At dusk, Ye Jingtang led his horse through the bustling streets and lanes of Cloud Peace City.
In the eighteen years since he had come to this world, Ye Jingtang had learned something of its circumstances.
Great Wei was divided into twelve provinces, its territory slightly smaller than that of the Tang at its height. Its ruler was an empress, but the geography was utterly unfamiliar. Some mountains and rivers shared familiar names, yet they were nothing like the lakes and seas he remembered from his previous life.
As for the state of the nation, Ye Jingtang thought it far from stable. Martial artists who refused to submit to authority were everywhere. In Southern Heaven, numerous enclaves relied on natural defenses to proclaim their own kings. Beyond Liangzhou's frontier, Northern Liang watched like a tiger eyeing its prey. Even the central plains were said to harbor plenty of forces with sinister intentions.
Ye Jingtang had always lived in Border Town, an impoverished, isolated frontier town. Hearing of all the undercurrents surging through the realm, he naturally assumed Great Wei could hardly be called prosperous or flourishing.
Only after actually arriving in the Capital City did he realize he had underestimated this world.
The Capital City was enormous. Fourteen main streets—eight running east to west and six north to south—branched into a thousand lanes. Its permanent population probably exceeded a million, and infrastructure such as drainage and greenery was remarkably complete. There were even blue-brick "walkways" along both sides of the main streets for pedestrians. It was essentially a sprawling metropolis without neon lights.
The drizzle had just stopped, and the weather was cool. Many people were strolling outside. Elegantly dressed young ladies and gentlemen walked along the streets, as did young wives and matrons holding children by the hand. Enticing aromas occasionally drifted from the roadside shops, along with vendors' cries:
"Authentic kiln-roasted chicken! A recipe passed down through generations, rich but never greasy..."
It was Niao Niao's first time on such a crowded street, and it was a little intimidated. It perched obediently on his shoulder, staring fixedly at the golden roast chickens and gently rubbing against Ye Jingtang's cheek.
"Chirp, chirp~"
Ye Jingtang stopped and took two taels of loose silver from his sleeve to inspect them. This was everything he owned, the pocket money left over from his days as the escort agency's young master. He had kept not a single coin of the family fortune, giving it all to the Pei family.
With two taels of loose silver, renting a residence in the bustling Capital City was out of the question. Even staying at a cheap inn and paying only for food and drink, he probably would not last many days.
That morning, he had still been a wealthy young man worth a million; by dusk, he was a penniless wanderer with nothing but a breeze in his sleeves. Such dizzying rises and falls inevitably stirred his feelings.
Still, however hard life became, Niao Niao must not suffer. As a strapping man, he ought to think about making money, not pinching pennies.
Ye Jingtang reached up to rub Niao Niao, then went to the roast-chicken shop by the street. He bought a chicken, had it chopped up, and casually asked:
"Shopkeeper, where do outsiders usually go to find work when they come to the Capital City?"
"Oh my! A young hero as handsome as you must come from a distinguished family. Asking someone like me is far too flattering... Plenty of outsiders come to the Capital City. When newcomers need somewhere to get started, they usually go to the Jade Resonance Tower in the east of the city. The wealthy households recruit managers, guards, and private secretaries there. As long as something catches your eye, finding work should be easy..."
"Thank you."
"You're too kind, young hero. Here you are. Take care..."
With the roast chicken in hand, Ye Jingtang went to a small tavern and ordered some wine and dishes. After he and Niao Niao feasted to their hearts' content, he reached the Jade Resonance Tower in the west of the city just as the sun sank behind the hills.
Cloud Peace City never slept. Before the sky had even darkened, lights already filled the streets, and there were even more pedestrians than during the day.
Ye Jingtang dismounted near the Jade Resonance Tower and wandered along the street. On the way, he passed a large government office whose gates and walls were all painted black. No plaque hung above its entrance.
At first, he assumed it was some obscure government department. Only after asking around did he learn that this was the Black Bureau, whose name thundered through the martial world. Its function was roughly equivalent to the Six Gates, and its six chief constables were collectively known as the Black Bureau Six Fiends. Martial artists lost their nerve at the mere mention of them.
Escort work was a quintessential martial-world profession. Its practitioners feared not bandit kings blocking the road, but officials draped in tiger skins setting up checkpoints.
Out of professional habit, once Ye Jingtang realized he had reached the gates of the "Hall of the King of Hell," he immediately took a detour and headed for the streets where employers sought talented recruits.
Great Wei did not prohibit weapons, so people carrying blades and spears were everywhere. However, they had to follow the rule of "blades sheathed, bows unstrung." Anyone casually flashing steel faced fifteen days in custody and a fine of five thousand copper coins.
