"Is the Shen Family very powerful?" Back at the manor, Chen Qing pulled Wei Gongcheng to inquire.
Wei Gongcheng immediately chuckled, "You didn't even know you'd detained them?"
"We can't lose face in front of everyone, especially that woman," Chen Qing said casually in front of Wei Gongcheng.
"Trying to show off in front of women?" Wei Gongcheng chuckled, sipping his tea. "Don't forget, you're His Majesty's chosen consort. You can't be eyeing other women!"
"Who says I can't have my eye on someone?" Chen Qing curled her lip. "Isn't there one in my courtyard right now?"
"Yours doesn't count, does it?" Wei Gongcheng said quietly. "Although I don't know her background, how could a woman like that be your concubine?" He paused and then added, "It's even less likely that she's Lord Mu's disciple. She's the most talented student in this year's Yin-Yang Academy, and she's very likely to be the first female academic administrator in our Great Jin."
Chen Qing rolled his eyes. "Do I look like the kind of person who can't move when he sees a woman?"
"To be honest, it's a bit..." Wei Gongcheng looked at Chen Qing with suspicion. "You seem to really like staring at women's legs. Chen Ying is a woman from the North, with excellent looks, but she has been unable to find a suitable husband in the capital because her legs are too long. Why do you seem to have a thing for that?"
Chen Qing was stunned. What kind of ridiculous aesthetic sense did the Great Jin have? Long legs were considered undesirable?
"That's not the reason..." Chen Qing was too lazy to continue arguing about aesthetics and said directly, " Mu Hongqing sent his student to probe my situation, so of course I can't show weakness. Nowadays in Liuzhou, the more you show weakness, the more people will be unable to resist taking action!"
"So you know about this too." Wei Gongcheng's smile faded as he asked, "What exactly are these door gods? Are they like that Mr. Bai from the palace?"
"More or less..." Chen Qing replied ambiguously.
"After hearing what Chen Ying said today, I realize that thing you released in South Mountain is even more extraordinary! You even openly displayed it to the Shen Family members. It would be strange if they didn't make a move. The Shen Family is not someone to be trifled with!"
"I've heard about it more than once," Chen Qing sighed. "Tell me, just how amazing is it?"
Wei Gongcheng chuckled and shook his head. Judging from the other party's appearance, he really didn't know anything, but he didn't hesitate to make a move. He really didn't know whether to call it decisive or reckless.
" The Shen Family is the foremost family of sorcerers in Jiangnan!"
"The generally accepted one?"
"Such things are naturally based on public recognition, not self-proclaimed ones," Wei Gongcheng rolled his eyes at the other man. "Before the Great Jin was established, the Central Plains were in utter chaos, but Jiangnan at that time was like a paradise on earth. The Shen Family deserves a lot of credit for this!"
"Oh?" Chen Qing became slightly serious upon hearing this. This sounded a bit audacious. In an era of warlord conflicts, to be able to create a paradise seemed a bit exaggerated.
"After the establishment of the dynasty, the Shen Family was invited by His Majesty, and Shen Yinian eventually came out of seclusion to assist the court, serving as Ministry of War." At this Wei Gongcheng said quietly, "This position is very sensitive."
Chen Qing nodded upon hearing this. The official system of the Great Jin was somewhat modeled after that of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The position of Xia Guan Ministry of War, who was also the Minister of War, was held by a civil official. In theory, he was in charge of the provisions of the troops stationed in various places, the troop movements, and the appointment of military officers. However, this was very troublesome in the current situation where military officials were dominant.
Food supplies are the lifeblood of an army, and the appointment of officers is a matter of personnel power. With both rights in the hands of civil officials, how could the military generals be willing to accept this? This position seems to have great authority, but it is a hot potato.
