On the Road

Xiao Fan was overjoyed. Reaching the peak of the Qi Refining Realm meant he could begin preparing to break through and enter the wonderful new world of the eighth-grade martial Iron Bone Realm.

His father, Xiao Wu, was a seventh-grade martial Spirit Tempering Realm warrior. He could simply seek his father's guidance on how to attain the eighth grade—there shouldn't be much of a problem!

"Next, I just need to escort Ji Xuanyuan safely back to the capital."

He rose and walked to the window, where he saw the young master tirelessly persuading the villagers in the square.

The night was quiet, and with Xiao Fan's martial hearing, he could vaguely make out the gist of what Ji Xuanyuan was saying.

The fellow was actually trying to persuade the villagers to move to Golden Mound County...

His intentions were certainly good, but the suggestion of relocating was pure fantasy.

Sure enough, none of the villagers cared to pay him any heed. Once the prayers were over, they all went their separate ways and returned home.

Before long, the holy-fire prayer gathering in the central square had dispersed, leaving only Ji Xuanyuan standing there alone.

The young master slunk back to the inn, looking utterly dejected...

He simply could not understand it. He had clearly meant well, so why would these villagers refuse to heed his advice? He didn't understand... he simply didn't understand.

Before he could open his mouth to complain, Xiao Fan sighed first. "If I'm not mistaken, no one answered Your Highness's call, correct?"

Those words struck right at Ji Xuanyuan's heart. "Exactly! I kindly advised them to go live in the county, yet they didn't appreciate it at all. Ignorant commoners! They're all ignorant commoners!"

"The villagers rely on farming for their livelihood. Then let me ask Your Highness: if you have them move to the county, what are they supposed to eat?"

Uh...

Ji Xuanyuan froze... He truly had never considered that. To him, "what to eat" had seemingly never been something that needed consideration.

Then Xiao Fan asked again, "If the villagers of Cloud Hidden Village go to the county, where are the villagers of the other villages supposed to go? If they all go to the county, how will they be settled?"

"Well..." Naturally, Ji Xuanyuan had no answer to those questions, because he had never thought about them at all.

Xiao Fan lay down on the floor bedding. "Your Highness, do not forget—Cloud Hidden Village is their home." With that, he closed his eyes and went to sleep, saying no more.

Those final words left Ji Xuanyuan completely silent, unable to speak for a time...

The night passed without incident.

The crimson sun rose in the east, golden light spilling across the earth.

Once the Bureau of Celestial Observation's triple-layered formation sensed the sunlight, it automatically suppressed the flames of the pure white holy fire, reducing the flame seed to tiny sparks and conserving candle oil to the utmost.

"I have to say, the Bureau of Celestial Observation of old was quite conscientious." Xiao Fan swiftly finished washing up and returned to the room, gazing at the crimson sun on the horizon.

Ji Xuanyuan said nothing... He had been deep in thought since last night. Anyone unaware of the situation might have thought he was contemplating the nature of the universe.

"By the way, Your Highness, do you have any travel funds on you?" Xiao Fan, penniless himself, looked troubled.

In truth, he still had the Radiant Jade Pendant Ji Xuanyuan had given him. It looked exceedingly valuable, but it seemed to contain some special formation of the Bureau of Celestial Observation and could not be sold casually.

Ji Xuanyuan still wore a stern face. He fumbled around on his person for quite a while before finally pulling out a jade pendant.

Holding the crystal-clear Coiled Dragon Jade Pendant in his hand, he hesitated briefly before handing it to Xiao Fan.

"Take this jade pendant and exchange it for some silver. If possible, buy a carriage too... Also, I'm hungry."

Xiao Fan accepted the pendant with a smile on his face, though inwardly he could not help complaining. Did Your Highness come out for a young lady's spring outing? A carriage too? Are you itching to get ambushed and killed again?

For a small mountain village, raising horses was a luxury. By comparison, donkeys offered far better value—they were sturdy, easy to keep, and cheap.

Taking the jade pendant downstairs, he found one of the village's wealthy landowners and exchanged it for fifty taels of silver, a donkey cart, and a quantity of food supplies.

That Western Regions Coiled Dragon Jade was originally worth a fortune. If sold at a legitimate pawnshop in the county town, it would fetch no less than two or three hundred taels.

With a few less-than-legitimate connections, taking it to the black market could even raise the selling price by around thirty percent.

