"Oh?"
The smile on the emperor's face gradually faded. "The Rongguo Duke Mansion... how did they get on the wrong side of the Black Robe Guard?"
"Your Majesty, it was nothing particularly serious."
The old eunuch said cautiously, "Lin Ruhai's daughter has been staying at the Jia Mansion for years. This time, she wanted to travel south with her cousin to visit her family in Jiangzhe Prefecture, Mingzhou.
"But the people at the Jia Mansion stopped her from leaving and spoke insolently, drawing the Black Robe Guard there to surround the mansion.
"Oh, yes. Your Majesty should remember Miss Lin's cousin as well. He is Song Xuan, who solved that major case involving a serial rapist in Jianghuai Prefecture a little while ago."
"Ah, him..."
At the mention of Song Xuan's name, the emperor's expression brightened considerably. He had a very favorable impression of this rising talent in the Black Robe Guard.
How could he not? A single case had added more than ten million taels of silver to his Imperial Treasury. He would have loved to have more capable subjects like that.
But a moment later, he frowned. "Has Lin Ruhai's daughter been treated poorly at the Jia Mansion?"
"Not poorly, exactly. The old matriarch of the Jia Mansion dotes on her granddaughter. But however good the Jia Mansion may be, it is still not her own home. Living beneath someone else's roof probably does not feel very pleasant."
The emperor pondered for a moment, tapping his fingers lightly against the table. "Lin Ruhai serves as the Salt Commissioner in Jiangzhe Prefecture, Mingzhou. I hold him in high regard.
"Salt administration has always been a thorny problem for our Great Zhou. Over these past years, he has overseen it there on my behalf, considerably easing the strain on our depleted national treasury.
"A few days ago, Lin Ruhai submitted a memorial to me. Some of the salt merchants in Jiangsu-Zhejiang are growing restless again."
The old eunuch suggested, "Your Majesty, Song Xuan is going to Jiangzhe Prefecture to take up a post as a company commander. Should we have the Black Robe Guard order him to assist Lin Ruhai with the salt administration?"
The emperor waved a hand. "No interference. Nor will I give Lin Ruhai any overt support. He is a man I have earmarked for a future place in the cabinet. Surely he can handle this little trouble!"
After driving the carriage out of the city, Song Xuan headed straight for the docks.
The overland journey to the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Region in Mingzhou was far too long, and bandits infested the wilderness. Traveling by water would be faster and safer.
More precisely, Song Xuan and the others would first take a boat to the river mouth, then transfer to a seagoing ship and sail south, directly to Jiangzhe Prefecture.
The Great Zhou Dynasty's territory was enormous. How enormous? Rather than saying Great Zhou contained the Nine Provinces, it would be more accurate to say it ruled nine continents.
Each province was comparable to an entire continent, with seas separating one from another, while the Imperial Capital stood at the junction connecting all nine continents.
Song Xuan had once sought out a map of Great Zhou's territory specifically to study it. This world was considerably larger than the Earth he had known in his previous life.
The continental landmass of each province closely resembled Eurasia on the Earth of his previous life.
One could even say that nine Eurasian continents had been forcibly crammed into a single world. Then, three hundred years ago, Great Zhou's Founding Emperor, Ji Wuming, had burst onto the scene, leading an invincible army of martial warriors to conquer all nine continents and establish the Nine Provinces!
"All lands beneath the sun and moon belong to Great Zhou." In the hands of Great Zhou's Founding Emperor, those words had become reality.
Years ago, the first time Song Xuan saw a map of Great Zhou's territory, he had been stunned speechless.
The territory of Great Zhou bore an extraordinary resemblance to the setting of Martial Arts Grand World, the game he had designed in his previous life. In fact, it was even more fully realized than his own design.
So fully realized that, for a time, he had suspected he had transmigrated into the game world.
Unfortunately, only the worldbuilding was similar. He had not actually entered the game world, for he had followed the game's walkthrough more than once, visiting several areas where fortuitous treasures were supposed to await.
