Chapter Summaries

Jia Huan sought help from Jiang-Gan’s martial factions to destroy the Fortune and Prosperity Zen Temple without deploying imperial troops. After tempting the gathered leaders with martial arts manuals and a share of the temple’s wealth, he ordered them to march on the temple and raze it.

• Jia Huan asked the Misty Rain Tower to summon renowned Jiang-Gan martial artists to Southern Gan.
• Jia Huan ordered Scholar to take thirty Embroidered Uniform Guards to Jiangzhou and monitor the Yan family while establishing an intelligence network.
• Jia Huan arrived at a Misty Rain Tower gathering and announced his plan to destroy the Fortune and Prosperity Zen Temple.
• Jia Huan displayed martial arts manuals and promised the gathered factions a share of the temple’s illicit wealth, winning their agreement to join the attack.
• Jia Huan ordered the martial artists to march on the temple, watch one another for informers, and raze it to the ground.

Jia Huan led the Jianghu factions and the Embroidered Uniform Guard in destroying Fortune and Prosperity Zen Temple, then detained Jiangxi Governor Lu Qingxian. Lu confessed that Dai Quan had forced him to protect the Yan family, and that his first compromise had led him into corruption.

• The abbot ordered his monks to resist as Jia Huan arrived with Jianghu fighters and commanded them to capture senior monks and kill the rest.
• Jia Huan's forces slaughtered the temple's monks, seized its wealth and land deeds, and were ordered to return the stolen farmland to the people.
• Jia Huan sent Twin Whips to secure the Governor's Yamen, then confronted Lu Qingxian and revealed that Fortune and Prosperity Zen Temple had been destroyed.
• Lu Qingxian abandoned his defiance after Jia Huan threatened his family and declared that he had come to kill Dai Quan.
• Lu Qingxian told Jia Huan that Dai Quan had threatened his family after he prosecuted the Yan family, and that he began protecting them before sinking into corruption.

Jia Huan exposed Lu Qingxian’s crimes and arrested the Yan family, using evidence of their ties to the White Lotus Cult to implicate them in rebellion. He gave Scholar the golden Python Dragon Waist Token and left the others to escort the prisoners, witnesses, and evidence while he returned to the Capital ahead of them.

• Lu Qingxian confessed that he had colluded with the Yan family, covered up a deadly poisoning at Eunuch Dai’s request, and hidden Eunuch Dai’s letters inside a shrine.
• Jia Huan ordered the arrest of the Yan family and sent the Embroidered Uniform Guard to search their residence.
• Jia Huan arrested Yan Yu'en and other members of the Yan family after Jiangzhou officials agreed to testify about their crimes.
• Twin Whips found women with White Lotus Cult tattoos, weapons, armor, letters, and cult command tokens in the Yan residence.
• Jia Huan collected the officials’ signed accusations and ordered Scholar and the others to escort the prisoners, witnesses, and evidence as he returned to the Capital ahead of them.

Dai Quan learned that Jia Huan had uncovered the crimes of his descendants and sought refuge with the Retired Emperor. Jia Huan presented evidence against the Yan family, persuaded the Retired Emperor to abandon Dai Quan, and dragged him out of the Eastern Palace for investigation.

• Dai Quan received a report that Jia Huan had captured the governor of Jiangxi and feared that Jia would expose his past crimes.
• Dai Quan failed to have Jia Huan’s family killed and begged the Retired Emperor for protection, who ordered Jia Huan to meet him.
• Jia Huan returned to the Capital and went to the Eastern Palace, where the Retired Emperor told him to stop pursuing Dai Quan.
• Jia Huan revealed Dai Quan’s connection to the Yan family and accused them of causing a deadly plague, colluding with the White Lotus Cult, and stockpiling weapons.
• The Retired Emperor read the officials’ statements, ordered the crimes punished, and allowed Jia Huan to take Dai Quan away.

Jia Huan secured an imperial order to execute Dai Quan and his accomplices after returning from a successful investigation. He carried out the executions in the Imperial Prison, killing Dai Quan, his family, corrupt officials, and the criminals from Fortune and Prosperity Zen Temple.