Ye Jingtang knew the rules. The blade passed down to him by his adoptive father hung at his waist, concealed beneath his outer robe so as not to alarm anyone.
But although he took care not to bother others, he could not prevent those without eyes from bothering him.
As Ye Jingtang wandered down the street leading his horse, he suddenly heard a voice behind him:
"Hm?"
Something shifted at his waist. Someone had reached from behind for the hilt of his blade!
A blade was an escort's livelihood and lifeline. Once someone took it, his life was usually forfeit. To cultivate a warrior's "instinct," his adoptive father had often "stolen his blade" when Ye Jingtang was young. He had lost count of the savage beatings he had suffered.
The instant he felt movement at his waist, Ye Jingtang's left hand was already rising.
Clang-
On the brightly lit street, cold steel flashed!
The pedestrians behind him had been casually looking his way. They never expected a silver dragon to burst forth, sweeping a crescent of cold light through the night.
The street instantly fell deathly silent.
Startled by the sound of a blade leaving its sheath, everyone turned at once.
In the middle of the crowded street stood a young bladesman in black, holding an old blade in a reverse grip.
The blade was three feet three inches long and two and a half fingers wide, with a straight edge and a hilt wrapped in black cord. Its brass guard and pommel ring were both carved with hornless dragons.
The blade was not smooth as a mirror. Fine scratches densely covered its forward half. Anyone with a discerning eye could tell at a glance how many storms of the martial world this old blade had weathered!
Now its edge rested motionless against the right side of the neck of the man behind him.
That man was slightly bent forward, his left hand bracing his scabbard, his own blade drawn barely half an inch. His entire body was rigid and his face deathly pale. A bead of sweat rolled from his forehead.
Drip-
Tiny though the bead of sweat was, its sound could be heard throughout the street.
The onlookers stared in astonishment, stunned both by Ye Jingtang's lightning-fast skill and by his audacity.
"This kid..."
"Fine skills... shame about his eyesight..."
Having someone reach for his blade from behind sent Ye Jingtang's sharp brows shooting up in anger. But the moment he clearly saw the figure behind him, his anger froze. He swiftly sheathed his blade and cupped his hands.
"Sir, this was a misunderstanding. Please forgive me."
He apologized so quickly not because the man behind him was particularly formidable, but because he wore a dark blue-black robe and a gauze hat, with an iron feather hanging at his waist-the signature equipment of a Black Bureau constable.
Unlike ordinary constables, the Black Bureau dealt exclusively with martial artists. They had the authority to arrest and interrogate people without prior inquiry and, when necessary, execute first and report afterward. No one in the martial world failed to fear them.
The constable behind him looked to be in his early thirties, slightly plump and bearded.
Having taken a stroll past the gates of death, the constable wiped the sweat from his forehead. Outmatched and in the wrong, he returned the salute when he saw Ye Jingtang being courteous.
"Fine skills. I misjudged you just now. I'm Wang Chihu, a company officer of the Black Bureau. That's a good blade you have, young brother. Looks like it's killed quite a few people. Your skills certainly do it justice."
Faced with the constable's suspicions, Ye Jingtang answered calmly:
"My name is Ye Jingtang, from Liangzhou. My family ran an escort agency. My father left me this blade. Traveling north and south, a few knocks and scrapes were inevitable."
As he spoke, he took out the Registry Token issued by his hometown's government office. His birthplace, occupation, and age were plainly recorded on it, along with the prefectural office's stamp.
Wang Chihu took the Registry Token and examined it. After confirming that it did not appear forged, his expression softened somewhat.
"I never imagined a fine prospect like you could come from Liangzhou's impoverished backwaters. No wonder people say deep mountains nurture splendid birds..."
"Chirp~"
Niao Niao, perched on Ye Jingtang's shoulder, brightened.
Only then did Wang Chihu notice the bird sitting on Ye Jingtang's shoulder. He blinked.
"Oh! That's a clever bird. You often see people roaming the martial world with hawks, dogs, or parrots, but with... what exactly is that thing?"
"A bird from beyond the frontier. A kind of hawk, I suppose. Hmm... a fat-headed hawk."
"If you hadn't told me, I'd have thought it was a fat chicken without a neck. Doesn't look like it can fly very high..."
"Chirp!"
Ye Jingtang held down the bristling Niao Niao. As they chatted, he walked with Wang Chihu toward a teahouse beside the street.
"Did you need something from me, sir?"
"Brother Ye, you're an escort captain. Are you here to recruit escorts or find work?"
"To find work. Could it be that you want to recruit me into the Black Bureau, Official Wang?"
Wang Chihu shook his head. "Being a constable is a lowly trade. It may look impressive, but take off this uniform and everyone wants a piece of you. You're young and skilled. Having you work in the Black Bureau would only hold back your future. I invited you over for a seat to point you toward a road to wealth and honor."
