"This humble Daoist priest, Zhou Wuji, greets Master Yin."
Zhou Wuji bowed respectfully, addressing the woman in blue as instructed by Wang Mingzhen.
The Yin Household ruled as emperors for hundreds of years, and their descendants multiplied, making Yin a prominent surname.
Surname alone is not enough to make a judgment. However, considering various other factors, it is sufficient to determine that the woman in blue is of royal lineage; if not a princess, she is at least a county princess.
A year or two ago, Zhou Wuji might have still shown some respect for members of the royal family.
After all, he is the supreme ruler who wields the Divine Artifact of the state, possessing unparalleled authority in this world.
A single word can make someone elevate them, or it can destroy them.
Even though Daoism and Buddhism are powerful, they still have to obey the emperor; they can't truly transcend the world.
Now, Zhou Wuji's thinking has truly changed; his main motivation is to continue winning and build strong self-confidence.
The woman in green was the princess, but she was only a Fifth Rank Qi Refining, and the two Fifth Rank guards were nothing special.
With the immense power to control the life and death of his opponents, Zhou Wuji naturally possessed great self-confidence.
In terms of calligraphy, literary talent, wisdom, and insight, how could the princess compare to him?
Therefore, Zhou Wuji appeared very calm and composed.
"I am deeply impressed by your calligraphy and poetry, and I admire you greatly. That is why I have taken the liberty of inviting Master Zhou here to learn from you in person. Please have a seat."
Yin Le returned the greeting with clasped hands. As she bowed, her wide sleeves slipped down, revealing a pair of fair hands as white as jade. She possessed both the generosity of a man and the gentle elegance of a woman.
She genuinely admired Zhou Wuji and wanted to learn from him, so she addressed him as "Master" instead of "Daoist".
Zhou Wuji was quite pleased to hear such politeness and courtesy from this person.
He's not much of a person, except he's very concerned about saving face.
Of course, he was never rude; he valued mutual respect.
Looking at Master Yin again, he became more and more handsome.
To be honest, Master Yin has beautiful features, especially his slightly curved bright eyes, which exude a gentle charm with an indescribable air of nobility.
She wore a gauze hat and a blue robe with a cross-collar, revealing a white collar underneath. Although she was dressed as a man, she stood gracefully like a lotus in water, unforgettable at first glance.
Zhou Wuji praised Master Yin in his heart, but he couldn't say it to his face.
After the two sides settled into their respective roles as host and guest, and waited for the maid to serve tea, Yin Le softly asked, "Master Daoist's calligraphy is quite unique, but I wonder..."
From which great calligrapher did it originate?
"I discovered the slender, strong characters in surviving calligraphy samples, and after much deliberation, I finally created the Slender Gold Script."
Zhou Wuji had no knowledge of calligraphy in this field, and such a mature script as the Slender Gold Script could not have appeared out of thin air.
Yin Le nodded slightly. Throughout history, there have been thousands of great calligraphers, and there are many schools of slender and hard fonts. Zhou Wuji's Slender Gold Script has reached its peak. It is spacious, upright, ethereal and graceful. It should be his own creation.
Yin Le offered a few words of praise, then humbly inquired about the specific brushstrokes of the Slender Gold Script calligraphy. Zhou Wuji, having nothing to hide, generously shared his brushwork techniques.
Wang Mingzhen wasn't very interested in calligraphy, and the two of them talked about calligraphy techniques in such a complicated and detailed way that she became drowsy listening to them.
But she didn't dare leave, and could only force herself to stay by her side.
Yin Le truly loves calligraphy. As they talked, she asked Zhou Wuji to demonstrate his skills on the spot, while she ground the ink.
Zhou Wuji remained polite, but seeing that Yin Le was very serious, he couldn't refuse any longer.
A green-clad figure holding an inkstone, a red-sleeved figure adding fragrance—this was precisely the elegant scene he loved most.
He has had many women around him all along, but Wuming is not the kind of person who pays attention to such things, Wuleng only likes to practice swordsmanship. As for other women, he has never had such a close relationship with them.
