Pill recipe, and Emperor Yanping granted his request.
• Yang Zhengshan returned to his mansion and found Xue Qiao'er and Yang Wanqing going shopping together; Xue Qiao'er said she had returned from Cuixia Valley the day before and planned to stay until she found enough precious medicines.
• Yang Zhengshan greeted Granny Xue and learned that Yu Qingyi had been asking her for martial guidance.
• Yu Qingyi told Yang Zhengshan that Liu Zhe had moved into a two-courtyard residence in East City after taking a post at the Imperial Academy.

Yang Zhengshan inspected the Martial Arts Pavilion and then experimented with refining Bone Strengthening Pills at home. He discovered that his Spirit Spring-grown ingredients changed the paste’s color without affecting its medicinal effect, and Wang Mingzhe began learning about medicine refining.

• Yang Zhengshan visited the Martial Arts Pavilion, inspected its construction and military training, and approved of the disciples’ progress.
• Yang Zhengshan studied pill recipes and began refining Bone Strengthening Pills, but repeatedly discarded the gray paste because he thought it had failed.
• Yang Zhengshan tested the paste on a sheep and himself, confirming that it had the Bone Strengthening Pill’s medicinal effect.
• Yang Zhengshan found that using ordinary ginseng made the paste black, revealing that Spirit Spring-grown ingredients caused the color difference.
• Yang Zhengshan rolled the medicinal paste into more than twenty pills and offered Wang Mingzhe ginseng so he could practice refining medicine.
• Yang Zhengshan encouraged Wang Mingzhe to study pharmacology and offered to ask Sun Wanzhen to teach him.

Yang Zhengshan traded Hundred Herb Brew for precious medicines, received three Ice Heart Fruits from Xue Qiao'er, and arranged to sell his wine through a shop. Xue Qiao'er prepared to leave for the Jinlong Dynasty to seek Flame Red Lotus, but Yang Zhengshan refused Yang Wanqing’s request to go with her.

• Yang Zhengshan exchanged Hundred Herb Brew for precious medicines and received a Golden Jade Camellia needed for Xue Qiao'er's prescription.
• Yang Zhengshan showed Xue Qiao'er, Granny Xue, and Xue Zhongjin nine of the thirteen precious medicines they needed; Xue Qiao'er said they would travel to the Jinlong Dynasty to seek Flame Red Lotus.
• Xue Qiao'er gave Yang Zhengshan three Ice Heart Fruits, and he planted two of them in the Spirit Spring Space.
• Yang Zhengshan told Yang Mingcheng to convert the family's West City grain shop into a shop that would trade Hundred Herb Brew for precious medicines.
• Yang Wanqing asked Yang Zhengshan to let her accompany Xue Qiao'er to the Jinlong Dynasty, but he refused because she was too young and the journey was dangerous.

Yang Zhengshan learned that Lin Zhan had been appointed Prefectural Magistrate of Yuzhou after sea raiders devastated the city, and he promised to support his disciple as he took on the urgent post. The chapter left Yang Zhengshan preparing to give Lin Zhan medicine and guards before his departure.

• Yang Zhengshan explained to Yang Wanqing that Xue Qiao'er and her attendants were powerful enough to travel to the Jinlong Dynasty, while Yang Wanqing would be better off staying behind.
• Four years after leaving Chongshan Town, Yang Zhengshan learned Zhou Lan had paid off its debts and planned to appoint Luo Feiyu as Assistant Regional Commander of Dinghu Guard.
• Yang Zhengshan warned Yu Qingyi that the Wuliang Hu Tribe might attack Dinghu Guard and wrote Zhou Lan a letter urging caution.
• Lin Zhan told Yang Zhengshan that sea raiders had breached Yuzhou's prefectural city, killing more than ten thousand people, and that the Ministry of Personnel had appointed him its new Prefectural Magistrate.
• Yang Zhengshan reassured Lin Zhan, promised to provide him with a squad of guards, and opened a chest of celadon bottles as Lin Zhan prepared to leave for Yuzhou.

Yang Zhengshan prepared Lin Zhan for his appointment in Yuzhou, then oversaw Zhai Yunhu’s graduation from the Martial Arts Pavilion and recommended him for service in Beiyuan Town. The chapter ended with Emperor Yanping enraged over the sea bandits’ attack on Yuzhou and ordering the crime investigated and punished.