"But the one from the Shen Family actually managed to sit on the throne!" Wei Gongcheng said quietly. "Many forces contributed to this, including His Majesty, the Duke of Qin, and the sorcerer faction led by the Duke of Song. But the fundamental reason is that the Shen Family has the qualifications, the ability to sit firmly, and the power to maintain order!"
"Hiss..." Chen Qing gasped, "This sounds incredibly awesome..."
Wei Gongcheng was slightly taken aback. Had he spoken in a serious tone? The other party seemed to understand his meaning and even cooperated by adopting a serious demeanor, yet he couldn't hide the hint of disdain deep in his eyes...
In fact, Wei Gongcheng had noticed this a long time ago. This young man seemed to have this attitude towards many things, as if nothing in this world could truly surprise him.
"What do you plan to do?" Wei Gongcheng couldn't help but ask.
"Don't try to fool me!" Chen Qing said bluntly, "I am an official appointed by the imperial court, a marquis personally bestowed by His Majesty, and the future son-in-law of the emperor. I don't believe they would dare to openly do anything to me!"
Is this the source of their confidence?
Wei Gongcheng frowned, feeling that it didn't quite sound like the truth.
"Other members of the Shen Family might give you face because of your status, but unfortunately, the people you arrested are from the eldest branch of the family. Those who come looking for trouble probably won't care about your status."
"Oh?" Chen Qing was taken aback. "Then what's different about the eldest son's family?"
" The Shen Family has twelve direct descendants in this generation, all handpicked by the patriarch of the Shen Family. Each branch has its own unique magical practices. The patriarch of the eldest branch was the previous head of the Shen Family family, and his wife is a shaman from the north. That woman doesn't really follow the rules of the Central Plains, so you'd better be careful!"
"Shamans?" Chen Qing was stunned. "There are such things?"
"Actually, she's just a sorcerer from the North!" Wei Gongcheng laughed. "It's just that the Northern Yan likes to call sorcerers that. That woman's background is not simple; she's a sorcerer from a shamanic family with the Greedy Wolf Totem. This marriage was arranged by Old Master Shen himself on behalf of his eldest son, involving a transaction."
" Greedy Wolf?" Chen Qing immediately realized, one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits!
"Is the transaction part of the other party's Greedy Wolf Technique?" Chen Qing asked, squinting.
"Yes..." Wei Gongcheng nodded, "Like other powerful sorcerer families, the Shen Family has a tradition of collecting spells. The more powerful the spell, the more they want to inherit it for their family's lineage. Of course, the price they pay is also extremely high. Back then, the canal connecting Liuzhou to the north was built entirely by the Shen Family!"
"Wow, this is amazing..." Chen Qing exclaimed in surprise, "This must be a national project, right? Is the Shen Family that rich?"
"It's said that Old Master Shen himself made the connection!"
"Ha?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Qing's hand trembled as he held the teacup, nearly scalding himself with boiling water. Without even tidying himself up, he put the teacup down and asked, "How did you get through?"
"Nobody knows..." Wei Gongcheng shook his head. "Perhaps... it's some kind of technique?"
"Hehe..." Chen Qing rolled her eyes.
He and his partner designed the entire system of techniques for this world; they knew it by heart. They spent months fine-tuning the data. What ability could he possibly lack without knowledge?
Such power to move mountains and overturn seas is something that a human sorcerer could never possess, unless he has become a spirit.
But what if someone in this world became a spirit...?
According to my original plan, a certain version should have been activated directly, and the world would not be as peaceful as it is now!
Wei Gongcheng looked at Chen Qing curiously. "Judging from your expression, it seems you know what's going on?"
"Well..." Chen Qing frowned slightly, somewhat uncertain, and asked first, "How long has that old master of the Shen Family lived?"
When this topic was brought up, Wei Gongcheng's expression became somewhat strange. "There are many rumors, the most outrageous of which is that the old patriarch of the Shen Family was one of the imperial tutors during the reign of Xuanzong, and that he has lived for a thousand years!"
"Has he lived for a thousand years?" Chen Qing cracked his knuckles, a guess forming in his mind.