But Xiao Fan had no choice. For now, he could only sell it dirt cheap...

The capital lay six hundred li away. The area around Golden Glow Mountain was sparsely populated; without these supplies, certain young masters likely would not even make it to the next supply point.

When he returned to the inn with the supplies, Ji Xuanyuan was stunned once again!

"Whoa! So my jade pendant is worth this much? It can be traded for so many things? But why does this horse look so strange?" Having never seen what a donkey looked like, the young master was utterly puzzled.

"Your Highness, this is not a horse. It is a donkey..."

Xiao Fan smiled faintly, as if he could smell the fragrance of becoming rich overnight. "Does Your Highness have any more jade pendants like this at your residence? Once we return, I'll sell them for you. I guarantee I'll only get more, not less!"

"I do! Last year, the Western Regions paid tribute with a batch of top-grade yellow jade. Father bestowed one piece upon me, and it was huge!" Ji Xuanyuan raised a hand to gesture at its size—roughly as large as the washbasin by his side.

What a truly wealthy noble... Western Regions yellow jade, and in such a huge piece too... If I take only a sixty-percent markup, a grand residence on Sunrise Street in the capital will be within reach!

As he thought about it, tears of emotion flowed from the corner of Xiao Fan's mouth against his will.

"Your Highness, eat quickly. Once you're done, we can get on the road!" Certain people could no longer wait to return to the capital.

He took two steamed buns from the donkey cart's supplies and handed them to Ji Xuanyuan, then pulled out ten taels of silver and gave them to the innkeeper as thanks.

"We'll be leaving now. Please take care."

The innkeeper refused to accept the silver. "What are you doing? Didn't you already pay for the lodging yesterday? Take it back, take it back."

"If I tell you to take it, then take it. A drop of kindness should be repaid with a surging spring—please do not refuse." Xiao Fan stuffed the silver back into the innkeeper's hands.

At parting, he hesitated. "Right, I noticed the Red Crystal Candle Stand in the village is nearly burnt out. You'd better make preparations early."

"It's nothing, it's nothing. The court replaces them with new ones every year. This year seems to be a little late—maybe they'll deliver it in the next couple of days."

"Besides, we pray to the Sacred Flame every day. Huang will bless us!"

Looking at the shopkeeper's smile, Xiao Fan felt a tumult of emotions. He could not be sure whether the Bureau of Celestial Observation would replace Cloud Hidden Village's candle stand.

Over the past few years, he had seen quite a few villages like this... as well as the ruins those villages became after Night Erosion...

"Let's hope so."

Afterward, Xiao Fan had the shopkeeper trade him a set of coarse linen clothes for Young Master Ji to change into. His embroidered silk robes were far too conspicuous.

The two of them drove the donkey cart toward the capital.

Along the way, the donkey cart swayed and bumped along, unable to go any faster even if they wanted it to.

"Xiao Fan, I've been thinking about what you said yesterday... The Bureau of Celestial Observation embezzling the Red Crystal Wax—Father Emperor must deal with this!"

Ji Xuanyuan seemed to have finally grasped a simple truth: matters concerning the people's livelihood were not something he could resolve by himself.

Young Master... did something this trivial really need that much thought? Xiao Fan could not help grumbling inwardly.

After a brief hesitation, Xiao Fan said, "Has Your Highness considered that perhaps... and I mean perhaps... the Bureau of Celestial Observation's actions are being tacitly permitted by His Majesty himself?"

The moment those words left his mouth, Ji Xuanyuan bristled. "Impudent! You are not allowed to speak recklessly of Father Emperor! He would never permit such conduct to exist!"

"Look at you, getting worked up again... I said perhaps."

Ji Xuanyuan lifted his chin. "Not even perhaps!"

"Alright, alright... His Majesty is wise and mighty. He would never permit such shady dealings. I misspoke; I hope Your Highness will calm your anger."

Xiao Fan coaxed the young master as though he were soothing a child. After all, he was a man of status—Xiao Fan's grand residence on Sunrise Street still depended on him.

"That's more like it... Now that I think of it, I recall you're a ninth-rank martial artist in the Qi Refinement realm?"

Xiao Fan nodded slightly. "Your Highness has an excellent memory!"

"Mm... How about this? Once we return to the capital, why don't you teach me martial arts?"

The instant he heard that, Xiao Fan felt as though he had been struck by lightning. Young Master, are you alright...?