• Jia Huan dragged Dai Quan through the Forbidden City and locked him in the Imperial Prison while he awaited Scholar’s return.
• Scholar returned with the prisoners and evidence, and Jia Huan presented the case to Commissioner Ouyang, who soon brought an imperial order for immediate executions.
• Jia Huan read the edict to Dai Quan and let Scholar torture Dai Quan’s family while he turned to the other prisoners.
• Jia Huan executed the abbot and senior monks of Fortune and Prosperity Zen Temple for their crimes, including unleashing a plague on a hundred thousand people.
• Jia Huan let Lu Qingxian see Dai Quan before killing Lu, then executed Dai Quan’s remaining family and Dai Quan himself.

After bringing down the Yan Residence’s criminals and corrupt officials, Jia Huan gained a major cultivation boost and received promotions and reinforcements for his command. He ended by ordering all Embroidered Uniform Guards at the Qi'an Office to assemble.

• Jia Huan finished interrogating the criminals, gained nearly fourteen thousand Sin Value, and advanced to the Fourth Layer of the Profound Insight Realm.
• Jia Huan tested his new saber technique, Only the Phoenix Is Supreme, and left phoenix-shaped cracks across the interrogation room walls.
• Jia Huan submitted the closing case report and received a three-python Flying Fish Uniform and authorization for a thousand additional Embroidered Uniform Guards.
• Scholar and Twin Whips were promoted two grades, while Fathead Fish, Skinny Monkey, Biaozi, and Iron Palm became Hundred-Household Commanders.
• Jia Huan’s seven confidants thanked him, and he ordered all Embroidered Uniform Guards of the Qi'an Office to assemble at the Training Ground.

Jia Huan rallied the Embroidered Uniform Guards and ordered a covert investigation into the Beiliang Governor-General and Wang Ziteng. At the Eastern Palace, Wang Ziteng failed to persuade the Retired Emperor to strip Jia Huan of his rank and left determined to kill him.

• Jia Huan addressed nearly two thousand Embroidered Uniform Guards, urged them to compete for vacant Hundred-Household Commander posts, and received their salute as their Thousand-Household Commander.
• Jia Huan ordered Scholar Twin Whips to build an intelligence network and send fifty elite men to Northern Liang to seek evidence against the Beiliang Governor-General and Wang Ziteng.
• Wang Ziteng, fearing Jia Huan would retaliate after Eunuch Dai's death, visited the Retired Emperor and complained about Jia Huan's treatment of Dai Quan and the Prince of Eastern Peace's household.
• Wang Ziteng asked the Retired Emperor to strip Jia Huan of his rank, but the Retired Emperor refused, citing the need for a legitimate cause and warning that Jia Huan was a valued Thousand-Household Commander.
• Wang Ziteng left the Eastern Palace resolved to crush Jia Huan and send him to his death.

Jia Huan took Lin Daiyu on a spring outing to make up for breaking his promise, and their affectionate encounter left her asking him to treat her well for the rest of his life.

• Wang Xifeng visited Jia Huan and said she was gathering information for him from the wives of influential men.
• Lin Daiyu confronted Jia Huan for breaking his promise to admire flowers with her, and he promised to take her into the countryside the next morning.
• Jia Huan and Lin Daiyu traveled to a lake outside the city, where she kissed him and he kissed her in return.
• Lin Daiyu flew a kite with Jia Huan's help, then kissed him again before the kite fell into the lake.
• Jia Huan carried Lin Daiyu on his back, and she asked him to be good to her for the rest of his life.

Jia Baoyu celebrated earning Tongsheng status with extravagant ceremony and boasted that he would become the top graduate, while Jia Zheng rebuked his arrogance and Jia Huan ignored him. Jia Baoyu left convinced that Jia Huan envied him, though his conduct only made Lin Daiyu and Wang Xifeng regard him as unbearably conceited.