• Yang Zhengshan gave Lin Zhan several pills before Lin Zhan left to take office in Yuzhou.
• Jiang He told Yang Zhengshan that Zhai Yunhu had reached the Fourth Layer of Postnatal Realm and could graduate from the Martial Arts Pavilion.
• Zhai Yunhu asked to serve in the Border Army to earn military merit, and Yang Zhengshan recommended that he go to Beiyuan Town rather than Chongshan Town.
• Yang Zhengshan wrote Zhai Yunhu a letter of recommendation and urged him not to forget his original intention as he set out on his journey.
• Emperor Yanping flew into a rage over the sea bandits’ attack on Yuzhou, and Chen Zhongshu urged him to investigate the crime and punish those responsible.

Emperor Yanping ordered Wang Zhongzhi to investigate the Sea Bandits’ links to the Star Moon Sect, Jiangnan households, the Maritime Trade Office, and the Weaving Bureau, with help from the Martial Temple. Newly appointed Yuzhou Prefect Lin Zhan arrived amid the devastation, took in an orphan as his disciple, and began assessing the city’s defenses and lack of support.

• Wang Zhongzhi reported that Sea Bandits were connected to Jiangnan households and possibly the Star Moon Sect, while four Haizhou Weaving Bureau workshops had burned during Yuzhou City’s fall.
• Emperor Yanping ordered Wang Zhongzhi to continue investigating without arresting the Maritime Trade Office officials, and Wang Zhongzhi obtained help from Zhang Luan before heading to Jiangnan.
• Lin Zhan found villages plundered and corpses scattered across Yuzhou, then took a surviving infant as his disciple.
• Lin Zhan reached Yuzhou City, presented his appointment papers to Li Boran, and entered the damaged city to establish himself at a makeshift office in an inn.
• Zhang Yu told Lin Zhan that the former prefect and many officials had been killed, the yamen’s money and grain had been looted, and the city relied on a limited force of guards, constables, and civilian braves.
• Lin Zhan learned that the Haizhou Guard had not sent a force to clear the Sea Bandits, while its commander remained in Haizhou Prefecture.

Lin Zhan arranged for troops and martial artists to be sent against the sea bandits in Yuzhou, while Yang Zhengshan trained the crown prince and other disciples in the capital. After Yang Zhengshan denied that anyone in his household had harassed Zhou Ningwei’s young daughter, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture came to his mansion to pursue the matter.

• Lin Zhan recovered Zhang Yu’s official seal and dispatched requests to the regional and provincial yamen, the Haizhou Shangwu Division, and Haizhou Guard to send forces against the sea bandits.
• Yang Zhengshan instructed the crown prince, Prince Dai, and An Chenhui in their martial cultivation, then received a memorial accusing a boy from his household of molesting Zhou Ningwei’s ten-year-old daughter.
• Yang Zhengshan questioned the young men in his family, and Yang Chengyou and Mingzhao said they had stayed together and had not gone out.
• Yang Zhengshan replied to the memorial that none of his sons or grandsons had committed the offense and set the matter aside.
• The prefect of Shuntian Prefecture came to Yang Zhengshan’s mansion three days later to address Zhou Ningwei’s complaint.

Zhen Shijie investigated Zhou Ningwei’s accusation that Jiang Feng had behaved improperly toward his daughter and found that Jiang Feng was only seven, but Zhou continued to attack the boy. After Wu Zheng uncovered Zhou’s family’s history of exploiting such accusations, Yang Zhengshan ordered him to ruin Zhou’s reputation, and Wu enlisted Liu Dashan to arrange a public scandal.

• Zhen Shijie visited Yang Zhengshan to investigate Zhou Ningwei’s accusation and showed him a portrait of the servant who had accompanied the boy at the bookstore.
• Yang Zhengshan recognized the servant as Danian, who served Jiang Feng, and learned that seven-year-old Jiang Feng had only helped Zhou’s daughter when she was about to fall.
• After Zhen Shijie accepted that the incident was a misunderstanding, Zhou Ningwei submitted another memorial condemning Jiang Feng, angering Yang Zhengshan.
• Wu Zheng investigated Zhou Ningwei and reported that he had a history of using his daughters’ reputations to pursue advantageous connections, and that his youngest daughter had taken a liking to Jiang Feng.
• Yang Zhengshan ordered Wu Zheng to destroy Zhou Ningwei’s reputation, and Wu directed Liu Dashan to arrange a conspicuous Zha Huotun.
• Liu Dashan consulted assistant prefectural magistrate Zhuang Feiyu, who recognized the plan’s danger but told him to carry it out.

