Ten-Thousand Questions Martial Arts Model

Zhao Hu drove the carriage at full gallop, finally reaching Dongyang Gate of Qingwu County at the beginning of the Hour of the Pig.

Xie An lifted the side curtain and looked around.

The city gates were tightly shut, with a row of spiked chevaux-de-frise set five zhang outside. A yellow lantern hung high above the thirty-foot gate tower, while soldiers patrolled atop the walls with torches in hand.

Quite a few emaciated refugees huddled in the snow beyond the barricades—adults and children alike—stuffing snow into their mouths. Even several fierce-looking men who wanted to enter the city gave up the thought of approaching the gates after seeing the sharp, bloodstained barricades.

As Xie An's carriage slowly drew near the gates, some refugees, their eyes red with hunger, rose one after another and crept toward the luxurious carriage. Near-mad greed gleamed in their eyes.

Xie An's heart immediately tightened.

He did not dare underestimate the savagery of these refugees.

Driven mad by hunger and left with nowhere to go, refugees were capable of anything—even eating people.

Among bands of famine refugees, cannibalism was no exaggeration.

What did a luxurious carriage appearing among a crowd of refugees signify... the answer was self-evident.

Fortunately, Xie An had already adapted to this chaotic age after five days in this world. He immediately called out, "Zhao Hu!"

Zhao Hu understood at once. He leaped down from the carriage shaft, drew his blade with a clang, and glared viciously at the refugees leading the approach.

"Blades have no eyes. If you don't want to throw your lives away, back off!"

Zhao Hu was tall and powerfully built, with the formidable vitality of a Bone-Tempering Warrior. Together with the broad blade in his hand, glinting with cold light... he ultimately frightened the refugees into retreating.

Only then did Xie An let out a breath and turn to look at the sealed city gates ahead.

Great Qian had always enforced a curfew, and Qingwu County, situated on Great Qian's southeastern frontier, upheld it with particular severity.

Trying to slip money to someone and casually enter the city?

That was the kind of fabricated tale found in storybooks.

Qingwu County might be chaotic, but it stood on Great Qian's border. This gate was practically a national gate.

Once tensions rose or enemy forces threatened, this gate would become a lifeline.

Especially now, with the southern barbarians crossing the border to raid and harass, the guards kept an even stricter watch, rigidly upholding the iron rule that city gates must never be opened at night.

Trying to bribe them into opening the gates was nearly the same as courting death.

But this was no challenge for Xie An, a seasoned old hand of the workplace.

Qingwu County had four main gates—east, south, west, and north. Why had Xie An left through Dongyang Gate during the day?

Naturally, it was because Wei Dian, the gate officer of Dongyang Gate... had been a friend of the original Xie An. They were about the same age and came from similarly respectable backgrounds. Add to that their shared rotten tastes, and they had often gone together to gambling dens and brothels.

Of course, friendship was merely a stepping stone. To enter the city at night, he still needed a reasonable and lawful pretext.

Xie An lifted the carriage curtain and jumped down, shouting up at the city wall, "May I ask whether Gate Officer Wei is present?"

The patrolling soldiers on the wall noticed Xie An below. Someone called back, "What do you want with Gate Officer Wei?"

Xie An shouted, "I am a messenger entrusted by Li Constable of the county office to deliver a letter. I bear an urgent military report requiring immediate attention. Please summon Gate Officer Wei, sir."

The moment the soldier heard there was an urgent military report, he said, "Wait here," then hurried off to fetch Gate Officer Wei.

By Qingwu County's custom, each city gate had thirty-six soldiers taking turns to patrol at night. The officer in charge was called a gate officer. Though it was a tiny post, the gate officer had the final say on matters of entering the city.

Besides, however strict the curfew was, the gates had to be opened in the event of urgent military intelligence. This was not a matter of personal favor, but an "exceptional circumstance" explicitly stipulated within the harsh laws.