• The Jia Family celebrated Jia Baoyu's Tongsheng status with gongs, drums, firecrackers, and a banquet.
• Jia Baoyu praised his own talent and claimed Jia Huan should seek his advice, prompting Jia Zheng to scold him for arrogance and for celebrating a minor achievement so extravagantly.
• Jia Baoyu declared that he would become the top graduate and bring glory to Madam Wang and Jia Mu, while Jia Zheng urged him to stay humble.
• Jia Baoyu went to Jia Huan's residence to invite him to the banquet, but Jia Huan turned away and returned to the Warm Chamber.
• Jia Baoyu handed out celebration money and boasted to Lin Daiyu and Wang Xifeng before leaving, while they exchanged looks at his boundless conceit.

Jia Huan agreed to oversee security at the upcoming Martial Arts Tournament and redirected his investigation toward Sichuan's garrison eunuch, Xue Fu, after uncovering his secret meeting with the Beiliang Governor-General. Meanwhile, Jia Baoyu passed the prefectural examination on his first attempt, and the Jia Family celebrated his success while looking ahead to the autumn examination.

• Commissioner Ouyang assigned Jia Huan to lead the team overseeing next month's Martial Arts Tournament, and Jia Huan accepted.
• Scholar told Jia Huan that covert agents had found no wrongdoing by the Beiliang Governor-General but had learned he secretly met with Sichuan's garrison eunuch, Xue Fu.
• Jia Huan ordered Scholar to send elite agents into Sichuan to investigate Xue Fu and said he would go there himself if they uncovered wrongdoing.
• The Jia Family celebrated after Jia Baoyu passed the prefectural examination on his first attempt.
• Jia Baoyu boasted that he had revealed only a fraction of his talent, while Jia Zheng ordered him to study for the autumn examination.

Jia Huan investigated a leak in the Capital's academy examination and discovered that Jia Baoyu was among the candidates who had obtained the questions in advance. He refused to conceal Baoyu's involvement and set out for Rongguo Mansion, while waiting for Eunuch Mei to come plead for his nephew.

• Jia Baoyu celebrated passing the examination, bragged to his relatives, and taunted Lin Daiyu about rejecting him.
• A student who had placed first in the examination asked Jia Huan to investigate rumors that candidates had obtained the questions in advance.
• Jia Huan ordered Scholar to investigate, and Scholar found that examiner Yu Hengxin had sold the questions to three candidates, who spread them to several dozen others.
• Scholar reported that Mei Qin, Eunuch Mei's nephew, was among the candidates in custody, and Jia Huan decided to wait for Eunuch Mei to approach him.
• Twin Whips told Jia Huan that Jia Baoyu had also known the questions in advance, but Jia Huan refused to strike his name from the records and ordered ten elite men to accompany him to Rongguo Mansion.

Jia Huan arrested Jia Baoyu for cheating in the County Examination, forced him to confess, and confronted Mei Yuan about the punishment of Mei Qin. The chapter ended with Mei Yuan revealing possible embezzlement by Xue Fu, giving Jia Huan a lead in his plan against Wang Ziteng.

• Jia Huan arrived at the Rongguo Mansion banquet with the Embroidered Uniform Guard and accused Jia Baoyu of cheating in the County Examination.
• Jia Baoyu confessed that he had bought the examination questions from the Duke of the Shan State's legitimate grandson for a hundred taels of silver.
• Jia Huan had Jia Baoyu and the other candidates punished, and Jia Baoyu signed a confession before being released from the Imperial Prison.
• Mei Yuan asked Jia Huan to spare his nephew Mei Qin from execution, but Jia Huan said he would need evidence against Xue Fu to transfer the case to the Three Judicial Offices.
• Mei Yuan revealed that Xue Fu had allegedly taken military funds for an operation against twenty thousand bandits when only two thousand rabble were present, and Jia Huan saw a way to pursue Wang Ziteng.

Jia Huan prepared to leave the Capital to investigate the Shuzhong garrison eunuch and the Beiliang Governor-General, while the Rongguo Mansion dealt with Jia Baoyu’s examination scandal. Before departing, Jia Huan agreed to take Concubine Zhao, Lin Daiyu, and the other women south to Jiangnan.