Yang Zhengshan retaliated against Zhou Ningwei, whose arrest led the Secret Martial Guard to investigate his corruption, while Emperor Yanping also ordered an inquiry into Jiangnan silk merchants suspected of colluding with sea bandits. Yang Zhengshan then used a True Origin Pill and found that his Ice Heart Fruit trees had bloomed, leaving him hopeful of making another Jade Bone Ice Heart Pill for Yu Qingyi as she approached the Innate Realm.

• Wu Zheng reported that Liu Dashan had exposed Zhou Ningwei in public, and Yang Zhengshan wrote a memorial accusing Zhou of corruption.
• Emperor Yanping laughed at Yang Zhengshan's memorial and ordered Zhang Mingzhong to have the Secret Martial Guard investigate Zhou Ningwei.
• Chen Zhongshu reported that Jiangnan silk merchants were angered by rising raw-silk prices and a major Imperial Merchant Bureau contract, and Emperor Yanping ordered the Secret Martial Guard to investigate their suspected collusion with sea bandits.
• The Secret Martial Guard arrested Zhou Ningwei, and Zhen Shijie asked an attendant to contact Zhen Yang Shi.
• Yang Zhengshan took a True Origin Pill in the Spirit Spring Space and saw that his Ice Heart Fruit trees had bloomed.
• Yang Zhengshan hoped to make another Jade Bone Ice Heart Pill for Yu Qingyi, while she still had not reached the Innate Realm.

Yang Zhengshan grew anxious about finding a suitable husband for Yang Wanqing and searched among the Martial Arts Pavilion disciples. He brought several candidates’ files home, but Yu Qingyi rejected each one, leaving him with no choice settled.

• Wang urged Yang Zhengshan to help arrange Yang Wanqing’s marriage, and he agreed to look for suitable young men.
• Yang Zhengshan visited the Martial Arts Pavilion and inspected its disciples as marriage candidates for Yang Wanqing.
• Jiang He accidentally announced Yang Zhengshan’s search, prompting the disciples to discuss whether anyone could match Yang Wanqing’s talent and status.
• Yang Zhengshan collected files on several unmarried disciples and brought them home for Yu Qingyi to review.
• Yu Qingyi rejected each candidate because of his family status, religious rules, distance, or household customs, and Yang Zhengshan despaired over the search.

Yang Wanqing rescued Qu Shaogong and Qu Shaoshang when assassins attacked them at Cangyuan Lake, then fled with them to the capital. After learning of the attack, Yang Zhengshan sent people to investigate and went to check on Yang Wanqing.

• Yang Wanqing spotted an assassin aiming at Qu Shaogong and leaped from a teahouse window to deflect the first arrow with her whip.
• More than a dozen assassins attacked Qu Shaogong and his companions, so Yang Wanqing judged they were outmatched and led her friends and guards to flee on horseback.
• Yang Wanqing pulled Qu Shaoshang onto her horse and escaped toward the capital with Qu Shaogong and the others.
• At the capital gates, Qu Shaogong thanked Yang Wanqing and rode to the Martial Temple to seek help for the victims; Yang Wanqing took Qu Shaoshang home.
• Ding Qiu told Yang Zhengshan that Yang Wanqing had encountered the attack but was unharmed, and Yang Zhengshan sent him to investigate before going to check on her.

Yang Zhengshan accepted Qu Shaogong’s gift of a Flame Red Lotus after Qu Shaogong thanked Yang Wanqing for saving his life. As Qu Shaogong grew closer to Yang Wanqing, Yang Zhengshan secretly followed them and realized they seemed to have feelings for each other, leaving him uneasy about a possible marriage to the distant Duke of Xing Mansion.