In his previous life, the Tang Dynasty's Commentary on the Tang Code had clearly decreed that opening city gates without authorization at night was a serious crime. Yet it also stated: "If there is an emergency, or if post riders and imperial orders arrive at a prefecture or county outside the proper hours due to urgency, the city commander may verify the matter and open the gates according to law."

The Great Ming Code prescribed one hundred strokes for opening city gates at night. It also included a supplementary clause: "Where city gates or capital gates must be opened or closed outside the prescribed hours due to urgent official business that cannot be delayed, this restriction shall not apply."

And the highest category of "urgent official business" was urgent military intelligence.

When the survival of the nation was at stake, neither the central government nor local authorities dared treat it lightly.

Before long, Wei Dian's familiar figure appeared atop the wall.

Upon seeing Xie An below, the tall, broad-shouldered Wei Dian immediately showed delight, though he still put on an official tone. "Do you have Li Constable's handwritten letter?"

Xie An took a letter from his robes. "I do."

It truly was Li Constable's handwritten letter.

There was no other reason.

Li Constable was his father's sworn brother, and he had given him this letter precisely for situations where he needed to enter the city at night.

Wei Dian deliberately snorted. "If you dare deceive us, your crime will be aggravated. Open the gates and verify his identity and handwritten letter."

Not long afterward, the city gates opened with a thunderous rumble. Two teams of soldiers, armed with spears and sabers at their waists, emerged from either side with torches raised, intimidating the refugees outside and preventing them from rushing the gates.

Wei Dian then came down with a saber in hand to "inspect" Xie An's handwritten letter and travel permit. At last, he patted Xie An on the shoulder. "The handwritten letter checks out. Refugees have been running rampant outside the city lately, and the southern barbarians are causing trouble. Your elder brother has no choice. Hurry inside."

Xie An took out a bulging money pouch and stuffed it into Wei Dian's hand. "Sorry for disturbing all you soldiers in the middle of the night. Let the brothers have a drink."

Wei Dian did not lack money, but he still accepted it and tossed it to a nearby soldier. "Young Master Mingxi is treating everyone to drinks. Divide it among yourselves."

Having received the money, the soldiers naturally beamed, each calling him Young Master Mingxi.

Mingxi was Xie An's courtesy name.

Wei Dian entered the gates side by side with Xie An, not forgetting to grumble, "What have you been doing lately? I asked you out for drinks, but you never came. Then you ran outside the city in the dead of night. What if those refugees or bandits killed you? How would I explain that to Uncle Xie?"

"I haven't been feeling well these past few days. Today, I went out to inspect the tenant farmers' estates. Heavy snow blocked the roads, and that delayed me. Another day, I'll treat Brother Wei to drinks."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Xie An climbed back into the carriage and bid farewell.

Once inside the city, Xie An saw rows upon rows of houses, eateries and taverns open along the streets, and diners coming and going. Hearing the cries of street vendors and the coquettish laughter of prostitutes from distant brothels... he could not help but feel somewhat reassured.

Though this was only Qingwu County's outer city, quite a few martial arts instructors from training halls were stationed here, along with many Hanlin scholars who had retired from office... there was enough vital yang energy here.

On the way home, Xie An stared at the dim yellow lantern outside the carriage bearing the words "Dragon King's Blessing."

Their survival tonight had relied entirely on this lantern.

Otherwise, that grain-collecting tax official would likely have already stepped through Li Degui's courtyard gate.

He wondered what it was about the lantern that frightened the grain-collecting tax official.

Was the lamp oil unusual? Or were the four words "Dragon King's Blessing" on the lampshade?

And what exactly was the Dragon King?

Xie An searched through all the original owner's memories, yet found no relevant information.

As the eldest legitimate son, the original Xie An had been too well protected by his parents from childhood and had always lived in a greenhouse. He had always believed this was merely an ordinary world of martial wanderers, and his parents had never told him much about the world outside.

The rich young heirs and courtesans he had known sometimes spoke of folk customs and strange occurrences. Yet the original owner had never taken them seriously, dismissing them as ghost stories.

