Over a month later, north of Mount Wu, a party of more than a hundred people crossed mountains and streams and arrived before the mansion where Li Chen now lived.
"Your Grace, we have arrived." A middle-aged man who looked like a steward returned from the front and addressed Yan Zheng, head of the Yan Clan, who sat in a cushioned sedan chair carried by strongmen in the middle of the procession.
"Academician Yang, we have arrived." Yan Zheng nodded slightly, then turned to acknowledge another man beside him.
The man had a broad face and a square forehead. Dressed in the Vermilion-Purple Court Robes of the Great Qian Dynasty, he sat in another cushioned sedan chair carried by strongmen, his bearing poised and dignified.
He was Yang Zhi, the renowned master of the Confucian Dao who had recently traveled to the Pingqiu Kingdom.
Yang Zhi held a third-rank office as an academician of the Hanlin Academy and was a celebrated figure even at court. But he had old ties with the Yan Clan and could hardly refuse their request. Besides, having heard that Hu Ze had advanced to Demon King, he would have been neglecting his duties if he ignored the matter, so he had agreed to come here for a meeting.
At Yan Zheng's words, Yang Zhi gave a mild acknowledgment, then looked past the crowd toward their destination ahead.
Through the sparse branches and leaves, they could see an old-fashioned residence of red brick and blue tiles on a nearby hilltop. Built against the mountainside according to the prescribed layout for a duke's residence, it looked somewhat weathered with age, yet retained an air of grandeur.
But the gateway standing nearby had already been fitted with a new plaque bearing the words "Pingqiu King's Residence."
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