"Oh?"
Seeing how candid Wang Chihu was, Ye Jingtang warmed to him somewhat and said with a smile:
"I'm all ears."
Wang Chihu cupped his hands toward the imperial city at the far end of their view.
"Her Majesty intends to choose a husband for Prince Jing. And I noticed you're quite a handsome lad..."
?
Ye Jingtang's smile froze.
He knew something about the court. The reigning empress was said to be domineering and harsh. Originally, she had only served as regent, but after propping up the great edifice as it teetered on the brink of collapse, she had simply deposed her elder brother and taken the throne herself. Not only had she become emperor, she had also broken precedent by making her younger full sister a prince.
When it came to the men of an empress or a female prince, the first thing Ye Jingtang thought of was a "male favorite." He was very confident in his qualifications for that profession, but had absolutely no interest in it.
"Thank you for the advice, Official Wang, but I'm already married. A wife who shared poverty must never be cast out..."
"Prince Jing admires martial prowess. If she truly takes a fancy to your looks and skills, why would she mind another pair of chopsticks at home? Your refusal to abandon your first wife might even make her admire you more."
"?"
Ye Jingtang knew that being a male favorite might mean being "passed around" by the empress, the female prince, or even the empress dowager.
But this was the first time he had heard of becoming a male favorite with a wife in tow.
"From your tone, Official Wang, could it be that you know Prince Jing?"
A hint of pride flashed in Wang Chihu's eyes as he gestured toward the Black Bureau in the distance.
"Prince Jing is Her Majesty's right hand. The Black Bureau falls outside the six ministries and has been assigned to Prince Jing's personal guard. Even our monthly pay comes from Prince Jing's Manor. Naturally, I know her. Leaving aside her status, just consider her martial arts. Prince Jing's master is the Imperial Preceptor, Perfected Person Xuanji. You look like a fine prospect for martial training. If Prince Jing favors you and puts in a word on your behalf, you could ascend to heaven in a single step on the martial path. Are you sure you won't try your luck and win yourself a smooth road for life?"
Ye Jingtang had long heard of Perfected Person Xuanji. She was a senior martial aunt of Jade Void Mountain and the junior martial sister of Lü Taiqing, one of the Two Sages. Ranked sixth in the world herself, she could be considered the strongest woman under heaven.
Although Ye Jingtang yearned to meet extraordinary martial figures and wanted to enter the palace to dig up the Dragon-Mingling Diagram, he had not sunk to the point of selling his looks to achieve his goals.
"I'm just a wanderer of the martial world, a rough fellow from the wilds. How could I be blessed with such good fortune..."
"Ah, I only told you because I think you have a good chance. With a little luck, you could save yourself sixty years of detours..."
As Ye Jingtang chatted with the constable in the teahouse, their location happened to be visible from the top of the distant Jade Resonance Tower.
The Black Bureau had existed since the nation's founding as the sovereign's personal guard. After the empress ascended the throne, it was assigned to Prince Jing. Because the Green Bandits had repeatedly attempted to assassinate members of the imperial family, its headquarters had also been moved outside Prince Jing's Manor.
The Jade Resonance Tower stood in the garden behind Prince Jing's Manor. Five stories high, it rose above the palace walls—a blatant breach of hierarchy. It was for this reason that the common people called this district the Jade Resonance Tower.
As the sky gradually darkened, the Jade Resonance Tower blazed with light. Outside the study on its top floor, Dongfang Liren stood on the terrace in a silver python robe, her hair secured beneath a jade crown. A painting table stood before her. Holding a gold brush, she sketched the eyebrows of a handsome man on the paper.
"I sent Wang Chihu to ask about his family background. I didn't expect him to have such decent skills... That stroke just now somewhat resembled the opening stance of the Eight-Step Mad Blade. Could he be Zheng Feng's disciple?"
Behind Dongfang Liren stood an old woman whose white hair reached the ground. Her figure seemed insubstantial, like a shadow standing at Dongfang Liren's back.
"I saw Zheng Feng in my younger days. His attacks weren't this light. This young man seems to have good natural potential, but he has form without force. Most likely, the similarity in his technique was just a coincidence."
"They say Zheng Feng's master, Mad Fangzi, stole the Dragon-Mingling Diagram from the palace back then. If this young man knows the Eight-Step Mad Blade, he must have some connection to that affair..."
The white-haired old woman asked, "Shall we send someone to test him?"
Dongfang Liren considered briefly, then shook her head. "A rumor from the martial world before the nation's founding isn't worth raising such a storm over. Investigate his background first. If his origins are clean, once the portrait is finished, send it to Her Majesty for a look. With such handsome features, he might please her."
"As you command."
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