Who could have imagined... this world truly harbored great horrors!

Xie An closed his eyes and sorted through his thoughts, considering what to do next.

First, I'll bring this lantern back and study it. Then I'll ask Uncle Shui what the Dragon King is.

And afterward, I'll visit the county office and find out exactly what that grain-collecting official was...

By the time they arrived at the gates of Xie Residence, it was already the end of the Hour of the Pig.

Two burly guards carrying sabers stood on either side of the main gate. Broad-backed and bear-waisted, their eyes flashed like lightning, making them look immensely reassuring.

Between the guards stood a young girl in a pink padded jacket. Her hair was tied in two maidservant buns, and she was slender, lovely, and charming.

Seeing the carriage return, the girl hurried forward at a trot, lifted the curtain, and helped Xie An down. "Young Master, you're finally back. Master was worried sick."

Xie An stepped beneath the imposing gatehouse. "Qiu Lan, where is my father?"

The girl Qiu Lan answered, "He's in the study checking the accounts with Uncle Shui."

"I'll go take a look."

Leaving Qiu Lan behind, Xie An strode toward the central courtyard.

Xie Residence lay in the eastern part of Qingwu County's outer city. It was an expanded compound with seven successive courtyards, built in lavish splendor. Only after passing several side courtyards and hanging-flower gates and winding through more than a dozen covered corridors did Xie An reach the central courtyard.

The moment he entered the courtyard, he saw lamplight in the study, where his father and Uncle Shui were drinking tea.

Uncle Shui wore a gray cloth robe and had a lean frame, yet his entire bearing was exceptionally sharp.

He was the head of Xie Residence's guards. It was said that he had made a name for himself in the martial world in his early years and was a renowned hero with a martial moniker. Since he was his father's sworn brother, he had come to Xie Residence as a guard and also served as steward.

In contrast to Uncle Shui's sharp vigor, his father appeared quite old, his temples already graying.

Seeing his father's white hair from afar, Xie An felt a stir of emotion.

His father had been born into a great family of the inner city. Later, after falling out with the Lineage, he moved out of the inner city. Through hard work, he obtained a salt license and began running a salt business.

Great Qian had always implemented a salt monopoly system of "official production and merchant sales." The government controlled salt production and wholesale distribution, leaving the scattered retail stages to licensed merchants granted special permission.

Though the government took the larger share, salt merchants still reaped considerable profits.

That was because salt licenses were equivalent to sales permits for designated regions, creating regional monopolies.

After years in business, his father had his own fleet of ships and carriages, enormous salt warehouses, branch offices, license clerks, shore merchants, warehouse attendants, guards, and escort leaders... he had already built a complete commercial network.

Under Great Qian's market-trade laws, salt licenses could be inherited...

Xie An had a six-year-old younger sister. His elder sister had died young, while he himself was the first heir.

Originally, Xie An had thought that as long as he stayed alive and healthy, everything that ought to be his would come to him... but everything he had encountered tonight at Li Family Village made him understand... that if he wished to possess the strength to protect himself in this chaotic age—

Inheriting the family business alone was not enough.

Lost in thought, he reached the study.

"Father, Uncle Shui."

Xie An cupped his hands, then pulled out a grandmaster's chair and sat opposite the tea table.

Xie Zhengtang, now over forty, wore a gray long robe. He picked up the dry tobacco pipe beside him, took a puff, and spoke in a neither warm nor cold tone. "I heard from Qiu Lan that you went outside the city to inspect things today?"

In Xie Zhengtang's eyes, Xie An had always been an idle wastrel who had done little proper work, spending his days in brothels, theaters, and gambling dens instead.

He had long ceased to hold much hope for this eldest legitimate son.

The original Xie An had feared this stern father deeply, but Xie An, who had lived two lives, felt nothing of the sort. "Yes. I heard from Manager Zhou Yun at our family grain shop that the tenant farmers of Li Family Village in Wuqiao Town had recently been fleeing in large numbers. I wanted to ease Father's burdens, so I went to investigate."

