Changsheng: Peak at the Beginning

Chapter 1814 Water Dragon's Chant 18

With a large influx of money, grain, and supplies into Sword King City, corruption was bound to arise. Jiang Xinxin did not have anyone she could completely trust, so she was unable to eliminate these corrupt officials in time. However, Wan Yuyuedan was a clever man. He had quite a few people working for Biluo Palace, and he even positioned himself as Jiang Xinxin's advisor and strategist from the beginning. Therefore, he took over the task of investigating corruption.

Wan Yuyuedan is blind, but what he can "see" is even more remarkable. He can see right into people's hearts and doesn't even need to check accounts. He can deal with anyone just by looking at them!

Whenever he had free time, Wan Yuyue could always find a suitable opportunity and excuse to get close to Jiang Xinxin. For example, while Tang Lizhi was busy investigating the whereabouts of the brothel, he came to Jiang Xinxin with great admiration.

Jiang Xinxin was checking the accounts when Wan Yuyuedan arrived with tea and snacks. In an instant, he moved closer to her, and before she could move away, he boasted, seemingly oblivious to everyone else, "I didn't understand before why Your Highness insisted on designating only the elderly, the infirm, and women to receive the rations. I thought that assigning cooking, washing, and sewing to women was already excellent—"

Jiang Xinxin finally got up and walked to the window, avoiding excessive closeness with Wan Yuyuedan. "Women living at the bottom of society are not even considered as human beings. They are property, as tools, but not as people. So only when they show some value can they live a little longer and avoid being harmed."

Wan Yuyue walked to Jiang Xinxin's side again. Even though he couldn't see what Jiang Xinxin looked like, and even though everything around Jiang Xinxin was just gray and white, the brightest and warmest golden yellow in the pale white was all the more attractive.

Wan Yuyue asked softly, with a hint of bewilderment, "Since Your Highness harbors such extraordinary ambitions, why are you unwilling to take control of the world? Shouldn't all your ambitions be easily realized after you sit on the throne?"

Jiang Xinxin turned her head and found that Wan Yuyuedan really wanted to know the answer to this question, so she was happy to help him: "You should know that some things are suitable to be done from the top down; while some things are only suitable to be started by a single spark. We must first let the vast majority of ordinary people see hope before there is any possibility of success."

"Moreover, shouting slogans loudly is not as meaningful as making people truly valuable."

Wan Yuyue stared intently at Jiang Xinxin. At that moment, he suddenly longed to regain his sight. He couldn't help but think that if his eyes were good, he would be able to see with his own eyes what kind of beauty this different soul was.

Then he heard himself bring up the old matter again: "Your Highness, it's time to make a decision about your marriage."

"You were only found and your identity restored in just six months, but for someone your age, six months is already the limit. You need to find a suitable consort as soon as possible..."

Jiang Xinxin glared helplessly at Wan Yuyuedan, "Even if it really comes down to a decision, my choice of husband can only be made by myself, and no one else can interfere."

Wan Yuyue couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, besides my eyes, what exactly are you dissatisfied with?"

"Was it because of my initial ambition to integrate the Wanyu clan's bloodline into the Dayong Dynasty, or because of me—"

Jiang Xinxin interrupted Wan Yuyuedan directly: "What are you talking about? It's just because I don't have any romantic feelings for you."

To be honest, Wan Yuyuedan was indeed a rare handsome man, even though he was blind. But even with such an obvious flaw, there were very few people who could rival him in terms of appearance and demeanor. In fact, if you take his intelligence and wealth into account, probably only a handful of the descendants of important court officials could barely compare.

Even though Jiang Xinxin didn't reject the arrival of love, she didn't develop any romantic feelings for him. Besides, this guy had blocked the only way for her to rise to power from the beginning, and she wouldn't become a tool for anyone to control power.

Wan Yuyuedan was a smart man. How could he not know that his previous statement, which was almost like choosing a ruler on behalf of Heaven, had already angered Jiang Xinxin and extinguished his last hope of taking the throne? But the moon has its phases. He was just a mortal who could glimpse the will of Heaven, not Heaven itself. How could he know the changes in the world?

As for Tang Lizhi, he had already cleared his name, and even the only possible connection he had with Yi Que Yin Yang was overlooked due to everyone's trust.

However, the present world of the Book of Rebirth has brought Fang Pingzhai, the down-on-his-luck master of the Thirteenth Floor, to the aid of the family. This Master Fang has gone so far as to disguise himself and join the Central Plains Sword Society, attempting to find a way to get close to Tang Lizhi.

Tang Lizhi was naturally a smart man. He had met the leader of the Thirteenth Floor a few times before. Moreover, he was an ally of Jiang Xinxin. Jiang Xinxin would not be stingy with information about matters in the martial arts world. Therefore, he naturally knew that the news that the downfall of the Thirteenth Floor was very likely from the former royal family.

Ultimately, the more important thing was to wipe out the brothel and avenge Fang Zhou and Liu Yan. So Tang Lizhi directly summoned Fang Pingzhai and questioned his purpose: "I once heard a friend say that the Thirteen Towers were established in the Central Plains even earlier than the founding of the Great Yong Dynasty. Therefore, I guess the Thirteen Towers originally belonged to the former imperial family."

"With such methods and resources, what exactly is your purpose in coming to our Central Plains Sword Gathering?"

Fang Pingzhai had no intention of openly confronting the Central Plains Sword Association, nor was he willing to sever ties with the Fengliu Inn. He was even more surprised that someone would guess the true origins of their Fallen Thirteenth Floor. He didn't bother with beating around the bush and said directly to Tang Lizhi, "I heard that Young Master Tang has a very powerful 'Rebirth Manual'. This skill can be described as reviving the dead and healing the wounded. I greatly admire it and hope that Young Master Tang will grant my request."

Tang Lizhi couldn't understand what gave Fang Pingzhai the confidence to come over and ask him for the "Rebirth Manual" so directly. Even though he knew from Fang Zhou that the "Rebirth Manual" was not the evil martial art that people were spreading rumors about, but that it did require a high level of mental discipline from the practitioner, he had long understood the principle that the teachings should not be passed on lightly.

Therefore, Tang Lizhi naturally refused: "You are joking, Master. Although the 'Rebirth Manual' is not considered evil, it has very high requirements for the aptitude and temperament of the cultivator. I have never thought of passing it on to outsiders easily."

Fang Pingzhai, however, was somewhat taken aback and directly brought up Liu Yan: "When Young Master Tang said that he would not easily pass it on to outsiders, did he mean that he would first teach it to Fang Zhou, the master of Zhoudi Tower, and then pass it on to his junior brother Liu Yan?"

"So that Young Master Tang may know that even though the Blissful Pavilion Master Liu Yan died at your hands, my Thirteenth Pavilion still has the ability to obtain the secrets held by Master Liu Yan!"

Tang Lizhi couldn't help but get angry: "I'm afraid that even if Master Fang is lucky enough to get the cultivation technique, he might not have the luck to actually practice it."