• Yang Zhengshan learned that the Cangyuan Lake assassins had left few clues, and Qu Shaogong suspected they had been sent by the Jinlong Dynasty.
• Qu Shaogong thanked Yang Wanqing for saving his life and gave Yang Zhengshan a gift list that included a Flame Red Lotus, whose seeds Yang Zhengshan set aside for Xue Qiao’er and planted in his Spirit Spring Space.
• After the Secret Martial Guard and Martial Temple captured the Jinlong assassins, Qu Shaoshang began visiting Yang Wanqing, while Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi struggled with the many matchmakers seeking a marriage for her.
• Yang Zhengshan decided to let Yang Wanqing choose for herself and told Yu Qingyi to focus on cultivating for her breakthrough to the Innate Realm.
• Yang Zhengshan saw Qu Shaogong repeatedly taking Yang Wanqing and Qu Shaoshang out, then secretly followed them along Zhengyang Main Street and noticed the affection between Qu Shaogong and Yang Wanqing.

Yang Zhengshan learned about Qu Changkong’s ruthless campaign against the Jinlong Dynasty while discussing Yang Qingwan’s possible marriage. An Yuxing proposed that his great-grandson An Chenhui marry Jiang Miao, and Yang Zhengshan brought the match to Jiang Miao’s parents, who were open to it.

• Yang Zhengshan met An Yuxing outside the teahouse and learned that Qu Shaogong was Qu Changkong’s grandson.
• An Yuxing described how Qu Changkong had weakened the Jinlong Dynasty by sending criminals there and building up Southern Frontier Town’s forces.
• An Yuxing suggested An Chenhui marry Yang Qingwan, but Yang Zhengshan said the two lacked romantic feelings for each other.
• An Yuxing proposed Jiang Miao instead, and Yang Zhengshan said he would consult her parents before deciding.
• Yang Zhengshan asked Yang Yunyan and Jiang He about the match, and Jiang He agreed that An Chenhui would treat Miao'er well.

Yang Zhengshan arranged Jiang Miao’s marriage to An Chenhui after she agreed to trust his judgment. In Yuzhou, Lin Zhan confronted Haizhou Guard soldiers making trouble for provisions and pay, then revealed that he was a disciple of the Marquis of Jing'an when Wang De'an challenged him.

• Yang Zhengshan asked Jiang Miao whether she would marry An Chenhui, and she agreed to leave the decision to him.
• Yang Zhengshan told An Chenhui about the match, learned that he liked Jiang Miao, and informed An Yuxing.
• Lin Zhan learned that Haizhou Guard soldiers were gathering at the official granary to demand provisions and pay, so he summoned Yu Shengze and Li Boran.
• Wang De'an arrived, apologized for the soldiers, and faced Lin Zhan’s accusation that he was exploiting his connection to the Duke of An.
• Lin Zhan told Wang De'an that he was a disciple of the Marquis of Jing'an.

Lin Zhan killed Wang De'an and Zhang Bei in Yuzhou, while Yang Zhengshan arranged for An Huairen to handle the political fallout. Yang Zhengshan then discussed the Empress’s proposed match between Qu Shaogong and Yang Wanqing, but decided to wait for Wu Zhan’s report before agreeing.

• Lin Zhan executed Wang De'an and Zhang Bei, then ordered Li Boran to control the soldiers and sent guards to report the incident to Yang Zhengshan.
• Yang Zhengshan sent An Huairen a letter and a jar of Hundred Herb Brew, and An Huairen reluctantly went to clean up the consequences for Lin Zhan.
• Lady Wang pleaded with An Huairen to avenge Wang De'an, but he ordered her sold and refused to challenge Yang Zhengshan.
• Yu Qingyi told Yang Zhengshan that the Empress had asked her to discuss Qu Shaogong’s marriage to Yang Wanqing.
• Yang Zhengshan admitted he was reluctant to let Wanqing marry, but agreed to discuss the match after Wu Zhan returned with his report on Qu Shaogong.

Wu Zhan was discovered gathering information in Nanhua City and revealed his identity to request an audience with Qu Changkong. After learning that Qu Shaogong intended to marry into the Yang Family, Qu Changkong pressed Wu Zhan to support the match and forced him to accept a Three-Yellow Plum.