• Jia Huan ordered eighteen hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards to depart in groups for Sichuan and arrest Xue Fu.
• Jia Baoyu returned to the Rongguo Mansion after being beaten for cheating, and Jia Mu and Madam Wang comforted him while Jia Zheng condemned him.
• Wang Ziteng presented the Retired Emperor’s decree revoking Baoyu’s scholar’s qualification but allowing him to continue taking the Imperial Examination.
• Wang Ziteng insulted Jia Huan and privately resolved to find a way to destroy him, while Jia Huan dismissed him and returned to his residence.
• Lin Daiyu asked to travel to Jiangnan, and Jia Huan agreed to take her, Concubine Zhao, and the other women with him.
• Jia Huan visited the Misty Rain Tower, then left the Capital with his men to pursue the official investigations.

Jia Huan investigated reports that Guarding Eunuch Xue Fu had killed twenty thousand bandits and discovered that most of the dead were refugees falsely branded as outlaws. After confronting officer Chen Wenfan, Jia Huan took him into custody and learned that Xue Fu’s associate Leisurely Daoist might know more about the eunuch’s crimes.

• Jia Huan sent Scholar, Twin Whips, and Needle in Cotton to investigate the bandit suppression campaign through the Guard Station, Chengdu Prefecture, and Misty Rain Tower.
• All three sources reported that Xue Fu’s forces had supposedly killed twenty thousand bandits, leaving Jia Huan unable to find grounds to accuse him.
• Jia Huan studied the battle reports, identified Chen Wenfan as an officer who had participated in seven engagements, and went to question him at night.
• Chen Wenfan revealed that there had been fewer than fourteen hundred bandits and that the rest of the bodies belonged to refugees branded as bandits by Xue Fu’s trusted men.
• Chen Wenfan denied taking part in the refugee massacre but told Jia Huan that Xue Fu was close to a sorcerer named Leisurely Daoist.
• Jia Huan ordered Chen Wenfan to accompany him to prevent the information from leaking.

Jia Huan secured the Misty Rain Tower’s help in capturing Leisurely Daoist and interrogated him about Eunuch Xue’s crimes. The Daoist revealed horrific abuses and identified victims and evidence, while Jia Huan kept him imprisoned.

• Jia Huan learned that Leisurely Daoist served Overseer Xue and asked the Misty Rain Tower to help capture him.
• The Misty Rain Tower arranged for Abbess Jiuli and Jian Qiye to capture Leisurely Daoist and imprisoned him with his thirty-six disciples.
• Jia Huan had Twin Whips and Scholar kill several disciples to make Leisurely Daoist answer questions about Xue’s trip to Northern Liang.
• Leisurely Daoist confessed that he had told Xue to eat the brains of more than a thousand children to restore his manhood and had abducted girls for him.
• Leisurely Daoist’s disciples named victims and their locations, and he revealed that the children’s remains were hidden in a pond at Xue’s residence.
• Leisurely Daoist disclosed Xue’s connection to Meiniang’s family and offered to capture Xue if Jia Huan released him.

Jia Huan forced Chen Wenfan to move six thousand soldiers out of the way, then led eighteen hundred Embroidered Uniform Guards in a midnight assault on Xue Fu’s barracks. After breaking through the camp’s resistance, Jia Huan reached Xue Fu’s residence and began cutting down the eunuch’s personal guards.

• Jia Huan ordered Chen Wenfan to transfer six thousand soldiers and draw a map of the barracks, while warning him not to bring troops to assist.
• Jia Huan gathered his trusted men and ordered them to storm the barracks at midnight with eighteen hundred guards.
• After learning that Embroidered Uniform Guards were advancing, Xue Fu ordered his forces to treat them as bandits and hold them off.
• Jia Huan broke the first line of soldiers with his saber, and the Embroidered Uniform Guards forced their way into the barracks as the generals offered only token resistance.
• Jia Huan reached Xue Fu’s residence and ordered his men to kill anyone who stood in their way, then charged into the eunuch’s personal guards.

Jia Huan captured the Shuzhong Garrison Eunuch and uncovered evidence of his atrocities, then secretly questioned him before his execution. Xue Fu revealed that the Beiliang Governor-General had raped and murdered the Prince of Liang’s consort, leaving Jia Huan with explosive new intelligence.