"You believe it?" Wei Gongcheng curiously.
"They can move mountains and overturn seas, what's there to disbelieve?" Chen Qing smiled. "Has anyone seen Old Master Shen?"
"It's said that..." Wei Gongcheng shook his head. "It's said that His Majesty wanted to see the old master of the Shen Family back then, but he couldn't."
"I see..."
"Does Your Excellency know something?" Wei Gongcheng became increasingly curious.
"Well... I'm not sure yet." Chen Qing smiled, but didn't give a definitive answer, only saying, "But I know a little bit."
The human race's lifespan is at most three hundred years. This was the limit I set for myself, and only those on the verge of becoming a Spirit Transformation cultivator can reach this lifespan. A thousand years is normally impossible.
But it's not entirely impossible. He remembered that in version 2.0, a warlock invented a method of immortality, which led to the emergence of the most popular warlock class at the time: the Dragon Transformation Art!
The method that players can come up with in just a few months is not impossible for the ancients of this world, who have studied magic for thousands of years, to come up with the same method.
But if the other party really is as I think... then the old patriarch of the Shen Family is probably not far from starting the next version.
That won't do!
A heavy look flashed in Chen Qing's eyes. He wasn't ready, and neither was the world. Once certain things were activated, neither he nor the world could withstand them!
"By the way... what about the woman?" Chen Qing didn't want Wei Gongcheng to suspect anything, so she changed the subject and asked.
Wei Gongcheng was also a perceptive person. Seeing that the other party was changing the subject, he cooperated and said, "Your beautiful concubine? She's been very well-behaved these past few days, going to sit in a small courtyard on South Street whenever she has nothing to do."
"The small courtyard..." Chen Qing frowned. "Is it the small courtyard about four hundred meters southeast of Master Huang?"
"You know?" Wei Gongcheng laughed. "I've seen you so busy these past few days, I thought you weren't paying attention to your beautiful, delicate concubine."
"Hehe..." Chen Qing rolled her eyes at the other party, but she was puzzled. That courtyard belonged to Cui Yan, so what was that fox spirit doing there every day?
"Your beautiful concubine meets with other men every day, and you know it but don't stop her?" Wei Gongcheng asked with a strange look, "Do you... have a special fetish for deliberately wearing cuckoldry?"
"Huh?" Chen Qing jumped up immediately. "An outsider? There's an outsider in that courtyard?"
"Yes..." Wei Gongcheng said with a smile, "So there are things even the Prefect doesn't know?"
Chen Qing was stunned for a long time, unable to react.
That shouldn't be the case...
The fox demon was under a spell and cannot attack ordinary people anymore, so how could she possibly go to meet with a stranger?
And in Cui Yan's old courtyard no less—was he looking for a thrill?
If you're looking for excitement, go find it within yourself, why seek it out from other men?
What does that man look like?
Seeing that the other party actually asked about the appearance of the man, Wei Gongcheng chuckled and said in a low voice, "Looks about the same as you, a refined scholar, um... better looking than you... oh no, much better looking than you."
"How could that be?" Chen Qing laughed angrily. "I was the village's most handsome guy back in the day, okay?"
Even though she came to Liuzhou to study, when it comes to good looks, only Cui... etc.!
A chilling possibility suddenly flashed through Chen Qing's mind, and she stared blankly at the other person again. "Is he about two inches taller than me, with a high nose bridge, skin as fair and delicate as a girl's, um... or almond-shaped eyes?"
"Huh? You know that, don't you?" Wei Gongcheng said with amusement, "Your friend?"
"I guess so..." Chen Qing's expression was inscrutable. After pausing for two seconds, she ran straight out of the hall.
There's no mistake, it's Cui Yan!!
Cui Yan is dead...
He was absolutely certain of that!
But then Cui Yan appeared again...
There's only one possibility then!!
Please read on and vote! Hehe.