• Wu Zhan subdued the general who confronted him, then identified himself as a steward of the Jing'an Marquis Mansion and requested to meet Qu Changkong.
• Qu Changkong questioned Wu Zhan about his visit, but a letter from Qu Shaogong revealed that he planned to ask the Emperor and Empress to arrange his marriage to Yang Qingwan.
• Wu Zhan said he did not know the Marquis of Jing'an's attitude toward the match, and Qu Changkong asked him to speak in Qu Shaogong's favor.
• Qu Changkong gave Wu Zhan a Three-Yellow Plum and used his killing intent to make Wu Zhan accept it.

Wu Zhan returned to the Capital with the Three-Yellow Plum and told Yang Zhengshan about Qu Changkong’s pressure and Qu Shaogong’s conduct. After Wang Zhongzhi revealed that the Star Moon Sect had ordered the attack on Yuzhou and that Jiangnan silk merchants had colluded with sea bandits and officials, Emperor Yanping ordered a thorough investigation and called for the sect’s destruction; the court began debating which naval forces could fight it.

• Qu Changkong escorted Wu Zhan out of Nanhua City and gave him and his companions gifts, including a Three-Yellow Plum.
• Wu Zhan hurried back to the Capital and told Yang Zhengshan that Qu Changkong had pressured him over the possible marriage between Qu Shaogong and Yang Wanqing.
• Wu Zhan reported that Qu Shaogong was fairly proper, though two female cousins had long been interested in him, and Yang Zhengshan said the Empress had already acted as matchmaker.
• Wang Zhongzhi told Emperor Yanping that sixteen Jiangnan silk-merchant families had colluded with sea bandits, and that Yan Wushang had attacked Yuzhou under the Star Moon Sect’s orders.
• Emperor Yanping ordered the Censorate, Ministry of Justice, Grand Court, Secret Martial Guard, and Martial Temple to investigate the Jiangnan officials and declared that the Star Moon Sect must be destroyed.
• The ministers discussed naval forces for the campaign, and Liang Chu proposed using the Jiujiang Naval Force after training it and supplying it with larger warships.

The imperial court prepared to attack the Star Moon Sect and asked Yang Zhengshan to command the campaign. He accepted the appointment, saying he had a seventy to eighty percent chance of victory, and agreed to attend court to arrange the expedition.

• Minister of War Wang Lu supported sending the Jiujiang Naval Force to sea, and Minister of Works Jiang Wei said warships would take a year to build.
• Liang Chu proposed converting merchant ships, so Emperor Yanping ordered Jiang Wei to modify eighteen large Fuchuan within three months.
• The ministers struggled to find a naval commander, and Wang Lu and Zhou Mao suggested asking Yang Zhengshan to lead the campaign.
• Eunuch Zhang Mingzhong summoned Yang Zhengshan to the palace, where Emperor Yanping asked whether he could command naval warfare.
• Yang Zhengshan assessed the forces and accepted command, estimating that training would take three months and the campaign half a year to a year.
• Emperor Yanping entrusted the battle to Yang Zhengshan, who promised to attend court the day after tomorrow to arrange it.

Yang Zhengshan studied the Star Moon Sect and considered how to weaken it before the Imperial Court’s planned campaign. After Emperor Yanping appointed him Commander-in-Chief of the Four Seas Naval Force, Yang Zhengshan began organizing the force’s move to Zhaowu Guard and preparing for war.

• Yang Zhengshan reviewed the Secret Martial Guard’s files and asked Luo Jinsong about the Star Moon Sect, learning about its family factions, its treatment of child recruits, and possible ways to persuade some commanders to surrender.
• Luo Jinsong identified Lady Deng as a possible contact and confirmed that Yue Hongyi, Nan Haiyan, and Qu Fusheng were Innate Martial Artists.
• Emperor Yanping appointed Yang Zhengshan Commander-in-Chief of the Four Seas Naval Force, with Yu Tonghai and Bai Yuanxi as his deputy commanders and Zhaowu Guard as the force’s temporary station.
• Yang Zhengshan summoned the General Management Yamen officials and ordered Yang Jinhe, Sun Yunfeng, and Xue Chang’an to prepare offices, barracks, grain, and fodder at Zhaowu Guard.
• Yang Zhengshan assigned Zhang Ruifu and Zheng Yang to coordinate weapons, funds, and grain with the ministries, then sent Luo Jinsong to deliver a letter to Yu Tonghai at the Tenglong Guard.