• Jia Huan arrested Xue Fu, ordered the garrison residence searched, and discovered more than a thousand children’s skeletons in its pond.
• Jia Huan returned to the Capital with signed confessions and evidence, while Wang Ziteng failed to find grounds to accuse him of misconduct.
• Before Xue Fu’s execution, Jia Huan questioned him about his secret meeting with the Beiliang Governor-General six months earlier.
• Xue Fu revealed that an attendant from the Prince of Liang’s Mansion had accused the Beiliang Governor-General of raping and murdering the prince’s consort, and that Xue Fu had accepted two hundred thousand taels to keep quiet.
• Jia Huan left the prison with the new intelligence and told Scholar and Twin Whips that he had uncovered a major lead.

Jia Huan executed corrupt officials, gained a breakthrough in cultivation, and received a promotion to four python stripes. He then prepared to lead his men south to Jinling for the martial arts tournament and related intelligence operations.

• Jia Huan executed Xue Fu and the other prisoners in the Imperial Prison, then ordered Twin Whips to investigate Xue Fu’s former followers.
• Twin Whips brought in two eunuchs with signed confessions, and Jia Huan executed them, reaching the fifth level of the Profound Insight Realm.
• The Hunchbacked Old Man from Misty Rain Tower asked Jia Huan to set out, and Jia Huan assured him he would act after hearing about the promised reward.
• Lord Xie and Commissioner Ouyang delivered the emperor’s decree promoting Jia Huan, who accepted the four-python-stripe uniform.
• Jia Huan ordered his men to head south, told Scholar to withdraw the Northern Liang Spies and watch the Demon Sect, then led his unit from the Capital toward Jinling.

Jia Huan returned to the Lin Residence in Jinling, where he reunited with Concubine Zhao and learned that the Jiangnan Martial Arts Tournament on Peach Blossom Island was approaching. After handling Guard Station business and spending an intimate afternoon with Wang Xifeng and Ping'er, he took Lin Daiyu out for a night on the Qinhuai River, leaving her flustered by his increasingly outrageous advances.

• Jia Huan reunited with Concubine Zhao, accepted the thanks of her Misty Rain Tower escorts, and met Wang Xifeng, Lin Daiyu, Xue Baochai, Xue Baoqin, Shi Xiangyun, and Li Wan at the Lin Residence.
• Jia Huan reviewed and sealed the Jiangnan Guard Station documents for the Peach Blossom Island Martial Arts Tournament, while Thousand-Household Commander Zhuge assured him that the factions were keeping the peace.
• Wang Xifeng took Jia Huan to investigate trouble affecting their Jiangnan businesses, and she and Ping'er returned to the Lin Residence with him at dusk.
• Jia Huan took Lin Daiyu out as promised, and she asked to attend the Peach Blossom Island gathering with him.
• Jia Huan and Lin Daiyu wandered through Jinling, boarded a pleasure boat on the Qinhuai River, and shared an intimate night before he made another indecent suggestion that left her embarrassed and conflicted.

At Peach Blossom Island, the Central Plains’ top young martial artists faced foreign challengers, but Tuoba Li overwhelmed them and declared Northern Mang martial arts superior. As he surveyed the defeated crowd, an unseen speaker ordered him to shut up.

• The sect leaders discussed the Central Plains’ defeats and called on Zhang Wuya, Wufa, and An Xuan'er to defend its honor while Jia had not yet arrived.
• Concubine Zhao, Wang Xifeng, Lin Daiyu, and the other women watched from the eastern pavilion as Tuoba Li, Sute Wu, and Hosokawa challenged the Central Plains.
• An Xuan'er defeated Hosokawa, Zhang Wuya was carried away by Wudang’s leader, and Wufa left Sute Wu gravely wounded, giving the Central Plains two victories out of three.
• Tuoba Li revealed that he had reached the upper stage of the second level of the Profound Insight Realm, then defeated Wufa and An Xuan'er.
• Tuoba Li taunted the martial artists and proclaimed that Great Qian would one day honor Northern Mang martial arts, until a chilling voice told him to shut up.