The apprentice, Yang Tie Ying, was only thinking about fighting and killing; he would never think of grinding ink for his apprentice. Even if Yang Tie Ying wanted to grind ink, he wouldn't...
use!
Zhou Wuji was secretly pleased and happy, but his face remained calm and composed as he earnestly explained the secrets of using the brush.
Wang Mingzhen, standing nearby, was somewhat apprehensive. She wanted to rush forward to help, but was afraid of offending the princess.
But looking at it this way, it seems quite unreasonable.
Fortunately, everyone in the room was family, so there was no fear of word getting out.
Wang Mingzhen then thought of another problem: what if Zhou Wuji went out and talked nonsense?
The princess grinding ink and washing brushes for him—if word got out, it would immediately cause a sensation throughout the land.
She made up her mind that she would warn Zhou Wuji when she went out later not to spread this matter to anyone!
Yin Le, however, was so engrossed in calligraphy that he didn't think about anything else.
As the sun began to set, Zhou Wuji, though he thoroughly enjoyed being a teacher, took his leave.
Yin Le then realized it was getting late, and not wanting to keep him, she personally saw Zhou Wuji out.
Wang Mingzhen escorted Zhou Wuji for several dozen steps until she could no longer see Yin Le. Then, with a cold face, she said to Zhou Wuji, "Daoist Zhou, Master Yin's status is extremely noble."
"What happened today must not be revealed to anyone. If even a whisper of it leaks out, not only will you be unable to bear the consequences, but your Jingyang Upper Court will also suffer."
I can't accept this!
Zhou Wuji said calmly, "Of course I wouldn't speak carelessly."
Wang Mingzhen originally wanted Zhou Wuji to make a vow, but when Zhou Wuji glanced at her, she felt uneasy and dared not say anything more.
When Zhou Wuji returned to his room, he saw Xie Lingyun sitting in a chair, idly flipping through his book.
"You're finally back!"
Xie Lingyun perked up when he saw Zhou Wuji return, and hurriedly asked, "What did they want with you? Did they give you any trouble?"
"They came to me to learn calligraphy, why would they make things difficult for me?" Zhou Wuji shook his head.
"Learn calligraphy?"
Xie Lingyun was somewhat puzzled. He knew Zhou Wuji's handwriting was beautiful, but did he really need to learn that?
"That woman in blue claimed her surname was Yin. Could she be a princess?" Zhou Wuji asked.
"Ah?!"
Xie Lingyun was genuinely surprised. After thinking for a moment, he said, "The Duke of Anyang's sister is an imperial concubine who gave birth to a daughter for the Emperor. She was bestowed the title of Princess Taihe and is said to be greatly favored by the Emperor."
"Could this be him?!"
Xie Lingyun's face turned ashen. " Wang Mingzhen is truly audacious!"
If nobody knows, fine; but if word gets out, who knows what kind of trouble it will cause.
If the princess were to have an accident while she was with him, it would be a catastrophe that would lead to the confiscation of her family's property and the extermination of her entire clan!
Zhou Wuji comforted her, "Since things have come to this, we can only pretend we don't know. I think this princess is gentle and refined, not the type to act recklessly."
They won't stay here for long.
Xie Lingyun was furious. "What the hell is this?!"
The next morning, Wang Mingzhen came to invite Zhou Wuji again.
Having had the experience of dealing with him yesterday, Yin Le felt more natural and relaxed when interacting with Zhou Wuji.
The two discussed calligraphy and poetry. Zhou Wuji didn't know much in these areas, but he had the advantage of having memories of his previous life, so he could also express his own insights and theories about poetry.
Yin Le was born into the royal family and received instruction from renowned teachers from a young age, making him far superior to Zhou Wuji in terms of literary cultivation.
She could tell at a glance that Zhou Wuji was self-taught and knew nothing about the basics, but he had the advantage of imaginative thinking, a unique and profound understanding of literature, and extremely high literary achievements!