Yet every attempt had yielded nothing. Eventually, he had lost all enthusiasm for exploring the world and hunkered down in the Imperial Capital, peacefully cultivating the Pure Yang Limitless Child Skill. That stay had lasted nearly twenty years.
Several days later, Song Xuan and the others boarded a seagoing ship and began sailing south along the Eastern Sea.
Lin Daiyu was a little seasick. She spent most of her time in her cabin and rarely appeared outside.
Song Qian, on the other hand, was so skilled in martial arts that the girl had no idea what seasickness even felt like. At that moment, she had dragged Song Xuan onto the deck for a barbecue.
Song Qian was very handy. She had made a wooden stand herself, set an iron pot on it, and filled the pot with burning charcoal.
Several iron skewers rested over the pot, threaded with lamb they had bought before boarding, along with two fish caught from the sea. Sprinkled with cumin, chili, and other seasonings, the meat soon sent its aroma drifting everywhere on the sea breeze.
Before long, someone came over, drawn by the smell.
The newcomer looked like a wealthy young gentleman. Dressed in expensive brocade, he appeared sixteen or seventeen, with rosy lips, white teeth, and rather delicate features.
Song Xuan had become acquainted with him over the past few days aboard the ship. His name was very easy to remember: Lin Pingzhi.
Yes, that Lin Pingzhi-the poor kid in Roaming the Jianghu with Pride who had cut off his dick to practice the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual and avenge his family.
The Lin Household ran an escort agency and owned extensive businesses in Mingzhou. Their Fortune and Prestige Escort Agency reportedly had branches in almost every prefectural and commandery capital in Mingzhou, with thousands upon thousands of escorts and assorted employees relying on it for their livelihood.
His father, Lin Zhennan, was the chief escort of the Fortune and Prestige Escort Agency. Years of escorting goods had earned him connections everywhere, giving him considerable influence in both official circles and the Martial World.
This seagoing ship was one of the Lin Household's properties. As the household's young master, Lin Pingzhi was responsible on this trip for accompanying the other escorts to deliver a shipload of goods to the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Region in Mingzhou.
Seeing Lin Pingzhi approach, Song Qian waved him over without ceremony. "Little Lin, come grill for a while!"
Lin Pingzhi was not the least bit annoyed by Song Qian's greeting. Instead, he approached briskly with a smile, sat down beside the brazier, and began turning the lamb while searching for a topic of conversation.
"Brother Xuan, Sister Qian, you look like you practice martial arts too, right?"
Sitting to one side, Song Xuan gazed leisurely at the boundless ocean and smiled faintly. "We've learned a few moves for self-defense. Nothing compared to your Lin Household's seventy-two forms of Evil-Repelling Swordplay."
The Lin Household's Evil-Repelling Swordplay was quite famous throughout Mingzhou. Of course, the person who had earned that fame was Lin Pingzhi's grandfather, Lin Yuantu.
Back then, armed with his seventy-two forms of Evil-Repelling Swordplay, Lin Yuantu had defeated masters of every stripe in Mingzhou's Martial World and forged a formidable reputation.
But in Lin Zhennan's generation, the Evil-Repelling Swordplay had become thoroughly unremarkable. Though still considerably stronger than ordinary martial techniques, it had long since lost the might it possessed in Lin Yuantu's day.
People in the Martial World merely believed Lin Zhennan had mediocre martial aptitude and had failed to grasp the essence of the Evil-Repelling Swordplay. Only Song Xuan knew that Lin Zhennan did not lack talent; he simply had never cultivated the true Evil-Repelling Sword Manual.
Evil-Repelling Swordplay without cutting off your dick wasn't good swordplay. By the same reasoning, a Lin Pingzhi who hadn't cut off his dick...
Song Xuan glanced at the young man diligently tending the barbecue, a bashful smile occasionally appearing on his face.
The kid was decent, without the arrogance and conceit of a wealthy family's son.
Song Xuan felt that the Martial World did not necessarily need another Lin Pingzhi.
Before you continue