The family did have a grain shop. It handled rice from tenant farmers outside the city, processing it into polished rice, flour, and other goods for unified wholesale sale.

As grain concerned the food supply and livelihoods of the local people, Xie Zhengtang did involve himself in the grain shop. However, since its total revenue was not especially great, he usually did not pay it much attention.

Big bosses always focused on the big pieces of the pie.

These minor matters could only be handled by Xie An.

The corner of Xie Zhengtang's mouth twitched, and rare gratification appeared in his eyes. "Since recovering from your illness five days ago, you really have become steadier. You even know to share your father's burdens... What did you find?"

Xie An looked at Uncle Shui, then at his father, before recounting everything he had seen and heard at Li Family Village in detail.

As he spoke, Xie An kept his eyes fixed on his father's expression, trying to discern something.

After all, Xie An felt that his father, having done business for so many years, surely knew something about the great horrors of this world.

Yet his father had never said anything before.

He had truly protected the original owner too well.

When Xie Zhengtang finished listening, he slammed his tobacco pipe against the table. "Li Family Village must have fallen victim to some sinister martial sect. Everything you saw and heard was merely caused by hallucinogenic drugs. What demons and ghosts could possibly exist in this world? It is all nothing more than folk fabrication."

The more sternly his father denied it, the more certain Xie An became.

Yet Xie An knew that in his father's eyes, he was only an idle, unpromising boy. There was no use asking further.

Xie Zhengtang also realized that he had overreacted, so he softened his tone. "Don't go outside the city for the time being... Refugees are running rampant out there, and the southern barbarians are causing trouble as well. Stay in the city... It would be fine to go enjoy yourself."

"Understood. It's late. Father and Uncle Shui should rest early."

Xie An answered, cupped his hands, and left.

But he already had his answer in his heart.

By "enjoying himself," his father meant nothing more than brothels, gambling dens, and theaters.

His father had always disliked him going to such places, yet now, merely to keep him from leaving the city... he had unexpectedly approved of it.

And he still claimed there were no ghosts?

Did he really think I was still that fool from before...?

Since his father would not tell him, Xie An could only investigate it himself.

After leaving the central courtyard, Xie An headed straight for the family library.

After Xie An left the study, Uncle Shui sighed. "Mingxi is sixteen now, old enough to marry and have children. Why must Master keep it from him?"

Xie Zhengtang took a hard drag on his tobacco pipe. "His mother died early. I feel I failed her, and I could not bear to discipline the boy harshly. Besides, what use would knowing do? Ordinary martial artists have no means of saving their lives when they encounter ghosts... Apart from the three great powers standing high above in the inner city, among Qingwu County's million terrified residents, how many could kill a ghost?"

Hearing this, Uncle Shui sighed as well, unable to speak for a long while.

Xie Zhengtang puffed on his tobacco pipe. "Fortunately, there have not been many folk ghost incidents outside the city. For ordinary people like us, the only way to live is to properly worship the White Jade Goddess and seek her protection. Rather than let Mingxi spend every day trembling in fear after learning the truth, it is better to keep it from him, so he can live a few more carefree years."

Uncle Shui did not argue further about raising children. He sighed and said, "But now a ghost has appeared at Li Family Village. The thing coming every night to collect grain should be a Grain-Collecting Ghost. Harsh rule is fiercer than a tiger, and thus it became a Grain-Collecting Ghost. I fear a grain-collecting official slaughtered the village in the beginning, causing resentment to breed and turn into a ghost. Li Family Village is Master's estate after all. That Grain-Collecting Ghost may follow the vine to find the melon, eventually coming to Xie Residence to collect taxes. Such examples have appeared in other counties as well. Master should think of a solution soon."