In other words, although Zhou Wuji was a self-taught individual, he was an unparalleled genius who forged his own path single-handedly.
Yin Le felt that he had found a peerless genius, a kindred spirit, and even felt a sense of regret for not having met him sooner.
Unfortunately, Zhou Wuji was, after all, a man and a Daoist priest, so Zhou Wuji couldn't get too close to him.
She sighed inwardly, "There's nothing I can do but stay at Golden Sands Fort for a few more days—"
"The divine bird descended and gave birth to the Shang dynasty." These two lines alone are enough to show that mature four-character ancient poetry already existed during the Shang dynasty.
"As writing matured and its expressive methods became increasingly sophisticated and complex, five-character, six-character, and seven-character poems emerged, eventually progressing to long prose poems—"
"The development of writing also bears witness to the rise and fall of the Shang, Qin, Han, Zhou, Gao, and Wu dynasties—"
Yin Le was very knowledgeable in this area; she connected dynastic changes with written characters, explaining it very clearly and thoroughly.
" Master Yin is brilliant; the evolution of characters is a trace of history."
Zhou Wuji was greatly impressed, partly out of flattery and partly out of genuine admiration.
This woman was not very old, but she was indeed very knowledgeable.
"You flatter me, sir. My teacher told me all this; I never would have imagined it myself."
Yin Le shook her head, feeling somewhat ashamed. Her calligraphy and knowledge all came from her predecessors, and she had nothing of her own.
She said sincerely, "Sir, you truly have a unique and original style; you are a genius!"
Zhou Wuji waved his hand. "I was just guessing. My real skill is Swordsmanship."
He looked at the sword case in the corner and said, " Master Yin, there is Sword Qi flowing in this case, but I don't know what kind of divine sword it is. May I see it?"
"This sword is named Sky Silk, meaning 'transformed from the clear, flowing light of heaven,' and it is a Third Rank treasure sword."
As Yin Le spoke, he opened the sword case, took out a long sword, and handed it to Zhou Wuji, saying, "It's just a sword used for fighting; please feel free to admire it, sir."
Zhou Wuji took Sky Silk Sword with both hands.
This sword has a black wooden scabbard, blue-gold fittings, a swivel-shaped guard, a flat hilt, and a straight handle. The long, slender blade is straight and smooth, with only the guard slightly protruding.
The sword was drawn from its sheath; its blade was thin and long, clear as water and as lustrous as jade.
Zhou Wuji estimated that the sword blade was three feet seven inches long, the handle was eight inches long, and it weighed about twenty-seven pounds.
With a casual flick of the wrist, the sword light within the blade flowed and shifted like ripples on water, not dazzling, but rather becoming increasingly clear, bright, and translucent.
He flicked his finger lightly along the spine of the sword, and a deep, resonant sound emanated from it.
Yin Le didn't take it seriously, but the two female guards standing in the corner both sharpened their eyes.
As guards, they naturally knew that the Sky Silk Sword was made of special material and extremely sharp, capable of cutting through gold and iron as easily as cutting tofu.
Zhou Wuji merely flicked his finger, yet the blade deformed and vibrated, demonstrating the incredible strength of his fingers.
Sky Silk Sword is now in this person's hands. If he really turns hostile and attacks, they probably won't be able to withstand even one move.
Fortunately, Zhou Wuji had no intention of making a move. He admired the sword for a while, then sheathed it and put it directly into the sword box.
He exclaimed, "What a fine sword!"
Yin Le nodded in agreement, and then explained, "This sword was a gift from my father, so it has a special meaning."
She didn't actually care about swords; Third Rank sword was ultimately just an inanimate object. How could it compare to Zhou Wuji's extraordinary calligraphy?
Compared to poetry.
If this sword hadn't been a gift from her father, the Emperor, she would have given it directly to Mr. Zhou.
For this, Yin Le felt a little ashamed and uneasy. Mr. Zhou was her confidant, yet she couldn't bear to part with a sword.