Xie Zhengtang let out a long breath. "Spend a great sum to invite a Daoist from Returning Dragon Abbey and hold a sacrificial rite at the entrance to Li Family Village. May it protect the Xie Household from disaster."

Uncle Shui said, "Returning Dragon Abbey's rites have always required living human sacrifices. As for the candidates..."

Xie Zhengtang said, "Brother Shui, I'll trouble you to arrange for men to seize a few evil bandits tonight to make up the numbers. I will not rest at home tonight. I'll go to White Goddess Shrine and offer three sticks of incense to the White Jade Goddess, praying for the safety of the entire household."

No one guarded the library at night, and Xie An entered without difficulty.

After his father moved from the inner-city Lineage to the outer city, he had once studied bitterly through the nights, hoping to change his fate through the imperial examinations. Though he repeatedly failed, he met an influential patron in the examination halls and obtained a salt license through that patron... only then did he enter commerce.

Thus, the family had quite a large collection of books.

Xie An lit an oil lamp with a tinderbox and began searching the shelves. At last, he found a county gazetteer, then sat before a long table and carefully read through it.

[Jingtai Year 3: A merchant vessel passing through the Huai River section of Qingwu County was suddenly attacked by Water Monkeys. All forty-five people aboard were gnawed down to bones. Later, nearby fishermen invited a Daoist from Returning Dragon Abbey to conduct a rite and hang yellow lanterns. From then on, the Huai River was peaceful, and Water Monkeys never again devoured people.]

[Jingtai Year 5: A headless knight on horseback appeared at Blackwind Ridge outside Qingwu County. The headless knight hacked at anyone he saw. Villagers near Blackwind Ridge invited a Daoist from Returning Dragon Abbey to conduct a rite and hang yellow lanterns. From then on, Blackwind Ridge was peaceful.]

[Jingtai Year 9: A baby's cries appeared at night in Qingwu County's eastern outskirts, luring nearby residents outside. All who went out had their bellies cut open and hearts dug out, dying miserably. Later, nearby residents invited a Daoist from Returning Dragon Abbey to conduct a rite and hang yellow lanterns. From then on, peace returned.]

[Jingtai Year 13: The wife of a wealthy Li resident in Wuqiao Town, Qingwu County, carried her child for ten months and gave birth to a ghost infant. The ghost infant swallowed the wealthy man's wife the moment it was born, then ate the entire Li household. Later, the villagers invited a Daoist from Returning Dragon Abbey to conduct a rite and hang yellow lanterns. From then on, Wuqiao Town was peaceful.]

[...]

After reading the county gazetteer, Xie An felt a chill creep over him.

So Li Family Village was not the only place in Qingwu County where folk ghosts had appeared. There were all sorts of bizarre ghosts everywhere.

If an ordinary person encountered even one of them, disaster would strike!

Whether people lived or died depended entirely on fate?

This world was far too hard to survive in!

But why was it that every time something happened, all it took was for a Daoist from Returning Dragon Abbey to conduct a rite and hang yellow lanterns for everything to be fine?

What connection was there between the yellow lanterns hung by Returning Dragon Abbey and the yellow lantern bearing "Dragon King's Blessing" that hung over the entrance of Li Family Village...?

Just then, Xie An felt the panel stir.

He opened the panel.

[Ten-Thousand Questions Martial Arts Model Lv1: Pending Activation]

[Blood Qi: 0.8]

[Spirit: 1.0]

[Martial arts realm: none]

[Talent: none]

A line of small text had appeared at the very end:

[Activate?]

This prompt had never appeared before.

Hm?

Upon closer inspection, Xie An saw that his mental attribute had risen from 0.9 to 1, barely reaching the benchmark for an adult man.

Could the fright he had received tonight in Li Family Village have strengthened his mental will somewhat?

Once his mental attribute reached 1, did he meet the conditions to activate the Grand Model?

Never mind that. Activating it was the most urgent matter.

He would first see what this Martial Arts Grand Model was all about.

Xie An took a deep breath, then willed it into motion.

"Activate!"